I love how Walky has a voice in your head, despite him not having an out loud voice given the medium. He definitly has a voice in my head too and now I can read it that way as well.
I ought to find a way to link a photo of my parents.
Mum was 5’½” (she insisted on the half inch). Dad admitted to being 6’7″, but was probably actually a little taller (he had to duck to get through standard doorways).
Okay, got a sampling from a few different realities here. In this one they made him a Scientologist…in this one he’s a birthday clown…in this one he’s still making angry posts about the 2016 Ghostbusters…and here’s one where he got a silly hat and took up the ukulele.
Birthday clown Steve Rogers actually sounds so bad it’s hilarious I would actually read that. Probably as a joke comic and not a Major Marvel-Defining Event, but it sure as hell beats Nazi.
Honestly, if Willis ever decides to end the comic that would be a pretty hilarious way.
*Characters break the fourth wall, looking directly at viewers*
Dorothy: “And thus the comic ends, but the story? The story continuous even if it is not caught by the strips. ”
Joyce: “I will learn more life lessons. Maybe even eat THINGS THAT TOUCH OTHER THINGS.”
Dina: “I will learn more interesting dinosaur facts.”
Becky: “I’ve already learnt THE BEST dinosaur facts.” *patented Becky grin, small, happy Dina-smile*
Amber: “AND NOTHING BAD WILL EVER HAPPEN!!!”
*Beat panels, the entire gang smiles, their smiles get more strained for three more panels. The end.*
I’m hoping for the best. They both really need this right now.
I am however expecting the worst. I don’t think Amber is ready, especially when she hasn’t even had time for Ethan to tell her about his encounter with Sal and process all that.
Yeah, and she’s not coming into this in a neutral state of mind. Probably not the absolute worst time for Sal to properly meet Amber, but certainly not a particularly great one.
…This really hasn’t been a great day for Sal has it?
– First, she gets her jacket ripped fighting guys she thought were breaking into a house with a woman who spoke up about Ryan (because AG couldn’t be bothered to fill her in on the dummy addresses).
– Joyce is…well, Joyce in her room in the morning.
– Carla finds out about her jacket and will not shut up about it.
– Sal finds out about Ethan and has a not very pleasant trip down memory lane (though the talk is PRECIOUS)
– Marcie doesn’t believe Sal about the de-escalating and isn’t ready to forgive her yet.
– Sal goes on a fairly potentially self-destructive drive.
– Marcie doesn’t believe her about making friends either and well, Malaya is Malaya (though Sal’s, as usual, the one who started that fight).
And god knows how this chat with Amber is going to go if this isn’t a massive tease.
I really wonder if that bombshell’s gonna be Sal figuring out Amber now.
Also, Amber is adorable and I love her. That said, honey, no, don’t leave Walky and AG to deal with the mess that’ll happen if you sleep in the same bed without telling him.
That said, I don’t blame Amber for wanting to wait until she’s ready, but unfortunately it looks like she’s wanting to put it off indefinitely. The longer she doesn’t tell him, the more it looks like she’s hiding it rather than just not being ready to share.
Also telling someone while they’re falling asleep that you stabbed their sister… not really the best way to broach that topic? Or anything important?
Yeah I’m guessing we’re about to start a red flashback cascade here, which was why I was pushing ‘controlled circumstances but REALLY SOON even if they’re not psychologically ready.’ Narrative won’t wait.
The narrative already has waited long enough! This is the storyline 37; Amber’s initial flashback to the robbery was in storyline 17. The strip connecting Amber and Sal was published on December 22, 2013. This confrontation has been five years in the making. And it’s magnificent.
After obfuscating and shirking the inevitable as Amazi-Girl and Sal became friends, there is finally an issue big enough to force the truth to come out.
Yep. Pretty suspenseful place to leave off the Sal POV flashbacks. (I think Amber’s version also had a while between the hostage scene and ‘just some punk with a knife’ as the full reveal, but I’m pretty sure we had seen the contextless knife raised panel before then?)
Yeah there are people objectively worse to hook up with than Mike, but, y’know, not a ton. Very few age-appropriate in this strip, and I think the remaining ones are incompatible with Ethan. (I’m basically just coming up with Mary and Peter, who is Boy Mary and therefore proooobably not down with the gays. If he were though GOD that would be just completely awful. At least as bad as Mike, maybe worse. Do not fuck Peter, Ethan.)
I mean, a lot of her habits tend towards escapism. She immerses in fandoms and writes fandom to escape into different worlds. She becomes Amazi-girl and crafts an alternate persona to escape herself and her own trauma. When she was dating Danny, she stolidly tried to keep him separated from herself and her own issues, he was dating Amazi-girl, not Amber, he became a part of that escape and it was always a trigger point for her when he tried to be dating not just the persona Amazi-girl, but also Amber. Dating Danny was a sort of romantic escapism and since she could separate it as something Amazi-girl was doing could feed into her narrative of Amazi-girl. Now she’s dating Walky, he’s dating Amber, while knowing about Amazi-girl. It’s progress, but it’s still an escape. So, she’s very romantic, because it’s an escape and not the reality of a hard conversation about her past and how it messed her up.
Amber, it probably won’t get more organic than the chance you just let pass. Or the moment at the stairs after you fled from sal and walky found you.
And I think you know that.
Sal was there at the start but left to go and ‘meet’ Malaya. Amber was being AG to let off steam before joining later and, indeed, took Sal’s spot after she had departed.
Maybe Walky will find out that he’s getting expelled over his grades being changed, and Amber can just slip it in then. “Hey, I stabbed your sister after she held up a gas station convenience store I was in. Also, I hacked your grades after you said not to, if you want to get back to that.”
Mike and Ethan aren’t dating and Mike told Ethan to play the field instead of getting exclusive with someone. If he’s mad at Ethan for following his advice, he can go pound salt.
At this moment, I don’t even care about the story arc. Finally, someone with a platform that reaches the multitudes used, “Between you and me,” instead of, “Between you and I.”
Yeah, but on the other hand Amber said “one late night we lay in bed” (which is past tense), where she clearly meant the future (“one late night we lie in bed”).
CONVENTION APPEARANCES
probably not anywhere for a while 'cuz the world is covered in death
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“also he gets me a pony”
Sal likes ’em tall, eh? well Ethan’s clearly at LEAST 6’20”
So 7’8″?
That’s not as funny
Your avatar makes me read this in Walky’s voice while picturing him pouting.
I love how Walky has a voice in your head, despite him not having an out loud voice given the medium. He definitly has a voice in my head too and now I can read it that way as well.
Can we pick actors to do the voices for the characters and/or play them in a live action version
Walky and Joyce have voices tho
Right? We know Amber’s probably the shortest out of the main cast, but still…
Dorothy and Walky next to each other shows they’re (within a thumb of) the same height, but Amber’s distinctly shorter, and Walky isn’t tall.
I ought to find a way to link a photo of my parents.
Mum was 5’½” (she insisted on the half inch). Dad admitted to being 6’7″, but was probably actually a little taller (he had to duck to get through standard doorways).
A wedding photo, 1948
Bah.
https://imgur.com/hkngpSF
I thought she was a second flower girl at first
A giant among men, indeed.
We’re not this bad, but my spouse is about a foot shorter than me. The presence of steps are a crucial part of affection sharing, for us.
from experience I can add… “and countertops” 😉
My grandparents were very nearly the same set of heights, oddly enough, at 5’1″ and 6’7″.
You aren’t one of my nieces or nephews, are you?
Im 6″5 and can confirm this is how the world looks
My estimate, if Amber is 5 ft, Ethan is about 6 ft 4 in.
Word of Willis is he’s about Batman’s height, so roughly 6 feet to six foot two.
Re: alt text
Can I live in that timeline please? It’s been less than a week and I’m going through withdrawal.
You’re the Doctor, can’t you somehow find that parallel universe where it’s still going?
Unfortunately, Squirrel Girl was cancelled in that universe.
You just can’t win.
Dammit. Infinite number of universes and we can’t get one perfect comic universe?
Okay, fine. How about the one where Marvel never made Cap a Nazi for a publicity stunt? I’ll take that one.
Hold on.
VWORP…VWORP
Okay, got a sampling from a few different realities here. In this one they made him a Scientologist…in this one he’s a birthday clown…in this one he’s still making angry posts about the 2016 Ghostbusters…and here’s one where he got a silly hat and took up the ukulele.
Birthday clown Steve Rogers actually sounds so bad it’s hilarious I would actually read that. Probably as a joke comic and not a Major Marvel-Defining Event, but it sure as hell beats Nazi.
I’ll settle for a timeline where Trump didn’t win in 2016.
And nothing bad ever did happen again. End of comic.
Honestly, if Willis ever decides to end the comic that would be a pretty hilarious way.
*Characters break the fourth wall, looking directly at viewers*
Dorothy: “And thus the comic ends, but the story? The story continuous even if it is not caught by the strips. ”
Joyce: “I will learn more life lessons. Maybe even eat THINGS THAT TOUCH OTHER THINGS.”
Dina: “I will learn more interesting dinosaur facts.”
Becky: “I’ve already learnt THE BEST dinosaur facts.” *patented Becky grin, small, happy Dina-smile*
Amber: “AND NOTHING BAD WILL EVER HAPPEN!!!”
*Beat panels, the entire gang smiles, their smiles get more strained for three more panels. The end.*
That reminds me of the ending to Eternal Sonata, except less upsetting.
…I honestly can’t remember the ending of that game, except that it was overly melodramatic.
The characters stare directly into the camera and affectlessly state the lessons they’ve learned. This goes on for the entire credit roll.
I feel this on the deepest level.
No I’m not a super hero
Yeah this sounds pretty realistic.
Dumbing of Age Book 9: Nothing Bad Ever Happens, Somehow
Dumbing of Age Book 9: And Then He Buys Me Cupcakes
Honestly I feel like this one’s a winner.
You left out a part.
Dumbing of Age Book 9: …And Nothing Bad Ever Happens, Somehow, Despite This Being My Life
Ooh and Sal is running toward them right now!!
OMG, I hate that I read this one right away because I have to wait almost the whole 24 hours until the next one!
*cough*patreon*cough* 😉
(…where you can say the exact same thing, but one comic ahead!)
And, by Willis’ mercy, only one comic ahead. And not, like, three ahead for thirty times the contribution.
For now???
Oh. Oh no, I just realized. Sal was gonna chase after Ethan to get proof that she’s changing and making friends. Amber’s with Ethan right now…
Which means…Sal is Amber and she got ahead and changed her clothes really fast!
Yeeaah, they’s about to interact!
Hhhhopefully Ethan can help moderate? This doesn’t seem like… the worst possible timing for Sal and Amber to try to reconcile, right?
I’m hoping for the best. They both really need this right now.
I am however expecting the worst. I don’t think Amber is ready, especially when she hasn’t even had time for Ethan to tell her about his encounter with Sal and process all that.
Sal might not take this well either. Even if, rationally, she doesn’t blame Amber, she might very well have trauma wrapped up in that stabbing too.
Yeah, and she’s not coming into this in a neutral state of mind. Probably not the absolute worst time for Sal to properly meet Amber, but certainly not a particularly great one.
…This really hasn’t been a great day for Sal has it?
– First, she gets her jacket ripped fighting guys she thought were breaking into a house with a woman who spoke up about Ryan (because AG couldn’t be bothered to fill her in on the dummy addresses).
– Joyce is…well, Joyce in her room in the morning.
– Carla finds out about her jacket and will not shut up about it.
– Sal finds out about Ethan and has a not very pleasant trip down memory lane (though the talk is PRECIOUS)
– Marcie doesn’t believe Sal about the de-escalating and isn’t ready to forgive her yet.
– Sal goes on a fairly potentially self-destructive drive.
– Marcie doesn’t believe her about making friends either and well, Malaya is Malaya (though Sal’s, as usual, the one who started that fight).
And god knows how this chat with Amber is going to go if this isn’t a massive tease.
Getting stabbed does tend to be traumatic.
Ease and, now I need cupcakes. Later…
are the proportions weird? Amber is suddenly half the size of Ethan
She’s five feet five in these boots.
Without them, her meat vehicle is 5’2″.
Willis has also said 5’3 before and the size chart he posted had Amber at 5’1/5’0. So the point is, she’s tiny. 😛
I wouldn’t call her tiny, I would go with short.
Yeah, according to Willis, the tiniest is apparently Marcie, who’s like 5 feet tall.
Yeaaaah, Amber, I think the plot’s about to catch up to you. Sorry. It was never gonna work.
On an unrelated note, remember how I said someone was making a Lulu doll in crochet a few weeks back? She is done, and she is beautiful.
Oh my gosh, Lulu comes with her various dolls! Tiny crochet moogle! That’s adorable.
She’s gorgeous, right? I’m just in awe of the artist, that was such a long project and the results are spectacular.
Needs more belts.
There are cupcakes in my fridge but I didn’t bother to have one for my dessert tonight because I wasn’t in the mood for that.
I really wonder if that bombshell’s gonna be Sal figuring out Amber now.
Also, Amber is adorable and I love her. That said, honey, no, don’t leave Walky and AG to deal with the mess that’ll happen if you sleep in the same bed without telling him.
That said, I don’t blame Amber for wanting to wait until she’s ready, but unfortunately it looks like she’s wanting to put it off indefinitely. The longer she doesn’t tell him, the more it looks like she’s hiding it rather than just not being ready to share.
Also, the art is becoming progressively more and more beautiful and I love the colours.
Also telling someone while they’re falling asleep that you stabbed their sister… not really the best way to broach that topic? Or anything important?
Yeah I’m guessing we’re about to start a red flashback cascade here, which was why I was pushing ‘controlled circumstances but REALLY SOON even if they’re not psychologically ready.’ Narrative won’t wait.
This is going to be super interesting and I want popcorn.
Seriously, this arc has been basically everything I love about Dumbing of Age. I’m in candy land.
Just stay away from candy mountain.
I was thinking more like the board game, but that was clever.
The narrative already has waited long enough! This is the storyline 37; Amber’s initial flashback to the robbery was in storyline 17. The strip connecting Amber and Sal was published on December 22, 2013. This confrontation has been five years in the making. And it’s magnificent.
After obfuscating and shirking the inevitable as Amazi-Girl and Sal became friends, there is finally an issue big enough to force the truth to come out.
It’s gonna be super painful, most of all because SO DAMN MUCH has built up around it in that time. And it will be AWESOME.
I’m sitting on the edge of my seat, waiting for Sal to blast in.
And red panels.
For which one? 😛
Everyone.
I was just wondering something along those lines. We haven’t seen the stabbing from Sal’s perspective yet- and that’s a conspicuous absence, yeah?
So, definite red panels for Amber, possible red panels for Sal. And possibly more flashback blue, too!
Yep. Pretty suspenseful place to leave off the Sal POV flashbacks. (I think Amber’s version also had a while between the hostage scene and ‘just some punk with a knife’ as the full reveal, but I’m pretty sure we had seen the contextless knife raised panel before then?)
This will be interesting. Also supremely painful.
…
You get a red panel! You get a red panel! Eeeeverybody gets red panels! 😀
David Willis: The Oprah Winfrey of Bad Childhood Memories
I approve of this plan.
Hey, Amber, stop spoiling future strips
“You had me at ‘not Mike'”
Yeah there are people objectively worse to hook up with than Mike, but, y’know, not a ton. Very few age-appropriate in this strip, and I think the remaining ones are incompatible with Ethan. (I’m basically just coming up with Mary and Peter, who is Boy Mary and therefore proooobably not down with the gays. If he were though GOD that would be just completely awful. At least as bad as Mike, maybe worse. Do not fuck Peter, Ethan.)
YOU get a red panel, and YOU get a red panel, and YOU get a red panel… EVERYONE gets red panels!!!!
Something must be going on with the server or something because it took me at least half an hour to get this site to load tonight
Of all the things in this world I expected the least, it is for Amber O’Malley to be a romantic!
Love does weird things to people.
I mean, a lot of her habits tend towards escapism. She immerses in fandoms and writes fandom to escape into different worlds. She becomes Amazi-girl and crafts an alternate persona to escape herself and her own trauma. When she was dating Danny, she stolidly tried to keep him separated from herself and her own issues, he was dating Amazi-girl, not Amber, he became a part of that escape and it was always a trigger point for her when he tried to be dating not just the persona Amazi-girl, but also Amber. Dating Danny was a sort of romantic escapism and since she could separate it as something Amazi-girl was doing could feed into her narrative of Amazi-girl. Now she’s dating Walky, he’s dating Amber, while knowing about Amazi-girl. It’s progress, but it’s still an escape. So, she’s very romantic, because it’s an escape and not the reality of a hard conversation about her past and how it messed her up.
Amber, it probably won’t get more organic than the chance you just let pass. Or the moment at the stairs after you fled from sal and walky found you.
And I think you know that.
Ah, optimism is a beautiful thing.
Wait.
Did I say “optimism”? I meant “DENIAL”.
Denial is a beautiful thing.
Will this be the first time ever that Sal has seen Ethan and Amber together since the Convenience Store Job?
Confirmed. All their shared panels are flashbacks.
I know that Ethan Amber and Sal were all at Joyce’s party. But I think I remember Amber taking Sal’s spot.
Sal was there at the start but left to go and ‘meet’ Malaya. Amber was being AG to let off steam before joining later and, indeed, took Sal’s spot after she had departed.
“More details” Amber’s face is adorns.
And, really, the way to her heart is cupcakes, as previously shown.
WILLIS YOU FUCKER I WAS SO SET FOR WHOLESOMENESS never trust a sunrise/sunset background colour pallet FUCK YOU YOU GOOBER
Oh Amber. a mood
well, that plan has as much a chance of working as Firefly has at making a comeback…
So, you’re saying that Amber and Walky’s serious talk will take place in a blockbuster movie instead?
Serenity barely made back its budget, I wouldn’t call it a blockbuster.
OK, explanation required. What is the alt text referring to?
The greatest comic book in history.
Transformers: Lost Light is a comic book series that ended recently. Transformers fans like Willis are still a little butt-hurt about it.
https://tfwiki.net/wiki/The_Transformers:_Lost_Light
Slowly I turn……
Hey Alt Text, too soon!
Yay, the site is working again! Thank Zorp.
Maybe Walky will find out that he’s getting expelled over his grades being changed, and Amber can just slip it in then. “Hey, I stabbed your sister after she held up a gas station convenience store I was in. Also, I hacked your grades after you said not to, if you want to get back to that.”
Okay, so it wasn’t just me the site’s server wasn’t working for.
Nope, I wasn’t able to get on until half an hour ago.
Yeah… I gotta say, Mike has every reason to be mad at Ethan over this.
Explain?
Mike doesn’t have the right to be mad at anybody for anything.
Even Amber’s dad?
Mike and Ethan aren’t dating and Mike told Ethan to play the field instead of getting exclusive with someone. If he’s mad at Ethan for following his advice, he can go pound salt.
Ah, I didn’t remember him telling Ethan to play the field. I figured they just never established that boundary.
And moving beyond that boundary before establishing it’s not there is a valid reason for being angry.
Yes, if they hadn’t specified that they are not dating and Ethan should play the field ahead of time, this would absolutely be a dick move.
Claire and Tai are smoking up, but somehow Amber’s eyes have gone sympathetically red too.
And Ethan’s, too.
Secondhand webcomic smoke is indeed a powerful thing.
no the strip will switch to joyce being goofy for a week and then will come back to finish maybe
We’re due for a week of Steve eating cereal first.
but a week in DoA time is like three months in QC time!
At this moment, I don’t even care about the story arc. Finally, someone with a platform that reaches the multitudes used, “Between you and me,” instead of, “Between you and I.”
Yeah, but on the other hand Amber said “one late night we lay in bed” (which is past tense), where she clearly meant the future (“one late night we lie in bed”).