Dumbing of Age Book Eleven

Dumbing of Age

A college webcomic by David Willis
RSS
‹
›
  • Home
  • About/Read before posting
  • Archive
    • by calendar
  • Cast
  • Store
    • Main Store (books and stuff)
    • T-shirts
  • Patreon
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
oh fine i'll tag lester
First Previous Random 268Comments Share Next Latest
Reddit Digg Facebook MySpace Delicious Stumbleupon Buzz Up! Mixx Technorati Google Bookmarks Yahoo Bookmarks Yahoo MyWeb Windows Live Propeller FriendFeed Newsvine Xanga LinkedIn Blinklist Twitter


BUFFER WATCH Comics are currently drawn and uploaded through:

September 20, 2023

OH RIGHT ALMOST FORGOT

by David M Willis on June 14, 2020 at 12:01 am
  • 03 - When It Crumbles

└ Tags: amber, becky, blaine, carla, dorothy, joyce, lester, malaya, sal, sarah, walky

Discussion (268) ¬

[ Comments RSS ]
  1. Ana Chronistic
    Ana Chronistic
    June 14, 2020 at 12:03 am | #

    /me tries being all clever finding the address

    “there’s ALMOST one in Gary, that’s three and a half hours from campus and ALSO an abandoned lot… well played”

    • Ana Chronistic
      Ana Chronistic
      June 14, 2020 at 12:04 am | #

      Lester bears a striking similarity to Shortpacked!Leo (whose counterpart we have not seen in DoA yet?)

      • He Who Abides
        He Who Abides
        June 14, 2020 at 2:28 am | #

        Looks a little old to be Leo, doesn’t he?

        • Gigafreak
          Gigafreak
          June 14, 2020 at 3:12 am | #

          Lester can shorten to Les, can’t it? I think I remember something about Les Bean being a family name. Maybe he’s related after all.

    • Rotunda
      Rotunda
      June 14, 2020 at 12:51 am | #

      The house is real and is in Bloomington, IN, but the address given in the strip is not the address of the house.

      • Psychie
        Psychie
        June 15, 2020 at 4:55 pm | #

        Yeah, I wanna say that that house is on Atwater, but there are a few houses around campus that kinda match.

    • Reltzik
      Reltzik
      June 14, 2020 at 11:51 am | #

      Bloomington has a N. Lincoln St and a S. Lincoln St, but no W. Lincoln St. Willis is keeping to the “no pointing my readers at real addresses which real people live at” rule.

      • Julius Cooper
        Julius Cooper
        June 16, 2020 at 5:33 pm | #

        Ah, a fellow Bloomingtonian! I was going to check and see if there was 1322 Lincoln, but then I remembered this fact myself! (Not getting out much has really put a damper on the geography skillz. :-p) )

        • Ana Chronistic
          Ana Chronistic
          June 17, 2020 at 12:45 pm | #

          Yeah I was all, in that X-Files about the 1200 block of Chain Bridge, that street only goes to the 1100s

          • Ana Chronistic
            Ana Chronistic
            June 17, 2020 at 12:46 pm | #

            (though I REALLY wonder where that Old Bridge is they claim is in Germantown)

  2. Yumi
    Yumi
    June 14, 2020 at 12:03 am | #

    THERE WE GO

  3. Reed
    Reed
    June 14, 2020 at 12:04 am | #

    ah yes, he’ll never be let out of prison now!!! we have a justice system that works!!!

    • danielle
      danielle
      June 14, 2020 at 12:05 am | #

      bwomp ba bwomp ba bwomp bwoooomp

    • Phil
      Phil
      June 14, 2020 at 12:06 am | #

      And Lester knows him! That obviously means he knows how much trouble he is and will take very good care of him.

      • tim gueguen
        tim gueguen
        June 14, 2020 at 12:08 am | #

        Or he’s wondering how much Blaine’s mob bosses will pay to have Blaine have a fatal slip on a piece of soap.

        • Mra
          Mra
          June 14, 2020 at 12:10 am | #

          Yeah, with all the publicity from Becky he will probably become more trouble than he is worth.

          • Regalli
            Regalli
            June 14, 2020 at 12:15 am | #

            It’s deeply sad how we’re all hoping for ‘mobsters on the inside of the prison system knock Blaine off,’ and how it is actually disturbingly realistic a possibility for such an ‘accident’ to befall him.

            That said, it is Blaine, so my sadness is purely for the fact that it IS disturbingly realistic and not for him.

            • tim gueguen
              tim gueguen
              June 14, 2020 at 12:21 am | #

              I wouldn’t want to see him die, but it’s a possibility.

              • Some1
                Some1
                June 14, 2020 at 12:36 am | #

                I will except Blaine dying if before he goes, he somehow gives our protagonists some sort of vague yet incredibly important advice that leads to the downfall of the mob.

                • clif
                  clif
                  June 14, 2020 at 12:59 am | #

                  If he dies, he can’t be brought back when you least expect it.

                • Regalli
                  Regalli
                  June 14, 2020 at 1:23 am | #

                  What clif said. Death’s basically the only guarantee we have that Blaine WON’T eventually show up again and escalate. (Almost certainly also why Ross died. If he stayed in jail, eventually there’d need to be a trial. If he escaped, he was just gonna do Exactly This again. Ross being dead gives more outlets for Becky and Joyce to wrestle with Complicated Grief Feelings AND brings the Carol and the congregation plot to a head.) Especially given his status as a mob stooge. If they DON’T knock him off so he can’t flip, then he’s probably still a useful enough pawn to get out of jail, and then he gets out, licks his wounds, and starts scheming vengeance again.

                • Jon Rich
                  Jon Rich
                  June 15, 2020 at 1:05 pm | #

                  I don’t think there’s any way that the mob will want Blaine anymore. This was an utterly harebrained scheme that got revealed through a sitting congresswoman’s twitter feed. It involved a recent campus shooter (even if he never killed anyone) that Blaine got out on bail. The story itself involves a vigilante, too, and kidnapping, and not one, but *two* motorcycle-car chases, if you count Ross’s earlier campus visit. There’s no way in hell that this isn’t making the national news—the media would eat this up, the stories practically write themselves. And I highly doubt that the mob has any use for a stooge who has become nationally recognizable for highly-visible failure.

          • Kyle Voltti
            Kyle Voltti
            June 14, 2020 at 4:07 pm | #

            Given the fact that he didn’t use them a a resource in this He’s probably been on thin ice for a while. I’m also sure that once they find out that he bullied their nephew into helping and possibly exposed him to issues with law enforcement that Blaine will be lucky if it’s just soap in the shower.

        • Doctor_Who
          Doctor_Who
          June 14, 2020 at 12:11 am | #

          Yeah, even if this guy’s a dirty cop, I can’t imagine that Blaine’s master plan to get out of some child support payments that wound up with a dead body, him on the news, and a congresswoman’s twitter account spreading the story to all corners of the internet is gonna look good on his next performance review.

          • SeanR
            SeanR
            June 14, 2020 at 12:29 am | #

            Well, he’s probably out from under those child support payments now. Not exactly easy to keep those up while in jail.
            So, now what? Amber was dependent upon her dad’s court-ordered payments, so there goes her tuition. Becky is presumably freed by her dad’s death, as it makes her an orphan, rather than a prison orphan, now.
            I suppose, as Joe’s presumptive step-sister, she might still have the possibility of support, but I suspect she’ll be needing a job, now. Good thing a semesters tuition isn’t paid in installments.

            • Doctor_Who
              Doctor_Who
              June 14, 2020 at 12:37 am | #

              Becky will probably be the owner of her dad’s house now. If she sells it (can’t imagine she wants to go back to that community ever again), it could cover her tuition even if she doesn’t stay employed with Robin.

              • woobie
                woobie
                June 14, 2020 at 3:02 am | #

                Rent out. Not sell.

                • tbf
                  tbf
                  June 14, 2020 at 7:00 am | #

                  She’s eighteen years old, home-schooled, and plans to be a full time college student. She doesn’t have the time, knowledge, or emotional bandwidth for renting, and I think she knows that.

                • Deanatay
                  Deanatay
                  June 14, 2020 at 8:17 am | #

                  There are property management companies that can do all the heavy lifting for a slice of the rental income. Becky just has to answer the occasional phone call asking if she wants to replace the water heater and stuff like that.

                  Keeping the property is definitely the better option. No better wealth than land.

                • HeySo
                  HeySo
                  June 14, 2020 at 10:39 am | #

                  @tbf You’re seriously underestimating the benefits of renting, I think.

                  Nevermind that selling real estate is really not ever ideal unless you need the immediate income, the property value has scaled to a point of notable profit and is likely to decend again soon, or the property value is otherwise likely to meaningfully drop.

                  Having property is [generally speaking] a security net for housing, a stable income source, and (in most cases) a fairly stable and reliable investment option.

                  Of course, a lot depends on factors like how the local region is doing, how the region around the house itself is doing, and the state of the house.. but yeah, generally speaking, can’t imagine anyone wanting to give up a house without a clear basis for doing so.

                  Likewise, as Dean noted, renting out is usually pretty offhand, and pretty easy to delegate. The only real concern as a private leaser is that you want to be careful to vet your tenants on financial reliability and destructive habits [which’d reduce (sometimes significantly) how much profit you’d make off their residency].

                  Barring any unusual circumstances, I’d definitely take having a house [in good condition within a worthwhile (ie, easy to rent-within and with stable or rising real estate values) neighborhood] over immediate cash, each and every time.

                • Charles Spencer
                  Charles Spencer
                  June 14, 2020 at 2:00 pm | #

                  Just me, but I’ve seen two houses my parents let a property mgmt firm rent, and two ‘managed’ bay another firm for my in-laws. Renters don’t care and property management firms don’t either, as long as the checks clear. All four properties eventually sold for less than 70% of what they were worth before renting, one less than 50%.

                • Roborat
                  Roborat
                  June 15, 2020 at 3:22 pm | #

                  I can’t see her keeping the house, too many painful memories for her, I think she will sell it, if she ends up with ownership of it.

            • Amias
              Amias
              June 14, 2020 at 12:40 am | #

              Amber is Joe’s presumptive step-sister, not Becky. Joe’s dad and Amber’s mom are together, whereas Becky’s parents are now both dead.

              • Amias
                Amias
                June 14, 2020 at 12:41 am | #

                Oh, oops, I misunderstood your sentence structure. Yeah, Amber probably needs a job if the child support payments aren’t coming anymore. If Dr. Rosenthal can help with tuition, I’m sure Amber’s mom won’t mind.

                • Strangeshapes
                  Strangeshapes
                  June 14, 2020 at 9:04 am | #

                  Maybe she can get a job at a local comic/toy store which will hire her out of hero worship for her AG antics?

            • Segnosaur
              Segnosaur
              June 14, 2020 at 1:27 am | #

              The issue of Amber’s tuition post-prison has been discussed before.

              It is possible that Amber may need to find other ways to fund her schooling. But if you want to be optimistic, maybe blaine has assets that could be seized by the courts to cover tuition… (His business, money he may have hidden away, etc.) And with Blaine’s mob ties revealed, I am sure investigators will be able to examine his finances in detail

            • CJ
              CJ
              June 14, 2020 at 4:08 am | #

              I suspect Blaine has lots of money, so maybe a good lawyer could get Amber a lump payment for her schooling plus damages?
              Might leave the wife and Faz in the lurch.

              • Strangeshapes
                Strangeshapes
                June 14, 2020 at 9:07 am | #

                You know, it wouldn’t surprise me if Faz and his mom found out that Blaine had a bunch of private accounts that he conveniently forgot to mention while telling them that they were poor because of Amber.

          • DrunkenNordmann
            DrunkenNordmann
            June 14, 2020 at 2:08 am | #

            And that isn’t even going into HOW he paid for Ross’ bail.

            Personally, I’m suspecting he might have misappropriated mob money for this stunt, so yeah, likely not gonna look good for him.

            • Swithchris
              Swithchris
              June 14, 2020 at 8:01 am | #

              the church helped him pay it, that was said in a earlier comic.

              • Diane
                Diane
                June 14, 2020 at 11:08 am | #

                The church didn’t have enough money. Blaine gave some money himself to get him out.

        • Miri
          Miri
          June 14, 2020 at 12:27 am | #

          *Or* he’s going to die “unexpectedly from his previously deemed non-life threatening” injuries on the way to the police station, before he can talk to anybody other than Lester, which Lester would definitely think is a shame because this way there’s no way he’ll be able to name names in return for leniency, since some of these credible kidnapping victims and fellow co-conspirators are talking about him having mob connections and dirty cops on side, which means that these allegations can’t be investigated any further. Lester and him seemed to recognise each other?! Oh, uh, Bridge group a few years ago. Casual acquaintances. Hadn’t seen him for years *twitch*

          • sharktrs
            sharktrs
            June 14, 2020 at 12:54 am | #

            The ol’ Epstein treatment.

            • Hephaistos Fnord
              Hephaistos Fnord
              June 14, 2020 at 1:39 am | #

              Between Epstein and BLM, our justice system has basically soiled its pants in front of us this year, hasn’t it?

              • not someone else
                not someone else
                June 14, 2020 at 1:49 am | #

                Don’t forget the Panama Papers!

              • Chris Phoenix
                Chris Phoenix
                June 14, 2020 at 2:05 am | #

                Our justice system has been soiled for over a century (probably two, I don’t know early history that well). This year it finally got bad enough for middle-class white people to notice.

                There was that Black guy who was sleeping in his car at a fast food joint, and the cops woke him up and shot him. And then there was that other Black guy who was sleeping in his car at a fast food joint, and the cops woke him up and shot him too. The second one was hours ago; the first was a couple of years ago, but who noticed?

      • BarerMender
        BarerMender
        June 14, 2020 at 2:34 am | #

        Lester is thinking: “I don’t know you, buddy. You’re not taking me down with you.”

        • Needfuldoer
          Needfuldoer
          June 14, 2020 at 10:51 am | #

          Yeah, I hope the wobbly-ness of that speech bubble’s tail is important.

    • Pylgrim
      Pylgrim
      June 14, 2020 at 9:51 am | #

      This is clearly a hint that our compassionate, non-profit prison system will manage to rehabilitate Blaine while he serves the full sentence given to him, thus repaying his debt to society!

    • Needfuldoer
      Needfuldoer
      June 14, 2020 at 10:50 am | #

      Half a dozen college kids got kidnapped and a man’s dead. Even if he knows the cops involved, hopefully this is high-profile enough that they can’t sweep it under the rug. If anything, they’ll cover their own corruption up and throw Blaine under the bus to save their own backsides.

      Besides that, once the local news stations see the tweets and hear the address over the police scanners, they’ll put 2 and 2 together and jump all over this like lionesses on a gazelle.

      • Reltzik
        Reltzik
        June 14, 2020 at 11:57 am | #

        Who’s sweeping things under the rug? Blaine’s got a dozen flunkies who will all agree that those six college kids WEREN’T kidnapped, that THEY killed Ross along with Becky who tried to frame him for her act of revenge, and oh look now they’re lying to the police about it. But their lies broke down under police questioning. Isn’t that right, Lester?

        • thejeff
          thejeff
          June 14, 2020 at 6:21 pm | #

          That’s going to be real hard to pull off and it requires basically every cop at the scene to be in on it. And sweeping all the evidence of Blaine getting Ross out of prison and everything else he did to set this up under the rug. Why did he have flunkies and the house, anyway?
          It also requires none of the flunkies to throw him under the bus in hopes of better treatment.

          Plus the political and financial weight is on the other side (Robin, the Walkerton family, the Ruttens)

    • JetstreamGW
      JetstreamGW
      June 15, 2020 at 12:07 am | #

      Honestly? He might not get out. I doubt he’s even a caporegime. He’s just a mob stooge. I doubt he’s so valuable that his bosses would bail him out of something this high profile.

  4. Bunny
    Bunny
    June 14, 2020 at 12:06 am | #

    I don’t like how chummy Blaine is with Lester, but having a corpse at the crime scene and multiple witnesses might mean it doesn’t matter how many cops he has on his string.

    • General Tekno
      General Tekno
      June 14, 2020 at 12:08 am | #

      Well, one thing worth considering too is “Blaine might not be that high level a guy.”

      He might be more powerless than we think because I imagine that his associates don’t want heat on them.

      • Olivia Cheatham
        Olivia Cheatham
        June 14, 2020 at 12:10 am | #

        What if Blaine goes turncoat and sings about the rest of the mob in exchange for immunity tho?

        • Lumino
          Lumino
          June 14, 2020 at 12:11 am | #

          Then getting to Amber will be the LEAST of his problems.

        • Screwball
          Screwball
          June 14, 2020 at 12:14 am | #

          *bad mobster accent* Then someone may have to help him warm up his vocal cords. With their boot. Maybe make sure he’s thinking straight with the other boot. You know what I’m saying, don’t you? */bad mobster accent*

          • Commander Clash
            Commander Clash
            June 14, 2020 at 4:32 am | #

            *bad mobster accent* “Never goagaknst the fsmily.”

          • Strangeshapes
            Strangeshapes
            June 14, 2020 at 9:12 am | #

            Based on your avatar, my new headcanon is that he got in with the Raptor Mafia. You don’t cross Blue.

        • DSL
          DSL
          June 14, 2020 at 6:32 am | #

          See: “Slips on the soap in the prison shower,” above.

        • Reltzik
          Reltzik
          June 14, 2020 at 11:59 am | #

          Then Blaine gets to live out the next several decades under house arrest and witness protection, never having any contact with anyone from his past life that might be used by the mob to track him down.

    • Lumino
      Lumino
      June 14, 2020 at 12:10 am | #

      The fact that a sitting Congresswoman’s campaign manager was involved in it kind of makes it WAY too big of a deal. Public pressure should keep too much shenanigans from happening unless Blaine is the fucking Kingpin.

      • Chris Phoenix
        Chris Phoenix
        June 14, 2020 at 2:07 am | #

        Yeah, because that worked really well for Epstein. No, having publicity just makes it more urgent for him to be silenced.

        • Chris
          Chris
          June 14, 2020 at 2:13 am | #

          Public pressure should at least keep shenanigans from working in Blaine’s favor.

    • BigDogLittleCat
      BigDogLittleCat
      June 14, 2020 at 1:11 am | #

      If he had cops on a string would he have used a bunch of dumb college kids?

      • Wizard
        Wizard
        June 14, 2020 at 2:41 am | #

        Taking a payoff to look the other way is one thing, kidnapping is another. Not saying there aren’t cops that corrupt, but even if Blaine happens to know some, they were probably beyond his budget.

  5. General Tekno
    General Tekno
    June 14, 2020 at 12:06 am | #

    Oh no, he’s on a first name basis with the cop.

    He’s getting out, isn’t he.

    • Mra
      Mra
      June 14, 2020 at 12:08 am | #

      I figured the implication was that cop is one of the guys he was planning to sick on Mike, but even with a few on his side, I don’t think this will be without consequence, albeit maybe not legal ones.

    • tim gueguen
      tim gueguen
      June 14, 2020 at 12:10 am | #

      Probably not. He’d need some pull with a judge or DA not to end up with a big bail.

      • Chris
        Chris
        June 14, 2020 at 12:30 am | #

        We’re looking at a murder charge here, which means that even in Indiana, they can hold him without bail.

    • Ray Radlein
      Ray Radlein
      June 14, 2020 at 12:13 am | #

      He’s in waaaay too deep for one crooked cop to let him go. Way above that cop’s pay grade

      • Screwball
        Screwball
        June 14, 2020 at 12:25 am | #

        Daniel here. Best a single corrupt cop can do for someone in this much fecal matter is beat him up a bit, maybe “accidentally forget” some of Blaine’s rights to damage the case against him.

        Problem with that is Blaine is already running a bit rough there, any more injuries and it might cause permanent damage. Not that anyone this side of the 4th wall would care. Also, with all the publicity Becky has brought to this including a connection to a Senator, they Officers higher up the chain will be watching and someone hurting the case against Blaine will more than likely bring their wrath down upon whichever Cop is responsible, deliberate or not…

        • Opus the Poet
          Opus the Poet
          June 14, 2020 at 11:22 pm | #

          Robin is a representative, not a Senator. She’s got this district.
          https://www.dumbingofage.com/2011/comic/book-1/06-yesterday-was-thursday/district/

    • Sirksome
      Sirksome
      June 14, 2020 at 12:15 am | #

      I mean Blaine’s a white man with moderate connections. The right spin can put most of the blame on the dead guy. While I don’t think he can skirt jail time with the right investigation or really lack of proper investigation and evidence he could have very comfortable and limited jail time.

      • SeanR
        SeanR
        June 14, 2020 at 12:38 am | #

        He’s probably well into the liability column, by now. Whoever he was working for, probably wants him to quietly die. The very fact he greeted this guy by his first name, in front of potential witnesses, should have this dirty cop considering options to ensure this gets buried, fast. Shot trying to escape sounds like a pretty good option. Grabbed at a service revolver and was shot in the scuffle wouldn’t be all that unbelievable, considering everything else he’s done for the aggrandizement of his own ego. Just need to remember to get that armor off him first, or arrange to punch through the armpit during the “scuffle”.

    • Rosicrucian
      Rosicrucian
      June 14, 2020 at 12:15 am | #

      He killed a man while executing a plan to kidnap the campaign manager of a sitting US Congresswoman.

      There comes a point where connections won’t undo things. Especially when those connections just started seeing you as a huge liability.

      • Regalli
        Regalli
        June 14, 2020 at 12:25 am | #

        Yeah, Blaine went rogue and then proceeded to self-destruct in pretty much the most spectacular way possible. I don’t think Gramps is gonna think he’s worth it.

        Also if he dies, there might be a less… pressing investigation into his finances than discovery for trial might reveal. (Because when your publicly-stated motive was ‘she’s costing me too much in tuition’ and your scheme is… well, this, a forensic audit seems pertinent.)

        • Kamino Neko
          Kamino Neko
          June 14, 2020 at 3:44 am | #

          And he got the boss’s family involved in this debacle, which can’t help with forgiveness.

          • MatthewTheLucky
            MatthewTheLucky
            June 14, 2020 at 4:34 am | #

            Do we have any confirmation that Yuri is from the Mob in this universe?

            • Kamino Neko
              Kamino Neko
              June 14, 2020 at 4:46 am | #

              I mean Asher, not Faz.

        • Roborat
          Roborat
          June 15, 2020 at 3:28 pm | #

          I am so happy someone managed to spell “rogue” correctly.

      • Inscrutablejane
        Inscrutablejane
        June 14, 2020 at 12:38 am | #

        Pretty sure the fact that Becky *is* a campaign manager gives the feds jurisdiction (if they choose to exercise it). Same with kidnapping itself, and they would be almost certain to step in if any of the kids were legal residents of a different state.

    • Nah
      Nah
      June 14, 2020 at 12:43 am | #

      I doubt just being friends with a cop would manage that for him. Turning on the mob and spilling all he knows on them though……

      • thejeff
        thejeff
        June 14, 2020 at 8:46 am | #

        Except the implication is that he knows the cop from the mob.

    • Matthew Evan Davis
      Matthew Evan Davis
      June 14, 2020 at 12:51 am | #

      I think it’s more likely that he’s getting a “died while attempting escape.

      • thejeff
        thejeff
        June 14, 2020 at 8:55 am | #

        “I’m making out the report now. We haven’t quite decided whether he committed suicide or died trying to escape.”

        • Opus the Poet
          Opus the Poet
          June 14, 2020 at 11:30 pm | #

          And this is the point where I post “porque-no-los-dos.gif”

  6. Ray Radlein
    Ray Radlein
    June 14, 2020 at 12:07 am | #

    Thought that medical professional there was Jocelyne for a moment

    • Jamie
      Jamie
      June 14, 2020 at 12:32 am | #

      …I thought that until I saw your comment, tbh.

    • Regalli
      Regalli
      June 14, 2020 at 3:17 am | #

      Right? And I know she doesn’t have a ponytail, and yet.

    • Jackson
      Jackson
      June 14, 2020 at 9:46 am | #

      Same. Had to check the tags to be sure.

    • Cattleprod
      Cattleprod
      June 14, 2020 at 10:57 pm | #

      That hair color doesn’t really show up much outside of Joyce’s family, does it?

  7. Stephen Bierce
    Stephen Bierce
    June 14, 2020 at 12:08 am | #

    This week on CSI: Bloomington…

  8. Warcodered
    Warcodered
    June 14, 2020 at 12:09 am | #

    Yeah the address and names and details might be a little important.

  9. Screwball
    Screwball
    June 14, 2020 at 12:10 am | #

    Aaaand I may still be learning all this Human stuff, but when the guy with Mob connections knows his arresting Officer by name, that either means he’s been arrested by him a few times, or he’s 1 of the cops on the payroll. How does that saying go?

    I got a bad feeling about this…

  10. Regalli
    Regalli
    June 14, 2020 at 12:10 am | #

    Aw, Becky in that second panel. Please let her get hugs at some point in the next nine days.

    Guessing we’ll probably also cut away to Ethan and Mike before the arc ends as well. (Let’s hope, at least?)

    • Bagge
      Bagge
      June 14, 2020 at 1:42 pm | #

      There really should be more Becky-hugs

  11. Sirksome
    Sirksome
    June 14, 2020 at 12:11 am | #

    Pfffft. He’s gonna be out on the street in two days!

    • SeanR
      SeanR
      June 14, 2020 at 12:39 am | #

      Yeah, but will the car slow down before he’s pushed out into the street?

      • Opus the Poet
        Opus the Poet
        June 14, 2020 at 11:32 pm | #

        I was hit twice by cars, and even I gigglesnorted at that. Blaine deserves it.

  12. BBCC
    BBCC
    June 14, 2020 at 12:13 am | #

    Friendly reminder Charles, like Linda, is a garbage parent.

    And Willis you magnificent bastard. You know us too well.

    Since Blaine knows this cop and he is, presumably, a mob contact, I’m guessing Lester’s gonna get a phone call shortly and then, whoops, Blaine shows up dead in his cell. Suicide, don’tcha know.

    • Chris
      Chris
      June 14, 2020 at 12:34 am | #

      I guess his injuries were worse than we thought. Such a shame.

    • Miri
      Miri
      June 14, 2020 at 12:36 am | #

      My prediction is he never quite makes it to his cell and doesn’t, therefore, have any chance to give any names. He’s been bashed around enough that, so long as the ambulance crew don’t insist on taking him to hospital in police custody and Lester can take him away from everybody else (bar a probably also corrupt partner), he could plausibly succumb to his previous injuries. I predict Lester will help make that happen…

  13. Axel
    Axel
    June 14, 2020 at 12:14 am | #

    That cop obvs knows him, but I don’t know that he’ll be compliant enough to let Blaine go when there’s such a high profile case. I mean he’s a cop and a piece of shit who probably would live to go murder people with Blaine, but they do try to at peast a little to keep their reputation with white people

  14. Robbie
    Robbie
    June 14, 2020 at 12:15 am | #

    Does Becky know Joyce is unkidnapped again? She doesn’t have her phone.
    Someone please hug her.

    • Bagge
      Bagge
      June 14, 2020 at 1:14 am | #

      There is far to little hugging of Becky going on right now.

  15. Dunedon
    Dunedon
    June 14, 2020 at 12:15 am | #

    And Dina manages to hide once again … hopefully she’ll turn up in Mike’s hospital room … in time.

    • Regalli
      Regalli
      June 14, 2020 at 12:18 am | #

      I’m gonna say until proven otherwise that Dina is preparing the World’s Most Dinoriffic Pillow Fort right now, for extremely necessary cuddle time.

  16. Joe Moose
    Joe Moose
    June 14, 2020 at 12:19 am | #

    So Amber knew he was lying. Well done, miss.

    Here’s hoping Mike will be fine!

  17. Meagan
    Meagan
    June 14, 2020 at 12:20 am | #

    Amber looks so sweet and innocent here, like a kid again. I love her.

    • Meagan
      Meagan
      June 14, 2020 at 12:21 am | #

      I should have added, I think this is because some of her burdens have been lifted.

    • Rotunda
      Rotunda
      June 14, 2020 at 12:58 am | #

      It’s because she has a bandage for the scrape under her eye.

  18. Some1
    Some1
    June 14, 2020 at 12:25 am | #

    I really don’t think Lester is at all on Blaine’s side. Why? Because I find it incredibly doubtful that Blaine actually has any cops working for him. Really, whats more likely, that Blaine actually has enough money to convince a bunch of dirty cops to work for him when his only other stooges are all college kids who only signed on because they wanted to attack Amazi-Girl or that Blaine is full of shit and Mike was never actually in danger?

    • Chris
      Chris
      June 14, 2020 at 12:36 am | #

      For whatever reason, they do seem to know each other on a first name basis.

      • Some1
        Some1
        June 14, 2020 at 12:54 am | #

        Until given evidence to the contrary I choose to believe that Lester is a completely innocent cop who knows Blaine because he’s been trying to pin money laundering on him for years but never had enough evidence to make an arrest.

        • Segnosaur
          Segnosaur
          June 14, 2020 at 1:39 am | #

          Lester appears to be a beat cop… Not the type you would expect to be investing financial crimes.

        • Axel
          Axel
          June 14, 2020 at 2:33 am | #

          I mean that’s a weird assumption to make about a cop.

          (I do agree that he won’t necessarily help Blaine though)

    • Ellegos
      Ellegos
      June 14, 2020 at 1:35 am | #

      Or they know each other because they both work for he mob.

    • thejeff
      thejeff
      June 14, 2020 at 9:01 am | #

      There’s never been any reason to think Blaine has cops working for him. There is good reason to think that there are cops working for the same mob Blaine work for and that he might be able to tap into those connections. Unauthorized by Gramps and likely to get him in trouble if revealed, but still possible.

  19. Bicycle Bill
    Bicycle Bill
    June 14, 2020 at 12:31 am | #

    Plays Scott Joplin’s “Solace” (as performed by Marvin Hamlisch in ‘The Sting’) on a near-by car radio.

  20. Delicious Taffy
    Delicious Taffy
    June 14, 2020 at 12:35 am | #

    Quit my job today. Our boss (T) quit because he called his boss (P) and asked for help because the whole crew is run ragged and exhausted, and he got laughed at, mocked, and told “I don’t fucking care about your crew”. So T quit and P is apparently running things there now. Today, before we clocked in, P pulled me aside and fed me a bunch of bullshit about how he’s gonna do his best to take care of us, and if I stay, he’ll give me a raise and blah blah blah. I said, I’ll have to talk to my girlfriend, see if she wants to stay too, and so he lets me go talk real quick and answers a phone call he was getting anyway. Only thing I said was to grab her purse, we’re leaving. Told the rest of the crew goodbye, it’s been nice working with everyone, call me if they need a reference. I’ll figure something out, and I know T will give me a hell of a reference if I need one later. I’ve got a backup plan, so money shouldn’t be too too too tight.

    Just had to have some integrity, for once.

    • Bicycle Bill
      Bicycle Bill
      June 14, 2020 at 12:37 am | #

      Good luck to you.  I’ve been in that same boat and all I can say is, sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.

    • Miri
      Miri
      June 14, 2020 at 12:38 am | #

      Oof. Good luck with the back-up plan and we done on maintaining integrity!

      • Miri
        Miri
        June 14, 2020 at 12:38 am | #

        *well

    • clif
      clif
      June 14, 2020 at 1:10 am | #

      No regrets.

    • BigDogLittleCat
      BigDogLittleCat
      June 14, 2020 at 1:15 am | #

      Good for you!

    • Norah
      Norah
      June 14, 2020 at 1:18 am | #

      Good luck with everything.

    • BBCC
      BBCC
      June 14, 2020 at 1:18 am | #

      good on you.

    • YakkoRex
      YakkoRex
      June 14, 2020 at 1:20 am | #

      Congratulations! You have chosen well.

    • Regalli
      Regalli
      June 14, 2020 at 1:26 am | #

      May things go smoothly!

    • He Who Abides
      He Who Abides
      June 14, 2020 at 2:34 am | #

      Congrats, my dear person!

    • Stifyn Baker
      Stifyn Baker
      June 14, 2020 at 2:37 am | #

      Been there, done that (three years ago), so I understand what this means for you. Life’s too short to work for selfish idiots who think that screwing over their employees is the easiest way to advance their own careers. Hope the current global situation doesn’t mess up your back up plan. Good luck, seriously.

  21. Bicycle Bill
    Bicycle Bill
    June 14, 2020 at 12:35 am | #

    In panel two, I think the fact that one of the paramedics (you can tell by the stethoscope draped around her neck) is trying to provide some sort of comfort for Becky pretty well confirms that Blaine is now on the hook for at least manslaughter.  A crooked cop on the beat isn’t going to be much help for that; he’s going to need to have the DA or the judge himself on the take and in his pocket to get away scott-free with something like that.

    And in panel four Amber’s gotten a bandage for the contusion beneath her right eye, but just what is that thing that Joyce is holding up to her own face?  Looks a little too bulky for kleenex; more like a face mask or inhaler or something.

    • Yumi
      Yumi
      June 14, 2020 at 12:36 am | #

      Ice pack, maybe?

      • clif
        clif
        June 14, 2020 at 1:13 am | #

        I assumed she was reading the tweets.

      • Roborat
        Roborat
        June 15, 2020 at 3:46 pm | #

        Nope, cell phone (knife).

    • Chris
      Chris
      June 14, 2020 at 12:38 am | #

      Ice pack, maybe?

      • Yumi
        Yumi
        June 14, 2020 at 12:39 am | #

        *narrows eyes* Are you mocking me?

        (This is a joke.)

        • Chris
          Chris
          June 14, 2020 at 12:50 am | #

          Are you mocking me?

          (Scrolled up to take another look, scrolled back down, posted comment, and there it was twice.)

    • The Aussie Bloke
      The Aussie Bloke
      June 14, 2020 at 12:41 am | #

      Ice pack?

    • He Who Abides
      He Who Abides
      June 14, 2020 at 2:36 am | #

      Ice pack, maybe?

    • Kamino Neko
      Kamino Neko
      June 14, 2020 at 3:50 am | #

      Ice pack, ma*smack!*

      OK, definitely an ice pack, wrapped in a cloth.

    • King Daniel
      King Daniel
      June 14, 2020 at 3:50 pm | #

      Perchance it is a package filled with frozen water?

  22. Catman
    Catman
    June 14, 2020 at 12:42 am | #

    Totally unimportant, but Heelys is spelt with a Y!

    I own two pairs, and it only bothers me that they don’t follow general pluralizing rules.

    • BarerMender
      BarerMender
      June 14, 2020 at 2:46 am | #

      I support Willis’s making the word follow general pluralizing rules. Fuck “Heelys.”

  23. K. Ivan Ruppert
    K. Ivan Ruppert
    June 14, 2020 at 12:42 am | #

    I hope this will finally be the thing that gets Amber the help she’s been needing and not getting.

  24. DailyBrad
    DailyBrad
    June 14, 2020 at 12:46 am | #

    Whatever happens to Blaine, he is at least momentarily not their problem anymore.

  25. Bicycle Bill
    Bicycle Bill
    June 14, 2020 at 12:48 am | #

    In panel one, Malaya says that “he was trying to get away on heelies,” which I assume is a reference to the guy who came pogo-sticking down the steps about the same time she was looking to open a can of whoop-ass on someone.  Are ‘heelies’ even a thing any more?  They seem so twenty years ago, or are they like Crocs — something else that just refuses to go away and die already?

    • sharktrs
      sharktrs
      June 14, 2020 at 12:56 am | #

      A friend of mine still owns some, so I assume that for some ungodly reason people are still buying ’em

    • Swithchris
      Swithchris
      June 14, 2020 at 8:07 am | #

      as somebody who worked in a shoe store for over a year, I can assure you that not only are they still a thing, but they still make new versions of them on the regular, had to stock them quite a lot.

  26. Norah
    Norah
    June 14, 2020 at 1:06 am | #

    Ugh, Trump/Pence ads showing up on here.

    • YakkoRex
      YakkoRex
      June 14, 2020 at 1:11 am | #

      Nice to see them wasting their money…

    • NinjaNick
      NinjaNick
      June 14, 2020 at 1:44 am | #

      Adblock. #trumpforprison2020

    • Wizard
      Wizard
      June 14, 2020 at 2:52 am | #

      Sometimes the targeted ad algorithms throw up some seriously random stuff. My favorite combo consisted of one ad for hats with right-wing slogans, and one for anti-HIV drugs. Oh, and just a couple of days ago, over at IW, I got an add for bullet-proof vests, which seemed exceptionally random.

      • Reltzik
        Reltzik
        June 14, 2020 at 12:07 pm | #

        I often google a lot of stuff for fiction I write. Like the stats on different guns, or what exactly happens if a bullet lodges in a spine, or how much blood is actually in the human body….

        … so, yeah. The algorithm thinks it knows what I’m into.

    • CJ
      CJ
      June 14, 2020 at 4:19 am | #

      Probably don’t get that because of location. As I always disable every option for targeting ads, I often wonder about the stuff that appears, even though mostly I don’t look at all.

    • tbf
      tbf
      June 14, 2020 at 7:09 am | #

      I’m getting ads for a Husky brand ripping hammer at Home Depot, I kid you not.

  27. Chronos
    Chronos
    June 14, 2020 at 1:10 am | #

    So, who was Lester in the Walkyverse?

    • clif
      clif
      June 14, 2020 at 4:08 am | #

      Mr. Not-Appearing-In-This-Comic.

    • Opus the Poet
      Opus the Poet
      June 14, 2020 at 11:38 pm | #

      Leslie’s husband from her first marriage before she came out.

  28. Bagge
    Bagge
    June 14, 2020 at 1:13 am | #

    Becky out, but never down

  29. Bobcat
    Bobcat
    June 14, 2020 at 1:22 am | #

    I must have switched off the brain today, but I can’t connect Amber’s reply to Sal’s statement in the last panel – can anybody explain to me?

    • cartoogle
      cartoogle
      June 14, 2020 at 1:31 am | #

      I can’t. It seems utterly out of the blue, disconnected.

      Maybe Amber is processing ahead to what Blaine’s witness statement might be: he’ll lie if it hurts his pride, so he’ll do… something.

    • YakkoRex
      YakkoRex
      June 14, 2020 at 1:34 am | #

      I think she is replying to Sal, and indicating that it was easy to reject his claim, since he was lying when he made it.

    • Regalli
      Regalli
      June 14, 2020 at 1:35 am | #

      It’s a callback to Brain Ghost Mike’s discussion with AG on her way to warn Becky (he said exactly that line, IIRC,) but it’s also (at least part of) why she COULD reject his claim on her. His approval is not something she actually wants in the slightest, but his last monologue was also just more of Blaine trying to put a spin on things so he can pretend he’s still the Big Bad Mobster In Control.

      And since he was lying about how he’s proud of her and this is what he wanted all along, I think that made it easier for her to realize that no, this is all him lying, she is NOT as much like Blaine as she fears, she’s not the monster he is, and that helped pull her back from the berserker rage edge and reject him.

      • Regalli
        Regalli
        June 14, 2020 at 1:45 am | #

        Also, right after the stabbing, there was a Brain Ghost Blaine that said some pretty similar things (‘Finally, you’ve proved you’re an O’Malley’ – I forgot before Brain Ghost Mike that Amber was already actively hallucinating. https://www.dumbingofage.com/2017/comic/book-7/04-the-do-list/proved/) so the realization that Blaine would only say something like this as a desperate attempt to pretend he’s still in charge of the situation took some of the power from THAT as well. Blaine did not make her in his image, intentionally or otherwise, because Amber can choose to be something different.

      • Chris
        Chris
        June 14, 2020 at 1:53 am | #

        I think it’s also significant that this is Amber, echoing something that Imaginary Brain Mike said to Amazi-Girl.

        • Regalli
          Regalli
          June 14, 2020 at 3:14 am | #

          It’s a clear sign they’re sharing memories again, and I think it’s a first step towards reconciliation and them not considering Amber the Monster In The Psyche Closet anymore. (Because Amber enjoys violence, so clearly Amber’s the Bad One, because DID means having a Good One and a Bad One in media.)

          Given Cerberus’s comments way back when about inaccurate media portrayals of DID and the fact that Amber’s whole ‘I don’t need you anymore’ attempts were so opposed by AG, I don’t think they’re going to ‘reintegrate’ (at least, not successfully, and attempts would probably be similar enough to what caused the memory lockouts in the first place that it would also be a retread.) But I can very much see it being a peace offering from AG to Amber, as they try to be a better friend to themselves.

    • Segnosaur
      Segnosaur
      June 14, 2020 at 1:48 am | #

      Blaine told Amber I created you”. Amber rejected that with a “I made me” statement.

      Sal commented on how Amber was able to reject Blaine’s claim. Amber said Blaine was lying… His ego would not allow him to admit Amber was a success on her own, so he lied about saying “I made you”.

      • Deanatay
        Deanatay
        June 14, 2020 at 8:25 am | #

        Amber’s comments about her father are often subtly directed at herself, in which she sees a LOT of her father. Amber is subtly saying SHE lied, because the truth hurts her ego.

    • cartoogle
      cartoogle
      June 14, 2020 at 2:14 am | #

      Sorry, y’all, it’s definitely foreshadowing. Yes, it’s a callback to what Mike said to Amber/AG, but there’s something more here.

      • Regalli
        Regalli
        June 14, 2020 at 3:05 am | #

        I’m inclined to say it’s way more character development than witness statement. It actually works straight as a response to Sal’s statement (‘Wish I could reject my parents’ influence the way you just did’/‘He didn’t mean it to begin with, so I can’t be as bad as he is’) AND as a culmination of Amber’s issues with Blaine, starting in that first scene with him. (‘You’re too much like your mother.’ *Amber punch* ‘I’m not enough like my mother, I’m saddled with your petty violent rage.’ ‘Well, that was a lucky shot, come here and I’ll put you in your place.’ https://www.dumbingofage.com/2013/comic/book-3/04-just-hangin-out-with-my-family/gorilla/ Then the fear she’ll become him, Brain Ghost Blaine, red panels, etc.) Blaine spends this entire arc denying that Amber can ever be a threat to him, and he immediately turns to that ‘you’re welcome’ when irrefutable proof shows up and smacks him in the face. But ONLY then, because it’s a desperate control tactic. (The dude had to ignore the fact that she STABBED A RAPIST REPEATEDLY to keep insisting she’s useless.) The realization Blaine will never actually consider her worthy of approval is just as much part of her owning her choices and her potential to be a better person as ‘I made me’ is. They’re both the same fundamental point, that when he says she’s like him, he is wrong.

        Also, I honestly don’t believe a witness statement will be relevant (and therefore necessary to foreshadow) because I’m pretty damn convinced Blaine’s going to die sometime between now and being brought before a judge. Just setting all the other reasons why for a moment, there’s not really much left he can do for Amber’s character arc. She just denied him power over her actions on a fundamental level. Anything he shows up for after this will either be a retread or a backslide or both. He’s being taken off the board after this, and that’s where the ‘he’s a liability to the mob’ angle comes in. (I suppose he could go into witness protection, but since Blaine is in fact stupid enough to commit the e-scooter chase and for a 13-year-old to find his conflicting tax returns, he’d probably still try to get revenge again. Also, he’s being arrested by a guy who knows him and we had a pretty clear Chekhov’s Gun in ‘some of the cops are on his mob’s dime’ from Mike that’s revealed AFTER Sarah’s ‘I really do not want cops escalating this’ bit. He’s not telling Lester he’s going to turn state’s evidence.)

    • BarerMender
      BarerMender
      June 14, 2020 at 2:48 am | #

      She was able to ignore his claim because she knew he was lying.

  30. NinjaNick
    NinjaNick
    June 14, 2020 at 1:47 am | #

    Becky forgot to *mic-drop* on that tweet.

    Did Lester know this Blaine guy in high school or college? Who knows?

    • BenRG
      BenRG
      June 14, 2020 at 2:19 am | #

      Blaine is probably the guy who gives Lester a brown paper bag full of used $20 bills every month to look the other way under certain circumstances. The question is, will that inspire Lester to do Blaine a favour or will it make him decide that he will be safer if his gun ‘accidentally’ goes off in Blaine’s guts?

  31. abysswatcher1993
    abysswatcher1993
    June 14, 2020 at 1:49 am | #

    So Lester was one of his contacts? I wonder how is Indiana doing the recent protests against police corruption.

    • Reltzik
      Reltzik
      June 14, 2020 at 12:21 pm | #

      Have a sample.

      That’s from a bit over a week ago, so it probably died down since then. Until this last Friday, at least.

    • Dr T
      Dr T
      June 14, 2020 at 12:37 pm | #

      Indianapolis had some unrest. I would be flabbergasted if Gary didn’t as well. Bloomington has been pretty peaceful, which is a nice change from last summer where Antifa and white supremacists clashed over the goddamned farmers’ market.

      Yes, you read that right. They fought over the farmers’ market, specifically over a pair of vendors who were publicly outed for aiding and abetting other white supremacists who came to Indiana to firebomb a synagogue.

  32. BenRG
    BenRG
    June 14, 2020 at 2:16 am | #

    Actually, if I were Blaine, I’d be worried about knowing that cop. It’s more likely that the local boss may have decided that all debts and embarrassments should be fixed by an incident with Blaine ‘resisting arrest’.

    Meanwhile, I think that Becky is about to have her Dylan fifteen minutes. I also suspect that the Brown parents will make an appearance; the siblings too. That could easily get very, very ugly very quickly.

    • Axel
      Axel
      June 14, 2020 at 2:38 am | #

      yeah but Blaine’s dumb AF; he probably thinks he’s going to be let go and be provided with everything he needs to leave the state

      • DSL
        DSL
        June 14, 2020 at 6:45 am | #

        … for a certain value of “let go and provided with everything he needs to leave the state.”

        • Axel
          Axel
          June 14, 2020 at 5:43 pm | #

          I mean in his mind he probably thinks he’s going to get everything short of a parade from the mob, for his valiant effort and also suitably punishing Gramps’ grandson.

          At least, I think he looks smug and confident now that he’s in police hands. Could be misreading his face and he’s actually realizing he’s in shit

  33. DaveM
    DaveM
    June 14, 2020 at 2:21 am | #

    Anyone else worried about where Faz has gotten to? We haven’t seen him since Sal literally kicked him to the kerb (politely). It’s worrying is all.

    • Rotunda
      Rotunda
      June 14, 2020 at 2:28 am | #

      He may very well still be at the corner of Hillside and Woodlawn where Sal left him, implying that she’d be back. He has shown himself capable of calculating that trusting the students is his best shot.

      • DaveM
        DaveM
        June 14, 2020 at 3:40 am | #

        It’s just that
        (1) He’s an accomplice and the Police will want to talk to him at least (and technically Sal could be charged with aiding and abetting by rescuing him from the van and letting him go).
        (2) I doubt he’ll get a warm welcome from Yuri (and heaven help the kid if Blaine makes bail, or manages to weasel out of this).

  34. Chris
    Chris
    June 14, 2020 at 2:41 am | #

    Panel 1: I’m sure Carla is somehow making it all about her.

    • BenRG
      BenRG
      June 14, 2020 at 5:17 am | #

      I think that she’s likely going to be too genuinely shocked that there is an actual dead person in the house and that this has all been for real stakes.

  35. Jothki
    Jothki
    June 14, 2020 at 2:46 am | #

    Okay, I can handle Amber being a superhero, her father becoming a supervillain and kidnapping all of their friends, and the whole thing culminating in a car chase that involves Amber jumping onto the van, climbing over the roof into the front, and then throwing her father out of the van. However, Sal not being immediately assaulted by the police just stretches my suspension of disbelief a bit too far.

    • Bicycle Bill
      Bicycle Bill
      June 14, 2020 at 5:07 am | #

      Not ALL cops are bastards, and the sooner people realize that….

      • Miri
        Miri
        June 14, 2020 at 7:59 am | #

        Joyce and her may have been standing too close together for them to get a clear shot before having no grounds?

      • Strangeshapes
        Strangeshapes
        June 14, 2020 at 9:32 am | #

        True, but at least one of these cops is one of Blaine’s “friends,” so I don’t think he’s going to be the best example of “not a bastard.”

      • MW
        MW
        June 14, 2020 at 1:07 pm | #

        Weird how all the good ones seem to be invisible.

    • Sombrero
      Sombrero
      June 14, 2020 at 6:51 am | #

      That’s why she keeps her hair this way. Also, Blaine is not the only parent with connections in the local society.

    • Dr T
      Dr T
      June 14, 2020 at 1:41 pm | #

      In the same vein, it appears that Sarah made herself very scarce before the cops showed up. Doubt she wanted to be the black person at the crime scene wielding a bat….

      • Sombrero
        Sombrero
        June 14, 2020 at 3:17 pm | #

        She is discreetly standing behind Carla in panel 1.

  36. BarerMender
    BarerMender
    June 14, 2020 at 2:52 am | #

    What surprises me is that Blaine got through all of this without losing his rug. He must have primo wig glue.

    • King Daniel
      King Daniel
      June 14, 2020 at 3:15 am | #

      Blaine wears a wig? Was this mentioned on Patreon?

      • BarerMender
        BarerMender
        June 14, 2020 at 3:58 am | #

        Observe the two different colors of his hair. It’s a wig that doesn’t even match.

        • BBCC
          BBCC
          June 14, 2020 at 4:29 am | #

          Pretty sure that’s Blaine starting to grey/whiten/whatever at the bottom.

          • BarerMender
            BarerMender
            June 14, 2020 at 5:23 am | #

            It’s not gray, it’s brown. And graying starts on top, usually right in front.

            • tbf
              tbf
              June 14, 2020 at 7:20 am | #

              Charles Walkerton, Jeremiah Keener, Richard Rosenthal, and Saul Siegal all started graying at the sides instead of the top. Graying at the temples is a pretty ubiquitous comic shorthand for middle age (Reed Richards, Hal Jordan, etc) and even happens in real life sometimes.

              • BarerMender
                BarerMender
                June 14, 2020 at 4:42 pm | #

                Nevertheless, Blaine’s hair isn’t gray. It’s brown.

                • Needfuldoer
                  Needfuldoer
                  June 14, 2020 at 5:08 pm | #

                  Gray hairs mixed in with brown ones would make the sides and back look lighter.

                  The pattern’s apparent when you look at the flashback strips he’s in. Even though they’re in blue halftone, the greying isn’t as obvious.

            • cartoogle
              cartoogle
              June 14, 2020 at 3:44 pm | #

              Heck, I’m graying over the ears and the rest of my hair is jet black. Def got a Reed Richards ‘do.

            • NotPiffany
              NotPiffany
              June 14, 2020 at 3:45 pm | #

              My husband started going gray at the temples when he was a teenager. It happens.

  37. TlalocW
    TlalocW
    June 14, 2020 at 3:13 am | #

    So glad Blaine got caught. Hopefully his knowing the cop won’t keep him from justice. Hopefully Mike is safe, etc. However, I am petty enough that I hope for some strips showing some negative blowback on Joyce’s church.

    • King Daniel
      King Daniel
      June 14, 2020 at 3:15 am | #

      The church blowback is likely the next arc.

      • DaveM
        DaveM
        June 14, 2020 at 3:33 am | #

        I can see church blowback from Joyce & her dad, but the church itself? No they merely wanted to bring Ross back into their loving community and help him in his troubled times. The EVIL Blaine took advantage of their innocence and led Ross down the path that led to his death (Blaine and Becky that is, after all, none of this would have happened if Becky had been a “good girl” and obeyed her father, and listened to the “loving” advice of her moral superiors).

        It’s much easier to stand with old friends and say “we were following the right path, and now are being persecuted because a stranger deceived us”, than to say “maybe I was wrong, and did therefore play a part in this tragedy”, and thus stand alone and shunned by former friends.

        • Eldritchy
          Eldritchy
          June 14, 2020 at 7:57 am | #

          You know what would be fun? If Ross would survive but because of the brain damage his personality would change into a kind that wants nothing to do with the Church. That or he’d survive and start questioning whether he was right himself.

  38. Dracke
    Dracke
    June 14, 2020 at 3:15 am | #

    I wonder how long it took her to write her super long tweet chain, schetule it and all before leaving

    • CJ
      CJ
      June 14, 2020 at 4:01 am | #

      Becky is probably a very fast typer.

  39. Juanoku
    Juanoku
    June 14, 2020 at 3:21 am | #

    FINALLY, JESUS
    a bit anti climactic tbh, but still epic

  40. Cmasta1992
    Cmasta1992
    June 14, 2020 at 3:38 am | #

    Oh look at that! Cops on the fuckin take like we told you they would be.

    Nerts to everyone talking noise about not calling the cops.

  41. DaveM
    DaveM
    June 14, 2020 at 3:50 am | #

    Just thinking, but it’s possible that Becky’s “last words” twitter storm could play out well for Blaine. It wouldn’t take much for a lawyer to claim those tweets are prejudicial and render it impossible for Blaine to get an unbiased jury. If our esteemed author wanted to be really nasty, Blaine could skate on this and possibly go free.

    • CJ
      CJ
      June 14, 2020 at 4:00 am | #

      Haiti, what? Just have Someone publish your crimes on twitter and you can’t be taken to trial because everyone already has heard of them?

      • DaveM
        DaveM
        June 14, 2020 at 4:24 am | #

        Well not you or me (well not me anyways). But Becky is using the twitterfeed of an “unconventional” congresswoman who’s up for election. Between the amount of people following that account (which will include more conventional news outlets, not all of which will wait for fact checking and legal advice) and you’ve pretty much tainted a good amount of the jury pool.

        Not sure about Indiana law, but this sums it up for Australian law (which is usually on the same page)
        https://www.judicialcollege.vic.edu.au/eManuals/OCBB/67725.htm

      • Daniel M Ball
        Daniel M Ball
        June 14, 2020 at 4:31 am | #

        it’s a frequently used, but not always effective, tactic for actual Defense Attorneys (not those underpaid public defenders, the ones with actual money) to use to try and claim their client can’t get a fair trial. This actually works with a remarkable number of judges, but almost never for getting a mistrial. At best, it can get the trial venue moved most of the time.

    • Eldritchy
      Eldritchy
      June 14, 2020 at 4:13 am | #

      I kind of doubt it. Twitter pretty much doesn’t exist outside certain circles. You wouldn’t have much problem with finding people who upon being asked about Twitter would say “What is that?”

    • Eldritchy
      Eldritchy
      June 14, 2020 at 4:20 am | #

      Ah but then again this is a Rep’s account… just grab some Democrats, they are definitely not following her.

      • DaveM
        DaveM
        June 14, 2020 at 4:35 am | #

        If I may, I think you may be underestimating how many democrats follow Republican accounts (look at how many democrats follow your current Potus for example). And the more “individual” news networks (Fox, OAN, Drudge, Infowars) would pass it on (even if only to paint Becky and Robin as the REAL bad guys) which would lead to more reliable news sources debunking those claims.

        Unlikely, but plausible if Willis is feeling especially evil and wants Blaine to hang around.

        • Bicycle Bill
          Bicycle Bill
          June 14, 2020 at 5:11 am | #

          “look at how many democrats follow your current Potus for example”

          These days, we do it for the lulz — and he rarely disappoints us.

      • thejeff
        thejeff
        June 14, 2020 at 9:16 am | #

        And in this case, the whole point of Becky’s tweeting making Robin popular is that she’s getting who aren’t traditional Republican supporters.

        Unless your average Indiana Republican is wildly in favor of LGBTQ rights.

    • Chris
      Chris
      June 14, 2020 at 12:48 pm | #

      A tweetstorm is nothing compared to the evening news, and high profile cases go to trial all the time. If they could find a jury for OJ, I’m sure getting one for Blaine will be easy.

    • Needfuldoer
      Needfuldoer
      June 14, 2020 at 5:04 pm | #

      Remember, Al Capone went away for tax evasion.

  42. DarkoNeko
    DarkoNeko
    June 14, 2020 at 4:33 am | #

    that’s what niceMike said eh

  43. Keulen
    Keulen
    June 14, 2020 at 4:34 am | #

    I’m kinda disappointed that Lester got tagged while none of the other extra characters in this strip got tagged.

    • Bicycle Bill
      Bicycle Bill
      June 14, 2020 at 5:20 am | #

      He’s the only one got mentioned by name.  Remember that two the douchebros who were helping Blaine never got tagged either, and the only reason the other three (Taylor, Tyler, and Dawson) got tagged is because, in the story arc when Robin came to Bloomington for her rally, they were the ‘interns’ who met her at the airport.

      • thejeff
        thejeff
        June 14, 2020 at 9:24 am | #

        Not to mention being the 3 bros that helped Ryan fight Amber and Sal at the rally.

    • Needfuldoer
      Needfuldoer
      June 14, 2020 at 5:02 pm | #

      That’s merely an unimportant detail which will definitely not come back into play in the future.

      /s

  44. BenRG
    BenRG
    June 14, 2020 at 5:22 am | #

    So, I’m thinking that the cops scooped up the entire of Ryan’s little buddy group too? This is going to be difficult headache for their daddies to try to sweep under the rug with political contribitions (or threats to withdraw such). Lots of ‘fine but mislead young men’ who are going to be spending the next four months or so in a five-star ‘rehab clinic’ with their dads telling them to learn to keep their damn heads down in the future.

    • Rabid Rabbit
      Rabid Rabbit
      June 14, 2020 at 9:22 pm | #

      Robin’s campaign is suddenly going to get some massive contributions.

  45. Lone Duck
    Lone Duck
    June 14, 2020 at 6:39 am | #

    So with the immediate danger resolved, will Joyce’s mom and church reflect on their actions that led to the death of Ross? Time will tell.

    • Sombrero
      Sombrero
      June 14, 2020 at 6:54 am | #

      In Joyce’s church, “reflect” does not mean what you think it means.

    • OBBWG
      OBBWG
      June 14, 2020 at 12:45 pm | #

      Upon reflection, God’s plan clearly involved Ross heroically stopping a dangerous criminal. Ross was rewarded by being united with our Savior in heaven and no longer dealing with the pain of his faithless wife (who is surely in hell) or his vile turncoat daughter.

      • Sombrero
        Sombrero
        June 14, 2020 at 3:15 pm | #

        This.

    • Needfuldoer
      Needfuldoer
      June 14, 2020 at 5:01 pm | #

      He’ll be a martyr in their eyes, because he died attempting to “save” Becky.

  46. DSL
    DSL
    June 14, 2020 at 6:58 am | #

    Going on the heretofore-supported assumption that DYW never includes anything by accident, I’m kind of interested in the apparently nonplussed/dismayed attitude of the first responder listening to Carla in P1. Assuming Carla is making sure the 1R knows “who my dad is,” this could be a battle of Parental Influence: Blaine’s masters and the Browns’ church (both highly capricious supporters when they see their interests threatened) vs. the colossus that is Rutten/Ruttech.

    • BigDogLittleCat
      BigDogLittleCat
      June 15, 2020 at 12:04 am | #

      I forget the context, but some time ago Carla said she’d been out “since that Time cover.”
      I read that as literal, that she was on the cover. I imagine a cover story about trans youth and Carla’s being chosen for the cover because she’s loud and proud, and her parents of course.

  47. Dan
    Dan
    June 14, 2020 at 7:11 am | #

    this might be kinda off topic, but as a trans person with some form of paranoia (by paranoia i mean having to change my name from this comment to avoid potentially being outed in the future) developed due to coming from a totalitarian queerphobic country (and also hearing about all the horrible shit the US treated trans people), the moment i see carla talking to the first responder i get pretty panicky, even if it’s fictional

    • BigDogLittleCat
      BigDogLittleCat
      June 15, 2020 at 12:05 am | #

      I’m sorry you have to live with that. Hugs from an internet stranger, if you want them.

      • Dan
        Dan
        June 16, 2020 at 2:40 am | #

        thank you <333

  48. Gash
    Gash
    June 14, 2020 at 7:56 am | #

    Aight i know Amber had the face wound before, justifying the bandage, but it’s funny to think she DID trip over and hit Joyce in the nose in the previous comic! 😀

  49. thumb
    thumb
    June 14, 2020 at 8:54 am | #

    Soooo . . . Lester, is it?

  50. Alanari
    Alanari
    June 14, 2020 at 9:09 am | #

    This comic made me feel uneasy and it took a while for me to figure out that it was because of people standing close to each other.
    This pandemic thing has been around for too long.. *sighs

  51. Rabisch
    Rabisch
    June 14, 2020 at 9:49 am | #

    And obviously, Blaine know that cop. I wonder what excuse will find for make him go out without problems.

  52. uniquepassive
    uniquepassive
    June 14, 2020 at 10:30 am | #

    I mean, the best we can really hope for is Blaine’s death. We’re left to believe he’s not exactly wealthy, since he keeps pushing to use Faz as a pawn based on the idea that Amber’s college tuition is something that impacts Blaine’s new family.
    In jail, no income = no tuition for Amber. Death = possible life insurance/will shenanigans leaving Amber with the means to continue studying, and now have some sort of beef with the mafia, who presumably, were owed a large chunk of money from Blaine.

  53. Kirbiliusclausius
    Kirbiliusclausius
    June 14, 2020 at 10:39 am | #

    Is white privilege protecting Amber from arrest?

    I mean, she’s a costumed vigilante that has seriously hurt people. Including the guards of a campaign manager hired by a congresswoman. Her costume is on the ground and blood soaked.

    Or does this take place in a world where a black preacher defending himself against a gang of white people isn’t arrested for calling the police on them? Does this take place in a world where the discovery of a single counterfeit bill doesn’t result in the 9 minute suffocation of a black man’s life? Does this take place in a world where lying in bed while black gets you shot to death when plain clothes policemen bust in your house because they caught the guy they were looking for yesterday?

    If not – cool. After all, there’s not closets on Etheria and that’s cool. But then why does Sarah regularly raise the idea that including cops around black people isn’t the safest path?

    • poofdepoof
      poofdepoof
      June 14, 2020 at 12:01 pm | #

      To your first question: it might be! This comic strip has certainly not shied away from showing her white privilege before.

      First example that pops into my head: https://www.dumbingofage.com/2016/comic/book-6/04-it-all-returns/alert/

    • thejeff
      thejeff
      June 14, 2020 at 6:46 pm | #

      Probably – in the sense that a black person in this situation would likely be treated worse. But white privilege protecting her here isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s bad that it wouldn’t apply to black people, but in this context it’s mostly the presumption of innocence that should apply to everyone.

      And of course, even with police and black people, they don’t screw it up every time. Just far too often.

      Specifically though, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they’d managed to disappear the costume before the cops arrived on the scene. There’s obviously been a bit of a time lapse. We’ll probably get a bit more on that at some point. Without that, the grounds for arresting Amber are a lot weaker. There may be fallout from Robin’s guards, but it might not be part of this case yet.

  54. showler
    showler
    June 14, 2020 at 10:44 am | #

    Next month’s Patreon strip: Lester being arrested for being a crooked cop?

  55. bcb
    bcb
    June 14, 2020 at 11:09 am | #

    Who is Lester and why does he know Blaine?

    • JessWitt
      JessWitt
      June 14, 2020 at 1:15 pm | #

      I wanna say he’s a dirty cop who is in Blaine’s pocket.

      • NotPiffany
        NotPiffany
        June 14, 2020 at 4:29 pm | #

        He’s probably in the mob’s pocket alongside Blaine.

  56. PB
    PB
    June 14, 2020 at 12:27 pm | #

    I honest-to-God wish for all their parents to be watching this on the news and call them. Sal’s dad would be the least bad of the lot, since I can only imagine him calling and trying to make amends. Her mom’s a complete write-off.

    Also I want Carol to call so Joyce can finally reject her. Or for Hank to call and tell Joyce that they’re getting divorced, either or.

    • Bicycle Bill
      Bicycle Bill
      June 14, 2020 at 4:23 pm | #

      Don’t worry, they’ll find out.  This will be on every newsfeed in every major city and podunk town in Indiana … even Hanover and French Lick.

    • Needfuldoer
      Needfuldoer
      June 14, 2020 at 4:58 pm | #

      Sal’s dad will probably join Linda in her Karenesque “SALLY how could you let your brother GET KIDNAPPED” tirade, then go back to doting over Walky.

      I can definitely see Hank Brown being disgusted by the whole situation, while Carol is more upset because Ross “failed in his mission”.

  57. Allandrel
    Allandrel
    June 14, 2020 at 12:52 pm | #

    Considering the extent of Blaine’s crimes, the scale of the public attention (which will include federal interest thanks to Becky’s tweets), and the fact that he did all of it for petty personal reasons, I think that the BEST response that Blaine can hope for from his bosses is that they cut him loose and threaten him to keep his mouth shut.

    He’s clearly not worth the trouble to save, and their primary concern at this point would just be keeping him quiet.

    • NotPiffany
      NotPiffany
      June 14, 2020 at 4:34 pm | #

      I can’t help but think that Asher’s going to be the wild card when it comes to Blaine’s fate. If he has reason to think Blaine will keep his mouth shut, Gramps might leave him alone in prison. If Gramps finds out that Blaine dragged his grandson into this mess, however?

  58. Bagge
    Bagge
    June 14, 2020 at 1:43 pm | #

    Becky looking devestated in front of the cameras bode well for Robin’s reelection campaign

    • Needfuldoer
      Needfuldoer
      June 14, 2020 at 4:54 pm | #

      Hopefully that’s the forensics team, not the media. I don’t think FOIA requests would apply here.

  59. Booker
    Booker
    June 14, 2020 at 2:58 pm | #

    I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop. It’s still early in the morning….a lot can still happen.

    • Bicycle Bill
      Bicycle Bill
      June 14, 2020 at 3:54 pm | #

      Turns out they all show up late and ill-prepared for their mid-terms and end up flunking out. [grin]

      • a/snow/mous/e
        a/snow/mous/e
        June 14, 2020 at 5:41 pm | #

        I think the university will probably find a way to get them makeup exams considering the circumstances?

  60. cartoogle
    cartoogle
    June 14, 2020 at 3:58 pm | #

    Isn’t Becky the only crime victim here who doesn’t know AG and Amber are the same person? In her tweets she mentioned them separately, and her reaction to AG last time was “what the heck are you doing dressed like Amber?” The cops are going to awfully confused by these differences. Well unless all the other kids omit AG from the story, but I don’t see that flying, especially since the henchmen will say they got their asses kicked by AG not Amber.

    • cartoogle
      cartoogle
      June 14, 2020 at 4:08 pm | #

      Oh, wait: forgot AG took magic mask off in front of Becky, so I guess not.

  61. C.T Phipps
    C.T Phipps
    June 14, 2020 at 4:20 pm | #

    Blaine will get pardoned by President Manley and the Medal of Freedom for fighting an Antibigot terrorist group made of minorities.

  62. Van Jealous
    Van Jealous
    June 14, 2020 at 7:57 pm | #

    They all need to take Incompletes this semester (well, maybe not Malaya and Carla) and go into serious therapy.

Who's that guy over there?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
  • Polls Archive
CONVENTION APPEARANCES


probably not anywhere for a while 'cuz the world is covered in death

Tweets by @damnyouwillis

©2010-2023 Dumbing of Age | Powered by WordPress with ComicPress | Subscribe: RSS | Privacy Policy | Back to Top ↑