She’s basically the American version of a princess.
An heiress who’s already financially set for life and she KNOWS it.
Thomas
I wonder how much of this feeds into her insufferability? I mean, this is certainly a factor with Jennifer, whose parents are also well-off. And it certainly contributed to her mental well-being, enabling her to transition with relative ease. And financially privileged people tend to behave as if they’re above critique. Everyone around them is of lesser importance and thus unable to shame them. I like Carla for who she is, but her behavior fits a pattern that makes me rethink what she represents.
Thag Simmons
We have good reason to believe that Carla’s transition was in fact, massively stressful. Jacob’s brother made his name fighting transphobic legislation, knows Carla on a first name basis, and Carla assumes everyone knows who she is.
It really seems like her transition was litigated in a prominent court case, and even if you win that fight that was still probably not a great experience.
Deya View
Yeah, a lot of trans people deal with a lot of shit already in their lives during transition, so many of them kind of have to end up becoming their own hype-person and act with a ton of faked self-confidence and importance, because everybody else (it feels like) is already working to bring them down. Some can end up being a bit insufferable to other people who aren’t close to them as a result.
Joy
I am so glad that Amber dumped this man.
Joy
Sorry that was intended as a root comment.
BBCC
Carla’s coming out ended up on the cover of Newsweek, because she’s the child of kazillionaires and Carla explicitly thanked Jacob’s brother for his help with the court case, so it was definitely related to her.
Thomas
There is a possibility that Harrison assisting Carla in court and Harrison helping defeat anti-trans legislation are two distinct cases. Which I kinda hope, since the combination would certainly have been more stressful for Carla than just the litigation against the magazine.
thejeff
Theoretically, but narratively it just isn’t going to happen.
Ari
Yeah, I had always assumed he just helped her out with the name change paperwork
Uly
Honestly, even if the parents are 100% supportive, and also you’re Carla, having your transition on the cover of Newsweek does not sound like a fun time.
Joy
Honestly and like I know Jennifer is half white but I genuinely think that a lot of crap that Jennifer gets from the fan base is because she’s an Asian woman that doesn’t act overly submissive/docile/servile towards other characters. :/
Thomas
Naw, Jennifer is just not very nice. She has good qualities, but they’re buried deep and only occasionally break to the surface. Like Walky, she was designed as a “white” character and was only perceived as non-white by the audience, until Willis decided to lean into that perception to diversivy his cast. As a result, Jennifer being of Asian descent is still very much an informed aspect instead of somehow integral to the character, while Dina much more closely resembles the stereotype you describe, albeit not for cultural reasons. The funny thing is I don’t resent Malaya for her behavior, since she’s equally unpleasant towards almost everybody, while I think Jennifer is a bongo who is capable of being a much better person.
Azhrei Vep
Naw. I can’t speak for everyone else, but I forget she’s supposed to half-asian until someone brings it up. It’s not brought up enough to really stand out about her.
FrivYeti
I think a decent percentage of Carla’s behaviour can be explained by a combination of immense privilege and intense oppression. She’s in a really weird place intersectionality-wise, and it’s going to have some weird effects.
Ari
I think in Jennifer’s case it was specifically the money in combination with the emotional neglect from her parents that led to her being so superficial and egotistical
Based on what we’ve witnessed from them thus far, I bet they could “get over” any latent transphobia real fuckin’ quick once they realized their little social climber was schtuppin’ a billionaire heiress!
Also if they found out about Carla being trans (does Walky actually know that?) well Carla doesn’t deserve to hear the shit that might spill out Linda’s mouth about that.
Walky seems to think Linda would be fine with him bringing home a white guy but being fine with you son being gay/bi isn’t necessarily the same as being fine with your son dating a trans woman.
and he’s calling Amber, and likely to explain the situation to her.
elebenty
I can imagine him opening with “Wanna prank my mom?”
Aslan
Are they not sitcom-addled idiots though?
Aslan
Also, I’d like to point out that Linda was on a warpath to get Amber expelled not too long ago. When they call her the “worst white girl,” it’s probably because of that. Still a terrible idea, but possibly not as disrespectful as it seems
Joy
Omg it’s Sal’s boyfriend’s ex girlfriend who stabbed her and she’s going to show up right now when Sal’s parents are finally approving of her. I want to watch this actually.
She hates the morons who let a kidnapper who brought a gun to her kids school out so he could kidnap her precious angel and Sal.
I don’t recall any other evidence she hates fandamentalists as a rule though.
Because A, Mary isn’t likely to agree to be the “bad example”, and B, she might not display the absurd christian fundie judgementalism/hypocrisy that makes her the worst. It’s sad, but you can’t necessarily count on a shitty person to display their shittiest qualities at the most convenient times unless you’ve pre-arranged it with them, and I get the feeling Mary wouldn’t be particularly amenable to that. She might decide to be genuinely delightful just to spite them.
Cholma
Plus, Linda would probably *like* Mary.
Plaaaa
Also Mary’s got a boyfriend. While she’s the kind of person would justify to herself seeing another man behind his back, publically being seen pretending to date someone else would be cheating!
Also I don’t think Walky has any idea who Mary is. She could be “the other fundie who went further into the deep end as opposed to Joyce who’s trying to get out” or possibly “the anime fan who thinks she’s an artist”, but definitely not “the bigot tried to get the girls’ RA to kill herself”.
thejeff
Walky was there for “the bigot tried to get the girls’ RA to kill herself”
she’s into girls, kind of a deal breaker.
also, if she’s anything like her walkyverse counterpart, she’s probably ace too, tho that one doesn’t really affect anything.
So true, bestie. Walky could totally be into conservative GILFs.
Yotomoe
Like father like son.
Sirksome
Not a GILF. Carol’s just an old lady. Nothing grand about her unfortunately.
Decidedly Orthogonal
Some people are grand to begin with, others have grandness thrust upon them. But were she my mom, there’s not a snow ball’s chance she’d ever get to be unsupervised around my kids.
As amazing as the thought of “Walky and Mary are forced to team up and pretend to date for some reason” is, none of Mary’s flaws are dealbreakers to the Walkertons.
378 thoughts on “Commended”
DarkoNeko
Bzzt bzzt
Clif
This will end well.
Mark
And the comic once again earns its name….
Ana Chronistic
how is it not Carla
“she’s loaded”
…oh yeah
Wack'd
There is almost nothing Carla could do to or around Linda that Linda wouldn’t put a brave face on, yeah
Mr. Random
She’s basically the American version of a princess.
An heiress who’s already financially set for life and she KNOWS it.
Thomas
I wonder how much of this feeds into her insufferability? I mean, this is certainly a factor with Jennifer, whose parents are also well-off. And it certainly contributed to her mental well-being, enabling her to transition with relative ease. And financially privileged people tend to behave as if they’re above critique. Everyone around them is of lesser importance and thus unable to shame them. I like Carla for who she is, but her behavior fits a pattern that makes me rethink what she represents.
Thag Simmons
We have good reason to believe that Carla’s transition was in fact, massively stressful. Jacob’s brother made his name fighting transphobic legislation, knows Carla on a first name basis, and Carla assumes everyone knows who she is.
It really seems like her transition was litigated in a prominent court case, and even if you win that fight that was still probably not a great experience.
Deya View
Yeah, a lot of trans people deal with a lot of shit already in their lives during transition, so many of them kind of have to end up becoming their own hype-person and act with a ton of faked self-confidence and importance, because everybody else (it feels like) is already working to bring them down. Some can end up being a bit insufferable to other people who aren’t close to them as a result.
Joy
I am so glad that Amber dumped this man.
Joy
Sorry that was intended as a root comment.
BBCC
Carla’s coming out ended up on the cover of Newsweek, because she’s the child of kazillionaires and Carla explicitly thanked Jacob’s brother for his help with the court case, so it was definitely related to her.
Thomas
There is a possibility that Harrison assisting Carla in court and Harrison helping defeat anti-trans legislation are two distinct cases. Which I kinda hope, since the combination would certainly have been more stressful for Carla than just the litigation against the magazine.
thejeff
Theoretically, but narratively it just isn’t going to happen.
Ari
Yeah, I had always assumed he just helped her out with the name change paperwork
Uly
Honestly, even if the parents are 100% supportive, and also you’re Carla, having your transition on the cover of Newsweek does not sound like a fun time.
Joy
Honestly and like I know Jennifer is half white but I genuinely think that a lot of crap that Jennifer gets from the fan base is because she’s an Asian woman that doesn’t act overly submissive/docile/servile towards other characters. :/
Thomas
Naw, Jennifer is just not very nice. She has good qualities, but they’re buried deep and only occasionally break to the surface. Like Walky, she was designed as a “white” character and was only perceived as non-white by the audience, until Willis decided to lean into that perception to diversivy his cast. As a result, Jennifer being of Asian descent is still very much an informed aspect instead of somehow integral to the character, while Dina much more closely resembles the stereotype you describe, albeit not for cultural reasons. The funny thing is I don’t resent Malaya for her behavior, since she’s equally unpleasant towards almost everybody, while I think Jennifer is a bongo who is capable of being a much better person.
Azhrei Vep
Naw. I can’t speak for everyone else, but I forget she’s supposed to half-asian until someone brings it up. It’s not brought up enough to really stand out about her.
FrivYeti
I think a decent percentage of Carla’s behaviour can be explained by a combination of immense privilege and intense oppression. She’s in a really weird place intersectionality-wise, and it’s going to have some weird effects.
Ari
I think in Jennifer’s case it was specifically the money in combination with the emotional neglect from her parents that led to her being so superficial and egotistical
thejeff
Not to mention alcoholic and depressed.
Throwatron
Based on what we’ve witnessed from them thus far, I bet they could “get over” any latent transphobia real fuckin’ quick once they realized their little social climber was schtuppin’ a billionaire heiress!
Proxiehunter
That would probably help though. Although that might lead to her trying to meddle to make sure Walky winds up married to Carla.
Proxiehunter
Also if they found out about Carla being trans (does Walky actually know that?) well Carla doesn’t deserve to hear the shit that might spill out Linda’s mouth about that.
Walky seems to think Linda would be fine with him bringing home a white guy but being fine with you son being gay/bi isn’t necessarily the same as being fine with your son dating a trans woman.
Wack'd
Linda might know Carla is trans if she follows local politics or reads Newsweek.
Thag Simmons
Carla’s transition is implied to have been the subject of a pretty high profile lawsuit, so it’s not hard to imagine Linda knowing.
Dara
Carla is large and in charge.
Why not Mary.
BarerMender
Just what I was thinking.
Vanessa
That is it! Mary. I suddenly despise both Walky and Lucy for a) disrespecting Amber like this b) pulling this cheap trick like sitcom-addled idiots.
darkgloomie
Amber loudly and proudly proclaimed herself to be garbage, and Walky was there with her on that particular train ride.
He’s not disrespecting her, but the ways she’s “bad girlfriend material” are all safe for him to interact. Unlike actual garbage people like Mary
liliaeth
and he’s calling Amber, and likely to explain the situation to her.
elebenty
I can imagine him opening with “Wanna prank my mom?”
Aslan
Are they not sitcom-addled idiots though?
Aslan
Also, I’d like to point out that Linda was on a warpath to get Amber expelled not too long ago. When they call her the “worst white girl,” it’s probably because of that. Still a terrible idea, but possibly not as disrespectful as it seems
Joy
Omg it’s Sal’s boyfriend’s ex girlfriend who stabbed her and she’s going to show up right now when Sal’s parents are finally approving of her. I want to watch this actually.
StClair
Walky definitely is.
0xKruzr
Mary would never help without an angle, tho.
ElderlyMarxist
i did think it was rude to amber ?
ElderlyMarxist
but other people have pointed out that linda hates amber specifically, so
temporaryobsessor
Because she’s terrible in a way his mom might approve of.
TulipKitten
His mom, as far as I remember, hates religious fundamentalists, so I think it would probably work better than Amber.
Needfuldoer
She very specifically hates Amber, because of the stabby-stabby and kidnapping stuff.
https://www.dumbingofage.com/justify-2/
Question is, will she know who Amber is on sight?
elebenty
Great memory, thank you!
temporaryobsessor
She hates the morons who let a kidnapper who brought a gun to her kids school out so he could kidnap her precious angel and Sal.
I don’t recall any other evidence she hates fandamentalists as a rule though.
NGPZ
DING DING DING tell ’em what they’ve won!
Psychie
Because A, Mary isn’t likely to agree to be the “bad example”, and B, she might not display the absurd christian fundie judgementalism/hypocrisy that makes her the worst. It’s sad, but you can’t necessarily count on a shitty person to display their shittiest qualities at the most convenient times unless you’ve pre-arranged it with them, and I get the feeling Mary wouldn’t be particularly amenable to that. She might decide to be genuinely delightful just to spite them.
Cholma
Plus, Linda would probably *like* Mary.
Plaaaa
Also Mary’s got a boyfriend. While she’s the kind of person would justify to herself seeing another man behind his back, publically being seen pretending to date someone else would be cheating!
Amelie Wikström
Also I don’t think Walky has any idea who Mary is. She could be “the other fundie who went further into the deep end as opposed to Joyce who’s trying to get out” or possibly “the anime fan who thinks she’s an artist”, but definitely not “the bigot tried to get the girls’ RA to kill herself”.
thejeff
Walky was there for “the bigot tried to get the girls’ RA to kill herself”
Amelie Wikström
Must have forgotten that. Though I’m more annoyed about forgetting the “who” in that sentence.
StClair
Mary is the annoying girl with the scarf that his self-critical inner voice escaped into.
Freezer
Because not only would Mary say “no”, she’d insist on explaining why she refused.
Ophidiophile
Isn’t Mary engaged?
TulipKitten
To be fair, Carla didn’t stab Sal and her dad didn’t kidnap Walky.
ElderlyMarxist
i’d say ‘how is it not ruth’ but ruth would probably murder him for considering it
AlexaSpuds
she’s into girls, kind of a deal breaker.
also, if she’s anything like her walkyverse counterpart, she’s probably ace too, tho that one doesn’t really affect anything.
Angel
plus carla and walky aren’t exactly friends lol
Rose by Any Other Name
GARBAGESKOW!
Wack'd
i’m not saying the walky/amber tows garbage, i’m saying it should be towed away AS garbage
Dan
Wow, unexpected Star Trek: TOS reference! Nice!
Poskie
Why, it’s Mary, of course!
MM
Carol might still be lurking around.
Poskie
So true, bestie. Walky could totally be into conservative GILFs.
Yotomoe
Like father like son.
Sirksome
Not a GILF. Carol’s just an old lady. Nothing grand about her unfortunately.
Decidedly Orthogonal
Some people are grand to begin with, others have grandness thrust upon them. But were she my mom, there’s not a snow ball’s chance she’d ever get to be unsupervised around my kids.
Needfuldoer
“She’s not technically a granny and she’s actually quite sore about it.”
That rules out any appearances by Auntie-Joyce, too.
Poskie
Walky’s obviously just texting Amber to get her to go ask Mary to participate.
Yumi
Turns out Amber monitors Mary’s texts, and that’s why she’s in the last panel.
Poskie
This one gets it. ?
Leorale
I didn’t realize that Amber wants to punish herself quite to that extent. It’s all just Mary and Peter’s furious holier-than-thou sexting.
ESM
As amazing as the thought of “Walky and Mary are forced to team up and pretend to date for some reason” is, none of Mary’s flaws are dealbreakers to the Walkertons.
Proxiehunter