You can now get the Book 5 Kickstarter magnets in the Dumbing of Age store! These are the 11 magnets that are left over, since after the campaign I’m out of Malayas. (Joyce is also in relatively limited quantities.)
These join the Book 4 Kickstarter magnets set, a set of 8 magnets since that set’s Joyce is gone. Additionally, I’ve just got SIX Carlas left, and once she’s gone, it’ll be suddenly and magically become a set of 7 magnets.
There’s also a bundle of both magnet sets, if you want to spend a little less moolah on the pair.
Loading ...
“Joe, I’m you from the future! Whatever you do, don’t listen to Amber’s story about Tailgate! You wind up spending thousands of dollars on plastic robots!”
So your name was Doctor Joe the whole time?
He could tell you, but then he’d have to marry you.,
Oh god.
That’s a strong contender for ‘most punchable face’, right there.
Oh, sweet merciful Neptune, it begins.
…..
THIS is the begining?
Obviously the rest was just preamble. The real comic starts now.
The real cosmic horror starts now. — Fixed that for you.
Oh, this is ominous.
Far more ominous than any of Sarah’s gloat faces–
Or goat faces.
Got faces?
FAAACES!
Stop the FAAACES!
Someone initially misread yesterday’s comic, and I subsequently stole the phrase “ominous goat face” as the most awesome thing to ever awesome.
Rhetorical question: Have you seen goats’ eyes? The oblong sideways pupils are creepy.
Goats are always in Sage Mode.
“Eaugh” seems like a perfectly reasonable reaction, yes.
I shudder to think of what he says next.
We’re likely to find out the squickiest way a man his age can tell an 18 y.o. woman “I’m dating.your mom”.
“So… threesome?”
I think that might be the winner
“No more calls, please. We have a winner.”
…yep, that’s the worst possible thing to say. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to find some bleach for my brain, a pump for my stomach, and a vow of enternal chastity for my soul.
Nah, Joe’s there. “Foursome?”
It explains his enthusiasm, though.
Please excuse me while I go apply bleach to my brain. I’m not sure how yet, but it’ll probably involve an electric drill
I agree.
Good lord, Dick. Is that supposed to be your friendly face, or are you plotting revenge?
Got a bad case of Resting Perv Face.
A+
That face XD
WORST
EVER
Auuuuuuuuugh put the creep eyebrows away she is a teenager
Also Joe’s not doing too well with this human interaction thing, is he?
She’s 18. Willis wouldn’t have drawn porn of her if she weren’t.
18 is eighTEEN: strictly speaking, a teenager. Just, also an adult.
eighTEEN
Richard has a child her age
Those eyebrows need to not.
porn of barely legal teenagers is still creepy imo
I mean the target audience of this comic is teenagers so it’s, maybe a gray area? But the artist is n o t a t e e n so…
…huh. Yeah, I dunno.
And is the target audience teens? I guess it’s hard to say what the “target audience” is, but most commenters seem to be adults, some of whom may have started reading as teens (I think I did) but no longer are…and honestly, at this point I feel like webcomics (at least these kind of on-going webcomics) are mainly accessed by adults, though that could very easily be biased on my part. (Though it would also seem statistically more likely.)
It seems unlikely the target audience is exclusively teens. I thoroughly enjoy it and have always felt like I was a member of the target audience. And I certainly didn’t start reading it as a teen. When I was a teen this comic didn’t exist. Neither did the Walkyverse. Neither did web comics. There was no web. There was no Internet then. There were no personal computers.
And it was uphill both ways.
In the snow.
Word. Those were the proto-Atari days.
Yeah, I get the feeling the target audience is more adults than teens. I’m definitely a teen, and I’ve generally felt like this isn’t age-appropriate for me (which is true, but eh, it’s fantastic, and I’ve never cared much for age-appropriate).
Same here, there are many many themes and ideas along with a ton of references that would’ve gone over my head if the comments didn’t point them out, and it makes is harder to share this with my friends because I feel they’d be unable to overlook the fact that willis also draws porn
Some of us also started reading as teens and are now… not teens.
This would be creepy as hell even without the age gap OR the fact that Amber is his girlfriend’s daughter.
This is just not an acceptable way to greet or approach anyone. Dude needs to back the fuck up and put his thirst face the hell away.
If it’s not yet part of the lexicon, “Thirst Face” has to happen.
Do you have to retrieve it from Avanchnzel to add things?
At least there’s a semblance of progress.
Yeah, now he’s just being a jerk in the same way he’s a jerk to Danny. It’s a step, anyway.
No, with Danny he was openly dismissive and derisive. Here he’s making a token effort to feign interest.
Except it’s not a real token effort to feign interest because he’s openly telling her that’s what he’s doing in order to keep up his image of one dimensional jock. He’s falling back into old habits, but I think he’s realised that in the third panel if the … is any indication.
I mostly read it as he’s being honest, you can’t force interest in a topic and he’s being straightforward about that not lying. They just do not get along and that’s happens, not all people are compatible.
Eh amber annoys me when she’s like this. She bores the person talking to her to death on purpose by talking way too long about something she knows they know very little about / are uninterested in. Then she gets all self-deprecating when they’re actually bored.
I understand why she’s like that but it frustrates me no end.
I did not notice that habit. Joe insisted he was fine with her nerding at him, and frankly the whole personing thing where you figure out what you are both interested in and if your overdoing your part is work, it might be worth it but its work.
You’re assuming that ‘boring to death’ and ‘way too long’ are easy things to spot and stop in time. That is not the case for many autistic people. What Amber is doing here – infodumping about her special interest all over someone – is a very common thing to do.
(And from what I’ve noticed, many autistic people actually welcome it and ask for it, both because it’s actually interesting to hear someone talk about something they’re interested in, and because we know from experience how joyous it feels to have someone listen and want to give this joy to each other)
Joe did ask for it.
He’s really, really not. “Poke me when you’re done” is bluntly and plainly telling her he’s not interested or listening.
And/or he’s all out of try juice.
He just listened so someone ramble on about something he doesn’t know or care about. That’s a pretty normal reaction. Besides, improvement is a slow process you can’t expect him to be flawless from the start
Agreed. Joe’s certainly no saint, but he’s trying. He’s at the end of his patience though. Hopefully Amber remembers later that Joe was willing to sit and listen to her rant for a good while on something he neither knows nor cares about and not just that he got bored in the end.
That or that Joe does/says something to offset whatever awful thing his father is going to do or say.
Yknow shiro I’ve been reading your comments on the past few Joe strips and it really feels like you don’t want him to get better. Whenever he shows self awareness and improvement you poke holes in it, pointing out every imperfection.
The past few strips? Please. I have been incredibly critical of Joe the entire damn time. I really, really dislike this character and have done since his intro to the comic. Not having read It’s Walky til fairly recently, I didn’t have fond memories of his old incarnation to temper his complete and total grossness. So yeah, I am not going to give him asspats for showing a basic level of decency–which, by the way, he’s failing to even accomplish here.
When there is actual tangible progress, I will and do acknowledge it. There have been moments, but it’s a slow, plodding, frustrating process. If it bothers you that I don’t give points for effort, feel free not to read my comments.
on the subject of “points for effort”, when done right it really is a useful tool. I’m still seeing benefits from playing Best Fiends; I have much more ability to choose to keep trying at something that’s failing, and more awareness of how frustrated it’s making me and how many spoons it’ll cost to keep going. and a lot less resentment of the part of me that wants to keep going now that she’s arguing based on evidence instead of just blind optimism and “should”s. and without that resentment and conflict, learning happens a lot faster too. 🙂 hell there are some things that you just can’t *do* when there’s a significant amount of your brain trying to veto it – iirc Steven vs Amethyst showed a little of that…
…
holy fuck it’s snowing.
How do you play “best fiends?” I assume it is different than playing “best friends” or maybe not? Maybe that’s what all the mean girls are doing, playing best fiends?
You download it from the appstore
Since this is a stand-alone reboot of the previous characters, they must stand or fall on their actions here.
Clean start.
In a universe long ago and far away, Joe (and Richard) were … different.
Also, it’s not like Joe’s progress is going to be set back or undone by Shiro’s comments.
Except Shiro’s comments are generally on point, I’m a bit if an optimist when it comes to character growth, but Joe’s changes, while good upon themselves are happening slowly and gradually and with plenty of errors. On my part this is from someone else who has never liked Joe but is hopeful, perhaps in vain, that he will change for the better. He’s taken the first, slow, tentative step to being a decent human being, but this right here? This isn’t really progress on Joe’s part in this comic.
And probably his new step-daughter
I mean Amber was also specifically doing things she knew tended to not be received well, to highlight that she’s a nerd and interacts very differently from most people. I think it’s fair to say Joe was a little sabotaged.
(Not that Amber owed him anything. This is just maybe not a good interaction to gauge that with.)
I’ve never been this early before… I must capitalize on this chance!!!
I bet that plate is gonna land on someone’s foot
That’s creepy as fuuuuuck
Considering what we’ve heard of her fanfic, passing on the fan art might be the better choice for a Joe who’s trying to make.conversations about things which aren’t sex. Even robot sex.
Where’s Sarah and her bat when you need them?
Engaged in misplaced gloating.
Evil Joe.
Or as Joe calls him “Dad”.
Oh great, it’s this fucker…
I doubt he would object to being called that, actually.
Ah. Umm… maybe I should rephrase my statement then.
That mother fucker would also be accurate and probably well received on his part.
Here’s a random question: Anyone have any tips for taking care of an 8 month old? Things to do? I’ve Googled some stuff, just curious if anyone here has any experience with that age they can share.
Babies cry a lot for attention. That’s because babies need to know they have a caretaker who will meet needs and helps them secure a bond. It’s cool to go see them even if nothing is wrong.
Also, at 8 months, they may or may not have learned some words, so be prepared for that and watch your mouth.
I work with youth a lot, so I’m pretty good at turning off the swearing. Plus, her three year old sister will also be there, so I definitely won’t be cooing, “Hey there, little fuck-face.”
You know, how you talk to babies.
Hold them and sing a lot
Read to them!
Use lots of words that you want them to have in their vocabulary later. They can’t talk yet but they’re listening.
*sings songs about challenging heteronormativity to the infant*
But actually I am checking out some inclusive children’s books from the library.
Good idea! The children’s librarians will surely have lovely inclusive suggestions. ^^
Maybe put on some Steven Universe the way some people put on Mozart for babies? It’s what I do when I have to watch my little nephew.
Heteronormative is the name of the villain : http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1526
“That’s Doctor Heteronormative. I didn’t go to HeteroReinforcement Medical School to be called Mister.”
Yeah, singing works really well, and it doesn’t really matter what you sing so long as the sound is pleasant and the volume is low. Opera, Queen, children’s ongs. I’d love to hear what works for you.
Also: titles of those songs that challenge heteronormativity, please!
I was really just joking about teaching the baby the word “heteronormativity,” but actually, the songs that come to mind for me are “Everything Possible” by Fred Small (which is a nice lullaby type song about how there are many valid ways to live life– including ways that challenge norms– and includes the line “Some women love women, and some men love men”) and the lullaby song “Sweet Baby James” by James Taylor, only I change “James” to “Jane,” making it about a cowgirl, and keep in the line about “thinking about women.”
Cat Stevens:
“If you wanna sing out, sing out
And if you wanna be free, be free
Cause there’s a million ways to be, you know that there are…”
Kacey Musgraves, “Follow Your Arrow:”
Make lots of noise
Kiss lots of boys
Or kiss lots of girls
If that’s something you’re into
When the straight and narrow
Gets a little too straight
Roll up a joint, or don’t
Just follow your arrow
Wherever it points
Fall completely and inescapably in love with them, knowing that they will inevitably tear out your heart on multiple occasions.
Compartmentalize this knowledge so that you will be surprised when it happens, causing you additional pain.
…. Eat at Arby’s.
Don’t do what Hazel does here: https://girlswithslingshots.com/comic/gws-chaser-615
Babies enjoy doing creative things, like welding, knife sharpening and experimental atomic physics. If in doubt, surround your child with things like box-cutters, tesla coils, scalpels and phosphorus, and see which the child is attracted to.
They’re not dishwasher safe, so you have to wash them by hand in the sink.
Do you know where the bub is at developmentally? May be interested in crawling, climbing, or standing onto things (and if that is the case may hold onto things and dance while periodically falling over) – or could be close to walking if very advanced… Will probably enjoy peepo, stories, funny faces, if you go on a walk to the playground may like slides and swings but the 3 yo will also need help and supervision so may be challenging if you’ll be the only adult… they may well have a bouncer/play mat with dangling toys that equates to hours of fun, or baby bouncers/walkers (some come in their very own activity centres – Google Jumperoo) if you will be looking after them at their house; buttons and noisy toys are starting to be very interesting…
hard, hard same. he looks like the sleaziest possible type of used-car salesman.
Murphy’s law. I think.
Twitter: scream into the meaningless void ™.
Damn Richard, tone your face down a notch or five.
Joe quickly pulled on a pre-prepared false beard, shirt and tie and circled around behind the table.
Jesus fuck Richard, pull back that grin and back away form Amber, you look like a bloody bearded tanned Joker!
always looks so serious
*plays “Doctor Dick” on the hacked Muzak*
Maybe THIS Be Good For What Ails Ya
How do you hack music?
Trade Secret
joe is learning to be less of a frat boy. i like that.
And now, the ultimate test of his reeducation – dealing with the guy who taught him to behave like a frat boy in the first place.
This will be “fun”.
With any luck, it’ll remind Joe why he HAS to be better
Yeah, the ghost of Future Joe made corporeal.
This is just two much. What’s with these dads?
As Amber’s alter-ego is fond of saying,
“Dads. WHY did it have to be DADS?”
Run, Amber, Run!!!!
Damn, Richard looks creepy as fuck here!
Richard is creepy as fuck. Everything I’ve read about him so far points to him basically being an older version of pre-epithany Joe squared.
Dads, why does it always have to be a dad…
Also: Joe, never stop shaving
It wouldn’t surprise me at all if Joe immediately went and shaved after the interaction he is about to either witness or be a part of.
Apart from running into an even worse version of Joe at the end there, this conversation has probably been really good and centering for Amber. Geeking out is her safe and happy place.
Joe Dad if you don’t want to come off to the ladies as a complete sleepy creep then maybe tone down the creep face there.
Ok, uh, Rosnethal Sr. do you have any, any facial expressions apart from creepy smarm? Because that is not an appropriate facial expression for a man your age to have on a college campus!!
Oh, look, it’s Douchebag Prime!
I mean, from a mathematical perspective, it is Joe who is Douchebag Prime, because he is derived from Douchebag.
Or douchebags all the way down?
… hope not …
Douchebag is like f(x) = e^x, in that f’ = f.
I’m guessing Joe is about to mention that he pulled a Classic Mike Maneuver.
The doctor is in. And Richard seems like the kind of guy who’d use that phrase for, well you know.
*shudder* I need the brain bleach.
Eaugh! indeed.
So I know Cerebrus is going to go into much more detail on the topic and do a better job of digging into it than I would, so I’ll leave them to it and not go fully into the train of thought… but it’s going to be very interesting to see Joe confront his father right now. And kind of scary because depending how it goes it might really set Joe back a whole lot. It’s super early for this showdown to happen and I don’t know if Joe is ready for it.
Yup. This will be good. And important.
I’m noticing several people between yesterday and today mentioning that Cerberus will probably say whatever it is better, and I just want to say that I hope that doesn’t become a trend.
Yes, Cerberus is awesome and her comments are often very insightful, important, and enjoyable to read. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t express something you’re thinking because you think she’ll do it better. While she may ultimately even say something very similar to what you were thinking, she can’t truly speak your mind because she’s not you. Your perspective matters, and who you are and how you might say something makes your comment unique.
And add to that, for example, that Cerberus didn’t even comment on yesterday’s strip. So if the people who mentioned her really didn’t go more into their thoughts because they thought she’d do it better, then we missed out on hearing those thoughts. Plus, you don’t know what Cerberus is going to comment–unless she posts the same comments on Patreon as she does here, and you’ve already seen today’s? I don’t know. But in general, we don’t know what the contents of others’ comments will be.
It also occurs to me that people may be using “Cerberus will do this better” as a way to put themselves down as sort of a protection from criticism or because of insecurity. And I know I find it super hard not to put myself down. Like, it’s so hard. But I know that when I’m working with youth, I find it important to model more positive treatments of myself, to not say something like, “I’m not good at drawing” as a kind of apology for doing something I’m not great at. So what I try to do is imagine I’m saying those kinds of thoughts in front of youth more often, and that helps me reduce them.
And anyway, this turned kind of turned into rambling, and I’m not sorry! Because I felt I had things to say, and sometimes I enjoy rambling. In summary:
-Cerberus is awesome.
-So are you, probably, and I will be interested in reading your additional thoughts should you choose to post them.
I feel like waiting for Cerberus is helpful for me because reading her comment helps me work through the jumble of thoughts myself, and I sometimes then respond to her comment with my own take on things after that
Yumi: well said! 🙂
Cmd1095: me too! Sometimes it’s good practice to try and find some words first, sometimes those brain cells don’t quite line up right until someone else’s words get things started.
But also practice can be scary and hard and really does not come naturally to me, so, Yumi’s post is a good reminder to check on whether I actually don’t have words before reading things, or subconsciously assumed I wouldn’t without actually trying.
okay, but you can first post your own pre-Cerberus thoughts then wait for Cerberus and make another comment then.
You’re not limited to one comment per strip :>
(MOAR MOAR MOAR COMMENTS FOR THE COMMENT GOD)
I also feel like folks might be accidentally putting a lot of pressure on Cerberus with these comments. It’s her thoughts she writes, not thoughts on behalf of the whole comment section. Sometimes she has other things to do!
Yup; I don’t want to assume how Cerberus feels, but I was wondering about that possibility too.
Just remember Cerberus is very good at articulating her thoughts and can be quite perceptive but it doesn’t mean shes correct all the time so if you have thoughts or opinions feel free to post them
My hunch is that Cerberus speaks to this forum with her calmest, most incisive head.
(not sure we want to hear from the others…)
There are at least three ways to interpret that comment.
er… speak for yourself, the others are people too and I wouldn’t mind meeting more of them.
SadlyNo *is* a bit too graphic for my personal comfort, but I think Delicious Taffy would quite like her(?).
Wait, are Cerberus and SadlyNo the same person’s alters or something? Who’s the third head? I’m confused.
Cerberus’ blog is SadlyNo; I don’t know if it’s actually a different alter, but the writing style is very different at least. I have yet to see any third head afaik 🙂
Thanks for the tip! I’ll check it out tonight, since it’s been recommended. It’s the first Google result, right? I wouldn’t want to be reading the wrong and get an odd impression.
Cerberus is one of the front-pager bloggers (or has been one) at SadlyNo. Its not everyone’s cuppa, stylewise, but SadlyNo and.places like it I find a useful corrective when ordinary news outlets seem way too interested in normalizing a no-longer-normal government.
Cerebus posts there (as Cerebus), but I don’t think it’s actually her blog. Not everything there is hers. Unless I’m really missing something.
Dammit. Cerberus. Not Cerebus.
ohhh. huh. all the recent posts are by the same username (not cerb) and there’s no about page, so I didn’t notice that. good to know.
Seconding this sentiment.
In general, it’s not good to put a person on a pedestal, because that kind of unfairly puts a lot of pressure on them.
But also? There’s a good chance that you’re actually going to have different interpretations and thoughts, so you should absolutely feel free to share your initial reactions.
I want to see Joe confront his dad, new attitude vs the embodiment of everything wrong with Joe before
We have seen very little interaction between them, so I look forward to that too!
I suddenly was really creeped out by this and then remembered that Dick is banging Amber’s mom…
…which is still kind of creepy to know but I really hope Joe does the right thing if Dick continues to be his namesake. Especially since Joe is TRYING to be a better person.
On the plus side I just imagined Stacy proudly showing off phone-pictures of her daughter, and it was very cute.
And then I imagined Dick thinking the pictures were hot and it was much less cute.
D:
Uh, aren’t “here’s a picture of my kid”-type photos usually dated back to their grade-school days? Gross.
I was thinking more of a current picture, which is gross enough for me.
…….So….what odds are we putting on Joe and Amber suddenly becoming Step-Siblings?
I second this, this feels like a weird “surprise, I’m your new dad!” appearance!
I desperately need that to happen
Dads… Why does it always have to be dads?
http://www.dumbingofage.com/2015/comic/book-6/01-to-those-whod-ground-me/mine-2/
Just a reminder to Amber that Joe is an amateur (and has a conscience). His dad is a pro to a level that is actually quite worrying in its complete unapologetic lack of social conscience.
Y’know ever since a certain politician in the UK, I have harboured extreme suspicion of people who, when trying to smile, can only manage a frowning snarl like the one on Richard’s face here.
Eh Dick’s smile always reminds me more of a hyena than a snarl
Somehow, Dick’s predatory reminded me of that quote from Iron Man 2: “there’s blood in the water, and the sharks are gathering”. Doesn’t quite fit the context, but still…
predatory SMILE
“Hello, I’m banging your mom.”
so Amber draws fanart as well? maybe it’s already been said, but I only knew about the fanfiction. cool to be able to do both, my friend and I are split; I only draw, and she only writes.
Nobody ever said she was good at either.
Chuck Jones once noted that every person who picks up a pencil, pen, or brush (sic, in the digital age) has 100,000 bad drawings in them. The only way to get good is to purge the bad ones by putting them on paper.
Writing, I’m sure, works the same way.
Yeah, pretty much. It’s the way of things with all creative endeavors, and is part of the reason for the the old maxim to “kill your babies”. At least until you get good enough to have and then buy into the hype surrounding your own work, your best work is always ahead of you.
EAUGH!
“Also, I’m marrying your mom now”
Who the hell summoned The Greater Douche of Slaanesh?
Oh please don’t tell he is here to announce that he will be Amber’s new Dad…
Hey, someone who cares about Ambers fanart!
Amber is already concerned that her mother is falling for another Blane. Don’t with approach that expression.
Approach with that expression.
Don’t want to mislead her.
When someone tells you they’re a douchebag, believe them.
Each other’s stupid FAAAAAAAAAACES!
Does he have resting leer face?
He made that face too long and now it’s stuck that way. Turns out his mother was right.
Chance for Joe to be a human and not a PUA like his dad. For him to view what could be his future and be disguisted by it. Though Amber is center stage, this arc is about Joe and his remorse and rehabilitation.
Oh, he already does that. All along he’s been justifying himself with ‘at least I’m not as bad as my dad’.
I have the same tie Dick is wearing. It’s pink and from the Donald Trump signature collection. One of my sons buys me ties like that – ironic one that he dares me to wear. I figure that it is a sunk cost and that I might as well wear it and point out to people that the hideous tie I’m wearing has a hideous name on it. Either coincidence or DYW does massive research.
Did it come with scotch tape to put on the back?
Pity about the maker, I love that shade of pink. I know it’s a bit neon for most people but I looooooooove bright.
“You look just like your mother,” he leered, richardly.
So, what’s the betting on this turning into a father vs son confrontation with Joe finally denouncing his father for ‘creeping on my friends’ or something lse that both combatants (as well as the subject of the argument) are intensely surprised at hearing?
So does anyone know Amber’s Twitter @? Has to be more sane than @realDonaldTrump.
https://twitter.com/PositivAmb
I did not know. It’s perfectly her.
Joe’s dad you can just leave now.
hey quick question, why does joe’s dad always look like he’s about to KILL THE BATMAN?
Because Joe’s dad is always in predatory mode, just like the Joker.
I foresee a comic in the near future of Joe punching his dad, and JoeDad acknowledging that he had it coming.
I watched Split, the other night. Have any DIDfolk here watched it? If so, I’d love to hear some thought, because there were bits of it that had me raising an eyebrow.
Also, Kevin has 23 alters but they only wrote for him and 7 others. Kinda wondering why they didn’t just Conservation of Detail the other 16 out of the script, since they had no plot relevance.
I don’t have DID, but I’ve certainly heard horrible things about Split and it’s use of it. The overall response I saw from those in mental illness/health communities was very negative.
Add to that the fact that I still haven’t forgiven M. Night Shyamalan for what he did to one of my favorite shows, and I’m personally pretty set on never watching that movie.
Just seeing the word “thriller” was enough for me to know I’d probably not like it, but yeah that sounds bad.
There were some better things mentioned on r/did this summer, but my reddit app has somehow forgotten my password… Maybe I’ll have time to dig up links tomorrow.
Not DID myself, all my knowledge and experience is from knowing people with dissociative disorders, nor have I watched the film, but everything I’ve heard about the film and how it portrays things (including some in depth critical analysis) suggests to me that it just feeds a lot of the negative stereotypes associated with those dealing with such issues.
I am surprised Amber’s reaction isn’t to reflexively punch him in the last panel.