The pressures of the competition seem to be getting to jefbot, or maybe it’s just the constant pestering from Pinky that’s getting under his skin. Then again, maybe this is just how jefbot gives a pep talk. Hopefully he can get it together as Wil continues his final chance at adding to the team’s point pool!

And those Star Trek: The Next Generation fans among you might remember jefbot’s “Traveler” reference from the episode Journey’s End, where Wil Wheaton’s character, Wesley Crusher, decides to explore the universe with The Traveler instead of returning to Starfleet. Yes, jefbot couldn’t resist watching STNG in the ’90s, even though he probably watched it through jealous, venomous eyes.

(For behind-the-scenes stories of STNG from Wil’s unique/humorous perspective, check out his book, Memories of the Future, available here.)

The conversation as represented by this strip is very, very close to the ones I’ve had with my brother-in-law, Mike, when he’s encountered missing programming from his DVR, since the reason for this lost content is almost always the same. And yes, Mansquito is a real movie, and has been the butt of many jokes between Mike and I since my sister, Laura, gained some sort of perverse obsession with watching Sci Fi Channel movies. The Schuetze geek genes must run deep as she’s also been very into Star Trek lately – TOS, Next Gen, Voyager, you name it. She’s even been watching Enterprise. Go figure.

I really thought I was going to get that part, but I suppose I don’t hate Wil Wheaton (anymore) because I didn’t. In fact, the more I read and hear about all the cool things he’s done, the more I want to have a beer with him and talk nerdy about things like classic coin-ops and comic books.