I don’t think she actually did. Looking back at that strip, Joyce was not looking anywhere but at Becky while waving goodbye.
–
I think she’s *decided* to remember that she was staring mistily at Dorothy, which is different.
Yes, all humans have infallible memory, including Joyce who has maliciously chosen to misremember the situation in order to irk the people in the comments section.
Very reasonable take, 10/10
eh, whatever
Uh, this is what most people do subconsciously. That’s part of what not having perfect memory means.
It’s not necessarily a retcon either. It’s not implausible for Joyce to have glanced at the two people walking into the lobby, and when later meeting Dorothy properly, she might remember “oh! I saw her when I first got here, standing next to some non-descript boy with no identifying features – if only he had some sort of hat”
We’re far enough away in strip 6 that it could be feasible that what looks like her looking at Becky is her left eye actually looking further right. I think Willis made sure to study the original strip carefully to make sure it was ambiguous enough for this to work
A quick glance would take less than a second, it’s possible for Joyce to look at her family amd Becky, then take a quick look around and notice dorothy, then back at her family and Becky.
Though it feels kinda like a retcon, i think that may be kinda the point of what Joyce is doing now, same with the “i asked you out”, she is recontextualizing her early interactions with dorothy to be true love at first sight because romance✨️?
Nah, it’s funnier if her eyes were pointing in different directions. One eye gazing sadly after Becky and her parents, the other zeroing in on the nearest woman she didn’t grow up with.
clif
I steadfastly maintain that the last panel is correct and she was looking at Danny.
i mean, other than being like ‘omg she’s a goddess i’m in love’ she can prolly still think “oh that girls pretty” and not realize any gayness given her religious ‘extremeness’ at the time lol
It’s cute enough, if you’re into that sort of thing. It’s just, you know, feels like the same old song and dance at this point. There’s other things to focus on, other things I’d be actually interested in seeing these two react to. Why does this have to be here now? Why does the plot always have to come to a grinding halt to accommodate these two being fluffy?
In the abstract I don’t dislike the recontextualization of Joyce seeing Dororthy out the corner of her eye in that one strip. It’s just… it’s just. This feels like a bonus strip.
Like, this is a good strip. It’s a natural and easy recontextualization of an earlier strip (and I always note on my rereads Dorothy walking into panel when Becky says that line!). It’s just the way these two get so so so so many strips of just being cute and in love. This one would have gone down easier if not for the dozen before it
Shepsquared
I genuinely feel like I’ve read this strip before. Sure it didn’t have the flashback panels, but they’ve been having this conversation on and off for months. And the only way for that to work is for it to go somewhere.
Pocky
dot, are you ok? unless some comments have been deleted I think you’re talkin to yourself!
clif
Talking to yourself is fine. Everyone does it. It’s when you start to lose arguments with yourself that you need to worry.
Adept
As usual, I’m on the same page Dot.
This is a naturally flowing, even interesting strip, but at the same time it’s more of the same lovey dovey stuff we’ve been on for months.
Rolling around in ”aren’t they cute” unfortunately does nothing for me. If this is build-up for something, let’s get to the something.
I just love how they brush off the fact that they’ve hurt at least some of their friends, with the cheating and whatnot.
“Danny is upset at y’all.”
“Lulz. Anyways, we’re gonna get lunch and make goo-goo eyes at each other.”
I think what really bothers me every time about this take whenever someone suggests it is that this is the attitude that leads to stuff like partner abuse and murder. I’ve been in abusive relationships, I’ve weathered my mother in ones. It’s extremely, massively uncomfortable to see people talking about kissing someone then dumping your boyfriend the day after like it’s such dark betrayal, this isn’t middle school? I know the time dilation is fucking with our perceptions of how serious this all was and how much time passes between strips, but we’re still within three days of the protest at this point, within three weeks of when Joe and Joyce started dating, and less than a week since Walky and Dorothy started dating again. It sucks to see people go through this no matter the age of a relationship, but this is life! Nothing humans do outside of directly, grievously physically harming you or your loved ones deserves being judged this harshly.
This is what makes me sad. I get writing the story that you want to write, but fluffy romance glow with your self-insert character doesn’t make for interesting reading.
eh, whatever
Most characters are partial self-inserts, Joyce included.
We keep come back to Joyce mostly and also Dorothy, because Joyce is the declared main character and Dorothy is listed right along side of her in the about section before we get to a comma listing the other characters. So it is no surprise to me they get highlighted as frequently as they do.
No, it’s definitely a retcon. Look at the flashback panels, you’ll see that Joyce isn’t wearing glasses. If these flashbacks are supposed to be accurate, why isn’t Joyce wearing glasses before she got them?
Sorry Willis, I still don’t find these two cute. Maybe if they hadn’t gotten together through cheating I might feel differently. And I’m not convinced they were somehow in love when they first met each other or whatever.
90 thoughts on “First cute”
Sirksome
Yeah, okay. I’ll just let them have this one.
Sirksome
Don’t trust letting anyone change you.
clif
The last panel is accurate. She was just looking at Danny.
https://www.dumbingofage.com/comic/forget/
John Campbell
I don’t believe this Joyce has ever looked at Danny.
km
You mean an inexplicable blank spot next to Dorothy?
Needfuldoer
Trough Danny, maybe.
GUIGUI
@John Campbell
I think Sirksome meant that Dorothy was looking at Dany. But eyes can easily wander in an instant.
Nono
It’s funny because looking at those early strips, Joyce apparently brought tons of stuffed animals to college.
We’ve not seen a single one.
Astariel
Oh, shit! Joyce actually noticed Dorothy in the sixth strip!
I just love these two being cute and couple-y. It is balm to my soul.
Steamweed
I enjoy seeing some cozy happy lovebird stuff. Got enough dark crap going on elsewhere.
anonymsly
I don’t think she actually did. Looking back at that strip, Joyce was not looking anywhere but at Becky while waving goodbye.
–
I think she’s *decided* to remember that she was staring mistily at Dorothy, which is different.
AMagicalDuck
But she has to have noticed Dorothy in order to know that Dorothy was there to be noticed
GreyICE
Yes, all humans have infallible memory, including Joyce who has maliciously chosen to misremember the situation in order to irk the people in the comments section.
Very reasonable take, 10/10
eh, whatever
Uh, this is what most people do subconsciously. That’s part of what not having perfect memory means.
Rowen Morland
It would be largely impossible for her to turn her head a little after this panel.
Nono
We’re adding (sorta) retcons now?
Alongcameaspider
These arent really retcons at all
Taffy
No, it’s just a redraw of existing interactions. There’s no retroactive continuity, Dorothy was there for all of that.
Tessea
It’s not a retcon. It’s human nature to adjust memories to be more what we want them to be. It’s an Unreliable Narrator thing.
mads_in_zero
It’s not necessarily a retcon either. It’s not implausible for Joyce to have glanced at the two people walking into the lobby, and when later meeting Dorothy properly, she might remember “oh! I saw her when I first got here, standing next to some non-descript boy with no identifying features – if only he had some sort of hat”
Andy
Do we know how far out the author had plans at that strip, we really don’t. People can try to claim this as a retcon, but they have no evidence.
Taffy
Were her eyes pointing in different directions?
Icalasari
We’re far enough away in strip 6 that it could be feasible that what looks like her looking at Becky is her left eye actually looking further right. I think Willis made sure to study the original strip carefully to make sure it was ambiguous enough for this to work
reddslym
Probably a split second difference, the way time moves in comics means its possible
Nubetrasnochada
A quick glance would take less than a second, it’s possible for Joyce to look at her family amd Becky, then take a quick look around and notice dorothy, then back at her family and Becky.
Though it feels kinda like a retcon, i think that may be kinda the point of what Joyce is doing now, same with the “i asked you out”, she is recontextualizing her early interactions with dorothy to be true love at first sight because romance✨️?
Taffy
Nah, it’s funnier if her eyes were pointing in different directions. One eye gazing sadly after Becky and her parents, the other zeroing in on the nearest woman she didn’t grow up with.
clif
I steadfastly maintain that the last panel is correct and she was looking at Danny.
parismio
“She lied as easily as she breathed”
Taffy
Explain which part is a lie.
Pocky
I mean, technically she thought she was cute from the start. The joke bein she’s probably not lying, but just not ready to admit it lol
clif
The lie is the part we tell ourselves.
anon
i mean, other than being like ‘omg she’s a goddess i’m in love’ she can prolly still think “oh that girls pretty” and not realize any gayness given her religious ‘extremeness’ at the time lol
Dot
It’s cute enough, if you’re into that sort of thing. It’s just, you know, feels like the same old song and dance at this point. There’s other things to focus on, other things I’d be actually interested in seeing these two react to. Why does this have to be here now? Why does the plot always have to come to a grinding halt to accommodate these two being fluffy?
Dot
In the abstract I don’t dislike the recontextualization of Joyce seeing Dororthy out the corner of her eye in that one strip. It’s just… it’s just. This feels like a bonus strip.
Dot
Like, this is a good strip. It’s a natural and easy recontextualization of an earlier strip (and I always note on my rereads Dorothy walking into panel when Becky says that line!). It’s just the way these two get so so so so many strips of just being cute and in love. This one would have gone down easier if not for the dozen before it
Shepsquared
I genuinely feel like I’ve read this strip before. Sure it didn’t have the flashback panels, but they’ve been having this conversation on and off for months. And the only way for that to work is for it to go somewhere.
Pocky
dot, are you ok? unless some comments have been deleted I think you’re talkin to yourself!
clif
Talking to yourself is fine. Everyone does it. It’s when you start to lose arguments with yourself that you need to worry.
Adept
As usual, I’m on the same page Dot.
This is a naturally flowing, even interesting strip, but at the same time it’s more of the same lovey dovey stuff we’ve been on for months.
Rolling around in ”aren’t they cute” unfortunately does nothing for me. If this is build-up for something, let’s get to the something.
/edit attempting to add paragraphs.
Jon
I believe it’s still Monday evening. They’ve been dating for all of two days. Relax.
Miroku2235
I just love how they brush off the fact that they’ve hurt at least some of their friends, with the cheating and whatnot.
“Danny is upset at y’all.”
“Lulz. Anyways, we’re gonna get lunch and make goo-goo eyes at each other.”
Coatl
So that we forget the obvious betrayal they both committed and to show every moment unnecessarily tender and insipid.
eskimolos
I think what really bothers me every time about this take whenever someone suggests it is that this is the attitude that leads to stuff like partner abuse and murder. I’ve been in abusive relationships, I’ve weathered my mother in ones. It’s extremely, massively uncomfortable to see people talking about kissing someone then dumping your boyfriend the day after like it’s such dark betrayal, this isn’t middle school? I know the time dilation is fucking with our perceptions of how serious this all was and how much time passes between strips, but we’re still within three days of the protest at this point, within three weeks of when Joe and Joyce started dating, and less than a week since Walky and Dorothy started dating again. It sucks to see people go through this no matter the age of a relationship, but this is life! Nothing humans do outside of directly, grievously physically harming you or your loved ones deserves being judged this harshly.
AMagicalDuck
Because these two being fluffy is what Willis wants to write
Miroku2235
Well duh. Doesn’t make it good writing/plot progression.
Adept
This is what makes me sad. I get writing the story that you want to write, but fluffy romance glow with your self-insert character doesn’t make for interesting reading.
eh, whatever
Most characters are partial self-inserts, Joyce included.
Andy
We keep come back to Joyce mostly and also Dorothy, because Joyce is the declared main character and Dorothy is listed right along side of her in the about section before we get to a comma listing the other characters. So it is no surprise to me they get highlighted as frequently as they do.
IntangibleMatter
“Dorothy, I need it in Unix Timestamp, NATO Military Time, and with precise geographic coordinates. You gotta tell me EXACTLY.”
Li
Super heckin cute, aww.
Shakes
It’s not a retcon it’s a het-con
Taffy
No, it’s definitely a retcon. Look at the flashback panels, you’ll see that Joyce isn’t wearing glasses. If these flashbacks are supposed to be accurate, why isn’t Joyce wearing glasses before she got them?
Victor Riley
Joyce is an unreliable narrator… it’s how she’s remembering it, but like all memory, it’s flawed.
Victor Riley
Case in point… she’s clearly remembering it blue-tinted, when it wasn’t. Also, she’s imagining herself drawn differently.
Shakes
Joyce wearing glasses in old strips is a tell for the time travel storyline.
Li
Thank you Taffy, I laughed. 🙂
Dave Van Domelen
https://www.dumbingofage.com/comic/forget/ for those who don’t wanna search around. :)
GUIGUI
This one is at the beginning and is rather easy to find back. What I’d like is link to the other two flashbacks.
Doopyboop
My bet is gonna be that Dorothy’s gonna say Joyce’s panicked hiccuping is when she started seeing her as cute. https://www.dumbingofage.com/comic/hic/
Taffy
Dorothy even said “My brain […] decide […] this is adorable.”
Doopyboop
The REAL retcon.
apocryphascribe
See, this is the one IMO
Bill Erak
VINDICATION
NGPZ
where the hell is the bowling???
I WANNA SEE SOME ACTION D:<
stePH
I think the bowling event collapsed when Asma tapped out. They’d arranged the whole thing as a gesture to her.
NGPZ
but we got to see barely ANY
such a TEASE :(
Thing 2
Much pink, but some green…
anon
lol new lore/retconning or she gonna romanticze the past
and then she got ‘ shocked’ by her atheism she prolly filed any attraction anawy in her subsconcsious
Kyulen
Sorry Willis, I still don’t find these two cute. Maybe if they hadn’t gotten together through cheating I might feel differently. And I’m not convinced they were somehow in love when they first met each other or whatever.
NGPZ
it would have at least been interesting should they continue to bowl without Asma, honestly
that they are not? grave dissapointment
Gotthammer