Lysander's aimless and carefree life is turned upside down when he accidentally discovers that the cute boy next door, Simon, is a literal monster
Not Drunk Enough
Tess Stone
Logan Ibarra is possibly the unluckiest repairman in the world. A late night job should not have landed him in the middle of a mad scientist's squabble, but he soon finds himself surrounded by monsters and further madness with little tools to get out.
Stand Still, Stay Silent
Minna Sundberg
A few generations after the end of the world, a small, poorly financed research crew is sent out to rediscover whatever is left of the forbidden old world in the south.
Sakana
Mad Rupert
Our heroes must navigate a hazardous dating scene, overcome personal anxieties, and wrangle unruly seafood in order to find love, peace of mind, and a paycheck.
The Weave
Rennie Kingsley
A young woman pursued by bad luck is witness to the murder of the Fairy Queen of Summer. Can she get to the bottom of this mystery?
ARISE, YE SKELETON KING
Brian Clevinger, Escher Cattle, Lee Black
A troupe of wandering "adventurers" down to their last silver "acquire" a map only to find the real treasure was the fiend they dug up along the way.
Nigh Heaven & Hell
Scotty
Heather Vodihn is on a simple mission: find her father. However she becomes entangled with two strangers with mysterious powers being stalked by a group with bizarre demands. Heather must learn to trust her new traveling companions, even if she is untrustworthy herself.
The Messenger
indui
In a ruin-abound town cursed with bad luck, Kai and Kalla--a young boy and a fledgling dragonbird spirit--take on a quest in hopes the reward will solve all of their problems.
Blindsprings
Kadi Fedoruk
Tamaura, wrested into a world 300 years in the future, must find a way to save the magic fading from her country.
Sister Claire
Yamino
In the troubled aftermath of a great war between Witches and her fellow Nuns, novice Sister Claire just wants a purpose.
Novae
KaiJu
A historical romance with a touch magic and a dash of astronomy. It chronicles the romantic adventures of Sulvain, a sweet tempered necromancer and Raziol, a passionate 17th century astronomer.
Monster's Garden
Ash G.
Champion pit fighter Kilo Monster was content to spend the rest of his days tending to his quiet garden alone... until he met a curious robot girl and her human family.
Ozzie the Vampire
Eric Lide
Ozzie and her best friend Kimmy are your average everyday normal art students – except one is an immortal vampire with superpowers and the other possesses a magic talking grimoire. Also they have to save their town from a demonic invasion.
Edison Rex
Chris Roberson
The adventures of the world’s greatest villain who, after defeating his superheroic nemesis, decides that he’s the only one left to defend the world.
Peritale
Mari Costa
A fairy godmother with no magic tries her best to successfully fulfill a Fairytale and win the respect of her peers.
Augustine
Winter Jay Kiakas, Windy
August and her ragtag group are just like everyone else, simply surviving in the treacherous Crater... When they stumble into what may be an artifact of the ancient past, their lives are thrown into a much bigger loop as they trifle with bounty hunters, monsters and gods.
Heroes of Thantopolis
Izzy Strontium Hall
A living boy fights to save the City of the Dead.
Sleepless Domain
Mary Cagle (Cube Watermelon)
In a world where magical girls and their battles are commonplace, loss has become all too common as well.
Little Tiny Things
Clover
What are the little things that move us? The simple joys that warm our bodies and hearts? The micro life of insects that influence our world more than we think? The tiny steps we make everyday to have a happier tomorrow?
Empowered
Adam Warren
A sexy superhero comedy (except when it isn't) about the never-ending struggles of a plucky but very unlucky young superheroine.
Namesake
Isa, Meg
There's ghosts at your heels and fairy tale worlds ahead. What do you do? Jump down the rabbit hole!
Dumbing of Age
David M Willis
Joyce has been homeschooled her entire life until now, when she's suddenly a freshman in college! Things don't go well.
Angel's Orchard
Harry Bogosian
After the events in Demon's Mirror, Gerda has accepted her role as a Demon Hunter, and Cezar has traveled back to the Demon City. Demons have existed alongside humans for millennia, so things begin to return to normal. But an impossibly powerful Relic has been taken by one of the Demon Masters, and a silent war enters its final stages.
Three Panel Soul
Matt Boyd, Ian McConville
It's a pretty rigid format but we keep the content loose, you know?
Saint for Rent
Ru Xu
Saint Halliday runs an inn for Time Travelers. Unfortunately, he seems to attract other supernatural "guests," too.
Cyanide & Happiness
Explosm
Satire, dark humor and surreal humor.
Nerf Now!!
Josué Pereira
A cute webcomic about fanservice, video games, and... love. Mostly video games, though.
Darkling Bright
Chris Hazelton
Kieran Bright is a college student home for the summer and roped into an online reunion with his old neighborhood friends in the most recent update of their favorite childhood MMORPG.
At least, he was, and that was the idea...
Join Kieran and his friends as they are pulled into another reality that may or may not be real and are forced to confront their own identities, the nature of simulated universes and reality itself.
Freakshow
Scotty
A festival of broken people, blood flows in the center ring. Come one and come all, to the greatest show in all of Paris.
The Golden Boar
Magnolia Porter Siddell
A young woman joins a group of summoners who call forth Guardian Beasts to protect their isolated magical island. Unfortunately, her Guardian Beast is nothing like she'd imagined, and he's about to change her life, and everything she thought she knew about herself...
Guilded Age
T Campbell, John Waltrip, Florence Machina
Welcome to the saga of the working-class adventurer! Enjoy the complete story with new annotations daily!
Barbarous
Ananth Hirsh, Yuko Ota
A crummy wizard and an anxious monster have to get over themselves and bring order to an apartment building full of misfits.
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Based on this comic Joshua is good at keeping secrets from the parentals. There is a distinct chance, part of what they don’t know about him involves fornication.
“Brown tobacco posey” has to be the most interesting euphemism I’ve heard in a while.
If a little cumbersome. “What what, in the brown tobacco posey” just doesn’t roll off the tongue as easily.
Desperately in need of new brains, spewing the same things over and over, violently lashing out against anything not like them and trying to convert them into another one them.
Huh. Holy crap they really are undead.
Mama stood cryin’ at the dockside
Sayin’ “Please son, don’t take this trip”
I said “Mama, sweet Mama, don’t you worry none”
“Even God couldn’t sink this ship”
Realizing that Joshua’s already in a committed relationship with another guy, girl, and their dog completely destroying any chance for Ethan to get in there?
I meant how it would seem to his parents. I’m down with whatever facilitates love, growth and happiness and minimizes suffering, however one decides to roll, poly, open, mixed, heteronormative monogamy, that’s how you do it right.
The default Avatar images based on Willis’s artwork are assigned randomly (if you don’t have your own Gravatar), and remain attached to your account… until Willis adds more images to the assortment. Then it makes a new random selection the next time you log in.
This shuffle and Willis putting in characters has made me repeatedly think about not having my own image so I can take part in the fun. But then all the other sites I comment on I’d be stuck with something dumb.
The “random” gravatar selection is determined by a hash of the email address you provide. If you consistently use the same email, and the selection of default gravatars the site provides doesn’t change, the gravatar you’re assigned won’t change. A couple days ago, though, Willis replaced the old set of default gravatars, which had been unchanged for months, with a new set, so everyone’s gravs (or everyone who hasn’t set a personal gravatar of their own, anyway) changed after months of being the same.
@taekwondogirl, I’m in the same dilemma. Would love to play the Grav lotto, but what happens at other sites? Not that my current Grav means anything to anyone but myself and a select few.
I knew that was what you were getting at. I’m just saying that it doesn’t matter the gender or sex of the band/singers; the context of the song still applies here. ~ ~
If Joshua were a trans woman, there would be no grounds to say she wasn’t straight, because she’s shown no attraction to women, but has shown attraction to men.
No she hasn’t. She’s just smiled at a dude. I smile at dudes all the time cuz I’m a nice person.
Also have we even seen Joshua AROUND a female?
These are a lot of conclusions you’re jumping to.
While behaving generally like someone reciprocating attraction does within fiction. And there’s right now. I’m not saying Joshua wouldn’t, couldn’t, or shouldn’t be bi. I’m saying that it’s a much greater leap of logic than assuming attraction to dudes as it stands. It’s provisional, after just a couple comics and a handful of interactions, overall but reasonable.
I’m thinking he’s probably an atheist, areligious, or just in some way opposed to the religion of his family. As far as saying something he can never take back goes, “I’m gay” would be a bit of a nonsequitor in the middle of the argument over his sister’s atheist friend, but “Christ, Mom. Can’t you shut up about Jesus for 1 Goddam hour and be pleasant to your daughter?” or even “Come on, it’s not like atheists are the worst thing in the world, right?” would be a bit more on topic.
I think Ethan however hasn’t really been paying too much attention to what’s been going on with Joyce. I think this combined with his hopes for Joshua are going to cause him to misinterpret what Joshua saying. I think Ethan is going to say something regrettable which will cause this whole house of cards to topple in the most cringeworthy way.
If he’s gay/bi/etc., he knows that his parents will not accept him. If he is in the middle of a discussion during which the parents are rejecting someone based on some arbitrary, bigoted standard yet again, it might invoke enough righteous anger for him to lash out at them in retaliation, both for their assholery in dealing with the person in question, and for all the years he’s had to lie to them and keep his own personal life under wraps just because they are probably the worst examples of Christians ever.
It’s not so much that he’s the favourite just: “Oh, he’ll eventually realize he’s an idiot who can’t plan his own future and just do what we want him to like a good boy.”
He -is- the favourite, though, if only because his parents disapprove of everything Sal does. They consider his goofy behaviour an adorable stage that he’ll get over, while acting like Sal’s very presence is an irritation.
Guys, The more you get worked up about it, the moor devestated you’ll be when that’s not what he means! YOU’RE PLAYING RIGHT INTO WILLIS’ HANDS!HE LIVES FOR THE COCOPHANY OF DAMN YOU WILLISES!!!
1) Today I learned that Yotomoe’s artistic abilities came at the cost of spelling abilities
2) I sort of agree. Right when we first met Joshua i thought he was probably gay but this strip pushes me more towards the theory presented to me yesterday that he’s just not christian.
Watch Willis troll us all and it turns out his big secret is neithet one.
Protip: “cacophony” is a series of dissonant, chaotic noises.
“Cocophany” just sounds like “cocoa fanny”, which is apparently why Dorothy likes Walky. Or is that caramelfanny…
I’m gonna be “that guy” and point out that your error-pointing-out comes at the cost of making your own spelling errors, albeit in a humorous way as well.
I’m getting the idea that whatever Joshua is keeping from his parents is beside the point, which seems to be that Mr. and Mrs. Brown are so unable to accept deviation from their personal (their Christian-ness is more an excuse than anything else) dogma and childish inability to deal with how so much of the rest of the world won’t play along, that their own kids being open with them is a liability.
Joshua is in the best standing with them simply because he was the one who figured out his OWN PARENTS were a lost cause in terms of being accepted for who he is. Just how sad that is clearly is not lost on him.
OH WELL, it’s not like you can pick your parents, or even should, for that matter. Some of us just have to take it upon ourselves to learn things about relationships that we were supposed to get from our families growing up but didn’t, and Joshua’s the sense to do so, unlike a LOT of people with his sort of adversity.
I like to think he’s totally, completely, flaming gay and won’t date Ethan because his sister is dating Ethan and he’s a nice brother who wouldn’t want to see her get hurt.
For those who say that “Joshua can’t be gay because it’s so obvious it must be a red herring”, here’s my own take on it:
1-Joshua is ever so gay.
2-He’s takenand that’s the twist.
There’s a lotta things about me you don’t know anything about, Dottie. Things you wouldn’t understand. Things you couldn’t understand. Things you shouldn’t understand.
He’s definitely SOMETHING they wouldn’t approve of. I’m gonna say it’s something other than gay because that’s the most thuddingly obvious thing he could be. Might be trans, we haven’t had a trans character that I can remember in the Dumbiverse or the Walkyverse, unless you count Ultra-Car.
Right then. Unless you count U-Car, *hope that gets through* there’s no trans characters in Willis’ work that I can recall, so Joshua here could possibly maybe be the first.
Not sure U-Car counts as trans, U-Car is a machine that doesn’t intrinsically have gender “her” current Chassis may by feminine in style, but I get the impression that “she” still doesn’t regard herself as male or female.
No, I’ve been saying the same thing. My current vote goes to “not christian”. It’s guaranteed to rial his parents and it’s the thing that he’d be most likely to accidentally reveal with the current topic (I don’t think he’d have that particular concern if it was just his orientation).
Well, some would say that it’s the perfect set-up for shipper blueballs.
I dunno, I’m sort of trying to ride out the disappointment now so that it hurts less later. If the pairing actually does come to fruition, it’ll just be all the more satisfying/feels-inducing.
Nah, he’s not gay, he’s Jewish! That’s why he’s acting funny around Ethan. He’s looking for someone to have a Hebrew (beer…see what I did there?) with!
And not only would it be kinds the fizzling out of that tension, but… well, the athiest reveal wouldn’t mean anything to the actual main characters of the comic. Sure, we’d all get to know that somewhere out there, some great tension was happening between characters we’ll never see again, but it wouldn’t bring anything to the story of the students other than another atheist figure in Joyce’s life. Joshua being gay would mean something to Ethan- he’s giving some signals of being attracted here and in literally every panel they’ve shared- and it would mean something to Joyce- bringing her motives with Ethan into question and undermining her alrerady pretty tenuous relationship with her boyfriend. It would advance the drama and make Joshua into a relevent, likely reoccuring character, which learning that he gets bored in church wouldn’t likely do. Willis might like fucking with us, but it’d kinda be at the expense of a highly hinted-at plot curveball, and that’d be a bit sad. But we’ll see!
It’s gpoy. It means ‘gratuitous picture of yourself’, so Willis in this case. It’s usually applied to either an actual picture of yourself or something that is representative of how you feel or what you’re like. Hope that helps
I love reading Willis’s stuff, I just hate it when he tosses in things like “gpoy” or “MRA” into his alt text or punchlines and just assumes everyone knows what those initials stand for.
No, I was able to figure it out eventually from reading the comments for that comic. The point is that I shouldn’t have to read the comments to figure out the punchline. If you’re going to use a TLA*, at least put in an footnote or something somewhere so that the people in your audience who don’t know what it’s short for can get the joke.
Fortunately, your gravatar, at least, seems to be okay with that, if the look she’s giving his Mike-atar is any indication.
Man, these conversations must be surreal for people reading the comments months later after a gravatar shuffle. Sittin’ there goin’ “I don’t understand what any of them are talking about!”
Danny – dans up his own gravatar
Dina – o.o
Jason – wily british chap
Joyce – の▽の
Mary – complete bongoface
Mike – intimidating glare
Ruth – really sarcastic
Sal – badass
Sarah – U:l
Ethan you don’t understand…I was born without genitals entirely. When I said my parents didn’t understand it, I was being literal. Noone understands it.
You can still make out with asexual people. They just might not be as into it. Also having sex won’t be very good for them either. But you can still cuddle.
In this case, Yotomoe, I’m using the term “asexual” to mean a disinterest in sexual activity, not a biological freak of nature without genitalia. You can be friends, carry on conversations, and otherwise interact with people of either gender without having to see how fast you can start doing the mattress mambo.
Ethan’s hair looks really nice. Nicer than I remember it looking when they all met up, anyway. It’s superemely adorable. Is that Ethan’s superpower- the ability to have nice hair in front of cute guys?
… Probably more likely Willis changed the style forever ago and it took me this long to catch up.
guys, I think willis snuck onto the ship the day it set sail and rigged up some heavy-duty explosives
now he’s just waiting for the helicopter to come pick him up so he can detonate them
If Joshua’s not into dudes, then what was up with his weird reaction to Joyce in this strip? The only way it would make sense is if he knew Ethan was gay, or if he was flirting with Ethan himself.
…Unless he just noticed Joyce was being ignored. But I dunno, it still seems kind of iffy to me.
If Joshua’s actually a trans girl who’s attracted to men and Ethan ends up with another girl who wants to date him I think my head is going to explode.
Hm, I saw it as Joshua realizing no one was paying attention to Joyce… which would imply that Ethan, the boyfriend, was more interested in talking to her brother than her. I interpreted his subsequent expression as a guilty one, as if he was contributing to the situation himself, which would take a certain level of self-awareness I couldn’t really imagine he’d have if he were straight and thought Ethan was straight.
Holy cripes can I ever relate. My parents don’t know I’m an atheist, and honestly it’d be kinda easier for me if they never find out. I still go to church with them when ever I go back home, I plaster a big ol’ fake smile, grit my teeth and go through the motions. Sometimes I wonder if I’m being a bit of coward by not being honest, that I’m somehow being condescending, or insulting to my family’s beliefs by pretending to believe while on the inside I roll my eyes at the absurdity of it all. I know why I do it, it makes my mother happy, she’s had a hard life and sometimes it’s been her her faith, and only her faith, that has gotten her through it, and I would never dare take that away from her by telling her I don’t believe, I don’t want to shake her faith, I want her to be happy and if that means miming my way through some silly rituals, I can deal. I just wonder if that makes me a terrible person, or at the very least some kind of snob. Rant over.
I’m not an atheist, but my brother is, and we all (my siblings and I) have this mutual agreement that we don’t talk about that in front of my mother, because he doesn’t want to upset her. While it wouldn’t change her opinion of him, he’s probably right on target about it making her sad when she’s already prone to depression. So, personal opinion as a Christian with a brother in a similar situation? No, I don’t think that makes you a terrible person, at all; it makes you someone who cares very much for her mother.
I’m agnostic and I only ever go to church when I’m with my parents. My mom knows my strong feelings against the church, but we try to go through the motions.
I know how you feel. There is a small book by Sam Harris called Lying. It’s about how it’s better not to. It’s not moralistic or guilt inducing. But its compelling.
On the other hand Daniel Handler (Lemony Snicket) tells the story of getting scolded by a woman for having The Baudelaire children lie as part of their effort to thwart the evil designs of Count Olaf. The conversation ended thus:
Her: Can you give me one example where it’s better to lie than tell the truth?
Him: (pauses, then looks her straight in the eye) That’s a nice sweater.
As an atheist, I think you have to figure out what makes you the most comfortable with your family. If you don’t feel deceitful, if you don’t feel that this is hurting your relationship with your parents, then I don’t see the issue. Honestly, I think what you’re doing in helping your mom not to worry is sweet, but you should definitely trust your own judgment.
I’m gonna gather cups. To gather the tears of shippers when Willis has something terrible happen. Then use those tears to make tea. Sweet, delicious tea.
Hmmm, we all know that Ethan is big time crushing on Joshua, but I’ve never really seen him looking as interested? I kind of think that the big reveal about Joshua is NOT going to be that he’s gay. Which will break Ethan’s heart.
Ahhhh gpoy indeed.
Everything about this comic expresses my life to a weird level. Actually, just the Joyce and Blaine bits, but those are uncannily familiar. Thank you, Willis, for giving me one piece culture I can relate to. It feels SO GOOD to have something that says “Yes, that really happened and no, you’re not crazy”. Best feeling.
This might be setting up to a twist (with Joshua being an atheist instead, or maybe having an atheist girlfriend), but I also think that that would lead to a few moments of “oh, right” whereas a revelation of Joshua being gay could lead to lotsa intrigue, with the two trying to find out if they’re compatible while also having to sneak past both their parents. (Plus a nice twist on the ‘you cheated on me with my sister?!’ trope.)
In this particular comment section, I mean. Everyone’s all “oh, his big secret is that he’s an atheist, not gay” or “no, he’s totally the gay one”. It’s possible to be both, y’all. I should know. U:
More to the point, for simplicity of plot and character interactions, it makes far more sense to assume only one major secret, or at least only one at a time. Given his upbringing, in fact, it’s far more likely, if he is gay, for him to have very different religious beliefs from his parents, and likely different political beliefs as well.
The problem is one of writing: it’s relatively easy to write the “mom, dad, I’m gay” argument.
If you add in that he’s also atheist, you’re complicating the conversation because his parents have to respond to two issues that they find important. Add in a third, and Monsieur Willis will start needing Faz-style charts to keep up with the argument that he’s writing. I shudder to think of what writing the argument would be like if he were, for instance, gay, atheist, liberal, transgender, asexual, vegan, and giving up his current position in life to become a traveling photographer.
Of course, all this assumes our good Webcomicking friend is going to write the argument itself. Joshua could easily be gay and never reveal it to his parents, or to Joyce, or, for that matter, to Ethan. Hell, he could even not reveal it to himself, god knows I’ve been there. Dramatically, I’d say he’s serving an excellent purpose right now anyways: he’s making Ethan realize that he can’t really suppress his own sexuality: he feels the way he feels and that’s all there is to it.
Aw sheet, sorry. It’s just whenever there’s a “my parents don’t know this about me” piece of intrigue, there tends to be only one stunning revelation. (Don’t know why. Sensory overload if we learn more than one piece of unknown information at once?) I was assuming from that that it was probably one or the other, but obviously it could be both!
If he’s gay, it’s likely his political leanings are of a more liberal nature. As they are fundies, the parents are no doubt conservatives, who are against gay marriage, abortion, etc.
Plenty of discussions to end in the revocation of Joshua’s status as favorite.
okay first how did eathan get away so quickly with no one noticing? he is a pretty big guy and seacound could he of sat down next to joshua with even more “well heeeeeeeeey there fella” i dont think so.
Oh, my, Joshua has the exact same relationship with his parents that I did with my father for years. And knowing you’re the favorite only because you’re better at keeping secrets and could very quickly turn into the least favorite, complete with lectures about being an abomination, is no fun at all. /understatement.
Also, I kind of snorted to myself at Ethan in the first panel. Not subtle at all, Ethan. Not subtle at all.
I gets what Joshua’s saying. Now my next brother is the favourite since they learnt a lot about me in the recent years, and to be honest, for the most part, that’s good. Never liked the expectations they forced upon me.
In any case, Ethan, either be honest about this or leave Joshua alone. Others are interested too.
“I don’t actually need glasses.”
“I’m a vegan.”
“I went to Vegas and got married to a stripper. And not one of the high class ones, either.”
I like to see these two together, though. I’m not trying to suggest any sexuality, I just think they have awesome chemistry and get along together. Like, as people talking to each other, they just instantly click. And that’s nice to see.
OK, got to end badly. Joyce might not notice, as she is in the middle of a life changing event. Her parents are ditto. But Ethan’s mom? She does care a bit about the Xtian drama unfolding before her and will be laser focused on Ethan. So far all the parents will lose their cool and treat their kids like kids in private, but play nicer in public (even Blaine was unwilling to make a scene). I’m betting that Naomi is the exception. Now to see if I can lock down my gravatar of If I am Dina today.
They probably think he writes about how awesome Jesus is, and how anyone who doesn’t follow one incredibly specific interpretation of Christianity is going to Hell.
• Joshua has already given Joyce valuable advice about “picking her battles”.
• He’s the one his parents “know the least about”.
• He’s a freelance writer.
• However, unlike most other writers I know, he’s said nothing about what he writes.
Therefore, here’s Joshua’s big reveal….. “I WRITE PORN!!”
Joshua’s comments really drive home to me how I hope to raise my children in a way where they won’t feel like saying as little as possible to me is the only option.
Great Pagodas of Yokohama
Gather Pounds of Yams
Get Peter or Yolanda
Great Penis on You
Greta Puts Out, Yo
Gene Putters on Yugo
Grean and Pink over Yellow
Green Purple Orange Yellow
Greek Players of Yahtzee
Gangrenous Penis on Jason(in the vein of “yogging”)
Gay premonitions of yelling
Gigantic penguins obliterating Yemen
Just thinking. It’s October, it’s a Friday, and it’s less than three short months before Willis goes back to his 5 day a week schedule. Maybe if we start now we can coerce him into at least keeping Saturday in the mix so we don’t have to go cold turkey with a 72-hour wait for a new strip right after New Year’s Day.
The Saturday stretch goal was funded before the Sunday one though, right? So will the Sunday updates go on after the Saturday updates stop, or will the Sunday updates be pushed to Saturday, or were they actually part of the same stretch goal and I’m misremembering?
Now I hope we switch to the night where Danny goes to see Amazi-Girl, only for her to beat him within an inch of his life like they’re in a Frank Miller comic.
No, I don’t support domestic violence. Only Danmestic.
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Hold hands already!
…and yeah “Heated”, because that’s appropriate
Your icon is appropriate for this entire chapter.
Exactly what I was gonna say…except replace hold hands with bang.
I don’t know, doing it on a stone fountain in front of your parents seems like all kinds of awkward.
Whatever turns you on more, I guess.
…
Well, a virgin gets deflowered there every night, so maybe this is Ethen’s night.
Not Joshua’s?
Based on this comic Joshua is good at keeping secrets from the parentals. There is a distinct chance, part of what they don’t know about him involves fornication.
I’m guessing Joshua was under a pile of guys during the game.
So no.
And is there even a flower?
The brown tobacco posie is the rose of alabamy
“Brown tobacco posey” has to be the most interesting euphemism I’ve heard in a while.
If a little cumbersome. “What what, in the brown tobacco posey” just doesn’t roll off the tongue as easily.
OMGYESSOMUCHTHIS. The Unresolved Sexual Tension is killing me.
..,OK. I’m exaggerating – it’s only giving me gas cramps and mild panic attacks.
“JOSHUA, OUR LEAST HATED OFFSPRING”
“WHY DO WE LIKE HIM MORE THAN THE OTHERS, AGAIN?”
HE HAS NOT YET, TO OUR LIMITED KNOWLEDGE, SHAMED OUR FAMILY WITH HIS BLASPHEMY.
But Blasphemy can kill undead up to caster level-10!
Well to be fair, there was no time where it was stated that Joyce’s family wasn’t part of the living dead.
Desperately in need of new brains, spewing the same things over and over, violently lashing out against anything not like them and trying to convert them into another one them.
Huh. Holy crap they really are undead.
1 internet
Appropriate Gravatar is appropriate.
This ship again?
This unsinkable warship festooned with canon.
I think I know what can sink this ship…
Depth charges?
Let me guess, your gravatar?
Godzilla?
We’ll need to deploy a Jager or ten to protect it.
SCIENCE!!!!!!!
What??? I need to invent a machine that always makes this give me a good gravatar.
The Jagers only defend Agatha. Well, and the occasional spectacular hat, or maybe the worlds greatest sandwich, but never a ship.
Make a hatship.
Metal Gear?
METAL GEAR!
~\o
Mama stood cryin’ at the dockside
Sayin’ “Please son, don’t take this trip”
I said “Mama, sweet Mama, don’t you worry none”
“Even God couldn’t sink this ship”
o/~
Yes. Thank you.
An Iceberg?
THE ICEBERG THAT IS JOYCE!
*phallic joke here*
Awesome gravatar
Don’t worry. Though the truth may vary, this ship will carry our bodies safe to shore.
I don’t know about this ship sinking, but those two will be going down together.
Nailed it!
I see what you did there.
Going down? More like up….the butt!
*RIMSHOT*…or should I say…RIMJOB?
I’ll be here all this week, folks. Try the veal and tip your waitress.
Realizing that Joshua’s already in a committed relationship with another guy, girl, and their dog completely destroying any chance for Ethan to get in there?
OH MY GOSH WHAT IF JOSHUA IS POLY
Sharing toys, and boy toys, is very common among siblings, or so I hear.
Or worse, Mormon.
Worse? Being poly is awesome. /three poly parents
I meant how it would seem to his parents. I’m down with whatever facilitates love, growth and happiness and minimizes suffering, however one decides to roll, poly, open, mixed, heteronormative monogamy, that’s how you do it right.
oic, totes agreed
This ship sails itself!
Nothing Stops This Ship!
Oh God, here it comes, the admission of truth! I hope…
… that they start talking about cars?
“Wanna see the back seat of my car?”
“Sure.”
Real smooth
Leather seats!
Rich, Corinthian leather!
“I’m actually a cyborg!”
I’m Batman.
*Ethan cums in his pants*
But Joshua’s parents are alive.
*MYTH BUSTED*
That could be arranged.
He trained for years to be the best at everything, even having parents who aren’t dead while simultaneously having dead parents! HE! IS! BATMAN!
Actually that would make him Tim Drake /nitpicking geek
…he asks Ethan if he wants to cook crystal meth
Now kiss.
Ha! Didn’t realize I got Ethan in the last gravatar shuffle.
pardon my ignorance… Gravatar shuffles images?
The default Avatar images based on Willis’s artwork are assigned randomly (if you don’t have your own Gravatar), and remain attached to your account… until Willis adds more images to the assortment. Then it makes a new random selection the next time you log in.
This shuffle and Willis putting in characters has made me repeatedly think about not having my own image so I can take part in the fun. But then all the other sites I comment on I’d be stuck with something dumb.
I never picked an image… but for the last few months I’ve gotten nothing but Billie
Not that it’s a bad thing, mind you… just not sure why no switchy-switch for me
ZOMG! I got Supercar! After months I finally got a new grav!
The “random” gravatar selection is determined by a hash of the email address you provide. If you consistently use the same email, and the selection of default gravatars the site provides doesn’t change, the gravatar you’re assigned won’t change. A couple days ago, though, Willis replaced the old set of default gravatars, which had been unchanged for months, with a new set, so everyone’s gravs (or everyone who hasn’t set a personal gravatar of their own, anyway) changed after months of being the same.
(Though I personally went from Billie to Billie.)
Let’s see if anything changes with mine. Joe no more?
@taekwondogirl, I’m in the same dilemma. Would love to play the Grav lotto, but what happens at other sites? Not that my current Grav means anything to anyone but myself and a select few.
You could create a second account just for this site
Actually, I think the random selection takes effect immediately, if you go look at any of your past posts. Try it, next time you see they’ve shuffled.
People without their own image get random ones from David, and we got shuffled up a bunch the last two days
Ah okay. Thanks!
I always shipped Ethan with Mike. You and me sitting in a tree, scowling ever so bi-ter-ly
I want more Mike!
You have the absolute most perfect gravatar for this comment right now, oh my God.
+11111111111
+google
google +
That… um… that’s “googol”, mon ami.
I was waiting for someone to say this.
Called it!
Called your mom.
For a nickel.
I called your mom collect
For a five pence piece.
And then they get drunk and bang.
I’m pretty sure that’s gonna end up someone’s …
They’re underage! Why do you need to get drunk to bang? They’re not Ruth and Billie!
Well, they could get inebriated and then bang.
plausible deniability. “oh God! I was so drunk last night, I don’t remember what happened…”
closer. CLOSER. CLOOOOOOOOOOOOSER.
~ Here comes the rush before they touch ~
Meh. Wrong gender but right topic XD
Hey now. Love is universal so long as it’s consensual. <3
This raises an important question: can hands give consent?
(thumbs up)
Actually i was commenting on how that song is written and sung by lesbians but it applies here with two gay guys.
I knew that was what you were getting at. I’m just saying that it doesn’t matter the gender or sex of the band/singers; the context of the song still applies here. ~ ~
The ‘rents are bigots,
The fight is really heated,
The fountain is flowing overhead.
TOO CLOSE!!! >_<"
And then they bang.
HE’S GAY! XD
I think we’ve been over this before…
Or bi. There’s always bi.
please let him be bi
I am ok with this!
Bi, bi, baby! Don’t make me cry!
Maybe he’s trans! You don’t know.
How does that stop him from being bi or gay?
((Or her, as the case might be.))
If Joshua were a trans woman, there would be no grounds to say she wasn’t straight, because she’s shown no attraction to women, but has shown attraction to men.
No she hasn’t. She’s just smiled at a dude. I smile at dudes all the time cuz I’m a nice person.
Also have we even seen Joshua AROUND a female?
These are a lot of conclusions you’re jumping to.
While behaving generally like someone reciprocating attraction does within fiction. And there’s right now. I’m not saying Joshua wouldn’t, couldn’t, or shouldn’t be bi. I’m saying that it’s a much greater leap of logic than assuming attraction to dudes as it stands. It’s provisional, after just a couple comics and a handful of interactions, overall but reasonable.
I’m pretty sure if he was trans the ‘rents would know, and he wouldn’t be the favorite son.
Nothing is stopping you from being an incloset trans anymore than something would stop you from being an incloset gay dude.
I think the browns would know if their baby “girl” acted like a dude. Unless he got treatment during college, but that’ll still be obvious
Wow, didn’t notice begberts comment
I’m thinking he’s probably an atheist, areligious, or just in some way opposed to the religion of his family. As far as saying something he can never take back goes, “I’m gay” would be a bit of a nonsequitor in the middle of the argument over his sister’s atheist friend, but “Christ, Mom. Can’t you shut up about Jesus for 1 Goddam hour and be pleasant to your daughter?” or even “Come on, it’s not like atheists are the worst thing in the world, right?” would be a bit more on topic.
I think Ethan however hasn’t really been paying too much attention to what’s been going on with Joyce. I think this combined with his hopes for Joshua are going to cause him to misinterpret what Joshua saying. I think Ethan is going to say something regrettable which will cause this whole house of cards to topple in the most cringeworthy way.
If he’s gay/bi/etc., he knows that his parents will not accept him. If he is in the middle of a discussion during which the parents are rejecting someone based on some arbitrary, bigoted standard yet again, it might invoke enough righteous anger for him to lash out at them in retaliation, both for their assholery in dealing with the person in question, and for all the years he’s had to lie to them and keep his own personal life under wraps just because they are probably the worst examples of Christians ever.
Ah. The burden of the favorite.
Walky knows it.
Not really, he gets to play the goofball.
And be a doctor he doesn’t wanna be. Oh wait.
It’s not so much that he’s the favourite just: “Oh, he’ll eventually realize he’s an idiot who can’t plan his own future and just do what we want him to like a good boy.”
That’s been his experience so far.
He -is- the favourite, though, if only because his parents disapprove of everything Sal does. They consider his goofy behaviour an adorable stage that he’ll get over, while acting like Sal’s very presence is an irritation.
“They will never know that I’m really Racer X.”
He thinks that as action lines rush past his head.
Well if he’s Racer X, then I’m that sweet ass monkey.
If your Chim Chim, then who’s Spritle?
Your mother for a nickle.
OMG! You can talk without moving your lips????
Bow chicka wow wow
Real smooth, Ethan.
I can’t tell is this is good or going to go horrible bad. Probably both.
As I’ve said before, this is why the dumbiverse needs Lucy in it.
Lucy the daughter of the devil? She would clear this all up super fast. wish they could all meet her boyfriend…
No, Lucy with the magical shipper hands.
I wonder if her powers are limited to dudes.
I sincerely hope not.
I wonder? And why does everyone look sort of pink? The sunset?
They became part of the Wanker Shem.
It’s always been Wankershim.
Time for soft tacos
So, how long until we see joyce and family walk around and see the two making out?
Tomorrow.
Just like how Ethan ends anything
…..and scene.
Guys, The more you get worked up about it, the moor devestated you’ll be when that’s not what he means! YOU’RE PLAYING RIGHT INTO WILLIS’ HANDS!HE LIVES FOR THE COCOPHANY OF DAMN YOU WILLISES!!!
…but the feels
You know, I don’t think I’ve ever said damn you willis. Maybe I should get on that?
You should. It’s fun.
You just did. The job is done.
It is the most satisfying compliment to pay!
1) Today I learned that Yotomoe’s artistic abilities came at the cost of spelling abilities
2) I sort of agree. Right when we first met Joshua i thought he was probably gay but this strip pushes me more towards the theory presented to me yesterday that he’s just not christian.
Watch Willis troll us all and it turns out his big secret is neithet one.
Equivalent Exchange, man.
Protip: “cacophony” is a series of dissonant, chaotic noises.
“Cocophany” just sounds like “cocoa fanny”, which is apparently why Dorothy likes Walky. Or is that caramelfanny…
It’s his sculpted caramel abs.
Means something entirely different for Sal’s English semi-boyfriend though.
I’m gonna be “that guy” and point out that your error-pointing-out comes at the cost of making your own spelling errors, albeit in a humorous way as well.
I’m getting the idea that whatever Joshua is keeping from his parents is beside the point, which seems to be that Mr. and Mrs. Brown are so unable to accept deviation from their personal (their Christian-ness is more an excuse than anything else) dogma and childish inability to deal with how so much of the rest of the world won’t play along, that their own kids being open with them is a liability.
Joshua is in the best standing with them simply because he was the one who figured out his OWN PARENTS were a lost cause in terms of being accepted for who he is. Just how sad that is clearly is not lost on him.
OH WELL, it’s not like you can pick your parents, or even should, for that matter. Some of us just have to take it upon ourselves to learn things about relationships that we were supposed to get from our families growing up but didn’t, and Joshua’s the sense to do so, unlike a LOT of people with his sort of adversity.
I am going to cry so many tears if Willis really pulled this shit on us.
I’m gonna change “Damn you, Willis” to “Willis, you shit!” if he pulls that one on us.
Not allowed.
the moor? What does Othello have to do with this?
He could mean moor as in the land feature also known as a heath.
He’s talking about the Moors who in their heyday ruled their known world.
Oh, you mean the Moops. (cue Jerry Seinfeld)
He’s totally, completely, flaming gay… and won’t date Ethan because he’s afraid his parents will find out.
I like to think he’s totally, completely, flaming gay and won’t date Ethan because his sister is dating Ethan and he’s a nice brother who wouldn’t want to see her get hurt.
Well, yeah. But I’m pretty sure the “Ethan dating Joyce” thing is going to sort itself out sooner or later.
Hopefully before they get married.
For those who say that “Joshua can’t be gay because it’s so obvious it must be a red herring”, here’s my own take on it:
1-Joshua is ever so gay.
2-He’s takenand that’s the twist.
“friends” = boyfriend?
stay on target stay on target “luke youve shut off your targeting computer whats wrong, Nothing im fine”
There’s a lotta things about me you don’t know anything about, Dottie. Things you wouldn’t understand. Things you couldn’t understand. Things you shouldn’t understand.
You don’t understand me. You shun me cuz your different….I shun you cuz you’re all the same!
I don’t see what my different has anything to do with it.
Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow!
Am I the only one who thinks Joshua is gay and hasn’t told his parents?
you, really, really aren’t
Everybody thinks THAT!
http://cdn.meme.li/images/300×300/580816.jpg
Worst pictorial response ever.
You haven’t been reading the comments on Joshua’s earlier appearances, have you?
My computer has been broken and I’ve been reading it off the app so I can’t comments.
He’s definitely SOMETHING they wouldn’t approve of. I’m gonna say it’s something other than gay because that’s the most thuddingly obvious thing he could be. Might be trans, we haven’t had a trans character that I can remember in the Dumbiverse or the Walkyverse, unless you count Ultra-Car.
Wait, why’d that get censored? Is it because it’s a Walkyverse character, not a Dumbiverse one?
A long and stupid running gag dating back to the Shortpacked days.
Right then. Unless you count U-Car, *hope that gets through* there’s no trans characters in Willis’ work that I can recall, so Joshua here could possibly maybe be the first.
Not sure U-Car counts as trans, U-Car is a machine that doesn’t intrinsically have gender “her” current Chassis may by feminine in style, but I get the impression that “she” still doesn’t regard herself as male or female.
Ummm… U-Car has a trans-mission. I think that counts.
WHere is the pun jar?
In walky and joyce there was some gender swaping it wore off but there was some
At this point I have to be the only one who DOESN’T think that.
Actually, I’m starting to think you may be right.
I think it’s a coping mechanism against the disappointment.
(also watch jordan be the gay one)
No, I’ve been saying the same thing. My current vote goes to “not christian”. It’s guaranteed to rial his parents and it’s the thing that he’d be most likely to accidentally reveal with the current topic (I don’t think he’d have that particular concern if it was just his orientation).
I think Jordan is already occupying that role. I have no proof, but I’m going with it until canon contradicts me.
Which is why it doesn’t have to be just his orientation. He could be some kind of LGBTQ and an atheist.
To me he kind has to be gay, there’s too much foreshadowing and dramatic irony in this strip http://www.dumbingofage.com/2013/comic/book-3/04-just-hangin-out-with-my-family/easy/ and the ones that follow it for any other outcome to really fit. Going a different direction would result in a plothole that would consume all spacew and time!
Well, some would say that it’s the perfect set-up for shipper blueballs.
I dunno, I’m sort of trying to ride out the disappointment now so that it hurts less later. If the pairing actually does come to fruition, it’ll just be all the more satisfying/feels-inducing.
Nah, he’s not gay, he’s Jewish! That’s why he’s acting funny around Ethan. He’s looking for someone to have a Hebrew (beer…see what I did there?) with!
And not only would it be kinds the fizzling out of that tension, but… well, the athiest reveal wouldn’t mean anything to the actual main characters of the comic. Sure, we’d all get to know that somewhere out there, some great tension was happening between characters we’ll never see again, but it wouldn’t bring anything to the story of the students other than another atheist figure in Joyce’s life. Joshua being gay would mean something to Ethan- he’s giving some signals of being attracted here and in literally every panel they’ve shared- and it would mean something to Joyce- bringing her motives with Ethan into question and undermining her alrerady pretty tenuous relationship with her boyfriend. It would advance the drama and make Joshua into a relevent, likely reoccuring character, which learning that he gets bored in church wouldn’t likely do. Willis might like fucking with us, but it’d kinda be at the expense of a highly hinted-at plot curveball, and that’d be a bit sad. But we’ll see!
GMH
What if his secret is actually that he isn’t a writer at all; he directs lesbian porn.
No, I never got the he’s gay thing that everyone else did. It was actually very weird for me when he first appeared and everyone was saying it.
I think everyone (including me) was channeling Ethan there, so we were projecting like crazy.
I was one of the pioneers of that investment
http://www.dumbingofage.com/2013/blog/another-brown/
We were projecting? More like they projecting onto each other like crazy. C’mon, look at that stare http://www.dumbingofage.com/2013/comic/book-3/04-just-hangin-out-with-my-family/easy/ You can almost cut the gay with a knife in that panel.
why would you want to cut a gay
“against her parents” sounds awkward. “Our parents” or “my parents” makes more sense.
“When they’re embarrassing the concept of adult, they’re her parents. When the birthday cash comes out, they’re our parents.”
Secretly, I’m amazigi… “gets shot”
Amber’s holding the gun* THAT’S FOR STEALING DANNY YOU HUSSY!
Opps. Went to wrong place. Supposed to be I’m wondering if he is gay? That is so obvious. And Mr. W. is sometimes not at all obvious.
GYOP?
It’s gpoy. It means ‘gratuitous picture of yourself’, so Willis in this case. It’s usually applied to either an actual picture of yourself or something that is representative of how you feel or what you’re like. Hope that helps
I was thinking Gay Pairing Of Year.
I love reading Willis’s stuff, I just hate it when he tosses in things like “gpoy” or “MRA” into his alt text or punchlines and just assumes everyone knows what those initials stand for.
You don’t know what an MRA is? Lucky, lucky you.
No, I was able to figure it out eventually from reading the comments for that comic. The point is that I shouldn’t have to read the comments to figure out the punchline. If you’re going to use a TLA*, at least put in an footnote or something somewhere so that the people in your audience who don’t know what it’s short for can get the joke.
*Three Letter Abbreviation
Here it comes the big secret,that isnt realy a secret ,he’s gay
At first I was like, squeee, but then the feels arrived. Now everything hurts. Dammit. Every time.
MAKE OUT ALREADY, JEEZ.
Do it in front of Joyce for plot convenience, where tired of waiting dammit!
Her boyfriend likes the cool kind of threesome! But wait, can she qualify?
Things that make you go hmmmmmmmmmmm.
“I am the Bay Harbor Butcher.”
Hey, that pick-up line would work on me. He’s a real life batman! His parents would be fine with that, he just has to phrase it as doing God’s work.
“I’m actually an alien who is currently using Joshua’s body.”
FREEZE! M.I.B!
Ethan was undercover on a sting operation for weeks. He honestly thought it’d take longer than this.
Willis really nailed it on the head with that last panel about parents’ favorite kids. I should know, I’m proof of that rule.
Here we go!
Now kiss.
Son of a bongo, I got the Danny gravatar? I want the Mike one back!
You mean you want this? I guess you just missed out.
I sometimes miss Dina’s puzzled expression. Mike tells me to post mean things.
And yeah, an image on my head with your avatar grabbing his crotch seems to materialize when you said the first two sentences.
Fortunately, your gravatar, at least, seems to be okay with that, if the look she’s giving his Mike-atar is any indication.
Man, these conversations must be surreal for people reading the comments months later after a gravatar shuffle. Sittin’ there goin’ “I don’t understand what any of them are talking about!”
Handy guide for future archive bingers:
Danny – dans up his own gravatar
Dina – o.o
Jason – wily british chap
Joyce – の▽の
Mary – complete bongoface
Mike – intimidating glare
Ruth – really sarcastic
Sal – badass
Sarah – U:l
Everyone else is generically cheerful.
Yea, that has been Plasma’s plan all along, He plays one long game.
My new gravatar forces me to speak like Robin.
Fo’ Shizzle.
Looking forward to see what happens in tomorrows comic. My theory:
“You can tell me your secret. I know what it’s like to have to hide your true self because you know others won’t approve.”
“Ethan… I’m… I’m asexual.”
And then riots erupt on the streets for stringing readers on to such an anti-climactic revelation.
Ethan you don’t understand…I was born without genitals entirely. When I said my parents didn’t understand it, I was being literal. Noone understands it.
Then we find out Ethan is neuter as well, which explains the prom night fiasco with amber even better.
“You… you wanna bump featureless plastic groins?”
“… Okay.”
*bump bump bump bump…*
“This is not as much fun as I’d been led to believe.”
Ethan…I’m…I’m Spider Car.
“Ethan … I’m … I’m asexual.”
So what would necessarily be wrong with that? Not everybody thinks with their genitals.
Because a) it would sink a popular ship, and b) no grandbabies.
You can still make out with asexual people. They just might not be as into it. Also having sex won’t be very good for them either. But you can still cuddle.
In this case, Yotomoe, I’m using the term “asexual” to mean a disinterest in sexual activity, not a biological freak of nature without genitalia. You can be friends, carry on conversations, and otherwise interact with people of either gender without having to see how fast you can start doing the mattress mambo.
Yeah I know what you meant…
The comment you’re responding to kinda solidifies that I knew what you meant. I just joke a lot.
You can do that as a hetero-/homo-/bisexual, too. Most people are not Joe.
Yeah, that’s true…
No one thinks with their genitals. Our thoughts, however, can direct what our genitals do.
Anti-climactic? I get it.
At this rate one of the two (ethan or joyce)will end up with a broken heart.
Probably both. I keep reminding myself they’re 17-18. If there was such a thing as heartbreak insurance, at that age the rates would be astronomical.
Ethan’s hair looks really nice. Nicer than I remember it looking when they all met up, anyway. It’s superemely adorable. Is that Ethan’s superpower- the ability to have nice hair in front of cute guys?
… Probably more likely Willis changed the style forever ago and it took me this long to catch up.
That can’t be true, cuz he had Nice hair in front of Danny. The least cute guy.
Joshua’s actually a wizard trying to hide it from his muggle parents…
…and gayer than Parireee.
But he’s in love with a fellow named Ron.
“The truth is I’m actually Superman in disguise”
The most favored is the one you know the least: Isn’t that always the case?
calling that he’s not gay. He’s an atheist or some other horse-hockey.
I think his parents rather he be gay than atheist
He’s a gaythiest.
I dunno. Being gay just seems a little too obvious. It isn’t Willis’ style
Thats what willis wants you to think ♪man♪
But he knows you would think that! And that’s why he’s subverting the subversion of the subversion of your expectations!
Thinkception ensues.
He’s gay, get over it y’all
you were saying?
I think you just added another page to TVTropes.org
*squeee!*
I did? When? Where? Who?
Or to anther extreme what if Johns a cultest
Gay and Buddhist(or other “eastern religion” that would make his Mother go BOOM!)
my heart broke, just a little
Just testing my new gravatar
There are new gravatars?
Yep! And you got one!
“New Ethan”
Boop.
OMG they would make such a cute couple. <3 Make it happen please! D:
Awwwwwwwwwwwwww! That is…. so very, very sad.
guys, I think willis snuck onto the ship the day it set sail and rigged up some heavy-duty explosives
now he’s just waiting for the helicopter to come pick him up so he can detonate them
He’ll wait until the exact right moment when the sun hits the sails..BAM!
I love how Ethan is all “He-llo, sailor” in that panel and he doesn’t even seem to realize ^^
Apropriate given what they say about sailors.
Word.
●¬● I’ll feel sorry for joyce if she gets dumped for her brother.
Okay wait guys, just hold up a second here:
If Joshua’s not into dudes, then what was up with his weird reaction to Joyce in this strip? The only way it would make sense is if he knew Ethan was gay, or if he was flirting with Ethan himself.
…Unless he just noticed Joyce was being ignored. But I dunno, it still seems kind of iffy to me.
If Joshua’s actually a trans girl who’s attracted to men and Ethan ends up with another girl who wants to date him I think my head is going to explode.
Oh no, the bold OH NO after being told he’s the brother. Don’t ruin this for us.
I am going to scream
It comes to me as “I sense that I know what you’re going through, it feels like I’ve been through the same; I might need to step away a bit”
Hm, I saw it as Joshua realizing no one was paying attention to Joyce… which would imply that Ethan, the boyfriend, was more interested in talking to her brother than her. I interpreted his subsequent expression as a guilty one, as if he was contributing to the situation himself, which would take a certain level of self-awareness I couldn’t really imagine he’d have if he were straight and thought Ethan was straight.
3rd panel seems to say otherwise
How do you mean? I can see how it supports your interpretation, but it doesn’t discount mine.
Sorry, lost in translation. I meant to say 3rd panel tends to lean more on my idea.
/shrug. It could be either one, really.
I think we can both agree that regardless of why that little exchange happened, Joshua/Ethan needs to exist.
I don’t know it seems that the mere hint of parental disapproval is all that’s needed to break them up.
Not when they have each other!
ronpaulitshappening.gif
Still holding onto my Jacob/Ethan ship!
Never forget!
Mostly, I’d like to see male Bi characters since we’ve got just about everybody else represented. DO IT, WILLIS!
We don’t have trans people yet.
…unless…
I’m a trans-person (mtf). Mayhaps I can be in the comic? I mostly wanna see how Galasso’s pizza tastes. That, and hug Dina.
for some reason I find this comment incredibly adorable
For every reason, really.
re: the alt text
GPOY = Gay Person Of the Year?
No, silly, he’s just a nominee. So far we’ve got Ethan, Saul, and Leslie in the running.
Don’t forget Daisy!
Not that it matters. Leslie wins. ‘Cause she’s the awesomest.
For some reason I remembered Daisy, but neglected to put her on the list.
Weird.
(also, leslie indeed takes the prize, but if everything turns out the way most of us are hoping, joshua’s definitely second)
Dont count out dirk strider
Ship ahoy!
Holy cripes can I ever relate. My parents don’t know I’m an atheist, and honestly it’d be kinda easier for me if they never find out. I still go to church with them when ever I go back home, I plaster a big ol’ fake smile, grit my teeth and go through the motions. Sometimes I wonder if I’m being a bit of coward by not being honest, that I’m somehow being condescending, or insulting to my family’s beliefs by pretending to believe while on the inside I roll my eyes at the absurdity of it all. I know why I do it, it makes my mother happy, she’s had a hard life and sometimes it’s been her her faith, and only her faith, that has gotten her through it, and I would never dare take that away from her by telling her I don’t believe, I don’t want to shake her faith, I want her to be happy and if that means miming my way through some silly rituals, I can deal. I just wonder if that makes me a terrible person, or at the very least some kind of snob. Rant over.
I’m not an atheist, but my brother is, and we all (my siblings and I) have this mutual agreement that we don’t talk about that in front of my mother, because he doesn’t want to upset her. While it wouldn’t change her opinion of him, he’s probably right on target about it making her sad when she’s already prone to depression. So, personal opinion as a Christian with a brother in a similar situation? No, I don’t think that makes you a terrible person, at all; it makes you someone who cares very much for her mother.
Not at all. You’re doing what every child has ever done: put on a happy face for your parents.
I’m agnostic and I only ever go to church when I’m with my parents. My mom knows my strong feelings against the church, but we try to go through the motions.
I feel you.
I know how you feel. There is a small book by Sam Harris called Lying. It’s about how it’s better not to. It’s not moralistic or guilt inducing. But its compelling.
On the other hand Daniel Handler (Lemony Snicket) tells the story of getting scolded by a woman for having The Baudelaire children lie as part of their effort to thwart the evil designs of Count Olaf. The conversation ended thus:
Her: Can you give me one example where it’s better to lie than tell the truth?
Him: (pauses, then looks her straight in the eye) That’s a nice sweater.
Wouldn’t it be funny if the only reason they are going to church is because they think you are super religious and are humouring you?
that sounds like a wacky 80s sitcom, y’know, if atheists weren’t even more vilified back then
As an atheist, I think you have to figure out what makes you the most comfortable with your family. If you don’t feel deceitful, if you don’t feel that this is hurting your relationship with your parents, then I don’t see the issue. Honestly, I think what you’re doing in helping your mom not to worry is sweet, but you should definitely trust your own judgment.
I’m gonna gather cups. To gather the tears of shippers when Willis has something terrible happen. Then use those tears to make tea. Sweet, delicious tea.
Oh gods they gave me Joyce….
DAAAAAMN YOU WILLIIIIIISSSSS!
And I’m your new T.A.!
lol, this entire comment thread just got completely dismantled
HOLY CRAP EVERYTHING KEEPS DISAPPEARING
Willis!!! The sites blowing up with too much Yaoi fans!
Are you saying a lot of raunchy stuff again, Yotomoe?
What don’t his parents know about Joshua? Does he have a secret girlfriend or something?
“secret girlfriend”
hahahahahahahahahahahaha
That’s like the most Joyce of all the comments.
Maybe he skipped church or said a bad word.
Maybe he likes wearing clothes made of more than one fabric.
I don’t know how this works.
it was definitely shellfish
he couldn’t resist that sweet, sweet coconut shrimp
(tbf, no one can)
Oh oh, I know! I bet he *gasp* LITTERS.
I was going to say “I want them to kiss” but some people beat me to it already.
Jeez, I’ve been commenting a lot lately…
I just… dear god, Ethan’s face in the last panel… it is his best face. (´･ω･`)
damn you formatting
Hint — always start something like that on a fresh line.
(´·ω·`)
But this way we get to see your super-adorable Joshua avvy all over the page.
why thank you kindly
one day, you guys will see the full picture, in all its eajosh glory
Read the whole series up until now in the span of 24 hours. Fair to say I’m hooked? Can’t wait to see the next one!
Hmmm, we all know that Ethan is big time crushing on Joshua, but I’ve never really seen him looking as interested? I kind of think that the big reveal about Joshua is NOT going to be that he’s gay. Which will break Ethan’s heart.
DAT LEAN
Ahhhh gpoy indeed.
Everything about this comic expresses my life to a weird level. Actually, just the Joyce and Blaine bits, but those are uncannily familiar. Thank you, Willis, for giving me one piece culture I can relate to. It feels SO GOOD to have something that says “Yes, that really happened and no, you’re not crazy”. Best feeling.
Ahahaaha. If I couldn’t have Joyce, Ethan is probably best gravatar.
Okay, that accounts for Ethan. Where did his parents go?
I’m going to bet they are going to materialize and be awful.
That’s like betting that the sun will rise in the morning.
Foreshaaaaadowing
This might be setting up to a twist (with Joshua being an atheist instead, or maybe having an atheist girlfriend), but I also think that that would lead to a few moments of “oh, right” whereas a revelation of Joshua being gay could lead to lotsa intrigue, with the two trying to find out if they’re compatible while also having to sneak past both their parents. (Plus a nice twist on the ‘you cheated on me with my sister?!’ trope.)
why does everyone seem to think that being an atheist and being gay/bi/pan are mutually exclusive
O.o
Doesn’t seem like many people actually think these things are exclusive…
This coming from a bisexual atheist.
In this particular comment section, I mean. Everyone’s all “oh, his big secret is that he’s an atheist, not gay” or “no, he’s totally the gay one”. It’s possible to be both, y’all. I should know. U:
I guess one of the Laws of Drama is that someone can only have one Big Secret if you want the audience’s willing suspension of disbelief or something.
More to the point, for simplicity of plot and character interactions, it makes far more sense to assume only one major secret, or at least only one at a time. Given his upbringing, in fact, it’s far more likely, if he is gay, for him to have very different religious beliefs from his parents, and likely different political beliefs as well.
The problem is one of writing: it’s relatively easy to write the “mom, dad, I’m gay” argument.
If you add in that he’s also atheist, you’re complicating the conversation because his parents have to respond to two issues that they find important. Add in a third, and Monsieur Willis will start needing Faz-style charts to keep up with the argument that he’s writing. I shudder to think of what writing the argument would be like if he were, for instance, gay, atheist, liberal, transgender, asexual, vegan, and giving up his current position in life to become a traveling photographer.
Of course, all this assumes our good Webcomicking friend is going to write the argument itself. Joshua could easily be gay and never reveal it to his parents, or to Joyce, or, for that matter, to Ethan. Hell, he could even not reveal it to himself, god knows I’ve been there. Dramatically, I’d say he’s serving an excellent purpose right now anyways: he’s making Ethan realize that he can’t really suppress his own sexuality: he feels the way he feels and that’s all there is to it.
Aw sheet, sorry. It’s just whenever there’s a “my parents don’t know this about me” piece of intrigue, there tends to be only one stunning revelation. (Don’t know why. Sensory overload if we learn more than one piece of unknown information at once?) I was assuming from that that it was probably one or the other, but obviously it could be both!
And now I see Drakey said this before me. Er. Well, anyway!
“I’m a Democrat”
BRAIN BLAST
If he’s gay, it’s likely his political leanings are of a more liberal nature. As they are fundies, the parents are no doubt conservatives, who are against gay marriage, abortion, etc.
Plenty of discussions to end in the revocation of Joshua’s status as favorite.
okay first how did eathan get away so quickly with no one noticing? he is a pretty big guy and seacound could he of sat down next to joshua with even more “well heeeeeeeeey there fella” i dont think so.
well that second sentence is very awkwardly constructed…….
Oh, my, Joshua has the exact same relationship with his parents that I did with my father for years. And knowing you’re the favorite only because you’re better at keeping secrets and could very quickly turn into the least favorite, complete with lectures about being an abomination, is no fun at all. /understatement.
Also, I kind of snorted to myself at Ethan in the first panel. Not subtle at all, Ethan. Not subtle at all.
This X 2.
X2 on the knowing what it’s like in Joshua’s shoes or at Ethan not being subtle at all?
Why not both?
I gets what Joshua’s saying. Now my next brother is the favourite since they learnt a lot about me in the recent years, and to be honest, for the most part, that’s good. Never liked the expectations they forced upon me.
In any case, Ethan, either be honest about this or leave Joshua alone. Others are interested too.
Who stole my old avatar?!
At least you’re still gay?
“I … I actually prefer to be called Josh.”
“I’ve always wanted to be….a lumberjack!”
“Leaping from tree to tree as they float down the mighty rivers of British Columbia!”
“the fir, the larch, the mighty scots pine”
This can only end badly.
*Gets the popcorn*
“I don’t actually need glasses.”
“I’m a vegan.”
“I went to Vegas and got married to a stripper. And not one of the high class ones, either.”
I like to see these two together, though. I’m not trying to suggest any sexuality, I just think they have awesome chemistry and get along together. Like, as people talking to each other, they just instantly click. And that’s nice to see.
OK, got to end badly. Joyce might not notice, as she is in the middle of a life changing event. Her parents are ditto. But Ethan’s mom? She does care a bit about the Xtian drama unfolding before her and will be laser focused on Ethan. So far all the parents will lose their cool and treat their kids like kids in private, but play nicer in public (even Blaine was unwilling to make a scene). I’m betting that Naomi is the exception. Now to see if I can lock down my gravatar of If I am Dina today.
Hurray! My new power is that I am immune to gravatar roulette. Still subject to criticism though.
Yeah, Naomi does not know restraint in the slightest.
And then they smooch while the friends theme plays in the background, and joyce and her mom mind break from seeing it….
Shit.
“You see, Ethan, I secretly crossdress as a female superhero called Amazi-Girl.
Also, I’m gay.”
win
aaaaaand….. kiss
Happy National Coming Out Day Ethan.
No wait…
So many gaybies! So many totes adorbs gaybies!
I know exactly what that feels like. Elder sibling, very religious parent’s favorite… because they don’t know I’m a kinky lesbian.
The freelance writer is their favorite kid? Is this bizarro world?
They probably think he writes about how awesome Jesus is, and how anyone who doesn’t follow one incredibly specific interpretation of Christianity is going to Hell.
Jordan speaks his mind to the parents. And Joyce is a girl/babymaker/wife. Not sure about the oldest.
All we know about Jonathan (other than his name) is that he is married. Presumably, though, there’s something about him they don’t like.
JONATHAN IS GAY-MARRIED
“Hows about go somewhere a bit more…buttfucky..”
“That’s a bit forward, or rather ‘backward’ of you. But yeah, sure”
• Joshua has already given Joyce valuable advice about “picking her battles”.
• He’s the one his parents “know the least about”.
• He’s a freelance writer.
• However, unlike most other writers I know, he’s said nothing about what he writes.
Therefore, here’s Joshua’s big reveal…..
“I WRITE PORN!!”
The only question now is, what kind of porn?
Joshua’s comments really drive home to me how I hope to raise my children in a way where they won’t feel like saying as little as possible to me is the only option.
iktf
I didn’t know what “gpoy” stood for, so in my mind I invented a few possibilities.
Gay People: Oh, you!
Gay People Only, Yo.
Great Pagodas of Yokohama
Gather Pounds of Yams
Get Peter or Yolanda
Great Penis on You
Greta Puts Out, Yo
Gene Putters on Yugo
Grean and Pink over Yellow
I can do this all day.
Green Purple Orange Yellow
Greek Players of Yahtzee
Gangrenous Penis on Jason(in the vein of “yogging”)
Gay premonitions of yelling
Gigantic penguins obliterating Yemen
I think joyce and ethin are more of morials than matesprits any way I can understand if ethan dates joshua
So, um, I’ve been wondering about this, and now with the gpoy comment I have to ask Mr. Willis: how much are Joyce’s parents based on your own?
(I have the perfectest avatar for this question.)
For years I’ve felt that Willis’ character designs remind me of Mitsuru Adachi’s manga – especially Robin and Ethan. And with Ethan’s new hairstyle, he looks more than ever like Kazuya Uesugi from Touch!
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/–ocEAqPAirU/TgCOq4DIWJI/AAAAAAAABmA/rye_NF89IQU/s1600/02.jpg
(In the striped shirt–how appropriately!)
Just thinking. It’s October, it’s a Friday, and it’s less than three short months before Willis goes back to his 5 day a week schedule. Maybe if we start now we can coerce him into at least keeping Saturday in the mix so we don’t have to go cold turkey with a 72-hour wait for a new strip right after New Year’s Day.
The seven day a week schedule ends sometime in March, whenever is one year it began during the Kickstarter.
It ends?!
holy crap, is doa just going to go on forever and ever
The Saturday stretch goal was funded before the Sunday one though, right? So will the Sunday updates go on after the Saturday updates stop, or will the Sunday updates be pushed to Saturday, or were they actually part of the same stretch goal and I’m misremembering?
the first time it goes back to five you should have the ultimate cliff hanger for teh lols
Or maybe we can convince him to let us throw money at him on another kickstarter to continue the 7 day goodness.
Ethan is being kind of a jerk for straight up ditching Joyce just to score him some man tail, to be honest.
This ship will hit Joyce so heard, I don’t think hiccups is going to cover it.
Now I hope we switch to the night where Danny goes to see Amazi-Girl, only for her to beat him within an inch of his life like they’re in a Frank Miller comic.
No, I don’t support domestic violence. Only Danmestic.
That pun was terrible and you should should feel bad instead….
….
…
Pfftt- Okay, I laughed a bit.
“I’ve had a religious experience, and it turns out the Scientologists were right.”
Oy Ethan, Joshua is goy gpoy.
Coin operated goy?
i know that feel bro!
They would look pretty cute together, wouldn’t they?
“I’m… actually adopted. My parents don’t know.” *sob*
I think they would look very cute together.
Is Joshua an atheist? Is that the big reveal?
wow just flippin kiss already gosh
So many feels poeple
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