179

Sneaking
Posted on June 5, 2025 by David M Willis

179 thoughts on “Sneaking”

  1. The 25th

    I love how Joyce always looks so happy to see Dorothy.

    1. Nymph

      Yeah, it’s adorable! Like her day is instantly a thousand times better.

    2. DJTsurugi

      yeah, it’s like she has some sort of feelings… ~<3

      1. Mravac Kid

        Feelings of pure friendship.

        1. Dan

          Absolute gal-palship

        2. Hexx

          Possible historical roommate-hood…

  2. Megan

    Now kittttthhhhhh

    1. Rose by Any other Name

      No. Now TALK.
      Specifically Joyce with Dorothy and Joe. About the sex you’ve had with both of them. And how you’d like to keep having sex with both of them going forward.

      1. Nymph

        I’m not sure why Joyce needs to talk to either of them about the sex she’s already had, or why Walky wouldn’t need to be a part of this conversation.

      2. Megan

        Carla’s had sex with Dorothy and Joe????????

  3. Tawnee

    Head pats?! What if Charlie sees?

    1. Steamweed

      The head pat is the distraction. The prank is Charlie tying Dotty’s shoelaces together.

      1. ian livs

        I will laugh my ass off if that’s the case. power couple af

      2. AMagicalDuck

        It does seem like her feet are a lot closer together after the headpat

        1. J Con

          Normally I’d agree; but she did stand up out of her sneaking shuffle into a normal stance

    2. Risky

      It’s okay, Charlie isn’t here. I checked the tags and there is zero Charlie.

      1. Needfuldoer

        That just means she isn’t in the frame.

      2. Andy

        Alice is there just not in frame. Jennifer is just barely in frame.

  4. Imogen

    I’m gonna say that Carla’s fixation on sabotaging/facilitating the Joyce/Dorothy ship is increasingly non-straight.

    1. mindbleach

      Carla? Queer? The devil you say.

      1. Steamweed

        A shawking development!!

      2. Effie

        Carla, the devil? She’d like to think so!

    2. Nymph

      Carla is non-straight, so that’s not totally shocking.

      1. Imogen

        She harbors perverse asexual lust for whatever it is she’s doing with Dorothy and Joyce.

    3. Freezer

      Or it could be Carla’s just an asshole and those two are easy targets?

      1. Chris Phoenix

        I like your gravatar. I like the news from the last few days. Slava Ukraini!

        1. Freezer

          I switched it right after Trump humiliated Zelensky at the White House. Which now looks like one of the most epic Uno Reverses in history! Slava Ukraini!

        2. morleuca

          gotta be honest, I’m kind of surprised the soggy sack hasn’t tried to take credit by insinuating his treatment of Zelensky was part of an act.

        3. Freezer

          I’d bet money a staffer or twelve talked him out of it.

      2. Deanatay

        Carla can be two things!

        1. Pergola

          She can contain multitudes!

  5. autumn_null

    they are so normal

  6. NGPZ

    “Dodgson! DOROTHY! WE GOT DOROTHY here!”

    1. Lee

      Thank you, I wasn’t sure if I was imaging that connection!

      1. thakoru

        The title text beat you both to it.

    2. Cholma

      Much like Nedry, Dorothy is also smuggling a can of shaving cream with a hidden compartment. Hers, however, only holds illicit “down the shirt” photos.

  7. Lux

    I wonder if Dorothy’s color scheme is supposed to be a faded/subdued bi flag here

    1. Hazel

      Add in Carla’s hot pink shirt, and it works.

      1. Crow

        They’re just wearing pink and purple cuz they’re girls, and those are the Girl Colors

        1. Nymph

          Wild take.

    2. PB

      Was just about to say this! Thank you for also noticing subtle pride flag wardrobes!

    3. Amós Batista

      Joyce is almost on bi-flag colors, too. (by Willis’s BlueSky)

  8. Nathan Goldwag

    So how much of this conversation exactly has Dorothy overheard.

    1. Clif

      That’s my question. I assume none, but not sure.

    2. ian livs

      from that distance? I doubt she heard anything, realistically–or else she’d probably be freaking out more

  9. Slartibeast Button, BIA

    So Carla is Sam Gamgee and Dorothy is Smeagol?

    1. Thag Simmons

      That would not be my first comparison, honestly.

    2. Astariel

      Pretty sure Sam never pranked Gollum. Or patted him on the head, for that matter.

  10. Suet

    “who’s guilty? me~”

    that’s why her name isn’t Dorothy Sneaker

  11. The 25th

    Huh. No alt text today

    1. Clif

      It’s sneaking.

      1. Clif

        I swear, that originally said “You can’t see it. It’s sneaking.”

        1. NGPZ

          now it says “look, dina’s supposed to do the jurassic park refs”

          really hoping the Dina plush campaign goes through, I’m already feeling the Dina withdrawal T^T

    2. Slartibeast Button, BIA

      I see it as: “look, dina’s supposed to do the jurassic park refs”

      1. John Campbell

        That was added after the strip went up. When it first posted, it just had the default “Sneaking”.

        1. Thag Simmons

          it’s a good alt-text

        2. Michelle J Caboose

          They’re ALL good alt-text, Brent.

  12. Looney

    see? nobody cares. nice hat.

    1. Rectilinear Propagation

      Carla would love that fake shaving cream can.

  13. Derek

    Sneaking? Sneaking? Fat Hobbit is always so polite. Smeagol shows them secret ways that nobody else could find and they say “Sneak!”, “Sneak!”. Very nice friends, oh yes, my Precious, very nice.

  14. Sirksome

    Someone beat me to the Wayne Knight quote.

  15. HueSatLight

    She says her name because the prank is better than the bit.

  16. PedanticJerkass

    Wow, Carla actually remembered her name.

  17. Joe Moose

    I haven’t the faintest idea what is going on, but I am all for it.

    Now, time for kitten floods.

    1. Nadamás

      Gay. Gay is what’s going on.

  18. John Campbell

    The really shocking thing here is that Carla remembered that not-Jugs is Dorothy.

    1. Thag Simmons

      I assume Carla has a better memory for the queer girls than the straight ones.

    2. Steamweed

      Her seeming not to remember Dorothy and Joyce’s names? A prank. Long-game prank.

  19. peng

    im carla

    1. Kammon

      I’m Carla and so’s my wife

      1. 3oranges

        Hello, Carla and So.

        1. Steamweed

          Congrats to Carla and So on their marriage!

  20. StClair

    Carla’s face in panel 4 is great.
    (and Joyce is a bug) (an adorable one)

  21. True Survivor

    I feel like Carla fails to full grasp the concept of a prank. A prank requires forethought, creativity, and (ideally) a desire to improve another by forcing them to confront their own ridiculousness and laugh at themselves. This just seems like opportunistic cruelty, a two out of three at best.

    PS. On a related note did you see that Green Peace activists “barrowed” a wax statue of Macron to use as part of parodical display in protest against his energy policy? I can’t condone theft (especially from a museum), but that is creative and damn funny.

    1. StClair

      She seemed to understand all of those things quite well when it came to her revenge on Mary.
      (or are you doing a bit now?)

    2. Taffy

      Oh no, anything but a lump of wax being stolen from a building presumably full of them. Whatever shall they do without precisely one (1) statue made of wax?

      1. Steamweed

        Oh gasp! Short Hair Joyce! Does she emulate the Beckster? Will she wear red plaid now?? Is Tegan and Sara her new fave band???

    3. Nadamás

      I don’t know where you live but none of that is actually necessary for a prank as far as I know

    4. Nymph

      Pranks are, very often, just cruel or done for laughs. I think the kind of prank you’re describing is super rare to the point that I would never have described pranks that way.

      Also I condone the theft double for you, no worries.

  22. Steamweed

    Panel 5: Huh, I’ve had sex with her.
    Panel 6: And I’m fine with that.

  23. Reltzik

    I can’t really blame Carla. Any act of sneaking that conspicuous is doomed to fail, because “conspicuous sneaking” is an oxymoron.

    Unless you double down on it.

  24. M!a

    But Dorothy doesn’t even *know* she had sex with Joyce by Joyce’s standard.

    Sooooooo why for t3h sneaks? Just to avoid talking about Joe?

    1. morleuca

      and she feels awkward and kinda shitty

    2. Heavensrun

      She’s in a relationship with Walky but she’s in love with Joyce who is dating Joe and her roomate Becky has *also* been in love with Joyce for years but was turned down because Joyce is straight except apparently Joyce is not *entirely* straight and Dotty has absolutely no idea how to navigate *any* of that and she’s in full meltdown at the moment and is trying to adopt an avoidance strategy.

      1. thejeff

        Yeah, but the feelings aren’t real. It’s just a trauma response.

    3. Heavensrun

      The fact that Joyce has realized that she might consider riding the washing machine with Dotty “sex” is an additional wrinkle that Dorothy isn’t even aware of yet and I’m super curious how that’s going to land.

      1. V

        Good explanation.

      2. Reltzik

        She could have avoided wrinkles like that one if the drier had a steam setting.

        … something something “steamy” pun.

      3. Opus the Poet

        It’s going land like the proverbial lead balloon.

  25. Tom

    This is easily the most Peanuts-ass grimace Willis has drawn in a while and I love it!

    1. StClair

      You’re A Good Woman, Joyce Brown

  26. AnonGrouch

    It’s just the gift that keeps on giving really

  27. IntangibleMatter

    Carla is the embodiment of chaos and I love her for it.

    also if for some reason someone’s reading this in the future DELTARUNE CHAPTER 3 AND 4 RELEASED TODAY AAAA

  28. Tequila Mockingbird

    Okay, I’m sure some people will accuse me of blasphemy for this but… why does Carla feel the need to be a jerk? Seriously, I cheered her on for pranking Mary, who was absolutely awful and deserved calling out… but Carla seems to just enjoy being a troll and a provocateur for its own sake. I rarely find her antics funny, they’re usually just grating. I’ve known people like that IRL, and they’re not quirky or funny or “oh you little mischievous scamp,” they’re just exhausting to be around. I won’t lie that I got more than a little bit of a smile when Booster turned the tables on her. It’s part of what make me like Booster so much.

    1. Tequila Mockingbird

      *made me like Booster

      1. Leorale

        Yeah, I dunno. I usually enjoy Carla but today I kinda feel like punching her face (not literally).

        I remember there’s something like, she thinks if people reject her due to her actions, then she doesn’t have to face them rejecting her due to their transphobia? Though it can always be both.

        Maybe I’m just mad today.

        1. Leorale

          — yep, I was just mad today.
          So, glad that I didn’t punch anyone literally.

        2. Leorale

          I’m with you on the head-pats, though, especially from above. That’s just garden-variety annoying.

    2. Doopyboop

      If I had to put on my analytical hat, I think it’s because Carla’s very existence invites ire. She’s seemed to know since a young age that she was trans, and no amount of rich parents can shield you from the fact that society as a whole can be very aggressive. It could be that she’d rather get attention through pranks and trolling others for fun rather than getting attention for just trying to quietly live her life and being treated like shit for it.

      That’s not to say that I think she should get a pass. Clearly she can be a bit of a jerk sometimes. I think it’s just her coping method, the same way Becky tries to cope with her loss and fears be being WaCKy and Walky by treating the world like a sitcom. Just my two cents.

      1. DJTsurugi

        this, but also just, it’s easier to keep people at arms length when you purposefully sabotage yourself, it means the reason people don’t like you is because of the attitude you own, rather than a thing about yourself that you can’t help. ~<3

    3. Sirksome

      It’s fine if you don’t like Carla’s antics. She’s purposefully obnoxious and that can be an acquired taste. I personally think part of it is a need for attention. She really wants people to notice her, but also based on her actions when Jennifer and Ruth were dating she just seems like someone who doesn’t like secrets are people hiding stuff or avoiding confrontation.

    4. Heavensrun

      Her parents were busy and rich and bought her anything she wanted, but also neglected her, so she craves attention. She’s trans and knows an unfairly large section of the world despises her, so she’s defiant about existing and being seen. She hasn’t had a lot of close personal connections, so she isn’t really in touch with how her intentional obnoxiousness can hurt other people yet. She hasn’t really run into a situation where she did anything other than exasperate someone.

      1. Leorale

        The Billingsworth parents were rich and distant, with money in lieu of paying real attention to their daughter. But Carla’s parents were rich and involved. They heard her loneliness at school and her love of Ultra-Car and carefully commissioned or built her a custom transforming toy to make her wish come true. They accepted her as trans from a young age and had her defended in court, successfully. Carla expects to be unpopular with her age-mates (she won’t call them peers), but she definitely expects to be seen.
        The rest seems on point, though.

    5. Taffy

      Carla’s harmless.

      1. MisterJinKC

        No she isn’t. She is actively causing harm to another person here. When someone doesn’t want to be noticed she decides, without any information as to why the person doesn’t want to be noticed, to ensure EVERYONE notices them. She’s the kind of person who would tell everyone you’re gay if you’re in the closet because nothing and no one matters to her but her own desires. There is no excuse for the level of narcissism she displays. She actively TRIES to make other people’s lives at least a little worse.

        1. Nadamás

          Man you really did not think through any of that did you? This really doesn’t deserve any counter argument it’s just stupid.

        2. Nymph

          So, you just made up a lot of stuff to get mad about. Then, predictably, you got mad about it. She isn’t causing fucking harm by pointing someone out, and she isn’t (nor has she) outing anyone’s sexuality. You literally just made that up so you could cry about it.

        3. Taffy

          Carla’s harmless.

    6. Kyulen

      I feel the same towards a few characters in DoA. Most other characters in the comic treat their behavior as just quirky or silly harmless fun, but I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t want to spend much time around people IRL who act like that to other people too.

      1. Nadamás

        I don’t see how that is relevant since no one is forcing you to do that.

    7. Katie

      Same here. I’m always baffled how so many people seem to find her charming or funny, I find her obnoxious almost always. Which is how she’s written, so…good work Willis, I guess?

      1. Nymph

        People like different things. I love her, and genuinely never find her grating. She’s a comedic character in a comic strip, her behavior is exaggerated the same way everyone’s is.

  29. Freezer

    There’s a thin line between being a prankster and just being an asshole, Carla.

    1. Andy

      The fail mode of clever is asshole. To quote John Scalzi. Carla is still clever.

    2. thejeff

      And if she’s on the asshole side of that line for you, that means her efforts to build mind share are working.

  30. BBCC

    Daaaaamn, that’s awkward. Have fun, you two.

  31. DJTsurugi

    and then the gay sex happened. ~<3

    1. spriteless aunty

      No that was before on the driers haven’t you been paying attention

  32. Tessea

    Carla’s a bit of a dick. How is she so amusing??? God, could you imagine if she and _Becky_ had become a couple??

    1. Freezer

      It helps that she’s not a hypocrite about it and can appreciate catching return fire.

    2. Taffy

      Carla’s amusing because she’s only a bit of a dick. She’s loud and obnoxious, but she’s never actually hurt anyone and does fuck off pretty quickly after she shows up. Plus, her idea of a prank is always something completely toothless and ineffectual that’s just kind of annoying, easily bypassed by someone who doesn’t give a fuck. Nobody in her wing gives a fuck except Mary, and Mary doesn’t matter, so Carla gets to be awkwardly goofy as much as she wants.

      1. bemisawa

        This. I can’t always tell how aware she is of the absurdity of what she’s doing, if that’s part of a bit or of the prank itself, but she and Charlie have been on fire with anti-pranks lately.

  33. DashWallkick

    “Hi Dorothy!!”

    “…..um.”

  34. Acher4

    Daaaaaamn. They are both so in love.

    Nice storyline for June. 😀

  35. Jess

    panel 4: a summary

    Dorothy: :S
    Carla: 😀

    I am tickled by those expressions.

  36. darkoneko

    Is Joyce… smirking at Dorothy 😀

  37. Taffy

    So, she does know Dorothy’s name.

    1. Masumi

      But only when it’s inconvenient for Dorothy.

      Pranked!

    2. Owlmirror

      I’m pretty sure Carla’s memory/forgettery for names operates on Toon rules.

  38. Arianod

    ?

  39. Kyulen

    I’m pretty sure the last two things Carla has said were pranks (her pointing out Dorothy sneaking, and Charlie forgetting what she was going to say to Billifer and Alice) were not actually pranks. Which is odd because I thought she of all people would know what a prank is. Unless there’s some weird new definition of prank that I’m not aware of.

    1. Rachel McCall

      I think her ability to prank and knowledge of pranks is temporarily out of whack from having just been pranked by Charlie.

    2. Ray Radlein

      tbf, Dorothy hasn’t tried to walk again yet, so maybe her shoelaces are tied together.

  40. showler

    Always impressed by Carla’s ability to know where the panel border is located.

  41. All-Purpose Guru

    I do not understand how Carla avoids people just beating the shit out of her.

    1. BYM!

      She’s a tall athlete with an army of lawyers?

    2. Yumi

      Most people don’t get beaten up just for being annoying. Carla’s far more likely to get attacked for being trans, but out of universe, I don’t think Willis wants to go there, and in-universe, people knowing who her parents are might help deter that.

    3. eh, whatever

      Not many people really are that violent.

    4. Nadamás

      Because most people has a sense of self control and don’t beat up someone for kinda annoying?

    5. Nymph

      Oh good, we’re at the “people should get violently harmed for annoying others” part of the day.

      She avoids it because that’s an unhinged response to being annoyed.

      1. Bryy

        That’s not what they said at all.

        1. esolo

          Carla is being annoying. The poster asked how she avoids people just beating the shit out of her. The implication is that being annoying would motivate people to beat the shit out of her. I’ll grant that it is possible that the poster does not, personally, think that people “should” beat the shit out of other people for being annoying. But, given the question, it’s not an unreasonable assumption to make.

          Anyway, agree with Nymph that beating the shit out of people is an unhinged response to being annoyed.

        2. Nadamás

          Yes it is.

    6. Taffy

      >be all-purpose guru
      >car drives by playing music kinda loud
      >chase car down
      >drag driver out of car
      >beat the shit out of the driver

      1. Nymph

        A dog’s dream day.

  42. Dread Pirate Robin

    Sneaky Dotty should get the bonus strip this month, for sure.

  43. Adept

    Joyce is much more ok with what has gone down than Dorothy is.

    1. John Campbell

      Neither of them have gone down.

      Yet.

  44. Buck Ripsnort

    For the “Why is Carla being such a jerk?” crowd: It’s called a “plot device”. This is a way for Willis to get Dorothy and Joyce to confront each other. Carla being a jerk is just a funny way to do it.

    1. Yak

      Plus Carla being kind of a jerk (but in an endearing way) is like, her whole character

      1. BorkBorkBork

        She’s literally the Bugs Bunny of the comic. Which, I mean. She IS based off of a character who routinely threw pies at people. 100% Looney Tunes.

        People (justly) hated Mike because his cuts were real, and truthful, and personal, and intended to hurt. Carla is impersonal enough that she feels more like a force of nature than someone out to get you, and half the time she’s helping instead of hurting. Even Mary – Carla only targeted Mary because Mary was actively targeting her, and her vengeance wasn’t harmful, only humiliating.

        1. NGPZ

          .. a surprisingly good take!

        2. Bryy

          And she knew EXACTLY how to hurt Mary the deepest.

  45. Proto

    I respect Carla’s devotion to being kind of a pest but I feel like she’s too smart of a character to have such a poor grasp of what a “prank” actually is.

    1. Nadamás

      I believe she is using incorrectly on purpose.

      1. Proto

        I mean normally I’d agree since she did use it right for the “tying someone’s shoelaces together” gag but after that she keeps saying it and it sure doesn’t seem like she’s being ironic.

        1. Nymph

          Pranked! Carla pranked you through the 4th wall!!

  46. Morhek

    This had better end with Carla fist fighting a dilophosaurus, I’m just saying.

  47. Vaishino

    I am losing it at that Carla face

    1. Steamweed

      Panel 4 Carla half-face needs to be a gravatar!

      1. BorkBorkBork

        Yeah, I’d get behind that.

        1. Steamweed

          I was hopin’ someone would, and, lo, someone did! 🙂

  48. thumb

    I do like that despite everything, Joyce is not freaking out about any of this.

    1. Sirksome

      I find it funny that Dorothy is the one freaking out while Joyce is immediately like “I don’t mind sex with Dorothy.”

      1. Sharizard

        🙂

        Though i’m guessing she hasn’t entirely considered how Dorothy might feel about it. From Joyce’s perspective, Dorothy’s the one who’s usually more ‘with it’ than she is, so she might not have fully considered the freak out Dorothy is having yet.

  49. Astariel

    Panel 4 Carla is now my favorite thing ever.

  50. Yumi

    Apropos of truly nothing from today’s strip, I’d like to see Walky and Becky hang out more. I remember when Becky first showed back up on campus (before we knew she was a lesbian), she and Walky seemed to click so well that people were shipping then. But they haven’t had much interaction in a while.

    1. Sirksome

      I’d like that too, especially since I think Walky needs a confidant that has no interest in banging him. Like we’ve discovered even Amber has ulterior motives and is backhandedly undermining his romantic relationships. It would be nice if even one person that liked hanging out with him didn’t do that.

      1. Sharizard

        It’s a scaringly good point. Thinking about it, Walky has few real friends (and no real male ones). Mike was probably the closest, but people like Joe, Danny and Ethan are more ‘friends of friends’ to him. At this point Jason is one of his closest direct male friends, and they never really talk anymore.

        And most of the females in his life tend to end up dating him. Really, his closest non-romantic friends are Joyce (who tends to be antagonistic), Joe (more friend of a friend), Booster (who’s more of a roommate that takes jabs at him) and Jennifer (psuedo-adoptive sister who tends to look down on him). (i guess Sal sort of counts as a friend as well, but siblings…)

        Dude needs some friends. It’s good that he has Dorothy, but he needs more than the one person who actually cares for him.

        1. Nymph

          Women. Not females.

        2. thejeff

          Mike was not Walky’s friend. Or even close to it.

          Walky’s still traumatized from living with Mike.

          But otherwise, I can see it, though I’m always a little bothered by the “needs male friends” part.

  51. Yeet

    rip dorothy

  52. Tan

    I feel like a lot of people are forgetting that the last time Carla quietly went along with some sneakery, the result involved suicidal depression

  53. M!a

    Carla is yet another trash goblin who craves mess.

  54. Kaz

    Okay not gonna lie, Joyce’s smile when she sees Dorothy, not even being embarrassed and shy over what she’s realized? That is beyond precious.

  55. elebenty

    Apropos of nothing but the campus in this comic, here’s a free link to a NYT article on UI’s issues re: political pressure

    Oh, and now the Governor is over the university’s board??

    https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/05/us/republicans-indiana-public-universities.html?unlocked_article_code=1.Mk8.BV2F.Dbhdf1JyUiFu&smid=url-share

    1. Taffy

      Oh, they’re taking over another place of learning? Man, I can’t wait for nobody to do anything about it or fight back in the slightest.

      1. elebenty

        Seems that way. Of course, while GA was busy kicking soldiers and Black Americans off the voting rolls, Indiana focused on disenfranchising students and women.

        States shouldn’t be allowed to have mass voter registration challenges. One woman got 32k Georgians removed.

  56. Barf Ninjason

    Carla remains the worst.

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