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
becky is okay with spoilers
First Previous Random 185Comments 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

Needlepoint

by David M Willis on November 24, 2022 at 12:01 am
  • 02 – Turning Saints Into the Sea

└ Tags: becky, jennifer, joyce

Discussion (185) ¬

[ Comments RSS ]
  1. Ana Chronistic
    Ana Chronistic
    November 24, 2022 at 12:01 am | #

    “Promises are like children”

    “You’re not havin’ ’em?”

  2. darkoneko
    darkoneko
    November 24, 2022 at 12:02 am | #

    The only death coming soon is “the little death”

    • Doctor_Who
      Doctor_Who
      November 24, 2022 at 12:04 am | #

      SQUEAK?

      • Queezle
        Queezle
        November 24, 2022 at 12:37 am | #

        that made me smile. Thank you for that.

      • Daibhid C
        Daibhid C
        November 24, 2022 at 5:10 am | #

        The Grim Squeaker! Coming soon to a cinema near you! (At least if you’re in the UK; coming not very soon to a cinema near you elsewhere!)

      • Felian
        Felian
        November 24, 2022 at 9:58 am | #

        Aww yiss!
        i have a tattoo of the Grim Squeaker!

    • Francoinblanco
      Francoinblanco
      November 24, 2022 at 3:15 am | #

      This updated my journal

  3. DailyBrad
    DailyBrad
    November 24, 2022 at 12:02 am | #

    Aww, guess these two are making nice?

    • Bryy
      Bryy
      November 24, 2022 at 12:56 am | #

      Well, my bet is Joyce is finally ready to have a calmer conversation with Becky about religion, and Becky will go goddamn ape shit when confronted with reality.

      • darkoneko
        darkoneko
        November 24, 2022 at 1:03 am | #

        let’s… keep that for a while later

        • Decidedly Orthogonal
          Decidedly Orthogonal
          November 24, 2022 at 1:54 am | #

          DO IIIT!

      • DailyBrad
        DailyBrad
        November 24, 2022 at 4:21 am | #

        A. I assume it’s going to be about the autism possibility.

        B. What would the point be? Becky has her faith, Joyce has lost hers. If Joyce is going to try to talk her out of hers, that’s a dick move and I’d hope she knows better than to do that.

        • Daibhid C
          Daibhid C
          November 24, 2022 at 5:06 am | #

          Joyce’s Stated Position is that religion is dumb, Becky isn’t dumb, so Becky should stop being religious, just as Becky’s Stated Position is that Joyce should believe the same stuff she does because she always has.

          It’s possible they’ve both reconsidered these positions. I certainly hope so.

          • Uly
            Uly
            November 24, 2022 at 9:06 am | #

            They’re both in the early stages of Recovering From Spiritual Abuse and Religious Trauma, and they’re coming from a religious and social background that encourages this sort of all-or-nothing thinking. There is approximately no chance that either one has seriously reconsidered yet, though they may have decided to quietly not talk about it, which is *almost* as good.

            • Felian
              Felian
              November 24, 2022 at 10:03 am | #

              i was gonna say that but you said it better than i would have. yup. definitely. it took me some years to not completely judge people who are religious. i still don’t *understand* how you can be religious AND trusting science AND being empathic rather than dogmatic, but i am starting to slowly be more open to the possibility than someone’s faith is not tied to ignoring science or empathy.
              However, all-or-nothing thinking is veeeery ingrained in my upbringing. Hard to get rid of, even though the moral values i follow have drastically changed. Still hard to be open to middle grounds.

              And i’m 31. Joyce and Becky have a decade less life experience. So i would be surprised if they’re gonna be great at it right away.

              • Joy
                Joy
                November 24, 2022 at 11:26 am | #

                It’s pretty great that you’ve put an effort into that, btw.

              • Some Ed
                Some Ed
                November 24, 2022 at 12:01 pm | #

                Being empathic rather than dogmatic was pretty easy for me. There are a lot of verses in the bible that recommend empathy and caring for ones “neighbors”, meaning basically everybody. So one could start that process by being empathic by being dogmatic, and then after doing that for a while, determine which feels more toxic and shedding that.

                At least, that’s how I went about things. This path makes it especially easy to learn to not trust ones clergy, because it fairly quickly becomes clear that when they say that they are also sinners, they generally really mean it. For some, it’s the only honest thing they actually say – possibly even if they’re only saying it because they understand it’s a phrase that clergy more or less have to say.

              • Mark
                Mark
                November 24, 2022 at 7:47 pm | #

                It takes a while to notice that science and religion deliberately exclude each others’ methods, because a combination wouldn’t tell you anything believable. Neither has anything to say to the other, though each has a lot to say that is worth hearing. (“Non-overlapping magisteria”)

                Empathy not dogmatism is easy for Christians who read, because we’re commanded to be so. “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your mind, all your strength, and you shall love your neighbor [see “Good Samaritan” for who this is] as you love yourself. All of the Law and the Prophets depend on these.”

  4. Yeet
    Yeet
    November 24, 2022 at 12:02 am | #

    Kind of a false choice, Jennifer.

    • Segnosaur
      Segnosaur
      November 24, 2022 at 12:04 am | #

      She could do needlepoint while plowing the football team.

      It’s all about multitasking.

      • Laura
        Laura
        November 24, 2022 at 12:07 am | #

        That would get very prickly, very fast.

        • Proxiehunter
          Proxiehunter
          November 24, 2022 at 1:19 am | #

          That does seem like a situation where there would be lots of pricks.

          • Decidedly Orthogonal
            Decidedly Orthogonal
            November 24, 2022 at 8:42 am | #

            If Joyce uses a strap-on, the football team’s pricks may be irrelevant to the action.

            • Laura
              Laura
              November 24, 2022 at 7:33 pm | #

              But would her peg have a needle point?

          • Felian
            Felian
            November 24, 2022 at 10:04 am | #

            thank you, very important contribution. LOL.

        • Laura
          Laura
          November 24, 2022 at 7:36 pm | #

          When my parents married, the advice my father got from his married male friends was: “Do NOT let her sew in bed!”

      • Yotomoe
        Yotomoe
        November 24, 2022 at 2:01 am | #

        Or she could do a needlepoint OF plowing the football team. Equally as adventurous without the need to seduce 45 to 50 people.

        • Felian
          Felian
          November 24, 2022 at 10:06 am | #

          A needlepoint of plowing the football team while needlepointing WHILE plowing the football team? How recursive can we go? 😛

          • Yotomoe
            Yotomoe
            November 24, 2022 at 10:36 am | #

            “Stop thrusting so hard , Tony, you made me mess up on the stitching on Arnold’s face”

            • Some Ed
              Some Ed
              November 24, 2022 at 12:06 pm | #

              I was under the impression that it was the one who was thrusting who was technically plowing. I mean, I suppose Tony could be pushing back a bit too vigorously, but it was my impression that’s generally considered poor form even if the top isn’t doing needlepoint. Yes, they are usually supposed to be a bit more involved than, say, a field. But they should just be matching, not going above and beyond. I mean, unless that wasn’t what was negotiated.

            • Some Ed
              Some Ed
              November 24, 2022 at 12:08 pm | #

              Thinking about this a bit more, I’m realizing it should be relatively easy to solve by simply having Tony assist with the needlepoint. If he’s focusing on keeping the needlepoint still, he shouldn’t be able to be pushing back excessively hard.

            • Laura
              Laura
              November 24, 2022 at 7:38 pm | #

              How crewel!

    • Doctor_Who
      Doctor_Who
      November 24, 2022 at 12:05 am | #

      I mean, not really. YOU try doing needlepoint while plowing the whole football team. It’s very distracting.

      • Subjektivity
        Subjektivity
        November 24, 2022 at 12:08 am | #

        All I’m hearing is a challenge to be accepted.

        • Rose by Any Other Name
          Rose by Any Other Name
          November 24, 2022 at 10:44 am | #

          @Subjektivity – best response.
          Also, it caused me to have the following train of thought:
          Oh hey! It would be fun to do a female focused parody of How I Met Your Mother with a female version of Barney and –
          Oh. Wait. We already had that, and it was called Sex and the City. Samantha didn’t get as many good catch phrases, though.

      • Thag Simmons
        Thag Simmons
        November 24, 2022 at 12:43 am | #

        skill issue

      • Yet_One_More_Idiot
        Yet_One_More_Idiot
        November 24, 2022 at 8:09 am | #

        Which one is the distraction from the other, though? 😉

        • Felian
          Felian
          November 24, 2022 at 10:05 am | #

          “hey can you plow me a bit quieter and softer, please? i’m needing a steady hand for this pattern.“

  5. Cerusee
    Cerusee
    November 24, 2022 at 12:02 am | #

    That is that is definitely not true, but it’s nice of Joyce to say so.

    • Laura
      Laura
      November 24, 2022 at 12:07 am | #

      Yeah… I’m not sure what she’s referring to, though. Or where that’s coming from.

      Any guesses, y’all?

      -Maybe she worries she’ll let Becky down by going through all these changes without her?

      -Maybe she worries Becky will disapprove if Joyce starts dating Joe?

      -Maybe Joyce worries that if Becky gets word of Joyce’s possible future diagnosis, that Becky will start agonizing over all the “friendly teasing” that Becky’s done over the years?

      …Any thoughts?

      p.s., hey, y’all. Good to see youse / yinz / you folx / etc.

      • poofdepoof
        poofdepoof
        November 24, 2022 at 12:12 am | #

        The big secret that Joyce has been keeping from Becky has been her potential autism diagnosis. So I’m pretty sure that’s what it is.

        • Leorale
          Leorale
          November 24, 2022 at 12:19 am | #

          I think so too. Joyce is projecting a little — some of her first freakouts about Becky coming out were that Joyce had ignorantly wronged Becky. By rejecting her, of course, but also Joyce imagined a whole thing where she’d get back and Becky would be crying about how insensitive Joyce’d been all their lives (when in fact Becky had gone out and gotten a haircut).

          • Joy
            Joy
            November 24, 2022 at 11:28 am | #

            It’s entirely possible that she’s cried about that sort of thing, just, without anyone around? Becky experienced a lot of isolation and she loves people, so she wants to have fun and enjoy herself with people around. She has had plenty of time to be sad.

        • The Wellerman
          The Wellerman
          November 24, 2022 at 12:19 am | #

          Eh, my bet is with all the changes she’s been going through without Becky.

          This comic is a modern soap opera that lives on drama, and her diagnosis is a source of it that Demon Lord Willis surely would not waste.

          • Stormrunner
            Stormrunner
            November 24, 2022 at 12:29 am | #

            I think it’s referring to Becky making fun of some of Joyce’s “quirks”. To reassure Becky she doesn’t have trauma from that prior to telling her yhe “quirks” were autism.

          • Leorale
            Leorale
            November 24, 2022 at 12:32 am | #

            What other changes are there to tell Becky about, where Joyce would have this very specific worry (that Becky would need the reassurance “you’ve never done wrong by me”)?

            Autism seems like the one where Becky might feel guilty when she finds out (like for the times she’s unwittingly teased Joyce for being spectrum-y). I’m not sure how taking an art class or dating Joe would make Becky feel guilty. Am I missing one?

            • The Wellerman
              The Wellerman
              November 24, 2022 at 12:49 am | #

              Her atheism perhaps? Who knows, really?

              But one things for sure, this isn’t Smarting of Age, this is gonna get messy in any case, to say the least.

              • Bryy
                Bryy
                November 24, 2022 at 12:58 am | #

                They’re about to have Round II but with a more mature Joyce.

                • The Wellerman
                  The Wellerman
                  November 24, 2022 at 1:04 am | #

                  Yeah but it’ll still be messy, 666 comments doesn’t just happen.

              • MisterJinKC
                MisterJinKC
                November 24, 2022 at 2:38 am | #

                Becky already knows about that remember? Came up when she overheard Joyce talking shit about religious people after the anniversary of Becky’s mom committing suicide.

                • Cerusee
                  Cerusee
                  November 24, 2022 at 7:38 am | #

                  That is a hilariously unkind way of framing that sequence of events, considering that Joyce made a deliberate choice *not* to broach her atheism with Becky on the anniversary of Bonnie’s death, and was clearly keenly aware of the comfort Becky was taking at the idea that her mother was looking down on them from Heaven.

              • Felian
                Felian
                November 24, 2022 at 10:07 am | #

                OMG now i want a Smarting of Age spinoff where all characters are 20 years older and make great life choices only ;D

        • Keulen
          Keulen
          November 24, 2022 at 4:24 am | #

          Yeah, that’s what I’m assuming Joyce is worried about telling Becky this time. And considering how Becky reacted to other new stuff about Joyce (her atheism for example), her being worried about telling Becky that she might be autistic seems pretty reasonable to me.

      • StClair
        StClair
        November 24, 2022 at 1:10 am | #

        Sounds like Joyce is trying to mend the rift, starting with an assurance that she doesn’t blame Becky for anything. It’s a bit clumsy, as most things of this sort are? Especially at that age?

      • drs
        drs
        November 24, 2022 at 1:22 am | #

        It’s obvious.

        Joyce is going to Yale.

      • Marvelman
        Marvelman
        November 24, 2022 at 1:39 am | #

        I wasn’t sure what Joyce was referring to either.

      • Needfuldoer
        Needfuldoer
        November 24, 2022 at 2:16 am | #

        All of the above?

      • Keulen
        Keulen
        November 24, 2022 at 4:13 am | #

        I’m pretty sure Joyce hasn’t told Becky yet that she got a referral to potentially get diagnosed for autism. I’m assuming that’s what she’s worried about Becky finding out this time.

    • Yotomoe
      Yotomoe
      November 24, 2022 at 2:02 am | #

      Y’know I just absolutely assumed it was about Joe. Literally no other thoughts had entered my brain cuz I’m too busy shipping Jojoyce.

  6. Dave Van Domelen
    Dave Van Domelen
    November 24, 2022 at 12:03 am | #

    “I promise to outlive you” can be very touching or very creepy.

    • Clif
      Clif
      November 24, 2022 at 3:17 am | #

      Depends on whether the person saying it is wielding a knife.

      • Felian
        Felian
        November 24, 2022 at 10:08 am | #

        somebody’s gotta cut the cake at the wake.

    • anonymsly
      anonymsly
      November 24, 2022 at 1:07 pm | #

      I am reminded of Winnie the Pooh. ‘If you live to be one hundred, I wish to live to be one hundred minus one day so I never have to live a day without you.’

  7. Megan Rivera
    Megan Rivera
    November 24, 2022 at 12:03 am | #

    I really like that coral colored hoodie Joyce is wearing under her vest, that’s cute.

    • Thag Simmons
      Thag Simmons
      November 24, 2022 at 12:41 am | #

      Her outfits are consistently cute. This comic has very good outfits across the board actually.

    • Mark
      Mark
      November 24, 2022 at 8:05 am | #

      This is IU, so it’s supposed to be crimson. Must’ve faded in the wash.

  8. Crotonhurst
    Crotonhurst
    November 24, 2022 at 12:03 am | #

    You’ve never done wrong by me, but there’s a possibility that at some point Joe and I will engage in premarital hanky-panky

    • DailyBrad
      DailyBrad
      November 24, 2022 at 4:22 am | #

      That would be really funny, if only for Becky giving her a, “FUNNY YOU SHOULD MENTION THAT-“

  9. RassilonTDavros
    RassilonTDavros
    November 24, 2022 at 12:05 am | #

    …is Joyce going for the direct approach about Joe? Ooh, wasn’t expecting that. I like how sometimes these characters throw curveballs and end up revealing things way sooner than I expected, while other times shoes I expected to drop immediately take years.

    • DailyBrad
      DailyBrad
      November 24, 2022 at 5:32 am | #

      I think she is bringing up the autism to her, since Joe’s confession has made her more secure about it, along with reaching an understanding with Dina, so she might be more comfortable about telling Becky.

      I don’t think she so much would assume Becky would judge her or anything for it, but she’s family, and her longest friend, so change is tough.

  10. Dana
    Dana
    November 24, 2022 at 12:05 am | #

    I know I’m late to the party, but I realized one way Joyce can take pills is by putting them in sushi rolls.

    https://www.dumbingofage.com/2015/comic/book-5/02-threes-a-crowd/chopsticks/

    • Doctor_Who
      Doctor_Who
      November 24, 2022 at 12:10 am | #

      But only if Dorothy is there to feed her.

      …Is that where this is going?

      • Dana
        Dana
        November 24, 2022 at 12:16 am | #

        I don’t know of anyone besides you and Willis that can answer that one.

      • Needfuldoer
        Needfuldoer
        November 24, 2022 at 2:17 am | #

        That’s why Joyce is going to Yale, so when Dorothy goes to Yale she can still take her meds.

    • Taffy
      Taffy
      November 24, 2022 at 12:47 am | #

      That would get expensive quickly, I think.

  11. Archieve
    Archieve
    November 24, 2022 at 12:07 am | #

    Think Joyce is gearing up to tell becky her diagnosis. Either that or she’s already heard Becky shouting about her and Dina through the walls.

    • Doctor_Who
      Doctor_Who
      November 24, 2022 at 12:23 am | #

      Or she just heard Becky and Dina…through the walls.

      College dorms are not known for their sonic privacy. If a room was suddenly playing music suspiciously loud, you knew what was up.

  12. Ty34er
    Ty34er
    November 24, 2022 at 12:07 am | #

    Just realized that she also likes Joe back

    • Bryy
      Bryy
      November 24, 2022 at 12:59 am | #

      From the sound of this strip, she just realized she has to cut herself off from Becky if Becky continues to be a snob.

      • Needfuldoer
        Needfuldoer
        November 24, 2022 at 2:20 am | #

        “Maybe Liz had the right idea.”

        It could be a “we’ll always be there for each other but right now I need more space”. But how is she going to break up with her other mom-friends?

      • shrub
        shrub
        November 24, 2022 at 4:13 am | #

        Some friendships have a limited life span, I’d say Joyce and Beckys is well over due

  13. Sirksome
    Sirksome
    November 24, 2022 at 12:10 am | #

    I mean technically she hasn’t aged in over ten years so keeping that promise is very possible.

  14. Reltzik
    Reltzik
    November 24, 2022 at 12:11 am | #

    Dicing is Satanic, apparently.

    • Reltzik
      Reltzik
      November 24, 2022 at 12:13 am | #

      *as in gambling with dice, rather than dicing vegetables. … though I wouldn’t put it past Xianity to have some denomination somewhere that gets freaked out over diced vegetables.

      • sultryglebe
        sultryglebe
        November 24, 2022 at 12:19 am | #

        There was an episode of Blackadder where his religious aunt would not allow the turnip to be mashed because mashing was of the devil. Unfortunately/fortunately, the unmashed turni looked like a thingy.

      • Needfuldoer
        Needfuldoer
        November 24, 2022 at 2:21 am | #

        They’re probably fine if you mix them with crinkle-cut. But if you mix them with julienned? Straight to jail hell.

      • Laura
        Laura
        November 24, 2022 at 7:45 pm | #

        As opposed to “carding,” playing with cards, vs. carding wool.

    • BadRoad
      BadRoad
      November 24, 2022 at 12:59 am | #

      I’m told it’s because the Roman soldiers at the crucifixion used dice to decide who got the prisoners’ clothes.

      • eh, whatever
        eh, whatever
        November 24, 2022 at 5:31 am | #

        No, it’s because playing dice used to be gambling.

        (…so did chess… which was expressedly forbidden several times in a row…)

  15. BBCC
    BBCC
    November 24, 2022 at 12:11 am | #

    This is a nice start! I’m hoping it evolves into a nice conversation.

  16. Pivitor
    Pivitor
    November 24, 2022 at 12:14 am | #

    Are…those the only 2 options?

    • Dana
      Dana
      November 24, 2022 at 12:18 am | #

      Sadly, yes.

    • Taffy
      Taffy
      November 24, 2022 at 12:32 am | #

      What, dying or not dying? Seems like a pretty clean-cut situation. I guess you can un-die, but that does sorta require dying in the first place.

      • Thag Simmons
        Thag Simmons
        November 24, 2022 at 12:36 am | #

        That’s sort of a ‘when not if’ choice.

        • BOOSTER SHOT
          BOOSTER SHOT
          November 24, 2022 at 8:48 am | #

          No, the only choices are dying or needlepoint.

      • Reltzik
        Reltzik
        November 24, 2022 at 1:15 pm | #

        Maybe if you don’t set the dye you can undo dying?

        • Taffy
          Taffy
          November 24, 2022 at 3:13 pm | #

          If you’re serious about glam and don’t have a few extra terebinths on hand, you’re doing it wrong.

  17. Bicycle Bill
    Bicycle Bill
    November 24, 2022 at 12:20 am | #

    “I will never die.”

    Followed by four panels of marionettes banging each other like drums.

    • Yotomoe
      Yotomoe
      November 24, 2022 at 1:58 am | #

      Hehehehe

  18. AGV
    AGV
    November 24, 2022 at 12:22 am | #

    “I’m gonna date Joe”
    “Thank God I thou-WAITWHAT???”

  19. carms
    carms
    November 24, 2022 at 12:30 am | #

    what is life but persistence of consciousness? what is death but a discontinuity? If everything that I was is gone, is that person not dead? Am I not a whole new creature under the sun?

    • Thag Simmons
      Thag Simmons
      November 24, 2022 at 12:31 am | #

      “Everything dies baby, that’s a fact
      But maybe everything that dies someday comes back”

    • Slartibeast Button, BIA
      Slartibeast Button, BIA
      November 24, 2022 at 1:30 pm | #

      “That is not dead which can eternal lie, / And with strange aeons even death may die.”

  20. Leorale
    Leorale
    November 24, 2022 at 12:38 am | #

    I really like that Joyce just needed to feel seen (and also accepted / not controlled) to get comfy enough to tell Becky more about what’s going on with her. Becky acted like a safe person again. Yay.

    • Leorale
      Leorale
      November 24, 2022 at 12:43 am | #

      (Also that of course Becky’s instant fear is always that somebody she loves is abandoning her, especially by dying. That Becky!)

      • Joy
        Joy
        November 24, 2022 at 11:30 am | #

        T_T honestly that’s such a normal reaction to how her past few years have good

  21. cmasta1992
    cmasta1992
    November 24, 2022 at 12:53 am | #

    “Good news! We are not dying. We are going to live forever!”

    • Taffy
      Taffy
      November 24, 2022 at 1:00 am | #

      I remember my teenage friends really did feel like they’d live forever. Whereas I was convinced I’d be dead by 25. Say what you will about pessimism, but at least I set more attainable personal goals.

      • StClair
        StClair
        November 24, 2022 at 1:25 am | #

        I spent a good part of my own teen years half expecting to die in a nuclear war. Between that and AIDS, the 80s were a real fun time, let me tell you.

        • Needfuldoer
          Needfuldoer
          November 24, 2022 at 2:24 am | #

          Kids these days don’t know how easy they’ve got it. There’s treatments for AIDS now.

          (It’s gallows humor about the perpetual threat of nuclear Armageddon.)

          • Taffy
            Taffy
            November 24, 2022 at 2:26 am | #

            Isn’t it great how some unhinged, insecure beta male could just press a button in a fit of babyrage and we’d all just be shadows on the wall within hours, over literally anything?

            • Blume
              Blume
              November 24, 2022 at 2:57 am | #

              Regrettably, this has made me anxious for the night

              • Taffy
                Taffy
                November 24, 2022 at 3:41 am | #

                Sorry ’bout that. If it’s any consolation, I’m also very anxious about it. Not…not sure why it would help to know that, but just in case.

            • Mark
              Mark
              November 24, 2022 at 8:18 am | #

              Nah, there are three launch controllers and they all have to unlock and release.

              And they watch each other for signs of unhinged-ness. (That would make me unhinged eventually, which is one of many reasons why I would never be selected for launch controller.)

              • Nova
                Nova
                November 24, 2022 at 11:31 am | #

                Countries other than the USA have nuclear weapons and presumably different safety procedures since they are entirely different governments.

            • StClair
              StClair
              November 24, 2022 at 3:36 pm | #

              Or just some mistake. There were a lot of near-misses. I’m very thankful, today and every day, that one Colonel Petrov made the call he did (on the basis that if Amerika was gonna launch a first strike, it wasn’t going to be a mere handful of missiles).

      • Yotomoe
        Yotomoe
        November 24, 2022 at 1:57 am | #

        I’m still worried I won’t live to see my 40s/50s. Nothing’s wrong with me but if so many rich and beloved people can die so suddenly I don’t know what chance I have to live that long.

        • Taffy
          Taffy
          November 24, 2022 at 2:23 am | #

          This year especially feels like a lot of my childhood heroes have been dropping like flies, as grim as that may be to say. Between Kazuki Takahashi (created Yu-Gi-Oh!) and Jason David Frank (the Green Ranger), I’m not sure which one hit harder, and it really does feel like a reminder that anyone can go at any time.

          • Yotomoe
            Yotomoe
            November 24, 2022 at 2:32 am | #

            For me it’s Takahashi, It’s Gilbert Gottfried, It’s Norm Macdonald and now Kevin Conroy. This shit’s never ending I swear. I know everyone’s gotta go but shit.

            • Needfuldoer
              Needfuldoer
              November 24, 2022 at 5:05 am | #

              It’s kinda unsettling when you realize the people you grew up thinking of as “the adults” were younger then than you are now. When you’re a kid, adults have all the answers. Once you’re an adult, you realize they were winging it the whole time.

              I’m older now than Harrison Ford was when Star Wars was released. The 27 Club is far in the rearview. Steve Jobs had been running NeXT for 5 years. And what have I accomplished, some shitposts?

              Then you start doing the math to figure out how old you were when your parents were the age you are now, and how close they are now to the ages your grandparents reached…

              “Oh, I made myself sad.”
              – Professor Farnsworth

              • Plain Marie
                Plain Marie
                November 24, 2022 at 7:47 am | #

                Similar experience here. I have a pic of my parents when they were still so young…. then I’m reminded that they were a good ten years younger than I am now, and had kids in college. Also, famous people my age who, ya’know, did a bunch of things by the time (checks watch) were several decades younger. Or people running the world. Who are all these youngsters?!

                • Laura
                  Laura
                  November 24, 2022 at 7:52 pm | #

                  They are Gen Z. The Zoomers. And they have so much momentum right now…

                • Laura
                  Laura
                  November 24, 2022 at 7:56 pm | #

                  (I guess the Zoomers are just now coming into their own, not quite running the world everywhere just yet. But still, the level of momentum is startling.
                  As an X/ennial, it’s easy to feel underrepresented in leadership, as everyone is either older or younger.)
                  When I get to feeling like that, I tell myself, “You’re sober, clean, stably housed, working, fed, getting regular medical care, and not in custody anywhere. You’re doing all right.” So many folks don’t have even that.

                • Laura
                  Laura
                  November 24, 2022 at 8:09 pm | #

                  (Sorry, that came out wrong. What I meant to say was that each of us has SOMETHING to be proud of.)

    • cmasta1992
      cmasta1992
      November 24, 2022 at 11:54 am | #

      Gotta say I was not expecting this deep of a conversation to come from quoting Team Fortress 2.

      • Taffy
        Taffy
        November 24, 2022 at 1:13 pm | #

        Don’t worry, I’ve been teleporting bread this entire time.

      • Needfuldoer
        Needfuldoer
        November 25, 2022 at 2:13 am | #

        I fear no man. But that… thing…

        [beat panel of a clock]

        It scares me.

    • Slartibeast Button, BIA
      Slartibeast Button, BIA
      November 24, 2022 at 1:31 pm | #

      But will we learn how to fly?

      • Roborat
        Roborat
        November 24, 2022 at 3:47 pm | #

        That is easy, you just have to learn to throw yourself at the ground and miss.

        • Mark
          Mark
          November 24, 2022 at 7:57 pm | #

          For extra altitude, wait til the rubble bounces.

  22. Bryy
    Bryy
    November 24, 2022 at 12:59 am | #

    Huh. So the realization was about her friendship with Becky.

  23. YordleJay
    YordleJay
    November 24, 2022 at 1:01 am | #

    Who’s taking bets on how long it takes Becky to kill Joe after he takes Joyces V card?

    • True Survivor
      True Survivor
      November 24, 2022 at 1:11 am | #

      10 bucks she’s wearing Joe’s skin before spring break.

    • Yotomoe
      Yotomoe
      November 24, 2022 at 1:36 am | #

      She’ll always have Joyce’s kiss virginity.

      • Jess
        Jess
        November 24, 2022 at 1:50 am | #

        Didn’t Joyce kiss Ethan?

        • Yotomoe
          Yotomoe
          November 24, 2022 at 1:56 am | #

          Did she? I honestly don’t remember. If so then Becky really is always a bridesmaid.

        • Taffy
          Taffy
          November 24, 2022 at 2:24 am | #

          Yeah, in Galasso’s that one time. Not too long before Becky showed up, either. As I recall, she had a freakout about it in the bathroom.

          • Yotomoe
            Yotomoe
            November 24, 2022 at 2:33 am | #

            Damn so she JUST missed it.

          • Suet
            Suet
            November 24, 2022 at 3:27 am | #

            The Flame, The Shame, and The Dame

    • anon
      anon
      November 24, 2022 at 3:43 am | #

      i dont think becky’s that hostile towards joe? since that’d be hypocritical of her after also sleeping with dina

      if anything she was ‘amused’ by her crush on jacob like “Joyce is /horny/, i might switch shifts just to see what happens” or so

    • Cerusee
      Cerusee
      November 24, 2022 at 7:34 am | #

      Can we not call it that? It’s gross.

      • Nova
        Nova
        November 24, 2022 at 11:35 am | #

        It is gross, which is fitting with the idea that absolutely anyone would get upset/angry with the person who “took it” from you in a consenting situation. The whole idea that Becky might (days after banging it out herself) get upset at Joyce for exactly the same thing is so paternalistic and disgusting that I would be genuinely surprised if it happened.

        If it does, my estimation of Becky will lower greatly. If it isn’t addressed by the others in the comic as a large problem, then it will lower my estimation of all of them. I hope that, even if the worst happens, Joyce’s friends will snap out of their “Becky never did a thing wrong” comas.

        • anonymsly
          anonymsly
          November 24, 2022 at 1:13 pm | #

          I wouldn’t be stunned if there’s something, not because it’s Joe but because Joe is a dude and the existence of dudes is kind of gross to Becky, at least playfully.

        • Mark
          Mark
          November 24, 2022 at 8:03 pm | #

          What about saying that Joe accepts it. Or is it the “card” bit?

          But I don’t think we’re going to see that in the near future.

          Anyway, Becky will have to get in line behind Sarah. There may be nothing left for her.

  24. bagge
    bagge
    November 24, 2022 at 1:38 am | #

    Do needlepoint with the football team?

    Also, WTF!

  25. Suet
    Suet
    November 24, 2022 at 1:43 am | #

    If mortality strikes, everything is a timeskip. Thankfully… Becky is subscribed to Willis’ Patreon, question mark, smile?

    Hesitation? Does Joyce really think maybe, just maybe, confessing attraction harms that fateful night

    • Bryy
      Bryy
      November 24, 2022 at 3:19 am | #

      Jesus the art style has changed.

      • vulcanodon
        vulcanodon
        November 24, 2022 at 7:49 am | #

        I’ve noticed this with every long-running comic. Compare 1950 Charlie Brown to 2000 Charlie Brown.

        • Slartibeast Button, BIA
          Slartibeast Button, BIA
          November 24, 2022 at 4:49 pm | #

          Or Questionable Content #1 versus #4900.

  26. Yotomoe
    Yotomoe
    November 24, 2022 at 2:03 am | #

    I’ll never promise that I won’t die because I don’t wanna disappoint both of us. That said I’ll at least say I’ll try not to die at a time that’s inconvenient for you.

  27. Throwatron
    Throwatron
    November 24, 2022 at 2:27 am | #

    this is one of those comics where i am becky and becky is me

    • Slartibeast Button, BIA
      Slartibeast Button, BIA
      November 24, 2022 at 1:34 pm | #

      I are she as you are she as you are me
      And we are all together?

  28. Francoinblanco
    Francoinblanco
    November 24, 2022 at 3:20 am | #

    From Becky’s point of view, it’s like asking Joyce she’ll never go to heaven

  29. anon
    anon
    November 24, 2022 at 3:41 am | #

    lol well, something like that does make it seem like joyce is gonna distance herself afterwards, even if she doesnt have a Yale opportunity like Dorothy does

  30. Zaxares
    Zaxares
    November 24, 2022 at 3:56 am | #

    Spoiler Alert, Becky. EVERYBODY dies. Well, unless science succeeds in creating immortality technology in the future. Then everybody except the rich and powerful who can afford the technology dies.

  31. Jenniffniff
    Jenniffniff
    November 24, 2022 at 4:06 am | #

    Trust her, Joyce. Becky’s always got your back.

  32. Keulen
    Keulen
    November 24, 2022 at 4:16 am | #

    Technically we’re all dying, it just takes most of us several decades to do so.

  33. Rabisch
    Rabisch
    November 24, 2022 at 7:09 am | #

    Let’s see if Jennifer will just return to her room or will go check again what Ruth is doing or casually meet her in the hallway. I know they could fight again, but they need to talk and Jason needs to see.

  34. ValdVin
    ValdVin
    November 24, 2022 at 7:11 am | #

    “You also have to tell me if you’re a cop, Joyce.”

  35. vulcanodon
    vulcanodon
    November 24, 2022 at 7:51 am | #

    Of course both of them know that’s a promise Joyce can’t make; it’s an emotional statement not a literal request. I’ve said similar things to loved ones I was worried about

  36. Mr.Morningstar
    Mr.Morningstar
    November 24, 2022 at 8:02 am | #

    I mean “never” done wrong is a stretch but it’s the thought that counts

    Gah I know, I know joyce is trying to be nice to Becky despite all their shit.

    I worry sometimes people will think I just hate Becky, when I don’t, but dear god does her behaviour drive me insane, especially when no one calls her out when she does some shittybthings.

    • Big Z
      Big Z
      November 24, 2022 at 12:36 pm | #

      Are you me? Because I could have written this.

      • StClair
        StClair
        November 24, 2022 at 3:57 pm | #

        Same.

  37. Shade of Blue
    Shade of Blue
    November 24, 2022 at 8:47 am | #

    This has nothing to do with today’s strip but I had a dream last night I was reading old DoA strips and noticed that Walky had a twin that wasn’t Sal… Her name was Gigi and had short hair, which made her look even more like Walky.

    I was like, well what the hell happens to Gigi? They just kind of disappear after a few chapters… They still had sex with Jason though in spite of not being Sal. Seduced him with a nice looking one-piece bathing suit.

    • Yotomoe
      Yotomoe
      November 24, 2022 at 8:52 am | #

      Ah yes, the Walkerton triplets. I can’t believe both Gigi and Sal had sex with the same guy.

      • Shade of Blue
        Shade of Blue
        November 24, 2022 at 9:37 am | #

        How much can I pay you to draw Gigi, Yotomoe?

        • Yotomoe
          Yotomoe
          November 24, 2022 at 10:37 am | #

          There’s a strong chance that I’ll do it for free. Any other details other than, Walky’s twin who also has short hair?

          • Joy
            Joy
            November 24, 2022 at 11:33 am | #

            Can she be thin yet curvy and nerdy? It would contrast with sal… And she could be someone who puts a lot of effort into having good etiquette and maybe wears a choker with a bell on it and wears pastel goth clothing?

          • Shade of Blue
            Shade of Blue
            November 24, 2022 at 11:38 am | #

            Haha hell yeah! I’ve seen a lot of your work and you’re very talented, so I’d feel honored if you did it.

            She had kind of a pixie cut I suppose… and I remember the one-piece bathing suit having an open back and being salmon colored.

          • Shade of Blue
            Shade of Blue
            November 24, 2022 at 11:57 am | #

            As far as personality goes it’s kind of hard to say. She was more serious and watchful than the others, grounded maybe. But then going after Jason suggests something is a bit tweaked in her. The seduction was also very straightforward and a bit calculated. She knew what Jason was attracted to and went for it.

            This is a bit cursed, but I could see a little Sarah in there, and a bit of Mike even. Besides that, the dream was pretty vague.

            • Yotomoe
              Yotomoe
              November 24, 2022 at 2:43 pm | #

              Got it. If Walky is Riley and Sal is Huey, She’s Caesar.

              • The Wellerman
                The Wellerman
                November 24, 2022 at 6:12 pm | #

                🤣 Thanks Yoto, you made me smile.

  38. JessWitt
    JessWitt
    November 24, 2022 at 10:47 am | #

    May the one constant in life be your Dorito smile.

  39. brionl
    brionl
    November 24, 2022 at 11:19 am | #

    The Lost Girls:
    Study all day, party all night
    Never grow old, never graduate
    It’s fun to be a toon. Being wild is in their ink.

  40. Joy
    Joy
    November 24, 2022 at 11:31 am | #

    I continue to enjoy Jennifer’s sense of humor

  41. Big Z
    Big Z
    November 24, 2022 at 12:36 pm | #

    I am, based on my own college experiences, only increasing in the amount I hate the Joyce and Becky relationship.

  42. Amós Batista
    Amós Batista
    November 24, 2022 at 1:42 pm | #

    I wish I could learn needlepoint, because I learned how to sew in this year, and I love Pixel Art.

    • crow
      crow
      November 24, 2022 at 2:38 pm | #

      I dunno anything about needlepoint, but crossstitch is pretty easy compared to sewing so you could probably learn it. It’s pretty much paint by numbers but with thread.

    • Jess
      Jess
      November 24, 2022 at 8:10 pm | #

      If you live near a Micheal’s, they sometimes have cross stitch classes. I’ve gone for some at mine, anyway.

  43. Qube
    Qube
    November 24, 2022 at 3:15 pm | #

    JOYCE WILL RIDE ETERNAL

    • Yotomoe
      Yotomoe
      November 24, 2022 at 3:59 pm | #

      Joe running to the court to get renamed Eternal.

      • Qube
        Qube
        November 24, 2022 at 4:21 pm | #

        and I’m glad that you caught that ;D

    • StClair
      StClair
      November 24, 2022 at 3:59 pm | #

      Shiny and chrome!

  44. thumb
    thumb
    November 25, 2022 at 8:17 am | #

    The only way I want that first promise from anyone I care about in real life, is if I get the second.

  45. Bratty Roger
    Bratty Roger
    November 25, 2022 at 3:29 pm | #

    Everyone dies.
    It’s just a matter of when, how, and under what circumstances 《eyeroll》

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 ↑