History Characters / QuestionableContent

* NoSocialSkills: {{Downplayed|Trope}}, she is [[AmbiguousDisorder not especially emotive and has difficulty reading people.]] She seems to have good insight when she can understand what someone is feeling, but [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3776 she admits they have to be really obvious about it for her to pick up on that.]] She later mentions she's autistic.

* InnocentFanserviceGirl: Appears to be this, cheerfully conducting a job interview while naked while a clothed human janitor mops up in the background.

* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: One of the ways she tries to persuade Marten to hear her out about why Claire shouldn't take the Librarian job is by offering him one of her arms.

* TheArtifact: Quite literally with his original chassis. At the start of the comic, the concept of AI was relegated solely to personal companions like Pintsize and Momo, but that was steadily retconned until AI existed primarily in more humanoid chassis. Pintsize eventually was the only major AI character to remain in his original Anthro-PC chassis. [[spoiler: He does eventually purchase and transfer into a humanoid body. While he initially states it was just a prank, he chooses not to return to his original body, putting the concept of Anthro-PCs to rest.]]

* TheArtifact: Quite literally with his original chassis. At the start of the comic, the concept of AI was relegated solely to personal companions like Pintsize and Momo, but that was steadily retconned until AI existed primarily in more humanoid chassis. Pintsize eventually was the only major AI character to remain in his original AnthroPC chassis. [[spoiler: He does eventually purchase and transfer into a humanoid body. While he initially states it was just a prank, he chooses not to return to his original body, putting the concept of AnthroPCs to rest.]]

* AmusingInjuries: Frequently on the receiving end of abuse, typically getting his head smashed in, for which he suffers no long-term ill effects. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] because his chassis is military-grade surplus, and thus designed to be durable and easily reparable, and he lives with Faye, a skilled metallurgist and later mechanic who can easily repair A.I. chassises. [[spoiler:This has gone away since he received a (non-military) humanoid body.]]

* TheArtifact: Quite literally with his chassis. Of the main AI characters, Pintsize hasn't elected to get a more humanoid shell like Momo and Winslow have. He's happy the way he is, and feels being more humanoid would make people project more responsibility on him than he wants.
** Finally averted with [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4531 this comic.]]
* BarbieDollAnatomy: [[spoiler:Played straight with his new humanoid body, and he is perfectly happy with that fact when he actually checks.]]
* BunnyEarsLawyer: Despite all his many...quirks, he is actually quite good at his job. He's arguably the most insightful AI companion of the cast, even if he doesn't act like it. Among other things, he helps Faye find a job in robot repair after Dora fires her for drinking on the job, where she meets Bubbles. He also helps out Claire when she's stressed about her exams, and admonishes Marten for not noticing Claire was having a hard time and needs his support. But because this is Pintsize, he emphasises this last bit by smacking Marten with a giant purple dildo named "Ursula" (and then once more for giggles).

* NeatFreak: When she's getting acquainted with Marten and Faye, they realize she's the neighbour who housecleans at night. As her SuperOCD becomes more manageable, she gets better about tolerating minor uncleanliness, but is still the cast's go-to when there's a mess that requires expert attention.

* SuperOCD: Obsessed with [[NeatFreak cleanliness]] and counting, and is ''very'' good at both. {{Deconstructed|Trope}} with the major difficulties it's caused her -- she spent much of her childhood heavily medicated on a space station, had a lot of trouble acclimating to life on Earth and forming personal relationships, and still can't date and struggles with mundane tasks because they trigger her OCD. Years of work have made it much more manageable, though. [[spoiler: After a year of travelling the world and making herself useful, including a week of tending the latrines of a monastery, she's got this much more under control.]]

[[folder:Ellen]]

Steve's former girlfriend, an eighteen-year-old philosophy/marine biology major.
----
* PutOnABus: When she broke up with Steve.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Scott]]

Marten's first boss.
----
* BenevolentBoss: He waits around to tell Marten personally that he (and the rest of the department) had been laid off until Marten got back from sick leave. On that note, letting Marten go on sick leave from nothing but a call from Miss Vance probably qualifies him.
* INeedAFreakingDrink: "The Company Therapist" is the nickname he gives to the bottle of bourbon he keeps in his desk. [[BenevolentBoss He happily shares it with Martin]].
* StraightGay: Other than mentioning his boyfriend, you'd never notice.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Jimbo]]

A trucker-looking barfly who writes romance novels.
----
* TheAlcoholic: He's always drunk, and only seen outside a bar ''once''.
* PurpleProse: His writing is described as "florid and overwrought", taken up to StylisticSuck levels. It is responsible for the success of his novels due to the SoBadItsGood appeal of them.
* RealMenWearPink: A stereotypical redneck who happens to be a successful romance novelist.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Dr. Corrine Buenvenida]]
Faye's therapist at Hannelore's recommendation.
----
* DeadpanSnarker: She psychs out Faye with promise of a lobotomy, and later shows Faye a "Rorschach test" reading "No sarcasm, please".
* ThereAreNoTherapists: Directly averts this. She's genuinely helpful to Faye and does her job well.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Lydia]]

Sven's "intern." She's supposed to be learning the tricks of songwriting from him, but instead she's turned into sort of a lab wretch.
----
* TheConscience: She guilts Steve into telling Faye that he slept with Gina Riversmith.
* PutOnABus: She hasn't been seen in ages, possibly because summer arrived in the comic, meaning her "internship" ended with the school year.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Yay Newfriend/"Spookybot"]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/spookybot_qc.jpg]]
A "sympathetic party" of an AI who offers to help Bubbles with her memory-encryption problems. Despite their offer, they don't seem to be exactly nice. Subsequently takes an interest in Roko, seemingly trying to make friends with her, though their actual intent is unclear.
----
* AerithAndBob: Their pet greyhounds are apparently named Azathoth and Mr. Smooches. When questioned on the latter's "off-brand" name, they insist that one doesn't just ''change'' a dog's name.
* AmbiguousGender: They describe themselves as "gender noncommittal" and self-identify with ''plural'' pronouns. [[spoiler:This is not accidental -- they have multiple bodies/chassis.]]
* AppropriatedAppellation: When Roko tries to introduce them to Melon, they give their name as "[[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4042 Yay Newfriend]]", based on what Melon ''just'' said. Melon being Melon, she doesn't notice.
* BadassBoast: In their very first appearance:
-->"You know that old adage of how androids dream of electric sheep? We're what wakes them up screaming."
* BadassInANiceSuit: Their outfit is rather business-casual, they have powerful connections, [[spoiler:they dismantled the robot fighting ring in the course of ''one comic'' (and then replaced it with a legal duplicate just as quickly)]] and they can incapacitate humans and [=AIs=] alike with a touch.
* BlackAndGrayMorality: Their morality, like everything else about them, is ambiguous at best. However, they placed themselves in Bubbles' situation in direct opposition to Corpse Witch, who is unquestionably villainous. They also seemed genuinely regretful that their efforts weren't of more help, and reveal to Corpse Witch that [[spoiler:deleting an AI's memories and replacing them with kill-codes violates one of the few moral principles they have]]. This gets elaborated later:
-->'''Spookybot''': Miss Basilisk, we ... ''struggle'' with the concept of ethics. It can seem a bit pointless when one is as powerful as we are. If there were one principle we could be said to stand for, it's that the sanctity of the mind must never be violated. Not even for benevolent reasons.
* CharacterDevelopment: Try to imagine "Spookybot", as they first appear, being embarrassed about ''anything'', least of all how much of a jerk they're coming across as, which they positively seem to ''revel'' in. In attempting to maintain their friendships with Roko and Aurelia they get embarrassed all the time, and when they're reminded of their first appearance, they feel so self-conscious about the Sinister Omnipotent AI routine that they awkwardly downplay the actual good they did.
** Justified in that when Yay is younger than the other [=AIs=] in the comic and therefore, in their earliest appearances, far less used to being around humans. It seems that interacting with humans tends to make [=AIs=] learn human traits such as shame and embarrassment (which serve a useful function insofar as they deter people from behaving in selfish and anti-social ways) and so Yay is now aware of how they came across to the humans (in Faye's words, as a "smug dickhead") and is not so proud of it.
* CreepyGood: While nearly everything about them is otherworldly and unnerving (at first; see above under CharacterDevelopment), they have (mostly) done good in their limited time onscreen, [[spoiler:even taking the time to comfort Bubbles over the loss of her memories before departing to deal with Corpse Witch]]. Also, despite indications of them possessing great and terrible power, most interactions they have with the cast have been respectful. And really, they can't be ''that'' bad if they have dogs and are very fond of Elliott's cat Hercules. On the other hand, they do have ongoing issues with remotely snooping on other characters.
* DamnedByFaintPraise: Find themselves on the receiving end while attempting to one-up Elliot's "bouncer mode" by displaying their [[RedEyesTakeWarning crazy-eyed]] [[SlasherSmile crazy-smiled]] routine.
--> '''Elliot:''' Ooh, very nice! That was almost a little scary!
--> '''Yay:''' Almost? ''A little?!''
* DeusExMachina: [[JustForPun No pun intended]]. They show up just as the full depth of Bubbles' troubles are revealed, tidy everything up, collect an eavesdropped "thank-you", and depart, taking a few hundred strips to make their next appearance.
* EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette: They have black hair and faintly bluish off-white skin, which accentuate the creepier aspects of their demeanor and likely contributed to Faye's nickname for them.
* EveryoneHasStandards: Despite claiming to be something that makes [=AIs=] "wake up screaming", they admit to finding the direct editing of an AI's consciousness "unnerving"... But not so much that they won't conscript Emily into doing it ''for'' them, with materials they had conveniently on hand. Their whole sojourn to help Bubbles is also because "sanctity of mind" is one of the few moral principles they care for, and Corpse Witch violated Bubbles'. They go so far as to call Witch a "[[PrecisionFStrike filthy little brainfucker]]". A throwaway line also states that they pride themselves on being truthful.
* TheFettered: They admit that the concept of ethics "can seem a bit pointless when one is as powerful as we are", but try to adhere to certain guidelines, one of which is to respect others' sanctity of mind, and being truthful is apparently a point of pride. On a less serious note, Mr. Smooches was apparently named thus before they adopted him, and they refused to change it afterwards because changing a dog's name is simply not done.
* FluffyTheTerrible: They seem to have genuinely latched onto their AppropriatedAppelation, so now we have an enigmatic and frighteningly powerful AI named... Yay. Yay Newfriend.
** Lampshaded when Bubbles find out. Faye points out she's not really in a position to judge.
* AFormYouAreComfortableWith: While they themselves might also be an example [[spoiler: given that they typically only interact with others one chassis at a time despite never denying their nature as a HiveMind]], the consciousness-editing interface they provide for Emily translates the insides of Bubbles' mind into easily understandable images; the "default" area is an [[{{Bizarrchitecture}} impossibly tall room]] with doors sticking out of the walls that represent various blocks of data, the search engine is a map, the encrypted section is a door with a large lock, the decryption program is a "comically oversized key", [[spoiler: whatever contingency plan Corpse Witch left behind is a giant monster, the program to delete that is a pop-gun, and the space where the deleted memories once were is an empty room]].
-->'''Faye:''' [[LampshadeHanging A little on the nose, isn't it?]]\\
'''Spookybot:''' When ''you'' create an immersive virtual environment and an incomprehensibly powerful decryption algorithm, you can make them look however you want.
* HeroesLoveDogs: Are revealed to have a pair of dogs at their apparent personal residence.
* HiddenDepths: It comes to pass that the reason Yay acts like that stems from [[spoiler:being self-conscious about their age and overcompensating with the "Smug All-Powerful Jackass" routine]].
* HiveMind: [[spoiler:They have more than one body, but each body is identical.]]
* HyperAwareness: Perceiving activity across a very long range of human-and-otherwise perceptual scopes is as endemic to Yay as the natural senses (IE: sight, hearing, etc) are to humans. They can't ''not'' casually eavesdrop, even wirelessly through computer networks.
* {{Irony}}: They're a non''binary'' AI.
* [[ItAmusedMe It Amused Us]]: They promise to help Bubbles with no strings attached, saying that it was for their own personal satisfaction.
* ItsAllAboutMe: As noted, they do help people, but if they ''really'' want something (usually meeting other people's pets) and they are even mildly thwarted, they tend to get snippy and pushy.
* {{Jerkass}}: And not unhappy about it.
--> '''Faye:''' You're a fucking ''asshole''.\\
'''Spookybot:''' Indisputably.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Despite fully qualifying as a {{Jerkass}}, they offer Bubbles a way to regain her memory while asking absolutely nothing in return (they did it out of [[EveryoneHasStandards moral indignation]] over the whole affair), and when it turns out [[spoiler:Corpse Witch simply deleted the memories instead of encrypting them]], they gently and kindly remind Bubbles that [[YouAreNotAlone she has support from her friends]] before leaving. Not only that, but while dismantling the fighting ring, [[spoiler:they establish a legal version to replace it]]. Additionally, when Roko quits the police force, they express concern (in their own condescending way) and wish her luck in her endeavors, and later show up to see how she is [[spoiler: after her accident]]. Plus, they have dogs! So that's nice.
* LineOfSightName: A rare ''verbal'' example, given that Melon had literally ''just said'' "Yay! New friend!" before they introduced themselves as such. [[TheDitz Melon doesn't notice]].
* MeaningfulEcho: In their introductory strip, Jeph's comment is a sarcastic "they seem nice!" When they leave after some heartfelt encouragement, the comment from Jeph is a more genuine "They seemed nice."
* MysteriousPast: Where they came from, how they came to be, and how they achieved their power is a complete mystery: many characters have speculated on it, and it's implied that Bubbles has a better idea that most, but the specifics are a total blank. The only word from Yay on the matter is that YouDoNOTWantToKnow.
* TheNameless: Initially, "Spookybot" is just a nickname; they have [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4037 no proper name.]] They call themselves "Yay Newfriend" shortly after, which they decide to stick with. They also decide that "Yay" is short for "Yaaaaaaaay".
* NatureLovingRobot: They have a pair of dogs, and have an immediate change of heart about visiting Elliot's apartment when they hear that he has a cat.
* NoSell: Falls victim to this when showing off their scary face for Elliot, who reacts more amused than intimidated. Elliot points out that it's hard to find them terrifying when they've just been playing with his cat Hercules for twenty minutes.
* NoSocialSkills: No, ''really''. Swanning about and showing off how smug and all-powerful they are is one thing, but put them in the situation of having to admit that [[spoiler: they want to be friends]]? All of a sudden the smug all-powerful AI is tripping over their words just to avoid ''saying'' it.
-->'''Roko:''' Oh my god. You've never done this before. You've never [[spoiler: ''made'' a friend]], have you?
* NotSoAboveItAll: Snarky super-AI they might be, but they studiously avoid overtly saying that they kind of want to [[spoiler:be friends with Roko]].
** [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4235 When they meet Elliot's cat Hercules]] they're outwardly impassive. A cutaway to [[spoiler:their other bodies]] shows them [[CutenessProximity cooing over him]] in private.
-->'''Melon''': Isn't he the ''best''?\\
'''Yay''': This cat is... adequate. We suppose.\\
[[spoiler:'''Other Bodies''']]: HERCULES. HERCULES! HERCULEEEEEES.
** They actively eavesdrop on Bubbles and Faye after finding out about [[spoiler:their possible relationship troubles.]] The subtitle implies that they want to make sure things end up okay between them.
** Yay gladly shares dog pictures with Faye after confirming things are still good between her and Bubbles.
** They are no more immune to Aurelia's "Mom Vibes" than anyone else, resulting in ''instant'' mortification when Marten guesses that the two met through a dating site.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: They don't even offer up an alias. They introduce themselves as "a sympathetic party" [[spoiler:which is appropriate considering that there's more than one of them]], and Jeph only calls them "Spookybot" in commentary. This is subverted shortly afterward when Faye refers to them as such, canonically establishing itself as one of their nicknames. Later on they state that they've never actually ''had'' a name, before latching onto Melon's declaration of "Yay new friend!" as an actual moniker.
* AnOfferYouCantRefuse: When they catch up to Corpse Witch after Bubbles spares her, Yay is inspired by Bubbles' mercy, and give Witch two options: 1.) Turn herself in to the authorities, confess to her crimes, and completely submit to her sentence, whatever that might be. 2.) Go with Yay's original plan and become their new chewtoy, [[NothingIsScarier and they subject her to a nice off-panel involuntary sample.]]
* PaintingTheMedium: Unlike other [=AIs=], they have human-style speech bubbles, which might be an indicator that they're running on much better hardware.
* PayEvilUntoEvil: Downplayed. [[spoiler: They've got it in for Corpse Witch ''bad'' for what she did to Bubbles, but after seeing Bubbles spare Corpse Witch, they offer her the opportunity to either turn herself in and confess... or spend eternity in their "tender mercies".]]
* PowerIncontinence: The whole "eavesdropping" thing. On the one hand, Yay is naturally a snoop and likes to know what everyone is up to, likely as a result of their attempts to keep a low profile, and pulling up a person's entire online history is no large feat for them. On the other hand, Yay apparently has access to extremely powerful sensorium that they cannot simply "turn off", which was never a problem for them when they weren't actually forming lasting personal relationships with people and Roko wasn't chastising them for being a snoop.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: One of their most striking features, and with cat-like pupils to boot.
* TheRoyalWe: Initially seems as such, but {{subverted|Trope}} in that [[spoiler:they actually inhabit multiple chassis.]] {{Discussed|Trope}} further [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4041 here.]]
* ShoutOut:
** Their introduction has them making one to ''Literature/DoAndroidsDreamOfElectricSheep'', saying that they are the ones who make them wake up screaming.
** The incredibly powerful and morally grey AI calling itself by a sentence that sounds ironically harmless is apparently one to ''Literature/TheCulture''.
** It may just be a coincidence on account of them both being an EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette and both being, in the one case, "gender non-committal" and in the other case an androgynous shapeshifting personification which is neither male nor female, but Yay does look a bit like Desire from ''ComicBook/TheSandman1989''.
* SingleTargetSexuality: May have this with regard to Roko. In a drawing that Jeph produced of all the robots in the strip dancing, all of them except Yay and Roko are dancing away with their eyes closed, but Yay is shimmying up with their back close to Roko's, and winking at her. Roko for her part looks slightly worried.
** In a later strip, Roko is working on a case for her non-profit that involves fighting a local firm. Yay asks if they can dig up some dirt on the firm to give Roko leverage, and Roko says no. Yay is indignant at this, but Jeph's comment on this is "admit it, Yay, you kinda like being dommed."
** Later still, Yay is [[https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4908 positively eager]] to hear from Elliot if Roko talks about them in a way that "betrays her deep and abiding affection for us."
* TheSingularity: It was implied as early as strip 1777 that TheSingularity had occurred, and later on, Bubbles and Faye spend a week hypothesizing about how creepy that could theoretically be. When Spookybot shows up, flat out stating in an offhand way that they're more powerful than '''[[SapientShip Station]]''', we find that it is '''very''' creepy.
* SlasherSmile: [[http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3412 Eeep!]]
--> "We are very, '''very''' bad news."
* SmallRoleBigImpact: At first. They provided the means by which Bubbles could ascend to the main cast, move in with Faye, [[spoiler:shed her armor both psychological and literal, and start up a business of her own]], and then promptly vanished. They eventually started interacting more with some of the other protagonists.
* SmugSnake: Whoever they are, they are entirely secure in their superiority; Setting aside what we've actually ''seen'', they brush off threats of violence with a simple "wouldn't work" and "if we wanted to hurt her, there would be ''nothing'' you could do".
* SmugSmiler: Oh so much. It reaches a completely different territory when [[spoiler:they introduce themselves to Corpse Witch, and explain exactly how screwed she is.]] The resulting visual effect is downright ''chilling''.
* StealthHiBye:
** Appears in the scene from nowhere, which Faye lampshades.
** Does this later on to Roko after she quits the police force.
* TookALevelInKindness: Yay's interactions with Aurelia, and perhaps also Roko, have rubbed off on them.
* {{Troll}}: They really enjoy winding other characters up about their intentions, for instance when Bubbles tells Faye that [[IfIWantedYouDead if they wanted to hurt her]], they wouldn't need to pretend they were trying to help her and get her permission, and they immediately point out that it's ''possible'' they'd get some sick satisfaction out of doing so. Their initial interactions with Roko also mostly consist of them being enigmatically annoying, until Roko realises their ''actual'' motivations, which throws them entirely off-balance.
* {{Tsundere}}: Underneath all their aloofness, they really want to make friends with other beings and care about how their efforts at socializing are perceived. Just don't expect them to admit it.
* WillNotTellALie: They claim never to lie, and indeed they never appear to. They might tease, threaten, and in Faye's words be "a smug dickhead", but everything they say will happen, happens, and every claim they make ends up being borne out. A lot of the drama with them has revolved around the extent to which they can be trusted, but the one thing you can rely on with them is that if they say something is the case, it's the case.
* YoungerThanTheyLook: Most A.I.s are "young" by human standards; for instance, Momo is shown to be around three years old despite having roughly the same "young adult" mentality as her human peers. But it turns out that Yay is only ''two'' years old, a point which they are ''very'' self-conscious about, and suddenly all those less flattering tropes up there make sense.
--> '''Aurelia:''' OH MY GOD YOU'RE NOT A TEEN YOU'RE A BABY
-->'''Yay:''' ''*visibly blushing*'' IT DOESN'T MAP THE SAME WAY
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Melon]]
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/melon_questionablecontent.png]]
A very energetic, weird robot girl who becomes one of Faye and Bubbles’ clients. Lives with her robot friend/partner Arthur and is also friends with Roko. Has a detachable butt.
----
* AIIsACrapshoot: This being ''Questionable Content'', though, unreliable AI programming produces something ''weird'' rather than excessively evil or good.
* AmbiguousDisorder: She’s impulsive, has no sense of boundaries, and shows signs of forgetfulness and a short attention span. Of course, an AI's mental disorders may not correspond to human categories.
* AmbiguousSituation: Her relationship with Arthur. They live together and ‘play house’ like a human couple on occasion, but most of the time they act more like playmates than romantic partners. Given that they’re both {{Cloudcuckoolander}} [=AIs=], it may not be possible to define their relationship in terms that would make sense to a human, or to any sane person.
* AstonishinglyAppropriateAppearance: Her green hair and pink eyes are reminiscent of a watermelon. In her first appearance, her ears were pink domes. Her sister Lemon looks just like her, but yellow. However, it's not known what came first; the name, the body choice, or the body "paint job". As of [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4790 strip 4790]], she's being shown with one green eye and one pink/red eye.
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Is as nutty as Pintsize, if not more so. Lemon's behavior may lend proof this is common among her make and model:
-->'''Melon''': I forgot where we live!\\
'''Faye''': YOU ARE A COMPUTER\\
'''Lemon''': Wait, where do ''I'' live?!
* CloudcuckoolandersMinder: In an [[InvertedTrope inversion]], she's becoming one to Roko, in one instance getting Roko to talk through her [[spoiler:dissociative episode]] under the guise of herself being uncomfortable with the situation but not knowing why and asking Roko to explain it to her. And despite her reputation for wandering, most of her screentime following the accident has been in Roko's apartment (whether Roko is there or not).
* TheDitz: Whatever else is going on with Melon, she's clearly not the sharpest knife in the drawer.
* DreadfulMusician: She apparently [[https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3909 only knows "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star"]]... which she sings to the tune of "Bohemian Rhapsody". Her singing is so bad that when Roko hears that she's singing said song after Roko's original body got crushed, [[https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3910 she immediately decided to hurry up and get a new body]] so no one else would have to listen to it.
* DropInCharacter: She comes and goes freely from Roko's apartment (when she can remember the door code) and seems to have popped in on Elliot enough times that he isn't freaked out to find her in his apartment uninvited.
* FanservicePack: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]] (especially compared to May) but after getting repaired following a night of heavy (simulated) drinking and catching fire, Melon sports longer hair, differently-colored eyes, and her dermal covering no longer sports visible seams[[note]]save for one around the neck, which just appears to be the comic's visual shorthand for "robot"[[/note]], which she runs to show Roko when she gets released.
* FictionalGreetingsAndFarewells: She always greets Roko with the phrase "Socially appropriate greeting!", which given Melon's personality suggests that she used to greet Roko with something wildly inappropriate and was told that she ought to use a socially appropriate greeting--so now she uses that actual phrase.
* HiddenDepths: Is [[https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3746 apparently]] very good at poker. Assuming she just didn't have only low value chips (As hers are different colors then everyone else's) she is clearly winning.
** She's also invented a [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4109 vast ruleset for Jenga involving bargaining, cryptology and grenades]]--except that she may be making it up as she goes along, but even if she ''is'', she's got some imagination.
* IdiotHair: In her first appearance, wherein her butt has fallen off, after which it disappears for a while. As of [[https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3760 comic 3760]], it's back. In [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4801 strip 4801]], it seems to improve her wi-fi reception.
* InsaneTrollLogic: She ''has'' logic, it just doesn't usually make any coherent sense. Roko's figured out how to get through to her, but it requires some [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3962 indirect thinking]].
-->'''Roko''': Melon and logic are like oil and vinegar. You can get them to mix, but it takes vigorous shaking.
* MassivelyNumberedSiblings: Has 2048 sisters; how common this is for [=AIs=] is unclear.
* NightmareFuelStationAttendant: She doesn't seem to realize that [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3692 sneaking into a stranger's house and surprising him at breakfast]] or [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3711 using a dead squirrel as a fake mustache]] are creepy things to do, and her [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3643 pretend 'job' and home life with Arthur]] are kind of horrifying. In [[https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4806 one case]] she almost scares the bajeebus out of Roko when she reveals her recently aquired knowledge of how toxic dermal fixative gel is to humans, Roko instantly assuming that she has poisoned Faye, and when Roko admonishes her not to scare her like that, Melon displays some manner of awareness (for a given value of "awareness") of the fact that she is a Nightmare Fuel Station Attendant by asking ''how'' Roko would like her to scare her, offering up alternatives such as citing astronomical facts prone to inspire existential dread, speaking in a spooky voice, or [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs citing astronomical facts prone to inspire existential dread in a spooky voice.]]
* OddFriendship:
** She's on good enough terms with the strait-laced Officer Roko Basilisk to [[https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3706 know her apartment door code]]. After [[spoiler:Roko is smashed flat]], Melon sits in her server room, singing to her "for comfort" -- not that she knows any songs other than "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". Which she apparently sings to the tune of "Bohemian Rhapsody". [[StylisticSuck Very badly.]]
** She apparently also knows Elliot and even Pintsize as well, given she sometimes wanders into the former's apartment and plays poker with the latter's friends.
** She instantly makes friends with Spookybot/Yay Newfriend, and in fact it was Melon's happy exclamation on meeting them for the first time that inspired the name "Yay Newfriend".
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Arthur]]
[[quoteright:220:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/qc_arthur.png]]
[[caption-width-right:220:]]
Melon's partner. Usually remains in their apartment, unless Melon needs (seemingly) urgent repairs.
----
* LethalChef: Zigzagged. His cooking would definitely kill any human who ate it, but Melon seems to enjoy it.
* StraightMan: Usually fills this role for Melon whenever a comic focuses on their home life.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Lemon]]
[[quoteright:182:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lemon_qc.png]]
Melon's "sister" (she uses a very similar body, and presumably their [=AIs=] were designed to be similar) who works as an AI therapist, and who's employed to help and advise Roko when she's rebooted in virtual reality after an accident. Terrifyingly, it emerges that most of her clients are the [=AIs=] which run ''nuclear power stations'' and other advanced scientific installations, who tend to get lonely and depressed. (This would be worrying enough if their therapist ''wasn't'' a {{Cloudcuckoolander}}.) Still, Lemon does a competent job of explaining things to Roko.
----
* AstonishinglyAppropriateAppearance: She's various shades of yellow and is called "Lemon". However, it's not known what comes first -- the name, the body choice, or the body "paint job".
* BunnyEarsLawyer: Downplayed. She's a competent therapist despite being somewhat odd. She also mentions being "out of practice" with typical [=AIs=], indicating that she's even better at helping her usual patients.
** She manages to be [[https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4354 surprisingly effective]] at helping Roko through a dissociative episode with a combination of guided meditation techniques... and getting her to smell a vial of "weird goo she found in a dumpster".
---> '''Lemon:''' "Strong smells can be useful as a grounding technique-"
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: She's not as deranged as her sister, but she's certainly a little flaky and is apparently capable of forgetting where she lives.
* TheDitz: See Cloudcuckoolander above.
* MassivelyNumberedSiblings: Has 2048 sisters; how common this is for [=AIs=] is unclear.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Crushbot]]
A massive yellow robot. Nice enough, but very big and rather clumsy. [[spoiler: Crushbot was responsible for accidentally destroying Roko's original body.]]
----
* AstonishinglyAppropriateAppearance: "Crushbot" is a fitting moniker for a gigantic armored mech.
* ButtMonkey: Faye and Bubbles give Crushbot grief for crushing their friend even though it was an accident. And later when Crushbot tries a career change, Claire shuts Crushbot down hard.
* GentleGiant: Well, emotionally at least.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: It turns out that a robot whose name and occupation both are "Crushbot" actually has a pretty robust liability insurance policy.
* NoIndoorVoice: CRUSHBOT SPEAKS IN ALL CAPS.
* PowerIncontinence: Can't help but Crush things without meaning to, and attends at least one therapy session because of it. Crushbot's insurance is so good for a ''reason''.
* ShapedLikeItself: Name: Crushbot. Occupation: [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment Crushbot]].
* ThirdPersonPerson: Crushbot doesn't use personal pronouns, much like a couple of similar AI's we've seen.
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: [[spoiler: Crushbot's accidental crushing of Roko's original body triggers a full-on existential crisis in her that she's still trying to come to terms with.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Evie]]
[[quoteright:160:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/qcontent_evie.jpg]]
Mandy's girlfriend, who accompanies her when visiting Faye. She's writing a thesis on the post-Singularity.
----
* InnocentlyInsensitive: She seems like a nice person who means well, but she gives Bubbles a wildly offensive academic lecture about human-AI relations and then brushes off Bubbles' obvious resentment of what she's saying.
* ShipperOnDeck: She and Mandy clue in that Faye and Bubbles might be attracted to each other, and attempts to coax Faye into realizing it.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Millefeuille]]
[[quoteright:170:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/qcontent_millefeuille.png]]
[[caption-width-right:170:Straight-haired Mille]]
A researcher at Invisible Emu optics, initially introduced when an experiment (an emu with a cloaking device, fittingly) has a run-in with Winslow. She later makes appearances as one of Union Robotics' repeat customers, for a fixed leg after the emu damages it as well as a purely cosmetic butt implant, and as one of Renee and Brun's upstairs neighbors when they move to a new apartment.
----
* AlcoholInducedIdiocy: As noted below, she can be a HardDrinkingPartyGirl (using drunkenness simulation software), leading to a butt comparison contest with Tai and on a later occasion [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4773 some gratuitous toplessness.]] And while, yes, she can just [[SuddenlySober turn it off]] whenever she wants, she has to ''want'' to turn it off for that to work, and when she's drunk her good judgement takes a very sharp nosedive.
* AllWomenLoveShoes: Was apparently planning to buy a large number of shoes while drunk, but Tai and Dora talked her out of it.
* FanservicePack: Obtains butt implants from Union Robotics, giving her a rump on par with Faye's.
* GeniusDitz: On the one hand, she works as a researcher in a field of science that is, if nothing else, capable of [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin turning large flightless birds invisible]]. On the other hand, it takes an offhand comment by Renee to make her realize that she could use her lunch break for non-lunch activities. And that's when she's ''sober''...
* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: Quickly gets (simulated) drunk after receiving her butt implant, and has a butt comparison contest with Tai. It's later shown that [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4216 she has the "Pro" version of said program,]] immediately getting wasted celebrating Renee and Brun moving in. Later, during a robot girls' night in, she hits eight on a drunkenness scale of one to ten while the others are at less than half that.
* HartmanHips: Sports these following her upgrade.
* NotADate: Brun takes her to brunch after accidentally sleeping on her. Millefeuille realizes it feels like a date to the extent that she asks Faye and Bubbles for advice.
* QuirkyCurls: After wondering what she'd look like with curls like Brun's, Mille learns that her chassis is capable of instantly changing its hairstyle if she concentrates, and she has notably curlier hair from then on.
* {{Robosexual}}: She seems to have a thing for humans.
-->'''Millefeuille''': [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4218 Think of the impli-pications! [=AIs=] and humans! In love!]]
* TearsFromAStone: After an unintentionally ArmorPiercingQuestion from Brun, she starts crying. It turns out to be the ouzo from the night before.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Willow Dragonfang]]
A woman that works at the Hex-Mex Pagan Taqueria, often seen with Yemisi and Iris. Forcibly befriended Clinton after repeatedly coming across him and Elliot having anxiety about forming a relationship, and also teaches a beginner's Yoga class that Hannelore and Marigold sign up for.
----
* ActuallyPrettyFunny: When Pintsize tries to make a crass remark about her breasts and ends up having a minor existential crisis over his newfound sense of propriety interfering with him fully saying any of the euphemisms he tries to use, she gleefully combines what he did manage to say into one word, and proudly refers to her breasts as [[https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4555 tijubas]].
* BigOlEyebrows: Hers are '''enormous'''.
* NoSenseOfDirection: Once got lost in a yarn store.
* ObliviousToLove: Iris seems to have a crush on her that she is completely unaware of.
-->'''Iris:''' Only a ''simpering idiot'' would mistake your friendliness for romantic interest. An ''utter buffoon''. A dullard the likes of which the world has never ''seen'' before. The ''living avatar of ignorance''.\\
'''Willow:''' That's a relief!
* OddFriendship: She has a habit of getting involved with other people's issues and becoming their friend in the process, such as Clinton and Iris (who was just a university groundskeeper before joining her group).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Yemisi]]
Yay Newfriend's personal shopper, and a member of Willow's friend group.
----
* ThoseTwoGuys: With Iris, as they tend to be more passive than Willow.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Iris]]
The only robot in Willow's friend group, who openly expresses frustration that their plans keep getting interrupted by other people's drama.
----
* ApatheticTeacher: Iris is perhaps the [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4725 world's worst yoga instructor]]. Lampshaded by Jeph, who notes "Iris is AWFUL. I love her".
-->'''Iris''': [''scowling''] I'm not a yoga instructor, but no one else was available and I watched a couple of videos on the way over here so it will probably be fine. If you're not comfortable with that, leave. I don't care. If you're staying, you hereby acknowledge that I'm just a person who '''happens''' to be making ''suggestions'' on what you might '''feel''' like doing, and therefore you can't sue me if you break your stupid neck trying to do a stupid pose. I don't have any money anyway.
* SugarAndIcePersonality: She goes straight from her usual borderline misanthrope demeanor to near-fussing over Willow when she shows up to the yoga studio instead of resting from her food poisoning.
* ThoseTwoGuys: With Yemisi, as they tend to be more passive than Willow.
* UptightLovesWild: The extremely dour and perpetually scowling Iris has a huge crush on the eternally optimistic and friendly Willow.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:"Shitty/Hot" Dan]]
Formerly an outcast geek from Renee's high school, who actually grew up to be quite hot. Renee decides to date him when he's in town for a week.
----
* BeYourself: He relates to Renee that, during his transition to "Hot" Dan during college, he actually missed the freedom to pursue his hobbies that he had as "Shitty" Dan. After graduating, he's settled for a balance of taking care of his appearance while being open and honest about his nerdy hobbies.
[[/folder]]

!Minor characters:

[[folder:PT410X]]
Another small [=AnthroPC=] that occassionally associates with Pintsize, Winslow, and Momo. Has a heatsink that resembles a beard.
----
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Yelling Bird]]

A yelling bird ([[StealthPun theorised]] to be a [[VisualPun tit]] or a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dickcissel dickcissel]]) who appears in occasional filler comics, usually to scream about why it was posted (usually along the lines of "[[SelfDeprecation Jeph is too drunk/lazy/disorganized to post a comic today]],") or just give its opinion on something. Has its own [[http://twitter.com/yelling_bird Twitter account.]] Yelling Bird originated in [[http://indietits.com/ Indie Tits]], a side-project webcomic Jeph wrote from 2005-2007.
----
* CensorBox: [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1392 This strip]].
* ClusterFBomb: Swears ''constantly''.
* DefiantToTheEnd: [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1364 Yelling Bird and the Hawk]]. [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1375 He made his way out of this mess via]] ChestBurster.
* {{Jerkass}}: His job is to yell obscenities at the author and other characters.
* MeaningfulName: What else do you call a bird that yells constantly?
* NoIndoorVoice: He has never spoken in anything but all-caps.
* RunningGagged: He has been officially retired.
-->Jeph: I am tired of Yelling Bird comics so there will be NO MORE OF THEM, goodbye you shitty bird
* StealthPun: He's a bird who constantly swears. He's [[IncrediblyLamePun Fowlmouthed.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sara]]

Faye's co-worker at the Coffee Of Doom in early strips.
----
* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: Dropped away after Dora was introduced.
* FlatCharacter: She was blonde and attracted to Marten. That was about it. [[AllLoveIsUnrequited It never went anywhere]].
* KilledOffscreen: Eaten by an Allosaurus, apparently.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sweet-Tits]]

Another filler-strip character, pulled out of Jeph's sketchpad at short notice. For a long time she didn't have a real name, although it's now been revealed as Harriet. She [[BreakingTheFourthWall addresses the audience directly]] with a mixture of sarcasm and performance anxiety. Despite only two appearances, she was an [[EnsembleDarkhorse instant fan favourite]] and got her own story over the Christmas 2009 break.
----
* TheCameo: [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2031 In this strip.]]
* OnlySaneMan: Of the filler characters, she's the only normal one.
* TheReveal: Yelling Bird attempts to dramatize the revealing of her true name, only for her to yell from off-panel that it's Harriet.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Randy the Bandicoot]]

Yet another minor filler-strip character that became a fan favorite. [[CompleteImmortality Randy is eternal]].
----
* AnimalisticAbomination: He eats hope and has hallucination-inducing teleportation powers.
* CompleteImmortality: He doesn't even seem to notice being shot by Yelling Bird, let alone care.
* {{Keet}}: Constantly cheerful.
* NoIndoorVoice: Yells almost as much as Yelling Bird.
* TeleportersAndTransporters: Apparently, he can teleport people, with the teensy tiny side effect of terrifying hallucinations.
* WelcomeToCorneria: Ninety percent of his lines are "Hi, I'm Randy!"
[[/folder]]

[[folder:The Thanksgiving Turkeys]]
Turkeys who only appear during the Thanksgiving weekend, and parody fan talk about the comic. [[http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2326 Apparently they get different turkeys each year.]]
----
* HolidayEpisode: They only make appearances for Thanksgiving.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:The Three Bros]]

A set of presumably [=UMass=]-students who are big fans of people being bros.
----
* DropInCharacter: Their only purpose is to appear and start chanting "BROS! BROS! BROS!" whenever anyone does anything awesome.
* {{Fratbro}}: Stereotypical fratbros, from their clothing, boisterousness, and apparent personality.
* NoIndoorVoice: Subverted. They definitely seems like this at first, but when they appear in a library they quickly correct themselves.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: They were unnamed for a very long time, until strip 3263 revealed that their names are Brad, Chad, and Thad.
* SpeakOfTheDevil: Non-villainous example. If somebody calls somebody else "Bro", they'll suddenly appear.
* ThoseTwoGuys: Three of them, but who's counting? They never appear apart. They even share a [[https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3263 tinder profile]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Scrambles the Tequila Monster]]

An alcohol induced hallucination that seems to haunt the main cast. Mainly Marten (though he isn't an alcoholic).
----
* AmbiguousSituation: It's unclear whether or not he's truly just a hallucination, considering he's been seen by multiple people.
* AnthropomorphicVice: The embodiment of Tequila and other alcoholic beverages.
* TheCorrupter: Seen [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1816 here.]]
-->'''Tequila Monster''': Okay she's gone you should definitely drink more now\\
'''Marten''': You're a terrible influence, alcohol-induced hallucination.
* PlayfulOtter: Described by Martin as an otter, and the incarnation of drunken shenanigans.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fairy Girl]]

A young woman dressed as a fairy who wanders about Northampton. Keeps a reindeer as a pet. May actually be a fairy.
----
* FairyTrickster: Says fairies don't grant wishes, but play tricks on people.
* NoExceptYes: Denies being a fairy precisely long enough for Emily to accuse Fairy Girl of tricking her, only to cop to it immediately because tricking people is what fairies ''do''.
* OurFairiesAreDifferent: It's ambiguous whether she's a human dressed as a fairy, or if she's actually a fairy masquerading as a weird human.
* TheUnintelligible: Speaks only in variations of "la li lu le lo", save for [[https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2423 one occasion]] when Emily caught her and tried to wish for world peace.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Meena]]

A Pathologist's assistant, whom Steve briefly dated while she lived with her ex, Dave. She basically existed to give Steve a minor story reason to not turn up.
----
* BabiesEverAfter: She and her husband Dave are trying for children.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: Dumps Steve the day ''after'' Dave proposes to her, clearly not giving a crap about how Steve felt about her.
* BlackComedy: Working in a morgue has given her a strange sense of humour, which works on Steve pretty well.
* CreepyMortician: Subverted, she clearly enjoys her job, but is quite chipper and not all that creepy, but she clearly developed some BlackComedy humour while working there.
* ButNotTooForeign: Lampshaded by Meena at one point, talking about a date where a man called her "Exotic", She points out she is a 10 generation Indian-American.
* DeadGuyPuppet: Apparently where the Hospital she works in had to settle a lawsuit, due to an AI using a severed head as a hand puppet to try and ''cheer up kids with cancer!''
* FirstGuyWins: A particularly crappy twist on the trope. She lives with an ex she hasn't been with for 4 years, Dave, and ends up instantly dumping Steve the day after Dave proposed to her out of the blue and she accepted.
* HappilyMarried: Dave and her are apparently this, despite the fans' outcry for a fiery death.
* HopelessSuitor: How she claims she felt about Dave, being that he was this "perfect" guy, leading her to be apparently constantly feeling like she wasn't good enough.
* ICantBelieveAGuyLikeYouWouldNoticeMe: Again, how she felt about Dave. Apparently this feeling was strong enough that when he proposed, she instantly accepted, despite dating Steve at the time.
* RomanticFalseLead: Meena & Dave hit Steve ''hard'' with this, out of nowhere (in Steve's perspective at least). Dave proposes to Meena, while she is still in a relationship with Steve, and she accepts, breaking up with Steve shortly afterwards.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Dave]]

Meena's ex-boyfriend, who she was still living with 4 years after they split up. Eventually proposed to Meena while she was still dating Steve.
----
* AmbiguousDisorder: He seems too much of a perfectionist to not has some sort of disorder, and is apparently super passive about everything, perhaps being mildly autistic.
* EntitledToHaveYou: while not overt, he does do the more passive aggressive approach by saying to Steve that he is still in love with Meena, but wishing them the best, but then becomes overt by Proposing to Meena while she is still dating Steve, to which she accepts and breaks up with Steve the day after.
* {{Expy}}: Possibly of Marten, being a passive NiceGuy living with a girl he obviously pines for, but unlike Martens ham-fisted attempt at wooing Faye in a spur of the moment and drunken stupor, Dave's spur of the moment attempt works!
* {{Jerkass}}: A possible reason for his "I still love Meena" comment towards Steve, and his proposing to Meena while she was still in a relationship.
* {{Perfectionist}}: Apparently is this, rarely making mistakes, and rectifying any he does make, and does charity work for 15 hours a week (apparently not more because "he has to sleep sometime"), it also leads to the theory that he never really did "let go" of Meena, as his perfectionist nature might have caused him to consider the breakup a long running "mistake".
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Jones]]

Millefeuille's coworker at Invisible Emu optics.
----
* SomethingWeForgot: Millefeuille feels like she forgot something after Faye fixes her leg, and it turns out that thing [[https://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4090 is Jones]].
[[/folder]]
----

* BrotherChuck: Dropped away after Dora was introduced.

* AdorablyPrecociousChild: Invoked in that Moray thinks Elizabeth is this, but Elizabeth very much resents it.

* NoSocialSkills: She introduces herself to Marten by whispering to him from behind a barrier that she knows where he can get coffee, which spooks him. She compounds this by insisting "I have a perfectly normal amount of social skills" while still hiding behind a barrier.

A child prodigy scientist who somehow got simulataneous [=PhDs=] from Harvard and M.I.T. and now works in Cubetown, where she is apparently not popular.

* BuxomIsBetter: She is so far the bustiest character in the series and has gotten admiring comments about it from all kinds of people, including from an ex-criminal AI:

* ShamelessFanserviceGirl: In a low-key sort of way. Most of the [=AIs=] in the comic respect the human taboo against nudity, but May seems to be fine with sitting around Faye and Bubbles' workshop with no pants on. Will also talk to anyone else about her sexual exploits, whether they asked about them or not. Shortly after becoming newly embodied in a [[StatuesqueStunner fancy]] [[BuxomIsBetter new]] [[FanservicePack body]] after a charity drive liberated her from her [[TheAllegedCar jalopy body]], she offers to "get her tits out" if it'll help in creating a testimonial for the charity organization. The first chance she got to quit her job at the convenience store, she flushed her uniform shirt down the toilet and ran to her new job with [[HandBra naught but an arm to preserve her modesty]].

* HiddenDepths: ...Forgive the pun. The Director comes across as aloof and almost totally alien to other characters, but have apparently made "learn everything" their life's purpose, and [[spoilers: the Morays they construct and whom share a portion of their consciousness are all uniformly overjoyed and excited to advance that goal. The Director might very well share their zeal and excitement for learning and experiencing new things, but simply be incapable of expressing it- Moray-44 mentions that The Director loves to learn new slang]].

%%* CantHoldHisLiquor

* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: By far the ''weirdest'' character in the strip thus far. Yes, even weirder than Pintsize. They live deep enough in the sea that the local sealife is disturbed by light. Their declared goal is to research everything to figure out everything, and organized a research facility that tends to attract like-minded eccentrics. They attempt to hire Claire to be their librarian/Head of Information Science/[[BreadEggsMilkSquick Data-Mistress]] based solely on the criteria that "'''SHE SHOWS PROMISE'''". And oh yeah [[spoiler:they're a big glowy jellyfish]].
* {{Foreshadowing}}: [[spoiler:When Moray first interviews Claire, she's "Moray X-21" and at one point she springs a leak, resulting in a conspicuous band-aid on her shoulder. When she meets Claire and Marten at the airport, she introduces herself as "Moray-21", mentions talking to Claire over the internet rather than the phone, and is no longer wearing the band-aid. Why yes, this is listed in the Director's section for a reason.]]

* YouAreNumberSix: Too early to tell yet, but this may be true of the Director's "facilitators". [[spoiler: "Moray" may less a name than a overall model designation, and if so then X-21, 21, and 44 are their actual names. X-21 confirms in a later strip that each facilitator chooses their favorite number, so the designations are not sequential.]]
--> [[TheRant the cubetown discord is completely unreadable]]

!Other Important characters:

[[folder:Ellen]]

Steve's former girlfriend, an eighteen-year-old philosophy/marine biology major.

* PutOnABus: When she broke up with Steve.

[[folder:Scott]]

Marten's first boss.

* BenevolentBoss: He waits around to tell Marten personally that he (and the rest of the department) had been laid off until Marten got back from sick leave. On that note, letting Marten go on sick leave from nothing but a call from Miss Vance probably qualifies him.
* INeedAFreakingDrink: "The Company Therapist" is the nickname he gives to the bottle of bourbon he keeps in his desk. [[BenevolentBoss He happily shares it with Martin]].
* StraightGay: Other than mentioning his boyfriend, you'd never notice.

[[folder:Jimbo]]

A trucker-looking barfly who writes romance novels.

* TheAlcoholic: He's always drunk, and only seen outside a bar ''once''.
* PurpleProse: His writing is described as "florid and overwrought", taken up to StylisticSuck levels. It is responsible for the success of his novels due to the SoBadItsGood appeal of them.
* RealMenWearPink: A stereotypical redneck who happens to be a successful romance novelist.

[[folder: Dr. Corrine Buenvenida]]
Faye's therapist at Hannelore's recommendation.

* YouAreNumberSix: Too early to tell yet, but this may be true of the Director's "facilitators". [[spoiler: "Moray" may less a name than a overall model designation, and if so then X-21, 21, and 44 are their actual names.]]

One of three new interns at the SMIF library, and Clinton's sister.

* NoSocialSkills: She takes her duties as head of security seriously, but flusters ''immediately'' at the implication that she may have been planting surveilance equipment in Claire and Marten's guest quarters. [[spoiler:The fluster only continues as this ends up being the last straw for Claire's patience with Cubetown, and while Even leads them -mostly Claire- down the meet the Director, she asks that Marten stay with her because the Director's area creeps her out.]]

* AerithAndBob: Their pet greyhounds are apparently named Azathoth and Mr. Smooches. When questioned on the latter's "off-brand" name, they insist that doesn't just ''change'' a dog's name.

!Other Important characters:

[[folder:Ellen]]

Steve's former girlfriend, an eighteen-year-old philosophy/marine biology major.

* PutOnABus: When she broke up with Steve.

[[folder:Scott]]

Marten's first boss.

* BenevolentBoss: He waits around to tell Marten personally that he (and the rest of the department) had been laid off until Marten got back from sick leave. On that note, letting Marten go on sick leave from nothing but a call from Miss Vance probably qualifies him.
* INeedAFreakingDrink: "The Company Therapist" is the nickname he gives to the bottle of bourbon he keeps in his desk. [[BenevolentBoss He happily shares it with Martin]].
* StraightGay: Other than mentioning his boyfriend, you'd never notice.

[[folder:Jimbo]]

A trucker-looking barfly who writes romance novels.

* TheAlcoholic: He's always drunk, and only seen outside a bar ''once''.
* PurpleProse: His writing is described as "florid and overwrought", taken up to StylisticSuck levels. It is responsible for the success of his novels due to the SoBadItsGood appeal of them.
* RealMenWearPink: A stereotypical redneck who happens to be a successful romance novelist.

[[folder: Dr. Corrine Buenvenida]]
Faye's therapist at Hannelore's recommendation.

** What finally tips the scales is when she takes on Winslow as a volunteer. Her first task for him is to fill out all their non-profit paperwork, which she has printed out on the office printer. Winslow points out that he could have done it on their computer, but Beepatrice admits that it took her two hours to get the printer to work, and she was so proud of herself, so Winslow agrees to do it by hand. Beepatrice then realizes that they have no pen, so she goes to a pen store and returns some time later having been sold a $200 fountain pen. Roko is aghast, and just orders Winslow to fill out the paperwork digitally, and Beepatrice is so ashamed of herself that she promotes Roko to being her boss, "so I can beg you not to fire me."

* DeceptivelyHumanRobots: Evan is the most human-looking robot in the strip so far, with only her neck seam, her pink irises and her randomly-assigned name giving away the fact that she's a robot.

An AI who works on the docks at Cubetown and has a sentient arm, named Armold Palmer, which which she often disagrees.

!Other Important characters:

[[folder:Ellen]]

Steve's former girlfriend, an eighteen-year-old philosophy/marine biology major.

* PutOnABus: When she broke up with Steve.

[[folder:Scott]]

Marten's first boss.
----
* BenevolentBoss: He waits around to tell Marten personally that he (and the rest of the department) had been laid off until Marten got back from sick leave. On that note, letting Marten go on sick leave from nothing but a call from Miss Vance probably qualifies him.
* INeedAFreakingDrink: "The Company Therapist" is the nickname he gives to the bottle of bourbon he keeps in his desk. [[BenevolentBoss He happily shares it with Martin]].
* StraightGay: Other than mentioning his boyfriend, you'd never notice.

[[folder:Jimbo]]

A trucker-looking barfly who writes romance novels.
----
* TheAlcoholic: He's always drunk, and only seen outside a bar ''once''.
* PurpleProse: His writing is described as "florid and overwrought", taken up to StylisticSuck levels. It is responsible for the success of his novels due to the SoBadItsGood appeal of them.
* RealMenWearPink: A stereotypical redneck who happens to be a successful romance novelist.

[[folder: Dr. Corrine Buenvenida]]
Faye's therapist at Hannelore's recommendation.

* DeadpanSnarker: She psychs out Faye with promise of a lobotomy, and later shows Faye a "Rorschach test" reading "No sarcasm, please".
* ThereAreNoTherapists: Directly averts this. She's genuinely helpful to Faye and does her job well.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Lydia]]

Sven's "intern." She's supposed to be learning the tricks of songwriting from him, but instead she's turned into sort of a lab wretch.
----
* TheConscience: She guilts Steve into telling Faye that he slept with Gina Riversmith.
* PutOnABus: She hasn't been seen in ages, possibly because summer arrived in the comic, meaning her "internship" ended with the school year.

[[folder: Yay Newfriend/"Spookybot"]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/spookybot_qc.jpg]]
A "sympathetic party" of an AI who offers to help Bubbles with her memory-encryption problems. Despite their offer, they don't seem to be exactly nice. Subsequently takes an interest in Roko, seemingly trying to make friends with her, though their actual intent is unclear.

[[folder: Moray X-21]]
The Director of Sentient Resources at Cubetown, the AI-built community where Claire applies for a librarian job. She is a rather eccentric robot who's evidently made of sentient goo in human form with constantly shifting blobs of colour inside herself, rather like a lava lamp, and she appears to never wear clothes.

* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: She gives Claire a job interview over the phone without giving Claire time to prepare, and indeed while she (Claire) is standing in an alleyway behind the coffee shop. In said interview, when Claire starts to ask a question about "your information science department", Moray excitedly says "Ooh, that sounds like exactly what we need!" and promptly offers Claire the job of running a department the idea of which only just occurred to her.
* InnocentFanserviceGirl: Appears to be this, cheerfully conducting a job interview while naked while a clothed human janitor mops up in the background.
* LiteralMinded: Just after Claire accepts the job of creating an information services department for an organisation whose mission is to "research everything", she murmurs "Oh god what am I doing". Moray looks concerned, and replies "This is a job interview. If you're experiencing memory problems, you should probably go to the hospital."

!Minor characters:

[[folder:PT410X]]
Another small [=AnthroPC=] that occassionally associates with Pintsize, Winslow, and Momo. Has a heatsink that resembles a beard.
----
[[/folder]]