I don’t have beef with him. It’s his followers I tend to have a problem with. I like to think if he ever came back there’d be a lot of “Really? Really!?! You thought I was anti-immigrant? I was a refugee while I was still in diapers for Me’s sake….”
Olav
That Ghandi quote that is very like what you just said seems to be disputed. But I do agree with the sentiment, regardless of who said it first.
“I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”
I mean, Carla is da Bomb, but we probably still shouldn’t be objectifying her.
Needfuldoer
Carla will gleefully climb any pedestal built for her.
Clif
Fair point.
Decidedly Orthogonal
Indeed, I could erect a pointed pedestal for fair Carla. But my intent was about objectifying rather than worshipping, or autoshipping. On the other hand, I suppose someone reincarneted or recast from the role of an ultracar, might very well be ok with being both objectified and people wanting to be inside of.
Decidedly Orthogonal
To the others here, what is the term (beyond creeping) for envisioning oneself fictionally in a relationship with another? I spit-balled with autoshipping (which, I mean… ultra-car) but is there something more normal?
I feel like I’m standing in the store aisle right in front of the product I seek, and am asking a store clerk to point it out to me.
Needfuldoer
Well, there’s the “parasocial interaction” phenomenon, where audience members feel like they have a friendship with a performer or fictional character. (See also: social media “influencers”.) It should have some kind of extension that applies in that case.
“Waifu” and “husbando” are right there, but those are terms for the character, not the relationship.
I think Dorothy has definitely been a role model to Joyce, although the stuff about how Liz was like Joyce but has grown past everything Joyce hates doesn’t really apply to her since Dorothy was never raised religious to begin with. Plus, Joyce seems to have some doubt as to whether the person she’s talking about is a good role model, which definitely wouldn’t make sense for Dorothy.
I don’t think it really applies to Sarah either, since she never seemed to display any fundie tendencies at all unless I missed something– I’m guessing Liz’s dad was the fundie in their family? The only other person I can think of that that description would apply to at all is Becky– who is still a Christian, but note that Joyce’s description never explicitly mentions Christianity or faith at all, just the bigotry and shame that is often a part of it. It could be Hank or Jocelyne, now that I think about it.
Of course, the person she’s talking about wouldn’t neccesarily have to fit the description, I suppose.
I think Joyce has learned a lot from Sarah, and that’s why she might see her as a role model; but at the same time, she knows the way Sarah tries to shut people off isn’t really “role-modelry”.
Reltzik
Sarah’s resilient, independent, studious, no-nonsense… she’s got serious role-model potential. And yes, Sarah’s asocial to the point where it’s approaching a vice, but that could still be the direction that someone like Joyce, who’s friendly to the point of approaching a voice, might benefit from moving towards.
Fist_of_Life
You never want to approach a voice. I’ve seen one break glass before. :S
Nono
Yeah, Sarah’s like a big sister, but Joyce hasn’t really tried to emulate anything of Sarah.
You’ve got something there. Although she’s not *completely* without self care. We saw Dorothy struggle with balance when she was with Walky for sure. Part of the conflict there was that for her, she had conflicting things that felt like self care to her. Her work to her *is* that important, and so some of it _is_ self care for her. When she became confronted by alternate forms of self-care, well, she was conflicted. But yes, she’s decided to go after something that most people who set that as a goal will have no hope of achieving, and (looking at the track record) those who *have* achieved it, seem as likely to have approached it as an after thought or a joke, so didn’t have to withstand the pressure of pursuing it.
Shortpacked ended when they inadvertently broke spacetime through excess diversity and summoned an army of monsters from Captain Crunch commercials which proceeded to conquer the world. I think this was fairly self-evident and self-explanatory
Huh. I posted a comment but I think it got eaten. Darn.
Anyway, yeah. I will add that the Soggies may or may not rule and that they are also a metaphor for the seemingly endless flood of Shitty Takes by white nerdbros who think any divergence from their perceived straight white abled cis norm is ‘forced,’ and that therefore the series ending on Leslie and company staring them down ready for a fight represents Shortpacked’s core theme of dunking on said shitty takes, forever. (This was not particularly subtle at the end there but I will still say it directly because I love that ending.) Also, the specific breaking of spacetime merged fiction and nonfiction in many ways, thus the Soggening extending to the one-off universes like Batman breathing in space and Aslan’s bus stop, SG Ravage appearing with the cast, and Dina Sarazu coming back from the dead.
Also also, because the key dialogue is Dina saying to shoo away any ‘non-white, non-heteronormative, and neurodivergent’ people specifically, prompting Leslie to ask what that makes her and Dina going ‘Uh oh.’, that is the point at which I started considering Dina as canonically neurodivergent and specifically autistic, given that line was almost certainly prompted by questions about Dumbingverse Dina including how a lot of us read her as specifically autistic. (DoA!Becky hadn’t been reintroduced yet, though I think there was the strip where Dina considers a partner in the abstract and doesn’t think gender would matter there, but yeah, the line is structured so that Dina implicitly meets all three categories she lists.)
powerpowerpow
Every now and then I think “Maybe I should get around to reading the Walkyverse” and then I hear something like this and go “Nope sorry I don’t have that many brain cells to spare”
Clif
But it starts off nice and easy with Sal and Danny and Joe.
Regalli
About 80% of the time, it’s not that hard to follow. It gets complicated when discussing a big storyline like, say, the finale of a comic and end of a shared universe spanning almost twenty years, but so would discussing the events of last book.
But the Walkyverse, and Shortpacked in particular, was a lot goofier to begin with. Half the cast were abducted by aliens as children and given literal superpowers. (I miss it, sometimes. Frequently, even.)
I don’t think Asher was that sort of mobster. He could probably introduce you to one though.
Decidedly Orthogonal
Oh I took this to mean the Dude was volunteering Asher to be the ‘someone’ whose knees were to be broke. Y’know, when Ruth is showing Joyce the intricacies of how to break ‘someone’s’ knees.
Needfuldoer
Asher is the boss’s grandson, so he’s probably above doing the dirty work himself but he can make it happen.
Liz is the kind of person who does things just because they’re not supposed to.
That’s basically running your life based on Spite.
I think Sarah is right, Joyce shouldn’t try to be this way.
114 thoughts on “A-ticking”
Ana Chronistic
“Why do you think Jesus can find a better role model?”
“oh for f”
alt: technically anyone can be a role model, just whether a good or bad one… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Decidedly Orthogonal
“oh for f”ishers of men, he’s pretty solid. Except for all the bits where he’s not.
Clif
It should be Amazigirl. It’s not, but it should be.
It’s Mike, isn’t it?
Shell
I don’t have beef with him. It’s his followers I tend to have a problem with. I like to think if he ever came back there’d be a lot of “Really? Really!?! You thought I was anti-immigrant? I was a refugee while I was still in diapers for Me’s sake….”
Olav
That Ghandi quote that is very like what you just said seems to be disputed. But I do agree with the sentiment, regardless of who said it first.
“I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”
Doctor_Who
“Okay, if it’s not Ruth, then who could it-”
(Joyce hits her with a pie)
“Oh, alright. Good choice.”
RassilonTDavros
Carla is objectively the best role model.
HeatherJean
Jocelyne, if she’s out to Joyce. Or Carla, ditto.
Decidedly Orthogonal
I mean, Carla is da Bomb, but we probably still shouldn’t be objectifying her.
Needfuldoer
Carla will gleefully climb any pedestal built for her.
Clif
Fair point.
Decidedly Orthogonal
Indeed, I could erect a pointed pedestal for fair Carla. But my intent was about objectifying rather than worshipping, or autoshipping. On the other hand, I suppose someone reincarneted or recast from the role of an ultracar, might very well be ok with being both objectified and people wanting to be inside of.
Decidedly Orthogonal
To the others here, what is the term (beyond creeping) for envisioning oneself fictionally in a relationship with another? I spit-balled with autoshipping (which, I mean… ultra-car) but is there something more normal?
I feel like I’m standing in the store aisle right in front of the product I seek, and am asking a store clerk to point it out to me.
Needfuldoer
Well, there’s the “parasocial interaction” phenomenon, where audience members feel like they have a friendship with a performer or fictional character. (See also: social media “influencers”.) It should have some kind of extension that applies in that case.
“Waifu” and “husbando” are right there, but those are terms for the character, not the relationship.
Thag Simmons
Well as far as main cast members go Ruth isn’t actually the worst choice for a role model.
Dave Van Domelen
Which, you know, is scary.
Regalli
Absolutely terrifying, yeah.
Jamie
Yeah. She’s top 5, easy, I think.
RassilonTDavros
Not entirely sure who counts as “main cast” and who doesn’t, but I’m pretty sure Jennifer counts and she’s easily a worse choice.
He Who Abides
I was going to say the same thing. Anyone but Jennifer.
Reltzik
So…. Robin?
(She’s on the cast page, so of course she’s main cast.)
Thag Simmons
Robin is at the very least able to pratfall her way into success
powerpowerpow
I mean if we look at Becky… Yeah jury’s still out.
Rose by Any Other Name
The sweet thing here would be “it’s you, Sarah” – but Sarah doesn’t really fit the description.
… Dorothy?
RassilonTDavros
I think Dorothy has definitely been a role model to Joyce, although the stuff about how Liz was like Joyce but has grown past everything Joyce hates doesn’t really apply to her since Dorothy was never raised religious to begin with. Plus, Joyce seems to have some doubt as to whether the person she’s talking about is a good role model, which definitely wouldn’t make sense for Dorothy.
I don’t think it really applies to Sarah either, since she never seemed to display any fundie tendencies at all unless I missed something– I’m guessing Liz’s dad was the fundie in their family? The only other person I can think of that that description would apply to at all is Becky– who is still a Christian, but note that Joyce’s description never explicitly mentions Christianity or faith at all, just the bigotry and shame that is often a part of it. It could be Hank or Jocelyne, now that I think about it.
Of course, the person she’s talking about wouldn’t neccesarily have to fit the description, I suppose.
Nayann Martinelli
I think Joyce has learned a lot from Sarah, and that’s why she might see her as a role model; but at the same time, she knows the way Sarah tries to shut people off isn’t really “role-modelry”.
Reltzik
Sarah’s resilient, independent, studious, no-nonsense… she’s got serious role-model potential. And yes, Sarah’s asocial to the point where it’s approaching a vice, but that could still be the direction that someone like Joyce, who’s friendly to the point of approaching a voice, might benefit from moving towards.
Fist_of_Life
You never want to approach a voice. I’ve seen one break glass before. :S
Nono
Yeah, Sarah’s like a big sister, but Joyce hasn’t really tried to emulate anything of Sarah.
Meanwhile, Sal.
Decidedly Orthogonal
It seems pretty clear that is what is meant by Joyce’s pointed look up in panel 5 is about. “Sometimes I think I have” (looks pointedly *at* Sarah).
0phidiophile
What? No, it’s obviously Sal. Remember the leather jacket?
Nayann Martinelli
**Yells from the back** And don’t forget the wind whooshing her hair in a cool way wherever she went!
Needfuldoer
Dorothy’s balance is all out of whack. She pumped everything into “work ethic” and used “self care” as her dump stat.
Decidedly Orthogonal
You’ve got something there. Although she’s not *completely* without self care. We saw Dorothy struggle with balance when she was with Walky for sure. Part of the conflict there was that for her, she had conflicting things that felt like self care to her. Her work to her *is* that important, and so some of it _is_ self care for her. When she became confronted by alternate forms of self-care, well, she was conflicted. But yes, she’s decided to go after something that most people who set that as a goal will have no hope of achieving, and (looking at the track record) those who *have* achieved it, seem as likely to have approached it as an after thought or a joke, so didn’t have to withstand the pressure of pursuing it.
Mr D
Hey Willis, would you mind a question? What happened at the end of shortpacked? I am not entirely sure what or how or-
Anything really.
Mr D
I mean, I know that the amount of (and I quote:) “diversity” caused something to break in timespace but…
what?
Rose by Any Other Name
Huh?
The end of Shortpacked! involved Mallard Fillmore getting fired from 69 newspapers.
(nice)
Mr D
It had a grand finale with “The End”. Anything past it is just bonus.
Regalli
More specifically, they’re April Fool’s strips.
He Who Abides
Because maybe it shouldn’t be legal for any one entity to own 69 newspapers (nice).
Cholma
The end of Shortpacked! involved Soggies taking over and ruling as foretold by the ancient texts.
Deanatay
I seem dab to remember a dab different dab dab ending dab dab dab dab dab
Thag Simmons
Shortpacked ended when they inadvertently broke spacetime through excess diversity and summoned an army of monsters from Captain Crunch commercials which proceeded to conquer the world. I think this was fairly self-evident and self-explanatory
Regalli
Huh. I posted a comment but I think it got eaten. Darn.
Anyway, yeah. I will add that the Soggies may or may not rule and that they are also a metaphor for the seemingly endless flood of Shitty Takes by white nerdbros who think any divergence from their perceived straight white abled cis norm is ‘forced,’ and that therefore the series ending on Leslie and company staring them down ready for a fight represents Shortpacked’s core theme of dunking on said shitty takes, forever. (This was not particularly subtle at the end there but I will still say it directly because I love that ending.) Also, the specific breaking of spacetime merged fiction and nonfiction in many ways, thus the Soggening extending to the one-off universes like Batman breathing in space and Aslan’s bus stop, SG Ravage appearing with the cast, and Dina Sarazu coming back from the dead.
Also also, because the key dialogue is Dina saying to shoo away any ‘non-white, non-heteronormative, and neurodivergent’ people specifically, prompting Leslie to ask what that makes her and Dina going ‘Uh oh.’, that is the point at which I started considering Dina as canonically neurodivergent and specifically autistic, given that line was almost certainly prompted by questions about Dumbingverse Dina including how a lot of us read her as specifically autistic. (DoA!Becky hadn’t been reintroduced yet, though I think there was the strip where Dina considers a partner in the abstract and doesn’t think gender would matter there, but yeah, the line is structured so that Dina implicitly meets all three categories she lists.)
powerpowerpow
Every now and then I think “Maybe I should get around to reading the Walkyverse” and then I hear something like this and go “Nope sorry I don’t have that many brain cells to spare”
Clif
But it starts off nice and easy with Sal and Danny and Joe.
Regalli
About 80% of the time, it’s not that hard to follow. It gets complicated when discussing a big storyline like, say, the finale of a comic and end of a shared universe spanning almost twenty years, but so would discussing the events of last book.
But the Walkyverse, and Shortpacked in particular, was a lot goofier to begin with. Half the cast were abducted by aliens as children and given literal superpowers. (I miss it, sometimes. Frequently, even.)
Kaidah
Oh…oh no…you’ve reminded me about Shortpacked!…there goes another week of productivity as I read through it again for like the fourth time.
I just meant to go look at this year’s April 1st strip but the pull was too strong.
Needfuldoer
An interdimensional rift opened up, and the Soggies ruled.
David Alexander McDonald
I think how Joyce sees Dorothy fits that very well, but there’s some doubt in there too because Dorothy is overdriven.
He Who Abides
And the little issue of Joyce wanting Dorothy to attach a strap-on and split her like a log.
milu
…ouch
RassilonTDavros
Yeah, that description sounded less sexy and more murder-y.
…which would largely be the same thing for, say, Ruth, but… probably not Joyce.
Stephen Bierce
Knock knock on the door
Who’s it for?
There’s nobody in here–look in a mirror my friend!
Sirksome
I mean I can see the positives and negatives to Liz here. She may seem like Joyce evolved but she also lacks certain boundaries. Less responsible.
Beau Kirin Maysey
aladdin_tell_her_the_truth.jpeg
Zachary R
All right, sparky, here’s the deal. If you wanna court the little lady, ya gotta be a straight shooter. Do ya got it?
Keulen
“I can’t believe it. I’m losing to a rug.”
Nayann Martinelli
Why not Ruth, Sarah? Who better to show you the intricacies of how to break someone’s knees?
He Who Abides
Asher?
Thag Simmons
I don’t think Asher was that sort of mobster. He could probably introduce you to one though.
Decidedly Orthogonal
Oh I took this to mean the Dude was volunteering Asher to be the ‘someone’ whose knees were to be broke. Y’know, when Ruth is showing Joyce the intricacies of how to break ‘someone’s’ knees.
Needfuldoer
Asher is the boss’s grandson, so he’s probably above doing the dirty work himself but he can make it happen.
Madock345
Liz is the kind of person who does things just because they’re not supposed to.
That’s basically running your life based on Spite.
I think Sarah is right, Joyce shouldn’t try to be this way.
Sirksome
I don’t think it’s spite. It’s more like a YOLO approach. Why not steal your sister’s bf if he’s into you? What’s the worst that could happen?
thejeff
Though Sarah’s claim that she didn’t tell Liz about the boyfriend “so you wouldn’t want to see him” suggests there’s a bit more to it than that.
adam Black
if sarah believed that , she would move out Joyce room herself.
BBCC
…Yes, Sarah. It’s Ruth.
Sol
Yeah Joyce can definitely find a better role model than someone who thinks it’s cool to go after her sister’s boyfriends.
Cuz contextually it seems pretty clear that she has a habit of doing so…
adam Black