362: Blade Runner

Explain xkcd: It's 'cause you're dumb.
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Blade Runner
Blade Runner: classic, but incredibly slow.
Title text: Blade Runner: classic, but incredibly slow.

Explanation

Cueball is watching a DVD he got for Christmas (the comic is set on Boxing Day). His friend seems intent to ruin it for him.

Blade Runner is a famous science fiction movie from 1982 featuring Harrison Ford, and it is now considered a classic. One of the principal characters is played by Daryl Hannah. Hannah later became known for acting in lighthearted rom-com films, such as Splash (in which she is a mermaid), similar to the type of films that the Olsen twins are known for. Hannah does look similar to the Olsens, although she is 26 years older, as they were born in 1986 - four years after the movie was released. Full House is a TV series, and New York Minute is a romantic film both featuring the Olsens. Hannah's character in Blade Runner (a homicidal sex robot) is a marked departure from this type of role.

The friend also claims that Blade Runner is a rip-off of the 2004 comedy film New York Minute. Such a comment is completely illogical — Blade Runner came out 22 years prior, and the two films are from completely different genres.

From the above, it is clear that the friend is most likely just trolling (doubly so since New York Minute would not be considered very good by people who enjoy sci-fi classics). It could be that he actually believes that these movies came out in the order he discovered them in, although the other guy still hates him for ruining the experience by reminding him of the Olsen twins...

The title text is a common comment on the movie - it's just not like an ordinary modern sci-fi movie. It is also likely a pun on the phrase "instant classic," which is sometimes used to describe movies considered so good that they "become a classic" immediately after release.

Transcript

Friend: What DVD is this?
Cueball: Blade Runner. I got it for Christmas.
Friend: The one with Harrison Ford, right? And the Olsen twins?
Cueball: Ye— What? Olsen twins? No, this is the 80's sci-fi classic!
Friend: Huh. I didn't know the Olsen twins even did sci-fi.
Cueball: ...They don't.
Friend: So is Ashley the replicant, or is Mary-Kate? I can never tell them apart.
Cueball: Neither! They're not in this movie!
Friend: Then who is?
Cueball: Daryl Hannah!
Friend: I liked her in Full House.
Cueball: I hate you.
Friend: Man, this movie is just a New York Minute rip-off.


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Discussion

Definitely trolling, in my view... 173.245.54.83 15:54, 12 July 2020 (UTC) In the explanation the DVD-owner is refered to as cueball, however in the transcript they are the friend, is this just a mix-up or...--173.245.52.206 06:10, 6 January 2014 (UTC)

Which should be changed? The description and transcript completely disagree on who is watching/who is commenting. Ad1217 (talk) 01:06, 6 May 2014 (UTC)
I have corrected both explanation and transcript. As both look like Cueball then neither can be described as being him! Also added more info and links to explain Kynde (talk) 20:52, 8 May 2014 (UTC)
Please do not remove the Cueball references here. He is a standard character here. The category Category:Comics featuring Cueball gives just an overview about all comics showing this stick figure. --Dgbrt (talk) 21:07, 8 May 2014 (UTC)
But who should define who Cueball is? You? I could see him as both here. And somebody did. You have just corrected back so that the Cueball in the explain is switched to the other charachter in the transcript. At least one of these should then be changed to match the other. It is thus also clear that people have different views of what Cueball stands for. Is he the one trolling, or is he the one who knows which movie Blade Runner is? Kynde (talk) 07:35, 10 May 2014 (UTC)
By the way - I did not remove the reference to the chategory - but only in the text as described above. Kynde (talk) 07:38, 10 May 2014 (UTC)
Now I have corrected the transcript so the Cueball here matches your choice in the explanation. Which I could not say is better that the reverse - but it is less confusing. Randall do not call him Cueball - that is his readers that have used this nane - which is also why there can be more than one "Cueball" in one comic. Neither of these should then be considered to be Cueball in my oppinion. But if you have a way to define why it should be the guy who watches the DVD who is Cueball I would like to hear. Kynde (talk) 07:51, 10 May 2014 (UTC)
Agreed that it's definitely trolling. Really don't think that paragraph needs the second part about possibly being confused. (Also, I feel like the troller makes a better "Cueball" because they're sort of the "protagonist", in that they're driving the discussion? idk. Doesn't matter too much though.)