Discussion (125) ¬
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Paul Southworth 
@southworth.bsky.social ⋅ 1d
David M Willis! @damnyouwillis.bsky.social ⋅ 2d
nami @namioshiro.bsky.social ⋅ 2d
TFRaw.com Transformers Multimedia Archive @walruslaw.bsky.social ⋅ 3d
David M Willis! @damnyouwillis.bsky.social ⋅ 4d
M Sipher @msipher.bsky.social ⋅ 4d
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I think “Final Form” in college is a bit of a premature estimate
unless you mean for Willis’s foreseeable lifespan, then yeah ok
Even then, I predict at least two new forms for Ethan, to coincide with the next wave of the DoA toy line. Will they be necessary? Ehh, but it does keep him off the chopping block when it’s time to thin out the cast for the new toy characters.
(Sorry, Joe, it was you or Waspinator.)
Masterpiece Ethan though will stick to the classics, so all of his accessories will be Boyfriends.
Do they Powerlinx, or have we come up with another name for that gimmick, or have we all just stopped caring?
That’s the Slipshine Limited Edition version
“It was you or Waspinator”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqnCj8WLwUw&feature=youtu.be&t=42
lol seriously this comic will be 40 years old by the time they graduate.
add a trailing zero to that
DoA time passes at about a 66:1 ratio compared to real time, and at that rate 4 DoA years would be 96,360 real days. Count up from September 1, 2010, and we land on DoA wrapping in June 2274.
Probably not accurate anymore since that ratio’s a couple years old now, and it never took gradually increasing chapter lengths into account, but it gets us in the ballpark.
So yeah, DoA’s timeline should last it until the Enterprise gets sent off to intercept V’ger.
I mean, I totally remember thinking that once I hit college I’d have most stuff figured out pretty quick, because I was finally free to pursue what interested me… and now, multiple graduate degrees in politics/philosophy later, I’m considering going into counseling/social work.
Look. We were not smart at 18.
Now ethan is going to assume dotty is gay.
Danny even. oops
I’m pretty sure Danny’s out to him as bi
Correct.
Danny, be a good egg and walk Amber home.
Danny knows Amber is better off walking out at night without him.
I don’t know that walking Amber home would be for Amber’s benefit.
Dumbing of Age Book 10: And How Gay
DoA Book 10: Inter Won’t Net Itself
DoA Book 10: Free pizza my one true love
Ethan is a natural collector, figures he’d extend that philosophy to boyfriends as well.
Insert Frozen meme here.
Well, I guess you could say Ethan’s shown himself. To several people, in fact, and that’s totally okay.
Ethan has the BEST collection
Does he, though? As has been asserted by many a gentleman through the years, “bigger” does not equal “better.”
Unless it’s a non-feathered gigantic stuffed dinosaur that you can sleep on, unethically purchased with campaign funds, in which case quality can go fuck itself in favor of sheer size and awesomeness.
…but somehow I doubt that Ethan’s sixteen mediocre boyfriends rise to that criteria.
That being said, he may in fact still soon have the BIGGEST collection, which is still something to be proud of, naturally.
I dunno, I kinda like the idea of him sending his mother a picture of him reclining on a giant pile of 16 boyfriends, all wearing nothing but strategically placed Christmas/elf hats/stockings/mistletoe with a little note inside saying “Having a great time at college, won’t be coming home for the holidays after all – just too busy, I’m sure you understand”…
I am wondering if this urge should be tempered by the fact I am now a parent myself but as I can’t imagine calling my children disappointments etc, and my main concerns if this was how one of them chose to nuke the closet would be “Are you using protection? Are you sure everybody is on the same page about the level of commitment etc involved here? Do you have friends as well as playmates? Are you studying too?” I feel I can stand by this suggestion…
Fun as that would be, probably a good idea to wait until he is no longer a minor at the least. He’s likely still relying on her to help him out financially by helping pay for college, co-signing academic loans, providing some spending money, etc. She also still has decision-making authority for him in regards to anything official. If she is offended enough, she can make his life a whole lot harder. Hopefully not to the extent of Toedad, but he lost a lot of his power when he was arrested for felonies. Power that Ethan’s mom still retains. So I’d say wait until he is an adult and can move his stuff out of her home (so she doesn’t sell it all or destroy his transformers, etc) before rubbing her face in his sexuality.
He’s already not a minor legally, so she doesn’t have decision making authority for him, but he is probably still financially dependent as you suggest.
He’s … not a minor. While his shitty mother may be helping him pay for school (though I don’t remember seeing any confirmation of that–I never assume since so many people’s parents can’t/don’t), she has no legal authority over him now that he’s over 18. Which is one reason why so many queer kids come out after 18–because the cutting-us-off thing is still a possibility, but our parents don’t have the same amount of legal control over our lives.
No, I would say it’s totally cool that you feel that way despite being a parent. I’m not a parent, but I am an educator, and I work with a lot of students with some pretty short fuses, and I’m not gonna lie, I secretly love it a little when students cuss me out, because I know I could never get away with it but they totally can, and even while I’m dealing with the situation, there is always a little part of me cheering them on in the back of my head, going “Yeah, you tell ’em! Stick it to the man!!!” …even though I am, in fact, the proverbial man in the scenario.
*shrug* I’ve been called so many awful things before… and I know it rarely, if ever, actually has anything to do with me personally – it’s usually something else going on with them that set them off – so even though I feel bad that they’re upset, and determined to help them calm down before they do something they can’t take back… it’s sometimes also a bit of a challenge not to giggle and offer them a high five. ;D
Sooo… yeah. I think having those kinds of conflicting urges is part of being human, and I think having the self-awareness to recognize them in yourself and resolve the cognitive dissonance is a good sign that you are a reasonably intelligent and somewhat down-to-earth individual.
*imagines Danny playing “If You Love Me (Let Me Know)” on the ukulele*
I don’t know what song this is, but I’m imagining “Violet Hill” by Coldplay on a ukelele and I’m not sure if I need this in my life now.
I am more into If You Love Me Let Me Go by Panic! at the Disco.
I was gonna suggest “If You Love Somebody Set Them Free” by Sting.
Gaaa! I missed your reply before making the very same comment! Obviously I should not be posting at this hour of night. I concede victory, you have triumphed (this time [mwhaa haa haa (cough, cough), no really, well done you!]).
Slides Sting’s “If You Love Somebody, Set Them Free” in to the playlist of the hacked Muzak.
Mike looks pissed.
Agreed, but is he glaring at Amber, Ethan, or both? Also, to what extent is Amber aware of Mike’s sudden case of the feels?
My far-fetched theory is that he’s mad at Danny for not reacting in whatever way Mike wanted him to react. Like, maybe Mike wanted him to be even more of a whimpering, jealous mess (I don’t remember the exact words he used) and Danny sitting quietly in the corner, keeping mostly to himself, is contrary to that?
(Listen, I already said it was far-fetched!)
Amber’s learned not to buy any that Mike is selling, so I doubt he’d go to her. Even if she’s the ckosest thing he has to a friend.
Mike’s rage is compressing his face down to neutronium density. I predict one of two possible outcomes:
-Mike’s face explodes in a supernova of hate, annihilating UI and everyone in it,
– Mike’s face collapses into a black hole, sucking UI and everyone in it in.
Either way, bad for the comic.
I am picking up some hints that some major Mike-Ethan stuff happened. Did I forget to read Dumbing of Age for a few weeks? Did it happen in a Slipshine? Maybe it always as offscreen and referenced entirely by hints? Well it doesn’t ruin anything, I just know I have a gap in understanding.
While the nitty gritty was shown on slipshine, it’s pretty explicit within this comic that Ethan and Mike fucked.
http://www.dumbingofage.com/2018/comic/book-8/04-of-mike-and-men/hmph/
Mike gave him the confidence boost he needed to truly accept himself and then had sex with him, knowing it would be a one time thing and that it was bringing up his childhood feelings of actual affection. Now he is stuck living with his feels, knowing that he will likely never be on Ethan’s radar that way again and that Ethan has very likely long outgrown his crush on him, so he just has to stew in his jealousy, knowing that there is no one he feels able to talk to about it.
Really? It looks more to me like general emotional suffering. He looks upset and I really don’t know why he hasn’t left yet
Because he has no self-preservation instinct, and also enjoys suffering? He’s got a masochistic streak a mile-wide, and/or believes he deserves to be miserable and is punishing himself for making such a stupid mistake as to actually develop feelings for someone? Idk, man. Jealousy makes people do really dumb stuff, and while fandom may debate about Mike’s merits as a human being on a moral scale, I don’t think anyone could argue he’s unintelligent… However, that’s very unlikely to help him here, as the long-range, big picture, analytical understanding he seems to have of most emotional/social situations tends to go right out the window for most people as soon as they’re emotionally invested in the situation themselves. Also, like I said, people do dumb shit when they’re jealous. He’s probably not thinking as clearly as he normally is.
Maybe that is his normal, relaxed face. He has resting pissed face.
Ah, tier lists. I dunno, if we’re doing the objectifying rank assignments then Amber is probably up there for a few people.
The current meta does favor people with the anti-hero feature, though. So that Amazigirl (whomever she is) is top tier, maybe one tier above Amber.
Amber is the hottest lady in the strip. Even above Amazi-girl.
If Amazi-girl had a chest window, on the other hand….
Damn an over 9000 joke? I feel nostalgic
I’m surprised there are no tiers in her eyes.
Is that an AU human form Lapis?
sixteen boyfriends but at least fourteen of them are Transformers
“What does the scouter say about his Kinsey scale?”
*points scouter at him* “It’s 6”
*points scouter at Becky* “It’s over 9000!”
CLOSETS EXPLODE!
WHAT, nine thousand!? There’s no way that can be right!
It’s an older meme, but it checks out.
“IT’S- one thousand and six.”
Ethan is too good for you Danny. Not because he’s cooler or better looking but because you’re kind of a jealous asshole.
I wouldnt call Ethan good on morality. Good in physical traits, yes. I am straight, but one can appreciate good body shapes. In terms of morality, Ethan is having a good time as a hedonist and can be kind of an asshole when it comes to Transformers.
I mean, jealous? Yes. Asshole in relation to that jealousy? (As opposed to asshole in conversation with Mike, which, to be fair, is probably at least karmically justified, if not situationally.) Not necessarily. Please correct me if I’ve forgotten something, but I don’t recall any instance of Danny being an asshole to Ethan about dating the dudes, or even being an asshole TO any of the dudes. Or, actually, even trash talking anyone involved in the situation. Besides Mike, obviously. But other than that, I think I’ve only ever seen him express some jealousy and/or frustration about the situation, in private conversation(s), and in ways that were just him expressing his emotions, not being an asshole.
…Now, in terms of PREVIOUS relationships… Maybe a different story. But… could we be seeing growth? :O (Despite the hat and ukulele??!)
I believe he was an asshole to Drew earlier this in-comic day.
To be fair, Drew seemed to think that was normal.
He also tried to pick up Sal in a really weird objectifying her to “get back” at Walky but quickly realised how absurd he was being with that…
Danny tell her you want Ethan.
After Amber split up him and Amazi-Girl, I highly doubt he’d trust her about something like that.
OVER NINE THOUSAND?!
Well, Amber is right. If Danny loves Ethan, he should let him enjoy is own harem of pricks and geeks. There are other fish on the sea, Danny.
As for Mike, can we compile all the frames where he is showing anger? I ant to feel sorry for him, but he kind of got what he deserved after years of being an asshole.
It really doesn’t look like anger to me. We’ve seen him angry (at least in other comics.) That expression looks more like he’s eaten some bad shrimp or something, which I take as emotional turmoil and regretting creating slutty Ethan
Dan seems judgy about playing the field.
let him go and be his happy gay self.
It was more of the latter than the former Amber. You were never the problem. I know, I know, that’s not the way your brain works but it’s true.
I support Danny pursuing what is best for himself, and a relationship with Ethan is probably not that. Make good choices, Danny!
*Looks at title of the comic* Oh, yeah. Nevermind.
No way is Danny higher-tier than Amber.
I mean, if we’re going to tier people then I would put him a bit higher than her.
Then as amber goes alone she’s captured by her dad and toe dad.
They’d better bring their A game.
Yet another of the multiple reasons why it sucks to be Amber O’Malley.
Ah, I see Joyce and Danny are competing in the weekly Bitter-Offs.
That is some impressive side-eye Mike’s giving there.
….
So, wait. My Amber-to-Dan dictionary ap just stopped working.
Is this getting translated as “You need to let him go just like I did, Danny” or “I let him go and that means you don’t need to feel guilty about me if you make a pass at him, Danny.”
It is just Amber dialogue, not Amber-to-Dan, it won’t translate into anything the Amber meant the Dan to hear.
I don’t think Amber has a clue Danny’s interested, so I think it’s more just about her internal self-loathing than anything.
Does she even know he’s bi?
So, she doesn’t. Iirc he and Ethan are concerned about her thinking she “made two boyfriends gay”, which is all kinds of bullshit to me but whatever
Right, right, but how is Danny going to hear it?
…. I think it’s going to be option B, simply because that will maximize his ability to Dan things up.
The obvious solution is angry sex between Mike and Danny.
Oh please! Let Ethan be as social as he wants to but there are no tiers! Being introverted doesn’t make you low tier and being tall and sociable doesn’t make you high tier! That’s a line of bullshit, Amber. Ethan’s still a dork who spends most of his freetime editing a Transformers wiki.
I mean, Ethan is indisputably *very* conventionally attractive. Which is probably the lagest possible force multiplier when it comes to these things.
Good luck convincing Amber’s self-loathing of that. Maybe there shouldn’t be tiers, but she knows she’s on the bottom one anyway.
Wait, what’s Mike’s sexuality again?
I know in shortpacked he said it was “whatever you don’t want it to be” but judging from his banging of Ethan it now seems more like “whatever your mom doesn’t want it to be”
All we know is that he is willing and able to physically have sex with anyone and that Ethan has described him as queer. Specific labels are not known but I doubt he is asexual and he is at the very least, capable of falling in love with multiple genders but the type of romantic you are doesn’t always align with your sexuality as not all asexuals are aromantic and not all aromantics are asexual.
He married Amber in Shortpacked! so I’m gonna guess he’s not aromantic.
If I were to hazard a label I’d probably go with pan.
Hmm, I thought Dina was pan but with her latest design Willis seems to be showing she’s asexual.
Yesterday doesn’t really suggest ace.
I suspect we’ll find out shortly, possibly in slipshiny detail.
On a more meta level, there have been a number of strips that critiqued characters wanting to think of Dina as non-sexual because she’s small and not neurotypical. I doubt that’s going to be reversed and them proven correct.
At least two obvious possibilities: 1) demi, or 2) late bloomer.
I was the latter myself. I’d had crushes earlier, but I never started experiencing actual sexual attraction until I was 17.
Willis did put her in that grey/black/white/purple sweatshirt on his Tumblr (or Twitter? or both?).
Here we are, from October.
https://dumbingofage.tumblr.com/post/188110952582/dina
Amber: “He’ll fuck anyone, if only to piss somebody off somewhere”
In the same strip, Ethan refers to him as “a queer friend from high school”
Surely, the final form for Ethan isn’t being with Eric… I hope
*plays Panic! At The Disco’s This is Gospel on the hacked Muzak*
this is for extending the buffer for 4 more days!!OVER NINE THOUS-BANDS?!His final form is a collection of ex-boyfriends, so no, it’s not going to be with Eric. We’ll probably never see him with Eric again.
calm down danny. my god.
A bit disappointed we don’t see Eric’s hands in the last panel.
To be fair, Amber’s emotional baggage does knock her a tier lower but not nearly as low as she thinks she’s at.
So you could let him go Danny, OR YOU COULD SEDUCE HIM ANYWAY BECAUSE YOLO
I dunno… I think that there is a good chance that Danny and Mike are going to end up waking up together tomorrow, both agreeing that it was a hideous mistake and then just lie in bed together, awkwardly wondering how they’re supposed to stop this particular ride.
And then, Danny was strong enough to stop thinking about Ethan. Mike, on the other hand…
Exactly – Mike is about to blow a gasket and I don’t think I’ve ever seen him ever act in real anger before (cynical disappointment, yes, but never anger). I wouldn’t want to guess where that will take him.
The only time I can think of Mike being close to angry was when Walky accused Mike of being depressed because he wasn’t quipping as mean as usual, despite breakup material.
I honesty can’t wait to see him angry.
She’s going to see Blaine and Ross as she’s leaving, isn’t she.
Not if she traveled by rooftops as Amazi-Girl — Becky’s place is maybe 1.5 miles or so from Amber’s dorm, so its a quick jaunt.
Of course, there’s a lot of space between buildings, so she’ll be on foot for part of the trip.
In the current state of her disassociation, she’s unlikely to let AG take over so easily.
So what I’m getting from Ethan’s behavior is he isn’t very romantically interested in Danny, he was just horny. Now that he has an outlet for that, he doesn’t really feel the need to reconsider whether Amber would be upset if they got together. Also he could think Danny would want a relationship and Ethan still wants to play the field, but it seems more like Ethan just hasn’t thought about it.
Alternately, he’s sticking to his decision not to get involved with Danny and is playing the field as an alternative.
He did say earlier today that they know why making out would be a bad idea. And a couple days back that Danny was “too good”.
I think this may indicate that Danny was the only one he was romantically interested in so since he’s off the table for now Ethan’s just having fun.
“Inter won’t net itself” OMG I will HAVE to use that line IRL
…and he’s only using 0.78% of his hormones!
RE: ALT-TEXT: Well as long as one of those boyfriends doesn’t end up being the Yamcha of the group…
Mike has the most Peanuts expression ever.
“rats.”
Don’t rate people, Amber.
…Mike looks like he seriously could use someone to ralk to but has no idea how
Silly amber, of course Inter will Net itself. That’s why we have bots.
The shirts Mike and Ethan are wearing look oddly familiar… do you think they recently got new jobs at a toy store?