neighborhood
Explanation
The Joke
The comic depicts a futuristic augmented reality neighborhood. In the opening panels, a guide explains that "you can see, this home comes with demographic goods and proximity to institutions and enriching experiences valued by your particular political demographic." The neighborhood is designed so that every window shows a view of people matching your exact social and political preferences, and from every direction you see people "captivating the social media you value most."
The guide continues explaining the community features: there is a "sense of community" because once a week, local homeowners get together to share stories and read the same news sources. But then the twist comes -- someone asks "Sounds too good to be true?" and the response is: "If someone disagrees, we exile them." The final panel shows people being ejected from the community.
The Humor
The comic satirizes the increasing self-sorting of modern society into ideological bubbles and echo chambers. It presents as a utopian real estate pitch what is actually a dystopian vision of total ideological segregation -- a neighborhood specifically engineered so you never encounter a dissenting opinion. The humor lies in how appealing this is initially presented as being (curated demographics, shared media, community events) before the dark punchline reveals the mechanism that makes it work: banishing anyone who disagrees. It is a sharp commentary on how online filter bubbles and political polarization are increasingly being replicated in physical spaces.
References
This comic is one of several promotional strips Zach created for the book "Soonish" (co-authored with Kelly Weinersmith), which explores emerging technologies. The augmented reality neighborhood concept connects to the book''s discussions of how future technologies might reshape daily life. The comic also alludes to real sociological research on political sorting and geographic polarization in the United States, where people increasingly choose to live near others who share their political views.