129

Change more
Posted on March 29, 2024 by David M Willis

129 thoughts on “Change more”

  1. Ana Chronistic

    *LE GASP*

    (I’m sure Dotty is JUST as able to write a book on her own terms, for her OWN vainglorious satisfaction instead of Jason-adjacent)

    1. Ana Chronistic

      adJasont

      1. Gigafreak

        Not Jason-adjacent: adJason’t

        1. Lysbeth

          “Don’t talk to me or my adJason’t ever again”

    2. Proxiehunter

      A month ago their time that was probably true. I don’t think she currently is able to do that. Dorothy needs to get her groove back. Or get a different groove, that would probably be better. Point is Dorothy’s lost her groove.

      1. Coatl

        Mainly she must lighten the heavy burden that she imposed on herself and possibly have a vision of what she wants to do.

        1. Florens

          So, like, solve life. Got it.

        2. clif

          And the Universe.

          Didn’t they already figure it out and the answer was 43 or something?

        3. ktbear

          42 but who’s counting.

        4. HueSatLight

          If you’re having trouble remembering, here’s a mnemonic device: “what is six times eight?”

        5. jflb96

          It’s ‘What do you get when you multiply six by nine?’

        6. Opus the Poet

          in Base 12.

        7. HueSatLight

          6 times 9 is 54 though

      2. Mark

        A guy seven feet tall with shoulders almost as wide, with “guard” written all over his features, confronts Raidah: “I’m sorry, but you’ve thrown off the (future) President’s groove.”

        Raidah, flying out a third-story window: “Sorry!!!”

        1. Insanenoodlyguy

          Please. Radiah is the future president.

      3. Ana Chronistic

        Anyone, INCLUDING Dotty, can ABSOLUTELY write their own book, that’s the point of NaNoWriMo.org

        whether it’s up to snuff is a different matter

        also, she doesn’t HAVE to write it about politics or anything serious

    3. anon

      i mean is it rly that much of an ‘opportunity’ when it’s for robin lol

      1. Ray Radlein

        Hey, write a book for any other professor any they’d probably want to read it first and maybe even change some of your words

        1. anon

          i mean, i guess robin might respect you more if you ask for a huge amount upfront and then half ass it or so

    4. Needfuldoer

      Double-ghost-write a book, or make mac n’ cheese?

      Decisions, decisions…

      1. All-Purpose Guru

        ¿Por qué no los dos?

    5. Vulcanodon

      That book offer was downright insulting; turning it down flat is a sign she still does have functioning self-esteem

    6. RoyanRannedos

      “Uh Oh” makes me think of this Finnish comic discussing the nuances of the English language:

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLO_9UOoSt0

  2. IntangibleMatter

    Change. Not always for the better.

    This message sponsored by Sarah Industries™

    1. Decidedly Orthogonal

      [Citation provided] – Death

  3. Animedingo

    There it is

    1. clif

      The dime drops into the shoe which also drops.

      1. Decidedly Orthogonal

        Was it a ….Penny Loafer?

        1. Adept

          painful, but good. One internet point for Penny Loafer

  4. Amós Batista

    I love when we reach a preview panel. It feels like the history is going on. And some theories can be confirmed/canceled.

    1. HueSatLight

      I thought this one would be about something sillier.

    2. clif

      Always in motion the future is. The past is as well, but it’s sneaky and won’t let you catch it changing.

      1. David DeLaney

        because each time it does you now think that’s always how it was

  5. Sirksome

    Some change ain’t for the better, honey. Sometimes you just end up worse or a shell of your former self.

    1. anon

      “you’re right joyce, i’m off to kill raidah and bury her in a ditch/dump her in the river, that’d def make me happy”

      …i doubt we’d see it within the next five years unless the next few arcs is more sarah focused but i imagine other than dorothy being confronted by joyce about yale, Sarah’s “growth” would finally culminate into a…confrontation(? can’t think of a more neutral/positive word, i guess reunion/meeting lol) between her and dana finally hashing things out.

      1. Weatherheight

        Stupid lag made me accideally tap the report icon/link, about which I feel badly as it wasn’t intentional nor merited.

        1. clif

          I understand that multiple people have to report something for it to have any effect.

          But go ahead and feel bad if doing so makes you feel any better.

      2. Opus the Poet

        I think the word you’re looking for is “intervention”.

        1. anon

          i mean, unless dana is still heavy into drugs, id think an intervention is more of a group thing of them all supporting her or so, unless she joined like AA or so where she goes around talking to and ‘forgiving’ ppl in the past tho i can imagine dana not rly forgiving/wanting anything to do with sarah even if her decision was ‘better’ for everyone in the long run

  6. Slartibeast Button, BIA

    Is that mouseover text coming form cellblock 1138?

    1. YakkoRex

      It was a boring conversation anyway.

      1. Marianne

        I hope Dorothy can get to a more mentally healthy place in less than 12 parsecs… punch it, Chewie!

  7. TrueVCU

    Oh no the inventory of PERIL

    1. Slartibeast Button, BIA

      No, no you have to face the peril…

      1. jflb96

        I get to face some peril this time?! Normally I never get any peril at all

  8. Joe Moose

    The penny drops!

    [also got caught up since Monday’s comic…yeeesh…]

    1. David DeLaney

      with inflation she’s about to drop a dime

  9. Mr. Random

    Ooooh, Dorothy’s in trouble.

  10. Coatl

    Finally she realized… now it remains to be seen what will happen.

  11. Newlland(Henryvolt)

    Dorothy could have ended up joining a fight club cult and Joyce still wouldn’t have noticed for weeks.

  12. sakamism

    I feel like Sarah hasn’t actually changed all that much, especially when she’s not alone with Joyce. She’s still a pretty, misanthropic grumpy person who’s afraid to open up but has a caring, protective core inside, same as she was at the beginning. She has friends now but she still either doesn’t like or pretends not to like most of them

    1. sakamism

      Also, maybe Dorothy can finally get some help now that Walky and Joyce both notice she’s in a downward spiral

      1. Coatl

        At least with Walky, she felt more confident in expressing herself without fear of being judged.

        The detail is to see what Joyce’s reaction will be like, because she has also put her on a pedestal. No one doubts that Joyce really wants to help to Dorothy, what intrigues is how she will do it.

        1. HueSatLight

          Walky’s pedestal for Dorothy is different than Joyce’s. Walky thinks she’ll be back to normal, wise beyond her years. Joyce thinks sometimes Dorothy doesn’t actually know what she’s talking about.

        2. Coatl

          Well, Joyce is enthusiastic…too enthusiastic and that can also provoke a response…not favorable.

      2. Zero

        Dorothy does already attend therapy.

        1. shrub

          I get the feeling though that she really only discusses surface-level thoughts and feelings

          Almost like it’s something she feels she should be doing rather than something she needs to be doing

    2. shrub

      How many friends does Sarah have though as opposed to those that are actually Joyce’s friends

      1. Doopyboop

        Dina, I think she and Sarah sincerely consider each other friends and I… don’t think Dina and Joyce are friends. Or, well, I guess they’re becoming friends now after the autism thing. But Dina and Sarah have been friends for a while.

        1. shrub

          So one friend then

        2. Daibhid C

          Are we … not counting Joyce as a friend?

          Anyway, how many of Joyce’s friends are actually Joyce’s friends, by whatever metric you’re using?

        3. Doopyboop

          Joyce isn’t a friend. She’s FAMILY. *insert Vin Diesel here*

          And I think Shrub’s point is that a lot of people who hang out with Joyce and are friends with her, are more Sarah’s friend because she’s Joyce’s roomie and is their friend by proxy. That’s why I suggested Dina, because we’ve seen Dina hang out with Sarah without Joyce around or initiating the interaction in some way. Feel free to prove me wrong though!

        4. shrub

          Thanks, this is what I meant.

        5. HueSatLight

          Not a big fan of “these kinds of friendships don’t count as friendships” metrics. Just because a circle of friends has someone whose the natural glue doesn’t mean the other people in the circle aren’t friends with each other.

    3. DashWallkick

      She hasn’t, but her growth is slow. Being playful and open with Joyce is already a lot for her.

  13. HueSatLight

    Sal has been more open, Sarah should probably apologize to Sal and Danny and nobody else. And Joyce too, I guess, and nobody else. And Mandy, and nobody else.

    1. HueSatLight

      but also, “reach a new plane of self-actualization?” she sounds like she’s in a psychedelics cult

  14. VolticEXE

    Seems like the lightbulb went off & Joyce realized Dorothy’s recent changes are a sign of bad things.

    Though I say she’s 100% about Sarah’s situation.

  15. DailyBrad

    I guess the thing about Sarah, outside of her pride, is if she wants to evolve. Like, I think she’d actually enjoy what that’d bring her, but the issue is I don’t think she likes to embrace change.

    1. anon

      other than a physical appearance with her hair/outfits/wardrobe change or going out of your way to have show off a ‘personality’ to where it’d either be burning out or coming off as performative i imagine most changes would be little by little versus anything huge versus “oh i just realized i’m gay”

      although while some ppl stubbornly stay the same or backslide into worse habits, there are prolly some who do change throughout the years despite actively resisting it but depends on what aspects of themselves or just not noticing it

  16. BBCC

    Yeah, Sarah’s clinging more to the grumpy shell and Dorothy is falling into the blahs. I’m starting to think the kids aren’t alright.

    1. anon

      i mean i’m sure she could be less visibly miserable if she does do things for herself/ take a step towards trying to ‘enjoy’ college, relationship or not tho i think anyone other than joyce would prolly raise an eyebrow/be concerned if they observed sarah being in a ‘good mood’ for more than 2 hours lol

      like how ppl were freaked out at mary being in a ‘cheery’ mood before we found out she was dating another religious guy

    2. Reltzik

      Dotty had a chance, she really did. Instead she dumped Yale and her life’s on the skids… Amber stays alone and her dad’s to blame, she just sits at the computer playing a video game…

      1. clif

        Maybe Amber could be president and Dorothy could fight crime.

  17. Kitschensyngk

    It’s fine, we’re fine here, everything’s fine…how are you?

  18. Armadillo

    The only person who I don’t think has really changed at all is Dina, and this is fine because Dina is already a perfect being.

    1. PedanticJerkass

      Well, she did change her beliefs about the sound that dinosaurs make.

    2. NGPZ

      “We will inevitably alter each other as we continue to interact.”

      — Dina, to Becky

    3. anon

      some ppl are fine as they areas ways for other ppl to change around them, but it would be interesting to see a variety of charas have growth, and one or two more or less not needing to change for better or worse

      tho more frustrating irl when someone refuses to ‘grow’ versus staying ‘static’ as a fictional chara but not necessarily in a mary sue/gary stu way

    4. Bash

      She used to be so timid and unsure of how to relate to her peers. Nowadays she doesn’t always understand social norms, but she moves through the world with so much confidence. She wouldn’t get accidentally swept up and taken to the beach without anyone noticing.

    5. Woop de doop

      I think Dina has become more confident in social situations. And she discovered sexual arousal!

  19. CianM1301

    Don’t forget about her teaching you how to properly use the washing machine,Joyce.

    1. Reltzik

      …. I think it was technically improper, but I still approved.

    2. Andrews

      I suspect the washing machine does feel*very* used

      1. Devin

        Maybe the washing machine is into that. We don’t know.

  20. AbacusWizard

    oh no

  21. AGV

    “Sorry, Sarah. We’ll have to call it a day. I’ve realized that I have a more urgent friend crisis.”

  22. staszu13

    Oh oh indeed

  23. sdrainbow

    FLY! FLY TO HER! KISS! KISS!

  24. Bash

    Here it comes, the incredibly normal and proportionate reaction.

  25. Reltzik

    Prediction: Dorothy’s situation coming out into the open will NOT make the reverse smile vampire actually smile. Because growth.

  26. Kim

    There we go! My mans Robin just not here for comic relief! But for Important Hijinks, that lifts the story and brings clarity to the struggles and developments of the characters around her.

    DeSsntos, my Santos

  27. Regret

    “Why do I gotta be the one to change? I’m doing all the changing here!”
    Oh good Sarah is going to change. That’s the last attempt of the ego (I use that inaccurate model of the mind for illustrative purposes) to resist from someone who knows that the change has already started.

  28. DashWallkick

    “Everyone else is growing too! Look at Dorothy, she’s grown so much! She’s ignoring her grades, only doing things I want to do, and is neglecting opportunities for her future career in poli — wait a second.”

    1. Zero

      Robin made a comically impossible demand to exploit her. It wasn’t an opportunity, and Jason told her so outright.

      1. DashWallkick

        You know as well as I do that if you give Dorothy an impossible demand, no matter the context, her immediate response is to prove to herself that she can do it and *excel* at it, and she rationalizes that impulse as building a future for herself.

        If she’s not confronting a task with 200% of her energy then something very wrong has happened, and Joyce just realized that.

        1. Mark

          That’s one of the things I like about Dorothy, but if she’s gonna be that way then she does need someone to keep whispering to her “thou art mortal.”

        2. DashWallkick

          Joyce also doesn’t know she’s rejecting Yale on purpose.

      2. Jeremiah

        And she forgot about 5 minutes later anyway.

  29. ADLegend21

    Sarah just doesn’t want to be vulnerable and hurt again. Soof course Sarah will be vulnerable and Raidah will get her hurt again which will negatively reinforce being vulnerable yet again.

    1. Drain

      Accidental report sorry

      1. DashWallkick

        I do it all the time, it takes more than one to trigger a response I think. Or at least Willis knows not to bother unless it gets a few. It’s probably super common given the buttons are actually side by side.

  30. Zero

    That wasn’t an opportunity, Joyce.

    1. clif

      If we all yell it loudly enough at the screen, Joyce will hear us.

      1. DashWallkick

        Dorothy would have viewed it as one because she’s Dorothy, which is what matters.

        1. StClair

          Commit self-harm while trying to meet an impossible, arbitrary goal/expectation? Sign her up!

  31. Tan

    Dumbing of Age Book 14: Is This Change Or Is This a Major Depressive Episode?

    Some of you are saying that this question is not posed in this strip, and I retort that it is clearly implied.

    1. Amelie Wikström

      Book 14: Is My Friend Going Through a Depressive Episode or Falling in Love With Me?
      Book 15: Por Que No Los Dos?

    2. clif

      Well, it’s certainly inferred.

      What were we talking about again? Oh, yes, book title. I think it has to actually be said. I don’t think miming it counts.

      1. Yumi

        Dumbing of Age Book 14: Uh Oh.

  32. Axel

    I feel for Sarah. There are things I want to always change (becoming more compassionate, finding more ways to do action to help people in my community, being a better friend and partner), but there are also things I should want to change (personality flaws, bad coping skills) that I struggle to want because without them, am I myself anymore?

    1. Uly

      Do those things that you want to want to change make you unhappy?

      1. Axel

        to different degrees, but yes

        like, I don’t think I’m a *bad* friend or partner, so that doesn’t eat away at me, but at the same time I know I have specific problems I could fix and it would be better for all of us

        re: coping mechanisms and stuff, that’s a very practical sense of the phrase, but while “I have bad coping mechanisms” doesn’t weigh on my self esteem, not doing anything to fix it certainly is making me unhappy because the things I’m trying to cope with aren’t being processed great

        for a current example, I’m getting a cpap soon, and hopefully that’ll help the fact that I don’t get any restful sleep and can sleep anywhere from 4-11 hours and be equally fucked… but I’m scared that when I’m not half-conscious and slightly confused, I’ll also not be the person I think of myself as. And neither of those (half conscious, confused) are words I’d use to describe myself normally, but I’m worried that who I’ll be without them will be someone different.

        I definitely could be projecting but I feel like that’s part (just part) of where Sarah is at. She knows having more friends has been good for her, and has the opportunity to make more, but she is the standoffish person, and doing that would mean leaving part of who she is behind. (I think it is also that she isn’t a super social person in the first place, and is stressed at the idea of more friends ie more people she has to care about and stuff, especially since Dana, and probably embarrassed to tell people like Jacob ‘okay I’m ready to be friends now,’ amongst other things)

  33. Amós Batista

    i HaRbOr PeRvErSe SeXuAl LuSt

    1. David DeLaney

      is the object of it
      in the room with us

  34. jpnr

    the issue here is that Sarah is perfect already

    yes, Joyce, concentrate on Dorothy. Make her and Walky get back together so Dorothy can dump him as is proper

    again

  35. C.T. Phipps

    Joyce: I must DESTROY all things that stand in the way of Dorothy going to Yale.

  36. nicoleandmaggie

    I hope it’s not too late for Joyce to help. And I really hope she does help… like Dorothy could use a listening ear and a hug and a good cry. That might not be enough, but if she’d gotten that before she doubled down, I think it would have put her on a healthier path.

  37. David DeLaney

    i like the very-well-done and subtle reminder in panel 2 about their height difference

  38. HueSatLight

    What about Walky? Sure, he confronted his parents about their racism, that’s something. But it was to avoid looking at his bad communication habits, and how those made him not a great boyfriend. His emotional growth was to avoid reaching a new plane of self-actualization.

  39. Charles Phipps

    Sadly, Joyce can never go to Yale because then she’d out of the cartoon.

  40. Drain

    The little julia gray sketch in the back ❤️

  41. Rabisch

    I’m happy that Joyce has finally realized that Dorothy is avoiding doing important things for herself in favor of doing things for her and that she’s in crisis. But it’s annoying this happened right when she was having a serious talk with Sarah. Sarah needs to hear those things from her because Joyce’s opinion is important to her and she would believe her. Hearing the same thing said by Lucy, or even Becky or Dina, is not the same as hearing it by Joyce.

  42. Yeet

    “jennifer has a new name” lmao get wrecked

    1. NGPZ


      function getRect() {
      return [x, y, x + width, y + height];
      }

    2. StClair

      and nothing else / that is the full extent of the change.

  43. Kazuma Taichi

    sometimes it takes saying it out loud for it to be run through the executive function neuro-algorithms properly

    1. StClair

      “rubber duck debugging”

  44. Woof McGee

    It would be nice if Joyce would let Sarah know she’s been super creepy with Jacob.

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