“The Machine” by Joey Comeau

“The Machine” by Joey Comeau is a take on a pseudo-virtual reality, a world constantly recording itself and constantly viewable, mixed in with some brain-busting causality paradoxes.  Admittedly, this story is a little difficult to get into, but “The Machine” is well worth sticking with, if only to get to the moment of clarity at the conclusion.

This isn’t a brilliant story and certainly not dazzling, just an average piece with a nice touch at the end.  One of those endings that will make you nod, and go “Aha!”

Comeau makes little effort to explain a complicated theory; while his lack of explanation gets the story moving without bogging it down in tech-head detail, it is still confusing in places.  A little time spent clarifying the “Machine” would have made all the difference.

Not a story to read if you don’t feel like thinking.