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Whispering
Posted on May 24, 2023 by David M Willis

265 thoughts on “Whispering”

  1. Ana Chronistic

    I admit I was gonna laugh if Linda had instead gone,

    (to Sarah): You?

    Sarah: No…

    (to Sal): Not YOU

    Sal: WTF

    (looks around)

    Lucy: …

    1. nobodybasically

      Cue Mae Whitman. “…her?”

    2. Needfuldoer

      Just chiming in here for anyone whose next stop is the Patreon page to guess what happens from the blurry previews:

      The freebie Patreon previews are blurred A LOT less than they used to be, for some reason. You can just about read the dialogue. It’s less of a guessing game and more of an outright spoiler now.

      1. Leorale

        Huh, yeah, that’s really true, isn’t it. You can read the dialogue and everything.

        This one was exactly what we all would’ve predicted, but still, that’s an interesting development for more cliffhanger-y strips.

        1. thejeff

          Weird because that’s not true for me. Still as blurry as ever. Or at least blurry enough not to make much out. Certainly no text.

    3. Angel

      well sarah’s not tagged so i assume she took this moment to go to class lol

      1. Ana Chronistic

        made good on her escape

  2. Yeet

    wow, linda’s enthusiasm seems to have vanished, weird

    1. Archieve

      Not even a pretend huge for Lucy.

      1. BarerMender

        Linda’s a girl. She doesn’t have a huge.

        1. Archieve

          Edit’ hug’

        2. Taffy

          It’s 2023, girls have huges now.

        3. Rose by Any Other Name

          I wrote a joke about huges, but then I decided it wasn’t funny, so instead you all get the meta commentary.

        4. Rowen Morland

          Well now I’m just curious. Then again sometimes you safely extract the funny from the rock of inspiration without mean or awkward by products as pollution.

        5. Lysbeth

          Some do want to get rid of their huge and get a regular instead, and it’s okay

        6. Casi

          I for one am happy with my huge, but i wouldn’t mind a regular as well but sadly medical technology is not quite there yet

        7. Jay

          I know a few people with both, but the medical technology isn’t *here* yet, geographically speaking

        8. Lysbeth

          Huge-preserving regularoplasty isn’t common, sadly. I considered it on a purely intellectual, “what-if” basis myself but it’s not worth the trouble of going all the way there when a regular does the trick I think.

      2. Decidedly Orthogonal

        Or one for her own daughter. Or a lunch invitation. Or even acknowledgement except when ‘misunderstood and directly addressed.

        People rightly shit on Asher, but this body-temperature biological incubator has less parental love in her than Blaine. At least he felt something. She had more to do with Sal’s stick-up than Asher.

        What a despicable piece of work.

    2. Regina phalange

      Honestly, I love this (what Willis is doing here). Linda is being reasonably polite here. Even to Lucy, an outsider, it could seem like she was more enthusiastic about teasing Walky (about Joyce), than necessarily that she was more enthusiastic about Joyce as a white girl. But WE know how enthusiastic Linda can be. She was such with Dorothy and we could read it for what it was with Joyce because we know Linda.

      As someone who was victim to the “well you very clearly adore and make a strong effort with your nephew’s partners but you physically box your son’s partner out of conversations” MIL, it’s so cathartic to see this whole comment section see Linda’s behavior for what it is. Of course everyone would because, well, it’s Linda, but as a victim to this kind of behavior, it’s incredibly difficult IRL to articulate the problems with it without sounding whiny, entitled, etc.

      1. Regina phalange

        As a side-note, f*ck Walky for subjecting Lucy to this. His past comments indicate he KNOWS his mother won’t be happy about her, and his parents allegedly gave him the heads-up they were coming (I believe them on this because that is in-character for everyone). At the very least, Lucy needed more of a warning than “oh, mom and dad are here right now—run!”

        1. Vegetalss4

          I imagine Walky might have imagined they’d come tomorrow.
          After all they mentioned they’d come “this weekend”, and given the cast have class this morning I’m assuming it’s still Friday.

          Walky’s still at fault for not warning people before the last moment through

        2. Yeet

          yeah if someone told me they were coming the weekend and showed up the friday morning when they know I have class/work/whatever I’d lose my fucking mind

        3. Archieve

          Aside from Lucy they are acting weirdly egar and affectionate(for them). Sal noted in an early comic that they were never a hugging family so Linda hugging walky unpromoted followed by the first white girl she sees with a smile is highly abnormal. Showing up first thing in the morning could be another symptom of whatever Linda’s up to.

        4. Seregiel

          There was also the whole kidnapping, rescue, and Mike dying so that might have converted their energy to a more affectionate outlet.

        5. Liliet

          I get the impression Walky had completely blanked out on them coming himself. ADHD brain goes brrrr.

        6. zee

          I refuse to believe walky had it in his head that they were coming. We know how much anxiety he has built up around Linda, he’d’ve been freaking out at least a little. He either didn’t see whatever messages she sent or adhd brain deleted the information

        7. Taffy

          Wh- “Subjecting Lucy to this”? C’mon, now.

        8. Leorale

          Oh, it’s only going to ramp up.

          If my lowkey-racist parents were about to meet my lovely people-pleasing Black girlfriend, I’d sure want to give her a head’s up! Like “Sorry, my mom is a low-key racist Karen, and my dad puts up with it. I don’t know if Mom will act fine today, or subtly racist, or really put her foot in it. But you should know that you’re great, and anything they do will not be your fault.” Also some “I wish they weren’t even here to act weird at you. But do you want to meet them today? If you want to, how can I support you?”

          Because, if I was about to meet somebody who was typically prejudiced against any of my own groups (such as antisemitic, anti-enby, etc), I’d want to mentally rehearse some of my conversational shutdowns and deflections (my Jew-jitsu?), and have a way out of there with minimal fuss, knowing that my partner would support me.

        9. Leorale

          But yeah, clearly Walky didn’t know they were coming. He didn’t check those emails, he’s kinda on his back foot here.

          (And even if he’d warned her, Lucy would probably just be very excited about Meeting The Parents. Like, look at her, honored to meet Mrs. Walkerton.)

          Guess they’ve got the space of their class together to try and minimize the fallout onto Lucy.

    3. Bryy

      I’m honestly surprised she said “and Lucy”.

      1. Ana Chronistic

        It doesn’t even work, when neither of the “both” she claims to have been talking about is participating in the conversation

    4. DudeMyDadOwnsADealership

      And there, in the last panel, goes her husband, covering for her true drab colors…

  3. Sirksome

    That mother/daughter relationship is colder than the weather.

  4. butts

    man. fuck you, Linda

    1. Victor Riley

      Second that. What is her problem? Happy with the thought of her son with a white girl… but not Lucy? She herself is in an interracial relationship… so I don’t *think* it would be that.

      But is there maybe some internalized racism going on here? Or some other hang-up? Maybe she doesn’t like people with glasses?

      1. Leorale

        Unfortunately, being in an interracial relationship doesn’t mean you can’t have a bad case of the racisms.

        My headcanon is that Linda (and possibly also Charles) thinks that Charles is “One of the Good Ones”(tm). That backhanded compliment pits all Black people against each other for Linda’s approval, and lets Linda and Charles get married, without examining who are the Bad Ones, who got to make those tests throughout history, and why Linda gets to be the judge.

        Here’s an article about how Charles’s world might feel:
        https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/jun/06/growing-up-black-in-america-racism-education

        1. Victor Riley

          That would make sense… of sorts. Linda is just awful, and I wonder if Charles sees it?

          Thanks for the article!

  5. Stephen Bierce

    Unrelated question: do you think the Rutten expy in Joyce’s comic is named Vanja, Suvla or Motoko?

    1. Thag Simmons

      I don’t know if Joyce interacts enough with Carla to give her a role in the comic.

      1. Needfuldoer

        Once Carla realizes Joyce draws a comic with characters based on her friends and acquaintances but there’s no Carla parallel, the badgering will be relentless until the situation is remedied.

    2. HueSatLight

      Jugs

  6. Grimey

    There’s something really bleak about Sal having the same body language as Linda. Like no matter how much you want to escape and be nothing like your parents, their blueprints are still on you.

    1. DailyBrad

      Both have a lot of conviction and strong opinions about people, along with something of a self-righteous side at times. One’s just, y’know, not a classist bigot, so it’s a lot better served with Sal.

      1. Sirksome

        I don’t like Linda but her similarities to Sal make me think there’s probably more to her. Not likely enough to justify her awfulness so far, but she doesn’t seem so black and white evil as other parents in this comic.

        1. DailyBrad

          Oh yeah, I doubt Linda is an irredeemable person, and likely has all matter of rationalizations for what she does. Like, she isn’t a Blaine or Ryan, she doesn’t revel in being a piece of shit for piece of shit’s sake. I’m sure we may find out more of her motivations over time.

        2. Mr D

          I don’t think anyone is an irredeemable person. Everyone can atone for their mistakes and improve as a person. It just takes self reflection.
          Even Toedad the Zealot gave up his life to try to fix something when he realized what Blaine’s plan was.

        3. Mr D

          …I may be misremembering.
          I’m not actually sure.

        4. Vegetalss4

          I think you are, as I remember it Toedad released Amber because he believed her claim to be Amazigirl and the plan was to blackmail Amazigirl to make her bring them Becky. He didn’t release any of the others (they where still needed to blackmail her).
          Then Blaine hit him in the head with a hammer because of that, which at first only stunned him and knocked him down, after which he got up and fought Blaine till he died.
          At no point did he actually walk away from the plan or try to fix anything (other than the snag of holding hostage the person they wanted to blackmail with the hostages)

        5. Miri

          I think he expressed remorse for the believed need to kidnap the group of kids and thought at first he had the situation all under control and nobody would get hurt (coz obviously they’d all been thrown *carefully* into the cellar)… I think there was a point when he and Blaine were wrestling on the stairs over the hammer that he knew he’d been complicit in tying up a group of kids and putting them into the hands of a dangerous madman and he wanted to protect them…

          He was wrong, stupid, bigoted, a terrible father, abusive… He was also manipulated and trying to protect his daughter from something he thought was worse.

        6. Taffy

          Nah, there’s definitely irredeemable people. They’re burning the country down right this very moment and they won’t stop, won’t self-reflect, won’t even momentarily inconvenience themselves the teeniest tiniest bit, until everyone and everything that doesn’t fit into their narrow, undefined worldview has been silenced and killed and erased. Maybe it’s vindictive, but I don’t think they should actually be allowed to “redeem” themselves, because that puts expectations on everyone else to accept them after everything they’ve done.

        7. Shade of Blue

          Agreed. Actually one of the themes of DoA is redemption and how it is ultimately an illusion, which is clutch imo.

          There’s an overwhelming trend in (American) media today to redeem or empathize with the worst people. It’s really frustrating and makes me feel so depressed about art.

        8. thejeff

          I don’t think that’s actually one of the themes of DoA or a lot of our protagonists are in trouble.

          I agree with you about the trend in media, but I see that as because they’re focused on getting us to empathize with those worst people while they’re still the worst people. They need to stop being bad first.

        9. Schpoonman

          Tall Rachel is an asshole and a coward. Redemption is not a story or illusion. People can improve themselves.

        10. HueSatLight

          You might be reading the wrong comic, if “people can change for the better” makes you depressed.
          Rachel’s pessimism is possibly rooted in her own regrets that she doesn’t think she can be better than.

        11. thejeff

          I don’t think anyone is irredeemable. That doesn’t mean everyone gets redeemed. Even the worst people in the world can change and grow and become better. But they’ve got to actually do it.

          Caveat: I don’t like the term “redemption”. It’s got way too many religious/Christian overtones for me.

        12. UrsulaDavina

          Can’t say if everyone but my sisters act exactly like my mother who acts like my grandmother( although they don’t insult people behind their backs in German that was my Oma’s own exclusive thing) and then they wonder why they get into fights with eachother.

        13. Comic.phile

          Ha! That was my Oma’s thing too, to until a stranger she was commenting rudely on actually spoke German back to her and called her out on it.

        14. UrsulaDavina

          We kept telling her not to do it but she was never called on it.

        15. UrsulaDavina

          I forgot to say it was funny coincidence

        16. Sombrero

          If there’s more to her, I’m not sure I want to know, but I’m sure Willis will tell us.

        17. Rogue 7

          Linda hurts for me because I see a lot of my mother in her. My mom can be controlling at times, and she’s a white woman who grew up in the 70s- she has her biases and stereotypes, but she’s still at least moderately left.

          If Linda’s a 10, she’s about a 2. I love her, respect her, and think that ultimately she’s one of the smartest people I know. But she’s not flawless.

          I think also Linda has trapped herself in a feedback loop with both kids. She came down hard on Sal, Sal rebelled, and so she came down harder, and so Sal rebelled more, and so on and so forth. She coddled Walky, he did what she wanted, she coddled him more, and so on and so forth. In neither case was her initial behavior as extreme as it escalated to.

          Fortunately Walky seems to be well on his way to short-circuting his feedback loop and standing up for himself. Way easier than what Sal has to deal with.

        18. Archieve

          The thing to remember about Linda and Sals relationship is that Sal did attempt to be who she thought her mother wanted her to be ( ex parents day church school outfit and friendly greeting) and Linda did not treat her anybetter for the effort put in. Sals at the point where she’s stopped trying altogether because Linda’s only going to give her emotional scrapes regardless of whether she tries hard on not.

    2. John Campbell

      They fuck you up, your mum and dad.
      They may not mean to, but they do.
      They fill you with the faults they had
      And add some extra, just for you.

      1. BarerMender

        Phillip Larkin. I follwed his advice.

    3. BarerMender

      I would never have noticed that.

    4. Schpoonman

      My dad’s not an ounce of the monster Linda is, but I’m most similar to him out of all my siblings and it irks me terribly.

  7. Sirksome

    I’ve never read the extended Walkyverse so Joyce and Walky ever being a couple doesn’t even seem real.

    1. Dana

      She started out with obsession with Danny being like half her character but in the Dumbingverse he’s just hat guy to her. Joyce seems to have a natural aversion to cross-universal romance.

    2. Thag Simmons

      I think basically all of the characters from the old ‘verse feel like awkward prototypes now after over a decade of Dumbing of Age.

      The Shortpacked! main cast being the exceptions, at least for me. Those still feel like the true iterations of those characters to me

      1. Zach

        They were their own fully realized characters, and a decade older than these dumb kids. many of them were also veterans.

      2. milu

        As is typical of a wizened desert creature you speak enigmatically o Armored One, but i know what you mean. The “old verses” do now feel quaint and tentative, if charming, what with their featherless dromeiosaurs and such. Indeed indeed. Well spoken.

      3. thejeff

        I still really miss Head Alien as a villain though.

        1. Thag Simmons

          Good that he’s still around in some form though

    3. Jamie

      I started in Shortpacked! and mostly read random strips out of context when people link them.

      There are some really nice Joyce/Walky strips, even devoid of real context.

    4. HueSatLight

      It is weird to think about. One of several things that make the Walkyverse uncanny.

      1. HueSatLight

        Joyce is secretly jealous of Lucy

        ‘s ability not to be petrified with embarrassment when Walky tells his mom they’re going to be shouting later, less than a minute after meeting her.

    5. Lingo

      It worked in the Walkyverse, but Dumbiverse Joyce, by this point, almost feels like a completely different character than Walkyverse Joyce. Whereas Dumbiverse Walky is … pretty much the same, minus the repressed trauma and rage issues. So now the pairing does feel weird at this point (but not completely out of the question, if they both matured some more).

      1. cbwroses

        I actually miss the rage issues.
        I liked when Walky would beat people’s ass (minus the accidental murder, the on purpose murder was fine).
        Joyce seems to have the rage issues this time around, but at least she’s seems decently happy recently.

        1. Sirksome

          Wait, wut? Walky accidentally murdered someone in a fit of rage? Walky and rage issues feels like an oxymoron.

        2. cbwroses

          Oh yeah (it’s been awhile, but it might have happened more than once).
          Both Sal and Walky were angry and deadly.
          Sal consistently so, Walky occasionally so, but Walky would have moments that would make you wonder which one was the bigger threat.

        3. Mr D

          He also was an angry drunk

        4. Rowan

          I’ve only encountered dumbiverse walky, and we don’t have evidence of rage issues but it wouldn’t be far out of character – he works hard on repressing his emotions and presenting as “everything’s fine, nothing’s ever wrong”.
          That’s a pretty fragile persona, if he was under a high enough stress to repress, and someone was badgering him hard about it, I could see him being pretty ragey

        5. PigmyWurm

          Yeah, not too far off:

          http://www.itswalky.com/comic/im-not-a-monster/

    6. Rose by Any Other Name

      Oooh…
      @Sirksome
      I’ve told this story over in the Walkyverse comics more than a few times, but since you haven’t read, I can safely repeat here.

      Many years ago now, I decided to run an Its Walky game for my wife and a few friends. I did basic power write ups (in Mutants and Masterminds 3rd ed) and let the players choose characters based on general descriptions. And then I had them read selected parts of Dumbing of Age book 1 as a character primer.

      My wife picked Joyce. Having read Joyces comics from Dumbing of Age book 1, I then told my wife ‘okay, her, but you’ve just suffered a mind-wipe – your basic personality is intact, but your memories are gone – Go.’ (cause, spoiler, that’s how Joyce starts out the sci-fi portion of her career).

      After a cautious start and some general alien fighting, as happens in Its Walky, my wife’s version of Joyce slept with Joe, dated Robin, fell in love with Jason, and bitterly hated Sal. She took basically no notice of Walky who goofed around and also punched things.

      And yet, she was still the same perky, kind, adorkable Joyce – everything she did felt completely in character.

      Anyway, I could ramble on (and have over at Its Walky – often and extensively) but I think that’s enough for a laugh.

      1. hastur

        Dang, that sounds super fun! Makes me want to pull out my old Champions books…

    7. bejouled

      I really loved Joyce and Walky together in that universe. I can’t really put my finger on how this-universe Joyce and Walky are different, but I currently just can’t see them together in this universe, and honestly it makes me sad. The very last comic of Joyce & Walky was them talking about if they would’ve fallen in love if they had met at a normal place like college, and part of me still hopes that is the endgame of this comic, but it is becoming less and less likely.

      1. Devin

        One of my favorite things about the contrast between their relationships in the different universes shows that character isn’t everything, circumstance is important too.

    8. Angel

      wasn’t it sort of a self insert of Willis and his wife? because i skimmed through some pages and there was a ‘pregnancy arc’ and he also has kids himself

  8. Rocketboy1313

    You know, I can commiserate.
    I have dated women outside my race and I was not sure how my parents would react, it is weird. I dislike that is something I have to think about and I am embarrassed that my parents might make a thing of it.

    1. Jamie

      I have only ever dated outside my race and I have never let my parents know because I just don’t want to deal with it. I’ve listened to my mom being casually (and non-maliciously, but nevertheless) racist enough to not want to hear it. Someday I’ll figure out how to deal with it, but it hasn’t been important to do so yet.

    2. Nono

      Difference is that Walky knows exactly how his mom would react.

    3. BarerMender

      I (Irish) had a cousin who brought home a black husband and her mother wouldn’t let him in the house. I said something about that to my mom. She said, “If you came home with a black wife or girlfriend, I would say, ‘Come in.'” She wasn’t the best mom, but she sure wasn’t the worst.

    4. Freemage

      I’ll point out the technicality, here–Walky isn’t dating ‘outside of his race’, here–he’s dating outside of ~Linda’s~. Walky and Sal are both biracial, which has been considered the same as being Black in this country since, well, the first anti-miscegenation laws.

      1. Victor Riley

        That’s what confuses me… she herself is in an interracial relationship. So it seems strange that she would care. At the very least its hypocritical.

        1. Rogue 7

          “For me but not for you” is one of the fundamental tenets of bigotry.

          But it’s also not like Linda is going to out-and-out state “I don’t want my children to date someone who isn’t white”- she’s going to do what she did yesterday, make assumptions, and then find a reason to dislike Lucy. The words “I just can’t put my finger on it” may be uttered.

        2. Kutharos

          Postivie Outcome vs. Negative Outcome.

          Being the product of interracial relationship, I seen a few other couples like this. My own mother didn’t care who I dated and was supportive. Others mothers who had kids wanted their kids to ‘integrate’ with whatever part of society. Some of them see the pain of doing it and assume their children will go through the same thing.

          Linda essentially wants their kids to be higher members of society and dating a black girl is more of a risk for that.

          For Linda, it’s not a matter of race, but chances of success for herself and her children. Her husband is vetted, but Lucy is not.

          Linda cares about herself and reputation, her family are extensions for this. Linda hates things she can’t predict, and Lucy is one of those things.

    5. Kimi

      I don’t think that my family would have any issues with dating outside my race, but dating outside of Christianity could set up a whole fiasco I don’t think I would want to deal with (especially if it was someone actively religious in another religion, someone who just didn’t care would be easier). I got a bit of a glare and a talking to by one of my aunts when I said that family was the most important thing to me in a wedding ceremony (she thought it should be God). As someone who considers religion to be something personal and not something you force down other people’s throats, it can make it difficult at times. My family is normally accepting enough that I don’t run into too many issues, but what religion their family members follow is something I think would get them going. Also the joys of moving to the more rural US instead of urban Canada (where I went to school) or New England (where I grew up). Very much a guns and God area to my chagrin. The fights around here tend to be more about what flavor of Christianity you follow. I am surprised at how many don’t seem familiar with the New Testament, even down to genre/theme.

      1. Plonker

        As someone who made it a point in my teens to read the bible in its entirety, it’s my observation that most self-professed “Christians” I’ve met, don’t have the first clue about what it actually says.

        They appear to only have been fed massively simplified rewrites, or selected short sections of it, often presented with little if any context, but with plenty of home-spun commentary and “explanations” that are outright contradictions of what the bible actually says elsewhere.

        Where “elsewhere” quite often is in adjacent parts that have been conveniently left out.

        Moreover, if you kinda summarize the apparent opinions and beliefs based on observed behavior and their commentary on the world around them when they don’t happen to be in church or a distinctly religious context, most self-professed “Christians” I’ve met are a very far cry from those of the bible and what the “party line” of Christianity in their many varieties claim it stands for.

        This used to amuse me, but these days it mostly just make me depressed.

        1. thejeff

          From what I can tell, much use of the Bible in church settings involves taking a single passage and basing a sermon around it. With no attempt to analyze it in a literary way as a larger text.
          You learn the basic stories, often in summarized and harmonized form as a really high level overview, then specific verses in great detail, but little in between. Single verse or Picture Bible.
          And it’s not just contradictions, what I find far more interesting is the differences in message between different books and authors. Even in the NT, the 4 Gospel writers have very different messages and understandings of theology. Which all usually get mashed down into one idea.

    6. Yotomoe

      My mom once told me if I married a white woman she would never accept her. She may have been kidding or may have changed her mind since then but I always keep it in mind. Now I wonder if that has lead to me only having been with black girls or if that’s a coincidence.

  9. DailyBrad

    Walky’s sass here is fucking tremendous, it must be said.

    1. Clif

      Yeah, he has a talent for communication. Who knew.

      1. cbwroses

        I guess that telecoms major might actually work out.

        1. Clif

          With a minor in euphemisms.

  10. NGPZ

    Obligatory fuck you Linda. Doubly so. ???

    1. True Survivor

      She can definitely be a jerk – especially towards her own daughter. I’ve just never understood what her deal is though. It seems to largely be about status and money, but I can’t put my finger on exactly what she thinks and why.

      1. Archieve

        My impression of Linda is an A type personality who never quite achieved what she wanted in life and now she’s trying live successfully through her son. She doesn’t think her daugther will achieve these goals so there’s no desire to take note of Sals life no matter how hard shes tried in the past to act like a good catholic girl for her mother.

      2. Bryy

        She’s a racist. And not only a racist. A racist against her own kids.

        Oh, and sexist.

        1. Regina phalange

          To be fair, we don’t necessarily know that her favoritism of Walky is about race. (Don’t get me wrong—at the very least, this comic in the context of yesterday’s clearly shows Linda is racist with regard to strangers.) The favoritism is indisputable, but Sal is the only one who has said it’s about race, and she and Walky are literally drawn the same color (and it’s been said even recently they could pass for each other)—their only apparent difference is Sal’s hair is “Blacker,” but frankly this seems a little thin to me. It feels much more like sexism to me. A weird proportion of mothers have internalized misogyny about having girls (I’m talking “boy [toddlers] are easier,” not “it’s harder to teach a [young] girl the realities of how she will need to see this world”—and even for those who don’t, many mothers default to the son as the golden child over a daughter).

        2. monkyvirus

          Hmm it’s interesting. It could be that Sal is viewed as “more black” than walky because she’s “trouble”. Her kids are mixed race, so she might view their traits as down to their dad’s race when bad, and her race when good.

          Also her hair could be sticking point. I know many white mums have struggles taking care of their kids black hair, some get help others might take it out on their kids.

          I actually think you and Sal both have a point. Most likely it’s misogynoir. Sal can’t measure up to the white daughter Linda imagines in her head. One who’s hair she could style easily like her own. Mums tend to care more about dressing up their little girls (which is sexist), but I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a factor.

          I was forced to be very femme as a child (I’m AFAB NB) and they literally banned me from having short hair even as a teen. People can get very obsessed with girls’ presentation.

        3. ischemgeek

          I’m not biracial, but I do have my father’s curly hair while my mother’s hair is straight and +1 to mother’s sometimes hold kids texture against them instead of getting help with it. She’d dry brush my hair for an hour while I screeched in pain because Ive got a sensitive scalp.

          It would have made sense for her to cut it short so it couldn’t tangle, but no. My mother in particular banned me from short hair till I went behind her back and shaved it off at 13.

          That went over poorly. But she got the message the time after that when I dyed my hair blue. She still resented me for not being her dress up doll anymore, but she didn’t fight me over my hair.

        4. Uly

          Look, obviously the way her favoritism shows up is at racially coded. But let’s be seriously here – given two children, she was always going to blatantly favor one over the other. If she’d married a white man she’d still find a reason to favor one child over the other. If Sal and Walky were identical instead of fraternal twins she’d still favor one over the other.

        5. vulcanodon

          Assessing “black hair” as a sign of racial inferiority goes all the way back to Voltaire. Even if Sal and Walky’s skin tone were the same, Walky’s straight hair would make him ‘whiter’ as Sal complained back in (checks notes) 2013. The result was a persistent identity struggle for Sal.

        6. Dr. T

          Actually, Jennifer also said that it’s about race. She flat out said that’s why Linda likes her more than Sal, despite her also being biracial.

        7. thejeff

          So, we agree she’s racist. We know Sal describes it as a racism. We can remember that early on Walky describes Sal as black and himself as “generically beige”. We know that Jennifer has described herself as the “white-passing” daughter substitute.
          Somehow though racism isn’t involved.

        8. Archieve

          Definitely, I think Sal being perceived as less white and being female child are why Linda was so quick to write Sal off as the child she would live her dreams through (over focus on any misbehavior, intenalized misogyny) while ignoring her sons shortcomings and complete lack of interest in being a doctor because he got good grades in high-school.

  11. John Campbell

    I’ve said it before: The antagonistic pseudo-sibling relationship Joyce and Walky have in this universe really works better for them than the OTP of Destiny they had going in the old one.

    1. RassilonTDavros

      I think they were genuinely compatible once they’d settled into a groove with each other, but them getting together in the first place was always very obviously one of those “because the story says so” kind of relationships.

      1. Zach

        They’re relationship went from hating each other to slowly becoming a couple. They were isolated with limited options, so it didn’t feel too forced to me.

    2. Lux

      Definitely agree with the antagonistic pseudo-sibling working well. It’s a fun dynamic.

    3. Dana

      Also, her not noticing Danny works a lot better for her than the psycho stalker thing.

  12. Yotomoe

    As long as you don’t shout inside her. Everyone knows you should only shout outside.

    1. NGPZ

      What if it’s the alphabet and it’s cunnilingus? ?

      1. John Campbell

        It works better written than shouted.

        Also outside, and a little bit above.

        1. NGPZ

          Cunnilingus where you use your tongue to trace out letters with your tongue? ?

        2. NGPZ

          Aaaaaaand my sleep aid is starting to work. Good. XD

        3. Jo_cubstar

          I completely forgot that the “alphabet method” was something they taught teenagers about how to perform oral sex on AFAB people until you wrote that. Hilarious. Was that actually successful for anyone? I guess maybe the letter “o” lol ?

        4. BarerMender

          I could get behind the letter A.

        5. Freemage

          As a basic intro-to-oral-pleasure concept, it’s not bad–it prevents simple, repetitive motion, which a reasonably worthwhile goal in most cases. However, I never, ever tried the full alphabet; I learned it as spelling your name (or hers, for that matter), which worked pretty well. Also, if you’re going to try it, remember your cursive–far fewer sharp angular motions, more loops and curves.

        6. Jamie

          So, “lingus” is tongue. “Cunni” is the vulva. Cunnilingus is literally anything where you put them together. You can recite the Romance of the Three Kingdoms if you want, son.

        7. Jamie

          And just realized I can’t recall your preferred pronouns. Please consider the “son” thing to be gender-neutral, and sorry. 🙁

        8. NGPZ

          No worries bruh. ?
          And for future reference, I go by she / they pronouns, thanks for asking ?

    2. UrsulaDavina

      Unless you’re shouting inside her and have a bag or have shouted long enough at eachother and one of you is on shout control medication or have had surgery in your vocal cordes to prevent an escalation in shouting

      1. Dana

        Some people want echos, you know. They are young for that though.

    3. Taffy

      Making love is like recording a metal album. You’ve just gotta get in there and scream profanities until you’re blue in the face.

      1. milu

        making love is like an amusement ride.
        doesn’t matter if you already know the track, what will truly define the experience is how much screaming you do

        (and maybe how messy you are at the end)

  13. CitrineMonster

    Everyday is a little tragedy when you see your mother in the mirror.

    1. Slartibeast Button, BIA

      “All women become like their mothers. That is their tragedy. No man does. That’s his.”

      – Oscar Wilde

      1. Jason

        Shit, if that’s true I really dodged a bullet by transitioning.

        1. Slartibeast Button, BIA

          “It is perfectly phrased! and quite as true as any observation in civilised life should be.”

      2. Azhrei Vep

        Eugh, if that’s true, thank god I’m not a woman. I’ll gladly accept that ‘tragedy,’ thank you.

    2. SeanR

      Only if you have parents like the Walkertons. I’d be honored to have either of my parents recognized in my own mannerisms.

  14. Slartibeast Button, BIA

    So will there be enough time for Linda to research The Awful Truth about Lucy before lunch?

  15. UrsulaDavina

    Well that take long to become super uncomfortable I mean it was already uncomfortable when Charles and Linda showed up but it take long for the level uncomfortableness to escalate.

  16. Joe Moose

    Yikes. Not even an, “Oh that’s nice.” Just flat out disinterest.

    1. cbwroses

      She is apparently so disinterested that she walked several steps away and can’t even face them while making lunch plans.
      Though I see she got slightly happy at the idea of safe protected shouting.
      Dodged the bullet of her baby boy having any echoes with a black woman.
      Though we could give her the benefit of the doubt and assume she doesn’t want him having any echoes with anyone.

  17. MisterJinKC

    Linda sure seems to dislike black/brown people a lot for someone who married one.

    1. Alongcameaspider

      I’m sure she feels like her husband is “one of the good ones”

    2. John Campbell

      My theory is that it’s a whole juicy mashup of racism and sexism. Sal and Walky are exactly the same color — like Walky pointed out the other day, put him in a wig and a bra stuffed with a couple socks, and you wouldn’t be able to tell them apart. But Sal is an outcast and Walky is the golden boy. It seems like in Linda’s world, it’s okay for men to be black, but not women.

      1. Zach

        We saw in the flashback that she wanted Sal in the acting gig also, but they wouldn’t take her for having curly hair.

        1. cbwroses

          I’m pretty sure they said only one kid could be in the hymnal show and she chose Walky over Sal.
          Unless you’re referring to a different flashback that I’m forgetting.

        2. Needfuldoer

          Yup. There was only one line, so only one child could go, and she picked Walky.

          Earlier in that same flashback, she yells at both of the kids individually for… being rambunctious little kids. They were both running around the same way, but she put more emphasis on yelling at Sal.

          Poor Sal has a lifetime of maternal micro-aggressions to reflect on.

        3. Seregiel

          One is *successful* aka the “good” type of Black and the other is just *not*. – Linda, probably.

    3. Dr. Sharks

      It would be hilarious and heartbreaking if Linda suddenly showed more interest in Sal once she sees Danny.

      1. pope suburban

        Oh, lord, I would just *love* to see how Danny responds to that. I think he’d likely be torn because on the one hand, Sal clearly does still want her family’s approval and he’d be happy to facilitate that (or something that at least looks like that) and try to smooth things over. But on the other hand, Linda is prejudiced and Danny is at least somewhat aware of how her negative treatment has hurt Sal, and that seems pretty likely to bring out his confrontational side.

    4. Amelie Wikström

      The usual line goes, people who marry someone of a different gender sure can manage to still be sexist. . .

  18. RassilonTDavros

    Linda’s smile and optimism: gone

    Nice to see Charles actually talking to Lucy though! Hopefully we get more of that! Even if he’s largely been Linda’s enabler all these years, I feel like he probably has more potential for character growth than she does.

    1. Alongcameaspider

      We already have one husband who realized his marriage was toxic and got out, maybe we can get another

  19. newlland(Henryvolt)

    It’s the little things that show were Linda and Sal stand with each other. Like how Linda doesn’t even face Sals way in order to not look at her, like she’s an eyesore.

  20. GholaHalleck

    It’s gonna be hilarious when Raidah tries to hob knob with linda and her racisms shoots her down so hard Sarah debates joining the republican party.

    1. PB

      Thank you, I needed that laugh. That weirdly satisfied, supervillain laugh. XD

    2. Sombrero

      Linda is open to all kind of hilarious possibilites, like mistaking Carla for Walky’s girlfriend.

      1. Dr. T

        I doubt that she’d react well to Carla, especially after they start talking. If you are bigoted one way, I’m sure you can be bigoted many ways (and if memory serves, she is bigoted against poor people too, so it’s not just one bias she’s operating with).

        1. Sombrero

          Walkerton vs. Rutten: Dawn of Momhood

        2. BBCC

          The good news for us is Mama Rutten has the money to squish Linda like a bug if she so chooses.

  21. Mehe

    Linda, that is your daughter and you have zero right to treat her that way.

    1. Archieve

      Linda only seems to think in terms of what she thinks reflects well on her. A child that isn’t a passive pushover like her husband who will follow her life plan? Not the look she’s going for, just like she can’t be bothered to give Lucy a hand shake, not the daugther in law she’s aiming for.

      1. Archieve

        Edit while she did shake Lucy’s hand it was Lucy taking all the first steps and Linda robotically returning her gestures.

  22. SeanR

    The father MIGHT be redeemable. If he can drop the anchor somewhere…preferably the Marianas Trench.

    I mean, he’s shown his social-climber tendencies since Walky was entering Kindergarten, but here he is being cordial and welcoming to Lucy while the mother gets disturbed by the implications of her son having a relationship with someone who is…not of her choosing.

    And, yes, as DailyBrad said, I love how Walky spelled things out so perfectly.

    1. cbwroses

      I never took that as him being interested in social climbing.
      It just came off as aware of who Senior Billingsworth was.
      I don’t recall anything being said that implied he was hoping to get close to him through Jennifer.

      1. BBCC

        It’s the emphasis on her last name followed by “so you live in that big house” and then asking who’s class she’s in and telling Walky to be nice to Jennifer in school. If it weren’t for the first two, the latter would be fine. Hell, even the first one would be fine without the second part. Put together though it seems like he wanted Walky in good with Jennifer.

        That’s not inherently a bad thing – it seems to have worked out for Jennifer. The problem is they proceeded to treat Jennifer better than their own daughter.

        1. Seregiel

          I’m giving dad a pass on that one and hope that wasn’t classism. I’d have asked about a lone kid that age there too, particularly if there was no one close. And verify where parents are incase there is a problem. Anything after that and the answer is… definitely that.

    2. Hoboturtle

      Dumbing Of Age won’t end until everyone who started married is single and everyone who started single is married.

      The only exception are the few good married pairs. The 3 shall cojoin into a healthy sextuple.

  23. Archieve

    Yeah and she’s going to continue making her own plans with people who actually make her feel wanted Linda, doubling down by telling Sal you wont even extend a courtesy invite to her anymore only makes you look petty and proves shes right to keep her distance.

  24. Jamie

    Damn, Walky. That euphemism went places and I’m not sure you’re ready to go there.

    1. drs

      Is it healthy to have sex to spite your mother

      1. Taffy

        Is there any other way to do it?

      2. BarerMender

        Parent spiting is one of the top three reasons for ill-advised teenage marriages.

  25. Golden Yak

    Lookin’ a lot less excited to meet Lucy there…

  26. Cass

    I sure hope Sal’s affection for Danny is stronger than her disgust towards her mom, because for once she’s the twin who’s going to earn Linda’s approval if she spots them together.

    1. Archieve

      Assuming she looks Sals way long enough to notice who she’s with.

    2. Wereg

      I’d bet on Linda not being enthused over Danny. She just gives me the vibes of someone who thinks women should marry someone from an influential or wealthy family.

      1. Archieve

        Wouldn’t surprise me, Linda’s behaviour towards Sal is no different than from when Sal was putting in the effort to please on parents day. Would be in character for Linda not to care about her daugther relationships unless their from a family that can get her son where she wants him to go in life.

      2. Proxiehunter

        I don’t know. Seems like she’d think Danny was the white guy for Sal.

        1. Allison Branford

          Love the pun, but Danny’d be the wrong guy precisely because Sal chose him. Linda has no trust in Sal, despite all evidence that Sal is more responsible.

  27. BBCC

    Phew! Run, Sal!

    Seriously, tell your parents that you’re heading to Tennessee to pick up something Marcie left there. Say your friends spontaneously decided to go on a road trip this weekend. Literally anything to keep away from these two because otherwise this arc’s gonna get bleak fast.

    Walky, Lucy, make your escape plan too.

    1. Matthew Davis

      Based on yesterday’s strip Walky is fully prepared to fall on this sword so that Lucy and Sal don’t have to.

      1. UrsulaDavina

        It’s the least he could do given that he forgot to tell either of them that they were coming.

    2. Archieve

      Linda is back to ignoring Sal so I could see this being a Walky and Lucy brave the parents alone weekend. I’m actually hoping for that because I think Sal has probably had enough of that these last 5 years to last her a life time.

      1. BBCC

        I’m hoping so but these two being around makes me worry.

  28. Taffy

    Man, I dunno if it’s even my conversation to have, but Linda’s definitely Doing A Thing right now, right? Pretty sure she needs to knock that off and stop sucking.

  29. Proto_Eevee

    Can’t tell of this is racicm again or just a joyce & walky joke

    1. Archieve

      Definitely racist in how she loses all her enthusiasm to hug her little man’s new girlfriend the moment he stands next to Lucy. She and Joyce are cannon almost the same appearance wise and Linda knows nothing about either girl personally to explain liking Joyce so much more.

      1. NubeTrasnochada

        I’m fact she has reasons to really dislike Joyce what with how she had a fight with her parents last semester.

      2. temporaryobsessor

        Agreed, her suddenly losing her enthusiasm when she finds out Walky’s dating Lucy and not white Lucy.
        She’s not about to say it out loud but she’s definitely racist.

  30. Laura

    Such sadness…

  31. k

    Anyone else noticing her eyes getting wider as Walky keeps talking? That shaky smile? Hmm why the face, Linda?

    1. k

      YESS A DANNY!!! Avatar Roulette Win for me!!

  32. shrub

    It’s so strange to see how so many of the mothers are portrayed so negatively given how my mom was basically just warm and loving

    My father on the other hand…

    1. k

      If it makes you feel any better, there were some pretty shitty dads portrayed in here too.

      In all seriousness, though, my condolences. Some parents really just drop the ball when it comes to loving their kids.

    2. Axel

      obviously it’s anecdotal on both of our sides, but pretty much everyone I know has a fucked up mom. Not always in a mean way, but in parentification way, or a substance abuse way, or a ‘missing reasons’ kind of way (but also in mean, racist, homophobic ways).

      (though, like in this comic, at least as many fucked up dads too)

      1. Jason

        I-
        Hmm. Shit, yeah. Now that I think about it… the best mothers in my social circle are “her daughter has nothing bad to say about her except for when she found her dead as a child” (which, obviously, not a flaw but holy shit the impact), and “was trying to raise an autistic child over fifty years ago with all that entailed and also treated her youngest differently enough to her eldest that they’re still carrying that”. Shit goes downhill from there.

        Honestly I think a big problem is that often- not always, but often- bad motherhood involves a lot of emotional damage. Bad fatherhood is more likely to involve absence. (Not saying that’s an inherent difference between genders but more that it’s a socially pushed one.)

  33. Savail

    Can someone help me out with Linda’s “smile” in panel 4? From knowledge of her character, I’m assuming it’s a tight-lipped, forced polite smile?

    Also, I know Sarah is off-screen probably, but I like to imagine she’s running and that Joyce is watching her do so in the last panel where she’s looking off panel.

    1. Archieve

      Exactly, Lucy is smiling and holding out her hand so Linda mirrors the action out of social obligation.

  34. Suet

    Walky sure gets invited to these plans quite often.

    Not even asking if Sal is whispering with anyone, sad.

  35. Maggie

    Linda isn’t even going to try with her daughter, is she?

  36. Kenny Williams

    Honestly after years of trying, she probably has given up on Sal. Thats not saying she’s right to act this way, but Sal is hardley blameless. My curiosity is if she’s rascist why did she marry a black man?

    Also fun remembering the it’s walky strips where him and Joyce were married lol.

    1. Needfuldoer

      “Trying”.

      Uh-huh.

    2. Proxiehunter

      She gave up on Sal the minute Walky came out of the womb whiter than Sal.

    3. Uly

      1. There is no evidence that she was ever a good mother to either child. All flashbacks suggest otherwise.

      2. Sexist people get straight married all the time. Weird, but nobody says somebody can’t be sexist just because his wife is a woman.

    4. Amelie Wikström

      I’m not sure what you want to “blame” Sal for. Her parents have taught her at best they won’t give her any love or support – usually they actually actively work against her – and she has been forced to learn to live without them. Case closed, except for when they find out they do want a relationship with her after all.

      1. NGPZ

        I too know what it’s like to live without parents because of their bigotry. Not fun. ?

    5. Schpoonman

      Nice victim blaming.

  37. Rabid Rabbit

    I honestly hoped Joyce would just run away, because I’d love to see Linda suddenly realize she was stuck alone with a bunch of Black people, even if most of them are related to her.

    Ah well.

  38. Kenny Williams

    Though looking back its hard to remember, Sal’s always been rebellious against her parents right? Strips gone on so long I dont remember.

    Regardless, I look forward to Linda’s eventual flashback or confession to find out what her deal actually is.

    1. BBCC

      Not always, but for a long time. Whenever she started noticing her parents paid more attention to and treated her brother better.

    2. Jason

      Not always, no. As small children Walky is more commonly portrayed as being vaguely… rebellious? That’s not the right word but he was more likely to speak out of turn and not act the good well-mannered little kid, whereas young Sal is portrayed more as quiet and polite.

      The earliest turning point that I recall is over Marcie.

      1. thejeff

        Examples? Because I’m not sure I remember that. The earliest bit I can think of is the acting scene, where they’re both running around and Linda yells at Sal and picks Walky for the part. Then the playground meeting with Marcie.

        I guess the meeting with Jennifer? Though Linda isn’t there. Walky’s showing the little boy grossness with booger jokes and stuff, but he also makes sure to help Jennifer while Sal just runs on ahead.

  39. Hazel

    It looks like Charles might be trying to make Lucy more comfortable. And Linda *did* invite her to lunch, sort of. Maybe the kid can catch a break.

    …I wonder whether he’ll say anything to Sal. Sorry, “Sally”.

    1. Needfuldoer

      And Walky looks a little surprised by this.

  40. CJ

    If Sal actually mirrored her mother completely, she wouldn’t be looking at her but away, too.

  41. Bobcat

    The Walkyverse: am I a joke to you?

  42. eskimolos

    Really, it’s best Linda doesn’t know that her daughter is dating a clean cut nice white boy, the magic of Danny would vanish -instantly- with this woman’s approval.

    1. The Oracle

      It’s a bad spot to be in. Danny is exactly the kind of guy Linda would want for her kid, but if she knows about him, that’s a strange sort of false positivity waiting to happen. Like a parent thinking you picked the car they wanted you to get because it was their idea, when you actually got it because it has good mileage and heated seats for the winter months.

  43. Acher4

    I have to say.
    Linda’s half smile in panel four vs Charle’s full smile in panel five… speaks volumes.

    It makes me wonder… How are they even together?

    1. Bryy

      Appearances.

      Literally that’s it.

    2. Hoboturtle

      A lot of bigots fetishize their targets.

  44. Imp

    I hope Linda gets run over by a brand new combine harvester.

  45. Tarkara

    Linda sure did back dash out of that handshake, huh

    1. Needfuldoer

      She did the backwards stair jump from Mario 64.

  46. Callid13

    Y’know, we always talk about how Linda is treating her kids, but maybe we should also give a thought to how the narrative is treating poor Charles XD

    Like, he’s clearly talking to his son here, but we don’t get to hear what is actually being said because the focus is always on Linda. Guy just can’t catch a break 😡

  47. eh, whatever

    Panel 4: cute overload

  48. Freezer

    I want Joyce and Walky to meet their Walkyverse selves now more than ever!

  49. Thomas

    People have given Charles flack for being a less than stellar parent, but by now it should be clear that he’s still better than Linda, similar to how Hank holds up in comparison to Carol.

    1. Daibhid C

      People have given ditchwater flack for being a less than stellar drink, but it’s better than poison!

  50. Alaric

    Walky: “It’s not like Joyce and I, in some other universe, have some sort of extremely close, ‘meant to be together’ kind of relationship or something.”

    Joyce: “Ew, no. Or like we’re, yuck, MARRIED or something. Or together in every possible world.”

    Walky: “Why would anybody even THINK that?!”

  51. Sombrero

    Joyce/Walky: Gross and weird (and seemingly Canadian). Those were the times.

  52. Hat

    For the record, I would totally enjoy seeing Joyce and Walky get together. (Ignoring that I enjoy Joe/Joyce, and Lucy’s… fine).

    They’re both silly but can be serious. They’re both immature and actively growing (everyone is, but I feel like those two moreso). They both find each other attractive. They both can drive each other crazy, but also are fundamentally good people.

    1. Blue

      There’s another Willis comic about that

      1. Needfuldoer

        Several, in fact!

    2. Angel

      i can imagine a situation where they’ve already graduated and reconnect like, 15 years later after both or one of them have been through a divorce or so, this version of joyce/walky rn feels more like siblings to me but to each their own

      Or the classic adhd/autism ship XD

  53. Sombrero

    I’m just realized that maybeee Linda didn’t intend to invite Lucy for lunch and just reacted to Sal rejection.

    1. HueSatLight

      oh. I see it now too.

    2. Angel

      i’d hope she’d extend a courtesy to lucy even if she didn’t like her as much as dorothy

      but either way unless they all s tayed at the school cafeteria i’m sure walky would’ve been like “hey join us for lunch so im not stuck in an awkward one on one lunch with my parents”

  54. Hof1991

    Lucy likes where the previously quiet Walky is headed.

  55. Shade of Blue

    Quite a few women in my life have experienced similar situations with their mothers. The particulars are different but in general it seems that after reaching a certain age their mothers suddenly seemed to resent them. I’ve heard of intentional neglect, bizarre accusations, exploitation and generally spiteful behavior from mothers toward their daughters in these situations. Sal reminds me of a couple of these women and her experience with her mother seems similar. Their mutual resentment has grown over time and ossified.

    1. thejeff

      “After reaching a certain age”, which in Sal’s case seems to be “as a toddler”?

      1. Shade of Blue

        Oh yeah, I forgot about some of those flashbacks.

        The women im thinking of describe hitting like 9 or 10 when this behavior starts.

    2. Schpoonman

      Did you read any of the flashback strips concerning Sal? There were a lot of them. Linda was the aggressor every time.

      1. Shade of Blue

        Never said Linda wasn’t the aggressor or that the behavior I described comes entirely from the mom.

  56. TerribleTransit

    Just some random observations:

    1. Despite his anxieties, Walky really has been consistently reaffirming his commitment to Lucy and their relationship lately. I don’t know if they’ll make it long-term but I really hope this is enough evidence for the doomers saying they need to break up right now because he’s not interested. I know it’s not gonna be, but I can hope.

    2. Look at Charles go. Being an okay parent and actually taking an interest and getting to know his son’s significant other. Walky doesn’t even look too upset so maybe he’s not being too disagreeable (I think Lucy would be smiling regardless given her reaction to Linda)

  57. LIGHTWEIGHT BAYBEE

    Joyce and Walky
    no way
    i mean c’mon
    It’s Walky!
    i can’t even see them as
    Roomies

    1. Kazuma Taichi

      it’s a crime that it got this late in the day and you’re the first one to pull this wordplay

    2. Vanessa

      Very nice!

  58. Mark

    Panels 1 and 2: uh-oh! we know what that means!

  59. Juanoku

    I have to wonder how this raging racist married a black man

    1. TheScreenJockey

      A HUGE number of racists have a one or two people of color in their lives, whom they believe to be “different” from all the OTHER people of color they don’t know but are sure are awful. THAT person may have somehow gotten past the prejudice to actually be recognized as an individual, but that doesn’t stop them from continuing to put all the other POC they meet into a nasty little bin.

      1. TheScreenJockey

        I know because I’m often the person of color who they regard as the “exception.” Due to the circumstances of my upbringing, education, and career, I’ve been the only black person in a LOT of white people’s lives. And they all liked me just fine. Some liked me a LOT, and I considered them friends for a while, but that didn’t stop them from still being racists. None of those people are in my life anymore, but it’s a kind of person I have a great deal of experience with, and pretty often spot that dynamic when other black folks are in it.

    2. GholaHalleck

      Calling they had a fling, she got pregnant with Sal, had to marry him because reasons. Walky happened because “we fucked up one kid, let’s try for real this time”

      1. Huttj

        Aren’t Sal and Walky twins?

    3. Diane

      He’s only half. Remember, he’s only half black when you want to pull the “I’m not a racist” card. Otherwise, I’m sure she just thinks of him as half white.

      https://www.dumbingofage.com/2013/comic/book-3/04-just-hangin-out-with-my-family/whitelady/

  60. HueSatLight

    Speaking of walkyverse counterparts and Linda and Charles, I hope Beef will still be a funny bonus strip nominee in three weeks.

  61. Angel

    oofl well at least she isn’t draggin sal into a lunch but i assume during their breaks they probably argued a lot

  62. Felian

    Well, duh
    How can you expect your daughter to not have made lunch plans if she did not even know that you were visiting her?
    excuse me for having a life that does not plan for my parents *possibly* coming for a visit….
    If she *wanted* to hang out with Sal, she should have talked to BOTH her kids. But we already know she doesn’t treat her kids equally…….

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