Questionable Content XIX: Give Jeph Just A *Little* Credit, Here

[Wraith]

Ugh, I'd blocked out that Willow plotline.

If I have to suffer with the burden of knowledge, I don't see why I should have to suffer alone.

The Emmett example though -- I don't actually mind this. I felt like Emmett hit it off with Faye and Bubbles last time, and Faye is well-established liking kids so it makes sense they'd meet up again. I just don't get the toothless "forgot my phone" drama. If it's meant to showcase Emmett's anxiety it's coming off a little too strong, and turning it into a punchline.

I made a joke above about Emmett probably not knowing their own address, but on reflection... that might actually have been more interesting and appropriate than what we actually got.

They're new to Northampton, have been to Union Robotics only once before, and never to Coffee Of Doom. They're sheltered and don't have reliable access to the internet, so maybe directions to their street aren't that obvious? And Mom is Professor of the Internet, so she definitely knows better than to have her home address freely available, even assuming that her details have been updated since they moved in and such. So Emmett panics because they're in a strange town, with strangers, and doesn't know how to get home which, for a neurotic teen, is more than enough to trigger a panic attack that prevents them from explaining further.

That's why Bubbles couldn't just Google the address and solve the problem instantly - even Emmett isn't dumb enough to have doxx'd themself, even if they had the opportunity. That's why Emmett couldn't just go home and Professor Mom had to come to CoD to pick up Emmett - home isn't within easy walking distance, and the only person with a car is Dora who (apparently) isn't in the shop today. And we learn something actually valuable about Emmett's back-story in the process, rather than unshown anecdotes about stuff that will never be referenced again.

I think this highlights the problem with the 'losing the phone' story; it's fine, but it's also a wisp of a fart of a plot that is less worthwhile than the same amount of time doing filler portraits of the characters with 'Random Facts' superimposed around them.