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Behind the Lines

Science fiction

Sci-fi films traverse worlds and creations that go beyond the limits of accepted human knowledge. Spaceships, robots, cyborgs, artificial intelligence. Except, wait a minute, isn’t some of this stuff already here?

Artificial Intelligence, or AI, barely seemed credible a decade ago when we were all reaching for our Virtual Reality headgear, but now it feels like it’s pervading our lives. It’s a topic that has inspired many cartoons in 2025. 

But sci-fi does more than simply entertain. It can also explore social and political issues, and pose profound questions about the human condition. This year we have beautiful, poignant cartoons about the effect of the news and the state of the world on the individual. AI might be able to approximate humanness, but it can’t deliver the humanity displayed by our cartoonists.

A crowd of people at night look at their phones. Text reads, 'The problems of the world are too heavy for us to bear alone.'

The Problems of the World

Rosie Murrell, Instagram,

In four panels, a woman is distressed. Text says, 'Her life got too much, so she started to paint.' The woman smiles. Text says, 'Which put things in perspective.' She cries.

Put Things in Perspective

Scott Wrigg, Instagram,

Two figures smile. One figure with a smiling blue brain says, 'What’s on your mind?' The other figure with a red brain labelled PANIC says, 'Nothing.'

PANIC

Shuturp, Instagram,

A multi panel comic labelled Scary Times covering observations on world leaders, US President Donald Trump, the environment, misinformation and AI.

Scary Times

Andrew Weldon, The Big Issue,

In a museum exhibit labelled '20th century technology,' a child asks a man, 'So… if it only made phone calls, which device did they use to bitterly divide people along ideological lines?'

Antisocial Media

Megan Herbert, Substack,

Three fortune tellers sit beside a sign that reads, 'International fortune tellers' club.' One says, 'I used to rely on my crystal ball but these days I just make up the craziest stuff I can think of and 95% of the time I'm totally on the money.'

Misfortune Teller

Fiona Katauskas, The Guardian Australia,

A woman's stressed thought bubble fills the panel. She hurriedly ruminates on all of her career branches and options. The cat on her lap thinks, 'I am.'

Overflow vs Flow

Megan Herbert, Substack,

Three panels show a man talking to the AI function on his computer. The computer evolves from artificial intelligence to 'artificial insight'. In the final panel the computer makes a joke with a toaster.

Artificial Intelligence

Andrew Weldon, The Big Issue,

Two people sit at a table, the black edges of the panel crowd them into a tiny space. A quote reads, 'What I initially thought was the shortest day of the year, is in fact an encroaching sense of existential dread.'

Dread

Oslo Davis, The Saturday Paper,

A multi panel comic of one person thinking about current issues like climate change, police brutality, and immigration.

Thinking

Campbell Whyte, Tale Town,

Superman advertises a small lamp saying, 'Are you a government tired of kidnapping people off the streets? Then why not try my phantom zone projector! Political enemies? Send them to the Phantom Zone! Pesky immigrants? No visa required! Climate scientists? Send us a postcard, Poindexter! Your nations moral compass? Away!' The projector zaps these issues away.

Phantom Zone

Glen Le Lievre, Patreon,

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse wear cloaks in yellow, purple, red and green. One says, 'The whole apocalypse thing got a bit too depressing, so we've reinvented ourselves as the four horsemen of working together to get us all out of the mess that we're in.' Their flags read, 'Hope,' 'Justice,' 'Empathy,' and 'Just basically not being a dick.'

Horses for Causes

Fiona Katauskas, The Guardian Australia,

In a game of Tetris, the blocks are letter blocks that spell out, 'Art, work, truth, creativity, originality, job security, human agency, competition, IP, law, trust, equal, access, ethics, safety, skills.' Above them, two Tetris blocks in the shape of 'A' and 'I'. The score panel says, 'Top: tech firms. To beat: regulation. Next: ?'

All Fun and Games...

Megan Herbert, Substack,

A computer labelled 'AI' runs after people with a whip. Text reads, 'Productivity.'

Productivity

Matt Bissett-Johnson, Melbourne Observer,

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