Idk why I thought Joyce was gonna have some wacky misunderstanding and think Joe and Dina hooked up. But, uh… that’s what I first thought reading this strip, so that’s what you get.
OK so upon further reflection based on her reaction…
I honestly think she literally just forgot. Like not in the compartmentalization way. Like it totally slipped her mind completely. “I feel like I was supposed to be doing something but I can’t think of it right now,” kind of deal.
I’ve been saying Joyce Brown has the emotional object permanence of a newborn puppy. I’m waiting for Dorothy to actually experience what it’s like being on the other end of this quirk of hers.
I think Dorothy is immune to this specific flaw of Joyce. Even while dating or pursuing other people, Joyce always found time to be obsessed with Dorothy
Throwatron
You’re basically describing the precise point on the behavioral spectrum where “liking” or “loving” someone, transforms into “being obsessed with someone.” Joyce is extremely good at demonstrating what each of those two sides of the spectrum look like.
Joyce has always been a single-minded obsessive. In her early life, the only socially acceptable outlet for her obsessive energy (in her particular circle, I mean) was her being a perfect fundie Jesus robot. That’s where she got the idea that her whole life was supposed to come down to her finding her romantic soulmate, and then devoting her whole life after that point to serving that person, being their accessory, and raising their eventual kids.
Joyce doesn’t just confuse obsessive behavior for showing love; she feels obligated to deliberately perform obsessive devotion for whoever she’s currently in a relationship with. She hasn’t unpacked the source of that mindset, or the implications of how it relates to her past ideals, yet.
Consciously, she doesn’t really have the sense that this kind of over-the-top devotion, and the single-minded need to perform it, could be something that would be a negative experience for most other people to be on the other side of, because it was always prescribed to her as the moral way to be, as a wife. Subconsciously, she has always needed outlets for these obsessive tendencies, and has gravitated primarily towards friends and partners who were sympathetic, or otherwise willing to indulge it.
Joyce was very into Joe when they were together, but her time with Joe is starting to read to me as if it was her performing being a good girlfriend to Joe, as she slowly scrambles to come up with her own concept of what that means, from her new secular worldview; however, it’s now seeming kind of clear that she’s always been very obsessed with Dorothy, and that’s at least partly because Dorothy has had the same latent romantic feelings for Joyce, for a long time. She feels closest to people who are secretly or subconsciously pining for her, likely because those are the only people who are willing to accept the level of intensity at which Joyce behaves towards relationships.
Joyce likes Joe a lot, and cares about him a lot; but, she’s obsessed with Dorothy, and it turns out that Dorothy, like Becky and Joe, are very comfortable with being an outlet for Joyce to get all of that energy out of her system. She loves all of them platonically, but Dorothy is the one that she feels the most genuine romantic love for, and it puts Dorothy above everybody else in Joyce’s internal Love and Attention hierarchies…and Joe and Becky kind of already knew this, deep down.
tl;dr Joyce only knows one way to love, that way is “with obsessive, self-consuming depth,” and her whole interpersonal life is shaped by this emotional tendency; the people around her kind of already understood this on an implicit level, but those who end up loving her deeply for it, end up pretty much blind to the fact that they won’t ever be Joyce’s priority #1, because they want to be her #1 too badly.
Throwatron
Oooh, I do NOT like how tight the line breaks are on these new comments. Makes bigger comments so much harder to read.
Honestly that doesn’t really make it feel better for me. Like jeez girl this really shoulda been higher priority. It’s like forgetting to pick up your kids after soccer practice.
i can imagine her doing it platonically/imitating someone and not necesarily outta spite/cunningness like giving him a cheek kiss as a thank you even tho that might be a bit outta chara
“There is your kiss, Joe, as I understand is customary for when a large male helps one rearrange their living space.”
“Wait, where did you get that?”
“I did some research on the internet. Was I mistaken? I hope things do not need to escalate to sexual intercourse, as seems to be the case for borrowing culinary ingredients.”
Makes sense to me. Someone who doesn’t understand human interaction on their own merit tends to study it through other means. And this is America.
There’s every chance she has a glass of champagne somewhere to throw in Joyce’s face and has briefed Joe that he’s actually his evil twin who is also a robot.
The anorak in me feels the need to point out that this crackship technically isn’t new, Billifer first proposed it thirty-five minutes agothirteen years ago.
Still, really nice art tho! Your stuff never disappoints.
Claps gently. I kind of love that an already. Absolutely nonsense plan on Joyces part (Simply Fix Things By Telling People Everythings Fine) has been completely derailed by hey. Hey remember joe. And that conversation y’aint had.
claps happily. beautiful comic of all time. I love it here.
Joyce is like a beautiful majestic horse that must run wild and free, making incredible social blunders. Or more seriously she’s an adult with her own agency, and Dorothy already thinks highly of her capacity as a caring friend even before the New Relationship Love modifier.
Scruffing myself like a cat over here to respect the story an author and artist wants to tell, and that it’s reasonable for there to be stretches of bleak and uncertain parts, versus that now that the euphoria has worn off of a long-foreshadowed and kind of climactic part…it feels like all the setup left is bleak and uncertain, but ‘happy’ resolutions to some things might be hard not to make feel cheap.
It, y’know, makes sense that it is, given the inherent deep rooting in specific U.S. cultural and political conditions the comic has always had. That’s part of its value, and always has been. And there’s no guarantee there’s no satisfyingly bittersweet outcomes still to come.
125 thoughts on “Go with God”
NGPZ
LMAO your plan didn’t account for Joe did it? XD
Steamweed
werds
Pocky
Who can’t account for him? He’s been in that room for couple days now.
Thag Simmons
I can’t really fault her for that. I wouldn’t have called this either.
YourCousinJay
Nah man look at that face of sheer determination and confidence, she’s definitely got this
Steamweed
“You have to get back with Becky, while I…um…er…that is…you see…”
Trying my best
LET’S FUCKING GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
EpochFlame
been very much looking forward to joyce/joe in the same room
MK15
Well this’ll go smooth like…
Dot
Alright I’m back on board let’s do this
apocryphascribe
I’m so hype omg
RexLatro
W00t, definitely been waiting for this moment for…months now
shadowcell
Dumbing of Age Book 16: werds
clif
+1
Bobcat
Vaya sin Dios
Gigafreak
Palabruh
AshleyMagica
Idk why I thought Joyce was gonna have some wacky misunderstanding and think Joe and Dina hooked up. But, uh… that’s what I first thought reading this strip, so that’s what you get.
DiDi
OK so upon further reflection based on her reaction…
I honestly think she literally just forgot. Like not in the compartmentalization way. Like it totally slipped her mind completely. “I feel like I was supposed to be doing something but I can’t think of it right now,” kind of deal.
Also: FINALLY.
Sirksome
I’ve been saying Joyce Brown has the emotional object permanence of a newborn puppy. I’m waiting for Dorothy to actually experience what it’s like being on the other end of this quirk of hers.
Bill Erak
I think Dorothy is immune to this specific flaw of Joyce. Even while dating or pursuing other people, Joyce always found time to be obsessed with Dorothy
Throwatron
You’re basically describing the precise point on the behavioral spectrum where “liking” or “loving” someone, transforms into “being obsessed with someone.” Joyce is extremely good at demonstrating what each of those two sides of the spectrum look like.
Joyce has always been a single-minded obsessive. In her early life, the only socially acceptable outlet for her obsessive energy (in her particular circle, I mean) was her being a perfect fundie Jesus robot. That’s where she got the idea that her whole life was supposed to come down to her finding her romantic soulmate, and then devoting her whole life after that point to serving that person, being their accessory, and raising their eventual kids.
Joyce doesn’t just confuse obsessive behavior for showing love; she feels obligated to deliberately perform obsessive devotion for whoever she’s currently in a relationship with. She hasn’t unpacked the source of that mindset, or the implications of how it relates to her past ideals, yet.
Consciously, she doesn’t really have the sense that this kind of over-the-top devotion, and the single-minded need to perform it, could be something that would be a negative experience for most other people to be on the other side of, because it was always prescribed to her as the moral way to be, as a wife. Subconsciously, she has always needed outlets for these obsessive tendencies, and has gravitated primarily towards friends and partners who were sympathetic, or otherwise willing to indulge it.
Joyce was very into Joe when they were together, but her time with Joe is starting to read to me as if it was her performing being a good girlfriend to Joe, as she slowly scrambles to come up with her own concept of what that means, from her new secular worldview; however, it’s now seeming kind of clear that she’s always been very obsessed with Dorothy, and that’s at least partly because Dorothy has had the same latent romantic feelings for Joyce, for a long time. She feels closest to people who are secretly or subconsciously pining for her, likely because those are the only people who are willing to accept the level of intensity at which Joyce behaves towards relationships.
Joyce likes Joe a lot, and cares about him a lot; but, she’s obsessed with Dorothy, and it turns out that Dorothy, like Becky and Joe, are very comfortable with being an outlet for Joyce to get all of that energy out of her system. She loves all of them platonically, but Dorothy is the one that she feels the most genuine romantic love for, and it puts Dorothy above everybody else in Joyce’s internal Love and Attention hierarchies…and Joe and Becky kind of already knew this, deep down.
tl;dr Joyce only knows one way to love, that way is “with obsessive, self-consuming depth,” and her whole interpersonal life is shaped by this emotional tendency; the people around her kind of already understood this on an implicit level, but those who end up loving her deeply for it, end up pretty much blind to the fact that they won’t ever be Joyce’s priority #1, because they want to be her #1 too badly.
Throwatron
Oooh, I do NOT like how tight the line breaks are on these new comments. Makes bigger comments so much harder to read.
StClair
Great analysis as always, T.
Yotomoe
Honestly that doesn’t really make it feel better for me. Like jeez girl this really shoulda been higher priority. It’s like forgetting to pick up your kids after soccer practice.
Sirksome
She’d forget them instantly if Dorothy needed something.
Thag Simmons
I don’t know if forgetting her kids at Soccer Practice would actually be out of character…
Niklarean
At this point it feels like the equivalent of forgetting she even had kids.
clif
Or forgetting to ask Sal to go bowling.
V
Go with Godn’t
YourCousinJay
feels better somehow..
Nono
Ooh, are we getting to the ‘Dina is mad at Joyce’ preview panel?
Grimey
FOR WHOM THE DINO TOLLS
WERD MARCHES ON-ON-ON!
Yotomoe
This wouldn’t make a lick of sense but I want Dina to kiss Joe in front of Joyce.
apocryphascribe
I don’t care, I am here for any and all escalation of drama and chaos in this strip at this current juncture. Right behind you!
Bittersweet
Yessss, dewit Dina, it makes no sense but is the ultimate power move lol
Mewzard
That would certainly be a choice in this moment. Not necessarily a good one, but a choice nonetheless.
Matt Beardface
It’s not the three-way we wanted, but it’s the three-way we deserve
Anon
i can imagine her doing it platonically/imitating someone and not necesarily outta spite/cunningness like giving him a cheek kiss as a thank you even tho that might be a bit outta chara
3oranges
“There is your kiss, Joe, as I understand is customary for when a large male helps one rearrange their living space.”
“Wait, where did you get that?”
“I did some research on the internet. Was I mistaken? I hope things do not need to escalate to sexual intercourse, as seems to be the case for borrowing culinary ingredients.”
Jon
I want Dina to kiss Joyce in front of Joe, then look critically at Joyce and say, “Frankly, I don’t see why Becky is so interested in her.”
Yotomoe
“I can’t say I get the hype”
Furie
Makes sense to me. Someone who doesn’t understand human interaction on their own merit tends to study it through other means. And this is America.
There’s every chance she has a glass of champagne somewhere to throw in Joyce’s face and has briefed Joe that he’s actually his evil twin who is also a robot.
Lumino
You thought we were going to have wholesome Joe and Dina interaction? Not with this sentient tire fire on the prowl.
Dot
This is perhaps the most succinct summation of Joyce I’ve ever seen.
Adept
I dunno, she hasn’t seemed that sentient as of late.
Sirksome
Don’t trust werds.
Cattleprod
If Joyce assumes that Joe and Dina are hooking up, she’ll need go and find other new partners for Becky and Walky to fix this web of breakups.
AshleyMagica
Walky already is making some moves in Amber’s direction. As for Becky… hey, Daisy hasn’t had someone special in a while…
Gigafreak
If she weren’t such a bottom, I’d think it was some kind of unhinged power play, banging Joyce’s and Dorothy’s employer.
Wraithy2773
Hm, how about “Act with integrity, no regrets” as a mantra, Joyce? I can’t see that ever having any negative connotations.
apocryphascribe
YESSSSSSSSSSS
SICKOS.PNG
Yotomoe
So anyway my new crackship is Sarah/Raidah toxic Yuri.
https://imgchest.com/p/ne7bnvmgj75
jeffepp
Ties? How lewd!
Grimey
Oh. Oh my…
apricot
Sold
RassilonTDavros
The anorak in me feels the need to point out that this crackship technically isn’t new, Billifer first proposed it
thirty-five minutes agothirteen years ago.Still, really nice art tho! Your stuff never disappoints.
Dara
WERDS
joyce’s ability to misinterpret circumstances is quality brainsmash right here, please continue
Miroku2235
Oh look, it’s the guy I cheated on and ignored after promising that we’d finish a conversation.
Zamperla
Claps gently. I kind of love that an already. Absolutely nonsense plan on Joyces part (Simply Fix Things By Telling People Everythings Fine) has been completely derailed by hey. Hey remember joe. And that conversation y’aint had.
claps happily. beautiful comic of all time. I love it here.
Dot
I’m honestly a little astonished that Dorothy is just letting her go ahead with this obviously terrible plan
StClair
Bold assumption that Joyce has told Dorothy (or anyone else) of this ‘plan’.
Doopyboop
https://www.dumbingofage.com/comic/positioning/ Pictured: Joyce telling Dorothy this plan.
StClair
I must concede you’re correct, this time.
So that puts this on Dorothy for humoring and not stopping her.
Yotomoe
Dorothy has been letting Joyce get away with and also collaborated in a LOT of pretty stupid plans as of late.
Zamperla
Joyce is like a beautiful majestic horse that must run wild and free, making incredible social blunders. Or more seriously she’s an adult with her own agency, and Dorothy already thinks highly of her capacity as a caring friend even before the New Relationship Love modifier.
mostly the horse thing. or maybe a pony.
Staszu13
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Muttski
Hey, Consequences this is Joyce.
Joyce, this is Consequences.
Joe Moose
OHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO
-Kodachi, The Black Rose
jeffepp
Called it, I did. Yes.
Icalasari
Oh hey I’m craving popcorn suddenly hmm
Throwatron
i will also be adding Go Without God to the lexicon, bespoke
Ray
Scruffing myself like a cat over here to respect the story an author and artist wants to tell, and that it’s reasonable for there to be stretches of bleak and uncertain parts, versus that now that the euphoria has worn off of a long-foreshadowed and kind of climactic part…it feels like all the setup left is bleak and uncertain, but ‘happy’ resolutions to some things might be hard not to make feel cheap.
It, y’know, makes sense that it is, given the inherent deep rooting in specific U.S. cultural and political conditions the comic has always had. That’s part of its value, and always has been. And there’s no guarantee there’s no satisfyingly bittersweet outcomes still to come.
It’s just kinda heavy.
clif
It feels like your trying to say something, but after reading through twice it kind of escapes me.