410

Midnight
Posted on May 7, 2025 by David M Willis
Kickstarter's over, a new storyline begins: It's a new day!  Almost! fine, it's a new day in the final panel

410 thoughts on “Midnight”

  1. ZombieKyrik

    This is adorable, and I’m glad we didn’t change topics; thank you Willis.

    1. Clif

      I choose to believe that this is the end of the chapter and next strip is the beginning of the new chapter.

      But way to harvest those Damn You Willis’s, Willis.

    2. Longshot97

      There is so much personality and history in each of these panels. This is nice.

    3. Adept

      It looks like a lovely date night to me, especially for two teens in their first year at the Uni.

  2. Megan

    We can all admit this is way more bitter than sweet right now.

    1. pickonecard

      speak for yourself tbh
      Dorothy did the right thing not cheating on walky

      1. Vanessa Pinter

        I think this is very sweet. Joyce may love Dorothy but she also loves Joe and has incredible passion for him besides. She would be quite upset at herself and Dorothy too if they broke Joe’s heart.

        1. Bwsab

          Agreed.

        2. Lysbeth

          Ultimately, I’d bet that if Joyce learnt the words “ethical non-monogamy,” Joe would agree. But her being with Dorothy now would destroy him.

        3. Strawb

          Yes if Joyce is poly (I would really like Joyce to talk about and confirm this if that is the case, but that’s just me) and they have an open discussion about it I think this could work. I just hope if Joe says he’s okay with it he’s actually okay with it and not fibbing to make Joyce happy. For example, if he wants a bit of time to process before opening the relationship I think that would be fine.

        4. DePesciMode

          Isn’t there a polycule in her dorm?
          https://www.dumbingofage.com/2017/comic/book-7/03-the-thing-i-was-before/unraveling/
          I feel like these terms would have come up by now.

          Also, more fuel for the Joyce x Dorothy truthers fire:
          https://www.dumbingofage.com/2022/comic/book-13/01-bring-me-to-life-drawing/disparate/

        5. John Campbell

          Joyce knows about polycules, but has no prepared emotional response.

          And, yeah, Joyce and Dorothy have been romantically involved since way before their physical intimacy started moving from subtext to text.

        6. First Person Plural

          Tbh I think Joe is a better partner for Joyce than Dorothy would be (I think Joyce is a better partner for Dorothy than Walky currently is, which from a meta perspective is great story conflict but in-universe would suck for Dorothy).

          I also think nobody would be ok with a poly relationship (including Joe) which seems to contradict how most of the comments see it but I just don’t get that read from any of the characters (maybe Joyce? it’s a stretch but she’s just made a big discovery so she’s the most in flux I think). Joe in particular is trying very hard to do a “real” relationship, something he’s been terrified of for his entire sexual life, and I don’t think he could handle the idea of putting all the effort in to not cheating to have his girlfriend want a wider thing. Idk we’ll see where it goes, but this seems like the conflict Willis has put in to joe and Joyce’s relationship (as well as Joyce and Becky, which is a bombshell that is going to explode particularly loudly) and I think a polycule is too neat a solution.

      2. Megan

        hey uh do you think i meant it was bittersweet because no one cheated and not because of compulsory heterosexuality? like a whole week’s worth of strips detailing a scene where Joyce realizes she’s not straight and her having 0 time to even think about that before a date where she explicitly stated she intends to lose her virginity during does not spark even an ounce of dread in you?

        1. Nymph

          I understood what you meant, for whatever that’s worth. And I agree it’s a shame for Joyce and Dorothy as individual characters, but definitely better for adding suspense and emotion to the story.

          Bittersweet, because she’s clearly happy, but certainly more bitter than sweet because we know there’s a lot of pain in unpacking this and figuring out where you are on that spectrum. Especially with Joyce’s upbringing.

        2. Megan

          Thank you for managing to unpack my meaning beyond “I think its bad when men exist” like everyone else responding seems to believe I said

        3. Clif

          Well, I certainly didn’t think you meant anything like that and don’t see any way to get there. On the other hand, this strip is plenty sweet. All the bitter is waiting off screen.

        4. Differentiator

          I think the main issue with your first comment was implying everyone should focus on the bitterness in the background instead of the sweetness we can see. Maybe I don’t get it because I’m a cishet male, but Joyce is in love with Joe and vice versa, there is no denying that, and I think everything else can’t be so much heavier that the bitter outshines that love.

        5. DJTsurugi

          I think people were mostly hung up on you saying this was bitter, because it is pretty hard to see it that way. not ALL of the people in this comments section are frothing at the mouth for some lesbian times, and I believe several of us stated this was the best result for future outcomes. I certainly don’t see anyone saying you said men were bad though. ~<3

        6. Cheshrin

          It’s not compulsory heterosexuality for a bisexual girl to love her boyfriend and want to get totally railed by him, whatever feelings she might have for Dorothy on top of that.

          It’s just bisexuality.

        7. Megan

          As a bisexual girl,

          Okay.

        8. Josh

          Educate us, what’s wrong with a bisexual girl experiencing her first time with her boyfriend?

          Also wanna say, if her emotions are complicated regarding that, she still has time to say she wants to wait so that she can unpack it properly. Joe isn’t exactly ready to rush things either nor is he going to push his very Christian upbringing girlfriend on the matter.

        9. Freezer

          Also; It’s pretty presumptuous at this point that Joyce’s feelings for Dorothy are even similar (let alone equivalent) to Dorothy’s for Joyce.

        10. Risky

          You are putting a lot of work into the word similar there. Their feelings are at least 90% similar, there’s just a lot in that final 10%.

        11. Risky

          I know when someone says “Educate us” you are just supposed to ignore them and not comment since it’s clearly a troll move even if not meant that way, but seriously she literally just said “okay”. You don’t get to stuff that full of your interpretation as if something is owed to you.

        12. Risky

          Did she mean fair enough? Did she mean acknowledged? She definitely didn’t mean “okay” as “a bisexual girl experiencing her first time with her boyfriend” is wrong, whether she does or doesn’t think so.

        13. ian livs

          All right, but OP suggested they spoke for the whole fandom, and then got upset when people chimed in with their own opinions. Even “as a bisexual girl, okay” has a vibe of “I’m bi, so my opinion is valid and I don’t care about any others’.” I’m not sure how Josh is trolling for asking what’s wrong with a bisexual person having a boyfriend when OP is offended by that.

        14. Josh

          That’s fair, it definitely came off as more aggressive than it should have. I will adjust my language in the future.

        15. Josh

          I WOULD love to get an explanation for my question on the off chance there is actually some nuance I am ignorant of, but using challenging language isn’t the best way to get that answer. Whoops.

        16. DJTsurugi

          Joe is very clearly happy with the slow pace he thinks this is going at. Dude is currently being very sweet on Joyce. ~<3

        17. june gloom

          Hi, I’m pan. What the fuck are you talking about?

        18. KJ

          as another bisexual girl:

          your bitterness about this is really confusing to me

        19. Doopyboop

          To chime in further on what Cheshrin said, comphet would be if Joyce had no feelings for Joe whatsoever and was dating him to seem straight or because she thinks she has to. I’d argue Jennifer dating Asher was her experiencing comphet. In contrast, Joyce had very real, very intimate feelings for all three of the men she’s dated or considered dating.

          Meanwhile, I can say that both of the guys I dated due to comphet, I had no feelings for or if I ever did, those feelings actually stopped once we were dating. Not to say I’ve never found men attractive, I have, but I’ve never really dated a man I truly felt attracted to. Both times I ever had a boyfriend were because it was ‘expected’ and I felt like I was ‘supposed to’.

        20. Queen Anthai

          Yeah crazy thing about us is sometimes we’re in relationships with different genders than ours.

          Doesn’t mean we’re not still bi.

        21. Wereg

          We love bi-erasure. Her probably coming to the realisation that she’s not straight does not mean any affection she had for Joe vanished. She’s capable of realising she’s attracted to girls while still liking and being attracted to a guy.

        22. ian livs

          ^This. (inb4, bi people can totally perpetuate bi erasure too. and dismissing Joyce’s obvious enjoyment of her time with Joe here just bc she may also have feelings toward Dorothy is kinda adjacent to bi erasure)

        23. Cheshrin

          The funny part is that there absolutely is a case of a bi girl in the cast who’s been engaging in compulsory heterosexuality, and there is a league of difference between Joyce “I have desires of intimacy with both my hot boyfriend and my hot best friend” Brown and Jennifer “IT WAS JUST A PHASE YOU CAN’T PROVE I LIKE GIRLS IT’S TOTALLY STRAIGHT FOR ME TO MAKE OUT WITH OTHER WOMEN” Billingsworth, spotted in Miami actively shoving herself into closets.

        24. Doopyboop

          Just gotta stamp this comment with a heart agreed!

        25. ian livs

          this ^^^^

        26. Adept

          Cheshrin, that was perfect. Well said.

        27. Sirksome

          Jennifer mentioned! How dare you be totally correct in your assessment of her relationship to her sexuality! I’ll have you know Jennifer is doing quite well as a disaster bisexual. Using the closet like a revolving door/ blast shelter from her own self realization is a perk! What’s Dorothy or Joyce doing for the culture?! Nothing. That’s why it’s Jen-1, other bisexuals -0….Unless you count Danny, and Asher, and Malaya, Booster maybe, and Ruth probably, and several minor characters, and maybe Dina? And Jocelyne, and Becky could be questioning. But if you dismiss all of them then Jennifer is ahead of every bisexual. Watch Clone Wars.

        28. Megan

          Okay.

        29. HueSatLight

          no. because it’s not compulsory. Whatever she feels for Dorothy, she is very much into Joe and is very much attracted to him.

        30. HueSatLight

          sorry for the pile on, forgot to refresh before posting.

        31. Bobby

          none whatsoever and this is a wild take dude, please touch grass. Signed, a bisexual who is exhausted by people claiming joyce is comphet

        32. Bagfaceman

          This webcomic of all webcomics is definitely not guilty of “compulsory heterosexuality”

        33. Opus the Poet

          I think you mean heteronormative. It’s not compulsory, but it is heteronormative. Not like the character in Jimbo’s book over in QC, that’s Dr. Heteronormative. That’s completely different.

        34. Lysbeth

          “Compulsory heterosexuality” is a term that predates “heteronormativity” – a lot of people have moved away from it because the analysis that spawned it presented it as a woman-only phenomenon for some reason, and also the writer was a TERF, but it’s still prevalent in lesbian spaces (because let’s face it, neither reason is enough for some lesbian spaces to change anything)

        35. Megan

          Yeah I probably chose the wrong specific word since it was, like, midnight and I was on my way to bed, but I was mostly just trying to say that moving along like nothing happened after All That is kinda. You know. Bittersweet or something. But apparently, I’m a self-hating bisexual now, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

        36. Doopyboop

          I completely understand that you were commenting late, I get that sometimes things can be mistyped and misconstrued. Completely get that. However, you could also take more responsibility for that and admit ‘hey, sorry this came off wrong, I didn’t mean it that way’ instead of just doubling down like ‘lol I guess I’m a self-hating bisexual now whatever’. And honestly this is why one should be careful with slinging around words such as comphet so loosely in comment sections anyway. These words have a meaning. You should be aware of what you are saying.

        37. justin8448

          Oof, I’ve been there before.

          Midnight is a less-than-optimal comment writing time.

        38. zee

          It’s not our fault you used a word that means something specific in an entirely wrong way that implies bi erasure ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯

        39. Lysbeth

          I don’t think it’s heteronormativity, just being in a committed relationship.

        40. zee

          It’s not comphet if you actually like and want the guy. It’s crazy seeing a bisexual engage in bi erasure

      3. DailyBrad

        I don’t think either one of them would have been happy with themselves if they had gone further, like even a kiss would have had consequences, so yeah, I am glad they did not do it.

        1. ian livs

          right? Dorothy already made it really clear recently that she felt like an awful cheater/person for even sending that picture to Joyce. If she’d actually kissed her, she would have spiraled far worse. I think that, sometime, they both need to unpack what’s going on with their relationship and what that means, but that was possibly THE worst time it could’ve happened.

        2. Risky

          Well that’s just completely wrong. I can easily think of a million worse times, and then think of an even worse one. Her wedding night maybe? The night of their double wedding even? To men?

        3. Thag Simmons

          Dorothy is already going to spiral out over how far they went, could have been a lot worse if they went farther

    2. ZombieKyrik

      I still find it sweet; Joyce and Joe are both happy, and are enjoying spending time together.

      Is it still a little bitter because I’m worried about Dorothy? Yes, but to me it’s more sweet.

      1. Clif

        So a nice flavor of bittersweet?

        1. Hacksaw

          72% Chocolate chips, just bitter enough to add some character, and often comes with hints of fruitiness.

        2. Clif

          Here. Have a spare Internet.

        3. Steamweed

          There are also some nuts in my bittersweet.

    3. TerribleTransit

      Nah, this is sweet. There’s still some bitterness to be dealt with later, but right now there’s barely an aftertaste of it.

    4. Crow

      I mean, I find it hard to feel that sorry for two girls already in happy relationships

      1. Megan

        Okay.

        1. Crow

          Yes, okay, have a nice night 🙂

        2. Zamperla

          Okaaaaaaay~! Yay!

      2. Taffy

        Irrelevant.

        1. Crow

          How?

        2. Taffy

          Their boyfriends aren’t useful data points, unless we’re describing an obstruction.

        3. Crow

          I have no idea what that means. I’m just saying Joyce and Dorothy will probably be fine.

        4. Queezle

          Dotty is very much not fine at the moment.

      3. Nymph

        Noted.

        1. Crow

          Thank you so much for noting my comment, Nymph

        2. Clif

          Oh, we all noted it. Some of aren’t sure why you would make a point of sharing your lack of empathy, but it’s a free country. Or at least so far, mostly.

        3. Crow

          I mean, it was a response to a comment about feeling bitter about this situation. I was trying to describe why I don’t feel bitter about it. And got a condescending trio of one-worded responses. So fuck me for sharing my opinion about this fictional situation, I guess.

        4. ian livs

          I agree with you and you should say it, tbh. idk why someone can purport to speak for all of us and then get so upset that people chime in with differing opinions

        5. Clif

          Well, it wasn’t exactly an opinion on the fictional situation, rather it was a report on your lack of sympathy for the two girls. That’s your prerogative, but it’s not exactly clear why you thought it was noteworthy.

          Personally, I’m not sure Joyce needs our sympathy. Dorothy is in a awkward and painful place and has my sympathy. This is a fact about me, and there is no requirement for you or anyone else to care.

        6. Nymph

          Sorry you didn’t get multi-word responses. I’ll be more specific: women in relationships (even happy ones) can still struggle and be deserving of sympathy. It’s weird that you felt those two things (relationship and sympathetic value) were connected and tbh hits me sideways after years of intelligence BS online.

          Rather than have THAT argument (and I still won’t be, so replies to this won’t be getting further attention) I made a comment that amused me and scooted off to bed.

        7. Nymph

          Incel BS* autocorrect strikes again

        8. Risky

          Part of me thinks it was Nymph’s avatar noting your comment, but maybe it’s both or maybe I’m wrong. I do think in a comment section it’s entirely appropriate to respond to someone expressing a thought that something is bitter with your own emotional response to the same thing, it’s not debate club. But most of the comments on that reply seem to be meta-discussions, like this one.

          So to help steer that away, I’ll say when I saw the preview for this strip, my heart sank, and I immediately felt gross and sad. There’s a bitterness akin to longing. Seeing the actual strip didn’t change that feeling. I can look at it and acknowledge that it’s a sweet montage, but it’s dialectic, like the word bittersweet.

        9. Clif

          When you say dialectic, is that in the context of the art of investigating or discussing the truth of opinions or is the context inquiring into metaphysical contradictions and their solutions?

          I ask because dialectic is not the first word that comes to mind when I hear the word bittersweet, or for that matter when I view the montage.

          Disclaimer – This is in no way a critical comment on your entirely valid reaction to the strip, even if it is one I do not share. Rather I’m trying to understand the last sentence.

        10. Nymph

          “Part of me thinks it was Nymph’s avatar noting your comment, but maybe it’s both or maybe I’m wrong.”

          It was both tbh. I will absolutely admit that I find it a lot funnier to comment about Dorothy and Joyce right now with their picture in my icon than I would have without.

        11. Taffy

          See, you get it.

      4. BarerMender

        I dunno. I kinda feel that neither Dorothy nor Walky are all that happy. I get the feeling they’re trying to recover what they had, but what they had is gone.

        And when will Joyce realize she really needs to think. Will it be when she kisses Joe?

        1. BarerMender

          Now I’m writing a whole scene in my head, which will be completely different from what Willis will write, because Willis is not me. Also, because Willis is a better writer than me.

        2. Adept

          She kissed Joe as soon as the door was opened.

    5. Freezer

      No, I’m getting like 99% sweet.

      1. Sillygoose

        You must be kidding. I mean he put in the effort with snowfall at the gazebo, which is sweet, but what kind of lover doesn’t know to add fairy lights?

    6. 3oranges

      It didn’t feel at all bitter to me. Sucks for Dorothy I guess, but she’s not here…and her kissing Joyce would have just made things suck for Becky and Joe instead.

    7. Risky

      The seeming lack of communication sucks, very painful. I’m bitter for that, to me it’s a bitter situation which makes the sweetness only cloying, like chewing cotton candy with your tobacco. Especially since it’s a montage, that’s not a lot of depth to carry the sweetness. Others will have their own feelings on it, I wager.

    8. Bobby

      who in the heck is “we”

    9. Li

      I do think there’s a bit of a pall hanging over this because of the last strip, and I wonder if we’re gonna do any intercutting here with Dorothy, tomorrow or the day after, which would definitely increase the pall.

      But I also don’t think Joyce is going to regret her first time.

      But also I completely understand why this whole situation might bring up Stuff for some readers. Sorry about the ^^^ pileup, sometimes it’s from not refreshing… and I think the commentariat is real tense right now because of all the arguments and sometimes more like fights over the last month or so.

      Sometimes makes us come out hotter than we meant to on someone who wasn’t saying exactly what we thought they were. Not that I’d know from experience, ha… ha. 🙁

      1. Big Z

        You’re pretty much speaking my mind here, but there’s definitely also a shade of meaning here — it’s “worrysome”, what’s going on with both Dorothy’s trauma and Dorothy and Joyce (at least in my view) not being in the same book let alone the same page right now, but I don’t feel like it’s “way more bitter than sweet” in the balance.

        And it also seems worthwhile to point out that given how tense and divided the commentariat has been, frankly, “We can all admit” (bolding mine) was never going to lie quietly without causing at least one fight.

        1. Li

          Yeah, “we all” definitely did NOT help matters, I doubt there would be as much pileup if it had been “some of us know” or “who else feels like”… though I think, still, too much conflict right now, “who else feels like” would’ve gotten a lot of arguing, too.

          (Also though sob no edit buttons, you say something slapdash and it’s permanent sdjlksj)

          But yeah, despite my nerves and my feeling like there’s a shoe that needs dropping here, I definitely think this is more sweet than bitter. It’s currently like a dessert where you bring out the natural sweetness by adding some salt.

    10. Needfuldoer

      Nope.

    11. Amós Batista

      It’s like the song, by ABBA: The Winner Takes it’s All.

      So, Joe and Joyce will not care about anything. Like real life, when the person who reject you marries and had children.

      Let’s only hope Joyce doesn’t break his heart, like she did with Dorothy

    12. Kyulen

      Joe and Joyce being happy on their date together is more bitter than sweet? I don’t agree.

    13. Andy

      Nope. Cheating is bad.

      1. Taffy

        So is murder, and I think Dorothy and Joyce should get to do that too.

    14. Adept

      How would this be bitter? It looks like an excellent date, and something both Joe and Joyce have wanted for a long time. They are enjoying themselves and each other. Not bitter at all.

      1. Megan

        A girl both of these people care about was having a panic attack on the last strip. One of them realized she’s not straight but doesn’t have the words for it, the other probably knew *before* the date based on what he said to Dorothy, and it’s unclear if they’re even going to try to talk about it before doing sex I’m like 90% sure Joyce would feel at the very least conflicted about after the fact. Also they scootered past blowjob cat, which I can’t imagine is a sight anyone wanted at this particular moment.

        1. Daibhid C

          Yes, but none of that’s in this strip (well, except blowjob cat), therefore it doesn’t count. Each strip must be read entirely independently of all that has come before, with the exception of reasons to hate certain characters, which must colour everything. (And even then, you’re allowed to ignore previous strips and just make something up!)

        2. Daibhid C

          (Reporting own comment almost immediately, because wow, I’m bitter and sarcastic today. And I’m replying to a point I agree with to be bitter and sarcastic about other people, which probably isn’t cool.)

        3. thejeff

          Joyce’s friend being bi and crushing on Joyce is not a reason for either of them to screw up their date. Nor really, should they talk about it: neither of them knows the other knows Dorothy is bi. If things had gone farther than they did, that might be different, but Dorothy shut it down before any serious lines were crossed.
          Even Joyce’s first thoughts about not being straight (or whatever she actually thinks about what just happened) don’t have to be shared immediately before she’s had any time to process them herself.

          Nor do either of them know about the panic attack, so they can’t take that into account. That could be a dramatic irony kind of thing, so it can affect how we the audience see the moment, but shouldn’t affect how we see the characters.

    15. Schpoonman

      Fuck no.

  3. windowz97

    ooh fun way to start a new storyline!!

  4. Mym

    Help I’m still struggling after yesterday’s strip

    1. Clif

      Just wait until Joyce and Joe make love in the gazebo while snow falls around them and both catch their death of double pneumonia.

      1. LiamKav

        That’s two whole pneumonias!

        1. Clif

          Possibly, but I’m thinking that two double pneumonias should give you four whole pneumonias.

          Unless they are sharing a pneumonia or something.

        2. Mr D phone posting

          No no, that’s FOUR pneumonias, one for each lung.

      2. Plain Marie

        Oh no! You mentioned double pneumonia. Now my brain has to recite the whole retro comic routine I inherited from my grandfather/mother:

        A petunia is a flower like a begonia.
        A begonia is a meat like a sausage.
        Assausage and battery is a crime.
        Monkeys crime trees.
        Trees a crowd.
        A cock crowed in the morning and made a noise.
        Your noise is between your two eyes.
        Eyes are the opposite of nays.
        A horse nays.
        A little horse is a colt.
        You go to bed with a colt, and you wake up in the morning with double petunia.

    2. Amós Batista

      It’s ok to mourn a fictional couple or character.

      We can get drink, write or draw a fic, left here to read a history when the protagonist really get a queer relationship, for real, instead trying to defraud her friend.

      But, anyway, hug for you

      1. Nymph

        Joyce wasn’t trying to defraud her friend. Like, the story arc between them just started, and it’s about queer awakenings. There are going to be bumps and set-backs along the way, that doesn’t mean they’re never going to get together.

  5. JA

    Ok so a jump of a few hours. We might still see stuff.

    Unless next strip is taking place a month later…

    1. Achallenger

      Next strip takes place nine months later

      1. Li

        Somehow, Palpatine has returned.

        1. Clif

          What an odd way to spell Mike.

        2. Li

          Ff I’ll be real with you, it’s late and I somehow misread that as nine YEARS later, but I’m going to stand by my joke. Some consequences of sex are worse than others, and in this universe, one of them is that sometimes Palpatine comes back.

        3. Li

          (Which as established is how I spell Mike.)

        4. LiamKav

          When a Joy and a Joyce love each other very much, sometimes a Palpatine is born 9 months later.

        5. Clif

          Hey, if it was a choice between a baby Palpatine or a baby Mike, which would you choose?

          I mean, I could see why it might be a hard decision.

        6. AeromechanicalAce

          Eh, i’d go with Mike. He was actually pretty fine with his Parents. Pretty sure Palpatine Killed his.

        7. Taffy

          Genocidal space wizard who literally destroyed planets, or dickish white boy. Hmm, I wonder which choice is more harmful

  6. EpochFlame

    haven’t seen those scooters in a while

    1. Clif

      Last time we saw the scooters, Mike died.

    2. Effie

      Yeah what about the scooters! What have they been doing all this time? What are their lives like?

      (I mean, blowjob cat gets its own tag, so…)

      1. Clif

        They’ve been recovering from the trauma of Mike’s death. This night-time excursion is exactly what they needed to take their minds off it.

  7. Pocky

    it was a date

  8. Tom

    Cute!

  9. Sirksome

    I have Mike based trauma tied to those rent a scooters! Damn you Willis!

    1. HueSatLight

      Same spot that Mike found Blaine and Ross, too. It’s like a punch in the face.

      1. Bobin

        Mike’s ghost just reflexively punched Joe in the face when you said that

        1. Clif

          Not till they reach the haunted gazebo.

      2. RassilonTDavros

        Oof, nice catch there. I had forgotten that happened right by BJC.

    2. Nono

      Mike based trauma from the restaurant, too???

      1. HueSatLight

        The date Mike chaperoned was at Galasso’s and that’s the wrong kind of lamp for Galasso’s.

        1. HueSatLight

          Also not Farm Bloomington (Raidah’s breakfast spot) or Hopscotch Coffee (Tony’s coffee shop). Trying to remember other previously seen restaurants.

        2. Thag Simmons

          Pretty sure it’s not McAwesome’s

        3. HueSatLight

          Lennies is the only one I’ve checked on yelp that has lamps remotely the same. It could be fictional, like the bar was.

        4. RassilonTDavros

          I mean, they could’ve remodeled at some point in the last… okay I guess it’s only been like a week in-universe, but it’s been about two years from our perspective. More than enough that for the difference to be written off as a product of the sliding timescale.

        5. RassilonTDavros

          Case in point: this Book 1 strip took place on August 31, while this Book 3 strip took place on September 14. Only a two-week difference, but the interior decor of Galasso’s has changed substantially, as have the lamps. Also, the lamps in the Book 3 strip appear to be spherical under the lampshade, meaning these could easily be the same lamps just with the shades removed.

          For that matter, the first panel of this strip is a strongly resembles the first panel of the Book 1 strip as far as staging is concerned, which could indicate that this is the same location.

        6. Astariel

          I don’t think it’s Galasso’s just because Joyce would know what to order at Galasso’s and wouldn’t have to glare suspiciously at the menu.

        7. HueSatLight

          Found a yelp photo from Dec 2024 of Mother Bear, showing the same lamps it has in the older photos.

        8. BarerMender

          Somehow, I have no memory of that scene.

    3. Crow

      I have real life based trauma, fuck those scooters

      1. Clif

        Sounds painful.

        1. Clif

          But Effie was wondering what their lives were like.

      2. Thag Simmons

        I’ve heard some real horror stories about electric scooter induced injuries

        1. MacareuxMoine

          I once injured my hand, when I had to move one that was blocking the entire bike path. I’m just glad I decided to slow down, as soon as I spotted the handle light at night, instead of assuming it to be parked decently.

  10. Bryy

    As someone who went to college and realized I was no longer in high school, I feel the last panel so hard.

    1. Clif

      Sorry. The relationship between high school and the last panel flew over my head. It’s certainly a relatable sentiment, I’m just not getting the connection.

      1. HueSatLight

        I’d connect it to casually being out at midnight, no parents/curfew to worry about.

  11. NGPZ

    *plays “Heart Moving” from Sailor Moon CD on hacked muzak*

    1. Slartibeast Button, BIA

      After midnight, we’re going to let it all hang down
      After midnight, we’re going to shake your tambourine
      After midnight, it’s all going to be peaches and cream
      We’re going to because talk and suspicion
      We’re going to give an exhibition
      We’re going to find out what it is all about
      After midnight, we’re going to let it all hang down

      1. Aura

        Everything good happensafter midnight!

      2. Needfuldoer

        Heart of a lion
        And the wings of a bat!
        Because it’s midnite!

    2. Risky

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VL5JTpNJsXg

  12. Jenniffniff

    Ugh cute!! ?

  13. Ray Radlein

    See, Joyce doesn’t want her Non-Sex and her Sex touching each other on the calendar

    1. Taffy

      Yeah that scans.

    2. Freezer

      That makes a ridiculous amount of sense.

    3. Masumi

      So she’s going to dedicate this *entire* day to sex?

      1. Ray Radlein

        worth a shot

    4. Queen Anthai

      Best comment

  14. Isalis

    Dorothy is in every panel, watching them. Can you spot her?

    1. Emperor Norton II

      No, but that’s because she’s holding Dina’s hand in order to not be spotted by Joyce.

  15. Yumi

    Yesss, gazebo!

    1. Emperor Norton II

      Casts “Detect Good” on the Gazebo.

      (Yes, that is part of the original story.)

      1. Freezer

        The Gazebo finds you delightful and gives you it’s blessing.

    2. Yumi

      Yesterday I specifically said that I thought it would be unlikely that they would be at a gazebo at midnight. So I was wrong, in a very targeted way, but I got what I wanted.

  16. IntangibleMatter

    Me when I’m a member of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists and Trump has declared war on the world:

    1. Queen Anthai

      Man that’s too close to reality for it to be funny.

      Sincerely,
      my anxiety

      1. Josh

        For real, my first instinct was to check the news for some new asinine headline.

        1. Clif

          Do you prefer Head of Canadian Government Tells Trump in No Uncertain Terms that Canada is Not for Sale and Trump Completely Fails To Understand or do you prefer Trump Calls Halt to Bombing of Innocent People in the Vicinity of Terrorists who Fire Missiles at International Shipping Because Terrorists Promise to Stop Until Next Time?

        2. Clif

          I mean I prefer the second one because International Shipping is important and we can’t be having it interrupted by missiles when tariffs will do the job.

        3. Adept

          ”terrorists” is such a handy word. Call people terrorists, and you don’t have to think about any complex reasons as to why violence is happening.

        4. Proxiehunter

          I don’t think bombing innocent people is likely to help with that. Or guilty ones for that matter. Either one is just going to make more people want to fire missiles.

        5. thejeff

          But not bombing the people firing missiles at shipping doesn’t really help either. Nor does giving them what they want, since that encourages the practice.
          This is why foreign policy is hard and why we shouldn’t have let someone like Trump anywhere near the job.

        6. Nymph

          Yep, I did the same thing.

    2. Kyulen

      You know we don’t have to talk about Trump in the comments of every new strip. I come here to enjoy a comic strip and not worry about all the bad stuff going on in the world for a few minutes. I spend far too much time worrying about politics every day already.

      1. Queen Anthai

        God yes please, this, just one website I’m begging y’all

      2. Taffy

        No, but for real though. It’s not compulsory, and you can all control yourselves.

  17. jeffepp

    And Joyce is still not wearing underwear.

    1. Taffy

      Gotta keep it fresh like an Alpine mountaintop.

      1. NGPZ

        heh funny you mentioned that

        I scored a free cannabis drink recently called “Alpine Splash”

        it tastes kind of like Mountain Dew, heh

  18. Doopyboop

    A wonderful date, honestly.

    1. Taffy

      Genuinely some of the best dates I’ve been on have been basically this. It’s simple, it’s easy, it doesn’t require a car, and if you plan right it’s reasonably cheap. Now it’s time for Joyce to rock Joe’s world.

      1. Doopyboop

        It’s not quite a date, but I’ve had get togethers with my best friends that were a lot like this. A nice dinner, catching a movie, hanging out, it’s the good shit. You just can’t beat spending good quality time with someone you love.

  19. IntangibleMatter

    Also hey anybody know what happened to Ana Chronistic? Is she doing alright? Hasn’t been a first comment for a while

    1. Taffy

      Haven’t got a clue. Not really our business though.

      1. Clif

        Business or not, I hope they’re doing well.

    2. Giffem

      been wondering myself. when i finally started commenting I got first and was also same time I last saw them post.

    3. Amós Batista

      Well, here goes my theory that she was Willis or his wife in disguise.
      Hope she’s back, but she’s only 4 days out

  20. Taffy

    The people in the theater are named Marsh, Buhgingi, Derek, and Teri.

    1. Clif

      Thank you. I couldn’t read their nametags.

  21. HueSatLight

    Midnight at the sex gazebo.

    1. Nymph

      Dibs on band name.

    2. Freezer

      Pretty sure they shot that in the 1980s (starring Ginger Lynn).

      1. Clif

        Am I the only one concerned about utilizing a sex gazebo while it’s cold enough that there’s snow? I mean that is snow in the last two panels isn’t it?

        1. Freezer

          Porn cares not for your comfort.

        2. Clif

          A fair point.

        3. Reltzik

          You are not. We must be monitor upcoming events attentively.

    3. Bryy

      I, once again, was drinking water whilst reading the comments.

      1. Taffy

        I see and respect your commitment to hydration.

    4. Amara

      Gazebo of the midnight sex.

      Sex for the midnight gazebo.

      Sex of the gazebo of midnight.

      1. Andy

        Midnight in the garden of gazebos

  22. Eiim

    Yep, definitely the gazebo in Cox Arboretum. There’s even a photo from 2009 on the IU Facebook page that shows those stones from roughly that angle.

    1. Laura

      *Snrk*… “Cox” …*snicker*…

      1. BarerMender

        When I hear the word Cox, I “hear a breech-bolt snick.” Which is something I can’t even do, being left-handed.

  23. Heavyoak

    Let the girls be gay already.

  24. Sirksome

    I hope they went to see Sinners. That movie is excellent and pretty sexy too actually. It’s a perfect date movie.

    1. Achallenger

      An impressive amount of cunnilingus talk in a movie not actually about it specifically

    2. Thag Simmons

      I’d say probably not, partially for sliding timescale reasons and partially because I feel like Joyce watching an R-rated horror movie called Sinners would warrant some commentary

      1. HueSatLight

        Spoilers [rot13]Fur yvxrq Gjvyvtug. Fvaaref vf whfg yvxr gung, evtug? ;)[/rot13]

  25. sisterofdarkoneko

    AND I’VE BEEN WAITIN’ ON THE TWELVE OH FIVE

  26. Icalasari

    What is the opposite of Damn You Willis?

    Willis, You Damn?

    Sure. Willis, You DAMN!

    1. Sol

      Maybe “Hell Yeah, Willis!” ?

    2. Freezer

      “Bless you, Willis?”

      1. Aura

        Did they sneeze?

        1. Icalasari

          Well, they WERE being talked about, so maybe?

        2. Clif

          Praise Willis, for he hath given us our damn gazebo!!!

          In the snow.

  27. shanunu

    We just left Dorothy having a bout of PTSD ?

    1. Clif

      That’s for the future. Tonight we have date.

    2. Sirksome

      This might be a bit of a tangent off your comment but this is why I don’t believe in Dorothy and Walky right now. Dorothy has been going through it for a while now and if Walky has noticed he has not done a thing to help her. Dorothy should be able to lean on him tonight for support. If she’s not that says everything about the substance of them being together again.

      1. Clif

        Don’t Care. Removing pants now.

        But wait until Dorothy gets his “It’s the Snow” speech.

        1. Clif

          Reference: https://www.itswalky.com/comic/its-the-rain/

      2. Thag Simmons

        Dorothy’s heart isn’t in it this time I don’t think.

      3. thejeff

        Dorothy might feel weird about going to her boyfriend because she’s upset about what just (didn’t) happen with Joyce.

        That’s probably not great for her relationship with Walky, but it doesn’t necessarily say a lot about the substance of it.

        1. Sirksome

          It hasn’t just been about Joyce though. Dorothy’s been off for what seems like weeks now but I’m not certain how the tl shakes out. Walky should know this too. She made a pass at him while he was with Lucy and the best he could do was say “You’re better than this.” When they hooked up again she said some stuff in bed that made gave him pause, but I’ve seen no real action on his part. Unless sex counts? I know that might legitimately help some folks which is valid. Jennifer and Joyce have been the only ones trying to cheer her up.

        2. Big Z

          Yeah, Dorothy and Walky are not acting like the kind of couple where there’s much support going on — honestly, they don’t even seem to LIKE each other much this time around, aside from the sex. (we’re not seeing watching cartoons together etc, although at least part of that is a function of time)

          Which is pretty on par with a lot of college relationships, but at minimum it’s not good for getting Dorothy what she needs.

        3. Sirksome

          They’ve had moments: https://www.dumbingofage.com/2024/comic/book-14/04-for-me-it-was-tuesday/redirect/

          Part of it could be that it’s only been a few days since they got back together I think? Or just that we don’t see them much cause the story has been focusing on other (honestly more interesting) couples and stories. It just seems odd to me right now. Like they just fell into their familiar easy dynamic but aren’t really paying attention to each other because of it.

          Like on the inverse Walky got beat down by Incelerator recently. Did they even talk about how he felt after that? No? It was just a funny incident sure but that can still mess with people.

        4. Big Z

          Honestly I also think the strip before the one you linked is also indicative, too — it’s clear at least that Walky has no real idea how to be supportive with THIS Dorothy (even if we read his facial expression as “what do you MEAN, my fandom doesn’t matter” rather than a more general expression of worry).

          And yeah, it’s only been a short while since they got back together, with Walky getting past both the Incelerator thing and the Lucy thing (including the Dorothy thing related to the Lucy thing).

        5. Leon

          Dorothy’s depression has been portrayed as giving her intrusive thoughts and nightmares while initially causing her to overcompensate in an unhealthy way, venture into drinking and pure escapism. That being said, subsequent events have also turned her into the opposite direction where she questions her previous behavior, slacks off by skipping class, prioritizes herself over what she deems as “work” (helping everyone), and so forth. She feels completely untethered as everything she thought she knew wasn’t as unified as once perceived.

          Some are good things but their source of motivation stems from a dark place. I don’t think most characters are equipped to help Dorothy as she is right now if she keeps hiding things from people that love her like she does her therapist. For example, both Walky and Joyce know she isn’t going to Yale but they don’t know the precise reasoning. She hid it specifically because she thinks it would hurt them. Walky has tried to help her, for sure, although he needed to be prompted by others to initiate the process. She communicated enough for him to understand some things afterwards. I think Joyce is the closer of the two to figuring it all out since she realized on her own something was amiss, but now we have this extra dimension to all this. It’s gonna take some time and it’s very interesting.

        6. HueSatLight

          She told Walky she was not doing well, and he essentially told her to buck up.
          https://www.dumbingofage.com/upanatem/

          They weren’t dating then, and she had just asked him to break up with Lucy for her. But he could have at least acknowledged she wasn’t ok. I don’t know if it’s because he has her on a pedestal and thinks she can’t have real problems or because he runs from feelings or something else.

        7. Leon

          Yeah, that looks bad, but what I linked to is almost a year later in real-time and also before they got back together. He’s gotten new information and is trying to understand more.

          I think it’s a bit of both and his own hangs-up with feeling lesser. Instead of talking it out, he offered her sex. That was a thing suggested to him in the previous storyline. I think he was initially doing a okay job in the strip before that even if you disagree with his demeanor, though. He’s probably just at a lost himself.

          He thought the sex would chill her out, but felt put off by the implication a renewed relationship with him wasn’t emotionally significant to her enough to fret over like she was in middle of doing beforehand rather than feeling more secure. Dorothy didn’t say that or mean to imply it, but that’s how he saw it. As we know now (it was right after this), Dorothy threw herself at Walky because of Joyce’s unavailability and her frustration with that. I guess it depends on how mature you think Walky can be about all this if he can see past his own (justified?) insecurities.

        8. thejeff

          That’s fair that’s it’s been going on longer, but I was thinking specifically about “lean on him tonight for support”, which would be a bit awkward.

          Her thing for Joyce has been a lot of the problem, even if unacknowledged, since before they got back together. As you say, they’ve only been back together a few days and he’s likely still trying to feel out this new relationship and whether Dorothy is even really serious about it. Which makes jumping back into a full support role difficult.

        9. Leon

          I think the question is if Dorothy would give him the opportunity to fulfill that role. I’m not sure. She still feels guilt about the sent picture and now more because of the almost infidelity. Now she’s gonna ask him for comfort because of her feelings for Joyce too at this particular moment? I still have no clue how he would react to all of this.

          On the topic of her running to Walky because of Joyce’s unavailability, did she also do that during Joementum? She was initially looking for Joyce to ask her something urgent that was fueled by impulse and it had nothing to do about Joe. She just ends up paraphrasing what Ruth said to her earlier that prompted the decision. Establishing a bit of a pattern here.

          It makes sense considering the conversation with Joe and Dorothy about Joyce was originally going to happen in August 2023, which would’ve been during the storyline after Joementum.

  28. Amber

    I can’t believe we missed the part where they crashed on their scooters because those are not good for that kinda weather

    1. Adept

      No helmets, let alone knee and elbow pads either. Easy way for a fun date to end up with a hospital visit.

      1. Adept

        *to end on a

  29. Freezer

    Realistic emotional fallout tomorrow. Idealized V-Card Punching tonight!

  30. Aura

    Awwwww 🙂 I’m glad we get to see this, when the alt text on the last step said storyline over I was afraid we were just skipping over it

    1. Clif

      Devious and unpredictable are the ways of the Willis.

  31. JessWitt

    Joe looks great in the sweater vest. Although with his body type he’d look great in anything.

  32. Charles Phipps

    Dorothy is still on the floor of her room, growling and thrashing.

  33. AbacusWizard

    Look out! A wild gazebo!

    1. Clif

      Shoot it before it escapes.

      1. Steamweed

        No good. It’s comic canon that crossbow bolts don’t hurt it. Hell, fireballs don’t hurt it. That foe is clearly beyond those two. They can’t pull a Gandalf here; they need to run away!

        1. Adept

          (Whimper) But that was a +3 arrow!

        2. Steamweed

          I recognize you, colleague comic minutiae aficionado!

        3. Adept

          Ditto Steamweed

  34. Foolissa

    Does it not bother anyone else that they are contemplating having sex outside in the SNOW?? I mean… That is not exactly my idea of a relaxed and comfortable first-time scenario

    1. Clif

      THIS!!!

    2. Nadamás

      Nice but almost got me there.

      1. Nadamás

        *bit

    3. Proxiehunter

      They’re outside in the snow contemplating having sex. What makes you think they’re contemplating having sex while out there?

      1. Foolissa

        That’s what I understood their plan was when they were talking about the date. But maybe (hopefully) I misinterpreted.

        1. thejeff

          The plan was dinner, maybe a movie, definitely a midnight walk, a gazebo and it would be about feelings, both sexual and non-sexual.

          There was nothing specific about where the feelings would be or whether those feelings would involve actual physical sex, though Joyce certainly later stated that intention. But still not where. (Though it was also noted that Sarah was going to be away from the room for the night.)

    4. Charlotte

      Can someone explain why
      A) people think they’re planning to have sex in the gazebo, and
      B) why they would be waiting for midnight?
      I genuinely do not understand.

      1. Clif

        Because
        A) it’s funnier that way.
        and
        B) That puts us into the new chapter wherein we find out that Joyce is into girls and Joe is her only exception.

        You can tell because the chapter is named “The Only Exception.”

        1. DJTsurugi

          lol based on the song lyrics, I’m pretty sure Dorothy is her exception, go back a few pages. ~<3

        2. Li

          Clif is definitely joking about that part. I’m at least 98% sure ?

        3. Clif

          Seen A).

        4. Clif

          My only question is how is the Willis using the title to mislead us. I speak as one misled, like a lamb, by the recent End of Chapter.

        5. Clif

          Ah!!! Seen A) should have read See A).

          So 98% joking is about right.

      2. Amara

        Can you imagine how memorable of a first time that would be? It would make for a great party story later on.

      3. thejeff

        Joe planned the date. Joyce was planning to have sex. I don’t think Joe knew about that plan. He obviously knows that Joyce has been hinting about it quite openly in general, but he was thinking about the romantic date part of the night. His plan was not about facilitating sex.

        1. Nadamás

          He explicitly said they would talk about both felling stuff and sex stuff.

        2. thejeff

          And in looking back at the setup for the date, I saw that Joe did spell out “definitely a romantic midnight walk”, which if anyone had remembered yesterday would have made the “end of storyline” bit less traumatic.

          Willis set it up and we still missed it.

      4. HueSatLight

        Sex in the sex gazebo. Their first time together will be magical, because they’re taking cold damage.

        1. HueSatLight

          Colleges have legends like “At X location at midnight, when someone has sex the first time, something something.” Roomies has one at the fountain. I want to say my school had a legend about a bell in a courtyard or gazebo that the participants rung after the sex.

          Also, two things Joyce wanted for their date was sex and a gazebo for their midnight walk, so why not link them?

    5. KJ

      they’re 18-19, they’ll be fine (probably?

  35. DashWallkick

    Joyce squinting at the menu looking for food she trusts is too cute.

    1. Steamweed

      Montage, yeah, sure, but I need details! What did she order??

  36. darkoneko

    Come on, get a scarf, you don’t wanna catch a cold, now do yous

  37. AK

    He found her a gazebo!!!

    1. Clif

      Indeed.

      Well done, Joe.

  38. 3oranges

    Careful with those panel edges Joyce! Make sure you don’t get your fingers cut!

  39. Morrison

    Threat Level

    1. Nadamás

      Your mom is a threat level

      1. Clif

        For a nickel.

  40. Li

    Oh no, now Joyce is going to turn into a pumpkin!

    (I really wanted to make a Cinderella joke, this was the best I could do on short notice.)

    Iiiii still feel like we’ve skipped over a lot of stuff I would have liked to see in longer form if this was my biggest ship, but I could be completely wrong and this could just be skipping to the best part for folks. Either way I am wishing y’all an excellent Slipshine and / or NSFW Patreon drop this week. ?

    1. Li

      Oh and nice catch, folks pointing out the gazebo! I totally spaced that Joyce had requested one, and I vaguely thought maybe we were referencing Groundhog Day.

      (One of my all-time favorite romcoms, tho, so if Willis is doing both, excellent.)

    2. Risky

      I’ve had to get a girl home by midnight so that she doesn’t turn into a pumpkin before, so I appreciate the Cinderella humor. The NSFW patreon has been showing multiple Styles of the scene to come for months.

      1. Li

        Hee, thanks. And also NICE. Soon…!

        I swear my misgivings aren’t trying to rain on anyone’s parade!! More like, okay it’s time to get this on record, so that I can either link to myself with a “called it” someday in the future or eat my crow, whichever is appropriate. 🙂

    3. Li

      Oh ANOTHER cute detail, lookit Joyce’s face in that first panel. The mistrustful eyes of our favorite picky eater.

      Fortunately, most restaurants do have something that’s basically chicken strips, which you can get with sauce on the side to make plain… (Remember to get her that multivitamin, Joe.)

    4. TGS

      Ha.. I was also thinking of Cinderella references. We know that something will turn into a figurative/metaphorical pumpkin, because DYW. The question is *what*. I am not convinced that Joyce is our gourd-to-be. In fact, I doubt she is the Ciinderella in this situation. She is the Prince, as she will not get everything she wanted or expected from this. Her glass slipper could be the realization that everything with Joe did not actually scratch all her itches, so now she has to go searching for what actually fits.

      1. thejeff

        Or just that Joe isn’t quite as eager to have sex tonight as she expects him to be.

        1. Li

          Everything else aside I am chomping at the metaphorical bit for a scene where Joe maybe admits to Joyce that she’s not the only one with nerves here, ever since she got tipsy and he didn’t because he was (not unreasonably!) afraid of himself.

          (And probably also very aware that they were surrounded by protective friends of Joyce who might potentially assume uncharitable things if he did get drunk and let himself do something so scandalous as to smooch her.)

          It’s also possible we might glide right past it, that Joyce might be obviously happy enough to be here in the moment with him that his nerves are totally soothed… but man, I would like to see him admit his nerves, whether or not he specifically talks about Liz, and for her to see him as big and strong but also vulnerable and in need of comfort… and for her to cuddle him a little.

          Everyone deserves to be the little spoon sometimes, metaphorically and literally. 🙂

      2. Li

        That’s an interesting twist of the metaphor, or maybe I’m just weak to girl-princes. I think they’re cute. (Aqua and Cinderella’s bit was my favorite part of Birth By Sleep.)

        I don’t know what we’re being set up for wrt the first time… I’m pretty sure Joyce will have a nice night for that part, regardless of anything else; I think the missing piece here is going to be more emotional than physical. BUT I fully understand where folks are coming from that, at this point, are getting other vibes.

    5. Yumi

      I was pretty annoyed at the storyline ending when it did (even though I saw that coming; it was already getting to be a lot of strips, and I didn’t think Willis would try to fit a fleshed out date in as well). The strip has had a couple times now of showing the lead up to something I get excited about and then cutting off.

      But then I also thought about this instance more, and I could see how multiple strips of them just…having a nice time on their date might not be that interesting. The montage feels like a decent way to approach it, though I may have liked it stretched across one more strip.

      1. Li

        Yeah…

        I guess where I’m coming from is partly that this was Joyce’s first real date. So I’m surprised we didn’t take the opportunity to show them at least sitting in a restaurant for a little bit to more directly contrast, you know, her last “first real date” which was also with Joe and went terribly.

        The montage is cute!! Like I said, it also reminds me strongly of Groundhog Day, and that is one of my favorite romcoms. I just… also feel like there’s a shoe hovering here.

        1. Yumi

          I would have liked more of the date! I thought we were going to get more until like a week ago when I saw how many strips had been in the storyline so far and was like, “Oh, we’re almost done.” But I’m glad we got some– and yesterday I specifically said I didn’t think they would be at a gazebo at midnight, so. Glad I was wrong on that and what do I know.

        2. Li

          Nice. 🙂

          AND this is probably the start of a conversation here, so potentially some more gazebo time…!

          I am both trying to be positive and happy for the folks for whom this is their big ship AND warming to the sequence myself, heh. 🙂

    6. Strawb

      Omg my mum used to say this to me. Sorry you just reminded me of my mum’s cute way of reminding me about curfews haha.

      Also I agree with you (and I comment I saw you make on yesterday’s strip I think). There’s deffo, to me as well, a lot less focus on JoeXJoyce recently honestly I’ve been reading a lack of chemistry on Joyce’s side (I’m sure many disagree with me) I dont particularly ship either I’m happy wherever the story goes. But right now I read more chemistry in the Dotty scenes.

      1. Li

        <3 That's adorable tbh.

        I kind of envy you not shipping either, haha. I felt like I definitely had a bit more distance from Walky/Lucy and that let me analyze it without also feeling like I was potentially misreading everything just due to “oh but I want Joyce/Dorothy”, which is just. Always possible! No matter how much I think I’m looking at things objectively, ships are powerful components in how a scene and indeed an entire story reads.

        “Lack of chemistry” is definitely a good way of kind of summarizing it, but I’m. I don’t know, I really like Joe and Joyce’s dynamic, except for when she says stuff that makes me feel like she’s losing sight of the forest (Joe as a person) for the trees (Joe as her boyfriend), and saying stuff like “that’s what [boyfriends] are for”.

        BUT. again. My ship. I could be reading too much into that. Only time will tell!

  41. Risky

    As the shortest one she really should be holding the popcorn.

    1. Li

      I think it’s sweet tho how he’s actively holding it at an angle for her to reach it.

      Like, a lil tiring on that wrist, but really sweet.

      1. BarerMender

        Hey, it’s Joe. He has wrists of iron. Especially on his left hand.

        Org.

        1. Li

          Ugly laugh achieved. 🙂

  42. anon

    i wonder what movie they saw lol

    1. Li

      /googles

      Well, today maybe A Minecraft Movie…? But like, next month it’ll have been something different.

      I feel like The Default Move is either a romance or a scary movie (bc you can cling to each other), but I’m realizing I have no idea what kind of movies Joyce would like… and probably neither does she, it’s the I Need New Secular Music problem all over again.

      I bet Joe made a good choice tho. ?

      1. Clif

        He chose Joyce, so yeah.

      2. Dorjojoe

        I’m guessing Jungle Book.

    2. HueSatLight

      Crossover between The Hangover and Twilight

  43. Laura

    Anyone up for a game? Maybe a counterweight to all that recent heavy?

    OK, here’s the question:

    What’s your idea of a perfect date activity?

    1. Laura

      I can start.

      Two words:

      Hot.
      Springs.

      1. NGPZ

        damn that sounds fantastic, especially after having just watched the first season of Yuru Camp! <3

        my idea of a perfect date activity? video games (especially arcade games), especially when waiting for pizza or tonkotsu ramen ^^

        1. Laura

          Ooh, great choice! Ramen, for sure!

    2. DailyBrad

      Depends on who you are with and like what your level of experience together is. Movies are not a great first date to me because I’d want to talk to the person I am with more, but when you’re a few dates in, it’s better.

      In general, I like dates at places like an aquarium or the like so you can walk together and chat on the way.

      1. Strawb

        Yes I love something where you can walk and chat! Aquariums, museums, botanical gardens all excellent dates! And I love petting zoos (cute animals, walking, talking, what snot to love?)

      2. Laura

        Ooh, the aquarium. I love those. Especially the touch pool! Walk and talk excursions are so intimate for getting to know new friends.

        1. thejeff

          And places like the aquarium give you stuff to talk about for those of us who aren’t great at unprompted small talk. Or at jumping straight into deep personal stuff with people you don’t know well.

      3. Li

        I actually think dinner-and-a-movie IS a good first-serious-date activity (my go-to for first-date-ever is something lighter, like coffee for lunch), but you gotta do it in the opposite order so that you can talk about the movie over dinner.

        EGS made a good pitch for bowling, I thought; anything similar, where you’re playing a mildly competitive game that has lots of room for talking, is equally good. (Bowling in particular works better as a group date activity, though.) You get to see what your potential partner is like under competitive conditions, and that can be super revealing.

        1. Laura

          Coffee — a classic!

          I once had a VERY romantic date watching “Muppets from Space” on the big screen — in the projection booth with the projectionist! Lots of uninterrupted snuggle time up there, I tell ya!

        2. Li

          It’s a good ice-breaker, I think! I did a lot of similar dates for the brief period when I attempted Dating Apps, and the low commitment is good for when you’re really not at all sure if you click even a tiny bit.

          Awww, that sounds really nice. 🙂

        3. DailyBrad

          Yeah, that is true, though I think eating before the movie can work, too, depending on the sort of movie and how well you know one another.

        4. Li

          Oh for sure.

          AND: big plug for “going to one of those movie theaters where you can order dinner *inside* the movie theater” in that case, especially if it’s like, half empty because it’s been out for a while, and no one else is gonna be annoyed if you whisper to each other.

    3. AK

      Whatever you did as friends but now it’s romantic.

      No but for actually I think my big pick is finding some kind of street festival (an art one but I’m not picky) or farmers market and wandering around looking at cool stuff until you grab food and hang out in a park talking for like three hours.

      1. AK

        That said, choose a thing your partner has been saying they wanna do, earmark a day on their calendar, and plan it for them is one of the most joyous forms of date to pull off. You say I love you with the power of logistics and they say I love you by giving you copious quality time about it.

        1. Laura

          Logistics power! I love it! ?

      2. Big Z

        This.

        My partner and I had a lot of “naked Diablo II co-op” back when we had computers and internet connections and not a whole lot of cash for “date night”.

        1. Laura

          Dang, spicy! Yow!

      3. Taffy

        All of these are excellent, and I’m copying your homework.

    4. BarerMender

      Going to the bookstore. Picking some books. Going to the caf for tea. Reading at the same table. Buying her a book.

      1. Laura

        Awwww! So sweet! Especially the tea!

    5. Taffy

      I love a little shopping, myself. We go to Fairview Heights a few times a year, do the rounds at our favorite stores, maybe pick up a thing or two, break for lunch when we get hungry. There’s a nerd store on one of the main roads there, and every time we go we pick up one of their novelty coins to put in a little treasure chest we’ve got.

      Bowling is about equal, even though we only seem to do it every few years. It’s good clean fun and you can do as much or as little as you want.

      1. Laura

        Bowling! (*Jumps up and down*)
        I haven’t done that since I was a kid! So much fun! Even though I was absolutely terrible at it, it was still fun just watching the ball roll.

        1. Taffy

          Got interested in it through a PS1 game with the sickest soundtrack ever. We’d always have bumpers on, but since real alleys give us weird looks when we ask for that, we bowl like normals IRL.

    6. Astariel

      My best ever date was at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, so I’m gonna go with that.

      1. Laura

        Oh, well, yeah, of course. Can’t top MoMA! Obvi!

    7. Bittersweet

      Natural Science or Art Museum! Or Zoo (the ones nearest to me are focused very heavily on conservation, and the nearest one only takes rescues). Few things make me happier.

      1. Yumi

        I enjoy the zoo as well! Had a nice first date there once. (Also, I have a zoo membership good for me + a guest, so if it ends early, it doesn’t feel like wasted money). Art museum is also good. And then I like paint your own pottery shops.

        I also like going to favorite (non-chain) food places, if I know my date is open to that kind of food. Like, I have a couple that I go to (or, in one case, went to, damn pandemic) by myself that I’m really familiar with, and it’s fun to kind of show them off a little.

        I also think really mundane things can be fun if you know the person and both play into it. Like, in high school, I had fun just going to the grocery store with my friends and acting as a tour guide because their families didn’t shop at Kroger. And then find a couple weird or fun snacks while you’re there to try.

        1. Laura

          Paint your own pottery! Such a soothing tactile experience ! Perfect!

          …I am trying ALL these date options now, at least in my imagination!

        2. Taffy

          A zoo is great, because if the date goes badly you can just knock ’em into the tiger pit.

        3. Laura

          …Or if the date goes /well/, you can take a romantic stroll past the Bonobo Habitat…

          ;-D

      2. Laura

        Ooh, the science museum is great. I used to get “drunk on wonder” at the Franklin Institute. Watching that giant pendulum, walking through the giant model of a heart thar makes heartbeat noises, giant fossil skeletons… (I may be conflating a few museums in my memory — when you’re a little kid, everything looks EXTRA giant…)

  44. GUIGUI

    How severe is Joyce’s myopia? Mine is not that soft and I still prefer to take off my glasses when I read a menu or a book because it’s more comfortable without glasses.

    (corrective glasses for myopia make things slightly smaller, so for anything I can put close to my eyes, I see them better by taking off my glasses)

    1. Yumi

      For me, I can read things I’m holding without my glasses, but I pretty much only do that when I’m in bed and my glasses are off anyway. Reading still feels more comfortable for me with them on. I also wouldn’t particularly want to take them off in a public place where I may want to be able to quickly switch focus from what I’m reading to my surroundings.

      But also, my vision is pretty bad, don’t think Joyce would be at my level yet. It’d actually be pretty concerning if her vision dropped that much so rapidly.

    2. Sapphic Endgame

      not to make assumptions here but I’m pretty sure that she’s scrutinizing the menu items based on how much she doesn’t want to actually try new things (or unexpected textures)

      1. David M Willis

        yes, she’s looking for acceptable foods

        1. Adept

          With a serious frown of concentration.

  45. DailyBrad

    I am anticipating that Joyce might be expecting all of this to lead up to sex, and indeed it might, but I could see this being something where she’s wanting to move this along faster than Joe does, given Joe is excited about the boyfriend experience, and has a certain level of baggage about sex at the moment.

    Then again, maybe it will prove to go more smoothly than that.

  46. LiamKav

    I think that’s her glaring suspiciously at the food options for things that might be touching rather than squinting because she can’t read it properly.

  47. Axel

    Very skeptical about the menu.

    1. Steamweed

      What did she order?? Appetizer platter of all mac’n’cheese side orders? Something else?

  48. Amós Batista

    Happy new Year

  49. Kyulen

    Seems like Joyce and Joe are having a pretty good date so far. Hopefully they continue to have a good time together.

  50. Erinaceus

    Gazebo delivered as promised.

    1. Erinaceus

      reference: https://www.dumbingofage.com/2025/comic/book-15/03-me-and-who-you-say-i-was-yesterday/gazebo/

    2. Arianod

      As God is his witness ^^

  51. TGS

    If this is a Cinderella reference, then looks like Joe about to turn into the “pump-king”, amirite nudge nudge wink wink saynomore?

    Sorry. I laugh at stupid shit sometimes.

    1. Steamweed

      Joyce is perhaps providing the slipper(y) contribution.

  52. Arianod

    Restaurant menu: “Look at all this food we’ve got for you to enjoy!”
    Joyce: >_>

  53. Deanatay

    You took your date to a GAZEBO?? Joe, you fool! Don’t you realize how dangerous those things are?? Their AC and DR are off the charts! And they are hungry. ALWAYS. HUNGRY.

  54. aSnowyEvening

    Oh, hey, the current storyline title is like the song lyrics from Dorothy’s playlist. Hmmmmm.

    ENM may yet be a possibility, but there is a lot of talking for the four of them to be done first. It’s a long shot, but not impossible.

    Also I’m wondering what Joyce ended up ordering.

    Also also it seems quiet enough that the date wasn’t derailed by the protest so that is good. I hope Jocelyn and Asma are okay.

    1. Nymph

      Yeaaahh, I’m also mildly suspicious (of Willis waiting around the corner with a Stick of Feelings to clothesline us with) that we haven’t actually heard much about how the protest is going in the background.

    2. Taffy

      Asma’s not safe right now, but it’s because she’s been having ultraviolent John Wick adventures while we’re not looking. She has a hilarious Irish guy named Connor for a sidekick. They met at a movie theater she ducked into to hide from the Bad Guys who were chasing her. Turns out she actually knows his ex (Mia), who he was hiding from in the theater, and they bonded over how rude Mia is. The Bad Guys caught up with them after the movie ended, one thing lead to another, and now they’re in Galway to meet up with an arms dealer in preparation for the big Final Showdown at the villain’s HQ.

      1. Steamweed

        I’m sold. When’s that coming out??

    3. Scolopendra

      Do we even know if Asma is at that protest? If that was mentioned, I missed it.

      1. Yumi

        All I can recall us knowing for sure is that Asma isn’t working the front desk because she asked for the weekend off. Might not have anything to do with the protest, but from a story perspective, it’s a reasonable assumption.

        1. NGPZ

          Yeah, especially since it’s likely gonna be based on the IRL Gaza protests and corresponding incidents at Dunn Meadow

  55. Tarkara

    Im so sorry Joe

  56. AnonGrouch

    Sooooooo. Tinfoil hat theory because there is no drama to talk about in this strip. What if the only exception isn’t Dorothy, it is Joe and all her androphilic behavior has just been pining for a tall tall girl this entire time. -nods nods- It explains absolutely nothing! NOTHING! I’m so clever! Mwahhahahaha

    1. Yumi

      My tinfoil hat theory is that the only exception is Joyce for Joe, in the sense that it’s actually used in the song– she’s the only exception to his idea that he’s better off avoiding romance, she’s the one he’s willing to be vulnerable and believe in love with.
      And anyway, they’ll be somewhere together and the song will start playing and he’ll smile at her and go, “This is our song.” And then Joyce will remember where she was when she first heard it and have a lot of feelings about that. Bonus if Dorothy is also around and trying to stop herself from lunging at him, raptor!Dina style.

      1. AnonGrouch

        I like your tinfoil hat better but it isnt insane enough

        1. Yumi

          Hm, yes. The band Paramore is also secretly run by Head Alien, and this is how he will enter the Dumbingverse. In fact, right when all this seems like it’s about to reach an emotional climax, he will bust down the walls of their dorm.

        2. AnonGrouch

          I mean I never read it but I heard Walkyverse had some form of aliens so why not

        3. Yumi

          Yeah, I haven’t read it either, but I’ve heard about Head Alien. In DoA, he’s in that cartoon that Joyce, Walky, and Dorothy like.

        4. Yumi

          (Because he’s been using various forms of media to break into their universe for years; that show didn’t quite work, then he made another one that would have worked, but it got picked up by a streaming service that none of them had and they were a bit out of the target demographic by then so they never ended up watching it. Now he’s trying with music.)

        5. John Campbell

          Dexter (Head Alien) and Monkey Master, among other alien threats, are real in the Walkyverse, and in It’s Walky! much of the cast are super-powered alien abductees who fight them as part of a secret organization called SEMME.

          The Walkyverse starts out with Roomies!, which is… well, basically DoA if it were written by beginning-of-comic Joyce, and focused on Danny. It segued without clear boundary into It’s Walky!, where Joyce, Walky, Sal, Mike, Joe, Robin, and others were super-powered alien-fighters. Jason was there too. Joe and Rachel built Ultra Car, who became Carla in this universe. Booster was a magic tree branch (I am not making this up). Then there was Joyce & Walky!, which covered events — some domestic, some alien-driven — after the final battle in It’s Walky!, and introduced Becky and Dorothy, and Shortpacked!, in which Robin got a job at Galasso’s toy store with Ethan, Amber, and Mike, and later Leslie, Ultra Car, Lucy, Jacob, Jesus of Nazareth, Malaya…

  57. aSnowyEvening

    I was trying to figure out an in-comic reason for the emphasis on the fact that it’s midnight, and I had a troubling “what if” come up. What if the protest was deemed legal for the day yesterday, and then as of midnight everybody that’s there is deemed to be trespassing at Dunn Meadow?

    Oh no oh no oh no

    1. Scolopendra

      I think the plot importance and severity of the protest has been wildly overestimated by the comment section. Willis’ focus seems pretty clearly on sapphic drama rather than depicting systemic brutality and repression. I think we’re in for more Joyce/Dorothy feels while Jocelyne has offscreen adventures.

      1. Leon

        Likely, but maybe Jocelyne does appear a bit. Dorothy makes 47 appearances out of the 87 strips in this storyline, and only had 37 out of 94 in the last one (Joyce had 49). Dina/Becky only have 8.

        1. MeghanTheDreamCrusher

          When you say “this storyline” you do mean The Only Exception, as in the one that started today right?

          How do you know how many appearances Dorothy is going to have? And how can I too gain this forbidden knowledge?

        2. Leon

          Yes. After Willis finishes a storyline, he announces it on blue sky and answers questions about the number of appearances characters make in it. He’s been more conservative about it recently, though.

          He answered to someone asking about Joe and that is how I knew Joe would show up when he did in the last storyline (he had two more appearances left), so I was far less anxious than everyone else in the comments. But I guess he could’ve been a singular panel while Dorothy and Joyced macked on each other, but that would’ve been out of character.

        3. MeghanTheDreamCrusher

          Willis doesn’t happen to use a particular tag for those posts I assume?

          I fear I may never find them in the sea of transformers that is his bluesky

          Also, out of character? Yes. But it also would’ve been really funny and tragic, and that’s what I live for!

        4. Leon

          Use the search function and type “[month] 2025/6” (you need an account for this now), you’ll get preview panels and sometimes the announcements of storyline finishes.

        5. MeghanTheDreamCrusher

          You’re the best Leon! Many thanks!!

        6. Scolopendra

          We can only hope to see more Jocelyne!

    2. Tan

      Joe explicitly promised a romantic midnight walk. With a gazebo.

      https://www.dumbingofage.com/2025/comic/book-15/03-me-and-who-you-say-i-was-yesterday/gazebo/

      1. thejeff

        Which we’d all forgotten about yesterday when there was all the fuss about the storyline ending and thus not seeing the date/sex.

        Which of course is why Willis set it up to be a midnight walk.

  58. Acher4

    This is very wonderfully sweet! 😀

    I wonder what the new day brings?

    dun-dun-duuuuuuuun!

  59. Zamperla

    these two goofuses ❤️ I wonder how long she scrutinized the menu for before convincing joe to ask to make sure the sauce for the chicken fingers was ‘on the side’ or ‘red’.

  60. Big Z

    Damn you, Willis, for giving me this lovely date while I’m still somewhat worried about how Dorothy is handling her trauma back in the dorms instead of waiting until I can just enjoy it.

    1. Li

      I think this sums things up really well, so +1

      someday I aspire to be so concise

  61. Steamweed

    Panel 1: Okay, Joyce, what exactly did you order?
    Panel 4: YOU FOOLS, GET OUT OF THAT GAZEBO’S MAW!
    Alt text: Hmmm, okay, Willis, we’ll let you off this one time. For now.
    (*two fingers, pointed at my eyes, then at your eyes)

  62. Suet

    oh no i’m the footage of the lady in the commercials when the voiceover lists the side effects

    wonder what they watched? not the new Minecraft film, I bet.

  63. thumb

    Followed by 24hrs of just boning.

    1. Steamweed

      Good thing no one else wanted to reserve that gazebo during that time.

  64. Tan

    I am glad that Joe got the For Realsies Traditional Date(tm) he was wanting. Now back to disasters.

  65. Lars

    Opportunity missed to have Buckets of Blood Guy in the background of that cinema.

  66. Astariel

    As much as I long for more Joyce/Dorothy, I’m very happy see Joyce & Joe having a good time on their date. I absolutely adore Joyce’s skeptical glare at the menu in panel 1. I’ve been there, Joyce!

  67. BorkBorkBork

    Lookit Joyce, scrutinizing that menu as if she isn’t just going to order the chicken fingers.

    1. Taffy

      She’s bold enough to give it a fair attempt, but if those motherfuckers don’t have what she needs, there’s gonna be hell to pay.

    2. Steamweed

      This date, she was Bold, Decisive, and Incisive!

      She ordered the chicken tenders.

      :O

    3. Nadamás

      Chicken fingers will never betray you.

      1. David M Willis

        I dunno i ordered the new crispy strips at McDonald’s yesterday and they were pretty gristly

        1. Steamweed

          Yeah, that’s McDs. The McPropagators of “pink slime” created “food” stuffs.

        2. Li

          I don’t know if you are making a joke but I know some folks are unaware so for the record the “pink slime” post was using gifs from Teletubbies showing the custard machine.

          McDonalds is definitely mashing protein-containing chicken stuff up into a paste, but it’s not pink slime. (Personally I really like Dan Olsen’s video about chicken tenders on this subject, but obviously not the best for folks who prefer info in text form.)

  68. Sadie1000Deaths

    Just had to say that Joe showing Joyce why Divorce is Awesome in panel 3 is a great callback

  69. HueSatLight

    Don’t know if anyone’s mentioned it, but the Gazebo was in the first chapter of the first book.

    oh, it was a full moon on move-in day. Time to see if the moon phase has been correct over fourteen and a half books.

    1. Steamweed

      Amazi-Girl had not yet learned how to speak in her logo. (or in blue)

    2. HueSatLight

      I have terrible news. The first chapter was Aug 29th, and there’s a full moon on Sept 24th,
      21st, and
      18th. I did not see any moon after that.
      So in the Dumbiverse, the moon’s orbit was catastrophically destabilized in September, and was probably flung into deep space sometime after September 24th.

  70. Joy

    The amount of character development this sequences represents is a lot, this whole thing feels both very saccharine and very earned

  71. Dafydd

    ♪Not a sound from the pavement.
    Has the moon lost her memory?
    She is smiling alone…♫

  72. Opus the Poet

    Midnight at the oasis, send your camel to bed..
    https://youtu.be/3gKnnb24Eso?si=gCC392LdB8tiTCOk

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