Editing 2218: Wardrobe

{{comic
| number    = 2218
| date      = October 21, 2019
| title     = Wardrobe
| image     = wardrobe.png
| titletext = If you'd just agree to hold your meetings in here, you'd have PLENTY of time to figure things out before the deadline.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a MAGIC WARDROBE. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic references ''{{w|The Chronicles of Narnia}}'', a series of children's fantasy books by {{w|C.S. Lewis}} (some of which were later {{w|The Chronicles of Narnia (film series)|made into movies}}) about a number of children from England who travel to a magical land called Narnia. In the first book of the series (by publication date), ''{{w|The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe}}'', Narnia is accessible through a wardrobe. {{w|Mr. Tumnus}} is a {{w|faun}} in Narnia and the closest character that the first human visitor, Lucy, meets on her first trip through the wardrobe portal. [[Megan]] goes into Narnia via the wardrobe to consult with him on a pressing question.

The question has to do with membership in the {{w|European Union}}. The United Kingdom is a member of the E.U. at the time of this comic, but voted (for the most part) in 2016 to exit the E.U. (a process called {{w|Brexit}}), but working out the details of this separation has proven quite problematic. One of the major issues has been the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland; both are on (and together comprise in its entirety) the island of Ireland, but Northern Ireland is part of the U.K. while Ireland is a separate country that will remain part of the E.U. If/when the U.K. exits the E.U., it will have different customs regulations than the Republic of Ireland, and there will need to be some kind of customs border, probably either between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, or between the island of Ireland and the island of Great Britain (which comprises England, Scotland, and Wales). The former would necessitate customs checks on the island of Ireland between the two parts of it, creating a barrier on that island unacceptable to many who live there, while the latter would separate Northern Ireland to some extent from the rest of the U.K., which is unacceptable to many citizens of both Northern Ireland and Great Britain. Resolving this issue has been a major sticking point in the ongoing Brexit negotiations.

The portal in the wardrobe represents ''another'' border of England, namely the border between England and Narnia. This 'border', of course, exists only in fiction, but the joke here is that it must be dealt with in the Brexit negotiations, further complicating an already messy situation. Cueball suggests solving the situation by simply locking the wardrobe (which was never very accessible, even in ''The Chronicles of Narnia''), effectively isolating England from Narnia and making the border problem moot.

The title text references the amount of time it has taken to complete the Brexit negotiations, currently three-plus years and counting. The negotiators have set a series of deadlines to complete the negotiations, but have repeatedly had to extend those deadlines because they haven't reached any agreement. The comic was posted roughly one week before the brexit deadline (Oct. 31, 2019).  However [https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/19/eu-says-britain-has-requested-an-extension-of-brexit-deadline-after-uk-lawmakers-delay-vote.html it was already expected that that deadline too would probably be extended]. In ''The Chronicles of Narnia'', time moves inconsistently in Narnia, usually passing more rapidly in Narnia than on Earth.  The Pevensie siblings enter the wardrobe as children, have extensive adventures in Narnia lasting many years, and then return to the real world to find that they are children again and that only a few minutes have passed. The suggestion here is that holding the slow Brexit negotiations in Narnia would take relatively little time in the real world, and the whole affair could be completed in time for the deadline.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[Megan entering a wardrobe, while Cueball stands outside.]
:Megan: I'll go ask. 
:Megan: You wait here.

:[Cueball stands outside the wardrobe.]

:[Cueball stands outside the wardrobe, and voices can be heard from inside the wardrobe.]
:Tumnus: Halt! Who goes there?
:Megan: Hey Tumnus. Quick question.
:Tumnus: Yes?

:[Cueball walks away from the wardrobe, towards the right of the panel. Voices can be heard from inside the wardrobe.]
:Megan: Is Narnia in the E.U.?
:Tumnus: Yes, we joined after you did.
:Megan: Oh great, ''another'' border to deal with.
:Cueball (from outside the wardrobe): I'll go find a lock for the door.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Chronicles of Narnia]]