Dumbing of Age Book 9: I Was Sure You Said Noon, and I’m Pretty Sure It’s Noon Now, I Checked Like Six Times on the Way Here, but Maybe I Misremembered, or Maybe I Misunderstood, or Maybe I Said Something Wrong, And
Well, if Marcie somehow asked Amber to meet her, she probably did it through electronic communication of some sort. Maybe they know each other through Twitter, or something. As you said, Amber can’t read ASL yet.
thejeff
Unless it was an agreement from last night with the rest of the gang there.
Amazi-Girl is nothing if not lawful. But good? That’s arguable.
Uly
I don’t think being a masked vigilante could reasonably be termed “lawful”.
Deanatay
‘Lawful’ doesn’t have to refer to The Law Of The Land. It can refer to a personal code, which Amber/AG have in spades. Lawul people need structure and order in order to feel secure, and they usually wind up imposing their code on others.
MatthewTheLucky
AG doesn’t really stick to a set of principles so much as she just tries to ensure the cops come after her. As such, I would classify her as chaotic for actively subverting the law even when it’s unnecessary.
I classify this persona as Good, weakly Lawful, as she is willing to commit what she sees as minor crimes in the service of Good, but is principled to the point of literally creating an alter to make it easier, and she supports the Law when it doesn’t conflict with Good.
I lack some of the cultural referents used in some of the discussions here, but this particular conversation relates to a moral alignment theory as used in some role-playing games, notably Dungeons and Dragons. The proper response is “gaming nerds!” in a scornful tone of voice. Particularly if you’re Billie.
thejeff
Oh, I’m a gaming nerd. That part I got. It just didn’t match my understanding of Amber/AG at all. Not even well enough to break it down.
MatthewTheLucky
The important thing to remember is that Amber is not who Amazi-Girl thinks she is, and Amazi-Girl is not who Amber thinks she is. “Amazi-Girl always fights for justice” is Amber’s take, not what we’ve actually seen, and vice-versa.
thejeff
Alright fine, point by point:
“AG doesn’t really stick to a set of principles so much as she just tries to ensure the cops come after her.”
When or how does she try to ensure the cops come after her?
“As such, I would classify her as chaotic for actively subverting the law even when it’s unnecessary.”
Technically I guess you can say it’s mostly all unnecessary, but outside of her stalking of Sal, she’s mostly stopping minor street crime like a low rent comic book superhero. Scaled up a bit for Ryan and Toedad.
“I classify this persona as Good, weakly Lawful, as she is willing to commit what she sees as minor crimes in the service of Good, but is principled to the point of literally creating an alter to make it easier, and she supports the Law when it doesn’t conflict with Good.”
‘This persona’ must be Amber because you just dealt with AG? She didn’t create an alter to make it easier, but out of trauma and to channel her rage so she didn’t hurt undeserving people. Not sure what minor crimes you’re talking about here, but you seem to be attributing AG’s crimes to Amber, since you talk about creating an alter? I can’t tell.
“Red-Panel Amber is Chaotic Evil.”
I guess. Maybe. The only things she’s really done in that state are beat up Blaine, take Ryan down and run away from Sal. I can’t really call any of that evil. Not at all sure RPA is separate enough to get a separate alignment anyway.
MatthewTheLucky
Whoops, “don’t come after her”.
And the minor crime was changing Walky’s grade.
McBogue
I think vigilantes are by definition non-lawful.
BBCC
Not necessarily. Lawful applies to following a code/set of rules/etc. A code of chivalry, for example, would constitute lawful, as would religious rules.
Amazi-Girl is lawful neutral. Loathes nothing more than rulebreaking (e.g. Danny drinking at the party) and often falls into morally gray territory in the name of following rules (e.g. confronting Sal for underage drinking when in reality it’s because of her own grudge).
1: It was Amber that really loathed Danny’s drinking at the party -specifically because it broke the rules-. When AG arrived, she said that she didn’t want him drinking because if he got caught, he might get expelled, and she didn’t want to lose him.
2: On a more general level, the whole alignment system works best with people whose grip on sanity is, if not entirely 1:1, then at least in a consistent state of being. The whole Amber/AG situation is clearly anything but, which is why the actions of the two truly goes all over the place.
And then we cut away from Amber again. Y’see, she doesn’t stop this wall of text for the entire day. We’ll see her again in the next arc, as she runs out of steam.
I think that we’ll come back in a few strips’ time when Amber finally runs down and Marcie can manage some sort of response.
I wonder if Amber understands ASL? For some reason, it seems to be something with which she might have some passing familiarity, or at least Amazi-Girl may know. Might Marcie be the first person to realise that there are two people in Amber?
This is probably the most relatable strip Willis has ever done, and that’s among a pantheon of relatable strips.
Fun fact: right until the day I retired, one of the most stressful parts of my day was approaching the employee entrance for the first time in the morning. Would I fail to recognize someone I should have recognized immediately? Would I be overly familiar with someone I didn’t really know very well? Would I say something bland about the weather going into the elevator and the ride would be 15 seconds of awkward silence?
My private ironic shorthand for these situations was “failing the entrance exam.” And of course, the exit exam would similarly fraught.
143 thoughts on “Misremembered”
Ana Chronistic
do we have a competitor for Biggest Wall of Text
AutobotDen
I think we do.
Reltzik
Big enough to block out an entire dorm building. That’s a damn big wall.
Keulen
More wall-of-text than Sal’s panel of f-words even.
Tan
Dumbing of Age Book 9: I Was Sure You Said Noon, and I’m Pretty Sure It’s Noon Now, I Checked Like Six Times on the Way Here, but Maybe I Misremembered, or Maybe I Misunderstood, or Maybe I Said Something Wrong, And
HeySo
Duming of Age Book 9: Call them “Issues”
Roborat
. . . as the title is continued on the back cover, inside front and back covers, and next six pages. Okay, fine, the title is the entire book.
Dibullba
I was gonna suggest this one , but Amber definitely has her beat =P
NerdHerder
Mood.
Doctor_Who
My mood is doom spelled backwards.
Tan
“Doomy M”, actually.
AnvilPro
yay marcie
shadowcell
Dumbing of Age Book 9: [just all of panel four]
shadowcell
or panel five even
but also panel four
Reltzik
More seriously, the alt-text.
Keulen
DoA Book 9: This Is The Right Time, Isn’t It?
TrueVCU
DoA Book 9: When the Pawn, but it’s anxiety
Stephen Bierce
*plays The Alan Parsons Project’s “Prime Time” on the hacked P.A. speakers*
StClair
Now there’s a song I’ve not thought about in a long… time.
(Loved the video, back in the day.)
DailyBrad
Huh, I’m not tagged in this strip. Coulda fooled me.
Br44n5m
He forgot to tag a lot of us, musta not seen us in the bush
Kyrik Michalowski
Whoa Amber, take a deep breath and calm down. I have been known to do this exact thing.
BBCC
Dammit, Amber, quit being relatable!
And – SQUEEEE! I didn’t know I needed these two to interact but I do. I very very much do.
Reltzik
Since Amber (probably?) can’t read sign language yet, they’ll have to communicate over texting.
… Amber was MADE for this relationship.
BBCC
She’ll nail it!
…As soon as Marcie gives her her number.
Deanatay
Well, if Marcie somehow asked Amber to meet her, she probably did it through electronic communication of some sort. Maybe they know each other through Twitter, or something. As you said, Amber can’t read ASL yet.
thejeff
Unless it was an agreement from last night with the rest of the gang there.
Catman
Yikes, that is a big mood. *yeets away*
Keulen
Holy shit Amber. Take a moment to breathe.
ValdVin
Amber, this seems like the kind of thing I have to keep myself from doing sometimes.
jeffepp
Just what did you two get up to at roller derby, hmm? Is this a date?
AntJ
they’re meeting up to go to roller derby, they only enlisted yesterday
butts
like shakespeare
Clif
But in the original ASL.
Lily
We are all Amber on this blessed day.
Roger
Ohhhhh right cuz of the roller derby
Tacos
That’s a lot of words.
meep
Alternate title for this strip: “Social Anxiety”
Norah
I can relate to this so much. Social anxiety sucks.
Nevermaker
Oh man, Amber has been relatable before, but this is really next-level stuff.
MatthewTheLucky
Oh hey, it’s Lawful Good Amber. I like her, she should be around more often.
RicardtheDragoon
So, is Amazi-girl more of a chaotic good then?
Marsh Maryrose
Amazi-Girl is nothing if not lawful. But good? That’s arguable.
Uly
I don’t think being a masked vigilante could reasonably be termed “lawful”.
Deanatay
‘Lawful’ doesn’t have to refer to The Law Of The Land. It can refer to a personal code, which Amber/AG have in spades. Lawul people need structure and order in order to feel secure, and they usually wind up imposing their code on others.
MatthewTheLucky
AG doesn’t really stick to a set of principles so much as she just tries to ensure the cops come after her. As such, I would classify her as chaotic for actively subverting the law even when it’s unnecessary.
I classify this persona as Good, weakly Lawful, as she is willing to commit what she sees as minor crimes in the service of Good, but is principled to the point of literally creating an alter to make it easier, and she supports the Law when it doesn’t conflict with Good.
Red-Panel Amber is Chaotic Evil.
thejeff
None of that makes any sense at all to me.
Clif
I lack some of the cultural referents used in some of the discussions here, but this particular conversation relates to a moral alignment theory as used in some role-playing games, notably Dungeons and Dragons. The proper response is “gaming nerds!” in a scornful tone of voice. Particularly if you’re Billie.
thejeff
Oh, I’m a gaming nerd. That part I got. It just didn’t match my understanding of Amber/AG at all. Not even well enough to break it down.
MatthewTheLucky
The important thing to remember is that Amber is not who Amazi-Girl thinks she is, and Amazi-Girl is not who Amber thinks she is. “Amazi-Girl always fights for justice” is Amber’s take, not what we’ve actually seen, and vice-versa.
thejeff
Alright fine, point by point:
“AG doesn’t really stick to a set of principles so much as she just tries to ensure the cops come after her.”
When or how does she try to ensure the cops come after her?
“As such, I would classify her as chaotic for actively subverting the law even when it’s unnecessary.”
Technically I guess you can say it’s mostly all unnecessary, but outside of her stalking of Sal, she’s mostly stopping minor street crime like a low rent comic book superhero. Scaled up a bit for Ryan and Toedad.
“I classify this persona as Good, weakly Lawful, as she is willing to commit what she sees as minor crimes in the service of Good, but is principled to the point of literally creating an alter to make it easier, and she supports the Law when it doesn’t conflict with Good.”
‘This persona’ must be Amber because you just dealt with AG? She didn’t create an alter to make it easier, but out of trauma and to channel her rage so she didn’t hurt undeserving people. Not sure what minor crimes you’re talking about here, but you seem to be attributing AG’s crimes to Amber, since you talk about creating an alter? I can’t tell.
“Red-Panel Amber is Chaotic Evil.”
I guess. Maybe. The only things she’s really done in that state are beat up Blaine, take Ryan down and run away from Sal. I can’t really call any of that evil. Not at all sure RPA is separate enough to get a separate alignment anyway.
MatthewTheLucky
Whoops, “don’t come after her”.
And the minor crime was changing Walky’s grade.
McBogue
I think vigilantes are by definition non-lawful.
BBCC
Not necessarily. Lawful applies to following a code/set of rules/etc. A code of chivalry, for example, would constitute lawful, as would religious rules.
Heather Flowers
Amazi-Girl is lawful neutral. Loathes nothing more than rulebreaking (e.g. Danny drinking at the party) and often falls into morally gray territory in the name of following rules (e.g. confronting Sal for underage drinking when in reality it’s because of her own grudge).
Emperor Norton II
1: It was Amber that really loathed Danny’s drinking at the party -specifically because it broke the rules-. When AG arrived, she said that she didn’t want him drinking because if he got caught, he might get expelled, and she didn’t want to lose him.
2: On a more general level, the whole alignment system works best with people whose grip on sanity is, if not entirely 1:1, then at least in a consistent state of being. The whole Amber/AG situation is clearly anything but, which is why the actions of the two truly goes all over the place.
woobie
She is besties with St. Cuthbert.
MatthewTheLucky
Wow, today’s pairs really well with the It’s Walky rerun.
Dana
It’s nice to know that some small subset of Amber’s issues are familiar to me?
Dean
Yes, you were supposed to meet at noon in front of the wall of words.
Marsh Maryrose
No, you were supposed to meet with Professor Plum in the library, with a candlestick.
Schpoonman
Not with Ryan, on the stairs, with a knife?
MatthewTheLucky
No, Ryan’s 2:00, with a phone.
Solenoid
And then we cut away from Amber again. Y’see, she doesn’t stop this wall of text for the entire day. We’ll see her again in the next arc, as she runs out of steam.
BenRG
I think that we’ll come back in a few strips’ time when Amber finally runs down and Marcie can manage some sort of response.
I wonder if Amber understands ASL? For some reason, it seems to be something with which she might have some passing familiarity, or at least Amazi-Girl may know. Might Marcie be the first person to realise that there are two people in Amber?
thejeff
Nah, there’ll be a running gag where other characters walk down the stairs in front of the continuing wall of text.
Roborat
While complaining about the wall of text blocking the path.
Mojo
It’s like you’re looking into my brain.
newllend(henryvolt)
Or she’s psychically reading your thoughts and speaking them out loud herself.
DarkoNeko
I feel called upon
Marsh Maryrose
This is probably the most relatable strip Willis has ever done, and that’s among a pantheon of relatable strips.
Fun fact: right until the day I retired, one of the most stressful parts of my day was approaching the employee entrance for the first time in the morning. Would I fail to recognize someone I should have recognized immediately? Would I be overly familiar with someone I didn’t really know very well? Would I say something bland about the weather going into the elevator and the ride would be 15 seconds of awkward silence?
My private ironic shorthand for these situations was “failing the entrance exam.” And of course, the exit exam would similarly fraught.
Every single day. For years.
Man, I’m glad I could retire early.
Emperor Norton II