Don't get me wrong, I like pastiche as much as the next being. For instance I'm a big fan of Futurama which spent most of it's life making pastiche's of popular sci-fi TV and film, and of course there's Rick and Morty, not to mention a whole host of sitcoms, mostly American, which reference existing works. However, to be different, and realising I could never match those other works, I thought I would make my sci-fi references minimal or at least move them to the background. This episode however, when I had to devise a representative of ULife's creative approach to keeping the peace, I couldn't resist a very definite pastiche of a certain famous sci-fi lawman. He's definitely and deliberately over-the-top (next episode's big reveal explains why), but like I say, don't get me wrong (again! - what is it with you?), I have always loved that certain lawman and he and his world are a huge influence on ULife, along with practically everything else from the certain famous sci-fi comic that spawned him. Which in case you're confused is 2000 AD and the certain sci-fi lawman is Judge Dredd - respect ,,, and erm, obey!
The University of Life is an ongoing comedy sci-fi comic strip set on a planet-sized university of the far future. ULIFE (or Monica, if you wish to give it a more personal name) hosts a wide range of diverse and interesting life-forms and as such, constantly has to face the challenge of ensuring that the needs of every different and contrasting life-form are met. It is a place where, just as one being’s sandwich is another being’s poison, so one being’s soppy hug is another being’s murder. Despite the potential for chaos this extreme diversity could cause, ULIFE / Monica is a relatively peaceful planet, possessing neither a regular police force or army. In fact, apart from the 522,601 statutes governing the use of computers, there are practically no rules to govern the inhabitants' lives. Of course, underneath the peaceful veneer, all sorts of crimes and skulduggery persist. and the apparent interest in diversity is really just a cynical mix of penny-pinching and public relations.
The overall tone of the stories is satirical, poking fun, jibes and a big alien tongue at various ‘unfair’ institutions such as unfeeling bureaucracies, as well as examining the difficulties faced by the underdog, unglamorous, ordinary pedestrian universal creature who has to put up with the unfairness.
The University is the star and although there are regularly reoccurring characters, there are no regular characters … at the moment.
This is a civilised and bureaucratic, harmless but still action and adventure-packed story in the mould of greater works such as The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, the Discworld novels and Blyton’s Mallory Towers. And though tragedy and farce occur, laughter in the face of adversity is the most common feature.
So strap in, switch on, unhook your comms unit, put your feet up or seven of them at least, and enjoy your adventures on the University of Life.
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