302

Up
Posted on May 14, 2025 by David M Willis

302 thoughts on “Up”

  1. AnonGrouch

    Me too Dorothy, me too.

    1. AnonGrouch

      Obviously Dorothy ate too much ice cream and now has a tummy ache.

  2. ScienceOfFantasy

    Well dang, just keep ripping out my heart, Willis.

  3. JA

    When you realize you are truly adrift and have no rudder or idea of how to go on.

  4. Nono

    Wonder what’s Becky up to. Unsuiting Dina?

    1. furubatsu

      Still? In universe its been a few hours

      1. justin8448

        Unsuiting can be followed by re-suiting. Then proceed to unsuiting once more.

      2. Needfuldoer

        She just wants the moment to last, okay?

    2. Deanatay

      She’s lying in bed in the same room, wide awake. She knows EXACTLY what Dot is feeling right now, and is torn between mercilessly mocking her, as a true rival should, or sympathetically comforting her, or just giving her space. She’s also dealing with her own Joe/Joyce feelings, which further complicates things.

      1. Heavensrun

        People in these comments are just really obsessed with the idea that Becky is STILL hung up on Joyce. She’s happy. She’s moved on with somebody else, I doubt she spends much mental bandwidth on Joe/Joyce, and even if she did, she’d have to know about it, and Dotty isn’t gonna tell her?

        1. Taffy

          Which people?

        2. Dante

          I can’t remember. It may be just like, two or three tops. But it does resurface with some frequency and it’s a tad bothersome by now.

          Doesn’t keep me awake or anything but I do roll my eyes when I encounter it (and then proceed to forget about it until the next time)

        3. HueSatLight

          Becky still has complicated feelings about Joyce. They are not about Joe and Joyce. I am not convinced her recent concern about fluid sexuality is about herself. Joyce being 100% and permanently straight takes some of the pain out of having been rejected.

          don’t give a shit if anyone finds it a tad bothersome.

        4. HueSatLight

          Like I’m not obsessed with it, I just think it’s fairly probable. But you know how hyperbole is the first resort of all the villains in the comments who have a different reaction than I do.

        5. StClair

          For what it’s worth, I agree.

        6. Heavensrun

          It’s been brought up every day since Joyce did the bed-turn to Dotty. In this case, the post I’m replying to is about how Becky has “Joe/Joyce feelings” to process when I am comfortably certain she spent that evening thinking of literally nothing but her girlfriend in (and out of) a suit.

        7. Thag Simmons

          Becky’s got complicated Joyce feelings and I do think the stuff with Joyce and Dotty will sting when it comes out, but it is very easy to overstatw this stuff

          Plus it has never paid to bet against Becky and Dina in this comic

        8. BYM!

          I don’t think Becky would like, consider leaving Dina for Joyce (ofc she wouldn’t have that option anyway but even if she did I don’t think she would). But the thought that you could’ve had someone you wanted if you just hadn’t met them when you did is a thought that hurts, even if you wouldn’t trade the time and relationship you have with them for anything.

        9. BYM!

          Honestly Joyce has said previously (I’m pretty sure) that she can’t be interested in girls because if there WAS one girl she’d be interested in it would be Becky and she wasn’t when Becky asked her. Even though she loves Becky so much, that love just isn’t romantic. Wonder if that line of thinking took Joyce off the trail of her own sexuality for a while.

  5. BSD

    she felt a disturbance in the force, as if one voice cried out again and again and again.

    1. Dante

      Have a manual upvote, dang sdklgjsdfh

    2. Sajuuk-Khar

      Joe’s fingers displacing chicken fingers as Joyce’s favorite digits

      1. Opus the Poet

        That’s what the NSFW Patreon is showing. Joyce is looking very happy.

  6. V98

    ? And you just don’t get it
    You keep it copacetic
    And you learn to accept it
    You know, you’re so pathetic ?

    1. Queen Anthai

      LOCAL H REMEMBERED AND MENTIONED

      1. V98

        😀

      2. V98

        I think Dorothy could really get into some classic 90s grunge what with the flannel and the bleak outlook on the future and whatnot.

    2. BYM!

      Never heard this song in my life but somehow knew the exact cadence this was sung in

  7. Ray

    This arc has me more tense than the evil dads alliance. [Shaking my phone and refreshing nonstop staring at the arc title every midnight]

    1. zee

      This arc made me fork over five bucks for peace of mind

    2. Joy

      I mean the Mike situation isn’t going to happen again, but valid.

  8. Cholma

    Man, I hate how wordy this comic has become! What is this, Dinosaur comics?!

    1. Steamweed

      Surpassing Subnormality for wall-of-text factor!

      1. StClair

        not possible.

  9. Cmasta1992

    “You may not like it, but accept it” -Macho Man Randy Savage

  10. Animedingo

    Is there NO school counselor

    1. Amós Batista

      not at midnight

      1. Lee

        Pretty sure Ruth does her best work at midnight /J

    2. RassilonTDavros

      “All I know is the therapists here aren’t very good.“

      1. Sajuuk-Khar

        Indiana University’s counseling department: If you’re chaining Englishmen to the door and press-ganging them into romantic relationships, you’re A-OK

    3. Taffy

      On call, after midnight? No, probably not.

    4. V98

      You know who Dorothy might be able to relate to right now? Disgraced former Representative Robin Desanto!

      Not only does she have a torched political career, she’s totally straight with just one exception (/j)! She’s perfect and she’d give exactly the right advice.
      (Cue Joe and Joyce waking up with Dorothy in the bed, but above the covers)

  11. Dot

    Look Dorothy I’m sympathetic and all but you do have a boyfriend you could be spending time with.

    1. Sajuuk-Khar

      There’s no proof of this.

      1. Strain of Thought

        I was eventually 110% onboard with Dorothy X Walky the first time around (after I got over that Joyce X Walky wasn’t happening this time) but the second coming has been half-hearted and sparkless. The first time Dorothy and Walky were both growing as people and exploring new things and new feelings by being together, but the second time it’s more like putting on an old sweatshirt full of holes because you just want to give up and feel comfortable and familiar without having to try so hard. And like… they both needed a break from the bullshit, and I want them to have it, but while it’s a relief in the short term it feels degenerate in the long term unless both of them go through some radical positive development as people so that they have something genuine to share with each other again instead of being each other’s low effort fall back option.

    2. Nymph

      Not really sure what you mean here, she would still be sad and heartachey around Walky. It’s also the middle of the night and he’s probably asleep. And lastly, just to hit the shotgun approach: there’s nothing bad about sitting in her sadness right now and feeling it.

      1. Joy

        (Compliment) You argue like a Jew.

        1. Nymph

          Why thank you ?

    3. Vanessa Pinter

      True I bet Walky will get an epic guilt bang later.

    4. Megan

      Hey real quick do you know what “context clues” are

      1. Taffy

        Are those the things like Walky probably being asleep, Dorothy being awake while Joyce gets fingered within an inch of her life 33 steps away, Dorothy repeatedly being super gay for Joyce, Dorothy just recently understanding how gay she is for Joyce? Those things?

        1. Megan

          unironically no. those are either plot points or a sexual fantasy you had. context clues, narratively speaking, are things shown to an audience that help the audience understand something unsaid, like dorothy being upset alone at night being a clue that she might not WANT to talk to walky right now, and is not in fact happy in her relationship. she’s not an idiot, she remembers he exists, she has sprung herself on him in the middle of the night before. unless she does it in tomorrow’s strip, it can be assumed she does not want to, and if she does not want to, we as an audience can reach certain conclusions from that knowledge. Punk.

        2. Taffy

          I see, I see. I’ve always been a little fuzzy on the distinction when it comes to storytelling. She’s definitely being a punk right now.

        3. Yumi

          Honestly never heard that as the definition of “context clues.” Sometimes people use that in an informal way when they mean “context” or something else? Maybe my background is too “language arts in schools” focused, but I’d be curious where “context clues” is generally used with this meaning. (Legitimately, because it sounds confusing when people are familiar with the “context clues help us understand the meaning of an unfamiliar word” version.)

    5. Freezer

      I think she needs emotional healing more than sexual. Walky can give her the latter. The former? Not so much.

      1. justin8448

        Especially since she needs help working through feelings of disappointment and jealousy and trauma and much more… specifically concerning someone other than Walky that she has a crush on.

        Walky is pretty chill, but that sure would be asking a lot.

      2. BarerMender

        I think you’re right.

        Also, glory to Ukraine!

    6. DashWallkick

      Oh don’t worry. By the time the day rolls around she’ll remember she has a boyfriend and have a catastrophic guilt complex she will stubbornly refuse to tell Walky about since deep down on some level Dorothy believes she’s not being faithful. Or, worse yet, she’ll start to believe he’s her beard or something.

    7. thejeff

      She could, but given what she’s upset about, going to him for comfort/distraction would be awkward at best.

  12. NGPZ

    Cheer up Dorothyyyyy, you’ll get your chance….

    1. NGPZ

      ya know what fuck it

      *plays “Underground” by David Bowie on hacked muzak*

  13. shadowcell

    this will make a very humanizing anecdote to play at the convention when she accepts her party’s nomination for president of the united states

    it will of course be narrated by morgan freeman

  14. HueSatLight

    there there, buddy

  15. ZombieKyrik

    Oh boy, this doesn’t bode well. I hope Dorothy can remember she has Walky, so she doesn’t have to be alone right now. I understand why she’s upset, and she shouldn’t be alone right now. Sitting in the dark thinking about it is only going to make it hurt more.

    1. Coatl

      I know, I really wish this torment to Dorothy would end.

    2. Nymph

      There’s nothing wrong with being alone and feeling your grief.

      1. ZombieKyrik

        There are definitely times when being alone with your sadness is fine, and healthy.
        However Dorothy is only making herself feel worse right now, and having someone nearby that she can rely on would help her feel better now. That would make it easier to process all of her feelings without digging herself deeper into sadness.

        1. Nymph

          I don’t think she needs to feel better right now in the middle of the night. It’s okay that she’s crying a bit.

        2. Nadamás

          As someone who has been alone with his sadness sometimes in the middle of the night: That is awful advice.

        3. Nymph

          Sure. Awful advice to suggest Dorothy should let herself grieve the literal night of something bad happening. AWFUL advice that it’s okay to cry a bit about realizing you’re into someone and then having them bolt off onto a date. ?

          I was talking about the character and her personal circumstances. I was not offering you advice about your own late night sadness, and I have no interest in doing so.

        4. Nadamás

          I am saying it is awful advice for Dorothy too. There is a difference between felling your fellings and wallowing in to the point it hurts your mental health which is a very possible thing with how Dorothy been doing. Also the condescension wasn’t needed I wasn’t you for advice.

        5. Nadamás

          *wasn’t asking

        6. Nymph

          And I disagree. I think it’s excellent advice for Dorothy and I think it’s not my job to modulate my tone for you either so feel free to read condescension into whatever you would like. I talk how I talk, you can accept that or don’t.

      2. Coatl

        Indeed, it’s not bad, but Dorothy has been dealing with all of this alone and is falling apart horribly.

        It’s time she truly says she needs help, but real help.

        But yes, Joyce has always said that Dorothy is important to her, and it’s important that they clear things up, because in the previous strips, she didn’t hesitate for a second.

        Yes, I know it’s a lot to ask, but it’s also not a bad thing for Walky to show her support. I’m reading a lot that the chemistry with Dorothy isn’t the same (I still love the ship, but I won’t deny it), but if things get complicated, at least let it be shown that the spark is still there.
        Dreaming is free.

        1. Dante

          No, I get it. I used to really like them, but even though I currently don’t, I’d love them to at least get to be truly legit friends — Something that requires vulnerability and trust. Dorothy in particular doesn’t really let herself be supported, and Walky has grown a lot since they were last were close, he’d be up to be there for her :((

          It’d also help his feeling like she only wants him for “uncomplicated” (which in practice means sex so far?)

        2. Coatl

          It’s precisely those details that still make me feel fonder about this ship. Walky has made progress, and that detail could be the key to Dorothy seeing that there’s more to it than meets the eye. Who knows, maybe it could be the opportunity for her to finally admit that she needs help.
          And I repeat, dreaming is free.

        3. Dante

          I’ve been reading DoA since it was announced and if there’s something that mixes well is my being a multishipper + Willis being an amazing writer. I like drama!! I like Emotions!! And on god, some of those emotions are even my faves getting to be happy ;33

          I’ll always have things I’ll like better than others but (with some exceptions) it’s hella easy to sway me with the right storyline.

        4. Coatl

          I discovered this webcomic around 2018 or 2019, approximately…yes, as you read you can see which characters you like and which ones you don’t, and that’s where you want to know the outcome of each one. Dorothy’s situation is obviously disturbing, and being aware of what she’s been through and how she’s been treated, I hope she has a happy ending.

        5. ZombieKyrik

          I hope almost everyone gets a happy ending; there are a few characters who don’t deserve a happy ending, and hopefully they don’t get one.

        6. Dante

          Yeaahh. I admittedly don’t feel the love rn but I want Dorothy and Walky to be happy, however that looks. What I mean is, I trust Willis? In a long enough timeline I could be swayed to ship them again with the right storyline.

          …….. My pipe dream has been the Messy Polycule of a Cast since the Ouroboros book title and then Charles’ fuckpile comment, though I know it’s not likely.

    3. Thag Simmons

      I honestly don’t know that she and Walky do have each other. They certainly used to, but the chemistry is not what it used to be. Feels like they both rebounded into each other and haven’t actually re-established a stable relationship.

    4. Aura

      I feel like that’s just likely to make things worse tbh. Her having Walky and being in love with someone else is a kinda big part of the problem right now.

    5. thejeff

      Sometimes in the depths of hurt like this, you want it to hurt more. You want to dwell on the pain. That’s not necessarily bad, as long as it doesn’t last too long.

      Just going to Walky to distract herself or get cheered up isn’t what she wants or probably needs.
      Going to talk it out with someone would help, but doing that with Walky at this point just escalates the problem.

      1. Nymph

        Absolutely agree with this take. You put it into words much more clearly than I think I did.

  16. Sajuuk-Khar

    I feel this is the right moment to note that I called that Dorothy was Ms. Brightside months and moons ago, back when the song was first referenced! Yes, I knew then! You may shower me with praise and accolades for my foreknowledge. It’s a very appropriate strip for that.

    (also an appropriate gravatar for this lmaoooooo)

    1. Risky

      Why is this song everywhere today? Two different vtubers were singing it on their streams, it plays constantly in my head anyway, three different comics referenced it in their hidden text… and you called it.

      1. Nymph

        Yeah, I’ve also run into it a weird amount today.

  17. RassilonTDavros

    So my I had to go back a couple strips and check whether Joeyce was on the top bunk or the bottom one because my dumb ass initially thought Dorothy was in the same room as them at first.

    1. DailyBrad

      I mean, I thought the same thing.

    2. Sajuuk-Khar

      They’re all loft beds, though! No bunks!

      However, this was a valid anxiety. Thankfully, no, the delights of Joe Fingers are in Joyce’s room, thirty-three steps down the hall

    3. Effie

      Aren’t all of their rooms top bunks? The desks are under the raised beds.

      1. Effie

        Oops, oh well. Second!

      2. AbacusWizard

        I experimented with various different dorm furniture arrangements throughout my freshman year. Tragically, I only discovered the optimal arrangement—desk placed directly in front of window, bed lofted high directly above desk, plenty of empty floor space in the rest of the room—on move-out day.

        1. clif

          Hey, now. We don’t actually know that Dorothy isn’t in Sarah’s bed.

    4. Taffy

      It’s been covered but just in case someone sees this later

      THERE ARE NO BUNKS.
      NOBODY HAS THE TOP OR BOTTOM BUNK.
      THESE ARE LOFT BEDS.
      YOU’VE SEEN THE DESKS MULTIPLE TIMES.
      THEY’RE NOT BUNK BEDS.
      DRINK SOME WATER, YOUR PEE IS TOO YELLOW.

      1. StClair

        … how do you know what color my pee is?

        1. clif

          It’s just a talent Taffy has.

        2. Steamweed

          Hidden cameras.

        3. Taffy

          I’ve been using this website since the first kidnapping was resolving. I know what you freaks are like. Chug-a-lug, canary bladder.

      2. HueSatLight

        That’s better than “drink some water, your pee isn’t yellow enough”

        1. Taffy

          If drinking water makes your pee yellower, I can only think of two things causing that.
          I) That’s some dirty water, probably find something cleaner.
          ii) Your pee was a different, less healthy color, like orange or red or purple

        2. HueSatLight

          severe dehydration is one of the things that can turn it “cola colored”, a brown or dark orange.

        3. Firefly

          Orange/red/purple just mean I’ve been eating beets. Beets are good for you, y’know.

        4. clif

          But not very good for the beets. Show some empathy

        5. Roborat

          And remember, carrot juice is murder.

  18. Shakes

    I hope Dorothy catches a break sometime soon.

    1. DailyBrad

      I mean, she *did* get back together with Walky and it seems to have been a pretty good move for her. She just… has all kinds of shit she needs to process, and “do I want to make out with Joyce” was only one of like a half dozen floating issues.

      I dunno, she’s seen worse days.

      1. Dante

        In all honesty. I don’t think it was good, for either of them.

        Like it was really the kind of impulsive “scratch the itch” thing that’s not even that fulfilling the morning after, let alone longer term.

        1. Shakes

          That’s the vibe I have from them too. Dorothy was feeling unmoored and he was something to grab, but her hearts not in it this time.

        2. Li

          Yeahhhh.

          I’m on record like, two years ago or whenever he was last with Lucy, BEFORE Dorothy had that “shouldn’t want to punch a wall from grief and loss” strip, as having said that I liked Dorothy best of Walky’s girlfriends thus far (that is, I liked their relationship and thought they were better-matched/happier together), but.

          This has not been great so far for either of them, imho.

        3. Dante

          If they’re going to be in any kind of proximity to each other, they need to become proper friends who are vulnerable, trust and support each other, and see each other for both their growth and complexity under the jokes (D➡️W) and the flaws and shifting goals (W➡️D)

          Of course it hasn’t been great to either of them. Dorothy still sees Walky as her #Uncomplicated silly boy (who needs her help), and Walky still sees her as the overachiever he puts in a pedestal and should be grateful for. Which means, after everything they’ve gone through, they don’t know each other. They’re banging based on nostalgia for stress relief, not even out of current attraction.

          (If I ever seem wishy-washy in my shipping opinions btw it’s precisely because I’m a multishipper who has tiered shipping based on how much I like them and likelihood fhdjjd but also goes “character first.” Barring some Actual OTP and NOTP exceptions.)

        4. thejeff

          This seems like a fairly common problem with getting back together with an ex, especially at first and especially at this age where people change quickly.

          You can jump back into a level of intimacy you haven’t earned with the new version and lean on old habits that don’t actually fit any more.

          It’s not impossible to overcome and I think they’d have a decent chance, but it’s not a good position from which to try to deal with something like Dorothy’s feelings for Joyce.

        5. Li

          Very well-spotted!

        6. Yumi

          Really like Dorothy and Walky the first go around! Wanted them back together for a while, but now I’m pretty “eh” on the relationship. Which I think is pretty good writing on Willis’s part if they’re not going to be endgame!

          My general attitude (as a reader, aiming to enjoy the comic) on Dorothy outside that relationship has also improved more recently, so it’s not really a loss for me there.

        7. thejeff

          I always felt their breakup left things unresolved between them, since the feelings were still there, it was just for practical reasons. (Nor did I really like the idea that Dorothy’s problems back then were easily resolved by just not having a boyfriend to distract her.)

          We’ll see how this one goes. Is it just “No, they’re not really into each other anymore” or is it an obstacle they should overcome?

  19. Amós Batista

    ok, you can cry now

  20. Switchchris

    Gotta love a good Mr. Brightside reference, such a good 21 year old song.

    1. Dante

      You didn’t have to add the latter half. Thousands have withered and died upon reading, yours truly included.

      Please think of what you’ve done

    2. Risky

      If I had a nickel for every time I ran into Mr. Brightside today, I’d have way more nickels that I would have ever thought possible to get from Mr. Brightside. Like Numi randomly sang it (live) today, instead of Bottom 2. And a different vtuber sang it while playing Oblivion. Why is it today?

      1. Sajuuk-Khar

        It might be just the price you pay.

      2. Switchchris

        It will always be a classic, much of the 2000’s era music will be. Numi probably grew up listening to it just like we did, a lot of V-Tubers did, since they would be of either the Millennial or Gen Z generations, with only a couple exceptions that I know of being Gen X.

        1. Dante

          When I was growing up, 80’s music were the classic bangers sad teens like me listened to.

          Sad teens nowadays listen to 00’s music. (But also 80’s music, which is a testament to its quality.)

        2. MK15

          In fairness music lately has been nowhere near as good as everything alt that entered mainstream in early ‘00s. White Stripes, The Strokes, Interpol, Walkmen, DCFC, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and yes, The Killers.

          Gotta take a moment to appreciate the genius of the “it’s all in my head but she’s touching his… chest now” lyric for how it so casually breaks the expected rhyme 😉

        3. Prior Semblance

          As a kid I always assumed it was just a pg version of the song and when I started buying music I went looking for the “real” version lol

        4. Dante

          I make a serious effort to keep listening to new music and not getting fossilized in just my comfort music (that. as everyone, will go back to from time to time)… And every time I find something that makes me go “OH THIS IS COOL” it’s either pre 2020 or a new song from a pre 2020 band. It’s hard out there for an alt enjoyer nowadays TwT

          And yeah the dissonance of “touching his chest” (overt) /”touching his dick” (implied) is pure poetry

        5. John Campbell

          A line in another webcomic recently reminded me that I didn’t have a copy of “Lunatic Fringe”, which seems rather apt for the current zeitgeist, so I went out looking for it and… anyway, long story short, I realized that my huge and eclectic music collection didn’t include anything from the current decade. So I set about to fix that, too, and so now I have several 2021-2022 albums.

          By Iron Maiden, Jethro Tull, Midnight Oil, and Tears for Fears.

        6. Taffy

          If it’s current music you’re after, you can do a lot worse than the Chemical Brothers’ album For That Beautiful Feeling.

        7. StClair

          When I was growing up, 80s music was the current stuff every teen listened to.
          (Except for those who were more into the 70s, or… well, you get the idea.)

        8. Scolopendra

          Can confirm, she’s in the last birth year to qualify as a millennial. Much to my chagrin as a first-year Gen Z, a label which only half suits me.

      3. Thag Simmons

        it’s a good song!

  21. Chubseus

    “She said she loved me, but she had somewhere to go-”

  22. The 25th

    If we still doing Paramore now would be a good time to play “That’s what you get”

  23. not someone else

    Oh boy. It just hit me (I’m sure this has been said earlier) but she turned down Yale for Joyce? And now that’s a really explicit parallel to her feelings on Danny…

    *mentally adjusts Kinsey estimation up about a point*

    1. Amós Batista

      Yes, and I can just imagine she, thinking the same

    2. Astariel

      What she actually said was that she turned down Yale because she didn’t want to use an incident that left a man dead and all her friends traumatized as a stepping stone in her career. A lot of people seem to assume that she was lying about this and it was actually about Joyce, but Dorothy never actually said that.

      1. HueSatLight

        That’s kind of how lying to one’s self works. Saying the rationalization out loud instead of what’s being suppressed.

        1. Dante

          I mean. I feel like, knowing how her sense of ethics works, both are true. Dorothy is big on merit.

          She just HELLA supressed how much the Joyce part factored in.

        2. Thag Simmons

          Eh, I think “I want to stay here with Joyce” and “I do not deserve to profit off this traumatic event” are not mutually exclusive thoughts

  24. DJTsurugi

    the comments seem to have forgotten that Joyce got cold feet and called off getting filthy. also speaking of Joyce, she should probably be tagged in this one, she’s clearly very present. ~<3

    1. Taffy

      The hell are you talking about, “forgotten”? Until like 15 minutes ago, it was at the top of the website. I know I joke about these people forgetting what happened one panel ago, but goddamn.

    2. Dante

      Aw man. She’s hella grieving but also look at those eyebrows. This, kids, is “Anger” — also known as the Best Stage of Grief.

      This is how she ends up in Dunn Meadow.

      1. Dante

        (Sorry, I didn’t mean to post this under your thread, DJTsurugi!)

        1. DJTsurugi

          lol you good, I think it fits anyway. ~<3

    3. Sajuuk-Khar

      As much as I like to think of myself as the foremost shipper of DorJoJo as an OT3, like, they are pretty ride-or-die for me, I do not think that Joe “just” fingering Joyce is much comfort to Dotty right now.

      1. Taffy

        Yeah, they’re going to bed and her stomach is sick, for fuck’s sake.

      2. DJTsurugi

        I was mostly referring to some of the comments up top that are clearly all about Joyce and Joe actually fucking right now which… isn’t the case. some of them are from some dope song lyrics, but it feels like they’re ignoring that stop. ~<3

        1. eh, whatever

          which… isn’t the case.

          But Dorothy doesn’t know that. So maybe she’s imagining it vividly right now. That’s the point of all those comments.

        2. Nymph

          It is also possible that some people consider fingerbanging to fall under the umbrella of “fucking” and that’s what they’re talking about?

        3. Nadamás

          In my mind I don’t make any distinction between the two.

        4. Yumi

          I truly don’t even see what comments you’re talking about. Just went back to look, and… like there’s one about Joyce calling out Joe’s name repeatedly? The song about them touching and removing some clothing? None of that means “Joe must have his penis in Joyce’s vagina right now.”

          They didn’t just stop. Joe is going to finger her. Even if Dorothy was aware of exactly what’s happening (which she’s not), that really doesn’t change anything for the comments. (No one actually brought up “fucking” before you.)

        5. John Campbell

          I think most of that stuff is just directly quoting song lyrics, anyway.

        6. Taffy

          It’s certainly a bold move, calling out Brandon Flowers in such an obscure place.

        7. Dante

          I mean, Joyce did mention “deflowering” earlier

        8. HueSatLight

          If Dorothy were fingering Joyce, would that count as fucking?

  25. Taffy

    It’s late and she’s awake
    Starin’ at the wall

  26. TheFungus

    Same song came to mind with recent events… The thing that fucks with me is that Dorothy is literally just at the same point Joyce was during the first five or so books of longing and yearning for something she could never have…

    We’ve also seen all of the no-walkyverse pairings from god knows how long ago back in Joyce & Walky come into reality once again. And here we are again at the brink of things where Dorothy is at her breaking point. She promised that things would be different back then too…

    1. Sajuuk-Khar

      So what you’re saying is she’s going to beat Walky to death.

      1. Taffy

        I’ll even quote them directly
        “[…]Dorothy is literally[…]b[…]ea[…]t[…]ing[…]Walky[…]to[…]D[…]ea[…]t[…]h”

        You have to kinda read between the lines, but all of the letters are there, in that order.

        1. Nymph

          Ah, erasure poetry, love that stuff.

    2. Coatl

      After seeing everything Dorothy went through in the Walkyverse, one really hopes she has a happy ending in the Dumbinverse.

      1. Dave

        …it occurs to me that Dorothy ends up paired with Joyce and Walky’s son from the future by the end of Joyce & Walky

        In the absence of time travel, she’s doing the next best thing and shtupping both of Machete’s parents instead

  27. pyrock_mania

    Oh Dorothy…

  28. Dante

    Aw man. She’s hella grieving but also look at those eyebrows. This, kids, is “Anger” — also known as the Best Stage of Grief.

    This is how she ends up in Dunn Meadow.

    1. clif

      You realize, of course, that Walkyverse Dorothy is buried in Dunn Meadow.

      An interesting fact I just made up.

      1. Dante

        I cackled. It’s a beautiful nonfact

        AFAIK Walkyverse Dorothy is buried in WalkyJoyce’s combined genetics. With a strap. Which Willis told us not to read much about, so yeah, we shan’t

        1. Li

          Actually Willis told us to read into that as much as we wanted.

          (Just in case that was either not a joke, or someone else who hasn’t read the storyline takes this comment seriously. 🙂 )

      2. yak

        Kudos to you. Without people making up facts, how would we get them?

  29. Lee

    Putting that song in my head definitely deserves a “Damn you, Willis!”

    1. Thag Simmons

      it’s a good song!

      1. Lee

        Even the best of song can be beaten to death by being overplayed. There’s a reason guitar stores having a “No Stairway!” sign is a popular trope.

  30. Taffy

    So, if Dorothy does what I do in these situations and goes to dumbingofage.com, what canonically shows up on her screen?

    1. sisterofdarkoneko

      Shortpacked

    2. Dante

      Webcam

    3. Sajuuk-Khar

      Joyce & Walky

    4. V98

      Joyce’s Julia Grey filedump.

      She has it homepaged. Don’t ask why. We all know why.

    5. Thag Simmons

      The unlicensed College AU the original creator of Dexter/Monkey Master published as an independent webcomic after losing the rights to the series.

    6. Justnobodyfqwl

      It’s like how the characters in Homestuck read the other comics by the author of Homestuck…but because Homestuck doesn’t exist, they complain about the author’s new project (an entirely fictional comic that is always up to something insane whenever you get to see it).

    7. amsterquinn

      tears a rift into the Astral Plane

    8. clif

      It changes with the floating time-line.

    9. AbacusWizard

      “In the universe the players inhabit, Dumbing of Age does not exist. That’s the premise of this entire comic, after all. But most of the other things we know and love (such as Dexter & Monkey Master) do, albeit modified by the lack of Dumbing of Age…”

      1. clif

        Nice.

    10. HueSatLight

      Laddison “Guns” Lastnamehere’s manifesto about how reality, physics, and the passage of time are breaking down and the nexus is at IU. And that almost nobody notices, but after she did, she realized she was subjectively 10 years older than she was physically, and she had to move.

      1. NGPZ

        oh shit, thanks for reminding me Guns exists ^^

  31. IntangibleMatter

    Dorothy giving that sad hamster look in the last panel… she needs a hug

  32. It Me JD!

    Now she’s taking a crab.

  33. perpetual sea

    I soooo hope it’s gonna be weird between Joyce & Dorothy next time they talk. From both sides. That’d be my ideal outcome. I desperately want to know what Joyce was thinking during that scene but I also hope it doesn’t get resolved too quickly. A shift in the dynamic could be super fun, especially for Dorothy

    1. Luminous Lead

      Definitely! I’m 75% expecting Joyce to have been oblivious to it, as she was with Becky.

      1. perpetual sea

        I think it’s fun to draw parallels between this & the Becky situation, & even more interesting to see how it differs vs just repeats – if Joyce is oblivious then not only to Dorothy’s but also her own feelings, which hopefully will make it all much messier. The aftermath of Becky’s confession & Joyce’s rejection (much more straightforward than whatever the hell happened here lol) was really amicable (& Becky sort of got lucky meeting Dina pretty quick.), so I’d really love some uncomfortable tension.

    2. John Campbell

      I’m pretty sure that Joyce was thinking that besties can make out, maybe bang once, and still be regular friends.

      1. thejeff

        But even that means that she wanted to make out with and maybe bang Dorothy.

  34. Anna Grant

    I’ve been there girl it’s rough

  35. Hazel

    I think the ideal outcome for me would be if Dorothy impulsively had a threeway with Ruth and Jason.

    Preemptively, yes, I am a horrible gremlin.

    1. clif

      You could maybe make the argument that Dorothy is hurting enough that she might do something uncharacteristic to mask the pain, but why would Ruth and Jason go along with the bit?

      1. Sajuuk-Khar

        I mean, Ruth is attracted to sapphic messes and has shown sparks with Dorothy, and Jason is her minion/sex goon. It’s sensible. It’s a bad idea, but it’s sensible.

        1. V98

          Sparks with Dorothy? Please show me where.

          Seriously, please show me, that would go so hard

        2. Sajuuk-Khar

          Right here and the two strips afterwards!

          I might be reading too much into them, of course, but I thought “there’s a little tiny bit of messy chemistry there”

        3. V98

          Hmmm… Not sure *I* see it, but I’d be thrilled to see it come up in the future.

          Oh, oh, there was the strip where Ruth and Jennifer were considering coming up to her and telling her that she needs to get fucked. That can go in your Ruth/Dorothy spec pile!

        4. Sajuuk-Khar

          I thank you for the suggestion but I am only an observer of that possible bad idea! 😛 No, no, my spec pile must remain filled with how to undo the Gordian Knot that makes it so Dorothy, Joe, and Joyce cannot all just kiss (and then bang) their problems away. u_u

  36. BBCC

    Okay, so maybe not a good night for EVERYONE.

  37. OnyxIdol

    Aww hun

  38. CianM1301

    Tomorrow’s panel will just be Walky staring at the ceiling, eating chicken nuggets in bed.

    1. Sajuuk-Khar

      This is also how his Slipshine with Amber will start, though.

      1. clif

        You mean Amber’s plan works?

        She’s amazing.

        1. John Campbell

          No, that’s the other one.

  39. Arianod

    This is Dorothy’s start of darkness, the beginning of her corruption arc. Eventually, she becomes President of the United States :'(

    1. John Campbell

      All shall love her and despair!

      1. Arianod

        …except the one whose love she truly wants.

    2. Dante

      On the other hand, maybe it’s the start of her rising as the leader of the Revolution

      And it all starts with her going to Dunn Meadow, banging Jocelyn, and resisting the police siege

  40. Opus the Poet

    Willis’ NSFW Patreon has pencils and preliminary inks of Joeyce in a manual stimulation scenario.

  41. Francoinblanco

    Laundry room await

  42. Adept

    Oh Dottie…

  43. DashWallkick

    On the bright side, at least Dorothy doesn’t have a compulsive need to take all the blame and responsibility for sins that are tangentially related to her actions!

    1. Nymph

      Phew, that would be a real kick in the pants.

  44. SillyGoose

    Hey, look at the Wordle of the day! Not spoiling it but. Yes, that’s all I came here to say.

    1. Hoboturtle

      I didn’t expect such foul language from the New York Times.

  45. Woop de doop

    Updog.

    1. Yumi

      Not much, dawg; what’s up with you?

  46. Alan in DC

    Wow… Joe’s fingers must be loud if they’re keeping Dorothy awake.

    1. Freezer

      ♫♫ OH SWEET MYSTERY OF LIFE AT LAST I’VE FOUND YOU! ♫♫

      1. NickG

        But does Joe have an enormous ‘Schwanschtucker’?

  47. DiktatrSquid

    What timing. I just realized I’m not entirely over my ex, which I discovered by learning that she has a new partner.

    I legit want her to be happy, but a part of me wishes it was still me with her.

    I’m really feeling Dorothy rn

  48. morleuca

    Good thing Dorothy has an escape hatch for all this messy, complicated emotions stuff. If she goes to Yale now, she can just start over and be a different person than she is right now.

    1. Pergola

      Bail for Yale!

    2. Yumi

      Yup, surely at Yale Dorothy will be able to outrun her feelings!

      1. morleuca

        or at least, not have to deal with the absolute mess she’s in right now. It would also give her a chance to evaluate everything without all the immediate external pressures that are causing all the conflict. No Joyce, No Joe, No Walky, No Amber, No Amazigirl, No Raidah. Heck, no Becky to constantly pick at that scab every chance she gets, just because.

        1. V98

          I hate it cuz it’d break up my ship but that really does seem like the right move for her right now.

          Cuz at the moment, she’s like *Danny*. Picking a college based off of where her girlfriend is going. Except she’s even worse cuz Joyce isn’t even dating her!

          Even if she’s not gonna be President, an Ivy League would still be a way better experience than Indiana U.

          ….Unless everyone there just treats her as the “campus kidnapping girl” and she feels like she hasn’t gotten in on her own merits. She’d probably go back to IU and Joyce would be there, waiting with open arms, Joe having perished in a tragic helicopter accident a month prior, thus freeing her up for- wait, this is my fanfic, sorry

        2. Yumi

          Oh, I truly thought you were joking and responded as such. My bad.

        3. Nadamás

          I did too because it is such a bad idea.

        4. Yumi

          I have many reasons I don’t think this would be a good idea, but for here I’ll just point out that Dorothy can’t go to Yale “now.” Either she was offered acceptance starting this semester (would be very odd, but does seem like it’s what the story suggests) and she’s already missed that boat, or she can start there next school year– but she still has to get through the rest of this semester first. She can’t just pop over to a new university a few weeks into the semester. (She’s like a week past the cut-off to add/drop classes if she got there tomorrow, and she’s not even a student.)

        5. Li

          +1

    3. HueSatLight

      Definitely won’t burn out faster without any friends to support her, trying to hide from her growing pains.

      1. Nadamás

        And you know the higher pressure of a more “prestigious” institution and the fact the carrer she would there for isn’t even something she is sure she wants anymore.

  49. Hoboturtle

    God I want people to know about Dottt’s crush.

    Either to see that they called it or mild surprise that Joyce isn’t the one crushing on Dorothy.

    1. Leon

      Three people know about it so far (Amber, Booster, Joe) and two of them think it’s mutual. Joe might think it’s mutual too, but he’s surprisingly not threatened by it if true. Four people if you count Amazi-Girl?

      Two suspecting people are Danny and Sarah. Sarah thinks it’s mutual and I feel like Joyce will inadvertently out herself to her by the beginning of the next storyline. That might be a running theme since the number will dramatically increase. She did announce they were doing hanky-panky stuff proudly and loudly to Carla and Ruth.

      1. Yumi

        Glanced over your comment, my mind snagged on the “B” (from “Booster”) and filled it in with “Blaine” and I went, “Blaine? HOw does BLAINE know about her crush?”

        Then I remembered that, luckily, Blaine is dead, so we don’t have to worry about him spilling the beans.

        1. V98

          We haven’t seen the body…

        2. Yumi

          fUCK

  50. But It's Bethany!

    I so so so want this Dorothy/Joyce thing to end up being an example of truly loving your best friend so much that you are willing to do things with them to make them happy, even though you’re not sexually attracted to them, with each party coming to realize that differently.

    My friend called it being the “Margaery (Tyrell)”, where it’s more about the commitment to the person, but personally it was more that I truly loved my best friend in every way but romantic/sexually but I was willing to do anything if it pulled her head back to a good place, not knowing that that can help, but also be unintentionally cruel.

    Idk, maybe because I’ve lived through it, but I think it would be more interesting than Joyce actually having feelings for Dotty and that’s why she subconsciously can’t go all the way with Joe. I also think it’s more interesting for Dot to be grappling with being more queer than she thought but also coming to realize that her “feelings” for Joyce actually aren’t romantic either, and explore more of her personal traumas (maybe we already have/are, I’ve just come back to this comic in a year so please correct me as I go back a few chapters after this).

    Going back to Walky, considering Joyce, the Yale decision – none of it feels like the “right” directions for Dorothy right now.

  51. Steamweed

    Awww, poor Dorothy. I’ve been there. Not fun.

    1. clif

      I choose to believe that she’s laying awake, wondering where the cereal is.

      1. Steamweed

        Dina’s got the power of invisibility, but she can’t teleport. Only Charlie can do that. But Charlie’s not available. So, yeah, poor Dorothy. No cereal for her.

  52. Steve

    I find it interesting that Joyce was absolutely willing to go the distance with Dotty before Dotty stopped things, but Joyce is not willing to do the same with Joe right now.

    1. Leon

      While I do think it’s interesting Joyce did verbalize that desire and willingness in light of her background (jumping head first into physical expression of gay desire with no anxiety), I did not believe she was gonna attempt to have sex right there that very moment. Shit, to be honest, Joyce was even being pretty smooth in contrast to her usual awkwardness.

      Still, this will be another thing that prods at Joyce when she thinks it over again.

    2. Nymph

      Joyce touched Dorothy’s face. She said she would find it easier with Dorothy. They didn’t even kiss and we have absolutely no idea how far she would or would not have gone with Dorothy or whether it would have differed from how it went with Joe.

      I don’t think we can draw any conclusions about her interests from that behavior.

      1. Leon

        Yeah, basically. The only unambiguous things Joyce communicated was a. sexual desire for Dorothy and b. she thinks it would be easier to have sex with Dorothy than Joe. The second thing is still interesting, though, and how she initiated it all. It wouldn’t surprise me if Joyce revealed how anxious she was after revealing b and having to wait about 2 mins for Dorothy to respond to her.

      2. Yumi

        Yeah, she actually went much farther with Joe tonight. She was also saying that she wanted to fuck him tonight and intended to until she changed her mind, so since it didn’t come close to being in the same situation with Dorothy, we really can’t know if that would have changed for her there too.

        1. thejeff

          It also might be that even if she had been “willing to go the distance ” with Dorothy, that still might have been no farther than what she’s agreeing to in today’s strip with Joe – fingers.

        2. Li

          I think I wanna +1 this.

          Also, like, it would also be Dorothy’s first time with another girl, so fingers might’ve also been as far as she was ready to take things…

  53. Luminous Lead

    Dorothy did good by her morals, and did not sabotage Joyce’s budding relationship just to fill a hole in her life. This level of self-restraint is just what you’d want in a future presidential candidate.

    1. Nymph

      I don’t agree that it would have been “just to fill a hole in her life”, otherwise spot on!

    2. NGPZ

      or, and hear me out, professions where she could actually help vulnerable people without becoming a war criminal

      1. Steamweed

        She’d make a good advocate, lawyer, ombudsman, therapist, etc.

        1. Nymph

          Ombudsman? NGPZ said without becoming a war criminal omg.

        2. NGPZ

          yeah, turns out a lot of U.S. gov ombudsman are “diplomatic” the same way the mainstream Democratic Party is “left-leaning” — basically, not at all (-_-)

      2. HueSatLight

        blow up the sun. whatever profession does that.

        1. NGPZ

          I fail to see how destroying the star which supplies energy to basically all life on your planet would be of much benefit to *anyone*, let alone the vulnerable

        2. HueSatLight

          I’m sure someone with that profession could explain it better than I could.

  54. Kaz

    God dangit Willis now I have Mr. Brightside stuck in my head again.

    1. Makkabee

      No more… Mr. Brightside!

      *thrashes*

  55. Suet

    “I should’ve cooked more mac n’ cheese…”

    up until now I had sworn to myself that I’m content with loneliness

  56. Florence

    Oh Dorothy ?

  57. HueSatLight

    I do not envy Dorothy, the pain she’s going to be going through, laying with her neck like that.

    1. NGPZ

      must be joint hypermobility, is definitely another sign

  58. Tessea

    Oh no…. *Hugs Dorothy*

    1. Tesset

      We have, like… almost the same username lol

  59. Qube

    when I was young I knew everything

  60. mindbleach

    Not now, “don’t care removing pants” plugin. Not now.

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