BROKEN

@brokencomic.bsky.social

844 Followers 1 Following

A narrative exploration of life, otherness, coping with trauma and finding meaning and hope through the confusion of existence. Also there's a robot. https://broken-comic.com/ Written by @beepboopbork.com Illustrated by @ferntide.bsky.social

It's been a while! And, as I'm sure many could guess, there's a reason. Broken is deeply important to me (Fink) - it's a story I feel driven to tell. It resonates with me in a way not much of my work has. But the comic format has been a difficult one to deliver the story in, for two reasons. The first: my partner and I have had a very busy work schedule. We produce two other comics that are posted bi-weekly on-top of full-time commission work. Because of this, Broken was relegated to a "when we have time" position. That was tough because the story is quite long, and it became obvious that it'd take nearly a decade at the rate we were making pages to finish just the first main arc in the story. This made it hard to feel motivated, and that wasn’t great - Broken was (and is!) my passion project. It's something that keeps me going. And I didn't want to feel like I'd never be able to tell it all. The second: a major element I wanted to explore in Broken was Sebby's mind - how they see, process and navigate their way through the world. This was difficult to tap into the way I wanted in the main comic. I felt like the Mouse prologue was the closest to what I had envisioned, but it still felt like it was missing something. I love what we made, but the story that was being told wasn't the story I had in my head. Experimenting is important with art! And Broken - as a comic - has taught me a lot :) It's helped me open up to and accept a major part of myself and my inner reality. It's given me a drive that I had been missing for a few years. But I've also learned that a comic just isn't the right format for this story. What does feel right is a book! Which is what I've been working on. The story has grown and encompasses a much larger swath of Sebby's life, which I'm excited to share! I have a good chunk done, but still have a long way to go. Thank you all for supporting the comic! It was a really fun experience. I plan on posting a chapter or two from the book soon :3
Broken - Page 10 A page with four panels and a background shot featuring Mick holding a picture of the new hire, Grant. Pepper and Sebby are continuing their conversation while Sebby cleans dishes. Pepper: "Yeah. Oh, hey, replacement tech mech coming in today. Mick is excited about him. Says he's much better trained than Kyle was." Sebby perks: "Oh? Is he nice? Have you met him?" Pepper: "Nah, just seen pics. Graduation photo from some fancy institute. Has E-Grade certs in service and hospitality robotics repair." Sebby: "I just hope he's-" Sebby is cut off by Cass yelling from the front. Cass: "Pepper, need help again." Pepper ruffles Sebby's hair, then turns around. "I'm sure he'll be fine." Sebby manages a slight smile then goes back to washing.
Broken - Page 9 Pepper notices Sebby's expression and slinks over. Pepper: "What'd she say this time?" Sebby: "She called me a toaster and said she wishes she could 'turn off' like I do." Pepper winces a bit, patting Sebby on the shoulder. Pepper: "She really means well, she's just not...up to date. She just gets all her AI lingo from reality vid channels like Roommate: Unplugged." Sebby: "They're still posting? That stuff is so old." Pepper: "Yeah, but it's what she's used to." Sebby, resigned: "I guess. I just feel like she sees me as an advanced piece of kitchen equipment sometimes."
Broken, Chapter 1 Page 8 The page is split into five panels, the first spanning the whole page and showing Cassie - Sebby's Badger co-worker, talking to Sebby while he works at the sink washing dishes. "You know, sometimes I'm jealous of you, little toaster. I wish I could just like, turn off at the end of the night. I get so tired," Cassie says, arms crossed with a pleased expression. The reader can't see Sebby's face, but his ears indicate a lack of enthusiasm for the conversation. The next two panels split the page, and feature Sebby speaking in one and Cassie responding. "I don't turn off," Sebby says, looking unhappy but not upset. Cassie, shrugging and smiling, says "You know what I mean." The next panel shows both Cassie and Sebby again, continuing their conversation until Cassie is called away by a DING at the front of the restaurant. Sebby responds "Okay," while Cassie reacts to the DING by saying "I've been summoned," and exiting the scene. In the last panel, we see Pepper rejoining Sebby at the sink while Cassie is shown off the page saying "Work never ends!" Pepper looks amused while Sebby continues to look bored by his job of washing dishes.
Broken - Page 7 The page is broken into five panels, the first being a large scene-setting image of the kitchen. In the panel, the diner's auto-chef robot system is visible - a large cylindrical base with a number of articulated arms using multiple cooking surfaces. Both Cassie, the badger assistant manager and Pepper are visible while Sebby crosses the kitchen towards the sink. In the next panel, Sebby is seen looking disappointedly at dirty dishes in a sink, with a word-bubble emerging off-panel from Cassie, saying "Hey Beep Boop! Check it out." In the next panel, Cassie is visible behind Sebby holding up rubber gloves and proclaiming "New gear!" Sebby looks unimpressed. In the next panel, which spans the page, Sebby is shown responding to Cassie as he puts on his gloves. "Amazing. Like I'm living in the future. Who needs a functioning autowash when I've got these. But, uh, thanks," he finishes, doing his best to look happy. In the final panel, which spans the page, Cassie is shown speaking to Sebby who's still fiddling with his gloves. "Man, it's been crazy today. There's another convention in town. I wish all I had to do was wash dishes," Cassie says. Sebby, slightly confused, says "Oh."
Broken, Page 6. This page is separated into six panels, showing Sebby and his continuing attempt to converse with The Mix diner owner, Mick. In the first panel, Sebby is shown peeking through the door at Mick, a large dark colored bear sitting at a desk. Sebby says "Hey Mick?" While Mick continues a separate phone conversation, saying "Okay. Yeah..." In the next Three panels, we see a conversation finally take place between Mick and Sebby. Mick, turning to look at Sebby while being mildly annoyed, says "I'm on the phone." Sebby responds with "Yeah, I see that, but where do you want-". He's cut off by Mick, who responds with "Dishes. Still dishes. Dishes until I tell you otherwise." In the last two panels, Sebby is shown to turn and leave the door while Mick goes back to his previous conversation. Sebby can be seen saying "No. I already said that's not the issue. We have a new tech coming in today to take care of that. It's the pipes. They've been-". The conversation is cut short as Sebby exits the scene.
Page 5 of Broken, separated into six panels. The largest top panel shows a sequence of events featuring Sebby, the main robot character. In the panel, we see Sebby opening his locker, getting out his apron for work and starting to sign in on a wall-mounted computer. In the next panel, which is the first in a series of three small panels, we see the wall-mounted computer screen cheerily pinging back "Check In, Sebby Montgomery." In the following two panels, we see Sebby moving towards a slightly open door and peaking through. In the last two panels, which are split between one large panel and an adjacent, triangular cut panel, we see Sebby speaking to their boss at the diner, Mick, while he's busy on the phone at his desk. Mick can be seen talking on the phone, saying "No, no, that's not the issue." Sebby interrupts, asking "Hey Mick, where do you want me?" Mick continues his phone conversation, saying "Yeah, that's fine. Mhmm," while Sebby looks on nervously.
Page 4 of Broken - separated into six panels. In the first panel, Pepper and Sebby are visible, with Sebby looking anxious but focused while Pepper puts her phone away. In the next panel, Pepper looks visibly cheerier as she tries to move the subject, asking a reticent Sebby "How's Mouse doing?" The next panel, which spans the page, shows Mouse, a white and black speckled mouse, on a small egg carton with Sebby's bust visible as he speaks. Sebby says "Oh, uh, he's good. Really bouncy this morning ... popcorning, I think it's called? He's obsessed with that little egg carton you gave him." In the next panel, Pepper looks confident and responds with "Yeah, I'm the best pet aunt." We can see that Pepper's phone has buzzed. In the next small panel, Pepper says "Alright, back to it." and heads in, with Sebby following in the next panel.
A comic page in five panels. In the first panel, we see Sebby, recently departed from the bus, approaching The Mix's back door for work. Pepper, his co-worker, is standing near the door looking at their phone. Pepper: "Heeyyy Sebs." Second panel and third panel show a short conversation between the two. Pepper: "You're early." Sebby looks upset, and is hand-wringing, tugging at his fingers. Pepper: "You ok?" Sebby, looking nervous and still squirming: "Am I ever?" In the next panel, Pepper looks concerned while Sebby shakes their head, trying to focus. The last panel shows Sebby speaking, arm behind his head anxiously. Sebby: "Sorry. I'll be fine. Just a bad morning. Building Maintenance stopped by unannounced, morning got all messed up. Sorry." End
The page is split into four panels and a close-up of Sebby's phone. In the first panel, Sebby is upset at the news he's read on the previous page. They flick down to the Weather. — Weather for Thursday 50 degrees Cloudy High 55 / Low 41 Mostly Cloudy. Rain expected to start midday, continue through the evening. —— Sebby looks happy for a moment, but turns to look out the window as he approaches his stop. In the final panel, we see Sebby exiting the bus and arriving at The Mix Diner, where he works.
Page 1 of Broken. Sebby, the robotic canine protagonist, is riding a bus into work, sitting somewhere in the back. He looks uncomfortable, but is getting by. The bus is mostly empty, day is cloudy. Sebby’s face is lit by their phone, which they are looking at. On the screen is a political headline, with a small bit of text visible beneath it. —— “Sapien AI UBI Bill Fails to Pass Council Again” By Essa Rayes A Sapien-AI support bill that included a limited universal basic income package failed to pass IR Council on Wednesday. This is the third time the legislation has come up for approval. Despite growing public support, the bill was again met with concerns focused on the validity and necessity for the sapien-AI population. Council Member Gerrick Harris, who heads the IR Sapien Services Committee, commented that the existing AI Work Support Act provides more than enough resources for the regions sapien-ai population. “While we understand our AI citizens have unique needs, we believe that the existing social support system alongside the massive AI Reparations Act are more than enough to keep the population supported,” Harris said.
The cover of Broken, featuring a close-up of the right side of Sebby's face with a visible crack in his eye. Written by Fink, Illustrated by Remi.
The sixth and final page of the short prologue comic, Smoke Break. The opening panel shows the door to the diner that Pepper entered on the last page, with noise coming from inside while Sebby looks away, disconnected. The next panel shows the door closed and Sebby looking down at the ground. The middle frame shows the joint that Pepper was smoking, tossed to the ground and still lit. The next panel shows Sebby stepping on the lit joint, snuffing it out and looking forlorn. The final panel shows Sebby sliding down to rest on his knees, arms crossed and staring at the ground.
The fifth page of the short prologue comic, Smoke Break. The opening panel shows Sebby, arms crossed and looking thoughtful as he begins to respond to Pepper's previous question about fixing his issues with an 'update'. Sebby says "Well, anyways, it's - " before he is cut off by a shouted "HEY" coming from a new character, a large badger named Cassie, who is seen in the next panel. The second panel is larger and shows Cassie leaning out the door, looking at Sebby and Pepper. Cassie is saying "Pepper! Break's Over! We got a rush in here, need you up front. C'mon!" Sebby is looking on nonplussed while Pepper looks annoyed and is holding the joint she was smoking off to the side. The next two panels show Pepper giving a smiling but resigned look and flicking the joint away. In the last panel, Pepper is patting Sebby gently on the head as she heads back in. Pepper says "Can't leave Cassie waiting. You know how she gets. See you back inside, Sebster." Sebby's gaze has lowered and he looks disheartened that Pepper is leaving.
The fourth page of the short prologue comic, Smoke Break. The opening panel shows Sebby and Pepper continuing their conversation from the previous page. Sebby, looking mildly annoyed, says "Oh, they call the engineers at the center "Doctors" and "Nurses." It's meant to give the Sapien-AI population a more "Organic healthcare experience" so we can integrate more easily into society. Pepper, looking amused, responds by saying "Oh yeah, I'd hate for you to miss out on the joy of healthcare. Booking appointments, waiting rooms with shitty old magazines, and the wonderful music. Truly breathtaking. A real core element of life for all us fleshies. At least you don't have to go to the dentist. That's awful." The second panel shows Pepper offering the joint again, with Sebby shaking their head. The third panel shows Sebby, looking tired, and responding to Pepper with "I sorta have a dentist, a nurse named Sammy. I grind my teeth, and they're just for show so they break a lot. Cheap to repair though." In the fourth and last panel, we see Sebby looking deflated while Pepper is smoking and looking thoughtful. Pepper says "Can't they fix that sort of thing? Like, programming or ...um, an update? A patch?" Sebby, continuing his previous statement, quietly says "Still get lectured about it..."
The third page of the short prologue comic, Smoke Break. The opening panel shows Sebby taking an offered joint from pepper, who looks hesitant. Beside the panel images show Sebby inhaling smoke from it. The next panel shows Sebby looking slightly smug and handing the joint back to Pepper. Pepper looks surprised and speaks - "Oh shit, didn't expect you to take it this time. You don't like, get anything from that, right? You told me the breathing thing is just for show. Or cooling? I can't remember." Sebby responds - "No." The next panel shows Sebby looking mildly perturbed, saying - "I don't feel anything from it. Just means I get a stern talking to from my "doctor" when I go in for my next check-up. Sets off some sensors that are hard to turn off or something. They'll warn me about limited filtration parts. Blah blah." The next panel shows Pepper smoking, followed by another panel with Pepper speaking while looking confused - "You have a doctor? I didn't think that's how you worked."
The second page of the short prologue comic, Smoke Break. Opening panel shows robotic canine Sebby looking aside uncomfortably. Sebby is standing next to their transfem ferret coworker Pepper, who is smoking a joint and eyeing Sebby. The next panel shows Pepper and Sebby looking at each other, with Pepper saying “Hey Sebby. You’re doing that swear-mumble thing again.” Third panel shows Sebby leaning back against the wall, arms crossed. Sebby says “Yeah, sorry. I dunno what that is. I just can’t stop thinking about what I said to Cassie the other day. She said she doesn’t care but I just… I can’t stop THINKING about it. And I think she’s mad at me again. I shouldn’t have -“ Sebby is cut off as pepper holds out the joint to him, and he looks at it with a bit of confusion.
The first page of the short comic, Smoke Break. Opening panel shows a sign for the Mix diner - where Sebby works. The next panel shows an employees only door, followed by it slamming open with visualizations indicating noise and music coming from inside. A panel shows Sebby leaving the diner, swear-mumbling "Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck." The last panel shows the door, still partially open and noisy. Sebby has taken a leaning position against a wall next to the door, accompanied by Pepper, his co-worker, who is standing nearby smoking.
A black and white concept page of Sebby, a robotic canine with eye-screens meant to mimic normal, organic eyes and obviously robotic arms, legs and neck. Sebby is also shown in his work uniform - a long sleeve shirt, pants and an apron that reads 'Sebby'.
While the conversation from the previous page is continued, the background shows an image of the two canine children that were talking to Sebby being pulled away by a woman - presumably their mother, while Sebby watches with concern. Both children look upset by their removal. Randy (Child 1) - "So, why are you at a pet-" Mother - "Randy! Kevin! Get over here. I told you not to bother it. It's trying to get work done." Randy (Child 1) - "No he's not, he doesn't work here. He's a fancy dishwasher." Mother - "Don't say things like that!" Mother, to Sebby - "Sorry about them. I hope they didn't interrupt whatever you were doing." Sebby - "No, uh, they're fine. I don't work here, really." Mother, to children - "Now don't you wander off again. And don't make fun of those things by calling them dishwashers." Randy (Child 1) - "He said it first. His name is Sebby. He's funny." Mother, to children - "You have such an imagination, Randy." Sebby - "It's really ok? I did say the dishwasher ...thing" Sebby, text disconnected to indicate a break - "Ok." Sebby - "Bye, I guess."
The conversation from the previous page between Sebby and two canine children continues. Child 1 - "So, um, what do you do? Do you have guns or rockets or - " Child 2 - "They don't actually have those, you're so dumb." Sebby - "I work in a diner. I clean dishes and sometimes serve stuff." Child 1 - "So you're like a dishwasher." Sebby - "Yeah, a really fancy dishwasher that can go to the pet store and buy stuff." An image of both children enthusiastically laughing in response to the comment is shown. Child 1 - "You're funny." Sebby - "Am I? ...thanks." Child 1 - "Do they still sell you?" Sebby - "Me? No, I'm not for sale." <The last sentence is something Sebby has scripted> Child 1 - "No, like other ones like you. You know, funny dishwasher models." Sebby - "No, not for a while now." Child 1 - "But like, what did they make you for? Not fighting." Sebby - "No, not fighting. I was supposed to be a less annoying little brother." Both children laugh. Child 1 - "It called you short and annoying!" Child 2 - "It was calling you annoying." Child 1 - "You're the little one." Sebby - "You're both annoying. But I must have been too." Both children laugh again.
This is background info for Broken. Title of the comic at top. Written by Fink, Illustrated by Remi. Broken is set in a near-future recovering dystopia, in a region where universal basic income, healthcare and housing have become guaranteed rights - for biological individuals. The systems have flaws, payments are often missed or delayed and wait times for care can be lengthy, but struggles are getting easier. Mostly. It comes on the heels of a period of unconstrained technological deregulation, in which massive corporations bet the world's future on the promise (and profitability) of full-scale automation. The push led to numerous technological breakthroughs and paradigm shifts in non-computational artificial intelligence, but the future those companies envisioned never came to fruition. Instead, an era of prodigious economic collapse and civil unrest followed. A vast amount of knowledge and information tied to those companies and their robotic and AI-based technologies were lost. The states and regions that have recovered are working from the scraps of their former world, returning to a reliance on labor as the automated solutions from the previous era wear out and decline in effectiveness. In the last fifty years, legislation in many of these recovering regions has granted robotic individuals with sapien*-like intelligence and consciousness limited rights and independence. These "Sapien-AI" beings face an uphill battle as they work to find their place in society and to find purpose beyond what they were made to do. This story follows a Sapien-AI named Sebby. *Sapien is a blanket term to refer to the varied anthropomorphic humanoid individuals in Broken.
An image of a canine-like character named Sebby's head is visible with speech indicating internal scripting they are doing. "Hey. I'd like to buy a mouse. Yes, it's for me. I already have a cage and supplies. Thanks." "Hi. I'd like to buy a fancy mouse. It's for me, yeah. It's a pet. I already have a cage for it, and food and a water bottle. Thanks." "Hey, I'd like to buy a fancy mouse. Yeah, it'd for me. It's a pet. I already bought a cage, food and a water bottle. Tha-" Sebby is cut off by a new speaker - "Can I help you with something?" A larger image shows the canine, with robotic parts visible, speaking to a much taller cat character wearing an apron and nametag to indicate he is an employee. They are both standing in front of a display of pet cages as are commonly seen in pet stores. Sebby - "Oh, uh, yeah. Hi, I'd like to buy a mouse." <The bits of speech that Sebby has scripted are indicated through use of a matching font to his earlier scripted thoughts.> Employee - "A mouse? Like, a feeder mouse?" Sebby - "What? Oh, um, no. A normal mouse. A fancy mouse? That's what they're called." Employee - "Oh, okay. And this is for?" Sebby - "For me." Employee - "For you." Sebby - "Um, it's for me, yeah. It's a pet. I already have a cage for it. Thank you." Employee - "Okay. Let me, um, I need to grab the stuff for that. I'll be right back." Sebby - "Yeah... thanks." Text appears lower on the page, disconnected from the previous speech to indicate new, as of yet unseen individuals are speaking. Unknown 1 - "No, just ask it." Unknown 2 - "You saw it first, so you do it."