111

Barge
Posted on January 28, 2019 by David M Willis

111 thoughts on “Barge”

  1. Ana Chronistic

    why, however inconvenient! *evil hand clasp*

    1. butts

      Shit-eating grin.

      1. Deanatay

        Never understood that expression.

        “I have eaten the shit – and it was DELICIOUS!”

        ??

        1. Marsh Maryrose

          I assume that you’ve never had a dog.

        2. ǝ snow ʍousɐ

          My dog has never done that, thank goodness…

    2. Arawn

      That… is the best super-villain face. How long did Willis work on that?

      1. Nikol Geier

        Joyce had this smile recently, though I forget where. Maybe when she realized she wanted Jacob for herself?

      2. BrokenEye, the True False Prophet

        I was thinking more along the lines of Grinch face

  2. Doctor_Who

    I spent an embarrassing amount of time trying to decide which newspaper comic I used to read growing up that this reminded me of, where the last panel is just a character glancing at the fourth wall.

    Eventually I realized it’s almost all of them.

    Although the profile shot particularly reminds me of Doonesbury.

    1. Felgraf

      For a second I got Doonesbury and Caner Cancerbean swapped in my head.

      1. Deanatay

        …Is that a dyphemism for Funky Winkerbean?

        1. Amazi-Stool

          Relevant Willis comic…

        2. ValdVin

          Nice callback.

      2. Charlie Spencer

        Does mean Andy Lippencott is St.Lisa?

  3. King Daniel

    Clever girl?

  4. CleverTrousers

    Turned into the 1960s Grinch for second there, Sal.

    1. Illithid

      And they say her snark grew three sizes that day…

    2. keithcurtis

      First thing I thought of, too.

  5. DailyBrad

    Sal? More like Sly. wakka wakka

    1. Jamie

      That’s a whoppah!

  6. Plasma Mongoose

    *smug Sal intensifies*

  7. Tacos

    That’s the Grinch-iest smile I’ve seen in a while.

    1. Nono

      It’s the same one that Joyce used.

      1. abysswatcher1993

        Anti Joyce and Sal have the same attitude.

    2. Dana

      Appropriate rhyme at appropriate time.

      1. Keulen

        Grinchy grin for the win.

  8. Bryy

    Marcie likes being fought over, eh?

  9. Dr T

    Huh. No gloves.

    1. butts

      yeah i don’t think he’s had much practice drawing her hands without ’em recently

    2. Kamino Neko

      She stopped wearing them a couple weeks ago, real time. (Like, yesterday, in universe, I think?) Caused Joyce to have a bit of a freak out, which pissed Sal off.

      1. BBCC

        It was this morning, in universe.

  10. Questionor

    I’ve been wondering why Sal had left the room already but Malaya hadn’t! Ha!

    1. Deanatay

      But, Malaya’s in the room, which means, she’s not doing anything.

      So, why does Sal think she’s “not available”?

      Is Malaya… GIVING HER SPACE??? *boggles*

      1. thejeff

        Or it’s a little bit later and Malaya was about to head off for class?

  11. Stephen Bierce

    And here I was thinking the conversation back at Sal’s dorm would devolve into Joyce and Lucy making up wrong ways to say “Fuckface”. Until Ruth showed up.

    1. Stephen Bierce

      *plays Neil Young’s “Let’s Roll” on the hacked P.A. speakers*

  12. bejouled

    But we just saw Malaya and she looked perfectly available…

    1. BBCC

      Maybe she’s got a class to go to soon or something?

      1. newllend(henryvolt)

        College studies are no joke.

        1. Rabid Rabbit

          We’ve seen that Malaya actually studies…

        2. Tacos

          Tell that to Walky…

  13. Woomy

    Yo where’s all their gear? You can’t just show up with a pair of roller skates and no pads. This is not up to WFTDA standards.

  14. BBCC

    😀 Hi Sal!

    See? Fight smart not necessarily with punching. Think ‘plausible deniability’. For a certain value of plausible, since Marcie sees right through you. Sorry, Sal, you’re about as slick as glue.

    Also, this is most likely me reading too much into things but that X she and Marcie make reminds me waaaaay too much of their hug here: http://www.dumbingofage.com/2015/comic/book-5/03-the-butterflies-fly-away/erase/

    1. Axel

      I don’t think she’s trying to hide it from Marcie, I think she’s joking a bit and also doing a good job of bringing it up without actually saying anything insulting about Malaya.

      (and I think Marcie’s smiling because she recognizes that Sal avoiding Malaya is at least partially as a way of reducing conflict (while still doing stuff other than lean on the wall and scowl))

      1. BBCC

        I am also joking a bit. Honestly, Marcie would have to be incredibly oblivious to not catch that Sal did that on purpose.

        I think it’s more ‘yeah, yeah, smart ass, clever.’ than necessarily being glad they won’t be fighting but that’s also a fair read.

      2. butts

        Is Marcie still after Malaya? I thought that ship had sailed.

        1. That Guy

          I mean, she shrugged with the “oh well” when Malaya hooked up with joe. Not to say she wouldn’t still go for it given the chance, but its probably less a focus. But she did make friends with Malaya a while back, and keeps her because of the lack of moral leanings resulting in less splash damage to her. Also even if you’re not hooking up, no reason not to hang out with hot girl.

        2. BBCC

          Last I saw, Marcie still wanted to bang Malaya but was okay with her wanting to bang other people.

        3. Clif

          For some value of okay. Honestly, it looked to me like Marcie gave up after Malaya went for Joe, but I could be wrong.

        4. thejeff

          It didn’t seem very clear. There was that shrug and smile, but the couple of shots of her before that seem pretty shell-shocked – though they were distance shots.
          And I don’t think it’s been brought up explicitly since.
          Could be “I’m fine with it.” Could be “Given up”. Could be “clinging desperately to hope”.

  15. Nono

    Haha, Carla is barely a face in the background in the memory.

    1. Bagge

      He, retroactive-memory-burn!

      1. Nono

        It’s actually a little sad, because for all that Carla tries to make herself memorable (mostly by being a persistently annoying butt), in people’s recollections she’s barely background noise.

        That’s the problem when you’re a constant presence; at some point people tune you out.

        1. Bagge

          Maybe it’s just an indication that being a persistently annoying butt is not the best way to make friends.

        2. Deanatay

          It works, for some people.

          I MEAN SO I”VE HEARD

        3. JBento

          What’s this “friends” thing I keep hearing about?

        4. Roborat

          Somewhat popular TV show, started in the mid 90s, ran for a decade.

        5. Roborat

          But that’s not important right now.

        6. Chris Phoenix

          Does Carla actually try to make herself memorable? Or does she try to make a shallow persona be the most salient thing about her, so that they remember her as “That annoying person I kinda’ want to ignore” rather than “That trans person.”

    2. BenRG

      MARCIE: “Who was that strange tall girl anyway?”

  16. newllend(henryvolt)

    So is Amber apart of Sal’s crew now? Or will she just be an occasional friend who hangs out?

  17. tirachokko

    lmao that smug face

  18. BBCC

    Also, Malaya, I call BS. You and Marcie were on the same team pretty much right away so regardless of whether she was on a starter team and moved up or you both moved up, it’s still clearly pretty quick.

    1. Betty Anne

      I would think a small league/team would move them up pretty quickly if they’re competent. They just don’t want beginners rolling in saying they want to participate, and then having the roller-skating skills of a drunk squirrel.

    2. Khno

      Some teams of roller derby in cities with a strong importance of university seasons (where I live) have a yearly reworking of team composition at the begin at the university year rather than at the begin of the administrative year, composition that is usually fixed some time around the following weeks. After that you’re definitely in the beginner team unless proven you’re so good that they really need you.

      1. BBCC

        That makes sense, but considering Marcie was trying to recruit Sal not that long ago (a week or two in verse, I think? For a team that meets on a weekly basis, that doesn’t seem too long to me), I still have a hard time believing it’s that hard to move up.

        Of course, I have a bastard of a cold right now so I could be misremembering.

  19. Roger

    well its nice Marcie and Sal are back to being chill again

    1. stoodmuffin

      mhm

  20. stoodmuffin

    Sal: Motor cycle bad ass, and. What. Angsty second grader? Like?

  21. Bagge

    Crafty Sal!

    1. Deanatay

      Machiavelli Sal.

      Sal-chiavellian?

      1. Roborat

        Masaliavellian?

        1. thejeff

          MachiaSalian?

    2. JBento

      She pairs well with her twin, Kraft M&C Walky.

  22. LilithxChan

    Sure there’s a separate team for beginners… But did Mayala have to be such and incredible dick about it?

    1. abysswatcher1993

      It’s Malaya. She doesn’t care if she is a prick.

    2. Needfuldoer

      Yes and yes. Remember when she took Fuckface back from Joyce?

    3. the final pam

      That was.. incredibly mild. Like, she’s literally just stating facts. If she had phrased her last sentence as, “You’re only gonna be able to watch”, would it have been any less ‘dickish’?

      1. not someone else

        Well… yeah, it would have.

        “You can’t just barge in” to someone who just said they wanted to join is pretty aggressive. Insisting someone’s intent was wrong like the last sentence is aggressive. The emphasis on “beginners” could be demeaning depending on how it actually came off. The way she phrased it sounds like “no you can’t join, and you’re an idiot for thinking you could”.

        Neutral would be something like “there’s a different team for beginners that meets on another night, so you can sign up but you can’t actually play with us tonight”. Polite would be something else entirely.

        1. Secret foreigner

          It would be harsh to a new random person, but Malaya already has history and beef with Sal.

        2. JohnInCA

          Eh. Marcie had tried to get Sal to join multiple times before and been rejected. So it’s not like this is some rando off the street saying they’re interested, it’s someone who has mocked the activity multiple times before in a “I’m too cool for this” coming round like they set the rules.

        3. BBCC

          Sal never said anything bad about roller derby. She just said she didn’t want to join and that she wanted to hang out with Marcie one on one like they used to. She’s said plenty of bad things about Malaya though.

        4. segnosaur

          True, Marcie did try to get Sal to join. But, that was earlier in the semester.

          I figure the team probably has a roster of players who are familiar with each other, so they need to be careful in adding new players since it may affect team chemistry.

        5. Sam

          Sal has never mocked the activity or said she was too cool for roller derby even a single time.

    4. BenRG

      This is Malaya. ‘Being a dick about it’ is her default behaviour.

    5. Keulen

      Of course she did. I’m not sure if Malaya knows how to not be a jerk about things.

    6. Charlotte

      She doesn’t even know whether they’re beginners either. I don’t think we know whether Amber or Sal have played Roller Derby before.

    7. Deanatay

      To Sal, she did. Sal is her antagonist-of-choice.

    8. timemonkey

      Sal has been nothing but a hateful dick to Malaya the entire time they’ve known each other, why wouldn’t Malaya be rude to her? This isn’t dickery in a vacume.

      1. JBento

        Only one of those two assaulted the other, too. (hint: it wasn’t Malaya)

  23. abysswatcher1993

    Sal is channeling her inner Grinch and is planning something. This is going to be good.

    1. BenRG

      Nah, she’s just happy that Marcie is sidelining Malaya.

    2. Needfuldoer

      “Then Sal had an idea.
      An awful idea.
      Sal had a wonderfully awful idea.”

      1. abysswatcher1993

        She would steal all the waifus. She would steal the Marcies, the Joyces, the Dorothys ans the Ambers.

  24. BenRG

    Yeah, I think that Marcie’s crush on Malaya is past history now. Marcie is essentially a nice woman and Malaya isn’t; Marcie has no intention of structuring her life around someone so pettily nasty.

    1. Woomy

      I thought Marcie just wanted to get laid

      1. Bryy

        Yeah, I’m still waiting for that shoe to drop.

    2. Emily

      If Marcie’s behaviour towards Lucy is anything to go off of she’s really not particularly nice and Malaya is probably more her speed.

  25. kilgaen

    And now begins the Motorball arc. Looking forward to the deadly crazy cyborg maneuvers.

  26. JessWitt

    Nice “gee, ain’t a stinker” grin, Sal.

    Keeping Malaya away won’t be a bad thing – it protects her from Amber.

  27. TheFlamingonator

    I mean Malaya is right but theres a nice way of telling them that

    not that she’d use it but she could

    1. Charlotte

      We don’t know that she’s right. Normally you’d at least let people try out for your team before presuming that they don’t belong, right?

      (My volleyball team would always let potential new players do some trial trainings even outside the formalised annual trials, and then either take them on or get them in touch one of the other teams in the club that fit better.)

  28. Deanatay

    Panel 6 Marcie in the background: Yeah, my bf’s hate each other.

    1. Bagge

      Must be a REAL SURPRISE for her given how INCREDIBLY SUBTLE Sal and Malaya are about it.

  29. Cmd1095

    That face though XD

  30. fire_daws

    Even in flashbacks Carla manages to photobomb.

  31. JohnInCA

    How dare reality interfere with a dramatic announcement! How rude!

  32. Nah

    wouldn’t Sal get moved off of beginners pretty fast? We’ve seen she’s already a very good skater (tho I guess there’s a lot more to the sport that just skating ability)

    1. Charlotte

      As far as I know, we don’t even know that Sal and Amber haven’t played Roller Derby in the past.

  33. ninja_jesus

    Bad, Sal! No diabolical thoughts with your best friend around!

  34. Vukodlak

    Those poor poor Beginners god have mercy upon them.

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