Dumbing of Age Book Eleven

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September 18, 2023

Kidding

by David M Willis on January 7, 2015 at 12:01 am
  • 02 - Three's a Crowd

└ Tags: becky, jennifer, joyce, mike, walky

Discussion (400) ¬

[ Comments RSS ]
  1. Bagge
    Bagge
    January 7, 2015 at 12:01 am | #

    There are a few other reasons too, Walky, but you have the basic idea.

    • Cheryl
      Cheryl
      January 7, 2015 at 12:29 am | #

      david wills tweet hahaha

  2. otusasio451
    otusasio451
    January 7, 2015 at 12:02 am | #

    OUT OF THE CLOSET AND INTO THE HALLWAY!
    OUT OF THE CLOSET AND INTO THE HALLWAY!

    • arank11
      arank11
      January 7, 2015 at 12:07 am | #

      Becky, honey, there’s coming out of the closet, and then there’s nuking the closet into oblivion

      • Joe
        Joe
        January 7, 2015 at 12:18 am | #

        Sometimes a nuke is exactly what that particular closet needs.

        • Lord Geovanni
          Lord Geovanni
          January 7, 2015 at 1:43 am | #

          but wouldnt that kill what ever was in the closet

          • otusasio451
            otusasio451
            January 7, 2015 at 1:48 am | #

            No. It’s too strong for that, now. THERE’S NO STOPPING THIS.

            • Clay
              Clay
              January 7, 2015 at 8:34 am | #

              As soon as I read your post I got Queen stuck in my head. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-OTYT02W7E

              (Yes I know that wasn’t Freddy Mercury, but the geek in me couldn’t resist posting this version of the song.)

          • 3oranges
            3oranges
            January 7, 2015 at 12:52 pm | #

            Not if it was in a fridge?

            • Potatamoto
              Potatamoto
              January 7, 2015 at 3:59 pm | #

              This is kind of terrible, but it made me laugh…if someone was ‘in the closet’ and the depression this engendered made them overeat, could you not then say they were ‘in the fridge?’

        • WaGLaG
          WaGLaG
          January 7, 2015 at 3:12 am | #

          Mutual assured comeoutage.

      • Plasma Mongoose
        Plasma Mongoose
        January 7, 2015 at 7:54 am | #

        Nuking the closet > nuking the fridge.

      • Halloween Jack
        Halloween Jack
        January 7, 2015 at 11:30 am | #

        There is no more closet, just a vaguely rectangular-shaped hole in the wall surrounded by scorch marks, broken plaster and exposed bricks. A bent and smoking hangar and shreds of winter coats and scattered Scrabble tiles are all that’s left of the former contents.

        • Justin
          Justin
          January 7, 2015 at 4:12 pm | #

          anyone else think joyce looks like shes getting some suprise butt hanky panky from mike in panel two? or is that just me

          • Halloween Jack
            Halloween Jack
            January 7, 2015 at 6:11 pm | #

            Can’t unsee!

    • Luzahn
      Luzahn
      January 7, 2015 at 12:15 am | #

      Out of the shadows and into the sun?

      • otusasio451
        otusasio451
        January 7, 2015 at 1:11 am | #

        Becky: OUT OF THE SHADOWS AND INTO THE SUN!
        TELL EVERYONE I’M A LES-BI-AN!

        • Golden Yak
          Golden Yak
          January 7, 2015 at 1:37 am | #

          *Tremendous.*

        • Arianod
          Arianod
          January 7, 2015 at 10:02 am | #

          I just hope Becky is made of iron XD

        • Cheryl
          Cheryl
          January 7, 2015 at 7:27 pm | #

          WIN! lol

    • Anthusiasm
      Anthusiasm
      January 7, 2015 at 12:16 am | #

      BACK IN THE CLOSET! BACK IN THE CLOSET!

      • Anthusiasm
        Anthusiasm
        January 7, 2015 at 12:17 am | #

        …I attempted to change my Gravatar to a picture of Joyce and it failed. This is a much less effective joke now.

        • Plasma Mongoose
          Plasma Mongoose
          January 7, 2015 at 12:20 am | #

          It worked, its just that Gravatar can sometimes take a few minutes, believe me, I’m an expert on gravatars.

          • CrystalGamma
            CrystalGamma
            January 7, 2015 at 8:30 am | #

            Definitely. I’m actually surprised that I’ve seen you on two different days with the same avatar …

      • Plasma Mongoose
        Plasma Mongoose
        January 7, 2015 at 12:19 am | #

        But the closet’s been shattered into a million pieces…

    • Rowen Morland
      Rowen Morland
      January 7, 2015 at 4:32 am | #

      Are you singing that to Legal Man by Belle and Sebastian?

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-LvqprQnsI

      • Chris
        Chris
        January 7, 2015 at 4:50 am | #

        “The uploader has not made this video viewable in your country”

        • Eliot
          Eliot
          January 7, 2015 at 8:02 am | #

          That’s my favourite one.

    • Eric
      Eric
      January 7, 2015 at 1:44 pm | #

      LOL! 🙂

  3. The Aussie Bloke
    The Aussie Bloke
    January 7, 2015 at 12:02 am | #

    Oh god… Mary’s reaction is going to suck. Hopefully, Becky’s reaction to Mary’s reaction will be awesome.

    … What? You *know* Mary’s going to find out about this.

    • otusasio451
      otusasio451
      January 7, 2015 at 12:03 am | #

      Predicted it yesterday. Still terrified.

      • Solenoid
        Solenoid
        January 7, 2015 at 8:56 am | #

        I suspect it’ll be mostly ineffectual in denting her mood. The other shoe will drop when the maximum time for visiting is breached.

        • Adam Black
          Adam Black
          January 7, 2015 at 12:06 pm | #

          Couch-surfing could keep her in the dorm all semester

          • timemonkey
            timemonkey
            January 7, 2015 at 3:04 pm | #

            Joyce doesn’t have that much influence though. She could probably count on Dorothy and Sierra being willing to put Becky up for a bit and maybe Billie and Sal after them but that’s about it. She likely wouldn’t ask Amber and Dina and doesn’t know the other girls that well.

    • Tawdry Quirks
      Tawdry Quirks
      January 7, 2015 at 12:25 am | #

      I’m kinda hoping that when Mary shows up, Joyce will suddenly snap out of her backtracking haze and stand up for Becky in a manner similar to how she stood up to her parents about Dorothy.

      • Kk
        Kk
        January 7, 2015 at 12:28 am | #

        Dear god I hope so
        It’s not likely, knowing Willis, but I really hope so

        • Kirby
          Kirby
          January 7, 2015 at 12:44 am | #

          I also maybe hope she snaps Mary. In three.

          • Kk
            Kk
            January 7, 2015 at 12:45 am | #

            That would also be nice
            If it wouldn’t get her landed in prison

          • tyersome
            tyersome
            January 7, 2015 at 2:02 am | #

            … much as I detest Mary … if everyone who ever behaved as badly as she is was killed … well, overpopulation would be solved, not that I’d be here to enjoy it …

    • Twilightomens
      Twilightomens
      January 7, 2015 at 12:38 am | #

      Yes, Mary is going to find out when Becky announces it to her, obviously.

    • Gamaran Sepudomyn
      Gamaran Sepudomyn
      January 7, 2015 at 1:19 am | #

      I’m kind of wondering whether Mary is closeted herself. It fits with the “has attempted suicide” theory.

      • Aolbain
        Aolbain
        January 7, 2015 at 2:00 am | #

        The what now?

        • tyersome
          tyersome
          January 7, 2015 at 2:06 am | #

          IIRC the logic was:
          never seen her wrists + wrist bands (even when half-naked) == hiding a marks from attempted suicide
          quite a leap, but I’m not dead certain it couldn’t be true

          • begbert2
            begbert2
            January 7, 2015 at 3:24 am | #

            My working theory is she just has ugly wrists. Extremely localized acne maybe.

            • Rowen Morland
              Rowen Morland
              January 7, 2015 at 4:35 am | #

              Probably just tatoos of chic tracts.

              • Gigafreak
                Gigafreak
                January 7, 2015 at 9:17 am | #

                Why would someone like Mary ever hide those though.

                • Gigafreak
                  Gigafreak
                  January 7, 2015 at 9:43 am | #

                  …Oh, right, TATTOOS.

        • John
          John
          January 7, 2015 at 5:39 am | #

          I think I was the first one to propose it, having noticed that we never see Mary’s wrists. She wears those wristbands when she’s brushing her teeth in her pajamas, she wears them when she’s dressed up for church, she wears them to floor meetings, she wears them when people bust into her room unexpectedly and she’s got nothing else on but her panties. Her only appearance where they’re not visible, she’s wearing a long-sleeved shirt.

          The best explanation I can come up with for Mary wanting to keep her wrists covered at all times is that, like Sal and her gloves, she’s covering up scars that she’s ashamed of, either from cutting or from a suicide attempt.

          I actually hope I’m wrong. I don’t want to have to feel sympathy for Mary.

          • Halloween Jack
            Halloween Jack
            January 7, 2015 at 11:35 am | #

            Could be. I went through a phase where I’d wear bandannas as wristbands because Joan Jett, but stopped when some people commented on them with concerned looks on their faces, and I figured out that they thought I was trying to hide scars from sissy cuts.

      • Screwball
        Screwball
        January 7, 2015 at 9:31 am | #

        Interesting. It could explain a lot about her. Potential story – came out/was found out, sent to “Straightening Camp”, tried to kill herself by slitting wrists, locked up in psych ward, Docs deal with both suicidal & homosexual “problems”, comes out “fixed” but total bongo…

      • No Name
        No Name
        January 7, 2015 at 12:38 pm | #

        Actually, I doubt it. Willis has gone on record stating that sexualities won’t be changing and as far as I can tell from my last binge, Mary is straight as a arrow.
        But I don’t know. Danny acted straight too, and he’s bi.

    • krveale
      krveale
      January 7, 2015 at 3:45 am | #

      Trouble is that Mary is far from stupid, and good at detecting single-points-of-failure.

      Non-zero chance that however cool Becky’s reaction is, Mary’s response will be “Tell school, police, and/or Becky’s parents, then watch the consequences while completely secure in the knowledge that you followed the rules AND the Lord’s work, while emitting weapon’s grade Smug Radiation.”

      • Arianod
        Arianod
        January 7, 2015 at 10:09 am | #

        And that’s the way it’s gonna be.

  4. John
    John
    January 7, 2015 at 12:02 am | #

    She keeps getting better. How does she keep getting better?

    • otusasio451
      otusasio451
      January 7, 2015 at 12:03 am | #

      That, John…that is the mystery of life.

    • nothri
      nothri
      January 7, 2015 at 1:25 am | #

      She’s only been fighting with 1 percent of her true power.

      • Bibulb
        Bibulb
        January 7, 2015 at 10:09 am | #

        What you don’t know, is that she is not left-handed either.

        • Arianod
          Arianod
          January 7, 2015 at 10:14 am | #

          Kaitlin, on the other hand, probably knows ^^

      • otusasio451
        otusasio451
        January 7, 2015 at 11:33 am | #

        She’s hiding her power levels! The scouters are USELESS!!

    • tyersome
      tyersome
      January 7, 2015 at 2:30 am | #

      How about manic overcompensation?

      While I’m enjoying her exuberant self-acceptance, Becky is coming out to almost complete strangers and, as others have noted, drawing a lot of attention to herself, when she is very vulnerable. Maybe IU is now a bastion of openness and tolerance, but I would regretfully say she is being incredibly reckless.

      If her situation wasn’t so inherently fraught, her mood swings would suggest bipolar disorder … as it is I think its a pretty safe bet that there will be a lot of wailing an gnashing of teeth (aka Damn you Willising) when the inevitable human nastiness brings her back down …

      TL-DR: Becky seems incredibly fragile and unstable I fear that the dark side of the Willis’ will is setting us up for an … intense … few weeks …

      • Paul
        Paul
        January 7, 2015 at 2:47 am | #

        I would regretfully say she is being incredibly reckless.

        Bingo. To put it in perspective, even straight people who don’t have to worry about societal censure might avoid mentioning their boyfriend or girlfriend to, say, a really creepy co-worker. Not having to hide anymore is great, but there are always some people you would like to have minimum knowledge about your life.

        • begbert2
          begbert2
          January 7, 2015 at 3:29 am | #

          I find myself suspecting that Becky is doing this explicitly because Joyce told her to keep it under wraps, and Becky has no intention of carrying on the bigotry-based closet thing now that she’s started her new evil-dad-free life.

          This also might be her (awesome) way of telling Joyce that she’s being an asshole.

          • Bagge
            Bagge
            January 7, 2015 at 5:19 am | #

            Did Joyce actually tell her to keep it under wraps? I think Joyce assumed she would do it – especially since that’s what Becky did on her own all day yesterday – and now is blown away by the fact that she isn’t. Becky has in fact not stopped for a second and allowed Joyce to explain or even react.

          • No Name
            No Name
            January 7, 2015 at 8:45 am | #

            It WILL come back to bite her though. Regardless of the motive.

      • Turbanous
        Turbanous
        January 7, 2015 at 6:44 am | #

        I don’t think that Becky is being reckless by coming out to these characters. She knows that Walky and Billie will be accepting, and is taking a chance with Mike, but that happens. As far as we can tell these are a few of her coming outs that are on her terms, and an unfortunate by product of our society is that we non-straight people have to keep coming out due to the constant assumption that everyone is straight.
        I also don’t think Becky is overcompensating, to me she’s on the upswing out of her depression of being closeted and having runaway, for now she’s safe and her best friend is trying to supporting her. I’m also glad that shes talking over Joyce’s discomfort because Becky coming out is only about Becky and has nothing to do with Joyce.

        • Arianod
          Arianod
          January 7, 2015 at 10:19 am | #

          But she is D: I have to agree with tyersome: drawing attention on herself like that, when it’s against the rules for her to share Joyce and Sarah’s room, is a terrible idea. There’s simply no way this isn’t going to end with her getting busted.

          • tyersome
            tyersome
            January 7, 2015 at 1:23 pm | #

            Exactly, my point is not that coming out is bad … we can see how well being closeted works in comic and I’ve seen how much stress it can put on real people first hand …
            However, yelling it in the hallways to people she’s met once? When there are likely to be complete strangers overhearing, some of whom could be malevolent?
            It would be great for her if she attracts supportive attention that leads to her finding a safe and stable place to live, but this seems like a very high-risk strategy that I wouldn’t recommend to anyone in her situation.

            • LookItsZee
              LookItsZee
              January 7, 2015 at 2:05 pm | #

              The fact that society at large and shitty people in general punish members of certain marginalized communities means that it’s *always* risky to exist openly and genuinely without hiding who you are. However, that does not make it irresponsible or reckless to do so, or to be proud and public about who you are. To say it is would suggest it’s somehow *her* prerogative to prevent homophobic folks from doing homophobic shit, which is pretty victim-blamey.

              • tyersome
                tyersome
                January 7, 2015 at 11:26 pm | #

                I understand that this is a very emotional issue and agree that a sane society wouldn’t require anyone to be closeted about anything that didn’t harm other people. Unfortunately we don’t live in that society and I have doubts about whether humans ever will …

                Your response seems to be ignoring several things:
                1) you seem to be endorsing that idea that the most vulnerable and isolated people should shoulder the costs of societal improvement without regards to their personal safety
                2) there is a huge difference between trying to prevent victimization and victim blaming
                3) this is not just about her orientation — drawing a lot of attention to herself in any manner before knowing how she is going to support and house herself is a big risk.

            • Turbanous
              Turbanous
              January 7, 2015 at 3:05 pm | #

              Okay I see the point you were making and re-reading your comments now I see what I both misread and misinterpreted. I do still believe that she would know that Billie and Walky would be safe to come out to but yelling it was a little over the top in the grand scheme of her situation.

  5. Ryan
    Ryan
    January 7, 2015 at 12:03 am | #

    Mike, on point as always, getting right to the heart of whatever is most likely to cause a conflict.

    • Stgerlachus
      Stgerlachus
      January 7, 2015 at 12:15 am | #

      This is more or less what I expected after yesterday. Becky is open and honest so no reason to bug her, but Joyce is clearly still not being honest with herself or Becky, so she needs a dose of Mike

      • Ryan
        Ryan
        January 7, 2015 at 12:52 am | #

        It must be nice as a writer to have a character who’s always ready and willing to act as a conflict-generating plot device.

        • Ed
          Ed
          January 7, 2015 at 1:02 am | #

          Hmm… I’d say Mike is not necessarily a conflict generator, but maybe more like a conflict miner or unearther, if you will. Generally, it seems like the conflict was already there, but it was buried so people could ignore it, until he brought it into the light.

          • begbert2
            begbert2
            January 7, 2015 at 3:31 am | #

            Pretty sure that Becky was pretty thoroughly dragging it into the light already. (That might even be the point.)

    • Les
      Les
      January 7, 2015 at 6:50 am | #

      Yes, Mike is definitely Mr. Most Likely to Toss a Grenade Into a Social Situation (surprised he didn’t offer Becky a nickel to prove she’s a lesbian). However, in this case, Mike is using Joyce’s own words against her. She was Suzy Sanctimonious about how bad homosexuals are; now that she’s learned her best friend is one she’s having to do some furious backtracking.

      • Adam Black
        Adam Black
        January 7, 2015 at 12:14 pm | #

        Actually in that previous context she was trying to minimize The Church’s ( hers at least ) stance against Homosexuality.

        She compared it to lying, seeming a minor sin.
        Mike was there to point at that Hypocrisy, when he got her to say she hated lying.

        and now he is being a douchnozzle and putting words in her mouth she never said.

        • Thomas64
          Thomas64
          January 7, 2015 at 1:14 pm | #

          Yeah. She said homosexuality is no worse than lying.
          Not exactly a ringing endorsement, but it does leave some wriggle room.

  6. GoogerGeiger
    GoogerGeiger
    January 7, 2015 at 12:03 am | #

    Threesome plz

    • otusasio451
      otusasio451
      January 7, 2015 at 12:03 am | #

      I hear Slipshiiiiiiiiiine!

      Ten bucks Anti-Joyce joins in.

    • Barf Ninjason
      Barf Ninjason
      January 7, 2015 at 12:04 am | #

      *sigh* I’ll do it this afternoooooon

    • Yotomoe
      Yotomoe
      January 7, 2015 at 12:06 am | #

      I feel Ruth would be perturbed having sex with a girl who looks so much like herself.
      “Billie, you have a definite TYPE don’t you?”

      • Rorror
        Rorror
        January 7, 2015 at 12:15 am | #

        Becky looks nothing like Ruth. They both have freckles and reddish hair, that’s about it.

        • JustCheetoDust
          JustCheetoDust
          January 7, 2015 at 12:19 am | #

          While I’m inclined to agree, I’d also like to see Ruth round up enough redheads to form something like a Gashouse Gorillas conga line.

        • Yotomoe
          Yotomoe
          January 7, 2015 at 12:29 am | #

          Yeah, but she’s still a freckled lean red headed girl. That’s similar enough that questions would be asked.
          Just like if my next girlfriend was another chubby black lady!

          • Rorror
            Rorror
            January 7, 2015 at 1:05 am | #

            Oh, the incident of a question being asked in that situation is of a rather high probability, indeed. I only wanted to protest the “[…] looks so much like […]” part. It might seem a bit nitpicky, but to me, it was so far off, I had to say something.
            I find Ruths reaction to such an event hard to tell and am in no Position to attack your speculation. Especially since I have yet to undestand the seemingly inherent pronlems with having a type. (Y’all are welcome to enlight me, of course.)

            • tyersome
              tyersome
              January 7, 2015 at 2:38 am | #

              … its a problem if the type overwhelms the person, otherwise I’d say it just flavors things …

              • Rorror
                Rorror
                January 7, 2015 at 10:36 pm | #

                So the problem would rather be that other people assume to fast that the first is the case (“You only like me for my haircolour!”)? This would make sense (to me, anyway).

                • tyersome
                  tyersome
                  January 8, 2015 at 12:24 am | #

                  One of the problems anyway … there certainly do seem to people who are so fixated on whatever their type is that they ignore important considerations (e.g. compatible personalities or world-views, or warning signs) and keep ending up in unhappy or abusive relationships because all they see is the type …

                • Rorror
                  Rorror
                  January 8, 2015 at 5:00 am | #

                  That makes a lot of sense as well. Thank you very much. I feel like I really have learned something.

    • Undrave
      Undrave
      January 7, 2015 at 1:16 am | #

      That’s clearly what Billy is thinking off panel now. Once you go ginger you can’t… something something-er?? Huh…

      • Bagge
        Bagge
        January 7, 2015 at 1:17 pm | #

        Once you go ginger you tend to linger?
        Got a cute ginger wrapped round my finger (well, had last night).

  7. Jason
    Jason
    January 7, 2015 at 12:03 am | #

    Oooh, I bet there’s gonna be some people regretting their votes for Joyce in the poll!

    • Jen Aside
      Jen Aside
      January 7, 2015 at 12:07 am | #

      What about Mary? \=o

      • Em
        Em
        January 7, 2015 at 12:15 am | #

        I think the Mary voters are doing that for the lolz. But yeah, the Joyce voters are going to be kicking themselves!

        • John
          John
          January 7, 2015 at 12:37 am | #

          Mary’s a bad person, but that doesn’t necessarily make her a bad character. She’s a villain, but that means she’s a plot catalyst. I didn’t vote for her, but I can imagine that people might do so unironically. And not even the kind of people who make me wonder why they’re even reading Willis’s comics.

          (Actually, I just noticed that all three of my votes went to ladies who are into ladies, so I guess I’m with Walky here.)

          • Adam Black
            Adam Black
            January 7, 2015 at 12:15 pm | #

            this

        • Kirby
          Kirby
          January 7, 2015 at 12:46 am | #

          I did it trying to predict the bottom three. If I had remembered Malaya I would’ve voted for her instead of Joe and been right (at the moment)!

        • Adam Black
          Adam Black
          January 7, 2015 at 11:53 am | #

          I voted for Mary, and not for the “lolz” .

          She is good antagonist, and has the potential to be a great one.
          Dramas are often live or die by the quality of their antagonists.

          Poorly written villains = waste of narrative.

          Mary began in Roomies as a 2-dimensional saccharine holier-than-thou Christian , who is revealed to have charcter depth as an antagonist.

          This arc she starts out openly as heart-as-black-as-coal holier-than-thou 2- 2-dimensional Christian , who slowly reveals more complexity.

          She is a scene stealer and someone we love to hate.

          I picked her part as wish-fulfillment because I want Willis to develop her more . She is still too hard to identify with. I want her to be more real — yet still evil.

          I think she has tremendous dramatic possibilities with many of the characters. She might even be redeemable .
          So no, not for the lolz, for the story

          • Bagge
            Bagge
            January 7, 2015 at 12:03 pm | #

            I completely agree with your reasons. I’m more and more fascinated by Mary, especially how she has managed to gain herself villain status without doing very much except some snide remarks. She still has her full growth potential both as a character and a narrative device in front of her and it will be glorious.

            • Adam Black
              Adam Black
              January 7, 2015 at 12:40 pm | #

              Thanks,
              I had to think through her previous encounters to see if you were right, vis-a-vis only snide remarks.

              I found I disagree. Her words were not throwaway jokes.
              They established mal-intent, motivation, and intentions, with attempts to overtly and covertly persuade.

              After the church, she tries to get Joyce to socially ostratice her friends.

              She swings from phony-charm to verbal abuse on a dime, in an attempt to wind up her abusive RA against the floor.

              She attempt to shame and guilt Billy in front of the other christian girls because she suspects Billy was with Ruth; and attempts touse her friendship with Joyce against Billy. She has Joyce to apply christian abuse to Billy. This also establishes that she is devious , monitoring Billy and Ruth and will act on it given the chance.

              There is still an open issue in DOA of whether she practices her judgmental beliefs on herself or only against others. How hypocritical is she?

              In Roomies those questioned are more answered more. Sorry, NO spoilers.

              ( I didnt read roomies and shortpacked till this year.
              I was clueless when the new characters of Blaine and Faz appeared and people already hated them.
              I also didnt know who was Amazi-girl. Sure obvious in hindsight But it could have been a new character. Kudos for the lack of spoilers on that. )

              • Bagge
                Bagge
                January 7, 2015 at 12:56 pm | #

                You are right, “snide remarks” is a complete under-estimation. I think I meant lack of concrete results so far. Compared to buttholes like Blaine and Ross she has not done much real damage yet. But the intentions are there. That’s of course part of what makes her interesting. We know that she’s up to something.

      • hof1991
        hof1991
        January 7, 2015 at 8:14 am | #

        Mary’s not bad. She’s just drawn that way.

        • Bagge
          Bagge
          January 7, 2015 at 12:08 pm | #

          She’s good at drawing though. (Seriously – she draws pink cutesy anime style. That’s kinda adorable for a mean spirited bigot.)

          And you have an awesome gravatar.

    • SUGauthor
      SUGauthor
      January 7, 2015 at 12:25 am | #

      I voted for Joyce, I don’t regret it. We can’t expect her to be perfect.

  8. Doctor_Who
    Doctor_Who
    January 7, 2015 at 12:03 am | #

    After they leave, Billie stands there in silence for a few seconds, then goes upstairs to her room and checks her deodorant. She spies a never before noticed label. “Warning: May act as a pheromone for redheaded lesbians”.

    Billie: “Well that explains a few things.”

    • Yotomoe
      Yotomoe
      January 7, 2015 at 12:07 am | #

      Redheaded Lesbians.
      Implying that it is not a pheromone for ALL women, lesbian or otherwise.

      • Doctor_Who
        Doctor_Who
        January 7, 2015 at 12:09 am | #

        Didn’t seem to work when she tried to kiss Sal. So I figure it’s either because Sal is straight, or she doesn’t have red hair.

        • Yotomoe
          Yotomoe
          January 7, 2015 at 12:10 am | #

          It’s because Sal is more powerful than any pheromone.

        • Jason
          Jason
          January 7, 2015 at 12:32 am | #

          But what about Daisy?

          • No Name
            No Name
            January 7, 2015 at 8:51 am | #

            She’s a little sex starved and Billie was reenacting her first Ruth kiss. Pheromones had nothing to do with it.

      • Plasma Mongoose
        Plasma Mongoose
        January 7, 2015 at 12:11 am | #

        It’s an extract of ginger. 😛

        • Megatron
          Megatron
          January 7, 2015 at 12:27 am | #

          A pun worthy of Tom Batiuk.

          • Kelly
            Kelly
            January 7, 2015 at 1:30 am | #

            That’s harsh, Megs

        • tyersome
          tyersome
          January 7, 2015 at 2:44 am | #

          Well I liked it, I think it really spiced up this thread nicely … maybe Megatron is just stewing about the lack of ginger in the dishes he’s sampled?

    • newllend
      newllend
      January 7, 2015 at 12:13 am | #

      I need some of that shit where can I buy some.

    • timemonkey
      timemonkey
      January 7, 2015 at 6:19 am | #

      Ruth isn’t a lesbian.

      • Plasma Mongoose
        Plasma Mongoose
        January 7, 2015 at 7:59 am | #

        RUTH LIKEZ TEH COCK? GAZOOKZ!

        • Adam Black
          Adam Black
          January 7, 2015 at 12:43 pm | #

          thay comment is so much better with your avatar

  9. Luzahn
    Luzahn
    January 7, 2015 at 12:03 am | #

    Well, I’m relieved that Becky so far hasn’t been upset by Joyce trying to suppress this. Hopefully that continues; I’m sure Becky understands where Joyce is mentally.

    Although I assume that Becky’s too caught up in her enthusiasm to pay it much attention.

    • Bagge
      Bagge
      January 7, 2015 at 12:12 am | #

      Becky has made a long time hobby of upsetting Joyce. OF COURSE she understands what it does to Joyce when a closet-explosion is sprung on her with no warning whatsoever. I just hope that she’s ready to catch Joyce in the fallout (and that she’s prepared for how much worse Mike is going to make it)

  10. Opus the Poet
    Opus the Poet
    January 7, 2015 at 12:03 am | #

    OK NOW she’s the Best Character.

    • otusasio451
      otusasio451
      January 7, 2015 at 12:04 am | #

      *fast-forward to tomorrow*

      Opus the Post: OK, NOOOOOW, she’s the best character.

      • Opus the Poet
        Opus the Poet
        January 7, 2015 at 12:19 am | #

        Well she had to do something awesome to displace Dina from the top spot. Today she went over the top.

    • Luzahn
      Luzahn
      January 7, 2015 at 12:06 am | #

      It’s some sort of amazing exponential character Bestness.

      At this rate she’ll have turned the campus into a musical number by Friday.

      • JustCheetoDust
        JustCheetoDust
        January 7, 2015 at 12:28 am | #

        Throw out your hands
        Stick out your tush
        Hands on your hips
        Give ’em a push
        You’ll be surprised
        You’re doing the French Mistake.
        Voila!

        • otusasio451
          otusasio451
          January 7, 2015 at 11:36 pm | #

          You brute, you brute, you brute, you vicious BRUTE!!!! *sob*

  11. Robert
    Robert
    January 7, 2015 at 12:03 am | #

    Poor billie. She found another lesbian and she’s still being mocked in a passive aggressive way.

    • brumagem
      brumagem
      January 7, 2015 at 12:05 am | #

      Billie and Ruth are both bisexual.

      • Yotomoe
        Yotomoe
        January 7, 2015 at 12:08 am | #

        I’ve never once seen Ruth show attraction for a dude.

        • Catullus
          Catullus
          January 7, 2015 at 12:10 am | #

          Nor have I, but Willis confirmed her as bisexual on his Tumblr.

        • Luzahn
          Luzahn
          January 7, 2015 at 12:11 am | #

          Also, she’s mentioned an old boyfriend in Canada, and Howard was surprised when he heard about her thing for Billie.

          Certainly not conclusive, but there has been some support in the comic itself.

          • Yotomoe
            Yotomoe
            January 7, 2015 at 12:15 am | #

            It’s not unheard of for a lesbian to date some dudes before realizing she’s a lesbian.

            • Luzahn
              Luzahn
              January 7, 2015 at 12:17 am | #

              Of course, hence the “conclusive.” (sorry if that was unclear)
              It still provides some evidence outside of word of god.

            • Nono
              Nono
              January 7, 2015 at 12:44 am | #

              It’s also not unheard of for a bisexual to know they’re into dudes without ever dating one.

              • Yotomoe
                Yotomoe
                January 7, 2015 at 1:17 am | #

                I’m not arguing that she isn’t a bisexual. All I’m saying is she’s referred to herself as lesbian on multiple occasions so I wasn’t sure.

                • Aolbain
                  Aolbain
                  January 7, 2015 at 2:06 am | #

                  When has she done that? All I remember is calling what she and Billie are in as something “lesbian”.

                • Nono
                  Nono
                  January 7, 2015 at 4:31 am | #

                  I wouldn’t say that she’s referred to herself specifically as lesbian – she’s said that Billie and her found out she was into girls together, Howard was the one alluding to her being ‘lesbian pregnant’, and when he asked if she was full-on lesbian, she just shrugged and went, ‘I dunno, maybe?’ which isn’t really definite.

                  The only other instance would be asking Billie if they’d entered a ‘sexy lesbian suicide pact’, which would be referring to their relationship, which is certainly lesbian, in that it’s two girls.

                • Random832
                  Random832
                  January 7, 2015 at 11:08 am | #

                  > The only other instance would be asking Billie if they’d entered a ‘sexy lesbian suicide pact’, which would be referring to their relationship, which is certainly lesbian, in that it’s two girls.

                  Someone objected to a description of Danny’s “gay moments” yesterday, so I’m not sure if it’s accepted or not to use “gay/lesbian” to refer to things relating to two people of the same sex who may be bisexual.

                • gwalla
                  gwalla
                  January 7, 2015 at 2:22 pm | #

                  “Sometimes words have two meanings” A great man named Led Zeppelin once said that.

                • Jams
                  Jams
                  January 7, 2015 at 3:24 pm | #

                  Women who are bisexual sometimes refer to themselves as lesbian. There can be some overlap.

        • caesaria82
          caesaria82
          January 7, 2015 at 12:45 am | #

          ‘Showing attraction to a dude’ is not ‘proof’ of bisexuality. That’s like saying people in a long-term relationship (either same or opposite sex relationship) are not bisexual because you haven’t seen them show attraction to anyone except their partner.
          Also, there are PLENTY of bisexuals who only ever date one gender (but are attracted to more than one but never act on it) or who strongly prefer one gender over the others – that doesn’t make them any less bisexual.

          • Random832
            Random832
            January 7, 2015 at 11:09 am | #

            > ‘Showing attraction to a dude’ is not ‘proof’ of bisexuality. That’s like saying people in a long-term relationship (either same or opposite sex relationship) are not bisexual because you haven’t seen them show attraction to anyone except their partner.

            Not really. Being proof of something is not the same thing as being a requirement.

            • caesaria82
              caesaria82
              January 7, 2015 at 7:17 pm | #

              True, but there aren’t really ‘requirements’. Just as there is no ‘proof’ when it comes to bisexuality. Your sexuality is what you define it as. Also, sexual attractions ≠ sexual actions. We can’t look into Ruth’s head and Willis has repeatedly referred to her as bi, so that is what she is. Everything else is bi erasure.

              • Random832
                Random832
                January 8, 2015 at 12:21 am | #

                > True, but there aren’t really ‘requirements’.

                Goddammit, that’s my point. If people were saying it were required, that would be offensive. Talking about “proof” is not offensive, unless it comes with an implication that you will somehow refuse to recognize someone’s self-identified* orientation without it. An implication you are imagining

                *Though, if you asked Danny, he’d tell you he’s straight.

                • caesaria82
                  caesaria82
                  January 8, 2015 at 12:41 am | #

                  Ok, I misunderstood you then, because I actually agree with you on that.

              • Random832
                Random832
                January 8, 2015 at 12:24 am | #

                > Your sexuality is what you define it as.

                Also, doesn’t that mean it’s a choice? Isn’t the ENTIRE point of the ongoing trainwreck that is Ethan’s character arc, and the reason we consider people like Becky’s dad to be evil, that it’s not? That it’s an objective fact about someone? If you can’t choose your orientation, then you can’t “define” it either.

                • caesaria82
                  caesaria82
                  January 8, 2015 at 12:51 am | #

                  No, it’s not the same thing. At least not the way I meant it. Like, for example. I’m bi, right, and when I date someone, I always *always* have to make a point of defining my sexuality because otherwise it would become invisible. And I’m quite proud of my sexuality and I’d never want it to become invisble. That’s what I meant.
                  Also, people calling themselves gay because it’s ‘easier’ than to have to explain being bi or pan or anything else – I have a lot of friends who do that. That’s not what I would do, but it’s their right. Their right to define themselves how they want.

                  Like, even being in the closet is a choice. Ethan can’t change who he *is*, but he can change how he defines himself. Currently, to the world (except Amber and Joyce and whoever else knows the truth) he defines himself as straight. But we all know he isn’t. I’m not saying that’s good or healthy, but it’s his prerogative. He’s lying. To himself, most importantly. But, like, no one has a right to define himself for him. That’s why forcibly outing people is so terrible, because what if they’re not ready?

                  Not saying that I don’t want every single queer person in the world to be comfortable enough in their own sking to come out, but that’s just not the case. People need time. And even if they’re out, they still have the right to define themselves how they please. I mean. Do you understand this or am I just not making sense? lol

    • Sam
      Sam
      January 7, 2015 at 12:07 am | #

      Billie is bisexual, not a lesbian.

  12. The Wizard
    The Wizard
    January 7, 2015 at 12:04 am | #

    I think Becky has the right idea here, there is no point in really hiding it.

    • tinfoil theory
      tinfoil theory
      January 7, 2015 at 12:50 am | #

      It is a proven way to summon amazing superheroes. Even if Tony doesn’t care.

    • Kas
      Kas
      January 7, 2015 at 1:32 am | #

      Not to mention how great it must feel to her to finally be able to openly tell people. She’s consumed with the power of it!

      • ninja_jesus
        ninja_jesus
        January 7, 2015 at 2:05 am | #

        No one girl should have all that power! :O

        • Ste Rose
          Ste Rose
          January 7, 2015 at 7:39 am | #

          Everyone should have all of that power!

        • gwalla
          gwalla
          January 7, 2015 at 2:39 pm | #

          The clock’s ticking, I just count the outers

  13. Anthusiasm
    Anthusiasm
    January 7, 2015 at 12:04 am | #

    This is the moment where there would be a huge showstopping number involving tap dancing and Becky being lifted up onto peoples’ shoulders if Dumbing of Age were a musical.

    • Bagge
      Bagge
      January 7, 2015 at 12:25 am | #

      Yes I am a lesbian – (chorus: leeeesbian)
      A connoisseur of the fairer gender
      Yes I am a lesbian – (chorus: leeeesbian)
      If that’s a crime I’m the worst offender

      Although life’s not always perfectly swiminin’
      I’m here to sample your finest wimmin
      So come every leeeeesbian
      And give me some SKIN

      (Mel. I’m a dentist)

      • Anthusiasm
        Anthusiasm
        January 7, 2015 at 12:29 am | #

        That is the best thing I’ve ever read.

      • Opus the Poet
        Opus the Poet
        January 7, 2015 at 1:19 am | #

        keep working, we’ll have Willis convinced to do DoA the Musical inside of a year.

        • Kryss LaBryn
          Kryss LaBryn
          January 7, 2015 at 1:59 am | #

          Did someone say Kickstarter? Because I swear I heard someone say Kickstarter. 😀

    • Historyman68
      Historyman68
      January 7, 2015 at 8:04 am | #

      I was just thinking that. Except to the tube of “What’s This?” in the Nightmare before Christmas.
      “Guess what? I’m Gay! Tell everyone around”
      “It’s not you’re joking! Stop making all those sounds!”

      • Bagge
        Bagge
        January 7, 2015 at 11:55 am | #

        AWESOME
        (gleefully adding to it)

        …
        “It’s True! I’m Gay! Whoever could have guessed?

        I always think of women, when other talk of boys,
        I’d rather do with girlfriends, what other do with toys,
        It was so strange at first
        but now I’m feeling like on fire
        Oh I won’t keep it inside I want the world to know – I’m Gay!”

        • Anthusiasm
          Anthusiasm
          January 7, 2015 at 6:46 pm | #

          This can be the beginning of the song, then the other thing you wrote can be during the kickline.

          • Bagge
            Bagge
            January 7, 2015 at 9:42 pm | #

            There is no such thing as too many musical song numbers about lesbians.

  14. Yotomoe
    Yotomoe
    January 7, 2015 at 12:04 am | #

    She should just get a name tag that says “Hi I’m a lesbain”. Save time.

    • Dean
      Dean
      January 7, 2015 at 12:08 am | #

      Or a T-shirt. She could probably find one on Etsy, or somewhere.

      • Opus the Poet
        Opus the Poet
        January 7, 2015 at 12:24 am | #

        Took like 30 seconds to find: https://www.etsy.com/listing/157803846/awesome-lesbian-shirt-gay-pride-t-shirt?ref=sr_gallery_7&ga_search_query=lesbian+shirt&ga_ref=auto6&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery

        • Kryss LaBryn
          Kryss LaBryn
          January 7, 2015 at 2:00 am | #

          That is fantastic!

        • Screwball
          Screwball
          January 7, 2015 at 2:09 am | #

          That deserves +1 Internets… 😛

      • Kryss LaBryn
        Kryss LaBryn
        January 7, 2015 at 2:00 am | #

        A friend of mine had one that said “Queer by nature. Out by choice.”

  15. brumagem
    brumagem
    January 7, 2015 at 12:04 am | #

    Walky continues to oversimplify gender and sexuality despite being in a friggin’ gender studies class.

    I guess I’m the fool for expecting otherwise.

    • Yotomoe
      Yotomoe
      January 7, 2015 at 12:04 am | #

      If someone simplifies being a lesbian as being awesome then I’d probably as soon allow them to continue thinking that.

    • Luzahn
      Luzahn
      January 7, 2015 at 12:05 am | #

      I mean, at least he’s not being negative about it? I mean, he has only been in that class for three or so weeks.

    • Gangler
      Gangler
      January 7, 2015 at 12:20 am | #

      He’s been in an intro level gender studies class for one month, and wasn’t exactly enlightened on the subject when he entered. Leslie’s not a miracle worker.

      • Shade
        Shade
        January 7, 2015 at 12:23 am | #

        BLASPHEMY!

      • Bagge
        Bagge
        January 7, 2015 at 12:27 am | #

        In an alternate universe, Robin begs to differ.

        (Your point stands though)

    • Aolbain
      Aolbain
      January 7, 2015 at 2:10 am | #

      Yes. That was Walkys sincere opinion of how female homosexuality works. 100% serious.

  16. Emoroffle
    Emoroffle
    January 7, 2015 at 12:04 am | #

    I think Becky has the wrong impression of what “living out loud” means.

    • Carriethedragon
      Carriethedragon
      January 7, 2015 at 12:13 am | #

      It may be wrong, but it’s just so RIGHT.

    • Plasma Mongoose
      Plasma Mongoose
      January 7, 2015 at 12:14 am | #

      Also people will be asking the sorts of questions Becky doesn’t need people asking like “Is she even a student of IU?”

      • Ed
        Ed
        January 7, 2015 at 12:49 am | #

        Yeah, it’d probably be best for Becky to try to just blend into the crowd and not draw attention at this point. Of course, if the crowd in question consists mostly of lesbians, than maybe Becky’s actually doing the inconspicuous thing, heh.

  17. Em
    Em
    January 7, 2015 at 12:04 am | #

    Respect for Joyce had gone up, and now it’s plummeting down. That’s enough kidding around? Seriously? I’m very frustrated that she’s trying to shove her friend into the closet.

    • Yotomoe
      Yotomoe
      January 7, 2015 at 12:05 am | #

      That’s what you get for believing in Joyce. I tried to warn you people that you were giving her too much credit.

      • Carriethedragon
        Carriethedragon
        January 7, 2015 at 12:15 am | #

        Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarsh. People aren’t all good or all bad, you know. I will never understand how people expect Joyce to magically become perfect all at once. She’s working on it. (And Mike’s here to make it all the more difficult. Hi, Mike.)

        • Yotomoe
          Yotomoe
          January 7, 2015 at 12:16 am | #

          I don’t think Joyce is a bad person. I don’t like her, though. She’s most certainly not a good person.

          • StClair
            StClair
            January 7, 2015 at 5:44 am | #

            I disagree. I think she is a good person who is slowly working through a ton of baggage and indoctrination that’s been loaded on her.

            • Yotomoe
              Yotomoe
              January 7, 2015 at 11:58 am | #

              Having the potential to be a good person doesn’t make you a good person. If you still do dickish things all the time you can’t just asterisk that and say “Well she was raised that way, or she’ll grow out of it or bla bla bla”. What matters is how insufferable she is NOW. And right NOW she’s pretty unlikeable to me.

        • ninja_jesus
          ninja_jesus
          January 7, 2015 at 12:17 am | #

          I disagree. Mike’s asshole fu is integral to any character development.

        • Stgerlachus
          Stgerlachus
          January 7, 2015 at 12:19 am | #

          I think Joyce is still to concerned about how other people perceive her. She can deal with Becky being gay in private, but having it be public is to much for her to handle. She’s grown but she still has a long way to go.

        • Fit-to-freak
          Fit-to-freak
          January 7, 2015 at 10:43 am | #

          Idk I think asking people to not be homophobic is not that big of a hurtle. Like, I’m sure Joyce will get there but I’m not inclined to make a bunch of excuses for her right now. She fucked up.

      • Mr. Morningstar
        Mr. Morningstar
        January 7, 2015 at 11:29 am | #

        Eh, I mean she’s trying, it doesn’t excuse shitty behaviour but brainwashing tends to have that effect on people.

    • Sam
      Sam
      January 7, 2015 at 12:19 am | #

      It’s likely because she is still sorting things out mentally herself and now there is 895665 times more stress on her to sort out her views.

      She WANTS to sort out her own views on it before it is revealed to everyone else but even if it isn’t her choice to make, Becky revealing it to everyone is incredibly stressful for her because she still doesn’t know whether she fully supports it or not.

      It is incredibly stressful because she is not ready for people like Mike who’d say ‘I thought you believed such and such’.

      Becky IS ready to tell everyone, but Joyce is not ready to handle it all yet as she STILL believed homosexuality was wrong just the day before.

      • StClair
        StClair
        January 7, 2015 at 5:53 am | #

        This.

        I understand why Becky is doing this, maybe even needs to do this, but… she is only thinking of herself at the moment, and not her friend who only found out about all of this maybe twelve hours ago. And, IMO, has not slept since then.

        • Fit-to-freak
          Fit-to-freak
          January 7, 2015 at 10:41 am | #

          I mean, she gets to only think about herself in this instance. Joyce can sort through her homophobia in private imo, Becky can talk about being lesiban in public. Because only one of those things is something you should be ashamed of.

          • Bagge
            Bagge
            January 7, 2015 at 12:46 pm | #

            You are completely right that Becky has every right to come out to any one she likes in whatever manner she likes (and about the only manner more awesome than this would be a full blown musical).

            But because of a combination of factors, including the standard rotten luck of Dumbing of Age characters and one of the few character flaws Becky has shown this far in my opinion (a certain carelessness with Joyce’s feelings – she knows her relationship with Walky and used it to greath lengths to push her buttons yesterday) – she sprung this particular thing in the worst company possible from Joyce point of view.

            Imagine the same scene with Dorothy and Sierra.
            Becky: “I’M A LESBIAN”
            Joyce: “Hehe, stop kidding….”
            Becky: “Not kidding, telling everyone now. Hey, Billie…”
            Dorothy: “I’m glad for your friends sake and I proud of you. It’s not always easy to do the right thing.”
            Sierra: “Let’s bring her to church tomorrow.”

            Same Joyce slip-up, a much safer space to get to grips with it.

            • Fit-to-freak
              Fit-to-freak
              January 7, 2015 at 8:29 pm | #

              This wasn’t unsafe for Becky though? It went fine. All that happened was Joyce was made uncomfortable, because she’s homophobic and has said homophobic things. Is the argument here that Joyce should not have to feel even mildly uncomfortable or embaressed about her homophobia? Like good, I’m glad she’s uncomfortable.

              • Bagge
                Bagge
                January 7, 2015 at 9:48 pm | #

                I suppose I mostly react to the forum comments that hate Joyce for her reaction. Yeah, you are right – it is a good thing that she comes to term with the homophobia that is inherent in her belief system.

                But I really can’t see why it would be a better for her to be confronted by it by a mean spirited bully rather than in a setting more akin to this

        • Adam Black
          Adam Black
          January 7, 2015 at 12:52 pm | #

          The problem with your reasoning is that is exactly what is used to keep people in the closet all their lives. That is always true.

          • StClair
            StClair
            January 7, 2015 at 2:16 pm | #

            Sure. Okay. You’re right. Let’s keep hammering on all the weak points in Joyce’s psyche at once. And when she finally breaks – because she wasn’t able to immediately (literally, overnight) and completely discard the belief structure she’s been indoctrinated in for her entire life upon being confronted with the rightness of right-thinking people – well, that’ll be entirely her fault. For not being good enough, resilient enough, or open-minded enough.

            Really, even a sheltered and home-schooled 18-year-old should be able to just cope with everything Joyce has been through in the last few weeks, let alone the last twelve hours; and not merely choose to side with her best friend against everything she’s been taught (risking, by those same teachings, eternal damnation), but construct a flawless theological justification for it, make living arrangements for said friend, and prepare remarks for any critics – before breakfast! That Joyce hasn’t done any but the first of these clearly shows that she’s a weak, homophobic little ***** who deserves nothing but scorn.

            • Turbanous
              Turbanous
              January 7, 2015 at 2:51 pm | #

              There is nothing wrong with defending Joyce’s current reactions since its only the day after Becky’s reveal in the story timeline. It’s completely in character for her to be uncomfortable right now, but Becky has no obligation to temper how/when she comes out to people because of how Joyce feels.
              Coming out is deeply personal and unless your outed, you come out when you are ready not when someone else can deal with it.

              If the two of them were in a mutual relationship and both closeted then Becky would have a reason to take Joyce’s feeling into account but that’s not the case here.

              • No Name
                No Name
                January 7, 2015 at 5:37 pm | #

                I’m pretty sure St Clair was being devastatingly sarcastic in response to Adam Black.

                • Turbanous
                  Turbanous
                  January 7, 2015 at 7:04 pm | #

                  I’m not sure if there’s sarcasm or not so my goal was diffusion and to supply what I know from both my personal experience of coming out and talking to other out and closeted individuals.

            • Fit-to-freak
              Fit-to-freak
              January 7, 2015 at 7:58 pm | #

              Can you not jump all over someone because they don’t want to automatically make excuses for Joyce’s homophobia? Like its really grossing me out that people are literally bending over backwards to justify Joyce’s behavior here. Yes, nobody’s perfect, yes Joyce is learning, yes she is trying to an extent- But she’s also being super homophobic and we are allowed to not like that. we are allowed to judge her for that. I won’t hold it against her once she improves, but no, I’m not going to go easy on her when she’s being asshole.

    • SUGauthor
      SUGauthor
      January 7, 2015 at 12:24 am | #

      Keep in mind this all just happened last night and it goes against everything she was taught to believe. Cognitive dissonance doesn’t get solved that easily.

      • Ed
        Ed
        January 7, 2015 at 12:55 am | #

        Yeah, it’d be pretty unrealistic if Joyce was suddenly all “Hey let’s go march in a gay pride parade!” over the span of less than a day.

        • Em
          Em
          January 7, 2015 at 4:27 pm | #

          I’m not expecting Joyce to suddenly be wearing rainbow shirts with “Some people are gay, get over it” written on it. I’m not expecting her to be 100% over her previous feelings. What I am expecting is for her to make an attempt to be supportive of her friend, even if it just means holding her tongue. Attempting to make it seem as thought Becky is lying about her sexuality as a joke isn’t supportive. It’s rude, and uncalled for.

    • timemonkey
      timemonkey
      January 7, 2015 at 6:32 am | #

      Why wouldn’t she? Nothing she’s ever experienced indicates that homosexuality is a good thing. |She’s been raised to believe it’s sin that ruins your life and sends you to Hell, Ethan’s fed into these notions with his own idiocy and even Becky’s story basically boils down to ‘my hideous secret got out and now I’m alone and unloved’. Of course Joyce is going to assume Becky should stay closeted and pretend to be straight, she doesn’t know any better and given her own crippling fear of sexuality she couldn’t imagine herself being out and proud.

  18. Nono
    Nono
    January 7, 2015 at 12:04 am | #

    Wait, Mike actually referred to Joyce by name?

    • Luzahn
      Luzahn
      January 7, 2015 at 12:08 am | #

      He’s sensed easy prey.

    • JessWitt
      JessWitt
      January 7, 2015 at 12:10 am | #

      Things got serious.

    • Carriethedragon
      Carriethedragon
      January 7, 2015 at 12:16 am | #

      Is that unusual? Am I forgetting something?

      • Nono
        Nono
        January 7, 2015 at 12:21 am | #

        It’s not specifically established, but Mike rarely refers to anyone by their actual name, even in the old universe, usually opting for derogatory terms. Offhand I can only think of Amber, Jacob, Billie, and maybe Ethan and Galasso, across both universes.

    • StClair
      StClair
      January 7, 2015 at 5:47 am | #

      It knows her name.

  19. arank11
    arank11
    January 7, 2015 at 12:05 am | #

    The hovertext sounds like something Daisy would think about Amazi-Girl

    • Julez
      Julez
      January 7, 2015 at 7:32 am | #

      All I can think of with that hovertext is Jesus Christ: Vampire Hunter. “We’re almost out of skin. I suggest we harvest another lesbian!”

      • No Name
        No Name
        January 7, 2015 at 5:38 pm | #

        That’s a thing? Please tell me that’s not a thing.

  20. otusasio451
    otusasio451
    January 7, 2015 at 12:05 am | #

    A this rate, Joyce is eventually gonna backtrack off a cliff.

  21. ozaline
    ozaline
    January 7, 2015 at 12:05 am | #

    Oh Joyce let Becky do as she wants it’s her life.

    “that’s the idea!” You rock Becky, wish I could be more like you.

    • Gigafreak
      Gigafreak
      January 7, 2015 at 12:09 am | #

      Joyce: “OH, WHY DON’T YOU JUST TELL EVERYBODY!?”
      Becky: “Exactly what you just said but without sarcasm!”

      • David M Willis
        David M Willis
        January 7, 2015 at 12:25 am | #

        +1

      • Cheryl
        Cheryl
        January 7, 2015 at 12:29 am | #

        lmao

      • Opus the Poet
        Opus the Poet
        January 7, 2015 at 12:29 am | #

        I like you, you have something…

        • Opus the Poet
          Opus the Poet
          January 7, 2015 at 12:30 am | #

          And with any luck it isn’t communicable.

      • Beachfox
        Beachfox
        January 7, 2015 at 2:20 am | #

        Beautiful.

      • OpticianOfUrza
        OpticianOfUrza
        January 7, 2015 at 3:10 am | #

        I knew someone was going to have said this already. Bravo.

      • Kamino Neko
        Kamino Neko
        January 7, 2015 at 3:40 am | #

        Niiiiiiiiiiice.

      • Chris
        Chris
        January 7, 2015 at 5:02 am | #

        +1 more

      • StClair
        StClair
        January 7, 2015 at 5:47 am | #

        Nice.

  22. Kk
    Kk
    January 7, 2015 at 12:06 am | #

    Yup. Saw that coming.

  23. Boomwolf
    Boomwolf
    January 7, 2015 at 12:06 am | #

    I can’t tell if this is going up or down hill, so for now I’ll say it’s going over very rocky terrain and leave it at that.

    • Megatron
      Megatron
      January 7, 2015 at 12:14 am | #

      I think that the title, Dumbing of Age strongly suggests that it’s going both up and down simultaneously. Also, the fleshling author has a history of rapid fire ups and downs.

      • Gigafreak
        Gigafreak
        January 7, 2015 at 9:28 am | #

        Definitely up and down simultaneously. This story is a friggin’ Escher print.

  24. Just Here
    Just Here
    January 7, 2015 at 12:07 am | #

    And no fuck is given in Beckyland. Or maybe that’s the problem.

  25. Spencer
    Spencer
    January 7, 2015 at 12:07 am | #

    Goddamn it, Joyce.

  26. Sageress
    Sageress
    January 7, 2015 at 12:08 am | #

    Becky is a goddess

    • Opus the Poet
      Opus the Poet
      January 7, 2015 at 2:17 am | #

      Maybe she knows Aphrodite.

      • No Name
        No Name
        January 7, 2015 at 1:57 pm | #

        How so?

        • Reltzik
          Reltzik
          January 7, 2015 at 4:57 pm | #

          Yeah, what do you mean when you say the word “know”? Be explicit.

  27. JohnnyO
    JohnnyO
    January 7, 2015 at 12:09 am | #

    This is one of those situations where Mike’s assholeness is going to maybe do good.

    • Catullus
      Catullus
      January 7, 2015 at 12:12 am | #

      Ultimately it probably will, but I’m nervous about the part that comes in between.

    • Hollister Dixon
      Hollister Dixon
      January 7, 2015 at 12:12 am | #

      Agreed. Though I worry it may cause Joyce to try harder to cling to her old beliefs.

      • Kryss LaBryn
        Kryss LaBryn
        January 7, 2015 at 2:05 am | #

        True, but getting mad about it is probably a better place for her to be than trying to grin and pretend it isn’t happening again.

        Harder to lie to yourself when you’re angry. I imagine particularly so if you’ve got Mike there bringing into the light everything you’re trying to hide away.

        I like Mike. He won’t let her get away with any bullshit.

        • gwalla
          gwalla
          January 7, 2015 at 2:47 pm | #

          “Harder to lie to yourself when you’re angry.” Whoa, not in my experience.

  28. Plasma Mongoose
    Plasma Mongoose
    January 7, 2015 at 12:09 am | #

    Becky: “HI, I’M A LESBIAN!”
    Leslie: “HI. I’m Leslie Bean”

    • Kk
      Kk
      January 7, 2015 at 12:10 am | #

      “I’m also a lesbian. Pretty convinient, huh?”

      • Plasma Mongoose
        Plasma Mongoose
        January 7, 2015 at 12:17 am | #

        “Very much so, oddly enough my fundamentalist parents never considered the possible ramifications of naming me Leslie Bean”

        • tyersome
          tyersome
          January 7, 2015 at 1:25 am | #

          … well, the rigid thinking associated with fundementedalism is generally only a source of humor (or horror) to outside observers …

          BTW: You’re on fire tonight PM!

          • Plasma Mongoose
            Plasma Mongoose
            January 7, 2015 at 2:40 am | #

            Must be the positive vibes from my grav.

            • tyersome
              tyersome
              January 7, 2015 at 2:57 am | #

              Well, I just hope that tomorrow you aren’t saying “What happened to my good vibrations they were red hair a minute ago?”

              • Plasma Mongoose
                Plasma Mongoose
                January 7, 2015 at 3:20 am | #

                It depends on if I feel the need to change my grav or not.

                • Rorror
                  Rorror
                  January 7, 2015 at 3:53 am | #

                  In my headcanon, you feel the need to change your grav at all times. But there is this arc in your backstory when you attempted to change your grav 24 times per second to create a smooth animation. This did upset the gravatar admins so much that they decided to enforce strict rules on when you, specifically, may change your grav. The points in time you are allowed to do this depend on (including, but not limited to): The alignment of the stars, the number of butterflies in the Bermudatriangle, the tides, the mood of the microflora in the intestines of Linus Torvalds and the exact angle of the tower of Pisa.

                • otusasio451
                  otusasio451
                  January 7, 2015 at 11:40 am | #

                  HOW do you change your Gravatar? I’ve been trying to do that for a while, and it NEVER works.

                • tyersome
                  tyersome
                  January 7, 2015 at 1:38 pm | #

                  Dear Rorror, we are sorry but we must reject your hypothesis as you’ve made an unforgivable series of errors in you calculations … you totally neglected the all important contributions from the fluctuations in the solar wind and estrus cycles in the Herpestidae.

                • Plasma Mongoose
                  Plasma Mongoose
                  January 7, 2015 at 9:28 pm | #

                  otusasio451: First thing first, do you have a Gravatar account?

                • Rorror
                  Rorror
                  January 7, 2015 at 10:06 pm | #

                  tyersome: I explicitly stated “not limited to”. In related news, I see what you did there, approve of it and am a little embarrassed I didn’t do it myself.

                  Plasma Mongoose, otusasio451: The important thing is rather: A Gravatar account you can actually access. I somehow lost my password and had to make a new one. This is why I’ve commented on this very comic with two different gravs.

                • otusasio451
                  otusasio451
                  January 7, 2015 at 11:22 pm | #

                  Yup, I do. But it’s not linked up to the comment section here for some reason.

                • otusasio451
                  otusasio451
                  January 7, 2015 at 11:37 pm | #

                  Heh. I got it. Ha. Finally! HaHA! HAHAHAHAA! AAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHHAHAHAAAAAA!!!!

        • StClair
          StClair
          January 7, 2015 at 5:48 am | #

          see also, a rather improbable number of parents in and around Gotham City.

  29. newllend
    newllend
    January 7, 2015 at 12:09 am | #

    In a way you she sorta did

  30. dailybrad
    dailybrad
    January 7, 2015 at 12:10 am | #

    Joyce, don’t backslide now.

    • tinfoil theory
      tinfoil theory
      January 7, 2015 at 1:06 am | #

      No worries. Shoving people in glass closets is just something she does.

  31. Hollister Dixon
    Hollister Dixon
    January 7, 2015 at 12:10 am | #

    Have I mentioned recently how much I love Becky? Because I do. Iove her personality, I love her constant big giant grin, I love her effortless pushing of Joyce’s boundaries that need to be pushed. She’s an unbeatable character.

  32. Swoop
    Swoop
    January 7, 2015 at 12:11 am | #

    She looks like she’s having a lot of fun. I wish I was having that much fun.

  33. Yotomoe
    Yotomoe
    January 7, 2015 at 12:11 am | #

    Panel 2 is actually a panel from Willis’ next slipshine.

    • Bagge
      Bagge
      January 7, 2015 at 12:30 am | #

      If Willis makes a Becky slipshine their whole website will crash from the weight of all the money people will throw at them.

  34. JessWitt
    JessWitt
    January 7, 2015 at 12:11 am | #

    Becky’s going to drive Joyce into an accidental swear word, is she?

    • Swoop
      Swoop
      January 7, 2015 at 12:24 am | #

      Joyce is going to snap and swear eventually, but that won’t be happening anytime soon. I don’t think Joyce can get angry enough to swear at her best friend

      • JessWitt
        JessWitt
        January 7, 2015 at 12:31 am | #

        The swear word need not be directed AT Becky, per se.

        • Swoop
          Swoop
          January 7, 2015 at 12:40 am | #

          So, Becky gets her riled up, and someone else tips her over the edge? Something like that?

          • ninja_jesus
            ninja_jesus
            January 7, 2015 at 1:57 am | #

            I’m putting my bets on Mary to be that person.

  35. liahansen
    liahansen
    January 7, 2015 at 12:12 am | #

    GIVE ME YOUR SKIN, GIRL

    • tyersome
      tyersome
      January 7, 2015 at 1:27 am | #

      … I though it was Joyce who was suspected of that level of creepiness?

  36. Idon'tcarenomore
    Idon'tcarenomore
    January 7, 2015 at 12:13 am | #

    Welp. So much for Joyce being honest with whatever decision she decides to make.
    Love Mike with a purple passion: he does as stated above,dive right smack onto the point that will make his target face up to their stupidity, or whatever, and stir up a storm because of it. Brutely honest if nothing else.
    Get ready to make another big step growing up and out or…Joyce you got some explaining to do to Becky when she comes down off her ‘I’m a lesbian high’.

    • ninja_jesus
      ninja_jesus
      January 7, 2015 at 1:13 am | #

      Is that kind of like Nic Cage’s “I’m a vampire” high?

    • tyersome
      tyersome
      January 7, 2015 at 1:52 am | #

      I first read that as “I’m at lesbian high” and though, ‘This isn’t high school’ … but now …

      Lesbian High: Cherry-leaders
      Staring Becky Macintyre: as the most Cheery-learer and leading lesbian

  37. Bluesnake462
    Bluesnake462
    January 7, 2015 at 12:14 am | #

    I was rang. Mike’s the one who will never let her live this down.

  38. Reflex76
    Reflex76
    January 7, 2015 at 12:14 am | #

    Becky is reminding me of Benny from The Lego Movie, only instead of “Spaceship!” she says “Lesbian!”

  39. ninja_jesus
    ninja_jesus
    January 7, 2015 at 12:15 am | #

    I love Becky, but the real action is between Mike and Joyce. Mike, with his asshole fu, recalls the time Joyce stated she was clearly against homosexuality. Joyce must now confront herself and reflect upon her previous words to see whether or not they hold any weight now that she knows her best friend is a lesbian.

    • Luzahn
      Luzahn
      January 7, 2015 at 12:18 am | #

      I really hope this will be another Mike building character through cruelty and self-reflection thing. Otherwise I’ll have to stop liking that guy.

      • ninja_jesus
        ninja_jesus
        January 7, 2015 at 12:19 am | #

        You don’t have to like him to respect that his assholery functions as a way for characters to reflect upon themselves.

        • Kelly
          Kelly
          January 7, 2015 at 1:26 am | #

          exactly

      • Stgerlachus
        Stgerlachus
        January 7, 2015 at 12:20 am | #

        Well considering he’s totally leaving Becky alone and going right after Joyce I’m pretty sure he’s doing it for a reason. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t enjoy it or isn’t an asshole though.

        • Clif
          Clif
          January 7, 2015 at 11:07 pm | #

          Win. Win.

        • Clif
          Clif
          January 8, 2015 at 12:21 am | #

          More than any other character, my emotional reaction to Mike is colored by other-universe Mike. But if we look at Mike strickly in the DOA universe he hasn’t actually been Mike-ishly awsome up to this point. Punching Joe isn’t up to Mike-ish standards and the whole pajama pants thing was actually something of a misfire and the perminant ding-dong marker was a lucky accident.. The exchange with Amazigirl showed promise but did little more than make her temporarily uncomfortable.

          And this is something that makes complete sense to me. Like the rest of the characters, we have a younger, dumber, less experienced version of Mike. The asshole part comes naturally, but the development of the inspired mental judo that let’s him so brilliantly make people hurt themselves emotionally for his enjoyment AND their own good, still lies in the future. This incident with Joyce is the first time we see Mike potentually operating in full blown Mike mode, although admitedly, Joyce at this juncture is something like shooting fish in a barrel. But you start small. All in all, I am looking forward to watching Mike’s unique artistic development in this Universe almost as much as I’m lookkng forward to watching this Univerce’s Jacob’s discovery of his suseptibility to sexual addiction.

      • Portmanteaust
        Portmanteaust
        January 7, 2015 at 12:53 am | #

        I think Mike is just trying to find the fastest way to cause the most human suffering – Joyce is the most efficient option here.

      • Turbanous
        Turbanous
        January 7, 2015 at 6:50 am | #

        I am fully on board with Mike being the agent of change that Joyce needs because he won’t back down on her as easily as Sarah would.

    • John
      John
      January 7, 2015 at 12:29 am | #

      And when she tries to lie about it, he brings up that she also said she hated lying. This is why I like the guy, despite him being a complete flaming asshole.

      I want Mary to get Miked.

      • ninja_jesus
        ninja_jesus
        January 7, 2015 at 12:56 am | #

        If nothing else, at least he’s consistent.

      • Kryss LaBryn
        Kryss LaBryn
        January 7, 2015 at 2:07 am | #

        Oh dear god yes that would be GLORIOUS.

        Mike is awesome.

      • Campor
        Campor
        January 7, 2015 at 7:05 am | #

        You know, I actually totally missed that aspect. I thought it was just an off-hand comment for comparison. That makes this page so much better.

    • M-M
      M-M
      January 7, 2015 at 12:31 am | #

      And in case anyone wants a reference: http://www.dumbingofage.com/2012/comic/book-2/06-strange-beerfellows/sin/

  40. chris73
    chris73
    January 7, 2015 at 12:19 am | #

    Just when I was starting to like Joyce she goes and does this…

  41. Timni
    Timni
    January 7, 2015 at 12:20 am | #

    I AM TOTALLY FOR BECKY’S CURRENT APPROACH!

  42. juan
    juan
    January 7, 2015 at 12:20 am | #

    ruth later punches becky while saying no my girl mine then becky kisses her

  43. FuryOfFirestorm
    FuryOfFirestorm
    January 7, 2015 at 12:24 am | #

    …and a lesbian met a lesbian walking through the rye…I mean, college campus…

  44. Plasma Mongoose
    Plasma Mongoose
    January 7, 2015 at 12:33 am | #

    Are any of the redheaded DoA characters straight??

    • caesaria82
      caesaria82
      January 7, 2015 at 12:36 am | #

      Howard? (is that Ruth’s brother’s name is, it’s been so long since we saw him, my brain is failing me). But he might just be Game of Thrones-sexual.

      • Leonou
        Leonou
        January 7, 2015 at 5:03 am | #

        There’s also Penny, whose only known relationship was with Jason.
        But she has only appeared in like 4 or 5 strips so far, so it’s hard to tell.

    • Swoop
      Swoop
      January 7, 2015 at 12:37 am | #

      I think Howard Is straight.

      • Plasma Mongoose
        Plasma Mongoose
        January 7, 2015 at 12:39 am | #

        Thanks, he was easy to forget.

    • John
      John
      January 7, 2015 at 1:32 pm | #

      Rose has only appeared in one panel in this universe, so it’s hard to tell for sure. But in the other universe, she dated a guy. On the other hand, she worked at McAwesome’s, so by the Walky Theorem, she’s a McLesbian. I therefore conclude that she’s bi.

      • Paul
        Paul
        January 7, 2015 at 3:47 pm | #

        Please elaborate–Rose was dating a male cow orker at McAwesome’s. So far as I can tell, McAwesome’s employees had the same orientation as their evil twins at Galasso’s, which would be Amber in this case. What is the Walky Theorem?

        • Em
          Em
          January 7, 2015 at 4:29 pm | #

          I read this as male cow at first glance.

          • Paul
            Paul
            January 7, 2015 at 5:51 pm | #

            It’s an old internet cliche; back in the days of usenet someone wrote something about one of their coworkers and people began making jokes like “why would anyone want to ork a cow?”. So, whenever I have occasion to use the word coworker, I insert and unnecessary space between the “w” and the “o”.

        • John
          John
          January 7, 2015 at 6:25 pm | #

          It was a joke off Walky’s first-panel allegation that Becky is awesome because she’s a lesbian. Rose worked at McAwesome’s, therefore…

          Hmm. If McAwesome’s employees have the same orientation as their evil counterparts at Shortpacked!, and Dumbiverse characters have the same orientation as their Walkyverse counterparts, that’d imply that Agatha is “generally kinda undefinably queer”. I wouldn’t have guessed it.

          • Paul
            Paul
            January 7, 2015 at 9:22 pm | #

            Huh. The correspondence between the orientation of characters in the Walkyverse and the Dumbiverse is Word Of God, while the correspondence between the orientation of McAwesome’s employees and Galasso’s employees is just an observation of mine. Walkypedia makes no mention of Agatha’s orientation, but says that in the Walkyverse she is the counterpart of Robin. In Shortpacked, Robin is “straight with an exception”, a rather major exception as it turned out. Make of that what you will.

  45. Bagge
    Bagge
    January 7, 2015 at 12:35 am | #

    “Just a heads up, Joyce, I’m not going to stay hidden. I’m going to tell everyone that I’m a lesbian.”
    “What, but, bluh…”
    “It’s OK, take a few minutes to wrap your head around it. I’m not going to change my mind but I don’t want to spring it on you.”
    “Well… OK, but could you at least not start with Mike within earshot? He always finds a way to get under my skin and this is all new to me.”

    I just want to point out that Becky didn’t give Joyce the above heads up, so I think we can forgive her not to react perfectly saintly.

    • Fit-to-freak
      Fit-to-freak
      January 7, 2015 at 12:48 am | #

      Ehh….yeah but maybe if she didnt go around saying homophobic stuff this wouldn’t be such a problem. Not that she’s not learning, I’m just saying I’m not gonna give her a thumbs up for this one. She’ll get better.

    • ninja_jesus
      ninja_jesus
      January 7, 2015 at 1:12 am | #

      As far as Becky knows, Joyce fully supports her. She doesn’t know how much of a hypocrite Joyce is being.

      • Kelly
        Kelly
        January 7, 2015 at 1:21 am | #

        Changing your mind isn’t the same as being hypocritical. That said she did do it in a matter of seconds just last night (there was some movement before, but that was the actual switch), so she is still trying to adjust. But she isn’t a hypocrite.

        • ninja_jesus
          ninja_jesus
          January 7, 2015 at 1:54 am | #

          But she hasn’t yet changed her mind, she’s still in the conflict phase. That’s why she had to look up biblical translations; she needed to find a loophole to fit her own worldview.

          • JWLM
            JWLM
            January 7, 2015 at 10:57 pm | #

            I’m going to give Joyce half marks here — she did accept Becky, but then she did something which she herself acknowledges to be hypocritical: she looked up concordances to try to justify her response. Had her thinking been “The Bible appears to be wrong here, so I should go look and see why it isn’t,” then I’d have given her full marks. Unfortunately, during her discussion with Sarah, she admitted that her thoughts didn’t run that way.

      • Loki
        Loki
        January 7, 2015 at 4:48 am | #

        Hell, she has been repeatedly stated to have been Joyce’s best friend. (By now I am beginning to suspect she was her only friend, by the way.) Do you think they are so sheltered the topic of Joyce’s views on homosexuality never came up?

        • JWLM
          JWLM
          January 7, 2015 at 11:03 pm | #

          I don’t think Becky was Joyce’s only friend. Joyce is an incredibly friend-becoming person: the only two people who don’t like her are Ruth and Mary. As far as anyone on the floor seems to realize, Ruth hates everyone in-story. We know better — she cares about Dorothy when breaking up with Danny, she cares about Amber, she knows about and is protective of Carla…but nobody else seems to realize that. (And notice that I didn’t mention her love affair with Billie. Nobody except Mary should recognize that yet.) Mary? Well, Mary is a hateful hypocrite who doesn’t dislike anyone as much as she loathes them.

          Everybody else *likes* Joyce.

    • Em
      Em
      January 7, 2015 at 4:31 pm | #

      Why does Joyce need a heads up? Joyce told Becky to do some “window shopping” in the showers. Joyce told Becky that she didn’t think that what Becky did was a mistake. It’s safe to assume that Becky thought that Joyce would laugh about this, and not care.

      • Bagge
        Bagge
        January 7, 2015 at 6:38 pm | #

        I believe Becky knows Joyce well enough to know exactly what reaction she would get. I think Becky just wanted to keep running her and Walky’s joke from yesterday of making Joyce uncomfortable.

        The problem is that Joyce didn’t think it was particularly funny then, and with the whole soul wrenching drama from yesterday – and Mike (the one thing Becky wasn’t able to foresee) – it’s even less funny now.

        But if Becky wants to she can definitely turn her coming out into an ill-thought out joke at Joyce’s expense. My point was more directed to the comments that condemns Joyce for her reaction.

  46. zebrathinker
    zebrathinker
    January 7, 2015 at 12:35 am | #

    Becky is putting the closet door through a woodchipper right now!

    • a4lbi
      a4lbi
      January 7, 2015 at 12:51 am | #

      I tried to “like” this comment. As in, search for the “like” thing to clicky.

  47. caesaria82
    caesaria82
    January 7, 2015 at 12:38 am | #

    Amazzing. I love Becky so much. I also really enjoy seeing Joyce squirm about this, idek. Not to be mean or anything, but she’s said some awful stuff and it’s nice seeing her get called on it.

    • Kryss LaBryn
      Kryss LaBryn
      January 7, 2015 at 2:10 am | #

      Mike: Calling people on their hypocrisy since…When did he first show up? Around then.

      Mike is awesome.

  48. Tomas
    Tomas
    January 7, 2015 at 12:55 am | #

    It’s amazing how well this works as a companion piece for today’s Shortpacked.

  49. ninja_jesus
    ninja_jesus
    January 7, 2015 at 12:59 am | #

    Also, compare and contrast to Ethan. Ethan, take some notes because she knows she’s no different as a lesbian person.

    • tinfoil theory
      tinfoil theory
      January 7, 2015 at 1:16 am | #

      I doubt Ethan thinks his sexuality changes him as a person, but rather doesn’t want people to define him by it.
      Becky seems to define herself by it.

      • ninja_jesus
        ninja_jesus
        January 7, 2015 at 1:52 am | #

        If Ethan didn’t want people to define him by his sexuality, wouldn’t that imply that his sexuality does change him in the sense of how people perceive him? And I think that, in Ethan’s mind, him being gay did change him into something negative and “sinful”, and he still has insecurities about that.

        • tinfoil theory
          tinfoil theory
          January 8, 2015 at 6:13 am | #

          You have a point there.
          Maybe not sinful, but, dude, gay.

  50. Kensou
    Kensou
    January 7, 2015 at 1:01 am | #

    Things can only get better. (Okay, yeah, they can get worse, but let me have this for a while.)

  51. David D. Davidson
    David D. Davidson
    January 7, 2015 at 1:11 am | #

    I don’t even think Mike was prepared for this one. Did you see that expression in the last panel of the previous comic?

    As a side note, I can’t tell who’s being harder on Joyce at the moment-Mike, or Becky. You KNOW this is intentional.

    • Shawn L.
      Shawn L.
      January 7, 2015 at 10:06 am | #

      Intentional? I think the problem is that Becky isn’t really putting much thought into ANYTHING. All action without forethought.

      Ultimately, I think Joyce is in a no-win scenario. Fortunately, Joyce has a roommate who’s been through the no good choices wringer, in Sarah. Unfortunately, she’s currently in the presence of Mike, who has just gotten over the initial surprise and is… well… being Mike.

  52. Steven
    Steven
    January 7, 2015 at 1:22 am | #

    Count down to Joyce meltdown commencing.

    We are at tearful Becky alert 5.

    • otusasio451
      otusasio451
      January 7, 2015 at 1:47 am | #

      CODE DRAMA, CODE DRAMA!!! WE HAVE A CODE DRAMA!!

      BATTLE STATIONS!

    • Em
      Em
      January 7, 2015 at 4:33 pm | #

      Yep, Joyce is going to have a meltdown, and Becky is going to run away crying saying something like “I thought you didn’t CARE! I thought you were okay with me being ME!”

  53. blegh
    blegh
    January 7, 2015 at 1:52 am | #

    personally i think becky is extremely annoying, but also equally relatable

  54. GlaceEx
    GlaceEx
    January 7, 2015 at 2:03 am | #

    So I guess Becky is gonna be a series regular now? I hope so! And if so they keep her being awesome! I hate it when shows and comics ruin your favorite characters somehow…

  55. acher4
    acher4
    January 7, 2015 at 2:30 am | #

    Amazing Becky becomes amazinger! 😀

  56. nothri
    nothri
    January 7, 2015 at 2:32 am | #

    Becky won’t be satisfied until she jumps upon the back of a big gay pony and gallops through the land to scream before every door “I’m a lesbian!”.

    • Plasma Mongoose
      Plasma Mongoose
      January 7, 2015 at 2:42 am | #

      Rainbow Dash would be the perfect pony considering her colour scheme.

      • nothri
        nothri
        January 7, 2015 at 2:51 am | #

        Well, that and she’s freaking awesome.

      • Reaver
        Reaver
        January 7, 2015 at 4:48 am | #

        Could we not do the whole “Rainbow Dash is totally a lesbian” Thing? We get it, her mane is rainbow, I love Lesbians, I love the gay ladies, that’s awesome, but the whole “Rainbow Dash is a Lesbian despite no evidence/souly cause of the rainbow mane” Thing is so old DX

        But yes she is in fact best pony =P

        • Paul
          Paul
          January 7, 2015 at 7:59 am | #

          I have not been watching the show, but I thought that male ponies did not exist. That would mean that if My Little Ponies are to be ‘shipped at all, lesbian is the only option.

          • Kamino Neko
            Kamino Neko
            January 7, 2015 at 8:17 am | #

            There’s plenty of male ponies. Big Mac, Shining Armor, Mr Cake, Snips and Snails are the most regular appearances.

            • Reaver
              Reaver
              January 7, 2015 at 10:50 pm | #

              That and we’ve seen Rainbow eye Soarin Frequently 😛

        • gwalla
          gwalla
          January 7, 2015 at 7:06 pm | #

          There’s also the annoying “tomboy = lesbian” aspect to it.

          • Reaver
            Reaver
            January 7, 2015 at 10:49 pm | #

            Which tells little girls “If you aren’t feminine you’re a les-bi-an!”

            There is nothing wrong with being a feminine lesbian, nor is there anything wrong with being a straight tomboy 😛

            The whole “You act like x so your sexuality is Y” is sooooOoOOO dumb

  57. whatintheliteralfuck
    whatintheliteralfuck
    January 7, 2015 at 3:02 am | #

    That hovertext sounds just a slight bit psychotic to me.

    • Paul
      Paul
      January 7, 2015 at 8:01 am | #

      No, it’s “give me all you skin temporarily, you know, to kiss and lick and stuff”.

    • Halloween Jack
      Halloween Jack
      January 7, 2015 at 11:38 am | #

      IT RUBS THE LOTION ON ITS SKIN

  58. notlegato
    notlegato
    January 7, 2015 at 3:39 am | #

    haha, to joyce, must feel something like an effort to smoke her out with her beliefs.

  59. Kamino Neko
    Kamino Neko
    January 7, 2015 at 4:40 am | #

    Becky…Becky, no. Do not skin Billie and wear her as a suit. Nothing good will come of it.

    • Bagge
      Bagge
      January 7, 2015 at 11:39 am | #

      She could crawl into it and keep warm forever… NO, BAD!

      • John
        John
        January 7, 2015 at 1:36 pm | #

        She doesn’t have to take it off in order to get into her.

  60. Lordess of Madness
    Lordess of Madness
    January 7, 2015 at 5:14 am | #

    Mean while in Billie’s mind…. Oh shit! They’re onto me!

  61. Shaows
    Shaows
    January 7, 2015 at 5:42 am | #

    “Hey Billie, I’m a Lesbian! High Five!”

    It was at that point my eyes immediately moved to the SlipShine link image on the left side of the page.

  62. Shadow12000
    Shadow12000
    January 7, 2015 at 6:06 am | #

    Becky must have heard the word “lesbian” the first time and came running like Sanic, look at that skid stop!

  63. Vree
    Vree
    January 7, 2015 at 6:34 am | #

    Lesbian is the new black.

    • Plasma Mongoose
      Plasma Mongoose
      January 7, 2015 at 9:23 pm | #

      Gay is the new Straight.

  64. Spork
    Spork
    January 7, 2015 at 7:17 am | #

    I have a feeling Daisy and Becky are going to get along just fine.

  65. Paul
    Paul
    January 7, 2015 at 8:02 am | #

    Is Mike referencing a conversation that took place in the girl’s dorm with only girls present?

    • Kamino Neko
      Kamino Neko
      January 7, 2015 at 8:42 am | #

      No, Mike is referencing a conversation she had with Mike and Ethan.

      Originally used to mess with Ethan, now re-purposed to mess with Joyce.

      • John
        John
        January 7, 2015 at 1:37 pm | #

        Mike is very efficient at stoning birds.

  66. Dani Kelley
    Dani Kelley
    January 7, 2015 at 8:03 am | #

    I think I can say with some amount of confidence that Mike easily makes my top five least favorite characters, accompanied by the likes of Amber’s dad, Becky’s dad, and Mary. Unsure of who the other would be.

    • Nono
      Nono
      January 7, 2015 at 8:06 am | #

      Joyce’s parents, Ethan’s mom, or Walky and Sal’s mom?

      • sheikh mabuti
        sheikh mabuti
        January 7, 2015 at 8:34 am | #

        Let’s not forget Ryan (date-rape guy). Joyce’s mother more than her father: he was willing to listen to her and accept her faith-based “reasoning” as evidence of Joyce’s growing up. Malaya maybe. But definitely Ryan.

    • Trolldrool
      Trolldrool
      January 7, 2015 at 8:41 am | #

      Mike is one of the most ethical character on the campus in my honest opinion. He just has a very spiteful, meanspirited, literally punching and stomping, headache inducing way of expressing it. So yeah, he’s incredibly dislikable.

      • sheikh mabuti
        sheikh mabuti
        January 7, 2015 at 9:11 am | #

        I can only think of one occasion when Mike literally punched anyone—when he chaperoned Joe’s date with Joyce. When did he ever stomp anyone? Mike’s blows are mostly verbal.

        • Trolldrool
          Trolldrool
          January 7, 2015 at 8:58 pm | #

          Huh, I must be remembering wrong. Or I thought he encouraged others to stomp on people. Anyway, thanks for the reminder.

  67. Mustachio
    Mustachio
    January 7, 2015 at 9:26 am | #

    I love Billie’s boots.

  68. Arianod
    Arianod
    January 7, 2015 at 9:47 am | #

    Joyce and her baby steps at coping with reality. Adorable even when she’s being annonying ^^

  69. Arianod
    Arianod
    January 7, 2015 at 9:49 am | #

    On a related note, I really expected Mike to be much more of a dick about this. So far, he’s being really easy on her 😀

    • jadedcynic
      jadedcynic
      January 7, 2015 at 4:33 pm | #

      To be fair, it seems that Mike limits himself to bring up the thing that a person most NEEDS to hear…and least WANTS to hear; not just gratuitous meanness but the truly irritating “I hate that guy even more because he’s RIGHT, too” 😉

  70. Amy B
    Amy B
    January 7, 2015 at 9:55 am | #

    FAAAAAACCCCEEE! There, I said it.

  71. Perry
    Perry
    January 7, 2015 at 10:27 am | #

    I especially love how Joyce’s head is drawn too close to Mike, or occluded by the panel edge, creating a sense that her cognitive dissonance is closing in on her. I almost feel sorry for her, when she was working so hard just one strip ago to create a tiny little breathing space to accommodate Becky’s sexuality into her comfortable but narrow worldview.
    Of course, it’s Billie I really feel for. Joyce’s claustrophobic panels also resulted in Billie’s reaction to this potentially dangerous development (assuming Ruth’s happiness and her own depend on keeping their relationship secret) remaining tantalizingly off-panel.

  72. Regalli
    Regalli
    January 7, 2015 at 10:40 am | #

    Joyce is experiencing a cognitive dissonance implosion and must reboot.

    Becky is just relieved that YEP, SHE CAN SAY IT NOW.

  73. Paul
    Paul
    January 7, 2015 at 10:43 am | #

    OMG I just had a revelation. We know that Joyce/Ethan isn’t going anywhere, and Walky appears to be spoken for in this universe. Joyce is going to end up with Mike.

    • Kabo
      Kabo
      January 7, 2015 at 12:48 pm | #

      Or Joe?

      • Deanatay
        Deanatay
        January 7, 2015 at 2:49 pm | #

        Here’s a scary idea. Maybe, she ends up with – NO ONE. And, she’s OK with it.

        DUN DUN DUNNNNN!

        • Paul
          Paul
          January 7, 2015 at 3:38 pm | #

          Joyce can’t take a shower without visions of male torsos dancing in her head. I doubt she would really be OK with “no one”, and commitmentless recreational sex probably isn’t compatible with her personality either, even if she managed to completely shed all traces of religion.

        • Kabo
          Kabo
          January 7, 2015 at 5:40 pm | #

          That is not an un-possibility, but as Paul points out, the plot pretty unambiguously points toward “Joyce comes to terms with her sexuality”, so even if she doesn’t get paired away Hollywood-style, I think we would all feel a bit psyched if there were no romantic encounters down the road.

          • Kabo
            Kabo
            January 7, 2015 at 6:20 pm | #

            Hey, why not Jacob? They’re both into serious relationships, as established, and he already seems to have some kinda obsession with her. Plus it could serve the added purpose of forcing Sarah to confront her misanthropic complacency! I’m shippin’ this.

            • Paul
              Paul
              January 7, 2015 at 9:31 pm | #

              I don’t think that Jacob is obsessed with Joyce, it’s just that Joyce was the only topic Sarah seemed to want to talk about: http://www.dumbingofage.com/2014/comic/book-4/04-the-whiteboard-dong-bandit/joycestories/

  74. Benvincible
    Benvincible
    January 7, 2015 at 10:49 am | #

    Is DOA Mike ever going to have any personal growth like in Shortpacked! ?

    • Kabo
      Kabo
      January 7, 2015 at 12:47 pm | #

      Let’s hope not. Let’s keep him encased in amber like the perfect gag character he is, forever and ever.

      • Benvincible
        Benvincible
        January 7, 2015 at 12:59 pm | #

        He’s already encased in Amber in Shortpacked! Heeyooooooooo

        • Speedball
          Speedball
          January 7, 2015 at 2:34 pm | #

          Man, I can’t believe someone got to make that joke.

        • Kabo
          Kabo
          January 7, 2015 at 5:26 pm | #

          God I’m slow.

    • LiaHansen
      LiaHansen
      January 7, 2015 at 10:52 pm | #

      I’m hoping he and Carla get together and mutually disallow one another from developing as characters. CarlaxMalaya and MikexAmber are fine for some webcomics, but CarlaxMike is the perfect war-ship for DoA. Think of all the damage they could do together!

  75. Eric
    Eric
    January 7, 2015 at 1:40 pm | #

    Hee her! Poor Joyce. She’s making progress, but she can’t do a complete 180 on her attitudes over night! Meanwhile Becky is all “My best friend accepts me! Woo! I can tell the world who I am now!”

    😀

  76. Aaron Bourque
    Aaron Bourque
    January 7, 2015 at 2:32 pm | #

    Once the pressure comes off, it’s kind of hard to keep a tamp on it.

  77. Jams
    Jams
    January 7, 2015 at 3:57 pm | #

    Becky was always super impressed with and jealous of Joyce’s school from the very first strip in this whole comic because she always saw it as some wonderful place where you can be free to *be* who you *are*, as opposed to Anderson where she had to keep it a secret – likely an extension of her previous life at home, with her parents. Whenever Joyce was all “I’m not sure if I like it here” Becky was like “What are you kidding your college is the best.” It’s really kind of sad Becky wasn’t given the chance to go there to begin with.

    And now she gets invited into this amazing place, so it’s understandable that the first thing she’d want to do would be come out to everyone. She really thinks she can finally be accepted here.

    • Paul
      Paul
      January 7, 2015 at 4:00 pm | #

      I predict a hard letdown when she finds that Indiana University isn’t that paradisical.

      • Bagge
        Bagge
        January 7, 2015 at 9:55 pm | #

        Of course it is. There is Joyce and cereal and fine wimmin.

  78. shammers
    shammers
    January 7, 2015 at 5:39 pm | #

    i think mike is exactly what joyce needs right now. he is the fan that clears the fog of cognitive dissonance.

    • a4lbi
      a4lbi
      January 7, 2015 at 8:16 pm | #

      Mike: The Necessary Evil

      I’m sure the whole “hero no one deserves” Batman thing has been done already.

      • Plasma Mongoose
        Plasma Mongoose
        January 7, 2015 at 9:15 pm | #

        Sal is the Batman of this comic, Mike is like the Joker but with mutated hair.

  79. Tenn
    Tenn
    January 7, 2015 at 6:39 pm | #

    Walky: “Man, good thing I didn’t break up with Dorothy last night!”

    • Bagge
      Bagge
      January 7, 2015 at 9:53 pm | #

      “I mean, just imagine if I had been Danny or something. Who knows what kind of humiliating hijinks I would have fallen into.”

  80. Jess
    Jess
    January 8, 2015 at 10:51 pm | #

    Help, I’m distracted by how completely adorable Walky is in the first panel. Usually Joyce is the distractingly adorable one!

    Becky is also pretty freaking cute here.

    • Jess
      Jess
      January 12, 2015 at 2:12 pm | #

      Hello fellow Jess.

  81. OmegaDez
    OmegaDez
    January 9, 2015 at 2:59 pm | #

    Wait, how did Becky know Billie again?

    And once again, Mike is my favorite character.

  82. DarkVeghetta
    DarkVeghetta
    July 5, 2015 at 4:27 pm | #

    Lesbian high five!

  83. TheGrammarLegionary
    TheGrammarLegionary
    September 6, 2015 at 7:45 am | #

    Something I love about Mike is that while nothing is off-limits to him, he is also decidedly NOT a bigot. He is truly an equal-opportunity asshole.

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