97

Helped
Posted on October 25, 2022 by David M Willis

97 thoughts on “Helped”

  1. Ana Chronistic

    “TITS, DEFINITELY TITS”

    “but then why-”

    “KEEP YOUR FRIENDS CLOSE, YOUR ENEMIES CLOSER”

    “ah”

    1. Johan

      Tits are Joe’s enemies?

      1. Doctor_Who

        He’s got a whole villain song about them. It’s basically “Hellfire” from Hunchback of Notre Dame with altered lyrics.

        1. Yotomoe

          Let’s be honest, you don’t even have to alter the lyrics that much.

        2. Sirksome

          Maybe omit the part about burning a women to death for not giving you any though.

        3. Rose by Any Other Name

          Hm.
          Perhaps it could be rephrased to indicate that he is metaphorically burning to death due to his feelings for Joyce?

        4. fridge_logic

          Lyrics written from Joe’s perspective/MO;
          Couldn’t figure out what to replace Beata Maria with so here you go:

          Beata Maria, you now I am a slutty man
          Of my body I’m justly proud
          Beata Maria, you know I’m so much hotter than
          the common, dorky, weeb, freshman crowd
          Then tell me Maria, why I see her snuggling me
          Why her smiling face still lifts my soul
          I feel her, I see her
          The sun caught in her short blond hair
          Is cooling my lust for anyone not her

          Like comfort
          sweet comfort
          this calm beneath my skin
          this constant desire
          pulls me to commitment

          It’s not my fault
          I’m not to blame
          It’s the fundie girl the angel who makes me tame
          It’s not my fault
          If in my plan
          I met a babe so much hotter than I am

          Protect me, Maria
          Don’t let me settle down
          Don’t let her sweet gaze relax my flesh and bone
          Just sleep with Liz
          And let me taste one hot night
          Or else let me be hers and hers alone

          Commitment
          And Marriage
          Like in my fathers turn
          Choose her or some random
          Be hers or let the passion burn

        5. Sav

          I just want you to know how much I love this. Made my night!

        6. Rose by Any Other Name

          This is amazing and you should feel proud.

          … now we just need someone to sing it and record themselves doing so and post it on youtube to the confusion of everyone who hasn’t read this comic.

        7. fridge_logic

          It was basically your idea. I’m just glad people enjoyed it 😀

        8. Kazuma Taichi

          888888888888888

        9. Koname

          truly a blessed rewrite.

        10. Doctor_Who

          10/10

        11. Yotomoe

          Hell yeah! Stellar work <3

    2. Yotomoe

      To be fair, as someone with an affinity for tits and lots of anxiety I can definitely see them being a huge source of anxiety for someone such as Joe.

  2. Sirksome

    Ooooh she saved it!

  3. Yeet

    frankly still counting this as heroic restraint from amber

    1. Olav

      “You should go fuck ask him!”

      Yep. Heroic. 😉

      1. Kazuma Taichi

        she certainly succeeded at not doing the thing she wanted to not do

  4. Grimey

    Amber’s reaction in panel 5: “Should I tell her, folks?”

  5. Yotomoe

    THAT WOULD ONLY EXACERBATE THEM!

  6. RassilonTDavros

    Amber’s helping!

  7. DailyBrad

    Man, Amber’s doing some good sister-ing.

    1. BadRoad

      For Joe or for Joyce?

      (Yes I know she’s not related to Joyce; she can still do *metaphorical* sistering.)

      1. Librain

        I mean she’s not actually related to Joe either

  8. Kyrik Michalowski

    I know Amber is /trying/ to be subtle but I get the feeling she is more excited for Joe×Joyce than some of us. Am I wrong?

    1. Dunedon

      Likely … But I still think she’s less excited than either Joe or Joyce are with the possibilities, if they ever let themselves express them to each other.

    2. Sirksome

      I think Amber is just exited about her friends and acquaintances fucking in general. She needs new inspiration for her smut fics.

    3. Nono

      Maybe taking Joe’s anxieties is making her more excited for it.

    4. Leorale

      Amber answers your question in the last panel of this one:
      https://www.dumbingofage.com/2021/comic/book-12/02-ill-leave-you-a-phantom/letchaknow/

    5. A Strange Trish

      Some of you, yes. But if we’re not getting Joyce/Dorothy, I’ll take Joyce/Joe. I actually think they’re pretty cute together

    6. Reltzik

      Given that there’s probably someone here who DOESN’T want JoexJoyce… no. No you are not.

      1. Kyrik Michalowski

        I said some people, not all.

        1. Reltzik

          And Amber IS more excited for JoexJoyce than some of us?

        2. a/snow/mous/e

          I assume they meant “any” of us.

    7. shanunu

      I think she was just trying really hard to not say the word in the last comic and ended up just swapping it with “ask”. Its like SAFE but also. Not?

    8. Needfuldoer

      She’s read Joyce’s fiction, she just wants her to have what she wants.

  9. Stephen Bierce

    *the song now goes to the trippy synthesizer part*

    1. StClair

      2:08

  10. The Wellerman

    Best Amber face in last panel! ?

  11. BBCC

    LMAO see? You got the suggestion out without adding the part that’ll scare her away

  12. Thag Simmons

    HEROIC restraint on Amber’s part

    1. alongcameaspider

      It took me a second because my brain read it as “YOU SHOULD ASK HIK OUT” when I read it the first time, had to take a second pass to see she didn’t accidently blurt put Joe’s crush

      1. MacareuxMoine

        My brain did that to me, too.

  13. Warcodered

    Wing Amber engage.

  14. Schpoonman

    Nailed it.

  15. EpochFlame

    bless her heart

  16. Raen

    Ask him naked.

    1. Yotomoe

      Would that help him pay MORE attention or Less?

      1. PirateTawnee

        yes

  17. C.T. Phipps

    Yes, we’re setting up the ship!

    JOE AND AMBER!

    😀

  18. Joe Moose

    All aboard the good ship Joe&Amber!

    [Of course it could also be ServiceIsMyOnlyJoy, but…]

  19. Tan

    Amber is doing a super-good job with having traded anxieties. Like you would think this is genuinely her own anxiety at this point regarding Joyce and Joe getting together.

  20. Huehuetotl

    I don’t think their chaperone is available for the second date.

    1. RassilonTDavros

      Bet your mom a nickel that Joyce and Joe end up reminiscing about Mike when they finally go on another date at Galasso’s.

    2. Fart Captor

      Sure he is. It’s not like he has plans anymore

      He may not be very mobile these days, but the smell would probably accomplish a similar effect to all the punching

      1. Awaiting Moderation

        A part of me wants to say this would be a bad thing to do, but let’s be real, Mike would probably love the idea of his corpse ruining somebody’s date.

      2. Username Taken

        Weekend at Galasso’s?

    3. Sajuuk-Khar

      Au contraire, he’s not haunting Amber anymore, his time is totally free to ectoplasmically torment Joe.

    4. Amós Batista

      An ouija table is a perfect app for this

  21. Taffy

    This. We very much like this.

  22. JA

    FEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

  23. Fart Captor

    I love this side of Amber so much! :3

  24. Sajuuk-Khar

    AND SHE STICKS THE LANDING!

    1. misanthropope

      but does she land the sticking?

  25. Qube

    Amber successfully battled her Smut Goblin impulses and said something helpful. good for her

    1. Reltzik

      I’m not entirely convinced that throwing Joe and Joyce together into a conversation where Joe might theoretically confess his feelings counts as a resounding veto over the Smut Goblins.

      1. Qube

        oh make no mistake the smut goblins are working overtime here, but she didn’t yell “YOU TWO SHOULD FUCK” at the top of her lungs.

        you gotta celebrate the little victories

  26. bagge

    “YOU KNOW, FOR NO REASON!”

  27. PB

    Nice job avoiding what your mind and heart were saying and swapping out the right word, Amber!

  28. Keulen

    This might actually be pretty decent advice from Amber.

  29. Imogen

    Oh, I *like* this comic. So Amber really is sincerely just trying to be supportive of her brother and kind to Joyce/better towards people. Good Amber moments; sorry I doubted.

  30. Nenja

    Amber looks really cute in panel 4.

  31. Nova

    I would like to jump in and underline the understanding and growth from Joyce, too. I feel like some people in the comments section want to treat her like she’s still an unsocialised, intrusive, overbearing little monster…and she’s clearly not?

    Today she understood that Joe’s anxieties weren’t something she was entitled to and reassured Amber without needing to have it spelled out for her.

    Yesterday she understood that asking Amber how she was holding up hadn’t gone well. She admitted that she struggles to understand some social cues (bad at people) and offered to skedaddle without any fuss.

    It’s almost like the temper and stress of the last few times we’ve seen her in-comic were about other people crossing boundaries (like she said) and not about her just being a brat who wants her own way (like some of the comments section seemed to think)

    1. Zaxares

      She’s still got some way to go with dealing with her neuroses and anger, but I agree; she IS learning, and it’s important to recognize when somebody does well and encourage that, in addition to pointing out their mistakes and how they can do better. If you give someone nothing but the former, they’ll never fix their own flaws, and if you give nothing but the latter, they’re likely to become despondent/resentful and stop trying at all.

    2. Joy

      I appreciate you. This whole webcomic is about emotional growing pains tbh.

      (Read gourmet Hound!)

    3. pope suburban

      Honestly today she reminded me of Walky a little bit. She said something without thinking, not because she means ill or feels entitled, but because she’s curious and it came out. Then she reflected, walked it back, and went with what she knows to be right rather than her old habits or gut feeling. It’s just like Walky did when Lucy asked after Joyce’s health issues. Sure, they’re both doing it from a place of care, but that doesn’t mean they get to intrude in that way. It’s nice. I like to see them learning and it feels really realistic.

  32. Needfuldoer

    It just dawned on me that maybe there’s a reason Joe and Joyce are both in outfits reminiscent of the old continuity for this chapter…

    (I know there’s an ‘alternate future’ mini-arc somewhere in the Walkyverse where they were married, but for the life of me I can’t find it right now… I don’t remember if they were drawn in this chapter’s outfits.)

  33. Steelbright

    Amber is TRYING

  34. Amós Batista

    No, Amber. You should say “ask him out“

  35. saltchocolate

    I mean, *whispers,* you should go fuck him . . .

  36. Rabisch

    Amber is such an amazing sister for Joe ♡. Nice to see Joyce wanting to knows more about Joe and his anxieties. But he would never be able to tell her what really scare him.

  37. mecklejay

    Do the kids today know what defragging is? But first, tell me what they’re giving me for lunch at the nursing home this afternoon.

    1. ValdVin

      Radio geek here (and no longer a kid). Its in the dictionnext to defaulting, which I learned about in engineering school, didn’t matter until PCs became a thing, and has been reobsoleted.

    2. CrazyJ

      Amber with her computer science knowledge would probably know what it is. Just because defragging happens in the background now doesn’t mean it stopped existing.

  38. vulcanodon

    Even the notion that she may be autistic has moved Joyce to think about how she interacts with boundaries. I can’t wait for her first appointment.

    Also, that was a good answer Amber

    1. Liliet

      Also, I love how Amber instantly warmed up to the conversation after Joyce sent up the “I’m autistic and need help and support” flag.

  39. Ian

    Notice she’s looking at her hand here.

    1. Mark

      Interesting interpretation. But I think she’s just making a negating gesture to undo her question.

    2. Blibdoolpoolp

      I hadn’t noticed that, but I’m tempted to agree that it seems related.

  40. Wendy

    Yeah, Joyce, go ask him!

  41. MK15

    aMbEr iS hElPiNg

    (actually, I think she is. Joyce should go ask him)

  42. Opus the Poet

    This actually does help Joe and Joyce.

  43. Josh Spicer

    And then Amber, calmly and clearly whispered for only Joyce to hear: “YOU SHOULD GO ASK HIM!”

  44. Rabid Rabbit

    Huh. Have we ever seen Amber planning girl-on-boy smut rather than boy-on-boy before?

    1. Taffy

      It’s the same exact prose, but sometimes Amber types “she” instead of “he”.

      1. The Wellerman

        Yes.

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