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Dumbing of Age

A college webcomic by David Willis
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September 18, 2023

Christopher

by David M Willis on February 20, 2022 at 12:01 am
  • 03 – Trial and Sarah

└ Tags: liz, sarah

Discussion (186) ¬

[ Comments RSS ]
  1. Ana Chronistic
    Ana Chronistic
    February 20, 2022 at 12:05 am | #

    but did he come ON…

    • nobodybasically
      nobodybasically
      February 20, 2022 at 12:25 am | #

      That was Eileen.

      • True Survivor
        True Survivor
        February 20, 2022 at 1:55 am | #

        This is my new favorite comment.

      • Thag Simmons
        Thag Simmons
        February 20, 2022 at 2:09 am | #

        Tu-ra lu-ra tu-ra lu-rye ay

      • maarvarq
        maarvarq
        February 20, 2022 at 7:50 am | #

        Aargh, don’t put that in my head again!

        • Decidedly Orthogonal
          Decidedly Orthogonal
          February 20, 2022 at 11:30 am | #

          That’s what Eileen said.

        • Shadowsnail
          Shadowsnail
          February 20, 2022 at 12:53 pm | #

          It’s fine – we’re putting the Save Ferris version in your head this time.

  2. Sirksome
    Sirksome
    February 20, 2022 at 12:07 am | #

    My real name is actually Christopher but with a K like “Kris” but anyway since I find both Sarah and Liz pretty attractive I feel really called out right now.

    • Doctor_Who
      Doctor_Who
      February 20, 2022 at 12:13 am | #

      Does Liz know that now you’re cheating on her with your Sarah avatar?

      • Amós Batista
        Amós Batista
        February 20, 2022 at 3:10 am | #

        He betrayed Sarah, but kept her on the bottom of his heart..

  3. BBCC
    BBCC
    February 20, 2022 at 12:09 am | #

    Ahhhh, the sweet sound of sisters bonding.

    I mean, not this, but I’m sure it’s here somewhere. XD

    • Yet_One_More_Idiot
      Yet_One_More_Idiot
      February 20, 2022 at 5:19 am | #

      I hate to be the one to tell you this, Sarah, but THAT is not a smile… xD

      • Decidedly Orthogonal
        Decidedly Orthogonal
        February 20, 2022 at 6:41 pm | #

        It’s not a _happy_ smile, but it is most definitely a smile. Revenge, spite, and schadenfreude all have very good reasons for existing. Like a check on psychopathy. Unfortunately that doesn’t mesh well with modern systems, so the psychos presently have an edge. That never lasts forever though.

    • michaelinasmeal
      michaelinasmeal
      February 20, 2022 at 5:46 am | #

      fluid bonding the same guy more like

  4. Darkoneko
    Darkoneko
    February 20, 2022 at 12:11 am | #

    Well that sure is a mood whispash

    • Wack'd
      Wack'd
      February 20, 2022 at 1:08 am | #

      i’m always a big fan of the stupidly abrupt changes in mood

  5. Doctor_Who
    Doctor_Who
    February 20, 2022 at 12:11 am | #

    Liz: You should not be doing that with your eyebrows if you want to look happy.

    Sarah: Shut up. This isn’t natural for me, I’m gonna tackle it one facial feature at a time.

    • Lingo
      Lingo
      February 20, 2022 at 3:11 am | #

      Right now she’s reminding me of Lucy Van Pelt when Lucy would forget how to smile.

  6. Kyrik Michalowski
    Kyrik Michalowski
    February 20, 2022 at 12:12 am | #

    I really want to see what Liz is trying to run/hide from. My current guess is that she’s known as a christian girl at her current school. So she wants to flee it so that people see her as more than just a girl who folllws the bible and wouldn’t do anything improper.

    • woobie
      woobie
      February 20, 2022 at 12:34 am | #

      Good Christian girls can be even more attractive.

      • cbwroses
        cbwroses
        February 20, 2022 at 1:30 am | #

        I prefer good Christian bad girls (not to be confused with bad Christians who happen to be girls).

        • Opus the Poet
          Opus the Poet
          February 20, 2022 at 8:43 am | #

          This comment is doubleplus good.

    • Spencer
      Spencer
      February 20, 2022 at 8:44 am | #

      I mean yeah that’s the stated text. It’s how she put it to Joe and then to Sarah before she was tackled.

      • anonymsly
        anonymsly
        February 20, 2022 at 9:40 am | #

        I personally don’t see why she doesn’t just stop acting like that, myself. She clearly doesn’t actually give a shit about any of these ‘friends’ if she’s willing to leave them forever on a whim and possibly scare them into thinking she’s dead somewhere by disappearing and leaving almost all of her stuff. So, since she doesn’t actually care, there’s no downside to just acting like herself, whoever she decides that is.

        She could just stop. She could pull a reverse-Jennifer and change up her social circle by stopping pretending who she is. But instead, somehow, it’s better to just take off and couch-surf forever with the one person in her life she can be absolutely sure will NOT be on the side of ‘eternal truancy is the answer!!’

        I don’t necessarily not like Liz, but I’ve completely run out of patience for the level of childish she’s performing.

        • Spencer
          Spencer
          February 20, 2022 at 9:46 am | #

          Emotionally turbulent 18 year olds tend not to come up with the most immediately rational and perfect solution to a problem, let alone ones involving struggles regarding social groups.

          Liz’s friends want her to stay a Silly Jesus Girl and would also resent her not being such anymore, which is not at all apropos to a certain other character.

        • DudeMyDadOwnsaDealership
          DudeMyDadOwnsaDealership
          February 20, 2022 at 1:46 pm | #

          Drama runs in the family, apparently. Sarah’s flamboyant level of morose does compare to Liz’s free spirit crap that she’s been doing so far…

          But yes, Liz is showing a bad case of ‘College Freshman Who Acts Like They Think They’re Still in High School’ and her Brady Bunch-assed attempts at dissing her party-pooper big sister make her come off like Billie at the beginning of the series, sans the toxic ‘Alpha bongo’ persona and crazy levels of alcoholism.

  7. RassilonTDavros
    RassilonTDavros
    February 20, 2022 at 12:13 am | #

    …well, I think that might be the most terrifying facial expression Sarah’s ever made.

    • Needfuldoer
      Needfuldoer
      February 20, 2022 at 7:16 am | #

      Top five, anyway.

      https://www.dumbingofage.com/2015/comic/book-6/01-to-those-whod-ground-me/goodmorning-2/

  8. Thag Simmons
    Thag Simmons
    February 20, 2022 at 12:13 am | #

    Really hope they pay their driver extra for making them listen to this

    • Autogatos
      Autogatos
      February 20, 2022 at 12:19 am | #

      I dunno as someone who hates driving, I’d probably appreciate this running soap opera in the back seat to take my mind off the misery that is being on the freeway.

      • Andy
        Andy
        February 20, 2022 at 12:28 am | #

        The freeway (interstate) isn’t misery anywhere nearly as much as US highways in Indiana. That state needs to learn how to use overpasses instead of putting a stoplight in every podunk town with a bar, church, and/or McDonald’s.

        • Needfuldoer
          Needfuldoer
          February 20, 2022 at 7:19 am | #

          [Laughs in Masshole]

          Our roads horrible, Route 9 can’t decide what it wants to be, we cram I-95 down a single lane 20 MPH offramp, and the Lowell Connector is an expressway just ends at a T intersection with a light.

          • AbelUndercity
            AbelUndercity
            February 20, 2022 at 8:57 am | #

            And then there’s Boston.

            • Raen
              Raen
              February 20, 2022 at 9:37 am | #

              …yeah, I remember being parked at the Chinatown gate, with my bumper on the sidewalk, talking to the driver of the fire truck that took it off.

          • Kimi
            Kimi
            February 20, 2022 at 8:55 pm | #

            All of New England can be pretty bad with the “you can’t get there from here”, and good luck if there is a road closure, but I think all east coast cities tend to be horrible. Boston just has a special place in the “you really don’t want to drive here” list. The only thing going for Boston and the east coast cities are the subways and other public transportation. West coast cities are still pretty behind on that front, which makes it more of a requirement to drive (like Seattle, Vancouver BC, etc.).
            Most of the bad stuff that I have found out west is just that they haven’t kept up with the increase in traffic (like the north/south connection for Spokane that they haven’t finished in like 20 years). New England and east coast cities all have the issue of old roads formally being cow paths or some such nonsense, and now everything is so built up that putting in any good roads is difficult.

            • thejeff
              thejeff
              February 20, 2022 at 10:18 pm | #

              Yeah, driving in Boston is easy. You find a place to park as soon as possible and take the T everywhere.

        • Victor
          Victor
          February 20, 2022 at 12:10 pm | #

          Indiana is probably the worst state to drive through on the interstate. You get endless corn, then endless construction in Indianapolis, then more corn. At night it’s worse, it’s so flat that it’s disorienting, it feels like going uphill when it’s just flat.
          Oh, and of course these days you get weird looks from strangers in gas stations because you’re the only one with a mask, and you just want to get out as quickly as possible, because you’re the only one with a mask.

          • Kimi
            Kimi
            February 20, 2022 at 9:00 pm | #

            I just remember southern Ontario being hell, especially in the Toronto area. All the construction didn’t help, especially if you didn’t know that they had the east half of a town’s roads all closed due to rail work on labor day weekend. The people were really helpful, except for all their alternatives were also blocked off starting that week. It didn’t get any better the time I was living there.

        • dn
          dn
          February 20, 2022 at 12:34 pm | #

          US 30 across Indiana is one of the most annoying drives I’ve taken in recent memory. Hitting the Ohio line was a genuine pleasure. I’ll pay the I-90 tolls anytime if it means I don’t have to do that again.

    • Owlmirror
      Owlmirror
      February 20, 2022 at 12:24 am | #

      Plot twist: The driver is Christopher.

      Uh, wearing a hat and muffler.

      • Thag Simmons
        Thag Simmons
        February 20, 2022 at 12:31 am | #

        It would be very funny if they were named Chris or something.

    • Deathjavu
      Deathjavu
      February 20, 2022 at 12:35 am | #

      I think the go-to maneuver would be slowly turning up the radio volume until they cannot be heard. I am shocked it hasn’t already happened.

      Also, this is through Carla’s corporate account, so the driver is probably being paid the absolute bare minimum rate the company has.

      • BarerMender
        BarerMender
        February 20, 2022 at 3:31 am | #

        As someone who used to drive hack, I can say those long round trips pay great, even if the tip is rubbish.

      • Agemegos
        Agemegos
        February 20, 2022 at 2:39 pm | #

        People these days listen to podcasts and streaming music on noise-cancelling earbuds.

        • Agemegos
          Agemegos
          February 20, 2022 at 2:40 pm | #

          Audiobooks, too.

          • Agemegos
            Agemegos
            February 20, 2022 at 2:41 pm | #

            I bet you can get audiobook bibles and books of Mormon.

        • Deathjavu
          Deathjavu
          February 20, 2022 at 4:49 pm | #

          Isn’t wearing earbuds/headphones while driving ridiculously dangerous and therefore illegal? Can’t hear honking horns, can’t hear police/ambulence sirens, etc.

    • Yotomoe
      Yotomoe
      February 20, 2022 at 12:43 am | #

      What’re you talking about? This is more entertaining than talk radio 😀

    • Kim
      Kim
      February 20, 2022 at 3:11 am | #

      Honestly, I hope the drivers of this service are unionized, and have actual benefits, proper enough for the work they’re doing, in this universe.

      • Thag Simmons
        Thag Simmons
        February 20, 2022 at 1:30 pm | #

        One would hope, but I really doubt it

  9. The Wellerman
    The Wellerman
    February 20, 2022 at 12:14 am | #

    HOLY CRAP SARAH THAT SMILE IS MENACING! 😵‍💫

    On that note, am I the only one who thinks she’d look SUPER cool as Lil’ Slugger from Paranoia Agent?

    • cbwroses
      cbwroses
      February 20, 2022 at 1:27 am | #

      She already has the bat.

      • Reltzik
        Reltzik
        February 20, 2022 at 2:36 am | #

        She’s a reverse smile vampire. She’s got all the bats.

        • Geneseepaws
          Geneseepaws
          February 20, 2022 at 2:56 am | #

          That’s right, if Sarah is happy that means Joyce is miserable. Willis’ first Law of Conservation of Joy. We have seen it happen this way before.
          And how far have they gotten in laboratory?

          • Reltzik
            Reltzik
            February 20, 2022 at 10:19 am | #

            Well, Liz is miserable, so that might be enough.

  10. Delicious Taffy
    Delicious Taffy
    February 20, 2022 at 12:16 am | #

    If I found a boyfriend on the sidewalk, I’d probably keep him, too. A $20 bill would be equally nice.

    • Deathjavu
      Deathjavu
      February 20, 2022 at 12:40 am | #

      This time of year where I live, I’d settle for finding a sidewalk that wasn’t iced over into a death trap.

      • Delicious Taffy
        Delicious Taffy
        February 20, 2022 at 12:42 am | #

        I’ll never understand why city planners (or whoever’s responsible) always decide to build sidewalks in the deepest ditches possible, for maximum flooding.

        • Deathjavu
          Deathjavu
          February 20, 2022 at 12:55 am | #

          Huh. Sidewalks aren’t really in ditches around here, but I do know that a) roads often have ditches on the sides for drainage purposes and b) sidewalks are frequently a complete afterthought to road construction. Because people on foot aren’t the huge economic factor that drivers are.

          Also, no one is responsible, as you will quickly find out if anything goes wrong. Source: I work in what I would describe to a layperson as “construction quality control”. It is *amazing* how many different directions fingers can point in.

          • Delicious Taffy
            Delicious Taffy
            February 20, 2022 at 5:01 am | #

            Fuck drivers anyway. I need to get around town and can’t afford a car, so I guess I get to play with my life if I wanna leave the house.

      • Reltzik
        Reltzik
        February 20, 2022 at 2:41 am | #

        What about finding a future squeeze on the sidewalk lying stunned on their ass and getting them out of the cold?

        • Geneseepaws
          Geneseepaws
          February 20, 2022 at 3:00 am | #

          Mom! Can I keep her? She followed me home.
          I mentioned that I had some etchings by Yotomo in my room, and she just followed right along, nattering about Renaissance nudes and Greek Kouros art and digital advancements in pixel density.

    • milu
      milu
      February 20, 2022 at 4:46 am | #

      yeah i feel like any cash i find on the ground doesn’t really belong to me. i just hand it to the first panhandler i run across.

      • Delicious Taffy
        Delicious Taffy
        February 20, 2022 at 4:59 am | #

        I’m too broke for that kinda scruples. I see a bill on the sidewalk, that thing’s goin’ in my wallet so I don’t get arrested for vagrancy.

        • milu
          milu
          February 20, 2022 at 6:39 am | #

          oh i don’t know if scruples is the word. it’s more of a sense that it might as easily not have happened, so i can afford to be extravagantly generous? i dunno.

          but sure, if i ever actually needed the cash i would keep it ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

          • khn0
            khn0
            February 20, 2022 at 10:18 am | #

            I’ve been in situation, skipping one meal on two at the time and found a pretty sum in cash lying on the floor, just under the classifieds board.
            I was so shocked that my mind only went to: gosh people lost it, they must be in the dire right now, let’s get it where they can find it.
            So I went to a close counter and explained that I found cash out of nowhere.
            Pretty sure the guy enjoyed the involuntary tip.

      • thejeff
        thejeff
        February 20, 2022 at 10:59 am | #

        Not living in a city, both random cash and panhandlers are pretty rare – beyond the occasional quarter.

        Way back when, working a summer job for the town I was mowing a park when I found a couple of plastic baggies with $200 rolled up tight in one and a needle in the other. Figured I needed that more than whoever lost it.

  11. Bagge
    Bagge
    February 20, 2022 at 12:18 am | #

    Stooooooory time!

  12. Suet
    Suet
    February 20, 2022 at 12:20 am | #

    Oi! No Christopher robbin‘ on my watch!

    • Stephen Bierce
      Stephen Bierce
      February 20, 2022 at 12:22 am | #

      So this is a request for Kenny Loggins?

      • Stephen Bierce
        Stephen Bierce
        February 20, 2022 at 12:24 am | #

        Winnie The Pooh doesn’t know what to do…

        • Stephen Bierce
          Stephen Bierce
          February 20, 2022 at 12:27 am | #

          (I could have pulled out some Kathie Lee Gifford.)

        • woobie
          woobie
          February 20, 2022 at 12:36 am | #

          I had no idea the sets of Kenny Loggins and Pooh intersected.

          • Opus the Poet
            Opus the Poet
            February 20, 2022 at 8:50 am | #

            House On Pooh Corner has been covered 15 times since the first release was a cover by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.

        • cbwroses
          cbwroses
          February 20, 2022 at 1:26 am | #

          Not bad, but I think I prefer the Winnie the Pooh Saturday morning cartoon theme song.

    • King Daniel
      King Daniel
      February 20, 2022 at 12:22 am | #

      Liz says pooh to that.

    • The Wellerman
      The Wellerman
      February 20, 2022 at 12:28 am | #

      🫡 Let us not forget to cease the means of Pooh-duction, comrades!!!

      *plays “Propaganda” by Taku Iwasaka on Hacked Muzak*

  13. Shitbird
    Shitbird
    February 20, 2022 at 12:23 am | #

    Oh boy… more Liz

    • Tilt
      Tilt
      February 20, 2022 at 12:59 am | #

      Liz is making me miss Mary. *Shudder*

      • Sombrero
        Sombrero
        February 20, 2022 at 6:11 am | #

        That also happened to Christopher. He was Mary’s boyfriend before she met Peter Paul.

  14. newlland(Henryvolt)
    newlland(Henryvolt)
    February 20, 2022 at 12:24 am | #

    Yeah these are the bickering of a pair of siblings alright.

  15. Regalli
    Regalli
    February 20, 2022 at 12:26 am | #

    Oh good, back to the *FUN* plot this storyline.

    SIBLING FIGHTS.

    • Regalli
      Regalli
      February 20, 2022 at 12:30 am | #

      For the record this is entirely sincere, I enjoy Dina and Becky but I’ve been waiting to cut back to this impending shitshow.

      Incidentally, the last time I saw Willis tweet vaguely about doing something terrible I checked when the queue was up to and put a preemptive DAMN YOU on the calendar that week and it’s coming up in the next few weeks, so I’m just gonna buy a ticket for the express line Fear Train now.

      • The Wellerman
        The Wellerman
        February 20, 2022 at 12:36 am | #

        Stay tuned tho!

        If you’re here for the GOOD part of the storyline (you know the one), then I have something VERY special in the works. 🦕🦖🌌 😆

        STAY TUNED!!!

      • Deathjavu
        Deathjavu
        February 20, 2022 at 12:38 am | #

        Oh no, if it’s breaking up Becky and Dina the collective tears of the readers will make Willis too powerful to ever be stopped! His reign will be eternal!

        • cbwroses
          cbwroses
          February 20, 2022 at 1:22 am | #

          Eternity would be just long enough for everyone to graduate in story and maybe have epilogues.

        • The Wellerman
          The Wellerman
          February 20, 2022 at 1:32 am | #

          Yes, he’ll be, as you earthlings say, “a living god”.

          And of course, what would be a god without a Leviathan? ✌️😈

        • Thag Simmons
          Thag Simmons
          February 20, 2022 at 1:37 am | #

          I think they’re good for another chapter at least

      • C.T. Phipps
        C.T. Phipps
        February 20, 2022 at 12:59 am | #

        I love Becky and Dinah but I admit Liz and Sarah were my jam.

      • Spencer
        Spencer
        February 20, 2022 at 7:55 am | #

        Got a link? I’d like to see it.

        • Regalli
          Regalli
          February 20, 2022 at 7:42 pm | #

          This was months ago and on Twitter, so, sadly no. I usually don’t think to bookmark random Tweets.

          • Spencer
            Spencer
            February 20, 2022 at 7:50 pm | #

            That’s alright. I tried searching for it myself but gave up after a bit.

            (my guess is Dana)

  16. EAG46
    EAG46
    February 20, 2022 at 12:34 am | #

    Ah, the meat of the Sarah v Liz conflict. I hope the driver gets a nice tip for this trip. Or at least writing material.

  17. nothri
    nothri
    February 20, 2022 at 12:37 am | #

    Sooooo did Liz try to sleep with Joe because Joyce said that she had slept with him? Is this a routine thing with Liz?

    • Yotomoe
      Yotomoe
      February 20, 2022 at 12:42 am | #

      A girl who finishes your left overs.

    • thejeff
      thejeff
      February 20, 2022 at 11:03 am | #

      Well, it actually involving sex apparently isn’t routine.

      And kind of, but not in the same way. At least as I read it, she was attempting to imitate the life Joyce was pretending she was living as a cool atheist, not trying to steal Joe from her.

  18. Rakeesh
    Rakeesh
    February 20, 2022 at 12:38 am | #

    If Liz’s justification for dating/cheating with her sister’s boyfriend is ‘you act so mean and angry’…mayyyybe don’t be a whiny punk when that person cuts back at you?

  19. woobie
    woobie
    February 20, 2022 at 12:39 am | #

    Let the pettiness flow through you, Sarah!

  20. Yotomoe
    Yotomoe
    February 20, 2022 at 12:42 am | #

    o3o I mean yeah, I’d probably have more fun dating Liz than Sarah. Though it’s a dick move to date your GFs sister.

  21. Raen
    Raen
    February 20, 2022 at 12:53 am | #

    And I’m suddenly reminded that Sarah is indeed nineteen.

    • King Daniel
      King Daniel
      February 20, 2022 at 1:32 am | #

      Sarah’s 20. She’s a year older than Dina.

      • Delicious Taffy
        Delicious Taffy
        February 20, 2022 at 5:24 am | #

        Dina’s 25, so that would make Sarah 48.

        • Raen
          Raen
          February 20, 2022 at 11:40 pm | #

          Wait, when the hell was it said that Dina was 25?

          • King Daniel
            King Daniel
            February 22, 2022 at 12:44 am | #

            The same comic where it was revealed that Joe’s actually 69.

  22. C.T. Phipps
    C.T. Phipps
    February 20, 2022 at 12:57 am | #

    Liz literally can’t comprehend Sarah thinks college is important. Their perspectives over what is important are totally different.

  23. cbwroses
    cbwroses
    February 20, 2022 at 1:20 am | #

    I love the pettiness of that last panel.

    • Doom Shepherd
      Doom Shepherd
      February 20, 2022 at 1:46 am | #

      Sarah is being petty. Tom Petty. Probably shouldn’t have flipped off Danny McBride.

      • Geneseepaws
        Geneseepaws
        February 20, 2022 at 3:10 am | #

        I mean, What is Sarah trying to tell Liz?
        Give it up! Hey! Dumpah-dumpah, Dumpah-dumpah, Dumpah-dumpah, Dumpah-dumpah. Give it up! Hey!

        Don’t come around here no more!

  24. Bluewind
    Bluewind
    February 20, 2022 at 1:24 am | #

    Honestly, what Liz did with Sarah’s boyfriend was still wrong. That’s not to say Sarah “owned” him or something, but that if Liz caught feelings, at minimum she should have waited until he was available, preferably after talking it over with her sister so that she wouldn’t get blindsided while healing. Bonus points for discussing feelings, concerns, and boundries (like could Sarah be in the same room/house as him currently). BUT just because that’s what they SHOULD have done doesn’t mean that they had the maturity, skills, or mental state to do it. It’s a mistake they can both learn from and come out the side as better people if they let it.

    • Sporky
      Sporky
      February 20, 2022 at 1:38 am | #

      “It’s a mistake they can both learn from and come out the side as better people if they let it.”

      I’m not sure you’ve met Sarah or Liz.

      • Bluewind
        Bluewind
        February 21, 2022 at 12:14 am | #

        Yes

    • Axel_Grease
      Axel_Grease
      February 20, 2022 at 10:41 am | #

      I think people are being too hard on Liz. Sarah admits to being untruthful about the relationship between her and Christopher.

      • Deathjavu
        Deathjavu
        February 20, 2022 at 10:59 am | #

        That’s an interpretation of Sarah’s line here

        https://www.dumbingofage.com/2021/comic/book-12/01-sister-christian/pickyeater/

        that really doesn’t make sense, since we know Sarah was actually seeing this guy and both of them knew. The other, more logical interpretation is that Liz pulled this shit a SECOND time with another boyfriend that Sarah lied about because of this first incident.

        Also, can we stop making excuses for Liz yet? Trying to salvage her behavior here is engaging in Faux news levels of spin doctoring, and it’s kinda gross.

        • thejeff
          thejeff
          February 20, 2022 at 11:09 am | #

          I read it more as this having been a pattern where Liz goes after things Sarah had, including boyfriends. Sarah knew this, so told Liz she wasn’t seeing him in hopes of heading it off, but Liz knew she was, but acted on it anyway – possibly according to this strip at Christopher’s prompting. Which really makes him even more of a jerk if he started it, but still doesn’t let Liz off the hook.

          Sarah explicitly says that she told Liz that “so you wouldn’t want to see him,” which implies to me previous tension over the issue.

          • Ava-Ann
            Ava-Ann
            February 20, 2022 at 2:23 pm | #

            Ohhh so Liz is a Sae Kashiwagi. I haven’t been following this storyline closely so it just clicked (if you’ve never read or seen Peach Girl, the sae character is a copycat who wants everything that makes her “bestie” happy – clothes, men, mainly men.)

            I’m scared about my JoeJo ship D:

      • Bluewind
        Bluewind
        February 21, 2022 at 12:55 am | #

        Words matter as do actions. I’m not saying that 100% of the fault lies squarely on Liz’s shoulders, but she’s still in the wrong. Could something come to light later that puts her in the right partially or totally in some aspects? Yes. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t need to communicate with her sister, recognize where she was wrong, and try to make it right by learning from the experience so she can grow to become a better person.

        Real life isn’t simple. Sometimes even completely contradictory things can exist at the same time, neither being lessened nor diluted by the presence of the other. It’s like a delicious meal that was poisoned; the good parts don’t always negate the bad and the bad parts don’t always negate the good.

  25. brute
    brute
    February 20, 2022 at 1:45 am | #

    as someone with chronic RBF I am running out of shits to give about liz. “you don’t smile enough so it was okay to date your boyfriend” girl fuck off please

    • Thag Simmons
      Thag Simmons
      February 20, 2022 at 2:04 am | #

      This wound’s clearly been festering for a while and seeing the worst versions of Sarah and Liz as a result

    • Bryy
      Bryy
      February 20, 2022 at 2:59 am | #

      Yeah, and the fact that she brought it up freakin’ out of nowhere is not helping her.

  26. C.T. Phipps
    C.T. Phipps
    February 20, 2022 at 1:59 am | #

    Liz is honestly terrible to Sarah. I don’t think there’s been anything she’s done that’s nice to her sis.

  27. UrsulaDavina
    UrsulaDavina
    February 20, 2022 at 2:10 am | #

    Is Liz wearing a seatbelt she should be wearing a seatbelt even if it’s in the back.

    • King Daniel
      King Daniel
      February 20, 2022 at 2:32 am | #

      Willis answered this in the comments several days ago; Liz is in the middle seat (per word of Willis, so Sarah could stop Liz from trying to dive out the car door like she threatened to) and apparently this is an older car model, without a full seatbelt for the middle seat.

  28. Tarpo
    Tarpo
    February 20, 2022 at 2:13 am | #

    That could have been Motomaster in the first panel

  29. RowenMorland
    RowenMorland
    February 20, 2022 at 3:13 am | #

    The Liz strips seem like a bit of a time loop right now. Maybe that’s just accurate to a long car journey and leaving a campus.

  30. Max
    Max
    February 20, 2022 at 4:06 am | #

    This reminds me of Taxicab Confessions. They weren’t even born when the show started in 1995. Now I feel old.

  31. Heather
    Heather
    February 20, 2022 at 4:46 am | #

    Still not cool Liz?

    Honestly though in all the stories I hear about cheating on the internet it really bugs me when the affair partner turns out to be a best friend or sibling of the one getting cheated on the most. Double betrayal. At least if it was a stranger moving on would be easier. Between the two I have to wonder if sibling is worse because the family has a choice to make sometimes as a result and there is often no clean outcome.

    Granted, at least they aren’t still together and it was just some high school drama and not happening between adults/married people. I’ve read far too many horror stories of like the cheater and awful sibling getting married and the one cheated on expected to simply suck it up. (Particularly because the parents want grandkids not giving a shit about their abused kid’s feelings as a result.) So at least they aren’t still together? At least they were young and stupid when it happened? It could always be worse.

    Have to wonder if Liz is being deliberately needling to get an opening tbh. To do what? To get Sarah to bail of course so she can run away again. But Sarah is probably on to it.

    • Spencer
      Spencer
      February 20, 2022 at 8:43 am | #

      There’s no escape out of that car, so I think the needling is mostly in service to getting angry and barbed at Sarah for dragging her back to BSU. Now it’s just about picking a fight with her since she’s taking control of Liz’s problems without Liz’s input.

  32. milu
    milu
    February 20, 2022 at 4:51 am | #

    Liz: am I the bad guy? ….DUH

    • milu
      milu
      February 20, 2022 at 4:55 am | #

      (i like her actually)

      (don’t @ me)

    • JBento
      JBento
      February 20, 2022 at 10:16 am | #

      The baddest guy in this story is Cheating Christopher.

      • milu
        milu
        February 20, 2022 at 11:33 am | #

        That goes without saying, but it doesn’t hurt to say it

  33. Adept
    Adept
    February 20, 2022 at 5:58 am | #

    Ha! This one made me almost laugh out loud. More a grimly satisfied smile, I guess.

  34. Axel
    Axel
    February 20, 2022 at 6:21 am | #

    @Willis I’m getting really invasive full page ads and video on here today, and none of the ‘report ad’ options are showing up, and I turned ad block on with no results.

    • Axel
      Axel
      February 21, 2022 at 2:57 am | #

      It is normal again today.

  35. Rabisch
    Rabisch
    February 20, 2022 at 7:12 am | #

    That’s probably the creepiest smile Sarah has ever done. I would like to see her do it more often.

  36. Lone Duck
    Lone Duck
    February 20, 2022 at 7:37 am | #

    Thing that gets me is… Liz looked scared when she tried to sleep with Joe. Maybe it was just a chance to show Joe respecting consent, but I don’t think Liz is just trying to skip on college. She’s scared.

    • Spencer
      Spencer
      February 20, 2022 at 8:00 am | #

      Liz doesn’t want to go back to college because she’s afraid and resentful over how she’s treated there, which is that she’s expected to remain the Jesus Freak that everyone there laughs at.

      • Keulen
        Keulen
        February 20, 2022 at 9:56 am | #

        I’m sure they’re not exactly the same, but it feels to me like Liz is probably afraid her friends and fellow students at her college will treat her similarly to how Joyce’s friends and fellow students have been treating her now that she’s no longer the Jesus Freak everyone laughs at.

        • Spencer
          Spencer
          February 20, 2022 at 10:08 am | #

          I mean, the comparisons between the two have not been subtle.

          Like, Joe’s whole reasoning for going for it with Liz was that he thought it’d help him get over Joyce.

          • JBento
            JBento
            February 20, 2022 at 10:17 am | #

            The subtext is text and many readers are mad it’s no longer a hymn.

    • thejeff
      thejeff
      February 20, 2022 at 11:31 am | #

      But I don’t think her being scared trying to sleep with Joe is the same as her feelings about going back to school.

      She wants to break away from being the good Christian girl she’s been playing there and thinks that needs to involve drugs and sex, but has no real idea about drugs (“edibles”) and isn’t nearly as ready for sex as she thought she should be. That’s where the scared came from with Joe.

      She’s also apparently scared of how her friends will treat her there if she changes who she is. Sick of pretending to be the good Christian girl, but also with really messed up ideas about what changing from that would mean.

      Unless there’s something more than we’ve seen though, Sarah’s basically right. She’s got to go back. Sarah is of course being a jerk about it, but she’s not wrong. This is something Liz is going to have to deal with – sort things out with her friends, find new friends, whatever.
      Hopefully realize pretty quickly that she doesn’t have to proposition strangers for drugs and sex to not be the good Christian girl, because that can lead to really ugly places really fast.

  37. ValdVin
    ValdVin
    February 20, 2022 at 7:53 am | #

    Okay, as someone who thought Sarah’s demeanor and expression came about from the Dana incident, this is fascinating. I wonder how far back that Eternal Frown goes.

  38. Spencer
    Spencer
    February 20, 2022 at 8:09 am | #

    dang I wonder if my impression of Sarah has been too negative and untrue to her character

    Sarah: smiles because someone is miserable for the second time this chapter

    • Keulen
      Keulen
      February 20, 2022 at 9:54 am | #

      Yeah I used to like Sarah, but I’ve really started to get tired of how she treats people who clearly could some support and understanding with their issues. Like Joyce recently now that most of her friends know that she’s an atheist, and Liz who seems like she might be in a similar situation to Joyce at her own college.

      • Spencer
        Spencer
        February 20, 2022 at 10:09 am | #

        It’s cool, Sarah’s “bad with people.”

        That means it’s fine for her to not express the slightest positive emotion in anyone’s direction, as they should just know she cares about them.

        • Deathjavu
          Deathjavu
          February 20, 2022 at 10:45 am | #

          Y’know, this was a fair description of Sarah at the beginning of the comic, but I find it strange she gets no credit for her character growth or leeway for the terrible situations that have pushed her further in that direction, in the way other characters would. I guess everybody just has (a) character(s) they hate.

          • Spencer
            Spencer
            February 20, 2022 at 10:57 am | #

            Critically analyzing a fictional character probably means I like them, since it means I care enough to think about why they do things.

            • zee
              zee
              February 20, 2022 at 11:30 am | #

              I mean fair but you can’t blame people for thinking you hate her when every strip she appears you mention what a miserable person and awful character she is

              • Spencer
                Spencer
                February 20, 2022 at 11:52 am | #

                I dunno what it means to hate a fictional character other than in the context of that character failing to meaningfully connect with me, and so I don’t get immersed into their story and start seeing all the pulleys and levers that go into writing about them.

                I don’t “blame” people for thinking I hate her, mostly I’m just confused as to why someone can think I hate characters that I routinely drop 4000 word essays on what’s motivating them to do things.

                • Sombrero
                  Sombrero
                  February 20, 2022 at 12:32 pm | #

                  You underestimate the power of the dark side.

                  Or: you don’t spend much time around fandom forums.

  39. Opus the Poet
    Opus the Poet
    February 20, 2022 at 9:22 am | #

    I just checked and the last update to Willis’ Slipshine was last spring. So no DinaxBecky action (darnit).

    • thejeff
      thejeff
      February 20, 2022 at 11:32 am | #

      That just means we’re due but he’s still setting it up and doesn’t want to spoil the surprise.

  40. Keulen
    Keulen
    February 20, 2022 at 9:57 am | #

    Am I the only person here who finds Sarah more annoying than Liz at this point?

    • Axel_Grease
      Axel_Grease
      February 20, 2022 at 10:37 am | #

      I’m quite fed up with her, but then I’ve never been a big fan since calling in the parents was the solution to her roommate’s depression and drug use.

      • Spencer
        Spencer
        February 20, 2022 at 10:51 am | #

        I’ve been a big mark for the theory that this is gonna backfire (and now I’ve started hoping Dana’s at Ball State and we’ll have a big dramatic hootnanny), but it’s worth remembering Sarah didn’t do that lightly.

        Part of it is that Dana was, genuinely, getting really bad, and no one but Sarah saw it, thinking Dana was just getting better even as she isolated herself further.

        The other part is that, putting this harshly, Dana was destroying Sarah’s grades and her scholarship. There’s a cutthroat pragmatism here, but the fact of the matter is that Sarah’s future would have been ruined if Dana kept going the way she was.

        Even if this went full drama bomb and we learn that Sarah returned Dana to an unsafe home, she did the most sensible action when isolated from getting her any support.

      • zee
        zee
        February 20, 2022 at 11:33 am | #

        Very curious what the hell she was supposed to do in that situation. Talk to her? Sarah’s not a therapist she was a college freshman, Dana spiraling into addiction due to crippling grief isn’t something you can fix by just being a good roommate. Tell a school counselor or other authority figure? Probably would have had the same result as just calling her dad. Please explain what this 18 year old who’s scholarship was about to be ripped away from her was supposed to do in this very serious, complex situation

        • thejeff
          thejeff
          February 20, 2022 at 1:45 pm | #

          And that’s my biggest problem with the idea that Sarah’s going to be shown to be have sent Dana back to some horrible abusive situation. In reality, that would certainly be possible, but in fiction it changes her entire backstory into a no-win scenario where she will certainly be blamed (and blame herself) despite there not being a better option.
          Narratively, I don’t see what purpose it would serve or where you’d go from there. Maybe Willis could pull something out of his hat, but I can’t see.

          • Spencer
            Spencer
            February 20, 2022 at 3:04 pm | #

            I mean, you’re saying this like Blame Sarah is the only outcome. Shit happens sometimes and you do the best awith what you’ve got. Finding out it wasn’t a miracle solution doesn’t make Sarah a villain, it means maybe I’d she and Raidah have been fighting over nothing and they’re both egotistical jerks.

            If I were writing it, I’d use it as an opportunity to start dismantling her “I care in a crisis” thinking. I get what you mean bit given how Sarah is acting now, it’d feel way weirder if she took control of Liz’s problem without attempting to understand her, like she just throws Liz back into a scenario that Liz is clearly suffering in, and that just works peachy keen no consequence. Like it should be a problem that Sarah tries to unilaterally force a problem to her solution, or how she wants Joyce to shut up and go back to status quo.

    • Tilt
      Tilt
      February 20, 2022 at 12:49 pm | #

      Personally? No, I find Liz absolutely insufferable.

    • John
      John
      February 20, 2022 at 1:24 pm | #

      I am pretty sick of Liz. She reminds me far to much of people I have known in real life that are just terrible to spend any length of time around.

  41. Carla's #2 Fan
    Carla's #2 Fan
    February 20, 2022 at 10:53 am | #

    This doesn’t seem like the kind of thing Sarah would care about, or at the very least act this way because of.

  42. frogger44
    frogger44
    February 20, 2022 at 11:29 am | #

    Liz: You told me you weren’t seeing him!

    That line is still relevant and it’s interesting to me that Sarah is still saying that Liz stole the “boyfriend” from her. We don’t know, yet, if Chris had said that he and Sarah were dating at all. Maybe we’ll find out, maybe we won’t.

    • thejeff
      thejeff
      February 20, 2022 at 11:34 am | #

      But the other part of that conversation, Sarah’s “so you wouldn’t want to see him” is also relevant.

      That didn’t come out of nowhere.

      • frogger44
        frogger44
        February 20, 2022 at 12:29 pm | #

        True, and I’m chalking that up to the trope of “Sibling Rivalry”. Little sister taking things that older sister likes. Do we know if Liz had a habit of taking Sarah’s friends from her or anything like that? Liz clearly likes doing things to buck the system (and possibly annoy Sarah) but going so far as to “steal” Chris from Sarah? I honestly doubt that. I’ve been wrong before when it comes to character assessments and I can admit that.

        I’m curious as to what Chris said to Liz in the first place. If he copped to being in a relationship with Sarah or not.

        • thejeff
          thejeff
          February 20, 2022 at 1:50 pm | #

          We don’t know much, so we’re extrapolating from the few clues we do have.

          I guess that line could be extrapolating from smaller sibling rivalry things and not from previous relationships, but I think the most straightforward reading is that Sarah was right to think Liz was motivated by Sarah’s interest in Christopher and had previous reasons to think that.

  43. Inbar Fink
    Inbar Fink
    February 20, 2022 at 11:48 am | #

    This is a very-well written family-car-argument, in the sense that I can practically feel the soul-suffocating uncomfortable tension from beyond the screen. Man, I hope that this driver gets a decent pay or at least a tip.

    • Bathymetheus
      Bathymetheus
      February 20, 2022 at 3:26 pm | #

      Sarah’s not going to give him a tip. & certainly not Liz.

  44. Nevermaker
    Nevermaker
    February 20, 2022 at 12:33 pm | #

    Man, I feel SO BAD for the driver: overhearing family arguments in public is bad enough, not being able to get away because you’re driving them is the WORST. Hope they get one HELL of a tip.

  45. spriteless_auntie
    spriteless_auntie
    February 20, 2022 at 1:01 pm | #

    I know Sarah is single, happy single, doesn’t need to pair up. Yet, now I wonder who she could be shipped with? This Christopher fella didn’t deal with it well, but other people might have the same issue with how she expresses emotion. Or has resting bongo face. Mike’s out, because she wouldn’t put up with his crap. (Same reason I can’t ship Booster with Mike.) Malaya I think might like her on a surface level, but eventually notice sometimes her grumpiness is performative, therefore FAKEY!!! Amber might be able to use a new friend who specializes in calling out bs, and she can understand when someone needs their own space. But then they don’t have a lot in common otherwise. What’s Sarah’s degree in? Does she have a whole support network of classmates that we’ve just never met?

    • King Daniel
      King Daniel
      February 20, 2022 at 1:28 pm | #

      I think Mike’s also out because none of the cast are into guys six feet under, just saying

      • Sprite less Auntie
        Sprite less Auntie
        February 20, 2022 at 5:58 pm | #

        That stops no one in the realm of fanships : ).

  46. ADLegend21
    ADLegend21
    February 20, 2022 at 2:01 pm | #

    if I’m the driver I’m doing my best to just tune them out and focus on the road lmao

  47. Wakeangel2001
    Wakeangel2001
    February 20, 2022 at 3:07 pm | #

    wait, I thought she was a virgin? Or did she just make out with her boyfriend or something like that?

  48. Joyfulldreams
    Joyfulldreams
    February 20, 2022 at 3:13 pm | #

    Man. I know she’s 18 and all, plus the whole naivety thing born of being a “Jesus Freak” (though she…clearly wasn’t raised Fundie in the way Joyce was, I still get it).

    But jesus christ, she is being such an insufferable little brat, holy crap. I understand more why Sarah has little interest in being more compassionate towards Liz’s dilemma. It still sucks for Liz, of course, the whole conversion thing, and she’s going through it, but like…this dynamic sucks, y’all.

    If my siblings were like Liz I wouldn’t be super eager to put up with their shit either, tbh, no matter how reasonable–since whatever you do, you get the short end of the stick just by being involved at all. It’s not like Sarah is her parent, there are limits on the things you can expect an older sibling to just put up with and “be the responsible one” just because they’re older.

    It doesn’t give Sarah an excuse to put in zero effort and treat her friends like trash, of course, but I’m starting to see that Sarah’s attitude might come from a whole lifetime of being tossed unceremoniously into shitty no-win scenarios. If I were her, I’d probably end up jaded and crotchety too.

    • Joyfulldreams
      Joyfulldreams
      February 20, 2022 at 3:27 pm | #

      I also wonder how much of this dynamic has been enforced–or at least reinforced–by their various parental figures. Being eternally pigeonholed into “the grumpy one” and “the smiley one”. This whole thing stinks to me of two children being rewarded or punished based on how well they’re able to capitulate to the desires and feelings of the adults in their life.

      Your parents/authority figures will shower you with love and attention and gifts and money and won’t give you grief so long as you smile and are friendly and fun and never have any inconvenient problems or emotions. If you fail to do that, then you deserve any retribution or consequences you get. Sarah just can’t get with the program and perform properly, so the fact that her parents wont pay for her college or her boyfriends cheat on her or whatever is clearly her own fault.

      And, extrapolating further–Liz must perform in the same way for all of her friends at school, and the moment she doesn’t, she will be treated in the same way Sarah gets treated, and she’ll DESERVE IT. And that belief is ingrained so deeply, she can’t see any way around it. So tbh, it make sense to me why her first instinct was to immediately run away specifically to Sarah, who is presumably the person she first thinks of when it comes to being the ‘rebellious one’ who doesn’t play nice like she’s supposed to.

      • Joyfulldreams
        Joyfulldreams
        February 20, 2022 at 3:39 pm | #

        And Sarah has never been able to properly perform and dance along to the whims of the adults or authority figures in her life, (possibly because the goal posts purposefully kept getting moved, but not necessarily) and she kept getting the short end of the stick, so she eventually learned that there really was just no point in even trying to anymore. Which Liz literally cannot compute, and can only understand it as a personal failing on Sarah’s part.

        And like, to a certain degree it is, in that Sarah does end up self-sabotaging an awful lot! But that doesn’t give you license to contribute to the sabotage, and then act like it has nothing to do with you at all. :/

        • Spencer
          Spencer
          February 20, 2022 at 6:43 pm | #

          I don’t disagree that this is both a real thing that happens all the time, and is a pretty sensible reasoning for how Sarah ended up like this (Walky and Sal have a lot of the same dynamic), but I dunno if it’d factor into the story itself.

          Like, Sarah The Person I could definitely see go through this, but Sarah The Fictional Character has had a lot of her struggles with social interaction drawn from within. It’s definitely an undercurrent to her relationships vis-a-vis Liz (who even says as much when it comes to their peer groups) but I think Sarah dealing with her hangups is less “where they came from” and more “how they’re impacting her ability to form connections.”

          Like Sarah is more This Is What I Am Doing, and then Sal had a lot of focus on This Is How My Past Affects Me In The Now, if that makes sense.

          • Joyfulldreams
            Joyfulldreams
            February 20, 2022 at 8:42 pm | #

            I can definitely see that being the case! Although I think there’s a chance that Sarah’s role in the story might be shifting a little, with the introduction of Liz? Especially if Liz is meant to a bit more of a permanent addition to the cast, at least as a recurring minor character.

            And even if that isn’t the case, to ME, it seems like the point of even introducing Liz–specifically Sarah’s sister!–as a focal point of Sarah’s character development just within the confines of these few storylines would be TO delve a bit further into the Whys and origins of Sarah’s issues? Like, instead of encountering Liz we could have had a story that involed Sarah being particularly misanthropic within a new situation that included flashbacks to what happened with Dana, or had more conflict with Raidah, or some other thing where Sarah is confronted with a NEW situation, rather than specifically with her sister and touching on past conflicts.

  49. Bathymetheus
    Bathymetheus
    February 20, 2022 at 3:30 pm | #

    They appear to be taking an exit. Does this mean they’re almost there?

    • milu
      milu
      February 20, 2022 at 4:16 pm | #

      Well spotted! They’re getting off the Indianapolis ring road and onto I-69 (nice). That means they’re a little over halfway there.

      • Bathymetheus
        Bathymetheus
        February 21, 2022 at 8:53 pm | #

        Thank you.

  50. Yakumo
    Yakumo
    February 20, 2022 at 3:44 pm | #

    Heh. Sarah still can’t REALLY smile, and not without effort, for revenge that gives her pleasure.

  51. poofdepoof
    poofdepoof
    February 20, 2022 at 7:08 pm | #

    I’ve been too preoccupied by Liz’s sexual hangups and Joe arc to remember this boyfriend stealing arc. I wonder how all of this fits into Liz’s character

  52. Beau Kirin Maysey
    Beau Kirin Maysey
    February 20, 2022 at 8:58 pm | #

    WOW WHAT AN INTERESTING CUT TO A DIFFERENT SCENE

  53. Tempo
    Tempo
    February 20, 2022 at 10:20 pm | #

    This is really interesting. It’s actually a pretty similar dynamic as Walky and Sal. The performer and the rebel.

  54. TheScreenJockey
    TheScreenJockey
    February 21, 2022 at 9:46 am | #

    Shit, Sarah . . . is this some drama from 4+ years ago?! That’s like 1/5 of your ENTIRE LIFE!

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