i mean she never got an explanation/told about the suicide pact but i don’t think she has bad intentions/would be trying to break up ruth and jason (tho we haven’t seen him in a while either)
Alice clearly loves to stir shit (although in a less self-aware and malicious way than Jennifer), but everyone knows about Ruth and Jen. This is clearly Alice coming down from the initial high of wanting Billie to be a good person.
I think she still wants that, but she doesn’t want to be burned again.
BorkBorkBork
I think she’s checking to make sure there aren’t any hidden red flags, along with assessing a potential romantic rival.
If we get like two more strips of Alice and Ruth, then nothing, ten bucks says the next time we see them is at the start of the next morning, waking up together.
Bryy
I’m waiting to see if Jennifer trolling for recommendations comes back around to her, and from who.
I think officially it’s still Jennifer, she’s just so excited that Alice is talking to her again that she hasn’t wanted to correct her/doesn’t care that much about the name she’s being called when Alice is saying it/doesn’t want to accidentally scare her off again by being The Ultimate Bongo who goes by Jennifer now.
It’s purposefully unclear. I’ve been swapping occasionally. I also like that some commentators use “Billifer” that’s fun. Jennifer at least still seems mostly appropriate until she states otherwise just cause she still tagged as such.
Dot
I’ve just never stopped calling her Billie because the Jennifer thing was part of her eye-rolling attempt to reinvent herself as totally mature and above it all and I wanted to play no part in it.
I have to admit, I was more than a little confused when people in the comments treated it like it’s Preferred Pronouns and not like… The insecure change of a 19 year old cartoon.
Sirksome
Because that shouldn’t matter. You call people what they want to be called. Now Jennifer/Billie is a fictional character so in this context it doesn’t matter, but I won’t fault people for respecting it. Booster actually had this problem in comic where their ex roommate wouldn’t respect their name choice so they moved rooms.
thejeff
It doesn’t matter because she’s fictional certainly, but some of the arguments for why commenters didn’t want to call her Jennifer hit a little too close. Even “it’s just the insecure change of a 19 year old” seems like something that could be said about a lot of trans people coming out in college.
She is Jennifer with basically most people, but did not correct Alice when she called her “Billie” and she went with it, which I think was definitely a bit of building towards what will likely be a payoff for the crisis of self she’s been having since the Ruth breakup.
well considering she went to high school i assume she knows her real name but the emphasis that ruth put on billiefers name implies that alice prolly hasn’t been calling her that
I put Big Money™ into one of the book Kickstarters a good few years ago. Probably Book 10, since that’s where my physical collection ends. It was like $200 – $300 for the Makeout Tier, any two characters of your choice, and I chose very carefully.
oh my god the inevitable collision of Alice and Booster is going to be amazing.
Booster is going to hate her.
anonymsly
Or love her. I don’t know that Alice is faking anything or pretending anything, she’s seemed comparatively direct and straightforward. She might actually be WYSIWIG.
I mean, the answer is “because she’s Billie,” I feel like that should be enough lol. I don’t think there’s enough time in the comic left for someone to list every red flag Billie exhibits in any given appearance.
Regardless, Alice is kind of putting the cart a little before the horse I think lol. She stopped hating/avoiding her less than 48 hours ago.
Yeah, idk why Alice would suddenly be hopping back on the “I wanna be with Billie” train so quickly. As she herself admits Billie is still carrying a torch for Ruth and I’m not sure how receptive Billie would be to dating Alice – she was very keen to get her back as a friend, but something more than that? I dunno.
I mean I think she never got off the train, but rather for a while was convinced (correctly, one could very well argue) that she really really really SHOULD get off the train.
Sirksome
Yeah, in retrospect Alice was still always down bad. It kinda changes how ya read their first reunion strip from years ago.
Leorale
Yeah. Alice fell in love with Billie, realized that Billie was an unsafe partner*, and painfully distanced herself from her.
She still loves Billie, so she wants to find out if Billie is acting safe now.**
Ruth had a kinda similar trajectory, except that Ruth and Billie were unsafe for each other, what with the alcoholic suicide pact.
*prom night, Billie got dramatically drunk, drove, smashed the two of them into a tree: they could’ve died, and Billie’s actions afterwards didn’t suggest that this event was any kind of wakeup call.
**pretty sure she’s changed her name but learned nothing
Clif
The thing is, Ruth broke up with her when they were in a good place because Ruth didn’t believe it could last.
On some level she may have also been depending on Jennifer over-riding her decision, as she had promised to do, and might have in fact done if not for Radiah snagging her as part of her campaign to isolate Joyce and Sarah. (There’s too many she’s and hers in that sentence, but hopefully you can follow it okay.)
That’s the strange thing about their relationship, and why it worked so well – yes, they were both self destructive and had some serious WTFery about it, but they also pushed each other to be better and to GET better, and neither of them would be in a healthy place right now (or, potentially, be ANYplace right now) if they weren’t together. Granted, Jennifer/Billie really isn’t where she needs to be yet, but Ruth is a LOT more stable now specifically because of her relationship with Billie and the fact that Billie pushed her to be a better person. Even if it was half to spite her and get their whole angry sex thing going again.
True – but she’s also no longer trying to drink herself numb/to death, so that’s still a huge improvement over where she was. Also, she’s able to function as an effective RA, which she wasn’t really able to do before her relationship, so… Stable and much improved, but not perfect. Which is still a huge improvement over where she was at the start of the series.
superglucose
It is possible to change your relationship with alcohol to something that is… well, not healthy, because it’s *alcohol,* but something reasonable.
(I know because I lived it.)
thejeff
It’s possible, but in Ruth’s case? It just seems to have happened, which makes me not trust it. She was an alcoholic and the next time we see her it’s fine for her to drink because she’s of age and it doesn’t interfere with her new medication?
I don’t think she’s asking ABOUT dating specifically, it think it’s more, “Hey you clearly care about her but put some distance between yourselves. I did the same thing once, but people are saying she’s changed. This isn’t lining up, is there maybe something I should know/some reason I SHOULD be keeping myself distant?”
She’s pretty openly in love with trainwrecks and drama and looooooves some hot gossip, and you’ve seen them antagonize and play with each other so far. The reason Alice cut off Billie was because she knew she couldn’t resist her.
Now we’re at the next step of that process – bargaining herself into *still* not being able to resist her.
I know this is borferline blasphemy to say this, but maybe Alice do not specifically seeks a romantic relationship with Jennifer, but sumply seeks to kbow if even just a friendship relationship with her would not turn out toxic.
Clif
Or perhaps having sex with Jennifer meant more to Alice than it did to Jennifer.
Bryy
I think we have enough evidence to suggest that it meant something to Jennifer (“doesn’t mean it wasn’t important”), even if she herself has contradicted that (“Sex with your best friend is no big deal”). I think Jennifer views sex as just something people do rather than anything special.
thejeff
She’s specifically asking Ruth if there’s a big important reason she shouldn’t be with Jennifer. She’s definitely talking about a romantic relationship.
GUIGUI
Toxicity in romantic relationships can also transpire in friendship ones.
And someone who has been in a romantic relationship with a person might know them better.
Here, what is relevant is that it’s Ruth who informed Alice in the first place that Jennifer was a good person. But Ruth having broken up with Jen, it make sens that Alice might perceive the Jen-Ruth break up as being at odds with what Ruth told her.
So Ruth being the one who told Alice in the first place that Jen is good, but they are also broken up while Jen still seems to have feeling for Ruth is enough of a discrepancy to investigate, for lack of better word.
Just as there are “friends withbenefits” there are also “friends with consequences.” ?
thejeff
Yes, it is possible in general, but I think her phrasing implies she’s asking about a reason she shouldn’t “be with” Jennifer. in the same way that Ruth had reasons not to be with her.
192 thoughts on “Calm your tits”
NGPZ
Ruth can get real hot, can’t she? 😛
NGPZ
(NG, no, get to sleep before you make any more stupid puns)
Tequila Mockingbird
Probably good idea. Probably don’t want to start a… flame war. ?
NGPZ
too late :p
pineapple pizza is good
Shiro
That is such a diplomatic way to put that, Alice
Sirksome
……..Don’t trust Alice.
Dot
But then who are we going to go ask?
Proxiehunter
Even when she’s ten feet tall?
JR
I dunno, go ask.
CianM1301
Well no, because that’s not Alice, that’s Um from Umbrage.
DJTsurugi
I’ve just had some kind of mushroom… and my mind is moving low. ~<3
JA
Only if she’s also made of radiation.
anon
i mean she never got an explanation/told about the suicide pact but i don’t think she has bad intentions/would be trying to break up ruth and jason (tho we haven’t seen him in a while either)
Bryy
Alice clearly loves to stir shit (although in a less self-aware and malicious way than Jennifer), but everyone knows about Ruth and Jen. This is clearly Alice coming down from the initial high of wanting Billie to be a good person.
Needfuldoer
I think she still wants that, but she doesn’t want to be burned again.
BorkBorkBork
I think she’s checking to make sure there aren’t any hidden red flags, along with assessing a potential romantic rival.
If we get like two more strips of Alice and Ruth, then nothing, ten bucks says the next time we see them is at the start of the next morning, waking up together.
Bryy
I’m waiting to see if Jennifer trolling for recommendations comes back around to her, and from who.
Svankensen
The gasoline soaked clothes are in the special bag.
Svankensen
Damn, the hovertext beat me to it.
Ray Radlein
oh my
Nono
Okay, so Alice knows that Billie goes by Jennifer for some people at least.
Bittersweet
Does she go by Billie or Jennifer now? I’ve been confused since Alice showed back up and she just went back to being referred to as Billie by her.
Dot
Most people still call her Jennifer but Alice never got that memo.
SunflowerBanjo
I think officially it’s still Jennifer, she’s just so excited that Alice is talking to her again that she hasn’t wanted to correct her/doesn’t care that much about the name she’s being called when Alice is saying it/doesn’t want to accidentally scare her off again by being The Ultimate Bongo who goes by Jennifer now.
Sirksome
It’s purposefully unclear. I’ve been swapping occasionally. I also like that some commentators use “Billifer” that’s fun. Jennifer at least still seems mostly appropriate until she states otherwise just cause she still tagged as such.
Dot
I’ve just never stopped calling her Billie because the Jennifer thing was part of her eye-rolling attempt to reinvent herself as totally mature and above it all and I wanted to play no part in it.
Justnobodyfqwl
I have to admit, I was more than a little confused when people in the comments treated it like it’s Preferred Pronouns and not like… The insecure change of a 19 year old cartoon.
Sirksome
Because that shouldn’t matter. You call people what they want to be called. Now Jennifer/Billie is a fictional character so in this context it doesn’t matter, but I won’t fault people for respecting it. Booster actually had this problem in comic where their ex roommate wouldn’t respect their name choice so they moved rooms.
thejeff
It doesn’t matter because she’s fictional certainly, but some of the arguments for why commenters didn’t want to call her Jennifer hit a little too close. Even “it’s just the insecure change of a 19 year old” seems like something that could be said about a lot of trans people coming out in college.
apricot
I love calling her Billifer, it’s very cute imo
morleuca
I like to think if Billifer as an intentionally incompetent Lucifer.
DailyBrad
She is Jennifer with basically most people, but did not correct Alice when she called her “Billie” and she went with it, which I think was definitely a bit of building towards what will likely be a payoff for the crisis of self she’s been having since the Ruth breakup.
anon
well considering she went to high school i assume she knows her real name but the emphasis that ruth put on billiefers name implies that alice prolly hasn’t been calling her that
Dot
RUTH MY DARLING I HAVE MISSED YOU
True Survivor
I, too, have always enjoyed her stories.
Donovan
Our queen is here
Taffy
A breath of fresh air, this woman.
GMOrganism
This comment combined with that gravatar is… Quite something.
Clif
The gravatar alone is quite something.
Jernacious
Someone is acting with integrity, no regrets I see. 😉
Sirksome
Does Willis draw these on commission?
Taffy
I put Big Money™ into one of the book Kickstarters a good few years ago. Probably Book 10, since that’s where my physical collection ends. It was like $200 – $300 for the Makeout Tier, any two characters of your choice, and I chose very carefully.
shadowcell
excuse me, just need to go act with integrity over here
Ray Radlein
Well, now we know why Alice’s Drama Radar didn’t lock in on Dorothy and Joyce and Hank: It was swamped by its own signal.
Myra V
Which does raise the question – where’s Booster during all this tasty drama?
Bryy
oh my god the inevitable collision of Alice and Booster is going to be amazing.
Booster is going to hate her.
anonymsly
Or love her. I don’t know that Alice is faking anything or pretending anything, she’s seemed comparatively direct and straightforward. She might actually be WYSIWIG.
Bittersweet
I mean, the answer is “because she’s Billie,” I feel like that should be enough lol. I don’t think there’s enough time in the comic left for someone to list every red flag Billie exhibits in any given appearance.
Regardless, Alice is kind of putting the cart a little before the horse I think lol. She stopped hating/avoiding her less than 48 hours ago.
Dot
Yeah, idk why Alice would suddenly be hopping back on the “I wanna be with Billie” train so quickly. As she herself admits Billie is still carrying a torch for Ruth and I’m not sure how receptive Billie would be to dating Alice – she was very keen to get her back as a friend, but something more than that? I dunno.
Lee
I mean I think she never got off the train, but rather for a while was convinced (correctly, one could very well argue) that she really really really SHOULD get off the train.
Sirksome
Yeah, in retrospect Alice was still always down bad. It kinda changes how ya read their first reunion strip from years ago.
Leorale
Yeah. Alice fell in love with Billie, realized that Billie was an unsafe partner*, and painfully distanced herself from her.
She still loves Billie, so she wants to find out if Billie is acting safe now.**
Ruth had a kinda similar trajectory, except that Ruth and Billie were unsafe for each other, what with the alcoholic suicide pact.
*prom night, Billie got dramatically drunk, drove, smashed the two of them into a tree: they could’ve died, and Billie’s actions afterwards didn’t suggest that this event was any kind of wakeup call.
**pretty sure she’s changed her name but learned nothing
Clif
The thing is, Ruth broke up with her when they were in a good place because Ruth didn’t believe it could last.
On some level she may have also been depending on Jennifer over-riding her decision, as she had promised to do, and might have in fact done if not for Radiah snagging her as part of her campaign to isolate Joyce and Sarah. (There’s too many she’s and hers in that sentence, but hopefully you can follow it okay.)
Myra V
That’s the strange thing about their relationship, and why it worked so well – yes, they were both self destructive and had some serious WTFery about it, but they also pushed each other to be better and to GET better, and neither of them would be in a healthy place right now (or, potentially, be ANYplace right now) if they weren’t together. Granted, Jennifer/Billie really isn’t where she needs to be yet, but Ruth is a LOT more stable now specifically because of her relationship with Billie and the fact that Billie pushed her to be a better person. Even if it was half to spite her and get their whole angry sex thing going again.
thejeff
OTOH, Ruth has been drinking and Jennifer hasn’t.
Myra V
True – but she’s also no longer trying to drink herself numb/to death, so that’s still a huge improvement over where she was. Also, she’s able to function as an effective RA, which she wasn’t really able to do before her relationship, so… Stable and much improved, but not perfect. Which is still a huge improvement over where she was at the start of the series.
superglucose
It is possible to change your relationship with alcohol to something that is… well, not healthy, because it’s *alcohol,* but something reasonable.
(I know because I lived it.)
thejeff
It’s possible, but in Ruth’s case? It just seems to have happened, which makes me not trust it. She was an alcoholic and the next time we see her it’s fine for her to drink because she’s of age and it doesn’t interfere with her new medication?
SunflowerBanjo
I don’t think she’s asking ABOUT dating specifically, it think it’s more, “Hey you clearly care about her but put some distance between yourselves. I did the same thing once, but people are saying she’s changed. This isn’t lining up, is there maybe something I should know/some reason I SHOULD be keeping myself distant?”
DashWallkick
She’s pretty openly in love with trainwrecks and drama and looooooves some hot gossip, and you’ve seen them antagonize and play with each other so far. The reason Alice cut off Billie was because she knew she couldn’t resist her.
Now we’re at the next step of that process – bargaining herself into *still* not being able to resist her.
GUIGUI
I know this is borferline blasphemy to say this, but maybe Alice do not specifically seeks a romantic relationship with Jennifer, but sumply seeks to kbow if even just a friendship relationship with her would not turn out toxic.
Clif
Or perhaps having sex with Jennifer meant more to Alice than it did to Jennifer.
Bryy
I think we have enough evidence to suggest that it meant something to Jennifer (“doesn’t mean it wasn’t important”), even if she herself has contradicted that (“Sex with your best friend is no big deal”). I think Jennifer views sex as just something people do rather than anything special.
thejeff
She’s specifically asking Ruth if there’s a big important reason she shouldn’t be with Jennifer. She’s definitely talking about a romantic relationship.
GUIGUI
Toxicity in romantic relationships can also transpire in friendship ones.
And someone who has been in a romantic relationship with a person might know them better.
Here, what is relevant is that it’s Ruth who informed Alice in the first place that Jennifer was a good person. But Ruth having broken up with Jen, it make sens that Alice might perceive the Jen-Ruth break up as being at odds with what Ruth told her.
So Ruth being the one who told Alice in the first place that Jen is good, but they are also broken up while Jen still seems to have feeling for Ruth is enough of a discrepancy to investigate, for lack of better word.
Tequila Mockingbird
Just as there are “friends withbenefits” there are also “friends with consequences.” ?
thejeff
Yes, it is possible in general, but I think her phrasing implies she’s asking about a reason she shouldn’t “be with” Jennifer. in the same way that Ruth had reasons not to be with her.
Amós Batista
I don’t believe I’m gonna say: Joyce’s family situation is better than this.
Is Alice going to open Pandora’s Box? Asking it to Ruth??
anon
i mean as far as we know, billiefers still dstopped drinking tho idk if she’s been to a therapyist since
Astariel
She did tell Joyce that she sounded like her therapist two days ago, so I think she probably is still going to one.
Dave Van Domelen
Angry tits.
Animedingo
Mammary calamity