Vigilantism is the result of a non formalized police force with an enforced code of ethics. Said vigilantism can become fascistic if exercised by people that cant distingish the punishment for littering from the punishment for murder or rape.
Beats the hell out of throwing magic scrolls into a hotspring and hoping the gods will sort it out, that’s for sure.
Zee
Well Amber/Amazi has use vigilantism as an excuse to stalk and harass Sal, harassing her and Marcie’s group for a minor thing like drinking at 18 in the process. I feel like I remember her taking littering too seriously but that could be my mind playing tricks on me
thejeff
I think in Amazi-Girl’s case, you really have to look at her personal vendetta against Sal separately from her regular vigilante work. She did use it was an excuse, but the petty crime wasn’t the motivation and she didn’t extend that to attacking others for the same things. Don’t get me wrong, her harassment of Sal was still deeply wrong, but it’s not that closely tied to the vigilantism. Had she chosen a different path for her alter, she still would have been after Sal.
Plus, she’s resolved those issues and Sal’s her sidekick now. 🙂
BarerMender
We can’t deny, though, that Amber is a sick puppy.
thejeff
It’s more that it becomes fascistic when it’s aimed at a minority population – which it nearly always is. Either blatantly or under cover of “them being the ones doing all the crime”.
I’d argue it’s only really fascist when it has at least tacit government support.
BarerMender
Excellent point.
Jed!
If the government doesn’t do anything after the vigilantes act, then I’d say that that counts as government support. The Bolivian military said that they’d “side with the people” by which the meant do nothing while the rioters attacked Morales supporters and also just any indigenous person.
I was gonna say thanks to incels. We got video games, lets playing, anime,…. porn. All hobbies with a high rate of fascists. What a time we live in, if you’re a nerd you gotta go out of your way to let people know you’re not a nazi
Really hoping those two in panel one turn out to be some sort of Checkhov’s Gun and call the police, since if they can’t tell something’s up after Mike’s shouting they are idiots.
Add to that, the fact that they are on electric scooters. I’d have trouble taking someone on an e-scooter seriously even if they warned me that I was on fire.
I know Mike really is an asshole sometimes, but I just always have enjoyed Mike’s character. I wish I could get away with some of the assholery that he does. Not all of it, some of it goes to far, but a lot of it would be nice.
Going for the cops seems like the rational thing to do. That is unless the police are Republicans, or they are Mexican police. Too many corrupt cops independently of every nation.
Anywwway, it is better to contact la enforcement that depend on a mentally ill vigilante.
abysswatcher1993
than depend*
Clif
It’s worth considering that the mentally ill vigilante has a better track record than campus law enforcement at this point.
thejeff
Yeah, but this approach lets him mess with Amber’s psyche and get Blaine stomped into a pulp. It’s a win-win.
BarerMender
“La enforcement.” I like it. Law enforcement can be a little la-di-da these days. Packages are being stole from porches? We can’t do anything about that. You know who stole your computer and where they are? We can’t do anything. Assholes.
Well in Walky!verse he’s a highly trained combat operative with superpowers. Here he’s a just a teenager facing off against a full adult with a ball-peen hammer.
I wouldn’t put it past him having gotten into a couple of fistfights here and there but the odds are weighted way heavier against him in the Dumby!verse.
amazi-girl: “i mean…. i only beat up dads chasing down teens when it involves a HIGH-SPEED chase, anything under 5mph really falls outside my jurisdiction.”
everyone else: “yo do we even have campus police??”
uh oh, so amber ain’t here to do her super hero stunt, mike is gonna get killed and she’ll take it personally as “I should’ve been here to prevent that instead of gorging myself with pizza”
I believe the author has stated that nobody will die in the comic (since the long time frame would mean characters would be in mourning for years). Injury is possible though.
And Amber isn’t at the party now… she left early. That doesn’t mean she’s actually on ‘patrol’ as amazi-girl right now. (She could still be on the way home, or asleep, or playing video games, or whatever. Or she could just be acting as Amber (Trying to suppress the Amazigirl personality) So it is possible that she could feel guilty if Mike were to get injured.
No one who matters, at least. But I think with the recurring villains even killing off Beef or Tony would completely derail the pace because it’s ‘my shitty dad killed this person, while he was going after me.’ I think any injury requiring more than tape or a couple days with a wrist brace is out, too. (Hence, Joyce is now mostly over a broken toe via the magic of painkillers.)
(That said, killing off the Dean’s football player son might open some interesting doors anyway. Just not like this.)
That statement assumes that the decedent would have someone who cares enough to mourn rather than celebrate their passing. I don’t think Blaine O’Malley falls under that classification.
thejeff
As I’ve said before, the celebrations would disrupt the comic for years.
I am now officially predicting a hard cut to one of the following:
A) Amber eating pizza at the party
B) Amber making out with Walky/some other Garbage-scow activity
C) a Becky update out of fuckin’ nowhere.
D) Billie, Robin, or some other party goer with Amber established in the background to still be at the party
121 thoughts on “Stooge”
Suet
Would, but does she know?
Blaine, campus premises?
Clif
Yeah, but who does Mike have on the other end of his phone? I think we know.
David Doty
Sadly I no longer think he’s on his phone. I think he’s shouting all that exposition in hopes Amazi-Girl is in earshot.
ValdVin
It strikes me that “potentially fascist hobby” covers a much wider range of activities today than it did a dozen years ago.
Thanks, Republicans!
vlademir1
To be fair, vigilantism has a long history of being a fascist hobby.
abysswatcher1993
Vigilantism is the result of a non formalized police force with an enforced code of ethics. Said vigilantism can become fascistic if exercised by people that cant distingish the punishment for littering from the punishment for murder or rape.
abysswatcher1993
I mean the absence of a police force with ethics.
BrokenEye, the True False Prophet
Beats the hell out of throwing magic scrolls into a hotspring and hoping the gods will sort it out, that’s for sure.
Zee
Well Amber/Amazi has use vigilantism as an excuse to stalk and harass Sal, harassing her and Marcie’s group for a minor thing like drinking at 18 in the process. I feel like I remember her taking littering too seriously but that could be my mind playing tricks on me
thejeff
I think in Amazi-Girl’s case, you really have to look at her personal vendetta against Sal separately from her regular vigilante work. She did use it was an excuse, but the petty crime wasn’t the motivation and she didn’t extend that to attacking others for the same things. Don’t get me wrong, her harassment of Sal was still deeply wrong, but it’s not that closely tied to the vigilantism. Had she chosen a different path for her alter, she still would have been after Sal.
Plus, she’s resolved those issues and Sal’s her sidekick now. 🙂
BarerMender
We can’t deny, though, that Amber is a sick puppy.
thejeff
It’s more that it becomes fascistic when it’s aimed at a minority population – which it nearly always is. Either blatantly or under cover of “them being the ones doing all the crime”.
I’d argue it’s only really fascist when it has at least tacit government support.
BarerMender
Excellent point.
Jed!
If the government doesn’t do anything after the vigilantes act, then I’d say that that counts as government support. The Bolivian military said that they’d “side with the people” by which the meant do nothing while the rioters attacked Morales supporters and also just any indigenous person.
Rustpunx
I was gonna say thanks to incels. We got video games, lets playing, anime,…. porn. All hobbies with a high rate of fascists. What a time we live in, if you’re a nerd you gotta go out of your way to let people know you’re not a nazi
ValdVin
Other nerddom: I’m a radio geek, dating to when all ham radios had tubes in them.
Way too many RW self-selected deplorables in that hobby.
BarerMender
Huh. That’s the first time I’ve heard of “let’s playing.” But then, I’m old guard. Real old.
Doctor_Who
Really hoping those two in panel one turn out to be some sort of Checkhov’s Gun and call the police, since if they can’t tell something’s up after Mike’s shouting they are idiots.
SuperZero
If you heard somebody shouting like that, would you assume they were being 100% literal?
FacelessDeviant
Add to that, the fact that they are on electric scooters. I’d have trouble taking someone on an e-scooter seriously even if they warned me that I was on fire.
BarerMender
We human beings want everything to be all right, and frequently don’t respond to emergencies unless someone else does. “It’ll be all right.”
BarerMender
Of course, if that is Asma, she might be quicker on the pickup. Of her poking stick, har har.
Stephen Bierce
I’m Gonna Te~ell! I’m Gonna Te~ell!
I’m gonna hollar and I’m gonna yell
And I’ll get you in TROUBLE for EVERYTHING you do
Yes I’m Gonna Tell on YOU!
Diane
I know Mike really is an asshole sometimes, but I just always have enjoyed Mike’s character. I wish I could get away with some of the assholery that he does. Not all of it, some of it goes to far, but a lot of it would be nice.
Bicycle Bill
Well, so much for my idea that Mike was leading him straight to the cops.
Tacos
That just makes things too easy.
abysswatcher1993
Going for the cops seems like the rational thing to do. That is unless the police are Republicans, or they are Mexican police. Too many corrupt cops independently of every nation.
Anywwway, it is better to contact la enforcement that depend on a mentally ill vigilante.
abysswatcher1993
than depend*
Clif
It’s worth considering that the mentally ill vigilante has a better track record than campus law enforcement at this point.
thejeff
Yeah, but this approach lets him mess with Amber’s psyche and get Blaine stomped into a pulp. It’s a win-win.
BarerMender
“La enforcement.” I like it. Law enforcement can be a little la-di-da these days. Packages are being stole from porches? We can’t do anything about that. You know who stole your computer and where they are? We can’t do anything. Assholes.
Nono
Mike yelling for help is… new?
Ninjamaid
Well in Walky!verse he’s a highly trained combat operative with superpowers. Here he’s a just a teenager facing off against a full adult with a ball-peen hammer.
I wouldn’t put it past him having gotten into a couple of fistfights here and there but the odds are weighted way heavier against him in the Dumby!verse.
BBCC
I’d say highly trained is generous. We are talking about SEMME after all. But at least he had super strength and didn’t get hurt as easily.
RowenMorland
And possibly had a less visible super power on the side, like empathy.
Reed
amazi-girl: “i mean…. i only beat up dads chasing down teens when it involves a HIGH-SPEED chase, anything under 5mph really falls outside my jurisdiction.”
everyone else: “yo do we even have campus police??”
Clif
Are you saying that AmaziGirl doesn’t love a good chase scene on electric scooters? The alt text says otherwixe.
Happilychaotic
This comment has just made my day better! 😀
Tenzhi
Blaine’n 2: Electric Scooterloo
LeslieBean4shizzle
**imagines Blaine being chased by Scootaloo from MLP: FIM**
Tan
If she’s playing bass, I’ve got a friend I know for certain would be in.
Sunny
Blaine o’Mallet: Scooters gonna scoot
Yeah, yeah, it’s not an actual mallet but both are hammers so it counts.
Nono
Also, did Mike just admit he has friends? Plural?
I mean, even then, only Ethan is at the party.
Xccj
Yep, that was my takeaway from this too.
vitalProximity
Same. “…omg, Mike called them his friends!!! ❤❤❤
Queezle
Is it bad that I feel bad for him now?
Miri
Friends, social group, it’s reasonably similar…
Moon
i want yall to know i checked yesterdays page at work and someone asked me if i was reading luann
tim gueguen
Luann wishes you were reading Luann.
Moon
gosh luann has really gone off the rails huh
Aubrey
Chaotic Good
DailyBrad
Ah, there’s the goal. Interesting.
Passchendaele
and then beef wanders in, grunts, and decks blaine
Solenoid
Are we dealing with a “Mike who cried ‘wolf'” situation here?
Tacos
More like a “Mike who cried ‘stooge'” situation I’d say.
BBCC
YES AMAZI-GIRL WOULD BE NICE.
foducool
uh oh, so amber ain’t here to do her super hero stunt, mike is gonna get killed and she’ll take it personally as “I should’ve been here to prevent that instead of gorging myself with pizza”
segnosaur
I believe the author has stated that nobody will die in the comic (since the long time frame would mean characters would be in mourning for years). Injury is possible though.
And Amber isn’t at the party now… she left early. That doesn’t mean she’s actually on ‘patrol’ as amazi-girl right now. (She could still be on the way home, or asleep, or playing video games, or whatever. Or she could just be acting as Amber (Trying to suppress the Amazigirl personality) So it is possible that she could feel guilty if Mike were to get injured.
Regalli
No one who matters, at least. But I think with the recurring villains even killing off Beef or Tony would completely derail the pace because it’s ‘my shitty dad killed this person, while he was going after me.’ I think any injury requiring more than tape or a couple days with a wrist brace is out, too. (Hence, Joyce is now mostly over a broken toe via the magic of painkillers.)
(That said, killing off the Dean’s football player son might open some interesting doors anyway. Just not like this.)
Opus the Poet
That statement assumes that the decedent would have someone who cares enough to mourn rather than celebrate their passing. I don’t think Blaine O’Malley falls under that classification.
thejeff
As I’ve said before, the celebrations would disrupt the comic for years.
Dean
I guess that isn’t Asma in panel 1.
Steve C.
Meanwhile, Toedad has been left unsupervised…..
JessWitt
And hopefully unarmed.
Bagge
For Dina to eat
JBento
He’ll still be alive when she begins to eat him.
LeslieBean4shizzle
I am now officially predicting a hard cut to one of the following:
A) Amber eating pizza at the party
B) Amber making out with Walky/some other Garbage-scow activity
C) a Becky update out of fuckin’ nowhere.
D) Billie, Robin, or some other party goer with Amber established in the background to still be at the party
Tacos
Well Amber already left the party before Mike if I recall.
Coma
Honestly, I thought maybe the chase will continue until new year’s eve. And then, we cut away.
But from your options, I think it might continue with option D
Ryek Hvek
I think this chase scene needs a longer soundtrack