De-escalate
Posted on December 19, 2024 by David M Willis

241 thoughts on “De-escalate”

  1. Ana Chronistic

    typical of college, everything you learned is outdated in a few years

    1. Ana Chronistic

      also imagine if Joss had been there for Sal’s motorcycle jump rescue

      1. Rolf of Many Doors

        I’d say David jumped the shark with that one but let’s be honest it was cool as hell.

        Danny: “So anyway then my girlfriend Sal did a sick jump on her motorcycle and snapped the bad-guy’s neck and saved the day.”

        1. Masumi

          “wow wow wow….wow.”

        2. a/snow/mous/e

          the bad guy’s neck: “Pop pop!”

    2. Jeff K!

      I took an Introduction to DOS class for the easy A!

      1. Aquila

        Even though I actually know, I feel compelled to go for the easy joke :

        “What’s a DOS?”

        1. marcus erronius

          It stands for Denial Of Sevice. It’s a form of online digital attack, where a waiter refuses to take your order because they’re busy checking websites on their phone. It’s why I always take a cellphone jammer to restaurants, they can’t go online on a phone covered with jam, it’s way too sticky.

        2. BarerMender

          Nice. Love the stream of consciousness.

        3. Opus the Poet

          +1!

        4. Forvisk

          If Jeff did this he would get an A+.

        5. Michael Steamweed

          First sentence, yeah, ho, ho, nice one. Second sentence, whaat, oh I see, this is off-rails time.

        6. CardinalFan

          Only one man would dare give me the raspberry! LONE STAR!

        7. Some Ed

          Lone Star only gave you the raspberry because you *asked* for it. I was in the booth right beside you. I heard you ask for it, I heard Lone Star read back the order to verify it was all correct, and I heard you say it was.

          Yelp isn’t interested in what really happened, but I know. I’m on to you. You’re secretly Black Hat man, aren’t you?

        8. ktbear

          Is this a Shadowrun reference?

        9. thejeff

          Spaceballs

        10. CardinalFan

          Mine was, as thejeff said, Spaceballs.

      2. Hof1991

        Fortran on punchcard. This involved neither Fortnight nor punching.

    3. Needfuldoer

      I’m sure someone somewhere is still running the equipment I learned on almost 20 years ago.

    4. Decidedly Orthogonal

      If your college experience is grounded purely in temporal facts, your college sucks. Every time I’ve attended post-secondary studies (and hell, even high school), the primary goal is to learn how to think and how to learn. The factual information is provided as context for particular domains, but is secondary to knowing how to navigate those domains.

      1. Ana Chronistic

        I went to college bc I was expected to do so

        definitely would’ve had a better experience had I gone to learn (and paid my own way)

  2. Proto_Eevee

    did joe just think everyone was lying the whole time? all his friends got kidnapped!

    1. Paradoxius

      He thought it was a running bit!

      1. JessWitt

        A coping mechanism-induced group hallucination?

    2. Charles Phipps

      Jocelyn does seem to have been surprisingly subdued on comforting her sister after her former neighbor was murdered in front of her.

      1. Bryy

        Yeah, actually.

    3. Regalli

      I think the person he’d have heard the most about AG from is Danny. He wasn’t necessarily close enough to have heard about, say, the car chase rescue when it happened from Joyce and Becky. And it wouldn’t surprise me if the public story of the big kidnapping kept Amazi-Girl’s involvement to a minimum. They did largely get themselves out of it, after all.

      Now, the car chase almost certainly made news, but if Joe’s not paying attention to that, I can see him genuinely not having heard about her as more than a campus rumor and Danny’s girlfriend he can’t introduce to Joe ever who totally exists.

      1. Doki

        I think it would honestly be hilarious if Danny WAS Joe’s main source of info about Amazi-girl, and all this time he’s just chalked it up to some kind of superhero RP kink thing between Danny and his then-girlfriend.

        1. Plain Marie

          So then we get all the Joe reaction shots to fi ding out the full truth!

    4. Furie

      I’m sure his new sister did some work to help with any pesky belief he had in a superhero. Come on Joe, that’s a bit Walky of you.

  3. Sirksome

    College has changed.

    1. Charles Phipps

      College, college never changes.

      1. Deanatay

        To protect humanity from the harsh brutality of post-graduation life, Dorm-Tec built vast underground living spaces called Dorms, designed to shelter the best and brightest of humanity. Generations after the Grad-pocalypse, Dorm Dwellers emerge into a brave new world filled with freaks and horrors.

        Gradout: the post-graduate role playing game.

        1. StClair

          You’ve got to understand, though:
          the Dorms were never meant to save anyone.

        2. Michael Steamweed

          If anything could get darker than Fallout, yeah, this would do it.

      2. Michael Steamweed

        In grad school, thou shalt get sidetracked by bullshit every damned time.

  4. furubatsu

    I was wondering what Jocelyn wad making of all this.

    Also love that realisation that Joe (and probably a real good chunk of the campus) don’t believe in Amazi-girl (don’t worry guys, Amazi-girl doesn’t believe in Amazi-girl)

    1. DJTsurugi

      don’t believe in Amazi-girl, believe in the me that believes in Amazi-girl ~<3

      1. Da Boy

        Yours is the fist that will pierce his spleen

  5. Charles Phipps

    It’s kind of humorous she keeps trying to mentor Joyce when her kid sister has way more life experience these days.

    1. Icalasari

      “Explains why she’s growing so fast if she doesn’t have a normal to retreat to.”

    2. Mturtle7

      …I mean, strictly speaking, we don’t KNOW that Jocelyn’s life up to now hasn’t been just as unhinged and soap-opera-esque as Joyce’s. It’s just implied that there are less superheroes involved. Maybe she’s been chatting up Martians in her spare time, off panel!

  6. IntangibleMatter

    Okay wait- is this a new Amazi-Girl costume? It looks more “robot-y” and also more like a jacket-dress than what I remember it looking like.

    Also Dina casually summing up every experience I have with my generation.

    1. Pongles

      Didn’t we just see Dorothy decide to modify Amazi-Girl’s costume?

      1. Armadillo

        Honestly forgot about that. She did good work.

        1. Mark

          They did good work. The suit was laid out on the floor with supplies and sewing tools at hand. AG(?) was working on it when Dorothy found the bits and decided she had a better idea.

      2. HueSatLight

        We saw Dorothy finding this suit and deciding she knew better and modifying it without telling AG/Amber first. The only change of Dorothy’s we’ve seen so far is different colored leggings. https://www.dumbingofage.com/sneakingback/

        1. Needfuldoer

          She’s just a humble tailor…

          Dorothy’s quip about the leggings seems like some meta-commentary, given what Willis wrote about the Amazi-suit redesign process on Bluesky…

      3. anon

        it does look better but all i can think of is the ‘no capes’ line XD

    2. P!enapple

      Iirc, Dorothy revamped it a bit, about the same strip time as Billie trying to get Sal to comment on being Amazi-girl.

    3. Dara

      Yes, here’s several views of the previous one.

      And Dorothy clearly works really fast.

      1. Freemage

        You know, that link had a little art-bit that I’d missed until now–look at the ‘mental image’ version of A-G in the last panel. Instead of a cape tied around her neck, it’s fastened to the collar of the shirt, with an open neck. In essence, it’s much more how Amber sees A-G, as a ‘professional’ super-hero. Nice job, 2020 Willis!

        1. Decidedly Orthogonal

          Thanks for calling attention, as I’d_still_ have missed it.

    4. Stonewolf

      Anazigirl gots herself a “Barrier Jacket” now!

  7. butts

    wait, has Joe never encountered Amazi-Girl before? wild

    1. Charles Phipps

      “No, but she did once catch me and Joyce together in bed.”

      “Joe, Sal isn’t Amazi-Girl.”

      “Who else would she be?”

    2. Lingo

      Yeah I’ve forgotten that he’s one of the few main cast who don’t know her secret identity yet. Pretty ironic, considering he’s her step-brother!

      1. sultryglebe

        Maybe he’s going to become the Aunt Mae.

        1. Clif

          Aunt Mae. Aunt Man. One or the other.

        2. staszu13

          (Aunt May voice) Oh, you’re that horrible Amazi-Girl!

        3. Michael Steamweed

          Hopefully the older Aunt May who lives, not the younger hot one who dies. :O

        4. Taffy

          Why’d you specify only the younger one’s hotness? Everyone knows Rosemary Harris is the hottest Aunt May.

        5. Michael Steamweed

          Mm, she _is_ taller by a couple inches. I’m often partial to the taller ones.

          But it’s Tomei’s accent that gets the hawtness rating.

        6. Taffy

          Her featureless Midwestern accent even though she lives in New York?

  8. NGPZ

    *plays “Free Bird” by Lynyrd Skynyrd on hacked muzak*

    1. Bryy

      Topical, considering we’re discussing toxic males.

      1. NGPZ

        AG kickin this dudebro is a site banner now

        Fuck yeah! >:D

  9. Suet

    “It is upsetting to learn I am expected to understand any of this.” Big. MOOD.

    Now I’m just gritting my teeth at him for being cliché. Too stereotypical of a “villain”. Read too many bad comics.

    1. Pinkie

      Just the quote for doing adult things like insurance paperwork

    2. BadRoad

      Dumbing of Age Book 14: It Is Upsetting to Learn I Am Expected to Understand Any of This

      1. Daibhid C

        The perfect gift for someone who’s never read the strip before!

  10. jeffepp

    So, he’s saying he’s bait? Some league of some sort in waiting?

    1. Laserbeaks Fury

      Like, I’m hoping this is just dumb stuff going on, but honestly “Incelerator” feels laser targeted to instigate with Amazi-Girl.

    2. Lars

      Oh No. Asher in costume.

    3. Adept

      He’s a violent bully and at least an aspirational rapist, but I don’t think he’s just randomly decided to become a supervillain.

      This has to be a display and provocation intended to draw out Amazi-girl.

    4. Shadowsnail

      The League of Evil Ins (you know, the opposite of Exes but also short for Incels)

    5. Needfuldoer

      He’s a master of it.

  11. morhek

    “Did he choose “uncowed” because he’s an english major who learned a new word or for misogynist reasons?”

    “Yes.”

    1. Thomas

      He’ll learn to say “Uncle!” in a short while. Two new words! A fast learner.

  12. General Tekno

    If he had half a brain he’d have a buddy of this filming it, so he could post it online and proceed to live off the grift of how women need to be put in their place because look here, see, this woman is out of line when he was just Asking Questions (TM)

    1. 3oranges

      It would take some serious editing, considering that he threw the first punch and said “violence is the only way people understand” seconds before he got kicked.

      1. Ophidiophile

        I’m pretty sure he’s egotistical enough to think he’s going to win, and the video is to be posted so he’ll be recognized as a hero. And start the anti-feminist revolution, if he also suffers from Holy Warrior Syndrome.

      2. Some Ed

        It’s not too hard to clip out a few seconds.

        Now, given the fight so far, it’ll be difficult to make it look like he’s up to the challenge, but that’s another matter entirely.

    2. Mark

      I wonder if he’s considered the other people in the food court who by now are videoing his antics.

      I don’t see how anybody has the temerity to commit crimes in public these days, given the high probability that at least one random person is already inadvertently videoing in his direction and need only refocus slightly to capture conclusive State’s Evidence.

      1. Astariel

        Eh, he’s a right-wing white guy who’s assaulted an Asian woman and a Black guy. He’d get a slap on the wrist at worst, and probably high-fives from the cops on the way.

  13. JA

    Wait Joe didn’t think Amazi-Girl was real?

    1. Vanessa

      She’s more real than NightGuy, that’s for sure. She has skills.

      1. Sirksome

        Please. It’s obvious Nightguy softened Incelerator up for Amazi-Girl. The real skill was blocking that fist with his abs of steel that sent a delayed shockwave of pain through Incelerator’s body causing him to spin through the air just as Amazi-Girl’s kick connected!…Is how I’ll sell this story when I pitch the Incelerator movie script.

        1. BarerMender

          I don’t understand that spin through the air, or what’s causing AG to skid backwards popping her heels on the floor.

        2. Mark

          AG twisted around to land facing the foe, and has to dissipate the momentum that wasn’t transferred to the target on impact.

        3. Sum Dum Gai

          I’m impressed by I’s kip-up. In wheels, no less.

  14. peng

    “amazi-girl is real?” is so funny

  15. Armadillo

    It’s okay Amazi-girl, you’ve beaten the shit out of this guy before so this isn’t escalation. More of a plateau, really.

  16. Charles Phipps

    I have a funny thought now that Jocelyn is back.

    Hank isn’t bothered by the trans thing (he figured it out a while ago) but is against Bulmeria protests.

    1. morleuca

      Or Hank is just really invested in his daughters not getting arrested.

      1. Charles Phipps

        “Why are you antibulmerian? We’re 1/4th Bulmerian!”

        “Being anti-Bulmerian government isn’t Anti-Bulmerian!”

  17. Dawn

    Doesn’t Jocelyne know about the superhero motorcycle car chase? I feel like this shouldn’t surprise her at this point.

    Though I guess actually seeing the superhero in action hits a bit different.

  18. KM

    So is fisticuffs between costumed heroes and villains the norm now. I had no idea.

    1. Opus the Poet

      That’s why I beat up car in street clothes, to prevent just this kind of escalation.

      1. Clif

        Where he found a car in street clothes to beat up, I’ll never know.

        1. Michael Steamweed

          Groucho, is that you?

  19. Bogeywoman

    Dude, she has years of experience on you. You’re out-cowed.

    (I’m still wanting the derby team to show up and hip-check him like a pinball out the window)

    1. Dante

      I kinda love that he’s “AT LAST, MY TRUE TARGET” meanwhile he… sucks. There’s not even some epic way to say it, this dude is just no nemesis material, he’s at best a second-hand punching bag.

      1. NGPZ

        hope ain’t lost for him

        maybe with practice he can be somebody’s side-kick XD

    2. Mark

      Not sure how a whole team can do that, but they could vigorously pass him around until he loses consciousness.

      1. Taffy

        Your sales pitch sounds too appealing.

        1. Dante

          That’s what he said

          The mental image came unbidden, can’t help it.

  20. Sirksome

    This is how we learn Incelerator’s true plan which was to get dominated by capable women, which through repetition has developed into a kink very hard to indulge.

    1. jflb96

      Only while stuck on a student budget

  21. Pocky

    Ahhhh, dive kicks. So much fun to do.

  22. mindbleach

    Dude has fantastic enunciation for someone who just took two hundred pounds of boot to the jaw.

  23. Newlland(Henryvolt)

    This convinces me more so that this guy wanted AG’s attention on the possibility that the last few times he’s ever felt the passionate touch of a woman is when She’s punched him.

    1. Dante

      The longest any woman has paid attention to him, period. Seconding Sirksome.

    2. Da Boy

      Would certainly be funny if he was a masochist enjoying those beatings.

      1. Miri

        … https://www.dumbingofage.com/2014/comic/book-4/04-the-whiteboard-dong-bandit/interrogation/

        And nobody has said “Wait, MIKE?!!” yet?

        1. Da Boy

          His spirit came back and possessed this douche to get some more of that Amazi Violence

      2. thejeff

        “he pulled it on Rorschach, and Rorschach dropped him down an elevator shaft.”

        1. Michael Steamweed

          Though I don’t want AG to be a murderer, I do want her to drop Idioterator down an elevator shaft.

  24. RassilonTDavros

    Huh. Joe never actually has seen Amazi-Girl before, has he.

    I seem to recall him thinking Danny was just making her up at some point early on in DoA’s run, but it’d take some digging.

    1. Michael Steamweed

      “What the hell? Your imaginary ex-girlfriend is real?!”

  25. BBCC

    I like how she says “Your generation” like she’s not just a couple years older.

    1. Dante

      Youngest she can be as a recent graduate is four years older, which is like. 22, 23? And already feeling That Generational Gap?

      Yeah, that tracks. Kids in their early 20’s tend to feel ancient :’33

      1. Random832

        I mean, the comic started in 2010 and she presumably had already graduated by then.

        1. Needfuldoer

          DoA is set in getCurrentYear(), otherwise that would imply Joyce and company have been in college for over 14 years.

        2. Mark

          Well, they’ve been very busy, probably needed to repeat a few classes.

        3. Dante

          Please don’t, I remember reading this the day it launched

          //Lies down and cries

    2. 3oranges

      It’s realistic. I have genuinely heard people about to graduate complain about first year students as kids these days.

      1. Jon

        @3oranges in high school I noticed that the frosh got shorter every year. Weird. I hope it hasn’t been going on ever since then!

      2. BarerMender

        I went to college in the ’60s & ’70’s, and first year students looked like kids even to second year students way back then.

    3. Da Boy

      I imagine at that age every year of difference feels like a decade.

      1. Taffy

        You’ll find out when you get to that age, kiddo.

        1. Da Boy

          Sadly I’m already way past it

        2. Clif

          Maybe next time then.

        3. Taffy

          Samsara comes for us all

        4. Needfuldoer

          At least if you drive company fleet vehicles.

    4. Adept

      She had already thought about female names for herself, and suggested Joyce to their mum for the new baby girl. I think she’s more than 4 years older for sure. Could be more like ten.

      1. thejeff

        She was still pretty young at the time, couldn’t enunciate “Joss-win” correctly.
        Younger that 10, older than 4, but probably closer to it?

        OTOH, we know Jordan’s in between them and whatever happened to him happened when Joyce was still young enough to be sheltered from it.
        I can’t figure out the Brown sibling ages.

  26. HueSatLight

    He saw an article about her, but clearly didn’t take it seriously. They might have talked, though, since they’re step-siblings.

    1. Michael Steamweed

      “No, Joe, I am your step-sister.”
      “NOOO!”

      1. Plain Marie

        Favorite comment so far!

    2. Jeremiah

      Joe is Sal step sibling?! Does Walky knows?

      1. Michael Steamweed

        Oh, shoot, I thoughtlessly blabbed the secret from the other-other-Patreon. Dangit.

  27. Nono

    So I’ve been trying to articulate why I’m ready for the end of Amazi-Girl storylines.

    To sum up… every time there’s a villain for her to beat, it comes with trauma, baggage, and a reminder of villains that represent a side of society that’s probably a bit too reminiscent of real life. And there’s never a clear, easy win for her other than like, really early on when she saved Danny.

    Amazi-Girl saved Joyce from Ryan? Oh, she got traumatized by an almost-rapist.

    The DeSanto rally? Ryan got away. And then people were disbelieving the Ryan picture afterwards.

    Ryan got beat up? Dorothy got traumatized and also she was being stalked by someone carrying a knife.

    Saved Becky from Ross? Another piece of Joyce trauma and a reminder of people who would kill to ‘save’ their kids from queerness. And then Ross got bailed by religious nutjobs.

    The big kidnapping incident? Trauma for lots of people involved, and Mike died.

    Even this guy, I imagine it’s not going to be an ‘easy’ win because he’s a cis white guy getting beat up by a girl and will have ‘sympathizers’. Even now he’s smug after getting kicked in the face.

    There are some good storylines that the villains represent that can be told in the medium (sexism, religious indoctrination, etc.) but it’s getting very tiring that every time there’s an Amazi-Girl storyline I’m already thinking “well what fresh hard fought victory is it this time”.

    I’m sure Incelerator will ‘lose’ but unless it’s a super swift comeuppance with no backlash on any of the cast, I might start not reading til a current Amazi-Girl storylines are over because they’re becoming less power fantasy and more ‘hey here’s a reminder that the system and society hates people.’.

    Give me Linda, Mary or Raidah as villains over these yahoos. At least until they start wearing spandex and devolve into shouting one-note rhetoric.

    1. Foolissa

      Everything you said, except that’s why I think the Amazi-girl storylines are really good writing

      1. Dante

        I really like the way Willis toes the line of realism with these storylines tbh

    2. Dante

      I get what you mean and I respect it a lot – I’m just making conversation here :3

      To me it _is_ cathartic precisely because I don’t really get to forget the system and society hates people (like me.) Watching a character I like doing away with this kind of asshole through fisticuffs and hijinks is nice, when one knows there’s no easy answer IRL. It’s still mostly grounded -nobody’s drinking a super serum or getting powers through sunlight- yet badass, and it does have consequences; so it doesn’t feel like it’s breaking the DoA worldbuild.

      I wonder how deep this AG storyline will get. Like… Will it be mostly for laughs, or is it going to lead somewhere more poignant? (And, given that it’s already happening, what would you rather?)

      1. NGPZ

        honestly same

        heck whatever gives me an excuse to eventually make an SNES Batman clone with AG or something XD

        1. Dante

          Please please do tell us if you do omg

      2. Nono

        Yeah I don’t think there’s anything inherently wrong, and if people still enjoy her stories, great.

        I think the low point for me was when after the whole Becky-Ross showdown, people were cooling off, seems like a happy ending… and then it cuts to the church planning to bail him out and Blaine showing up with ‘how much more do you need?’ Then it just felt like ‘of course. There’s always more. Always sympathisers, always easier for them to wriggle out or consequences.’. Cathartic for a while… but never forever.

        1. Jeremiah

          That sounds like an example of good writting? I don’t get what the issue here is.

        2. Dante

          “Cathartic, for a while” precisely because IRL it never ends…

          Yeah, I get it. The Becky-Ross showdown was really cool and I didn’t expect the entire storyline with Mike dying and the basement. I enjoyed it too, it was some of Willis’ best writing in my very humble opinion – Unguarded and from the heart. But I can’t help but re-read that (I do it every once in a while, either bits I liked or the entire comic) and feel like… 2020, right? We didn’t know The Years Don’t Stop Comin’ once they Start Comin’, or at least, not so hard.

      3. Buck Ripsnort

        Unlike 99% of mainstream comics, Willis at least acknowledges that AG is the result of mental illness, not “destiny” or whatever comics trope the Big Two use.

    3. Regret

      I don’t think this is the right place for power fantasies.

      1. Nono

        Superheroes are pretty much power fantasies/wish fulfillment/catharsis. And yeah, I get the appeal of being able to imagine punching assholes like Ryan or Incelerator.

        I think the road to getting there in the comic tends to get more muddy than cathartic for me.

        1. Jeremiah

          It is mean to be. That is kind of the appeal of it, that things get muddy. Amazi Girl whole existence is an example of that, it started as power fantasy for amner, and way for her to discharge her more destructive tendencies in a way that appeals to her comic book nerd tastes. It then it turns into a whole second personality due to using as a way to compartmentalize her trauma. Amazi Girl storylines cannot be pure cathartis or power fantasy because that it’s simply not what they ever were meant to be.

        2. thejeff

          Amazi-Girl is definitely not written as a power fantasy.

          None of the stories here (with AG in them or not) are simple wish fulfillment. Is it just that you’re expecting the super-hero ones to turn into that?

          Though honestly, I’m not sure even classic comic book super-heroes are “pretty much power fantasies/wish fulfillment/catharsis.” I mean, that element is there, but it’s often muddy. The X-Men save a world that still hates and fears them. Peter Parker’s constantly broke and has girl troubles because he neglects his personal life to save people.

    4. thejeff

      This also amuses me because when the Incelerator first appeared someone was complaining they didn’t like it because they didn’t want a cathartic story where the mustache-twirling bigot just gets punched in the face and that solves the problem, since that’s too simple and easy for how bigotry actually works.

      Guess there’s no pleasing everybody, but it’s funny to see people disliking a story for exactly opposite reasons.

    5. Plain Marie

      I’m feeling a little bit of this too. There no real joy in some kind of win. It’s not like you can vanquish the bad for good. And maybe a little too topical for me. Sleezy evil keeps popping up no matter how you fight. *sigh*

  28. Taffy

    I knew he was dense, but damn. Little boy’s talkin’ full sentences after getting kicked so hard he bounced across the room. Or maybe he’s spinning, it’s hard to tell and I don’t care to litigate.

  29. Meagan

    Hey this is unrelated to today’s comic, but would anyone help me track down some comics I found via ads on this page? I think they are all associated with HiveWorks, but I find the HW site extremely not intuitive.

    1. A comic about a witch or otherwise female magical creature who due to a misunderstanding by a white knight gets “rescued” from a “curse” that she actually wanted to be under. Or something like that. She ends up cast out of her safe place in the woods and has to navigate an unfamiliar city. She runs into some girls, some of whom may have magic, but it’s a super big secret.

    2. A comic about a naked fairy girl wandering through the wilderness who runs into someone maybe from a city. She is perhaps on some sort of rescue mission from her people? Maybe she had amnesia? It was abandoned/on long-term hiatus.

    3. Another comic, possibly by the same author as #2, that was completed, about a manned mission to Mars in which an astronaut falls beneath the surface of Mars and ends up in a strange underground world he cannot escape with a main creature who I vaguely remember as being dragon-esque.

    Any help tracking these down would be appreciated.

    1. Dawn

      2 is The Meek, 3 is Mare Internum.

    2. Thomas

      #2 & #3 are The Meek & Mare Internum by Der-Shing Helmer. You can find them at meekcomic.com & marecomic.com.

    3. Rabid Rabbit

      #1 would be Blindsprings (https://www.blindsprings.com/). Unfortunately it’s been on hiatus for a long time.

  30. Chaucer59

    The Incelerator is either a masochist of the purist sort or he’s about as sharp as a sack o’ wet mice. What am I saying? Anyone who would thoroughly embrace incel-hood probably has almost as much intelligence as a small community of shellfish. Of course, he COULD be both an idiot and really turned on by getting pounded to rubble.

    1. BarerMender

      No, see, he’s a hero fighting the evil women who refuse to be his toys. Incels have committed murder in this cause, although they probably wouldn’t put it in quite those words.

      1. Opus the Poet

        +1! And not just murder, but rape and other sex crimes.

    2. staszu13

      Oh no a bag of wet mice is much smarter

      1. morleuca

        The mice would be able to figure out how to get out of the bag.

      2. Pergola

        I prefer ‘sharp as a bag of hammers’. Or ‘not the sharpest hammer in the bag’.

        1. BarerMender

          I like Foghorn Leghorn’s “Nice boy, but sharp as a pound of wet leather.”

    3. Michael Steamweed

      Incels and their ilk boast that no women want them. They are definitely into self-inflicted humiliation.

      1. Chaucer59

        Proof, yet again, that you can teach the ignorant but you just can’t fix stupid.

  31. darkoneko

    ….as expected, it was a ploy.

    to fish Amazi-girl, apparently. Well, let’s hope there’s not some psychopath with a gun in the crowd.

    1. Holly

      I’m expecting him to have a plan to get her caught by some form of actual authority, and thus risk getting Amber revealed and kicked out of college.

      1. anon

        it’s gonna be fun when joe finds out that amazigirl is (well, sharing a body with) amber

      2. Chaucer59

        That sounds like too much forethought for someone with so few working brain cells.

    2. HueSatLight

      I bet it’s a camera. Only started recording after he punched Walky. Probably a really inconspicuous cameraperson, like Beef.

  32. Deanatay

    Amber: I thought we’d agreed to de-escalate!

    AG: He only bounced three times after I drop-kicked him. That’s much gentler than usual. Compared to what he did to *sigh* NightGuy, I’d say it’s definitely a step down.

    1. Michael Steamweed

      Methinks the internal dialogue will pivot once AG/Amber recognizes this incel guy.

  33. Wilde

    Calling it now, Dorothy’s true purpose is to be Alfred to AG’s Batman. Just has to learn to cover for AG better. ALTERNATIVELY: AG can keep Dorothy in an underground secret base all the time so no one can question her

    1. Thomas

      No, thanks. I think Dorothy’s been kept in too many underground secret bases already. She’s free to hide in Amazi-Girl’s closet, though.

      1. Michael Steamweed

        Dorothy can stay in the closet until she feels ready to come out. 😀

        1. Dante

          I’m sure it’s coming soon.

      2. Wilde

        Did I accidentally call back to the old series I didn’t read? Or forget something from this one?

        1. Thomas

          They were all taken hostage by Amber’s dad and trapped in a basement. It was not a fun experience.

    2. Dante

      Amber needs someone to run her life without domming her, Dorothy needs to feel useful and competent, both need to de-stress.

      Yeah, I could dig it. As a ship :’33

  34. Icalasari

    Still better than what my college went through

    Somebody, as an art project, slaughtered a live chicken in the cafeteria

    Yeeeah it made national news up here in Canada

    1. Taffy

      Did they at least prep the damn thing like responsible meat people, or did they just kill a chicken and call it art?

    2. Buck Ripsnort

      Closest we had was an “Apartheid Shanty-Town” protesting South Africa. Didn’t carry quite the same punch, pun intended.

  35. NinjaNick

    Amazi-Girl is so awesome!

  36. Kyulen

    I feel like Jocelyne here, I don’t think I ever had anything like this happen when I was in college.

    1. Opus the Poet

      Lucky you, we had a serial rapist my Sophomore year in college. I think he got like 3 or 4 women before they told anybody about it.

  37. TheFlamingonator

    Yea my university experience sucked there were zero wheelie villains or vigilantes in tje lunch room.

  38. CianM1301

    “True Rival”? Just give him a quick kick to the nads and be done with it, Amazi-Girl.

    1. Da Boy

      I mean, he took a flying kick to the face and seems ready for more. If nothing else, his toughness is commendable.

      1. Opus the Poet

        No brain, no pain.

        1. Da Boy

          Yeah that explains it

  39. Amelie Wikström

    Something I’ve been thinking about lately. Why does a thing have to be a “generational experience?” Like superhero fights in the lunch room is something specific to these kids’ generation and completely unrelatable to Jocelyne who’s maybe 3 years older. That’s crazy talk, Jocelyne.

    1. Mark

      “Generations” are just made up anyway. You could shift the boundaries by five years and come up with different excuses for claiming that your categories are characterized by this and that.

      1. Bruno

        Personally I say we follow Exodus rules on this only, where a generation is 40 years.

    2. Leadsynth

      I think Joss is being a bit facetious talking about “generations” here. But I’m curious to know exactly how much older she is than Joyce. Is it just 3 years? Do we know?

      1. thejeff

        Almost certainly not just 3 years, since that would suggest she was still in college.

      2. Amelie Wikström

        No I’m a bit facetious myself, 3 is certainly pushing it. But given that her career doesn’t have any college graduation requirement, and her general anti-conformist style, the age difference to her and Joyce doesn’t have to be very big.

        Also I’d agree with Bruno but maybe make it 50 years, aka the jubilee number.

        1. thejeff

          We know from family weekend that she went to IU and while it’s never been explicitly stated that she graduated, there’s never been any hint that she didn’t and that she was their parent’s favorite strongly suggests she didn’t drop out.

    3. anon

      LOL i don’t expect anything as ‘action filled’ as the amazigirl saga but i have heard there have been ‘student volunteers’ who dress up as super heroes or so while like serving/helping homeless ppl in like a soup kitchen, tho feels like that might be a pr stunt or so

  40. eh, whatever

    How can I be the first to notice that Joyce can say AMAZI-GIRL in the right font and the right colors? Normally, people can only do this with their own logos!

    1. Michael Steamweed

      AMAZI-GIRL!
      OTHAR TRYGGVASSEN!

      Proper font display and voice reverberation is important.

      1. Rotunda

        Ahem. “Othar Tryggvassen, GENTLEMAN ADVENTURER!”.

  41. Masumi

    Hey, de-escalation is easy in this case: roll him down the stairs!

    Also, wow, Joyce can talk in comic book font :O

  42. thumb

    Oh wait! This is what I said would happen. This incident combined with an article by Jennifer claiming Sal is Amazi-Girl will threaten to get Sal kicked out.

  43. Juanoku

    In sorry why is she leaving sparks off the floor? Is she using metal boots???

    1. Rectilinear Propagation

      I think it’s not literally there, like the blue line showing Incelerator bouncing on the floor.

  44. AbacusWizard

    The jerk is currently on the floor and not hitting anybody, so yeah, I would consider this situation to have been de-escalated. Keep up the good work, Amazi-Girl.

    1. Da Boy

      He seems ready to get back up and start swinging, better further de-escalate it with a kick or two to the ribs

  45. Mild Lee Interested

    You and me both, Dina.

  46. I Know Why The Mowed Lawn Screams

    ngl going through the “incelerator” tag and realizing this guy has had his shit kicked in like five other times before has me endeared more to the idea of him getting beat up again. hope we get more panels of him bouncing around like a 2006 newgrounds flash game ragdoll lol

  47. Maddie B

    First panel and last panel are both gold, of different varieties.

  48. Michael Steamweed

    We’ve been deescalating against Nazis. In WWII, we tried to kill them. Nowadays we’re going easier on them.

    1. Jeremiah

      A bit too easy, now they run social media companies.

      1. Michael Steamweed

        Too damn depressing.

      2. Plain Marie

        Argh.

    2. Taffy

      Ze War ended 79 years ago. People were conceived that day and are dying of old age now. Their parents are lucky if they’re still alive to remember it.

    3. NGPZ

      it certainly didn’t help that the government recruited Nazi scientists under the premise it’d help them win the Cold War 0-0

  49. Deanatay

    Also note, Joyce is an experienced AG fan, knowing how to speak her name in Comic Sans Bold.

  50. Hof1991

    Can’t de-escalate him. There’s no escalator handy. Have to use a staircase or balcony instead.

  51. Amós Batista

    AG got upgrades on her armor…

  52. Rectilinear Propagation

    You should get that last line on as much merch as possible ASAP!

  53. Leadsynth

    I’m loving AG’s new outfit. Dorothy did a good job finishing it!

  54. Byron Orpheus

    “Uh, Incelerator? If you’re going to wear lycra you have to wear a jock. Also, when you wear light-colored lycra that isn’t athletic-grade the fabric becomes transparent when stretched. We can see everything and it’s making everyone uncomfortable. Except Walky, who is trying not to laugh.”

    1. Rectilinear Propagation

      Is this a reference to the MLB uniforms?

  55. tunasammich

    Mood, Dina

  56. Darkseide

    you and me both, Dina

  57. PedanticJerkass

    Maybe this dumbass has a fetish for getting his ass beat by strong women, and this is just the best way he could think of to indulge in that without having to pay money for it. Or something.

    1. Taffy

      If he’s getting beat up by people who look like Amazi-Girl for free and we’re all paying for it, who’s the real dumbass?

  58. anon

    lol i’m surprised he can still talk after a kick to the torso like that

  59. Olav

    Hmm, anyone else seeing some super-suit redesign? It had been a while since we’d seen Amazi-girl in full costume, so maybe this is known and I missed it?

  60. Florence

    Im assuming he’s Ryan, would be a personal reason for this guy to be so mad

    1. NGPZ

      nah, he ain’t Ryan, thankfully

      he’s a gay-hating dudebro hired by Blaine for the kidnapping

      1. Florence

        Has that been confirmed?

        1. thejeff

          Check the tags.

  61. CJ

    I need that last panel on a t-shirt.

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