Comments on: My Old Robots A Dustman, He Wears A Robotic Dustmans Hat

By: V

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 20:01:32 +0000

Seeing as there are machines doing everything for them, perhaps procreation involves some sort of mechanical extraction/artifical insemination, ie. they ARE romantically embracing their robot overlords.

By: Pete Baran

Pete Baran — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 13:00:43 +0000

ET is much more emotionally manipulative in a more subtle way than Wall-E (though both use cop-outs to get out of it). That said I would imagine the difference lies heavily at the respective ages I saw them.

There was a recent article about The Dark Knights 12A certificate where a mother said her ten year old would be fine to see it as it was violence, but he still gets upset by ET even though he knows it will be alright. I fear the same would happen to me (also the separation at the end gives it more emotional bite I think).

By: Andrew Farrell

Andrew Farrell — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 12:55:26 +0000

I never saw ET when I was little, but my recollection of it from a few years ago doesn’t include anything as devastating as the fake ending in Wall-E.

By: Kat but logged out innit

Kat but logged out innit — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 12:54:01 +0000

I assumed they test-tubed it up.

By: Pete Baran

Pete Baran — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 12:53:04 +0000

The creche was very cute, but yes - I am guessing some sort of gene banking is the only thing that would make sense considering most of them could barely walk they were so obese.

I think the only hint of family you get is some woman in a vid phone to her mother? Not sure at all though.

By: jeff w

jeff w — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 11:18:24 +0000

I sorta assumed the human space colony had decided to apply something akin to the Brave New World solution to reproduction, only possibly dispensing (by necessity) with sex-as-recreation as well. That shot of the creche felt very Huxley-esque to me.

Only I think there were some families in the colony (weren’t there?), so the parallel is not exact.