Infinity Apartment (comic story)
Infinity Apartment was a Jenny Everywhere webcomic created by Benj Christensen. It introduced a cast of companions for Jenny Everywhere and ran for over forty strips, but was ultimately left unfinished. In 2021, Christensen officially released all the characters and elements introduced in the story as open-source in their own right.
Contents
Plot
Strip 1: Jenny
Jenny Everywhere has a break-up conversation with a Robot she'd been dating, who has recently gotten a personality update and come to the conclusion that their personalities are no longer compatible. Jenny is upset with the robot, not because of the break-up itself, but because the robot began the conversation with such a dull cliché as “Jenny, we need to talk”.
Strip 2: Ezri
Ezri, another resident of the Infinity Apartment, holds an inner monologue seemingly full of philosophical insights about ups and downs in life, though it turns out this is all prompted by the fact that she is in fact bouncing on a trampoline.
Strip 3: Keith
Keith refuses to believe that Jenny's apzrtment exists in several realities at once. To prove that they are in a different reality than his own, Jenny opens the door onto a world where a Dragon door-to-door preacher is trying to have a word with Jenny.
Strip 4: Thuban
In honour of Star Wars Shortened, Thuban proposes a stunt of summarising the entire Star Wars series in six comic panels. Unfortunately, as Jenny is quick to point out, he wastes increasing amounts of panels first introducing the gimmick, then discussing its possibility with Jenny, and ends up having to boil everything down to a single comic panel with the caption “Stuff happened”.
Strip 5: ShatterScreen
Waking up in the morning, Jenny is startled by ShatterScreen, a green-clad superhero, who explains that he is “the superhero movie [she] ordered from Webfilms”, as well as by Ezri, who pops out of a waste bin to introduce herself to Jenny as her new flatmate.
Strip 6: Possibilities
Keith sees Jenny listening at one of the doors of the Apartment, an “unclaimed” one marked TBA. She explains that until someone wanting to become her flatmate claims this room, making it turn into a slice of their original reality, they remain filled with “what could have been and what might still be”.
Strip 7: Something New?
Jenny and ShatterScreen notice that everything around them has suddenly changed appearance. ShatterScreen wonders if one of his enemies has used an Abstraction Ray, but Jenny concludes that in all likelihood “the creator just went crazy again trying to settle on an art-style”.
Strip 8: Miscommunication
Jenny, Keith and Thuban are preparing to go to a club. The two men have dressed up and they are confused to see Jenny in a ninja outfit, until she reveals that the club is in fact a ninja club, before demonstrating by vanishing.
Strip 9: Club Jitsu
At the “ninja club” in question, Keith wonders why they appear to be the only people there, only for Jenny to explain that there are probably hundreds of other guests, who are simply such good ninjas they remain invisible to them. Indeed, Thuban and Ezri soon find evidence of this.
Strip 10: Barriers
Now pretty well inebriated, Keith tries, very clumsily, to flirt with a ninja, who disappears on him rather than reply.
Strip 11: It Ain't Foreplay
Jenny notes that Thuban appears to have found himself a date and comments on how he is therefore doing better than Keith — whose ill-fated romantic dealings have got to the point where he is getting throwing-stars hurled at him. Thuban politely notes that the fact that he actually speaks Japanese might be helpful in this regard.
Strip 12: Unfortunately
Jenny, ShatterScreen, Thuban and Ezri have been summoned to Ezri's home universe to liberate the lands from the hordes of the villainous overlord Minrath. Being briefed by a Lady, Jenny is stunned to discover that the “champion of prophecy” they are most keen to have on their side is not Jenny or even Shatterscreen, but “the Marked One” — Ezri.
Strip 13: Runes
In light of this revelation, Jenny asks Ezri what the magical mark on her face is. She explains that it is a magical Rune, though she simply uses it to permanently change her hair colour to the familiar black and purple gradient (whereas her natural hair colour, which has “never felt right”, was blonde). Suddenly, she feels herself losing control of her arms.
Strip 14: Battle
A sword magically appears in Ezri's arms just as she is swarmed by villainous egg-like creatures called the P-Unda.
Strip 15: Quinn
After spending some time smothered by the P-Unda, Ezri is wrenched free by a wandering knight called Quinn.
Strip 16: A Test of Strength
Meanwhile, ShatterScreen has wandered off and is arm-wrestling a Giant.
Strip 17: All Hallows' Eve
In an illustration seemingly detached from the ongoing story, the main cast of the Infinity Apartment are seen having dressed up as various characters for Halloween: Keith is dressed up as Harry Potter, Jenny as Pokémon's Officer Jenny, Ezri as a generic witch, Thuban as Anakin Skywalker and ShatterScreen as Superman.
Strip 18: Some Time Later
Having made their way to his lair, Ezri and Quinn meet the Dark Lord Minrath himself. To their surprise, Minrath, recognising Ezri as the Chosen One, suggests that they decide their contest through a game of Monopoly rather than risk either of their lives.
Strip 19: A Few Words
In a strip clearly outside the narrative of the comic, Benj Christensen apologises to the reader for the fact that the current storyline will not be concluded directly, announcing instead a short break and the return of the comic in revamped form a short time later.
Strip 20: 6 Months Later…
After leaving for six months, Jenny has returned to the Apartment with a rather extreme makeover, now sporting glasses, no goggles or scarf, and long brown hair. She hesitates at the front door, afraid that her friends will reject her — or perhaps not even recognise her.
Strip 21: Jenny Says It Best
Jenny walks in at last, but Ezri does not even realise, being lost in a romantic kiss with Quinn, revealed to be a shapeshifter.
Strip 22: Reunion No. 1
Finally registering her presence, Ezri jumps to hug Jenny before immediately growing more distant and asking her where she's been, to which Jenny answers that it's “a long story”.
Strip 23: Reasons
Jenny explains that when Ezri turned out to be the hero of destiny, rather than Jenny herself, she felt irrationally jealous. Realising that she had let herself grow into the role of the larger-than-life hero around whom the world rsolves, Jenny thus left to reinvent herself.
Strip 24
Ezri reassures Jenny that it's nice to have her back at the Apartment. As Jenny looks at him in askance, she belatedly explains who Quinn is, and that he and Ezri have been dating since the Minrath adventure. Jenny turns the tables on her by showing off a wedding ring and announcing that she, for her part, got married.
Strip 25
Ezri tries to show Jenny to Thuban and explain the news to him, but he seems so absorbed by some kind of video game he's playing that he doesn't even realise Ezri is talking to him.
Strip 26
Jenny visits ShatterScreen's home reality to announce her return and marriage to him, finding him watching over the nightly city from the rooftop of a skyscraper. Meanwhile, Thuban is still sitting silently and playing his game.
Strip 27
Jenny returns to the Apartment to find Keith (who's dyed his hair blue) and tell him the news. Inwardly, Keith feels extremely angry at Jenny's thoughtless abandonment of them and overly casual return, and, having harboured unrequited feelings for Jenny for a long time, he is further angered by the news that she got married to someone she met within those last six months when she's known him for years. However, he maintains a poker-face and simply says hello and congratulates her for her marriage. Meanwhile, Thuban is still sitting silently and playing his game.
Strip 28
The newly-reunited Quinn, Ezri, ShatterScreen, Jenny Everywhere and Keith pose for a group photo for Thanksgiving. Meanwhile, Thuban is still sitting silently and playing his game.
Strip 29
Thuban, still alone silently and playing his game, suddenly bolts upright, throwing away his controller, as the news about Jenny and her marriage finally hit his consciousness.
Strip 30
In the morning, Quinn wakes up before Ezri does. He sneaks silently out of bed, but as he walks out, still bleary-eyed, he stumbles upon Jenny Everywhere saying “ice cream”. Before he knows it, he's shapeshifted into an anthropomorphic ice cream cone, much to his dismay.
Strip 31
Jenny's perspective on the previous strip is given: casually talking to herself only for a giant ice cream cone with Quinn's eyes and voice to suddenly pop out of a door out of nowhere.
Strip 32
Identifying himself to her and explaining his shape-shifting powers to her, Quinn presses Jenny to think of something else that he could turn into before anyone sees him in the fairly embarrassing shape of an ice cream cone. He ends up turning, with an understated “Pop!” noise, into an underdressed version of Jenny's own husband Alan, much to both their embarrassments.
Strip 33
Quinn has now gotten his powers back under control, shifting into a female version of his standard appearance as Ezri's boyfriend. He and Jenny have coffee together and Quinn asks about Jenny's husband Alan. When asked about his occupation, Jenny answers, after a brief pause during which she thinks back to how plagued with self-worth issues Alan is about it, that he is an artist.
Strip 34
Jenny additionally reveals that Alan is actually a vampire, although a perfectly benevolent one from a reality where an ethical substitute for human blood is widely produced, sold in cans.
Strip 35
Some time later, Thuban asks Jenny what married life is like. Her enthusiastic description, however, ends up putting the long-time Star Wars fan in mind of a hero and his sidekick — such as Han Solo and Chewbacca — and his further responses with that framework in mind come out rather confusing.
Strip 36
Alan has arrived and introduced himself to most of Jenny's friends, leaving only ShatterScreen. They've just begun looking for him when he leaps out of nowhere, wielding a green stake, having recognised Alan as a vampire and attempting to kill him. Jenny has to punch him to the ground before explaining the misunderstanding.
Strip 37
After Alan finishes settling in and tidying all his things, Jenny lightly teases him for always being such a neat-freak — which transitions into a more adult kind of fun as she continues the teasing by taking off her clothes and leaving them in haphazard places even as she invites him over to the hitherto-perfectly-tucked bed.
Strip 38
While out walking in an unidentified universe, Jenny suddenly finds her heart set on getting a weird creature in a pet shop window as a pet of her own, despite Alan trying to calm her down by pointing out, among other things, that she has no idea what kind of animal it even is.
Strip 39
ShatterScreen wakes up from a dream where he confessed his love to Ezri, on whom he had not previously consciously realised that he had a crush. Scowling, he berates himself for “always going for the taken ones”.
Strip 40
A very sad Keith watches Jenny and Alan enjoying their married life, thinking to himself about how much he loves Jenny but how unsurprising that she'd pick the more “special”, “unique” Alan next to him who is “nothing”.
Strip 41
Alan is raging at his computer. Jenny asks him what's wrong, and he explains that he's feeling frustrated at his own lack of focus and skill producing the webcomic he created, Ego World. Jenny tries to discourage him from simply stopping and starting over.
Worldbuilding
Jenny
- This story features a Jenny of variable appearance who is a resident of the Infinity Apartment. It is unclear if she has the ability to change her appearance, or if she is one consciousness who frequently trades bodies with other Jennies.
- She is first seen in Strip #1 wearing green overalls and a short-sleeved periwinkle T-shirt, as well as a beige scarf and gray-blue goggles. She has pale skin and her hair is short and dark, with two short pigtails in the back.
- In Strip #3, she has longer, mauve hair, a dark green T-shirt illustrated with an emoji version of herself, and wears a very light green scarf. Her skin is pale and her goggles are blueish glass with a brown leather strap.
- In Strip #4, she's black, with a large Afro; her scarf is a pale gray and very long, her goggles are a futuristic visor, and she wears cream-coloured clothing with metal shoulder pads.
- In Strip #5, she's a fit, tall woman with long blonde hair, wearing a lime-green top, mauve trousers and crimson scarf.
- In Strip #6, she has very short brown hair and wears a khaki vest and a long, blue-grey scarf. Inside the “unclaimed rooms”, the shifting possibilities include a ginger-haired Jenny with a minimalistic, strap-less pair of sky-blue goggles, and a Jenny with a long beige scarf and vividly red hair done up in short ponytails.
- In Strip #7, she has long, dark brown hair, a sleeveless beige T-shirt and a gray scarf.
- In Strips #8 through #11, she is dressed as a ninja. She is half a head shorter than Keith, has pale skin, and her scarf is bright red.
- In Strips #12 through #18, she has donned steel armour with an infinity symbol on the chest-plate, a helmet adorned with red spikes, and a red cape. She has dark red eyes and short gray-and-black hair, buzzed on the sides. (Within the out-of-continuity Halloween illustration, she is dressed up as Officer Jenny, complete with blue hair; the symbol on her hat is a golden infinity sigil, and she has small glasses.)
- In Strip #20 onwards, she has given herself a makeover, slipping into a less extravagant persona and no longer constantly shifting appearance (except for the small detail of her eye colour). The “new Jenny” has pale skin, long, wavy brown hair, and eyes of changeable colour. She wears glasses, in the pince-nez style, with coloured lenses: she keeps switching them out to match her shirt and eyes. Between Strip #20 and Strip #27, she wears a short-sleeved bue T-shirt matching her eyes, and dark cyan torusers. In Strip #28 she is wearing a red sweater, and has red-tinted glasses to match. From Strip #30 to Strip #34, she is wearing a green shirt and glasses, and has shifted her eyes to be green as well. From Strip #35 to Strip #37, she has red eyes and red-tinted glasses (of a different shape than the ones in Strip #28), but her top changes: in Strip #35 it is a gray sweater; in Strip #36 it is a light orange short-sleeved shirt; in Strip #37 (until she takes it off) it is a dark orange tank top.
- In Strip #38, for unclear reasons, while on an outing with Alan she has reverted to a more classic look with short hair, a beige scarf, a brown aviator jacket, steel goggles, and no pince-nez. Her eyes are blue, her skin white but tan, and her hair is blond.
- In Strip #40 and Strip #41, she is back to the “new Jenny” look, this time with purple eyes and matching glasses whose lenses are in a flattened diamond shape. She is wearing the short-sleeved blue T-shirt again, this time paired with navy-blue trousers.
Universes
- This story takes place in the Infinity Apartment, which exists simultaneously in a large number of universes.
- Keith comes from one universe.
- Jenny shows him another where civilised, bipedal Dragons are commonplace.
- Jenny, Keith, Thuban and Ezri visit Club Jitsu in an unidentified universe.
- Ezri comes from a classic fantasy universe, which the characters visit in the story arc running from Strip #12 to Strip #18.
Other
- The Robot who breaks up with Jenny in Strip 1 contains “five trillion microcircuits”.
- The P-Unda are created from raw eggs.
Continuity
- In COMIC: The Jenny Everywhere Chronicles, one of the Jenny Everywheres featured had an off-screen boyfriend by the name of Alan, although too little is revealed about him to establish him explicitly as a parallel counterpart of Infinity Apartment's Alan, with the fact that they are their respective Jennies' love interests remaining the only known similarity between the two Alans besides the name.
- A version of ShatterScreen later appeared in GAME: The Jenny Everywhere Roleplaying Game.
- According to Scott Sanford, the way the “8” of another Jenny's much more mundane apartment in PROSE: Paying It Forward leans to the side to form an infinity symbol was an allusion to Infinity Apartment, although there is no real narrative connection there.
- In PROSE: Morning After, when she suffered from shifter hangover, this same Jenny briefly got glimpses of this story's Jenny's life, having a vague memory of living in “an apartment full of universes”.
Behind the scenes
Read online
As this story is now offline at its original location, we reproduce it here with the permission of Benj Christensen.
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