139

Dina
Posted on November 26, 2010 by David M Willis

139 thoughts on “Dina”

  1. Jen Aside

    SURPRISE ROOMIE

    1. David Herbert

      Next she’ll escape after punching them both in the dick.

      1. Undrave

        No in the FAAAAAACE!

      2. R

        She doesn’t really look capable of punching anyone anywhere. I think she’ll begin to cry, which will freak them out, and then that will allow her an opportunity to escape.

      3. Chikara

        Woo Hangover reference!

      4. Quantum Polagnus

        Gnomish Cock-Punch Trap?

      5. shadowsneakz

        Nah, she’ll go all Ruth on them and no-one will ever see their femurs again…

    2. Hinoron

      The Veloci-Dina quietly stalks her prey….

  2. George

    Guessed it from the Twitter. Love Mike’s facial expression.

    Wait, am I first?

    1. George

      Dang. Nope.

    2. dchorror

      He doesn’t seem to have the scowl, he seems perpetually worried.

      1. ArchSchnitz

        He looks like he has my perpetual facial expression, which is a combined scowl/lost in thought.

        1. wmpnash

          Nonsense. Obviousy your perpetual facial expression is a Happy-Ethan-Smile. Really ArchSchnitz, who are we going to believe: you or Gravatar?

    3. SteveCharb

      That’s one high-arching eyebrow. Spock is envious.

  3. captainswift

    Ah, the shy one and the reclusive one. That room’s gonna be a party hotspot.

  4. Trevor

    haha, oh Dina… you better not get caught in an explosion this time.

    1. Malph

      Considering the setting of the strip (a college in a world NOT inhabited by aliens and the people abducted by them), I’d have to say that’s unlikely… which means it may still happen, just not in the same way as before (though probably just as much of a tearjerker).

  5. Chrisby

    Well I think Amber mentioned in her Twitter about her roomie being even more of a shut-in than her, or something to that effect.

    So this was to be expected.

    1. Ragnal

      It was? I kinda thought Dina was a bit more social in the Walkyverse.

      1. Jen Aside

        No way, only when Walky kinda sorta made her by demanding she be his girlfriend to spite Joyce.

      2. Slipgate

        Not sure what you read in the Walkyverse, but there was a whole sequence of strips of Dina trying to learn to socialize and standing out there in some common area or hallway with people passing her by and her being unable to strike up conversations.

        Dina was very much unable to deal with other people easily. When she was about to die she was thinking that in the end this is the only sort of thing she was good for other people for – taking it instead of them, who would miss her, etc.

        I can understand maybe missing some of it, but missing her thought-dialogue in the sequence of strips where she died seems weird unless one isn’t familiar with the old Walkyverse.

  6. KVogue

    Does Dina stand behind doors often, or is this a new development? Either way Mike’s expression is great.

    1. Wackd

      She’s hiding from Mike. Y’see, he’s already got a reputation.

  7. Cassidy

    That’s the least assholeish mike could be… He should have pushed the door against the wall squishing her HAHA

    1. Wackd

      He could simply be too surprised to remember to be a dick.

      Of course, him pushing the door back will probably be the first panel of Monday’s comic…

    2. Drpepperfan

      Have you forgotten that Mike has a soft spot for Dina?

      1. Cassidy

        not yet…. he is ONLY JUST MEETING HER FOR THE FIRST TIME. in this universe anyway.

  8. Undrave

    I like Mike’s FAAAAAAAAACE too.

    Hullo Dinah-saur! Would it be in bad form to make a ‘clever girl’ ambushing raptor joke?

    1. BlueNight

      I think that’s the point.

      Somebody warn Randall.

      1. Fyrewyre

        Munroe or the villain from Monsters Inc?

        1. Ian

          You assume they’re two separate entities?

        2. Fyrewyre

          Touche, magic hallway.

  9. Kamino Neko

    That’s actually kind of creepy….

  10. No0ne

    Dina is almost creepy in that last pannel…

    Also: Mike not being a jerk is futher proof that hes is still working on the whole world hater thing…

    1. Chrisby

      Maybe he’ll say her hat is stupid.

  11. Dena

    Whoa, I have a hat just like that one!

    Yay for Dina!

    1. David

      (Remember, folks, everyone can have a hat just like that one!: http://shortpacked.bigcartel.com/product/dina-s-dino-hat )

      1. David

        (It’s available for a reduced price until Monday.)

        1. Someone

          Willis! You..professional shiller, you.

      2. MrGBH

        Is it available for shipping outside the USA?

        1. Cassidy

          im in Canadaland and i have one!!!

        2. Joebo

          You man Canadia right?

      3. Dena

        Ahaha, glad I could help.

        1. Andi

          Love that hat… so much.

  12. cappadocius

    Oh, I do hope Dina and Mike end up a couple in this Universe, too.

    1. Starline

      I’m personally looking a Dina-Mike-Amber love-triangle drama situation. (But I’d also root for Dina first)

      1. R

        Mike just seems like a bad first boyfriend. I’d rather see Dina with someone else, someone who’s gentler, at least at first. Dina and Mike worked alright in Walky, but that’s because she had already gained some confidence and experience by then.

        1. Rognik

          I suppose keeping him sloshed didn’t hurt, either.

    2. Tomb

      Is it just I? Or does Dina appear to be blushing at Ethan?

      1. Chris

        The coloured cheeks… It took me awhile to get used to them but now I like them, but Willis what made you wake up one day and decide to start colouring cheeks in? Just curious

        1. David

          http://www.shortpacked.com/2009/comic/book-9/02-everyone-starts-having-rosy-cheeks/oldspock/

          I drew a strip with Chris Pine in it, he has rosy cheeks, so I gave him some, thought they looked kind of nice, and so they ended up on a lot of my characters.

  13. Nathaniel VonLypathronpicaplasty

    Hmmm. First we’ve seen of Ethan. Wonder how he knows Mike in this universe, if at all.

    …..

    Oh, this could be interesting. Wonder if they’re…
    Naw. That’d be too good to be true. Right?

    1. Reboot

      Willis said somewhere or other that Ethan, Mike & Amber are childhood friends.

      And that Ethan declined to share a room with Mike because he doesn’t want horrible things done to him in his sleep.

      1. Gianni

        That seems like as good a reason as any not to want to room with Mike.

      2. Someone

        With as much of a masochist as SP!Ethan seems to be, you’d think he’d WANT that…

  14. Cha

    I’m going to be Dina in college. >> The room and the standing behind the door…yeah.

    1. Malph

      I’m already like that. As soon as I get a dorm room I’m hanging out behind it.

      1. Malph

        “It” being the door (or the alternate world located just behind the room).

  15. Ragnal

    Not gonna lie, my first reaction to Dina’s appearance here was just ‘D’awwwww’.

    1. Malph

      Mine was more *waving arms in the air while silently saying “DINA!”*

    2. Heather

      That was my reaction too.

      Hopefully, she’ll be invited along?

  16. Eri

    Loving Mike’s expressions!

    And yay, Dina =D

  17. blackouthart

    Not gonna lie, LOVE Mike’s expressions here.
    Third panel: “Seriously, what the fuck? I’m not seriously going to find a girl behind this door?”
    Fourth panel: “SUSPICIOUS GIRL IN DINOSAUR HAT.”

  18. blackouthart

    Not gonna lie, LOVE Mike’s expressions here.
    Third panel: “Seriously, what the fuck? I’m not seriously going to find a girl behind this door?”
    Fourth panel: “SUSPICIOUS GIRL IN DINOSAUR HAT.”

  19. Dierna

    What? No Ceratopsians or Parasauralophi?! Hmf….how rude… I wouldn’t have a wall of dinos I would have a shelf. *lol*

  20. Tanukitsune

    Ha, ha! Since I read this in an RSS feed, I didn’t notice the title of the comic and for a second thought Dina was alive again in the Shortpacked / It’s Walky world! XP

  21. Gianni

    Everyone loves Mike’s expression, but I think panel 4’s Ethan expression is good too. Sort of a “WTF girl behind the door” expression.

  22. Sporkaganza

    I can’t help but imagine a sharp, abrupt musical sting, like from a horror movie, for panel 4.

  23. Jabberwocky

    Someone’s in the doorway with Dina~

    1. begbert2

      Someone’s in the doorway I know-oh-oh-ohh~

      1. Jabberwocky

        Someone’s in the doorway with Diiiiiiinaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa~

        1. Ragnal

          STRUMMIN’ ON THE OL’ BANJO!~

        2. JesseJanitect

          AKA your mom.

          The Mike-atar made me do it.

  24. begbert2

    I find myself wondering how long they’ve been hanging around the room.

    With Dina just there, behind the door. Standing, silent, waiting patiently for somebody to need her, or for them to swing the door away from the wall and let her out again.

    1. Malph

      I like how she doesn’t seem to be at all bothered by them moving the door.

  25. TheSuperhoo

    Gotta tell y’all…it’s strange seeing all these different characters interacting in ways they havent before. Of course it helps that Shortpacked! is in the normal Walkyverse, but Ethan, Dina, Amber, and Mike in the same scene? Weird!

  26. Someone

    I can’t decide if Dina’s allowance of herself being pinned in that corner for two full strips, which is a long time in comictime, is a sign that she’s just that inert or…has Dina gone from shy, to creepy? :O

    1. Bill M.

      Well, in most comics, that would be logical, but think of this as a 24 style webcomic. The pacing is really slow, we’re on day 2 or 3… it’s not as bad as “Between Failures” which is closing in on 700 strips not counting bonuses, and it’s only day 3 there.

      1. Kamino Neko

        I’m actually not sure if there are any comics where ‘2 strips’ generally covers a long period of time. Certainly none of the ones I know of with ongoing plots. Some occasionally have strips covering a good length of time, or throw in a time skip (ranging from a couple days to a couple months – occasionally resulting in herky-jerky real time progress) between completed arcs, but for the most part, 2 consecutive strips in the same arc will generally be a fairly short period of time.

        ‘Comic time’ usually means just that, in fact – aside from the rare comic strip which proceeds at approximate real time (or something like Funky Winkerbean which throws in random arbitrary timeskips) comics proceed at a much, much slower pace than the real world. A 6 issue arc of a monthly comic book can take place over a few nights. A year of a comic strip could take place over a month, or even a couple days.

  27. Pingback: Tweets that mention Dumbing of Age - Dina -- Topsy.com

  28. Shift

    Is it me or does Mike seem oddly… not grouchy in this strip? I mean, he actually seems politely curious.

  29. Aesir

    Dina’s intro actually surprised me lol

    so technically she was in the previous comic as well, just behind the door

    1. Ragnal

      She’s also previously been seen at the floor meeting thingamajig earlier, too, but didn’t seem QUITE as shy or silent…HM…

  30. Dahlia

    ; ~; Thinking of Dina only makes me think of her death in the main Walkyverse which makes me sad…

    Willis better not do anything mean to her!!!

    1. MrGBH

      This is Willis you’re talking about.

      1. Dahlia

        I know….

        I know… <///3 Darn you, Willis! D:

    2. G.S.Mercs

      Mr. Willis may, or may not, have already contacted me about hiring a mercenary. Oddly, if he did contact me, it wasn’t until after this comic came up. I wonder what that means for Dina…

      1. George

        Schlock Mercenary crossover?

      2. Dahlia

        ; ~ ; You shattered my dreams, G.S Mercs!

        1. G.S.Mercs

          That may or may not have been part of that contract as well.

        2. Dahlia

          <//3 I'll bet. ; ~;

  31. TexasNinjaBuzzard

    I laughed so hard at this I had to go have a liedown to keep from blacking out. This strip is absolutely perfect. Put this on the next set of bookmarks!

  32. Hythrain

    DIIIIINAAAAA!

    *so very happy*

  33. Davecom3

    Hmm, I thought most colleges try to arrange for one gender for all roommates; interesting it doesn’t seem to be the case in this college.

    1. XtraLargeRyan

      Mike is Walky’s roomate I beleive. I beleive Ethan was talking to Amber but Mike just answered anyway.

      1. Davecom3

        Oh, actually, just realized the person saying that isn’t even in the frame as the word bubble is pointing nowhere near Mike, so yeah, she’s presumably Amber’s roommate.

        1. XtraLargeRyan

          ah yes, I only noticed that since you mentioned it. Looks like we were both wrong.. though I was right about Walky being mikes roomate so nyeh >:P

  34. MrGBH

    The first meting of Dina and Ethan. I honestly have no idea what to expect.
    (Other than awesomeness on the part of Dina, but that’s to be expected)

  35. Yino

    Uhuh, wait. Both Dina and Amber had feelings for Mike in the Walkyverse and Shortpacked. I think this can lead to an awesome roomies’ war.

  36. HMRC4EVR

    Quick! Someone get that girl a PCC Grimstone set!

    That might make her smile…or cry.

    Could go either way really.

    Maybe a set of G1 Dinobots (even if they aren’t totally accurate anymore) would be a good icebreaking gift.

  37. Diaxiann

    I’m not sure if it’s just me, but Mike seems to be less of a major dick in DoA than he ever was in Walkyverse Prime. It would make sense, this being somewhat more of a real world than Walkyverse Prime, and as much as I love Walkyverse Prime Mike. it’d be nice if DoA Mike was slightly more down to earth.

    *cough* Walkyverse Prime. *cough*

    THIS SHOULD BE A THING

    1. arjay2813

      i liek WP. it should totally be a thing

    2. Blah

      The largest part of Mike’s alien super powers were super-dickery.

      He’s still a dick, but don’t expect the ability to irritate somebody out of mind control or anything.

      PS Mike has always made his moves at the most opportune times. If you’re planning on knowing somebody for a significant length of time (ie more than 2 minutes in a store) there’s no reason to stir things up all the time.

  38. Rowen Morland

    Oh no! Dina.

  39. arjay2813

    Oh. My. God. Mike just did a nice by pulling the door off her. considering Amber, and Dina have both had a thing for mike in different universes this rooming setup could make things very interesting. when he does their moms.

  40. Booger.

    I don’t get this comic.

    As in, I don’t get it today, or ANY day. Am I supposed to laugh cause I know who all these characters are? Cause I don’t know who they are. Is it funny that this girl has a dinosaur hat?

    I’ve read all the Shortpacked!s but I’ve avoided other Willis stuff cause it’s about aliens and stuff and I don’t want to read 10 years worth of alien drama. So I thought this was supposed to be a fresh starting place for new readers?

    How is it “fresh” when we are supposed to be reacting to these character reveals? It has no impact if you have no clue who these characters are! And without knowing, I have to say, it makes little sense….

    Like what the hell are the SP! gang doing in here? They’re in college now? What about their lives at the store and stuff?

    Shortpacked is funny. The TNI strip is funny. Is this strip a comedy strip or a drama? You all seem to be in on something I’m not. Do I really have to read all of Willis’s old stuff for this to make sense??

    Does anyone else have any idea where I’m coming from here?

    Is the punchline of today’s joke that there’s a girl behind the door wearing a dinosaur hat….or is it that it’s DINA wearing a dinosaur hat? Cause neither are really funny per se, but the latter is really un-funny cause I have no idea who Dina is.

    1. Nim

      The “punchline” is that the roommate has been hiding behind the door the whole time — and possibly had been hiding behind the door every time they have come to see Amber.

      I find your avatar ironic. 😉

      1. Malph

        It’s as if some almighty power gave him that avatar for the sole purpose of being ironic.

        And it doesn’t matter that you don’t know who half these people are, they’re not the same as in the other world.

        The joke of this strip has little to do with Dina’s previous incarnation. The joke is that she’s been behind the door since Ethan and Mike walked in, which is weird and therefore funny. She was also shy in IW!, which can be counted as a bonus for IW! readers (I guess).

    2. Henry

      It’s an alternate universe, so the SP! characters are different from the regular ones. The punchline is that amber’s roommate is so shy that she’ll quietly stand behind a door instead of risking having to talk to these strange, unfamiliar people.

    3. Ze Lynx

      The older comics Willis did won’t take -that- long to go through. Any they’re pretty gripping anyway, so I wholly recommend them.

      1. Ze Lynx

        *And … sigh.

      2. Ragnal

        Si. It took me about two days just to get from #1 of Roomies! to the end of IW! And wasn’t timing going through J&W!

        Buuuut that one I still got to go through all the hiding “donation” comics…T_T

    4. Undrave

      I don’t get your FAAAAACE!

      But meme aside… I didn’t read all of Willis old stuff either so this is mostly new. The jokes work well on their own, its just the fans are happier to see old character in new forms (its a Transformers fan thing I think :p ) than they are about discussing the punchline but I can assure you I found this funny nonetheless.

      Just relax and enjoy the ride.

    5. begbert2

      The thing I don’t get is why you’re reading this comic, if you don’t find it funny. Not to drive you away or anything, but if you don’t like it, then you don’t like it. No skin off anyone’s nose.

      As for what it is, it is episodic comedy drama comedy. With episodes. And some drama. (No comedy, though, as best I can tell.) If you’re the kind of person who squeals whenever you see Dina, well, squeal away I guess – but for myself the fun of this strip is the situational non-sequitur. The roommate…has been standing behind the door. The whole time. What the wha? Which equals fun. Or not, as you like it. Whichever.

    6. Davecom3

      You also seem to assume that every comic needs a punchline, which if the comic is telling a story would not necessarily need to be the case. Currently, we’re still in the process of people who are new to this comic learning about the characters. As such, the necessity of a punch line is mostly minimal. Willis is helping you meet the characters and giving you the necessary information to understand them. You hardly need a laugh every day to get through a comic; in fact, for a story based comic, it can even be detrimental to have a laugh every day.

    7. TexasNinjaBuzzard

      The sickness is inside you.

      This strip would have been weepingly funny if it had been about Shriners, man. She was just standing there. Behind the door. When the door was pulled away, she just stood there. Making a tiny little face.

      And her roommate knew she was there the entire time and said nothing.

      I didn’t need to know who the Manic Hispanic riding by on a bicycle with a mop held like a jousting lance was in the Bill Murray classic Quick Change to know that was the single funniest scene in motion picture history. It was just funny.

  41. Jao

    Bonus points for feathered velociraptor!

  42. Gianni

    Wait… How do Ethan and Mike know Amber in the DOA universe? I have to wonder if Ethan has come out of the closet (yet) in this reality, or if he’s actually dating Amber? Just realized that.

    1. Rali

      Mike, Ethan, and Amber are friends from high school. Ethan’s been outed since high school.

    2. Henry

      Willis has said that Ethan came out in high school so he doesn’t have to retell the same story arcs.

      1. Gianni

        Yup, I just read the Formspring query to the same effect. Good to know

  43. zepherdossier

    What would be interesting is if Dina’s pith helmet was in her room in the background somewhere, unworn, in favor of her new dino hat.

    1. Kamino Neko

      Just to nitpick – Dina didn’t wear a pith helmet. Her hat was soft, with a squared off top, and generally looked like a boonie hat.

  44. Zem

    Because if they open the door on you it’d be impolite to complain about it, so you just stand there politely until they notice by themselves or go away, see?

    1. Kamino Neko

      Given Willis’s mentioning Dina’s ‘crippling social phobias’, she probably preferred being behind the door to dealing with strangers.

  45. Tori

    Yay Dina! How I have missed you! *huggles Dina* You are so adorable.

  46. Richie9999

    Yay, Dina!

  47. RX 78-2

    Does anybody know of any websites or stores where i can find a hat like that?

    1. David

      That’s a joke, right? Riiiiight? RIIIIIGHT?

    2. Dahlia

      xD After how much time he put into sewing the Dina hats and putting up announcements and stuff about selling them at conventions or something I hope you’re kidding! o:

    3. Mirenheart

      You’re either Trolling, or you’re new.

  48. Tomb

    She lives!

  49. Rognik

    Dina’s not hiding. She’s actually a robot in this universe, and her charger is behind the door instead of, say, in the bed. Or maybe someone challenged her to stand as still as she possibly could.

    Ooh, ooh. I know! Standing behind a doorway is perfect for zen meditation. So few distractions back there.

  50. TheSoundDefense

    Young and cute Amber is young and cute.

  51. superscientistgirl

    OHMYGOSH…IT’S DINA! MY FAVORITE CHARACTER! 😀

  52. Al the Mighty

    So, tell me Willis. Is Dina inspired in a real girl? Do you have that girl’s MSN?

  53. Lucke0204

    She hasn’t said anything yet, but somehow I like her a lot. (Yes I’m archiving)

  54. ThatGug

    Like a ninja.

  55. nothri

    Dina!!!

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