146

Face-down
Posted on January 30, 2020 by David M Willis
It's Jocelyne time again over in Dumbing of Age Patreon Bonus Strip Land! Also, Her Cat time. Yes, blues means it's a flashback. All patrons can come see! also if you up your pledge you can read tomorrow's strip today etc etc

146 thoughts on “Face-down”

  1. Ana Chronistic

    *monacle*

    1. Clif

      Matching monacles?

      You know, it occurs to me that if Willis delays the reveal of what happens to Mike by a week every time someone asks what happened to him, then all we have to do is ask about him once a week and Mike can never be dead.

      1. Legasher

        But he can also never show up, so he’ll never be not dead either. He’d be Schrodinger’s Mike… ? And I don’t think Schrodinger would appreciate it…

        1. CJ

          Maybe he would. The cat was supposed to show he thought the Kopenhagen interpretation didn’t do squat to explain how the things we can actually directly see, feel and hear are a result of the stuff described for the subatomic level.

        2. Ana Chronistic

          I thought Schrodinger’s cat was just snark made out of spite

          So Schrodinger’s Mike is appropriately spiteful

        3. Opus the Poet

          Schreodinger opened the box too soon and got killed by the poison gas still lingering in the box. So screw his feelings, cat-killer.

        4. MutantSentry

          My favorite take on this was from the American Gods novel. “I believe…that there’s a cat in a box somewhere who’s alive and dead at the same time (although if they don’t ever open the box to feed it it’ll eventually just be two different kinds of dead)” Part of a much larger and awesome monologue delivered by Sam Black Crow that they really need to fit into the TV series.

        5. StClair

          “I have good news or bad news.”
          “Don’t you mean ‘and’?”
          “No.”

        6. Baf

          Shrodinger’s mom would, though.

      2. Paul

        Did you see the Something Positive homage to Mike?

        1. Another Sierra

          I maintain that since only Walkyverse Mike ever crossed over, and not Dumbiverse Mike, that memorial cannot be for *this* Mike.

          Fight me.

        2. Needfuldoer

          Poor Donna, losing her dad at 7…

        3. Ana Chronistic

          Well, Donna TECHNICALLY lost her dad way before she was ever born ?

        4. Needfuldoer

          Maybe she’ll have him back again before she’s 9, as long as Joe’s got an opening in the schedule.

        5. LeslieBean4shizzle

          **goes to quote Adventure Time by replying “Fight me, Nerd!”**
          **checks google to make sure that is the Meme origin rather than some previous thing**
          **learns that there is a weird sexual subtext to the “Fight Me” or “Fight me Nerd” meme where the phrase can be used to imply making out or rough sex**
          **considers the Amazigirl gravatar and own Billie gravatar**
          **considers the Another Sierra screen name and own Leslie screen name**

          ….

          “Fight me, Nerd!”

  2. BBCC

    It’s ALWAYS a bit with Becky, Leslie.

    1. Yumi

      Emotional vulnerability? Have a joke instead.

      1. packrat

        Por que no los dos?

        Becky is me a lot of times when I get into arguments. If things get too heated, I fall into a joke (not unlike this) to diffuse the tension, and then return to the topic with less combativeness on both sides.

    2. JetstreamGW

      Right? Sometimes I wonder if she’s got the capacity to take anything seriously for more than a few minutes at a time 😛

      1. Bagge

        She can, but she doesn’t want to.

        She really, really doesn’t want to.

        1. BBCC

          No one likes a bummer, right?

        2. Bagge

          Debby Downer and all that

        3. abysswatcher1993

          When facing depression, the two common reactions are to become hardened and feel like the world is cruel and you should be cruel, or you can laugh at all the horrible things to the point that you can lose your empathy and mock those that are still struggling. Both coping mechanisms are dangerous, just look at Deadpool and Cable.

        4. BrokenEye, the True False Prophet

          Ah, a girl after my own heart

        5. Deanatay

          She’ll get it someday.

          SOME DAY

          SOON

      2. Slartibeast Button, BIA

        It is important to keep your Defense Mechanisms properly maintained.

        1. abysswatcher1993

          The moment those coping mechanism breaks, the sad reality of the situation reaches you and all the laughs turn into cries for help. A facade can’t last for too long, so it’s okay to seek help.

    3. Flari

      I have to ask, what it a bit? As a non native englisch speaker this confuses me to no end as no translation fits…

      1. DSL

        The way I’m reading it — a native English speaker for 55 years who is still confused by this mess we call a language — a “bit” in this case is an act, a routine, a bit of rote, that for Becky’s purposes masks and tamps down the anguish and angst she feels as a result of what’s happened in her life to date.

        1. Douglas

          Yes, I’m also a native English speaker and was puzzled by this usage of “bit” at first. I scrolled through all the comments to get everyone else’s interpretation before I was sure, but I believe you are correct. It is theater slang that roughly translates to “playing a part”, “performing a role”, “playing a stereotype”, and it means that Becky doesn’t really mean the things she’s saying, but rather she is saying them because she thinks she is supposed to respond this way.

        2. Kamino Neko

          Not quite.

          It’s a reference to the gag, not the performer. It’s a small piece (a bit) of a show or a comedy routine.

        3. Jason Rivest

          A comedic bit. Don’t be confused by the term “routine” used prior. A bit can and often is improvised. In this instance, Becky’s playing off Leslie’s “concerned mom” demeanour and acts out the “rebellious teenage daughter” part, for her own amusement. She’s “doing a bit”.

        4. thejeff

          Not just for amusement, but as deflection. And because she desperately wants that role and wants Leslie to play the concerned mom role. We’ve seen her grasping for that relationship with Leslie before.

      2. Jhon

        Language.
        Praise you Willis!

  3. Suet

    “It just evolved this way coz Robin needed some help”

  4. DarkoNeko

    The more stuff is different now, the more it is the same.

  5. boxbot

    Halfway through what? This conversation? This rocky relationship?

    1. Clif

      The bit.

      1. HeySo

        And the bridle?

        ..Wait, is Becky getting married? =O

        1. Bagge

          If she insist to regard hanky panky as something to be confined to within the bounds of marriage….

          …I’m pretty sure Dina will be VERY into the ideo of marriage very soon.

  6. Slartibeast Button, BIA

    “I’M NOT YOUR REAL MOM!”

    “oops…”

    1. Slartibeast Button, BIA

      Come to think of it, what does Leslie know or not know about Bonnie?

      1. Bagge

        I’m pretty sure she can guess the circumstances very accurately just from the things Becky hasn’t told her.

        after all, it was her “butthole dad” who tried to kidnap her, not her “butthole parents”

        1. Deathjavu

          And she knows her mom isn’t just separated, because Becky didn’t have anywhere else to go.

        2. BBCC

          Also, depending on the sect, they may not believe in divorce.

        3. HMH

          So she doesn’t necessarily know that it was so explicitly tragic, but I feel like y’all have make some compelling cases about her having a good read on it.

        4. HeySo

          Especially given that Leslie’s own circumstances were rather unpleasant, and we tend to project such experiences, when attempting to guess unknown factors related to others.

        5. BBCC

          Yeah, based on what she knows (“butthole dad” vs parents, Becky had nowhere else to go and being from an uber religious sect that may or may not permit divorce) her mom is either dead, inaccessible, or incapable of stopping Toedad (or may agree with him, just not as violently).

        6. Freemage

          At the least, she can guess, “Mom isn’t in the picture.” Death or abandonment would be the default assumptions there (since a mere separation/divorce would’ve meant she would be an option for Becky to turn to, especially after ToeDad was arrested).

  7. DailyBrad

    Okay, they god me, pfft.

    1. showler

      Now that you’re a god, can I make a request involving an upcoming election?

  8. Stephen Bierce

    It could have been a worse strip. Like Mary getting hired by Cluck Me Harder to design their mascots.

    1. Stephen Bierce

      You And Me Against The World,
      Sometimes it seems like you and me against the world,
      When all the others turn their backs and walked away,
      You can count on me to stay.
      Remember when the circus came to town
      How you were frightened by the clown,
      Wasn’t it nice to be around someone that you knew,
      Someone who was big and strong and looking out for      …

    2. Bobcat

      OH GOD PLZ NO

      Btw, who’s inside the suit? I really couldn’t figure it out…

      1. Khyrin

        I don’t think we’ve been introduced to them sans suit. I think Peejee mentioned they’re new to the complex.

      2. Deanatay

        Whoever he is, he is most definitely NOT A FURRY.

        THOSE ARE FEATHERS DAMMIT

        1. Roborat

          But they sure are committed to the look, their legs are waaaayyy to skinny to be human.

        2. Kat

          Maybe it’s fem Chicken Boo?

        3. Roborat

          Hope not, then Peter Griffin will burst in and start a fistfight.

  9. RacingTurtle

    Theeeeeere’s Becky. When she was avoiding the emotional conversation by being pissy instead of inappropriately jokey I became concerned!

    imma smoosh her face

  10. Bagge

    It became a bit the moment Becky managed to wrangle it into one to avoid feels, duh

    1. StClair

      It almost got too real for a moment there, but crisis avoided averted!

  11. Shiro

    Oh that Becky, she’s so wacky in that specific way that avoids anything being serious ever

    :c Baby girl

    1. Bagge

      Walky should take notes.

      1. abysswatcher1993

        No, that is a bad idea. Walky doesn’t need another enabler.

        1. Bagge

          ….you are 100% correct.

        2. Ohmsford

          Also Walky doesn’t TAKE notes. He draws sweet dinosaurs instead!

        3. Freemage

          Which would probably be approved of by Becky, as well.

  12. Liz

    I mean not to bring to mood down but Becky did kinda miss out on this sort of thing with her mom. Maybe that’s why she’s pushing a Leslie away so much? Because she doesn’t want to let her fill the hole left when her mom died out of guilt?

  13. bobvankay

    I could never stand people like Becky, it feels like talking to russian nesting doll.

    1. StClair

      She’s got layers, like an ogress.

      1. JetstreamGW

        Couldn’t she be like parfaits?

    2. Schpoonman

      Yeah, abuse victims make me uncomfortable too.

      1. Opus the Poet

        It’s not just abuse, it’s family tragedy sandwiched by abuse.

    3. Diane

      I get the dislike of Becky here, it’s very frustrating to me that she’s clearly not taking this conversation seriously when Leslie is, but I have to keep reminding myself. She’s 18. She is still a baby adult. Got all the legal mumbo-jumbo that states she’s an adult, but everyone’s still got maturing to do. For me, it’s very frustrating seeing someone try to turn every conversation into a joke. Not everything’s meant to be funny, not everything is meant to be lighthearted. But this is Becky’s coping mechanism for dealing with all the loss and struggles she’s had to deal with. And while Becky complains that Joyce needs to grow up, so does Becky. Becky needs to learn that it’s okay to not have everything be all bright and shiny and rainbows and hearts all over, you can have the gloomy day, it’s alright to let yourself that time to just say “You know what, I don’t want to smile right now, I want to scream, I want to cry, I want to rant.” I’m just really hoping Leslie can get through to her. I want Becky to grow as a person herself to be just a tiny bit better.

      1. thejeff

        This is actually a bit different than her normal jokey behavior, I think. She’s not putting on the brave face and making a joke that seems like she’s fine. This isn’t quite the armor that got her through living with Ross. This is being the bratty teen I suspect she didn’t dare to be at home and doing it with someone she wants for a mother figure.
        She’s still playing it off as a joke, but there’s need underlying it. In a way, it’s opening herself up to Leslie, if not in an approved adult way.

        1. Diane

          I’ll agree it’s different from her normal jokey behavior, and I don’t think she’s putting on a brave face, she’s putting on another face that will make Leslie hate her like she thinks Leslie must obviously hate her for campaigning for Robin and leaving with no notice what-so-ever. I think she wants Leslie to hate her to justify what she’s done so far. Becky does not open up from what I’ve seen, she buries every emotion that she finds unacceptable, thus why she’s always jokey. I can certainly see the idea of her wanting Leslie to play the part of mom, and thus why she does this, but I personally don’t think that’s what this is.

      2. Yumi

        Becky didn’t say that Joyce needs to grow up, but rather that she needs “grow outta” her current “phase.”

        I know that was taken by a lot of people on here as her telling Joyce to grow up, but that’s different than my takeaway from it.

        1. Diane

          Ah, I must of misremembered then. I thought she said grow up, not grow out. Still, same thing in my head, not EXACT same thing, but they’re both expecting them to grow, one way or another. But that’s my interpretation.

  14. Dean

    No Leslie, you’re supposed to yell “GO TO YOUR ROOM, YOUNG LADY!” while pointing dramatically. This show will never be ready for opening night!

  15. Keulen

    How old is Leslie again? She can’t be more than 10 years older than Becky, right? Things can’t have been that much different between what Leslie went through and what Becky’s going through now.

    1. Clif

      Yes, but now we’re on Internet time and 10 years is half of forever.

    2. Needfuldoer

      Leslie’s 26 in the Dumbiverse, or at least that’s what she told Joyce.

      http://www.dumbingofage.com/2019/comic/book-10/01-birthday-pursuit/scaredmess/

      1. Nono

        She’s also told Becky she’s got a decade on her. But it looks like late 20s, at any rate.

    3. thejeff

      Of course not. Which is what Leslie’s saying. But you know how bratty teenagers are. Always over dramatic and convinced their parents will never understand.

    4. Deanatay

      She’s in her 30’s – it’s been calculated. She has a Master’s, and some seniority at the school. Plus married, divorced, homeless for a while. The years add up.

      1. thejeff

        So she was lying when she said she was 26?

        1. LeslieBean4shizzle

          That or Willis miscalculated how long it takes to do all that stuff.
          I say as one of the people who started the whole “Leslie couldn’t possibly be in her 20s and have the job she has with the credentials she has at the University where she works. Not in 2010-2020.” thing.
          My personal guess is that Willis was drawing on teachers he knew in the 90s or early 00s, before the academic job market went entirely to shit. OR that teachers, for some reason, tend to get mistaken for younger than we are. It’s strangely common, I’ve found. Maybe teaching keeps you looking younger somehow?
          I feel like I’ve wandered off topic…

      2. BBCC

        Word of Willis says Ph.D, not masters.

        1. LeslieBean4shizzle

          Weirdly, assuming she went straight for PhD, no masters included, that might actually make her being younger MORE likely.
          She’s still can’t be 26. It would take until she was 26 just to get the PhD assuming no delays at all (and delays are very, very common). Another year at least to get the job.
          And that’s not taking into account the whole marriage/divorce/homeless thing which would almost certainly involve her missing a year of college. So even if this happened during undergrad, there’s no way Leslie is less than 28 with a PhD, and that’s pushing it.

        2. BBCC

          I’ll freely admit, I’d assumed 28 at minimum before she said she was 26.

  16. drs

    “Becky, she’s 26, she’s not your mom. She could be your older sister.”

    1. StClair

      She can be if they both want it enough. And, deflecting jokes from Becky aside, they do.

      1. Bagge

        They really, really do.

    2. JessWitt

      She’s her cool aunt.

    3. Opus the Poet

      She could be both if things were bad enough. http://mockgirl.com/comic/twenty-eight-minus-nineteen-equals-wow/

  17. StClair

    Becky wins if she gets to flirt with opening up, but then manages to exhaust Leslie’s patience with her wackiness and drive her away. Just like all those sitcom conversations where nothing really gets resolved!
    (“Wins”. Right.)

    1. StClair

      Parents, don’t let TV and deeply problematic romcom movies raise your kids.

    2. abysswatcher1993

      This is a case where not taking stuff seriously dooms you to a life of internal suffering. Nobody likes being with a comedian 24 hours a day, especially after you know all the routines, the puns and the punches.

      There’s a reason the work of the clown is to point the problems of society in theater, not to offer solutions.

      1. StClair

        Works great for Joe, too!
        Never become attached or have intimacy with anyone, ever, and you won’t ever hurt anyone’s feelings, including your own!

        *flees from honesty, returns to towel station off*
        … it’s working so great!

        1. thejeff

          Except of course it is working for Becky. And she’s shown she’s able to be attached and have intimacy and even be honest. Despite the wacky armor.

  18. MaddMaxx

    I think Becky is capable of defusing any situation with that hemisphere-sized smile she has. It’s infectious, dang it!

    1. Bagge

      If she’s not, it’s most certainly not for lack of trying.

      1. Bagge

        I mean, who can forget the last word in her life-long argument with her father

        http://www.dumbingofage.com/2015/comic/book-6/01-to-those-whod-ground-me/unlimited/

        1. Schpoonman

          I’m pretty sure that was the comic Becky became my favorite character.

        2. Deanatay

          Are you referring to ‘scientist’, or the double-birds?

          Because, both kinda work.

        3. Bagge

          I think I will have to go with “yes”

        4. thejeff

          Certainly not you. 🙂

        5. Bagge

          Certainnly not me. 🙂

  19. abysswatcher1993

    This gives me the same vibes as when Yondu argued that Rocket is like him, a nihilist prick that was betrayed by his own creators and acted tough to deal with the pain of his own insecurities and the mistakes he made for the sake of others during a search for approval.

    Becky, dear, just as war never changes, bigotry doesn’t change either. Every generation is different, but there will always be awful people. Leslie isn’t a straight woman protagonist like Joyce. She is a lesbian like you, that also suffered because of awful parents and other authorities, and possibly went through worse stuff if we consider she was forced to wed a guy that seems to still resent her.

  20. BenRG

    “I never had the opportunity to have a ‘generation gap’ argument with my mom, so I’m trying to have one now! It’s all for the good of my psychological development! Thanks for playing along!”

    1. Needfuldoer

      Becky whips out a reporter’s notebook and a pencil:

      Teenager Stuff I Didn’t get to do For Realsies:

      Part time job

      “Parents aren’t home” house party with all my friends

      Generation gap argument

      Get caught making out with girlfrei–
      (ed. note: the handwriting on this one gets progressively shakier toward the end)

      Win prospective S.O. an Ulssa doll at Six Flags

      1. Bagge

        +1+1+1+1+1+1+1! Best comment.

        Dorothy would approve.

        1. Bagge

          “Get caught making out with girlfreind without a ha..”” Huge drool-drop smeers out end of sentence

  21. Shane

    OK but seriously your bad dad might have helped another bad dad kill (or seriously injure, but the Soul Still Burns!) one of your friends last night.

  22. TheFlamingonator

    “How could you possibly understand” just made me think of

    “It’s not my dream, Dad! It’s yours!”

  23. Happilychaotic

    Oh, Becky. Gotta love her. 😀

  24. Ladykatytrente

    Anyone been over to https://www.somethingpositive.net/sp01272020.shtml lately?

    1. thumb

      Damn you, Randy!

    2. timemonkey

      I’m guessing you missed the mentions in the comments a couple days ago?

  25. Schpoonman

    Becky.

    1. Bagge

      *giggles*

  26. Josh Spicer

    “You don’t know my life.”

    Yo…girl…keep it together.

  27. Lucy

    Oh, Leslie, no. It’s “if you’d just TALK to me.”

  28. Sombrero

    Yes, Becky, at the pace DoA progresses stuff may be completely different like next week.

    1. Jhon

      Flying cars, jumpsuits, tvs you can hang on the wall…

  29. NaYa

    I’m confused about what it means by a “bit.” Am I understanding it correctly that Becky kind of turned the conversation into a play-act midway through? Is it a common American expression?

    1. StClair

      Yes, and semi-common.

    2. Freemage

      The most common form is, “I’m doing a bit” or “I’m just doing a bit”. “Bits” are generally comedic or satiric in flavor.

  30. Rabisch

    I love this kind of generational dramas♡.

  31. Poofdepoof

    Aww I love these two

  32. Poofdepoof

    Is it bad that I do what Becky’s doing in real life

    1. Leorale

      if it’s bad, I don’t want to be good.

  33. thumb

    Wait, is Becy too metatextually aware?

    1. Jhon

      Genre-savvy. TvTropes can tell you all about it.

  34. Meta

    Becky is me

  35. Roborat

    This is brilliant, nicely done Sir Willis. I love that shit eating grin on Becky in the last panel.

  36. LeslieBean4shizzle

    For anyone reading this far down, I have a question.
    The Bit Becky is doing… is it from somewhere? Like, Leslie seems to recognize a quote or something that makes her realize it’s a bit, but I didn’t see anything that tipped me off ahead of time. Am I missing a movie quote, or is it just the fact that Becky referenced going to a room that does not actually exist?
    I am having a serious “I don’t think I get the joke” moment here.

    1. Sombrero

      I think it is mostly because Becky has no room at Leslie’s, just the couch, so Leslie can recognize that the phrase does not really make sense, it’s just what troubled teenagers in tv say.

    2. Sombrero

      … to their mothers

    3. timemonkey

      This is a very typical scenario between teenagers and parents. Becky made a point of stating all the steps in the scenario, tipping off Leslie that she’s not being serious.

    4. Kat

      Much like our situation with Joe and Jacob earlier, the answer is “Classic sitcoms”.

  37. Mancuso

    The most frustrating thing as a parent is when you’re like “Dude, I went through this and I made sure to remember so you don’t have to”, and they’re like “Yeah, but I still have to”. Frustrating and also foreseeable – but only in hindsight.

    1. Kat

      Just remember that the hardest lesson for a teenager to learn is not any of the lessons they’ll learn while being a teenager. Its when they turn twenty-ish and realize that their parents were actually right and trying to help them for the most part, but their parents are also flawed human beings who were going at it from their own, different perspective. And it is very, very difficult to teach that lesson without someone living it.

  38. Cattleprod

    The Patreon strip needs to be a flashback because if it were in the ‘present day’, round the clock news coverage of Mike’s death would be going on in the background.

  39. Felian

    Aww. I love that they are having a parent-y dynamic here. I just hope they can sort this out and not actually throw it all away. Becky, i hope you know how important it is to have a role model like Leslie. I’m sure Leslie understands that, and will hopefully be patient.

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