Question for the nerds: how is it possible for the server clock to run several minutes late? I thought servers connected to the Internet used some kind of networking protocol to agree on time.
I didn’t want a cut… but if a cut had to be, I’m happy with this. I’m interested to see more into the lives of characters we see less of. Asma, Alice… honestly I wouldn’t complain to see us delve a little more into the Charlie and Carla realms.
am curious at what kinda face alice is making. other than being socially awkward or just insensitive like walky idk how many ppl have approached her desk and basically just ignore her after
Campus Protests! Come for the justice, stay for the hook-up that leads to marriage with the love of your life who also happens to be your first lesbian crush!
It kind of feels like this strip exists to give Asma more screen time (not a bad thing, I should say!) but it doesn’t really communicate any new information? Asma works at the front desk and she’s having a really rough time. This is all stuff we already know. It doesn’t push her character forward in any major way, which is a little disappointing. I’d like to see Asma have more to do! I recognize there are some constraints in backfilling more appearances for her and I appreciate Willis’ efforts in doing so, I just feel they could be more substantial.
Sure in a vacuum but media thrives on the Kuleshov effect and the last time Asma was on screen it was making a mildly flirtatious remark implying she was jealous of everyone else kissing to specifically Alice. It’s not explicit, but it’s not particularly ambiguous.
1. appropriate gravatar
2. I might just be reading too much into the Law of Conservation of Detail, but maybe Asma’s just generally lonely? I went a ways back in her tag and usually she’s just in the background being ignored, like how often have we seen her socialize
This is the difference between “one strip a day” and “waiting half a year and then binging through the last half year of strips”. I counsel patience. I bet that something will develop with Asma. Maybe even within a strip or two, unless the “camera” follows Alice.
Oh darn, I absolutely say ‘I hope that helps’ with total sincerity. Because, I really hope that it does. I wonder how else to express it where it won’t sound condescending and passive aggressive.
As I’ve noted, the pacing of DoA suffers a bit when the actual plot events are slow moving, as well. Comedic antics or action? Slowing it all down lets us indulge. But personal drama with not much laughter or action? Starting to think this WOULDbe a better read if I ca.e back in 3 months.
I know this isn’t gonna be the popular take but I kinda disagree on “I appreciate the effort”. It just feels a little too forced that Asma is abruptly a real character after almost 16 years. Giving Raidah a little more to do has felt much more organic. I realize that barely anything has happened yet in either case, though, so maybe Willis shall prove me wrong.
Yeah I agree. This strip and the one where she returns to the desk after the protest just feel so… abrupt and out of place? Especially when (/if, in this case) it then immediately jumps back to what the main cast is doing. They’re just completely disconnected from each other. Which, granted, does happen within main cast storylines as well, but since we don’t have years of context and character building for who Asma is and what she’s got going on, it falls extremely flat.
While technically nothing “happened” there, there was an emotional poignancy in just taking a moment to sit with Asma as everything caught up with her.
I’m more dubious about this one. It doesn’t feel like much on its own, but I’m willing to reserve judgment for now to see if it’s going somewhere.
I want to agree, there’s an emotional weight to the strip that does resonate with me/that I do like. BUT, as Lee points out further down here, “[Willis] didn’t take the [time] to build/write in a connection [to Asma as a character] BEFORE [they] tried to get the emotional payoff and/or representation of that post-protest-deflation strip, and that felt token-y.”
I agree, I resonated hard with that strip. I think it’s a good introduction to “Asma is a person, not an NPC” because it gives us an immediate emotional connection to her.
See, I agree, but I also feel a bit like that about the recent Raidah and Daisy “confrontation.” Raidah is right to call Daisy out, and has been more around than Asma in general, but suddenly giving both Raidah and Asma more focus in sporadic strips that have otherwise been completely detached from the main goings on, feels like an attempt to respond to the “why did the protest turn into a Dorothy/Joyce moment at the expense of the students actually impacted?”
It’s an effort to include them, I don’t want to dismiss that, and I can see why people appreciate the effort [or maybe don’t], but like the panel Willis added to the original “Oh no, we kissed………oh no, wait, we kissed at a protest” strip, that’s what it feels like: an effort now that it was called to Willis’ attention. We already know that he had to change his plans for this arc, and this feels like part of that. It’s nice to see Raidah and Asma, but they aren’t really included in the real storylines yet because they are having to be fit in between main story scenes. This is possibly a hint that that will change, and I’m happy to see where it goes, but now that someone else has said it, it’s something I’ve been feeling.
Yeah. They’re filler. It’s better than nothing but it’s obviously disconnected from, well… everything. Disconnected from the actual plot. If all the Asma strips in which she is a character and not in the background were removed, the context/plot/story would not be affected at all, there would be nothing out of place because (for now!!) she is unfortunately irrelevant. Strips of Asma going about her day alone don’t really change that. It falls flat.
It takes a while to build/write in a connection so I would say patience is in order here. After having a massive response in polls of “more Asma” and critiques about there not being enough Asma, only for there now to be comments along the lines of “why are we seeing Asma, that’s not a relevant character”. Give it time.
Looking at the interpretations above, we might be seeing Alice going off to get with someone very bad for her, walking past someone who may eventually be very good for her once that drama is over.
Or we might be about to see an exploration of social isolation and vulnerability.
This currently reads to me as a quiet/slow story beat that will add depth and context to later developments.
Yeah. Possible that these strips are “token appearances” but also possible (likely?) that they are foreshadowing while the things that have to happen before previously peripheral characters become more central
But that’s sort of my point. I don’t think all of said “more Asma” just came out of thin air. I think that was people saying “you didn’t take the ‘while to build/write in a connection’ BEFORE you tried to get the emotional payoff and/or representation of that post-protest-deflation strip, and that felt token-y.”
Just realized/remembered that I’ve seen Willis referred to with “they/them” pronouns, and there is no edit button. I’m not active on other social media platforms Willis is on, so I don’t know if “they/them” are the only pronouns Willis uses, but either way I apologize to Willis and the general comment community if I used the wrong pronouns and will remember in the future.
Willis has also said they them, as I recall, but as far as I know isn’t adament hasn’t felt the need to correct anyone.
I mean personally, I’m not going to be upset or offended if you call me she/her and will answer to hey you. My preference is to be addressed as Lord High Poobah, Rightful Ruler of the Asmovian Spaces and All Lesser Orbs Therein, but no one ever pays attention to that for some reason.
I also have issues with that scene because while it makes sense for Raidah to bring that complaint, it’s kind of frustrating when her and Asma “get to” lecture other characters and then the scene just sort of ends because they walk away right after? Sort of ties into the disconnect you’re talking about. Maybe it’s too much to say it feels like a check on a checklist, but… idk at it’s worst it could!
Like you said though, maybe it’s going somewhere. Holding my horses or however that saying goes
As opposed to not going anywhere, it was followed up with Raidah taking it up with the editor. With Asma we are going into a slow build of exploring a gay Muslim character.
Can’t tell what expression Alice has. Feels like it’s a thousand yard stare or just zoned out. Or just bluescreening over how to approach her relationship with Billie and her desire to put her cooch on her cooch.
Oh hey Asma actually getting some fresh characterization and it’s *checks notes…* Willis this is the 7th week in a row you’ve shown lesbianism to the class.
Well, maybe I have poor gaydar, but That never occurred to me. Of all the things Asma might need from Alice. Mind you, nothing much else occurred to me…
well it also helps they talked about kissing before but i imagine she’s not experienced with either gender if she’s like ‘i’ve heard good things about it’
NGL kind of not sure how to feel about asma potentially getting a romance arc, I like that she’s getting more focus but my favourite thing about her as a character was how she felt like a normal woman in a world of YA soap opera drama that happened around her, idk I’ll have to see where they take it
Oh I’m all for it. She shouldn’t have to be alone and disinterested in romance to be considered a normal woman. She’s also a young adult, and she gets to have a lil drama as a treat.
Harken unto me, as a bisexual man: the number of LGBTQ students in this strip is WAAAY beyond any reality. Yes, college is a great time for sexual self-discovery, but straights still vastly outnumber the LGBTQ, and having almost every character be LGBTQ and/or autistic is just a niche Willis likes exploring. It is by no means a requirement for being in the strip.
I mean, you literally have no way of knowing that, demographically. What you mean to say is that the number of students you didn’t personally know in college vastly outnumbered the ones you did, and you assumed they were overwhelmingly straight.
We have very little actual data on “how common are LGBTQIA+ people”, and the data we do have is all self-reported, which is vulnerable to mitigating factors like “stigma” and “sometimes you think you’re cis/straight/perisex/etc your whole entire life”. As acceptance rises, so too does the percentage of people who identify in some way with the community.
Meanwhile, the experience of many of us is that we cluster. It’s not only possible but fairly common for entire friend groups to turn out to be LGBTQIA+. We are drawn to each other consciously as well as unconsciously.
All of this applies equally to autistic people, btw.
Anyway, as a queer autistic creator, ofc Willis is gonna create characters like them. All authors tend to, consciously or otherwise. But there’s really no reason to think this is an unrealistic number of such characters on a college campus.
Besides, Willis has gone on record saying that ALL their characters are queer, explicitly to head off complaints that too many of them are, so? I guess it is in fact a requirement for being in the strip now, heh.
Pretty sure I didn’t say, anywhere in my comment, that anyone was required to be queer or autistic to be in the strip.
Which was an oversight on my part, so thanks for pointing it out. EVERYONE IN THIS STRIP IS NOW REQUIRED TO BE QUEER AND/OR AUTISTIC, ANY CHARACTERS FOUND IN VIOLATION OF THIS NEW RULE WILL BE SUMMARILY SUPLEXED INTO OBLIVION.
“Harken unto me” lmao, baby aren’t you embarrassed? And since we’re flashing our credentials like that means individual experience is universal truth…
I know it’s not really what you’re saying but it is sort of funny reading that as if “interested in romance” ISN’T the assumed default for young women or what’s considered “normal”.
First hint I can remember is pretty recent, when she suggested there are rumors (likely by her) that she’s good at kissing while discussing the Dorothy/Joyce incident.
I don’t know if this is Asma expressing attraction to Alice, or if this is just an opening for Asma to ask Alice for help at being more socially involved. I’m not AGAINST Asma being attracted to Alice, that could be fun to see. But without more information, could this just be Asma, seeing Alice as the outgoing social gateway? Alice is happy to gossip with anyone and already dragged Asma into a conversation with Raidah, just because Alice likes to talk to/at people. Maybe Asma, feeling lonely and uncertain as we saw her look after the protest, is hoping Alice can just generally get her out from behind the desk and in on the events she’s been watching from afar.
Again, not saying Asma definitely is/isn’t attracted to Alice, that’s a valid read, but I don’t think it’s an automatic one. Asma admitted she hasn’t frenched anyone but has heard good reviews, after Alice looped her into the conversation. That’s literally it, and it wasn’t even about frenching Alice specifically, it was a general “So, has that person chaotically made out with someone?” Alice talked more to Raidah, and Asma was off panel as she said it, so there’s no read on her expression as unamused, curious, curious at Alice specifically, etc. Given the recent trend of relationship drama it’s not an unreasonable assumption, but without more information on Asma, I’m not as certain it’s a done deal.
Of course, some people have Patreon, and maybe they have the inside scoop that the next strip is Asma blushing furiously when Alice looks at her, or asking Alice out. I’m just working with what I’ve seen.
I like Asma and appreciate her getting an upgrade but I also want Willis to work her into the story organically. The needs of a storyteller are important and have to flow naturally.
Alice didn’t stop by Asma’s desk. She just walked past Asma on her way through the lobby,, as she leaves the dorm after consulting Ruth on cooch superposition.
I do think it’s interesting to think about the readers who aren’t aware of all the outside context that strips like this (or the recent Raidah ones) have – and like, theoretically a piece of fiction should stand on its own merits, but I do think it’s a bit more complicated for online serial media like this! Since DoA is being written & drawn so long in advance before it is actually posted, any reactions to audience or knowledge about the commentary are on a sort of delay, if they gets referenced at all – so something direct like this is sort of weird and new.
idk I guess I’m wondering if it works. It’s not particularly working for me, because I can see the seams where this strip was stitched in so to speak, but if you’re not aware those exist at all, what does the attempt of having Asma suddenly be an actual character mean? What does Raidah having an opinion that isn’t cartoon bully evil mean (presumably nothing, I read the comments a few days ago. alas)?
All that aside I’m curious how this will develop. Asma, mostly, because she’s pretty much a blank slate, but I also always like seeing Raidah get more stuff to do!
Also if there actually has been something like this before (newly inserting strips to fix something) let me know because I’m curious. I haven’t been reading the comic that long and certainly don’t have a deep memory of what was going on in the commentary at many given points.
I mean Asma has been a popular character for awhile. An “Ensemble Darkhorse” to use TVtropes.ORG description. She’s been in a lot of the bonus strips that regular readers don’t get.
Also, Willis has been capable of changing his mind for some time so its not a big shift really that he decided to add some more Asma material.
[[What does Raidah having an opinion that isn’t cartoon bully evil mean (presumably nothing, I read the comments a few days ago. alas)?]]
That isn’t a change to Raidah. Fans hate Raidah for being abelist to Dina and her social climbing and distaste for Sara. But everything about Raidah has always been positive politics and a strong sense of justice.
It’s just fans turn her into Satan because nuance goes to die on the internet.
It’s a bit relevant here, though it’s not talking about the characters you mentioned. I noticed something after catching up on the DoA archives then going through the Walkyverse archives – some of the characters I didn’t really like here (like Carla and Mary) I ended up liking rather a lot in Walkyverse, and some of the characters I didn’t really like in Walkyverse (Dina and Mike) I really like here because in one series, they got focus and character development that helped change them into well rounded and interesting characters (ESPECIALLY Carla! I love how her relationship with Raidah played out in Walkyverse and how both became much better people because of it), while the other series kept them in their more archetypal roles (Mike was an interesting case, despite being much more present in the Walkyverse, he never changed from being a sociopath through the series, whereas in DoA he had more of a jerk with a heart of gold thing going on and we got to see some of why he became so jaded and built such a cruel shell around himself, despite technically not being in the series as long and having less of a focus as a character overall).
Asma is a blank slate, and I look forward to seeing what we can learn about her, and we’ve really only seen the worst from Raidah so far. That’s not to say that she’s not justified in what she has said and done to some degree – but we’ve only seen her in an adversarial role (either directly or indirectly) thus far, and we could really stand to see her more in her own element rather than as a foil for the rest of the cast.
Same goes for Malaya, and (to a lesser extent) Charlie, Malaya, and… Well, pretty much everyone else we’ve seen just outside of the circle of Joyce’s friends and accomplices.
I think you mixed up some names here, because AFAIK Raidah doesn’t exist in the Walkyverse — I suspect you meant to say Malaya? Charlie, too, is a Dumbiverse original, so I think you meant someone else in your last paragraph, and you also said Malaya’s name twice there.
To sum up my point, I think that Raidah (and to a much lesser extent, all the other characters that we haven’t seen much from so far in the story) would benefit greatly from us getting to see more of them and seeing them grow and change. When I look at the Walkyverse characters that I really like that I’m either turned off by or lukewarm on in DoA, it’s because we saw them grow and change in Walkyverse and not here (and vice versa for the DoA characters that I like better than their Walkyverse counterparts – though there are fewer that have more development here than they did there). I hope we get more than a one-shot gag about Asma, and want to see more of the more distant support characters get some growth and exploration as well.
Is Asma meant to be a US Muslim or an international student? To me she reads as an international student, on scholarship, working a student job but caught in the grind. Not a freshman and maybe even a grad student. She is trusted to work a desk, which has to deal with emergencies and tedium. Attending a protest could have had serious consequences for her.
But to most of the cast, she’s as visible as a piece of furniture. And then she’s older but less experienced in relationships. Hope to see more of her.
Being as visible as a piece of furniture comes from being behind a desk, I think.
If people don’t currently need whatever you’re there for, the impulse is to not bother you on the assumption that you’re At Work and you have other shit to do – which is pretty reasonable, for the most part, but it’s fucking boring and lonely if you don’t actually have other shit to do.
I guess that’s pretty tangential. On the international/local question I have no fuckin’ idea.
She strikes me as older than the main as well. I was actually wondering if she was a student or was only staf, as we only se her working the desk and no other person
Just wanna thank folks for their kind words a couple of days ago. Doing better today! Still struggling but thinking more positively. Gonna be okay, gosh darn it.
I am SO glad to hear you are feeling better, Li. Please take good care.
I posted a humongous list (as I do) of “warm line” resources back a few days ago — LMK if you want it reposted — but this appears to be the most universal of different languages and countries:
Oh, sorry! I just checked back on your earlier comment. You were feeling blue about the job search and expenses. LMK if you would like any suggestions on that. I’m a resource finder… it’s what I do. Helps me with the neurospecific predilection for list-making…
As we’ve seen a bit about how some Christian and Jewish characters’ religious and cultural upbringing has influenced their perceptions of same-sex attraction…
…I wonder whether we’ll see a bit about how various Muslim characters work with questions of sexuality and faith. Would be a good balance.
When I was younger and exploring Islam, the folks I met always told me that Islam was open for everyone but that I could not act on any same-sex attraction if I wished to adhere to Islamic principles. But now I understand that things have gotten a lot more open among some groups in the intervening decades.
As they say, “If you’ve met one [person of group X], you’ve met one [person of group X].” 😉 So many different ways to practice one’s faith.
hehehe of the Muslims I’m friends with, most of them just so happen to be gay, which I’m pretty sure says as more about myself than Muslims in general lol but like
as I said in a previous strip,
there’s religion as personal/spiritual thing where one wants to be with and act on values which are important to them, which will continued to be acted upon a long time into distant, distant future, far long after one ceases to live
and there’s religion as an authoritarian institution for controlling people, even at the expense of denying material truths which otherwise could have a positive benefit to all our lives
at least of the Muslims I’ve met, their approach to faith is very much more the former than the latter, it’s not like the sex-purity culture of white Christian institutions at all, not in the slightest, it’s just not an important part to the faith at all
in a similar vein, you can be religiously Jewish and not believe in God, if only because that’s just not the very most important part, it don’t work like Christianity at all XD
Were these Muslims living in the west? This is not my experience with mainline Islam, that clearly lays out governance and rules that dictate the conduct of the State and adherents moral purity.
No none of them live in the United States if that’s what you mean (same goes for many of my friends these days, especially in game dev stuff), and at the very least they skeptical about capitalism and other institutions, western or other wise.
authoritarian-leaning Islam of course tends to unfortunately get over-represented in no small part due to waves of Western imperialist propaganda used for controlling the Middle East, (especially in the United States since at least the days of the Soviet-Afghan war)
It’s ironic you say that because the way I usually hear it is western liberal values eroding Islamic morality. Of course the people who say that also see liberal Islam as straying from the path so ymmv. Mind you trying to offer alternatives publicly is liable to get a person arrested or severely censured where I’m from so my lived experience is a lot less rosy than yours.
But that said I’m not sure what you mean specifically on how western imperialist propaganda “over represents” authoritarian- leaning Islam, as in you mean it’s responsible for it’s existence or you mean it’s “blown out of proportion”
I didn’t know you lived in a place like that, I am aware of places like that where anything the state dubs as unorthodoxy is punished and how oppressive and they can be, very sorry to hear you don’t get much religious freedom where you live ;-;
and yes it’s very much blown out of proportion over here in the states yes, to the point to which white folk tend to think ALL Islam is intrinsically oppressive or something and it’s very unfortunate
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The first time this arc i didnt want a cut haha
Oh hey, I’m early….it’s lonely here, where’s the commenrs
The server clock has a tendency to run slow, so some of us wait until, like, five or ten past the hour to check.
I’d be lying if i didnt say i was spam refreshing for the next page
Wasnt*
It’s been more like :15 or so lately, the server clock has really drifted
we usually get a reset when time changes, don’t we? should be soon.
Question for the nerds: how is it possible for the server clock to run several minutes late? I thought servers connected to the Internet used some kind of networking protocol to agree on time.
THEY SURE DO! I should know, I run some!
Aaaaaaaaand yet, somehow, here we are.
I can only guess there is some sort of serious job queue issue but ngl I really do not know.
Hey Asma. Hey Jay. I don’t know if I can help, but if you want, I’ll try.
I didn’t want a cut… but if a cut had to be, I’m happy with this. I’m interested to see more into the lives of characters we see less of. Asma, Alice… honestly I wouldn’t complain to see us delve a little more into the Charlie and Carla realms.
So what song should play on the BGM as Alice walks by?
I’m torn between Dream Weaver and I Wanna Know What Love Is, myself.
Gotta go classic. “At Last” by Etta James.
“All By Myself” seems approprate
Is Asma’s voice too soft to be heard? Perhaps she should consider taking up – or even changing her name to – ASMR? xD
There’s always Help by those four guys from Liverpool.
Oh, do you mean The Rutles? ^^
Cilla Black’s Pageboys.
Now that’s a Deep cut into mid-60s Beatlemania fallout.
LIKE 👍
and now cheese and onions is stuck in my head. great
me, eating an In-N-Out burger with cheese and onions rn:
o3o
The Beatles – “Help!”
Girl U Want, Devo.
“She” by C. Aznevour. The Elvis Costello version.
Go to the window …
Go to the window …
Go To The Window …
To the window! To the wall!
Now dash away, dash away, dash away all!
You’re giving me Beatles flashbacks now!!
I wanted to help you if you were feeling down…
not to worry, all you have to do is whistle feemous beethoven’s feemous ninth symphony
It was you buzzing! You naughty boy.
And threw her out the window!
The window\The window
And threw her out the window!
Yay asma strip!!!! <3
(realizes Dina X Becky were left on a cliffhanger on the last Dina strip of this storyline)
……
“NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!”
How do you know it’s the last Dina strip of the storyline? Is there some way to know which characters appear in upcoming comics?
http://bsky.app/profile/ngpz.bsky.social/post/3lcymvrqi2c2y
😖😭
https://bsky.app/profile/damnyouwillis.bsky.social/post/3lcympqf2y227
I counted, there is also only one Becky strip left…
😟🦖
What?! Her part of the story was just getting good!
*looks at rest of storyline*
think i miscounted
Who makes up those rules anyway? Damn the Man! Do your art _your_ way! 😀
Don’t Panic. We’ll change the numbering system. Henceforth the sequence of numbers shall be 1,2,3,4,5,6,8,7,9 …
we get at least one more Dina strip!!!!
hope lives!!!! 🥹🦖
*plays Piano Arrangement of “Welcome to Jurassic Park” on hacked muzak*
am curious at what kinda face alice is making. other than being socially awkward or just insensitive like walky idk how many ppl have approached her desk and basically just ignore her after
Asma strips? That seems kind of out of character. Does she live a double life?
You don’t expect her to shower wearing a hijab or burqa do you?
OH COME ON
Mood
Yeah, I’ll settle for this reaction. I agree.
I know what you are, Asma 😏♀️
yessssss
Lonely?
Definitely also the vibe I got…
Say it.
Mermaid.
Yay more Asma
Hi, Asma.
Bye, Asma.
Appropriate gravatar.
Wait, is THIS why she was upset in the July 20th strip? “How come I didn’t hook up with anyone at the protest?”
Campus Protests! Come for the justice, stay for the hook-up that leads to marriage with the love of your life who also happens to be your first lesbian crush!
You had me at Come
It kind of feels like this strip exists to give Asma more screen time (not a bad thing, I should say!) but it doesn’t really communicate any new information? Asma works at the front desk and she’s having a really rough time. This is all stuff we already know. It doesn’t push her character forward in any major way, which is a little disappointing. I’d like to see Asma have more to do! I recognize there are some constraints in backfilling more appearances for her and I appreciate Willis’ efforts in doing so, I just feel they could be more substantial.
She thinks Alice is hot, is what I’m getting from this strip. Actually doing a lot here in terms of things I’m interested in.
I mean that’s a valid interpretation but I think it’s written kind of vaguely so it’s hard to say for sure that’s what’s being communicated.
Sure in a vacuum but media thrives on the Kuleshov effect and the last time Asma was on screen it was making a mildly flirtatious remark implying she was jealous of everyone else kissing to specifically Alice. It’s not explicit, but it’s not particularly ambiguous.
I likewise definitely interpreted it that Asma is attracted to Alice.
Which would definitely be a reason for her to enter the orbit of the main cast in a more meaningful way. Which would be neat.
Dunno. I’m assuming this is a lead in to a conversation between Asma and Alice and we learn more about both of them.
1. appropriate gravatar
2. I might just be reading too much into the Law of Conservation of Detail, but maybe Asma’s just generally lonely? I went a ways back in her tag and usually she’s just in the background being ignored, like how often have we seen her socialize
I think it exists to lead into whatever Asma will be doing tomorrow.
This is the difference between “one strip a day” and “waiting half a year and then binging through the last half year of strips”. I counsel patience. I bet that something will develop with Asma. Maybe even within a strip or two, unless the “camera” follows Alice.
I’ve been reading this strip for 15 years so I don’t really need any lectures on how it’s paced.
I feel you are seeing ‘lecture’ where I see ‘comment.’ By the way, this is a ‘mild rebuke.’ I hope that helps. <- mildly condescending.
“I hope that helps” is not mild.
Oh darn, I absolutely say ‘I hope that helps’ with total sincerity. Because, I really hope that it does. I wonder how else to express it where it won’t sound condescending and passive aggressive.
As I’ve noted, the pacing of DoA suffers a bit when the actual plot events are slow moving, as well. Comedic antics or action? Slowing it all down lets us indulge. But personal drama with not much laughter or action? Starting to think this WOULDbe a better read if I ca.e back in 3 months.
I know this isn’t gonna be the popular take but I kinda disagree on “I appreciate the effort”. It just feels a little too forced that Asma is abruptly a real character after almost 16 years. Giving Raidah a little more to do has felt much more organic. I realize that barely anything has happened yet in either case, though, so maybe Willis shall prove me wrong.
Yeah I agree. This strip and the one where she returns to the desk after the protest just feel so… abrupt and out of place? Especially when (/if, in this case) it then immediately jumps back to what the main cast is doing. They’re just completely disconnected from each other. Which, granted, does happen within main cast storylines as well, but since we don’t have years of context and character building for who Asma is and what she’s got going on, it falls extremely flat.
I actually really liked the one where she returned to the desk https://www.dumbingofage.com/2025/comic/book-15/04-the-only-exception/asma/
While technically nothing “happened” there, there was an emotional poignancy in just taking a moment to sit with Asma as everything caught up with her.
I’m more dubious about this one. It doesn’t feel like much on its own, but I’m willing to reserve judgment for now to see if it’s going somewhere.
I want to agree, there’s an emotional weight to the strip that does resonate with me/that I do like. BUT, as Lee points out further down here, “[Willis] didn’t take the [time] to build/write in a connection [to Asma as a character] BEFORE [they] tried to get the emotional payoff and/or representation of that post-protest-deflation strip, and that felt token-y.”
I agree, I resonated hard with that strip. I think it’s a good introduction to “Asma is a person, not an NPC” because it gives us an immediate emotional connection to her.
See, I agree, but I also feel a bit like that about the recent Raidah and Daisy “confrontation.” Raidah is right to call Daisy out, and has been more around than Asma in general, but suddenly giving both Raidah and Asma more focus in sporadic strips that have otherwise been completely detached from the main goings on, feels like an attempt to respond to the “why did the protest turn into a Dorothy/Joyce moment at the expense of the students actually impacted?”
It’s an effort to include them, I don’t want to dismiss that, and I can see why people appreciate the effort [or maybe don’t], but like the panel Willis added to the original “Oh no, we kissed………oh no, wait, we kissed at a protest” strip, that’s what it feels like: an effort now that it was called to Willis’ attention. We already know that he had to change his plans for this arc, and this feels like part of that. It’s nice to see Raidah and Asma, but they aren’t really included in the real storylines yet because they are having to be fit in between main story scenes. This is possibly a hint that that will change, and I’m happy to see where it goes, but now that someone else has said it, it’s something I’ve been feeling.
Yeah. They’re filler. It’s better than nothing but it’s obviously disconnected from, well… everything. Disconnected from the actual plot. If all the Asma strips in which she is a character and not in the background were removed, the context/plot/story would not be affected at all, there would be nothing out of place because (for now!!) she is unfortunately irrelevant. Strips of Asma going about her day alone don’t really change that. It falls flat.
It takes a while to build/write in a connection so I would say patience is in order here. After having a massive response in polls of “more Asma” and critiques about there not being enough Asma, only for there now to be comments along the lines of “why are we seeing Asma, that’s not a relevant character”. Give it time.
Looking at the interpretations above, we might be seeing Alice going off to get with someone very bad for her, walking past someone who may eventually be very good for her once that drama is over.
Or we might be about to see an exploration of social isolation and vulnerability.
This currently reads to me as a quiet/slow story beat that will add depth and context to later developments.
Yeah. Possible that these strips are “token appearances” but also possible (likely?) that they are foreshadowing while the things that have to happen before previously peripheral characters become more central
But that’s sort of my point. I don’t think all of said “more Asma” just came out of thin air. I think that was people saying “you didn’t take the ‘while to build/write in a connection’ BEFORE you tried to get the emotional payoff and/or representation of that post-protest-deflation strip, and that felt token-y.”
Just realized/remembered that I’ve seen Willis referred to with “they/them” pronouns, and there is no edit button. I’m not active on other social media platforms Willis is on, so I don’t know if “they/them” are the only pronouns Willis uses, but either way I apologize to Willis and the general comment community if I used the wrong pronouns and will remember in the future.
Bluesky bio says he/they!
Thank you, very good to know!
Willis has also said they them, as I recall, but as far as I know isn’t adament hasn’t felt the need to correct anyone.
I mean personally, I’m not going to be upset or offended if you call me she/her and will answer to hey you. My preference is to be addressed as Lord High Poobah, Rightful Ruler of the Asmovian Spaces and All Lesser Orbs Therein, but no one ever pays attention to that for some reason.
I also have issues with that scene because while it makes sense for Raidah to bring that complaint, it’s kind of frustrating when her and Asma “get to” lecture other characters and then the scene just sort of ends because they walk away right after? Sort of ties into the disconnect you’re talking about. Maybe it’s too much to say it feels like a check on a checklist, but… idk at it’s worst it could!
Like you said though, maybe it’s going somewhere. Holding my horses or however that saying goes
As opposed to not going anywhere, it was followed up with Raidah taking it up with the editor. With Asma we are going into a slow build of exploring a gay Muslim character.
Or not.
Ooof. And it makes sense.
Two times? With no context between these 2 pages that are “sudden Asma”?
I’ve got a bad feeling about this…
Spoiler. Entropy winds and we all die.
Pretend I didn’t accidently delete the next line, which is Eat at Arbys.
Also pretend I didn’t misspell wins as winds.
Rented fingers.
Slumlords renting out sub-par fingers is a real problem these days.
I’d report them, but the government is shut down.
Have you tried rebooting it in safe mode?
No government has a “safe mode.”
And a complete reboot usually involves a lot of people dying.
Clif: Like in the “Well World” novels.
I read it as winding in, as in us, to die…
“Entropy Winds” sounds like an MtG card. “Entropy Winds, 10 damage to all commenters, we all die!”
Hold your horses, I’ve got MultiVax working it out.
> Entropy winds
I had beans for breakfast and emitted some of those at the office today.
Can’t tell what expression Alice has. Feels like it’s a thousand yard stare or just zoned out. Or just bluescreening over how to approach her relationship with Billie and her desire to put her cooch on her cooch.
… Alice pulls?
For better and for worse, in her experience
Sadly I think for her it’s been mostly for the worse.
feel like we knew this
Oh I did not have any doubt on that
it’s the hair and the lips lol
Alice is secretly a contract killer and Asma puts a hit out on Joyce and Dorothy for ruining the protest.
Only Amazigirl can sabe them, but Amber is busy with Walky.
*save
Rented fingers and I want my money back.
Asma has heard good reviews of frenching girls, and needs Alice’s help to check it out for herself.
Alice is French??? I thought she was Bi.
Aren’t those the same thing?
Requires further study.
For Science.
Excuse me do you have an inhaler?
Ive got asma
Terrible joke and I laughed.
Oh hey Asma actually getting some fresh characterization and it’s *checks notes…* Willis this is the 7th week in a row you’ve shown lesbianism to the class.
I wanna be clear I’m absolutely not complaining.
Theory: Under the right circumstances, Willis is clearly interested in lesbianism.
Now how do we test that theory?
I’m pretty sure this entire comic is evidence that Willis is also interested in lesbianism under the wrong circumstances.
The sapphic content in Reed Hall is going critical.
bring yo sunglasses
gay-diation levels are skyrocketing XD
Never before have I found myself so enthusiastically rooting for a meltdown.
Asma would LOVE to be enthusiastically rooting
Found the Australian.
YOU TAKE THAT BACK
Bloody Aussies always bloody stealing from us, bloody pavlova, bloody Phar Lap, bloody Crowded House, bloody pretending that bloody antipodean bloody slang is theirs and theirs alone, bloody bloody bloody
They can have Russell Crowe though. He’s all theirs.
Asma wants help leaving this webcomic that’s too focused on depressed white girls and their problems.
Thank you
Alice: “Not now, chief. I’m in the fuckin’ zone!”
I think Asma would also like to be in the fuckin zone
No you have to include the G.
Riveting
Oho, does this mean Jennifer’s got some competition?
What does Asma need help with? Help please
I think that is to say,
Asma finds Alice hot :p
There’s another reading of this strip, where Asma’s feeling isolated and lonely and looking for any human connection.
Well, maybe I have poor gaydar, but That never occurred to me. Of all the things Asma might need from Alice. Mind you, nothing much else occurred to me…
well it also helps they talked about kissing before but i imagine she’s not experienced with either gender if she’s like ‘i’ve heard good things about it’
NGL kind of not sure how to feel about asma potentially getting a romance arc, I like that she’s getting more focus but my favourite thing about her as a character was how she felt like a normal woman in a world of YA soap opera drama that happened around her, idk I’ll have to see where they take it
To be fair, normal women are allowed to be lonely and have emotions and occasionally get mixed up in a bit of drama.
True, and women that know enough to bring bolt cutters to a protest may an interesting back story.
Oh I’m all for it. She shouldn’t have to be alone and disinterested in romance to be considered a normal woman. She’s also a young adult, and she gets to have a lil drama as a treat.
Esp if it’s lesbian dramaaaaaa.
Harken unto me, as a bisexual man: the number of LGBTQ students in this strip is WAAAY beyond any reality. Yes, college is a great time for sexual self-discovery, but straights still vastly outnumber the LGBTQ, and having almost every character be LGBTQ and/or autistic is just a niche Willis likes exploring. It is by no means a requirement for being in the strip.
Or for reading and enjoying it.
I mean, you literally have no way of knowing that, demographically. What you mean to say is that the number of students you didn’t personally know in college vastly outnumbered the ones you did, and you assumed they were overwhelmingly straight.
We have very little actual data on “how common are LGBTQIA+ people”, and the data we do have is all self-reported, which is vulnerable to mitigating factors like “stigma” and “sometimes you think you’re cis/straight/perisex/etc your whole entire life”. As acceptance rises, so too does the percentage of people who identify in some way with the community.
Meanwhile, the experience of many of us is that we cluster. It’s not only possible but fairly common for entire friend groups to turn out to be LGBTQIA+. We are drawn to each other consciously as well as unconsciously.
All of this applies equally to autistic people, btw.
Anyway, as a queer autistic creator, ofc Willis is gonna create characters like them. All authors tend to, consciously or otherwise. But there’s really no reason to think this is an unrealistic number of such characters on a college campus.
Besides, Willis has gone on record saying that ALL their characters are queer, explicitly to head off complaints that too many of them are, so? I guess it is in fact a requirement for being in the strip now, heh.
Except for Roz. Roz is straight.
Pretty sure I didn’t say, anywhere in my comment, that anyone was required to be queer or autistic to be in the strip.
Which was an oversight on my part, so thanks for pointing it out. EVERYONE IN THIS STRIP IS NOW REQUIRED TO BE QUEER AND/OR AUTISTIC, ANY CHARACTERS FOUND IN VIOLATION OF THIS NEW RULE WILL BE SUMMARILY SUPLEXED INTO OBLIVION.
“Harken unto me” lmao, baby aren’t you embarrassed? And since we’re flashing our credentials like that means individual experience is universal truth…
~ a gender-fluid lesbian <3
I know it’s not really what you’re saying but it is sort of funny reading that as if “interested in romance” ISN’T the assumed default for young women or what’s considered “normal”.
yeah I mean
the point is for Asma to feel like LESS of a background decoration,
something Willis stated is kind of the problem in the first place :p
…oh
*plays “Closer” by Nine Inch Nails on hacked muzak*
Can’t remember if we’ve seen if Asma’s gay before
First hint I can remember is pretty recent, when she suggested there are rumors (likely by her) that she’s good at kissing while discussing the Dorothy/Joyce incident.
@quinn she said she’s ‘heard good things’ about kissing but prolly implies she hasn’t kissed anyone herself yet
I wonder what that book is that Asma’s reading. Or trying to avoid reading maybe?
it looks like there’s a heart on it…
Enjoy apathy while it last kids…
Why? Is it going away.
So is this the start of a long series of unconnected strips where we show all the named characters in alphabetical order?
We skipped Agatha, Alan, Alex, Amazi-Girl, Amber, Anna, and Asher.
I don’t know if this is Asma expressing attraction to Alice, or if this is just an opening for Asma to ask Alice for help at being more socially involved. I’m not AGAINST Asma being attracted to Alice, that could be fun to see. But without more information, could this just be Asma, seeing Alice as the outgoing social gateway? Alice is happy to gossip with anyone and already dragged Asma into a conversation with Raidah, just because Alice likes to talk to/at people. Maybe Asma, feeling lonely and uncertain as we saw her look after the protest, is hoping Alice can just generally get her out from behind the desk and in on the events she’s been watching from afar.
And then they fall in love, that would be fun.
I am pretty sure it’s her being attracted to Alice. Not unprecedented, given their previous interaction.
https://www.dumbingofage.com/2025/comic/book-16/01-not-so-smooth-criminals/whatshername/
Again, not saying Asma definitely is/isn’t attracted to Alice, that’s a valid read, but I don’t think it’s an automatic one. Asma admitted she hasn’t frenched anyone but has heard good reviews, after Alice looped her into the conversation. That’s literally it, and it wasn’t even about frenching Alice specifically, it was a general “So, has that person chaotically made out with someone?” Alice talked more to Raidah, and Asma was off panel as she said it, so there’s no read on her expression as unamused, curious, curious at Alice specifically, etc. Given the recent trend of relationship drama it’s not an unreasonable assumption, but without more information on Asma, I’m not as certain it’s a done deal.
Of course, some people have Patreon, and maybe they have the inside scoop that the next strip is Asma blushing furiously when Alice looks at her, or asking Alice out. I’m just working with what I’ve seen.
Oh my.
I like Asma and appreciate her getting an upgrade but I also want Willis to work her into the story organically. The needs of a storyteller are important and have to flow naturally.
so…alice stopped by asma’s desk to stare at her and walk away?
Alice didn’t stop by Asma’s desk. She just walked past Asma on her way through the lobby,, as she leaves the dorm after consulting Ruth on cooch superposition.
yeah i guess i misread the angle as her turning to look at her
I need somebody!
Help! Not just anybody!
You know, I need *someone*!
I do think it’s interesting to think about the readers who aren’t aware of all the outside context that strips like this (or the recent Raidah ones) have – and like, theoretically a piece of fiction should stand on its own merits, but I do think it’s a bit more complicated for online serial media like this! Since DoA is being written & drawn so long in advance before it is actually posted, any reactions to audience or knowledge about the commentary are on a sort of delay, if they gets referenced at all – so something direct like this is sort of weird and new.
idk I guess I’m wondering if it works. It’s not particularly working for me, because I can see the seams where this strip was stitched in so to speak, but if you’re not aware those exist at all, what does the attempt of having Asma suddenly be an actual character mean? What does Raidah having an opinion that isn’t cartoon bully evil mean (presumably nothing, I read the comments a few days ago. alas)?
All that aside I’m curious how this will develop. Asma, mostly, because she’s pretty much a blank slate, but I also always like seeing Raidah get more stuff to do!
Also if there actually has been something like this before (newly inserting strips to fix something) let me know because I’m curious. I haven’t been reading the comic that long and certainly don’t have a deep memory of what was going on in the commentary at many given points.
I mean Asma has been a popular character for awhile. An “Ensemble Darkhorse” to use TVtropes.ORG description. She’s been in a lot of the bonus strips that regular readers don’t get.
Also, Willis has been capable of changing his mind for some time so its not a big shift really that he decided to add some more Asma material.
[[What does Raidah having an opinion that isn’t cartoon bully evil mean (presumably nothing, I read the comments a few days ago. alas)?]]
That isn’t a change to Raidah. Fans hate Raidah for being abelist to Dina and her social climbing and distaste for Sara. But everything about Raidah has always been positive politics and a strong sense of justice.
It’s just fans turn her into Satan because nuance goes to die on the internet.
Yeah, telling Sarah to kill herself and calling Walky a stunted manchild behind his back are definitely signs of a strong sense of justice.
1. She hates Sarah and has good reason to and vice versa.
2. Our cast calls him worse all the time.
It’s a bit relevant here, though it’s not talking about the characters you mentioned. I noticed something after catching up on the DoA archives then going through the Walkyverse archives – some of the characters I didn’t really like here (like Carla and Mary) I ended up liking rather a lot in Walkyverse, and some of the characters I didn’t really like in Walkyverse (Dina and Mike) I really like here because in one series, they got focus and character development that helped change them into well rounded and interesting characters (ESPECIALLY Carla! I love how her relationship with Raidah played out in Walkyverse and how both became much better people because of it), while the other series kept them in their more archetypal roles (Mike was an interesting case, despite being much more present in the Walkyverse, he never changed from being a sociopath through the series, whereas in DoA he had more of a jerk with a heart of gold thing going on and we got to see some of why he became so jaded and built such a cruel shell around himself, despite technically not being in the series as long and having less of a focus as a character overall).
Asma is a blank slate, and I look forward to seeing what we can learn about her, and we’ve really only seen the worst from Raidah so far. That’s not to say that she’s not justified in what she has said and done to some degree – but we’ve only seen her in an adversarial role (either directly or indirectly) thus far, and we could really stand to see her more in her own element rather than as a foil for the rest of the cast.
Same goes for Malaya, and (to a lesser extent) Charlie, Malaya, and… Well, pretty much everyone else we’ve seen just outside of the circle of Joyce’s friends and accomplices.
I think you mixed up some names here, because AFAIK Raidah doesn’t exist in the Walkyverse — I suspect you meant to say Malaya? Charlie, too, is a Dumbiverse original, so I think you meant someone else in your last paragraph, and you also said Malaya’s name twice there.
To sum up my point, I think that Raidah (and to a much lesser extent, all the other characters that we haven’t seen much from so far in the story) would benefit greatly from us getting to see more of them and seeing them grow and change. When I look at the Walkyverse characters that I really like that I’m either turned off by or lukewarm on in DoA, it’s because we saw them grow and change in Walkyverse and not here (and vice versa for the DoA characters that I like better than their Walkyverse counterparts – though there are fewer that have more development here than they did there). I hope we get more than a one-shot gag about Asma, and want to see more of the more distant support characters get some growth and exploration as well.
Please, someone help our poor Asma.
Is Asma meant to be a US Muslim or an international student? To me she reads as an international student, on scholarship, working a student job but caught in the grind. Not a freshman and maybe even a grad student. She is trusted to work a desk, which has to deal with emergencies and tedium. Attending a protest could have had serious consequences for her.
But to most of the cast, she’s as visible as a piece of furniture. And then she’s older but less experienced in relationships. Hope to see more of her.
I’ve suggested she might actually be Bulmerian or Bulmerian American but that runs the risk of continuing to increase the plot relevance.
Being as visible as a piece of furniture comes from being behind a desk, I think.
If people don’t currently need whatever you’re there for, the impulse is to not bother you on the assumption that you’re At Work and you have other shit to do – which is pretty reasonable, for the most part, but it’s fucking boring and lonely if you don’t actually have other shit to do.
I guess that’s pretty tangential. On the international/local question I have no fuckin’ idea.
She strikes me as older than the main as well. I was actually wondering if she was a student or was only staf, as we only se her working the desk and no other person
There was that one guy that was manning the desk when she was away!
asma and alice … their names sound nice together :]
I read “Dream Weaver” and my brain heard Dream Warriors. I was confused for a moment.
Asma subplot incoming?
Why is Asma always so realll
Asma should get 5 seasons and a movie
Walky will always be there to not remember her name.
And he knows her best.
Just wanna thank folks for their kind words a couple of days ago. Doing better today! Still struggling but thinking more positively. Gonna be okay, gosh darn it.
I am SO glad to hear you are feeling better, Li. Please take good care.
I posted a humongous list (as I do) of “warm line” resources back a few days ago — LMK if you want it reposted — but this appears to be the most universal of different languages and countries:
https://befrienders.org/find-support-now/
It says it’s about *su* prevention, but really it’s for any kind of support or distress.
Oh, sorry! I just checked back on your earlier comment. You were feeling blue about the job search and expenses. LMK if you would like any suggestions on that. I’m a resource finder… it’s what I do. Helps me with the neurospecific predilection for list-making…
Oh, that’s incredibly sweet, Laura. <3 I'm okay right now, but I'll let you know.
Very happy to hear that, you deserve to fell good i think.
Thank you ;;
glad to hear ya doin better! yeah ya gonna be alright! 🥲🫂
*plays “Alright” by Kendrick Lamar on hacked muzak*
Thank you!!
*hug of internet support!*
I hope you continue to feel better, Li.
Okay I’m hitting the spam filter BUT THANK YOU both (@Doopyboop and @C.T. Phipps)!! <3
As we’ve seen a bit about how some Christian and Jewish characters’ religious and cultural upbringing has influenced their perceptions of same-sex attraction…
…I wonder whether we’ll see a bit about how various Muslim characters work with questions of sexuality and faith. Would be a good balance.
When I was younger and exploring Islam, the folks I met always told me that Islam was open for everyone but that I could not act on any same-sex attraction if I wished to adhere to Islamic principles. But now I understand that things have gotten a lot more open among some groups in the intervening decades.
As they say, “If you’ve met one [person of group X], you’ve met one [person of group X].” 😉 So many different ways to practice one’s faith.
(*Prairie dog pokes a head up, then dives back underground…*)
hehehe of the Muslims I’m friends with, most of them just so happen to be gay, which I’m pretty sure says as more about myself than Muslims in general lol but like
as I said in a previous strip,
there’s religion as personal/spiritual thing where one wants to be with and act on values which are important to them, which will continued to be acted upon a long time into distant, distant future, far long after one ceases to live
and there’s religion as an authoritarian institution for controlling people, even at the expense of denying material truths which otherwise could have a positive benefit to all our lives
at least of the Muslims I’ve met, their approach to faith is very much more the former than the latter, it’s not like the sex-purity culture of white Christian institutions at all, not in the slightest, it’s just not an important part to the faith at all
in a similar vein, you can be religiously Jewish and not believe in God, if only because that’s just not the very most important part, it don’t work like Christianity at all XD
Were these Muslims living in the west? This is not my experience with mainline Islam, that clearly lays out governance and rules that dictate the conduct of the State and adherents moral purity.
No none of them live in the United States if that’s what you mean (same goes for many of my friends these days, especially in game dev stuff), and at the very least they skeptical about capitalism and other institutions, western or other wise.
authoritarian-leaning Islam of course tends to unfortunately get over-represented in no small part due to waves of Western imperialist propaganda used for controlling the Middle East, (especially in the United States since at least the days of the Soviet-Afghan war)
It’s ironic you say that because the way I usually hear it is western liberal values eroding Islamic morality. Of course the people who say that also see liberal Islam as straying from the path so ymmv. Mind you trying to offer alternatives publicly is liable to get a person arrested or severely censured where I’m from so my lived experience is a lot less rosy than yours.
But that said I’m not sure what you mean specifically on how western imperialist propaganda “over represents” authoritarian- leaning Islam, as in you mean it’s responsible for it’s existence or you mean it’s “blown out of proportion”
I didn’t know you lived in a place like that, I am aware of places like that where anything the state dubs as unorthodoxy is punished and how oppressive and they can be, very sorry to hear you don’t get much religious freedom where you live ;-;
and yes it’s very much blown out of proportion over here in the states yes, to the point to which white folk tend to think ALL Islam is intrinsically oppressive or something and it’s very unfortunate
I say this as a gayman myself.
Is… EVERYONE gay now?
Yes.
There are two kinds of people in this world:
1) Those who are gay.
2) Those who do not yet know that they are gay.
/joke ;-D
I’ve been saving this link for such an occasion: https://bsky.app/profile/damnyouwillis.bsky.social/post/3lxhv6houjk22
Not at all!
Some people are bi. Or ace.
love the Asma header!
What’s the point of this strip?
Lmao, people in these comments are fucking wild sometimes.
I think the point is to depict Alice walking by Asma’s desk, prompting Asma to ask if she can help Alice, following up by asking if Alice can help her
Turns out Asma has a crush on Alice!
could you help me? I’m still only a cameo character