Dumbing of Age Book Twelve

Dumbing of Age

A college webcomic by David Willis
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May 5, 2026

Help

by David M Willis on July 29, 2011 at 12:01 am
  • 06 - Yesterday Was Thursday
└ Tags: jennifer, marcie, sal, walky

Discussion (163) ¬

[ Comments RSS ]
  1. Bunk
    Bunk
    July 29, 2011 at 12:02 am | #

    We all Know Sal’ll just crash through the window anyway…

    • Plasma Mongoose
      Plasma Mongoose
      July 29, 2011 at 12:04 am | #

      Only as long as the windows are made of sugar glass, otherwise she could seriously hurt herself.

      • David Herbert
        David Herbert
        July 29, 2011 at 2:25 am | #

        She’s Sal, nothing can hurt her.

        • Angelicfiend
          Angelicfiend
          July 29, 2011 at 7:48 pm | #

          nothing can hurt sal because she is Amazi-girl

          • Icalasari
            Icalasari
            August 6, 2011 at 10:46 pm | #

            Amazi-girl is immune to criticism, not sharp shards of broken glass

            • dutchguy
              dutchguy
              August 6, 2014 at 2:50 am | #

              Come on Amazi-Girl is clearly Mike, after all what is more insulting for a bunch of jerk jocks then to be beaten up by a girl or for Billie to be rescued by a nerd?

      • 1Samildanach
        1Samildanach
        July 29, 2011 at 2:25 am | #

        That’s what the leather is for ;).

        • Blob Marley
          Blob Marley
          July 29, 2011 at 4:21 am | #

          Spoiler alert: hot girl leather is NOT for crashing through windows. That’s just a side effect.

          • 1Samildanach
            1Samildanach
            July 29, 2011 at 5:58 am | #

            Wrong: Hot leathers are for crashing through windows. Protecting skin in case of a motorcycle crash is just a side effect.

            • Webcomic Addict
              Webcomic Addict
              November 11, 2011 at 5:25 am | #

              ALSO WRONG: Most riding leathers are actually Kevlar these days.

      • QueenThomas
        QueenThomas
        July 29, 2011 at 9:29 am | #

        We actually used a plastic resin for our break away objects! Sugar glass attracted insects to the theater.

    • Bunk
      Bunk
      July 29, 2011 at 12:07 am | #

      Sweet, I got first comment. This is about as good of an achievement as a successful poop.

      • Plasma Mongoose
        Plasma Mongoose
        July 29, 2011 at 12:13 am | #

        It’s more like been able to get to use the bathroom straight after the cleaner before anyone else beats you to it.

      • ryan
        ryan
        July 29, 2011 at 8:19 am | #

        i liken it to a very quick poop. or as i call it, the “stop, drop, and roll”.

      • Henry
        Henry
        July 30, 2011 at 12:18 am | #

        Don’t knock it. That’s a big accomplishment.

  2. Plasma Mongoose
    Plasma Mongoose
    July 29, 2011 at 12:02 am | #

    Is Marcie giving Billie the Japanese Red Eye?

    • Aizat
      Aizat
      July 29, 2011 at 7:42 am | #

      She’s an android? RUN! IT’S THE TERMINATOR!!!!

    • TsunamiJane
      TsunamiJane
      July 29, 2011 at 3:14 pm | #

      No, it’s sign language for DOUBT or SUSPECT.

      • TsunamiJane
        TsunamiJane
        July 29, 2011 at 3:24 pm | #

        OK, I’ve been corrected by Willis: it’s sign language for “We’ll see.” If the fingers were curled I’d have been more on target.

    • Kernanator
      Kernanator
      July 30, 2011 at 1:39 pm | #

      Oh snap, she has pink eye!

      • Aizat
        Aizat
        July 31, 2011 at 7:59 am | #

        Pink eye? Is there a demented nurse somewhere that makes delicious crumbles out of eye crusts?

  3. Mkvenner
    Mkvenner
    July 29, 2011 at 12:04 am | #

    Yay Marcie is on the tag cloud. 🙂

  4. arjay2813
    arjay2813
    July 29, 2011 at 12:05 am | #

    someone’s crazy here, but its not sal. has sal known Marcie before coming to college, or do they have the same classes? i should have asked that when Marcie was introduced but it just occurred to me they seem very familiar with each other

    • gangler
      gangler
      July 29, 2011 at 12:07 am | #

      I assumed she was a friend from Catholic school.

    • Heavensrun
      Heavensrun
      July 29, 2011 at 12:09 am | #

      Oooh, oooh! New ship! New ship! ;p

      • gangler
        gangler
        July 29, 2011 at 12:11 am | #

        All Aboard!

      • Plasma Mongoose
        Plasma Mongoose
        July 29, 2011 at 12:21 am | #

        What will the name of this ship be?

        The USS MarSal?

      • arjay2813
        arjay2813
        July 29, 2011 at 12:21 am | #

        …that wasn’t actually where i was going with this one, but good idea

      • Jackson
        Jackson
        July 29, 2011 at 10:35 am | #

        I could totally get on board for Marcie♦Sal.

        • bramble
          bramble
          July 29, 2011 at 1:20 pm | #

          Oh good, I’m not the only one whose shipping habits have been dramatically altered by reading Homestuck.

          • Jackson
            Jackson
            July 29, 2011 at 1:37 pm | #

            I know, dude[1]. It expands the shipping possibilities fourfold!

            ===========
            FOOTNOTES:
            [1] Perhaps you are not a dude.

            • gangler
              gangler
              July 29, 2011 at 8:29 pm | #

              Anyone can be a dude so long as they’re Rad enough. Free yourself from the confines of gendered language, dude!

              • Ian
                Ian
                July 31, 2011 at 12:42 am | #

                Except for the fact that “dudeness” traditionally implied quite the opposite of “radness”

            • madd
              madd
              July 30, 2011 at 12:34 am | #

              I’ll call anybody dude.

              • Rikushadow5
                Rikushadow5
                July 30, 2011 at 11:05 am | #

                Dude, I call my MOTHER dude. People thought she was my sister for years. It was weird.

                • MacaroniPterodactyl
                  MacaroniPterodactyl
                  July 30, 2011 at 2:46 pm | #

                  Dude…

              • Jackson
                Jackson
                July 31, 2011 at 10:08 pm | #

                “I’m a dude. You’re a dude. She’s a dude. We’re all dudes.” -Less Than Jake, “We’re All Dudes”

    • arjay2813
      arjay2813
      July 31, 2011 at 1:15 am | #

      i just realized, i should have specified by “familiar with each other” i meant Sal walked up to Marcie and 1 knew her name, 2 knew she had smokes, and 3 understood ASL. 1&2 could be explained by having a class/classes together, while American Sign Language is something you learn like any other language, taking time to become familiar with

      • Djw175
        Djw175
        August 1, 2011 at 4:06 am | #

        I know how to say yes, no, and HOLY SHIT THAT bongo IS CRAZY!!! in thirteen languages, doesn’t everyone?

  5. gangler
    gangler
    July 29, 2011 at 12:10 am | #

    Really liking how Sal’s handling this, but I’m also getting that ominous feeling. Like something’s about to go wrong. Sal’s gonna disappear like a Ninja and it’s not gonna be her fault. Like some claw-game claw is gonna come from the sky and scoop her up or something.

    Loving Marcie. Cool as Ice.

    • Mkvenner
      Mkvenner
      July 29, 2011 at 12:13 am | #

      Marcie my new favourite character.

      • Blob Marley
        Blob Marley
        July 29, 2011 at 4:24 am | #

        I like Marcie. She’s as cold as ice. Also,
        DAT.
        ASS.
        I don’t even think we’ve seen it but I know for a fact it’s epic.

        • Mkvenner
          Mkvenner
          July 29, 2011 at 11:57 am | #

          😀 🙂 😀 🙂 😀 🙂 😀 🙂 😀

        • madd
          madd
          July 30, 2011 at 12:35 am | #

          I concur.

  6. Tempo
    Tempo
    July 29, 2011 at 12:10 am | #

    When did Sal become an expert in American Sign Language? Was it a boarding school thing or something she just picked up?

    • Mkvenner
      Mkvenner
      July 29, 2011 at 12:14 am | #

      Might be a bit of both.

    • gangler
      gangler
      July 29, 2011 at 12:29 am | #

      Probably needed to talk to Marcie so she learned.

  7. Ridureyu
    Ridureyu
    July 29, 2011 at 12:13 am | #

    Billie will go back to her room to wait for Sal.

    But Ruth will be there.

    With an icepick.

    • NF
      NF
      July 29, 2011 at 12:23 am | #

      That’s odd, Billie is neither in exile, nor is she a communist.

      • Ridureyu
        Ridureyu
        July 29, 2011 at 12:30 am | #

        She might be a secret communist!

        You know how those reds hide everywhere.

        • madd
          madd
          July 30, 2011 at 12:38 am | #

          I’ve long suspected that my little old Mexican grandmother is really a Russian sleeper sent here during the cold war. How else do you explain living in the U.S. for 30+ years, becoming a naturalized citizen, yet being seemingly unable to speak/understand a word of English? The old lady is highly suspect!

          • Ian
            Ian
            July 31, 2011 at 12:47 am | #

            You sound like another one of those people who have the mistaken belief that the United States of America has an official language.

      • Bryan
        Bryan
        July 30, 2011 at 11:53 pm | #

        You, Sir/Madame, win 5 internets.

  8. ilvos01
    ilvos01
    July 29, 2011 at 12:14 am | #

    Wait, where else has Marcy been?

    • ilvos01
      ilvos01
      July 29, 2011 at 12:15 am | #

      in other comics

      • Brendan
        Brendan
        July 29, 2011 at 12:26 am | #

        Peanuts.

        (Also, IW on squad 48, and Jason leaves Sal for her.)

      • Mkvenner
        Mkvenner
        July 29, 2011 at 12:38 am | #

        Experimenting with Peppermint Paddy. 😉

  9. NF
    NF
    July 29, 2011 at 12:19 am | #

    Quick Billie, plant a tracking bug while Sal is off-guard.

  10. Daeva
    Daeva
    July 29, 2011 at 12:23 am | #

    She can’t be 100% with you on this, Billie. It’s just not something someone can be entirely certain about.

    The need to run off and disappear like some crazy ninja often arises suddenly and unexpectedly like some crazy ninja.

    IT SIMPLY CANNOT BE HELPED.

  11. NCP19
    NCP19
    July 29, 2011 at 12:23 am | #

    Is Marcie’s gesture in the final panel indicative of something? I don’t know sign language…

    • milk experiment
      milk experiment
      July 29, 2011 at 12:54 am | #

      I suspect there may be a bilingual bonus punchline in there for people who know ASL, but sadly I have no idea what it is.

    • Joe
      Joe
      July 29, 2011 at 12:56 am | #

      Looks to me like it’s just her saying “I’ve got my eye on you.”
      Just making sure that Sal doesn’t go Crazy Ninja after class.

    • ryan
      ryan
      July 29, 2011 at 8:25 am | #

      the only sign language i know is the gesture for “lesbian”, which is placing your hand on your chin with the thumb and index finger extended. i don’t know if it matters which hand you do it with, but i prefer the left as it makes a nice “L” shape.

      • echidnae
        echidnae
        July 29, 2011 at 9:21 am | #

        Unfortunately it’s ungrammatical in ASL to make facial signs with your left hand 🙁 I’m sure there are foreign sign languages that will let you, though!

        Sidenote: Good on Willis for including the facial expressions, most people seem to believe that hands are the only thing that determine the meaning of a word in ASL.

        • Kateastrophe
          Kateastrophe
          July 29, 2011 at 5:28 pm | #

          That’s true, but only if you sign right-handed. For lefties, it’s ungrammatical to make facial signs with the right hand. At least, that’s how my leftie ASL professor taught…

      • Kernanator
        Kernanator
        July 30, 2011 at 1:20 pm | #

        …Is there a reason you know that sign?

        • ryan
          ryan
          August 1, 2011 at 9:26 am | #

          my cousin showed that one to me. she took ASL as her foreign language class in high school. i guess that one’s part of the curriculum?

    • echidnae
      echidnae
      July 29, 2011 at 9:25 am | #

      And yeah, that seems not to be ASL so much as “Keep an eye on this psycho” (a universally-recognized gesture :P). I mean, she is making the gesture to Billie, not Sal.

      • David
        David M Willis
        July 29, 2011 at 9:48 am | #

        It is ASL. And that’s not it. (Someone figured it out on this comments page somewhere…)

    • Sagara S.
      Sagara S.
      August 1, 2011 at 8:46 pm | #

      The first panel is Marcie saying “help her/the ‘help’ verb in a direction that correlates with someone other than the signer” and the last panel is roughly “we’ll see/ suuuuuuure” if i see rolling eyes. if Marcie isn’t rolling her eyes, i don’t really know what it says

  12. Plasma Mongoose
    Plasma Mongoose
    July 29, 2011 at 12:24 am | #

    Mike didn’t stir up any shit to make the fur fly? What is wrong with him?

    • Undrave
      Undrave
      July 29, 2011 at 12:28 am | #

      Apparently Mike’s not there.

      • Plasma Mongoose
        Plasma Mongoose
        July 29, 2011 at 12:40 am | #

        He just left? This Mike very different from SPs version.

        • iSaidCandleja-
          iSaidCandleja-
          July 29, 2011 at 12:58 am | #

          Nah, Mike is still there, waiting for Billie to recover so she can be broken again.

      • David
        David M Willis
        July 29, 2011 at 9:53 am | #

        Mike’s there, but just offpanel.

  13. Brendan
    Brendan
    July 29, 2011 at 12:27 am | #

    I believe that’s ASL for “biida!”

    …it’s probably something else and I’m a horrible person.

  14. The Aussie Bloke
    The Aussie Bloke
    July 29, 2011 at 12:29 am | #

    Any chance of a translation of the sign language for those of us who don’t understand it?

    • gangler
      gangler
      July 29, 2011 at 12:32 am | #

      Context seems to be handling that just fine…

      • Mkvenner
        Mkvenner
        July 29, 2011 at 12:40 am | #

        …What? 😐

      • iSaidCandleja-
        iSaidCandleja-
        July 29, 2011 at 12:51 am | #

        No, context isn’t helping at all with that last panel. And I’m pretty sure the punchline would be even funnier if I knew what Marcie meant.

        • gangler
          gangler
          July 29, 2011 at 1:22 am | #

          She’s talking about not disappearing and Marcie’s gesturing in her eye area. Something to the general effect of “I’m watching her” or “I’ll keep an eye on her” seems to follow.

          Though I could be biased. As Alechsa mentions it’s a pretty common gesture regardless of sign language. If it’s not used where you live or something I guess that would explain it.

          http://hijinksensue.com/2011/06/17/green-and-yellow-black-and-white/

          Here’s another instance of the gesture being used. Looks a bit more clear in it. Might help.

    • Alechsa
      Alechsa
      July 29, 2011 at 1:09 am | #

      That is the universal sign for ‘watch this crazy bongo like a goddamned HAWK’

  15. Erick
    Erick
    July 29, 2011 at 12:38 am | #

    First panel looks like the sign for “help”, most probably with situation context “Help her out”. Last one looks like the universal “I’m watching you” hand gesture.

  16. AgentCimorene
    AgentCimorene
    July 29, 2011 at 12:51 am | #

    Wait… is Marcy using ASL (American Sign Language?). I’ve missed her! I don’t know if I have my old avatar picture that had me looking like her.

  17. Aizat
    Aizat
    July 29, 2011 at 1:05 am | #

    Everything’s fine without incident? Something’s up, I’m sure of it.

  18. Hitoshi
    Hitoshi
    July 29, 2011 at 1:10 am | #

    Judging by that eyebrow I think Marcie is saying “Run, run for the hills and never turn back!!!”

  19. addude
    addude
    July 29, 2011 at 1:18 am | #

    Why am I shipping Walky and Marcie now?!

    • Jacob
      Jacob
      July 29, 2011 at 1:35 am | #

      Because anyone in this comic can be shipped with anyone else.
      Of Course.

    • Daeva
      Daeva
      July 29, 2011 at 1:51 am | #

      Likely for the same reasons I’m shipping Marcie and a clone of Marcie.

    • NF
      NF
      July 29, 2011 at 10:33 am | #

      Ooh! Ooh! A Sal-Marcie-Walky love triangle!

      • nothri
        nothri
        July 29, 2011 at 11:27 am | #

        Shipping not available in all areas. Voidware prohibited.

  20. Beunsung
    Beunsung
    July 29, 2011 at 1:22 am | #

    Marcie is just doing the ASL Sign for “Help.” As in, “You should probably help Billie.”

  21. B
    B
    July 29, 2011 at 1:55 am | #

    Two comics ago Marcie made the ASL sign for yes, which is a fist bobbing up and down. In this comic, the last panel is ASL for “watch you”. In the first panel, I am not sure.

    • B
      B
      July 29, 2011 at 2:25 am | #

      Actually, the last sign could be “we will see”

      • David
        David M Willis
        July 29, 2011 at 8:54 am | #

        Yay! Someone got it.

        • Rachel
          Rachel
          July 29, 2011 at 3:01 pm | #

          Haha! That’s so cute, I love it.

        • B
          B
          July 29, 2011 at 3:15 pm | #

          Oh sweet!

        • TsunamiJane
          TsunamiJane
          July 29, 2011 at 3:16 pm | #

          Also if the fingers were curled a little it could be DOUBT or SUSPECT. But yeah, a little tapping and it is definitely “we’ll see.” 🙂

      • Mkvenner
        Mkvenner
        July 29, 2011 at 11:54 am | #

        Oh, Thank you kindly. 🙂

  22. CP
    CP
    July 29, 2011 at 2:08 am | #

    Anyone who thinks it’s going to be this easy is going to be sorely disappointed.

  23. Translation
    Translation
    July 29, 2011 at 2:19 am | #

    Marcie is making the sign for “help” as in “help her”

  24. Shifty
    Shifty
    July 29, 2011 at 2:36 am | #

    I like Marcie. She managed to sort this out of the girls with one gesture.

  25. Azukar
    Azukar
    July 29, 2011 at 3:27 am | #

    Suddenly I love knowing a bit of sign language. Seems like Auslan has a bit in common with ASL.

  26. 1Samildanach
    1Samildanach
    July 29, 2011 at 6:11 am | #

    I have a question. What happened to Sal’s helmet? Did she just drop it on the ground? (If so, can someone whack her for it, please?)

    Simplest options are to either carry it or make use of a helmet hook (most bikes have them).

    [/incongruity spotting]

    • Björn
      Björn
      July 29, 2011 at 7:11 am | #

      Her fangirl Joyce probably holds it for her whenever she takes it off.

  27. XLR
    XLR
    July 29, 2011 at 6:13 am | #

    Does she ever light that cigarette? :I

  28. anoff
    anoff
    July 29, 2011 at 6:53 am | #

    As some people are asking already: Anyone know what Marcie’s gesture means in the last panel?
    Consensus seems to be along the lines of ‘I’ll be watching’ or ‘I’ve got my eye on you’, something like that, but in the english sign language I know (so not ASL) it means ‘shit’
    Am I bowling completely out of the ball park with this one?

    • Mkvenner
      Mkvenner
      July 29, 2011 at 4:24 pm | #

      Maritime or BANZ sign language?

      • anoff
        anoff
        July 30, 2011 at 4:01 pm | #

        You know I’m not sure, I learned it a long time ago. 8(

        Tho it has been explained as “we’ll see” further down in the comments.. 😀

        • Sagara S.
          Sagara S.
          August 1, 2011 at 8:59 pm | #

          English Sign Language is COMPLETELY different than ASL (American Sign…) because the English scholars refused to help the developers of ASL with the language, so ASL ended up being based largly on French Sign Language and the French Language.
          (The more you knooooowwww)
          Maritime Sign Language hasn’t been wildly used in at least three generations. So it is highly possible the sign you learned DOES mean ‘shit’.
          There are alot of differences within individual communities even, what with Home Sign and others. It really depends on whether you learn Sign as a ‘deaf’ person, or a ‘Deaf’ person. Being a Hearing person reaching into the Deaf community it is daunting and you don’t get the benifite of having it as L1, or even L2 in most cases.
          ASL is a fun, and dexterous language, but isn’t rooted in English like we (general Americans) use. I would say it’s even closer to Russian with the vast amount of deixis used, and the variability of word orders (again, within dialects).
          I’m just exstatic that Willis isn’t using SEE, or PSE even, which ARE easier for a Hearing person to articulate, but lack the flavor of ASL.
          I can’t wait to see some of the visual jokes Sign lends itself to, and look forward to more Marcie.
          …oh dear, I do believe I lectured O_o

          • Mkvenner
            Mkvenner
            August 2, 2011 at 7:14 pm | #

            Lecturing isn’t always a bad thing,

  29. murrkitteh
    murrkitteh
    July 29, 2011 at 7:04 am | #

    I have boarded the salxmarcie train, WOOT WOOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    Any way i think Marcie is telling billie she is being watched… With her PENIS!!! for a nickel!( and all those other applicable memes!)

  30. Björn
    Björn
    July 29, 2011 at 7:12 am | #

    I’m just thinking… if I were mute like Marcie, and had to rely on the rest of my face and body to communicate to others, I’d take care NOT to choose goggles that obscure my eyes.

    • Nagaoka
      Nagaoka
      July 29, 2011 at 8:26 am | #

      That’s been bugging me too! Hiding your eyes while communicating in ASL is like talking in monotone. It’s hard to tell whether you’re asking a question or making a statement. At least in the comic we can see her eyebrows though.

      • Cybersnark
        Cybersnark
        July 29, 2011 at 10:03 am | #

        Hiding your eyes while communicating in ASL is like talking in monotone.

        I kinda figured that was the point. Marcie is Soundwave.

    • David
      David M Willis
      July 29, 2011 at 9:00 am | #

      Yeah, that was a problem I bumped into when I decided Marcie spoke with ASL in Dumbing of Age. In my earlier comics, Marcie almost always had a blank expression, not even a mouth. So I was forced to open her up to facial expressions, especially since so many signs require them. The last panel’s sign, for example, “We will see” requires a sarcastic eyeroll. So I cheated her goggles’ highlights upwards to compensate. Her goggle highlights will probably start functioning as her eyes. At least when I need them to, anyway.

      • Mkvenner
        Mkvenner
        July 29, 2011 at 11:55 am | #

        It looks great anyway.

      • nothri
        nothri
        July 29, 2011 at 12:01 pm | #

        basically the spiderman approach to facial expressions. neat.

      • Mkvenner
        Mkvenner
        July 29, 2011 at 12:01 pm | #

        I think it’s better than the eye’s you draw. Most of them are unsettling to me.

      • TsunamiJane
        TsunamiJane
        July 29, 2011 at 3:17 pm | #

        The mouth definitely works too! Mouth morphemes are as much a part of ASL as eyebrows!

        • Sagara S.
          Sagara S.
          August 1, 2011 at 9:00 pm | #

          I love you because you used the phrase ‘mouth morphemes’. :3

        • Wack'd
          Wack'd
          September 23, 2012 at 11:10 pm | #

          Walkyverse!Marcie didn’t have a mouth. Poor girl was practically incapable of communication.

  31. anoff
    anoff
    July 29, 2011 at 7:13 am | #

    Sal’s being the bigger person.

    I wonder how long it’ll be before she regrets it.

  32. anoff
    anoff
    July 29, 2011 at 7:16 am | #

    MY COMMENTS AREN’T WORKING :C

    • anoff
      anoff
      July 29, 2011 at 7:18 am | #

      I apologise, getting a bit desperate here. >///<

      • anoff
        anoff
        July 30, 2011 at 4:03 pm | #

        Yeah, I understand now, sorry.
        I freaked when I left the page for a bit, refreshed and my comments disappeared.

    • David
      David M Willis
      July 29, 2011 at 9:51 am | #

      Your first comment has to be approved before your posts will appear.

  33. begbert2
    begbert2
    July 29, 2011 at 10:51 am | #

    I… kinda don’t like there being dialogue in a language that I not only don’t understand, but can’t even guess at most things in. (Latinate languages are better for that.) I feel confused and left out.

    (And yes, I know my whining doesn’t matter to any of you people. Sue me. Free speech, people.)

    • Matt of Steel
      Matt of Steel
      July 29, 2011 at 11:33 am | #

      Well, you could always expand your horizons and look them up.

      Or, read comments … like the ones posted before you did … that translate them for you.

      There are more hearing-impaired people that you think out there, this is an excellent excuse to learn a bit of their language.

      • bramble
        bramble
        July 29, 2011 at 1:39 pm | #

        I can kind of see both sides of this… I mean, on the one hand, yes, picking up a bit of ASL is great, and so far Marcie hasn’t said anything that can’t be (mostly) figured out purely from context and Sal’s reactions.

        On the other hand, because ASL is by necessity a highly visual language, and each panel shows only a single, static moment, we’re getting only a single word or phrase from Marcie where we get entire sentences from everyone else. That could make her a little hard to understand if we ever see her in an important scene without Sal to interpret for us.

        • David
          David M Willis
          July 29, 2011 at 2:50 pm | #

          If Marcie needs to be understood above and beyond the usual single panel, I plan to give her enough space to do so. I feel I lucked out here, since the sign for “we will see” is pretty uncomplicated. (A double tap on the right cheek with two fingers while making a sarcastic expression, IIRC.) I was really happy with this particular strip, since what would be a pretty mundane punchline (“I’ll totally probably do it” with the aside “We’ll see”) is made more interesting to me with the use of sign language. It makes it more visual, I think, is the trick, and the reader has to work harder for it.

          • TsunamiJane
            TsunamiJane
            July 29, 2011 at 3:18 pm | #

            Hey, if the dictionaries can show you the basic gist of a sign in 2D pictures, you can do it too!

            If you need any help, I’m a sign language interpreter. 🙂

            • Sagara S.
              Sagara S.
              August 1, 2011 at 9:03 pm | #

              I’m trying to get an internship as an Interpreter.
              PLEASE, help me 😀

        • MM
          MM
          July 29, 2011 at 4:25 pm | #

          Odds are if there’s no one around who can interpret, then the other characters will have similar trouble, and that’ll just further the plot and/or comedy.

          Personally, I love this. I hope we see a lot more of Marcie.

      • David
        David M Willis
        July 29, 2011 at 2:51 pm | #

        I’m excited to have a character who communicates with ASL because I’m bound to pick some of it up!

    • Mkvenner
      Mkvenner
      July 29, 2011 at 4:27 pm | #

      You can alway try learning different languages instead of coming of as xenophobic about it.

  34. Robert in San Diego
    Robert in San Diego
    July 29, 2011 at 10:56 am | #

    I can’t wait until Marcie has an in-class question in one of those huge lecture hall type classes — and paper-airplanes it in to some lecturer who likes to talk with his back to the class. I’ve never seen that, but I have had instructors who’d deserve getting nailed in the back by a paper glider.

    Note: My own college was once notorious for putting “Disabled Student Services” on the second floor of a building without an elevator. They’ve gotten a LOT better since those pre-ADA days.

    • TsunamiJane
      TsunamiJane
      July 29, 2011 at 3:21 pm | #

      HAHAHA! That’s fantastic. Both paragraphs.

      However, these being post-ADA days, she would probly have an interpreter in the class. 🙂 Not that that should stop her from paper airplaning. {Is that a verb? It is now!}

  35. nothri
    nothri
    July 29, 2011 at 11:47 am | #

    Hmmm…..Crazy Ninja….Crazy Ninja…nope, sorry. Amazigirl needs an arch nemesis with a better name than that. Biker Chick has some potential, I suppose, but Crazy Ninja is more the name you give a villain of the week.

    • MM
      MM
      July 29, 2011 at 4:17 pm | #

      How about Nutty Ninja? The alliteration might help.

  36. Zem
    Zem
    July 29, 2011 at 1:23 pm | #

    And then Sal never appeared in the comic again.

  37. Kreschnav
    Kreschnav
    July 29, 2011 at 4:55 pm | #

    So I assume Marcie can read lips? That’s what confused me in her first strip. I couldn’t understand how she understood Sal when she asked for cigarettes.

    • David
      David M Willis
      July 29, 2011 at 5:45 pm | #

      Marcie isn’t deaf. She’s only mute.

      • Sagara S.
        Sagara S.
        August 1, 2011 at 9:05 pm | #

        awww…..
        …. now I feel wierd that I’m dissapointed that she isn’t D/deaf… only mute…. I think my ASL professor is infecting me.

  38. Mkvenner
    Mkvenner
    July 29, 2011 at 5:43 pm | #

    Is Marcie going to get her own cast page?

    • David
      David M Willis
      July 29, 2011 at 5:55 pm | #

      Probably eventually, if she keeps making appearances. I still need to get around to adding Dina to the cast, too.

  39. quietdevious1
    quietdevious1
    July 29, 2011 at 6:19 pm | #

    How did Marcie become mute?

    • David
      David M Willis
      July 29, 2011 at 6:26 pm | #

      I’m sure it’ll come up.

      • Plasma Mongoose
        Plasma Mongoose
        July 31, 2011 at 10:59 pm | #

        It wouldn’t have anything to do with The Catcher in the Rye now, would it?

  40. Reiku189
    Reiku189
    July 29, 2011 at 9:55 pm | #

    don’t know if anyone noticed or commented but: Billie’s replaced Dorothy on the title picture, nice.

    • Aizat
      Aizat
      July 30, 2011 at 12:47 am | #

      It’s been that since about 2 weeks ago.

  41. Greg S.
    Greg S.
    July 30, 2011 at 12:37 am | #

    Am I missing something? Why does Walky’s sister have a thick southern accent and he has none?

    I must have missed something.

    • gangler
      gangler
      July 31, 2011 at 12:38 am | #

      The catholic school wasn’t local.

    • Plasma Mongoose
      Plasma Mongoose
      July 31, 2011 at 10:56 pm | #

      Sal is also meant to be a Rogue(X-men) expy.

  42. Marty
    Marty
    July 30, 2011 at 4:36 am | #

    I’m deaf, and I find it really cool that DoA has a character that uses sign language. But I also feel really odd at the same time. Just not used to seeing references to deafness and ASL.

    • Hello, Mr. Anderson
      Hello, Mr. Anderson
      July 30, 2011 at 3:43 pm | #

      Yeah, that’s kind of Willis’ thing, surprising you with the insightful out of pretty much nowhere.

    • Sagara S.
      Sagara S.
      August 1, 2011 at 9:07 pm | #

      there’s a really nice arc in Girls with Slingshots that deals with ALOT of accurate ASL.

  43. Drake
    Drake
    July 30, 2011 at 1:44 pm | #

    Oh, Sal won’t disappear LIKE a ninja. That implies that she isn’t one.

  44. Enderkap
    Enderkap
    July 30, 2011 at 9:56 pm | #

    Marcie is definitely my new favorite character. I am LOVING the ASL. YOU’RE AWESOME WILLIS!

  45. Doranian
    Doranian
    July 31, 2011 at 11:05 pm | #

    That sign in the first panel is “help”, for those who don’t know. Marcie probably said, “Help her.” The sign in the last message is better known. Put bluntly, “I’m watching you”.

    • David
      David M Willis
      July 31, 2011 at 11:27 pm | #

      For that second one, remember that facial expressions are important. (The second sign has already been translated correctly elsewhere on this comments page.)

      • Zem
        Zem
        August 1, 2011 at 11:37 am | #

        Wow, DoA – Fun and Educational. Why don’t we have more people speaking sign language in comics? Maybe as many people would remember as many have learned a few basic French expressions because of them.

  46. Cthulhu21
    Cthulhu21
    February 27, 2014 at 2:15 am | #

    Sal’s friend looks like Ted from El Goonish Shive.

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