169

Bad news
Posted on May 5, 2020 by David M Willis

169 thoughts on “Bad news”

  1. Ana Chronistic

    Becky just wants to shoot the messenger

    1. Ana Chronistic

      alt-text just wants to JINX *punch*

      f’real tho, feels incoming =C

      1. Needfuldoer

        Shields up, red alert!

    2. Pablo360

      becky <3< the messenger

      1. OtterBoy1

        homestuck illegal

        1. Lys

          Otterboy1 c3< becky – the messenger

    3. clif

      At this point I don’t understand why Becky isn’t suddenly concerned about Joyce.

      1. Meagan

        Yeah that was my thought too

      2. Shen Hibiki

        ’cause they’d be WAY more wrecked if it was Joyce. This feels like bad news, not tragic news. (Face it, none of them care ’bout their kidnapper XD)

  2. NinjaNick

    Get ready for some waterworks.

  3. Diane

    There Willis, I waited until after midnight so you didn’t have to update your post.

    1. David M Willis

      bless

    2. Jo Giggles

      Is Diane, Ana? Lol

      1. Diane

        Lol, no. I’ve been debating doing it, then I saw Willis’s post of “Hey, we’re this far away…can we not make it before midnight please?” And decided, “Yep, I accept this as my sign, but I’ll pretend I’m nice and wait.” Second I saw it was officially up, went and pledged.

        1. Zee

          I feel like I need context

        2. Diane

          On Willis’s twitter, an hour before update time last night, he posted that we were $117 away from unlocking Becky magnets. He then begged for us to not get past this milestone so he didn’t have to suddenly write an update post. I obliged in waiting, but also accepted it as the “you really wanna back this, you keep coming back to it, you know you want it…” devil whisper in my ear.

  4. Sambo

    Walky is conspicuously absent

    1. NinjaNick

      He’s probably at the front doorway, watching for any moronic activity.

    2. Bicycle Bill

      Neither are Joyce and Amazi-Amber.  Joyce is probably in the basement with Ross, and Amazi-Amber is standing guard over Blaine and the rest of the mooks.
      Walky is probably raiding the pantry, looking for Nachitos.

    3. SuperZero

      He started to leave, but then he hung back and stayed inside. We haven’t actually seen him on-panel after he said he was leaving, but Amazi-Girl asked him a question after that.
      About what happened to Ross when Joyce couldn’t explain.

      1. thejeff

        Or she just went downstairs to look herself. We saw her coming back up.

        1. thejeff

          Never mind. Misread.

  5. Yumi

    Huh, kinda thought they’d go further than the porch. Though I notice Walky isn’t in the strip; I imagine he’s just continuing to high tail it out of there.

    1. King Daniel

      Either that, or he’s writing a very long negative review for this Airbnb.

      1. Yumi

        Walky ran his ass all tbe way tk the library to get on a computer and start writing it.

        1. Freemage

          Walky knows where the library is?

        2. Diane

          Why yes! (Note the name on the building)

          https://www.dumbingofage.com/2019/comic/book-9-comic/04-vote-for-robin/whoareyou/

        3. clif

          Good call.

    2. Regalli

      Honestly, not too too surprising, all told. Ethan’s gotta be super-worried about Amber, Sarah and Dorothy about Joyce, and Dina knew Becky was on her way. And if they have called 911 by now (since the immediate threat’s resolved,) they’ll probably be needed there for statements. (Not that Walky’s not worried about them either, I’m sure. Wouldn’t be surprised if we see him next strip.)

      1. Needfuldoer

        Yeah, I have a feeling Walky’s just inside the door, helping Amazi-ber keep an eye on the goons.

    3. Dr T

      Walky stopped leaving after Joyce pointed out that Becky was on her way. That’s how AG was able to ask him in the next strip what happened to the mustache guy.

      1. Yumi

        That’s fair, but I’m going to keep imagining him angrily typing on a library computer until he shows back up in-comic.

        1. NelC

          Oh, that’s confusing. Your avatars, that is. I thought you were talking to yourself for a moment.

        2. Jamie

          Unfortunate side effect of the random avatar thing.

        3. Dr. T

          It’s made worse by the fact that I can’t ever remember which email I used when I post, so you will sometimes see two different Dr. T’s.

    4. Bicycle Bill

      Maybe someone did finally call 911 and they were told by the 911 dispatcher to wait there until the officers/paramedics arrived?

  6. Mra

    Carol and the Church probably thought of Blaine as a literal godsend when he covered the remainder of the bail. I wonder how they will react when they learn that they got Ross out only to be murdered by the one they hd relied on.

    1. Reltzik

      Obviously it’s Becky’s fault.

      1. bryy

        Oh, yeah, this is far from over. Plus, we don’t know the whereabouts of Blaine.

        1. King Daniel

          Laſt we ſaw him, he was duct-taped on the floor with Amazi-Girl’s cape over his head (and alſo duct-taped to his head), and Sarah was wondering if he was even still breathing.

        2. SuperZero

          Amazi-Girl has him held with her cape taped over his head.

      2. jmsr7

        Damn straight. The only thing fundangelicals are better at than avoiding personal responsibility is blaming others for their own faults.

    2. G97

      “Now everyone, sometimes people seem like they were a gift from god only to turn into false prophets. It’s easy to blame or scorn them but that’s when you have to support the false prophets the most because the alternative was a female president who wouldn’t have immediately banned people from scary foreign places. So cheer up while we look through the necronomicon to resurrect Ross to have him kidnap Becky again”
      -church group probably on day one of when this news breaks

      1. BBCC

        Hey, they can excuse kidnapping a teenager at gun point but they draw the LINE at necromancy and other witchcraft!

        1. Bicycle Bill

          But Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead (John 11:1-44), as well as the son of the widow of Naim (Luke 7:11-17) and the daughter of Jairus (Mark 5:21-43).  So as long as they can convince themselves they are following the teaching of Christ (and trust me, they could!) they would be OK with doing it by whatever means were necessary.

        2. BBCC

          Jesus is the son of god, he’s allowed. Pretty sure them trying is blasphemy or something.

        3. He Who Abides

          In their eyes, it’s only blasphemous if it’s not them doing it.

        4. Needfuldoer

          That’s right. They’re doing it FoR tHe RiGhT rEaSoNs!

      2. Daniel M Ball

        If you’re that wrapped up in partisan politics you DESERVE what you get. the moment electoral politics gets to the point of being as extreme as sports-fandom or religious fundamentalism, it’s time to stop.

        1. Mra

          We past that stage LONG ago

  7. Chris Phoenix

    Yeah, a half-asleep kid and an emotionally traumatized kid, unsupported by their friends in that house… did anyone count the bros this time? Who wants to bet on whether Becky runs in to find Joyce held at knife-point?

    1. King Daniel

      I ſuppoſe I’ll take that bet; how many internets are we talking here?

      1. Opus the Poet

        Something has happened to your “s” key Daniel. On my computer your post looks like “I luppole I’ll take that bet”

        1. a/snow/mous/e

          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_s

        2. Sam

          It looks too much like an f and I keep finding Daniel’s comments hard to read because of it.

    2. NinjaNick

      Becky’s going to need a bat in case the psychos are alert.

      1. Yumi

        Luckily Sarah still has one.

    3. Foxhack

      Amazi-Girl is there. So fat chance of that happening.

    4. deathjavu

      Why would you take bets when patrons can just read tomorrow’s comic? Seems like a good way to lose money.

  8. Stephen Bierce

    Panels 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 as the backside teaser for the book version? I don’t know.

  9. xmd

    This feels like it’s going to be a “we lose Becky forever because she inherits her house back in La Porte, Indiana which is like, three and a half hours away” storyline.

    1. Yumi

      Yeah, Becky’s just begging to go back to La Porte, Indiana and to that house in particular.

      1. King Daniel

        #ſarcaſm

      2. Meagan

        She can sell the house and not have to go into debt to go to college…including moral debt of being Robin’s campaign manager. Or even better, rent it out for now and then sell it later when she’s ready to settle down somewhere else. Now imagining Becky the landlady.

        1. Human Bean

          Aw yes, I do want to see that.

    2. Doctor_Who

      Maybe she could sell it, and afford college and an apartment without needing to work for Robin?

      1. BBCC

        ^ THAT would be nice.

    3. Regalli

      Nah, if it hasn’t foreclosed yet she’s definitely selling it. Nothing there but ghosts, remember?

      1. Diane

        And, you know, a good amount of neighbors who think she’s going to hell because she likes chicks. Not all neighbors, not everyone’s in their cult, but enough.

      2. BBCC

        At least if she sells it she can get any legal documents and other personal items she wants back.

    4. Marsh Maryrose

      Bearing in mind Willis’s own real-life history — what are the odds Ross’s will gives his house to his church?

      1. Laladoria

        Better than the odds of him leaving it to Becky. She’s probably not even in his will anymore.

        1. Dr. T

          I seriously doubt that Ross even has a will. That requires a little foresight and thoughtfulness, which I don’t see coming from a sentient toe.

          If anyone has given their house to the church, I would say it would be Carol. If nothing else, she probably did so to use as collateral to bail Ross out. In fact, we might see that be another source of conflict in this story.

        2. Laladoria

          You’re right about it requiring foresight but he might have given it a little thought after his wife died. I also am probably still giving him too much credit.

      2. BigDogLittleCat

        Holy crap- did that happen to Willis?!
        Where has Willis shared these details of his life? I was really startled when others said that Carol is essentially his mother, that she was the driving force. Like, how do these people know this? Patreon or because they’ve been reading for 20 years?

        1. thejeff

          Been reading for years, mostly.
          Some stuff’s come out on Twitter over time as well. Occasional comments here.

        2. Marsh Maryrose

          He’s shared a lot of his personal life, especially as it relates to DoA, first on Tumblr back when that was a thing, and now on Twitter. (Warning: 90% of his twitter is transformers and/or his toy collection, 3% is cute things his kids do.)

          One of the things he shared was that his mom gave his childhood house to her church. Not in her will, she literally donated her house to the church. The church eventually went bankrupt, the house apparently went to creditors.

        3. BigDogLittleCat

          Thanks and yikes! Fundagelical christianity brings out the worst in people.

          I’m glad Willis found a life that he doesn’t need her house. Instead he has personal satisfaction and a bazillion people who care about him.

          Thanks again.

  10. Johan

    Uhmm no one has called the cops yet?

    1. Regalli

      The sun was rising in the last strip, which was only a couple minutes after AG cleared the house. Sun’s still rising here. Even if Dorothy or Walky took the cellphone and called while AG went down to check, I’m not sure they’d have arrived yet.

    2. DailyBrad

      We don’t necessarily know they didn’t, but I imagine they will when it’s time to go. They did know Becky was on her way.

    3. Delicious Taffy

      Asking about it every single day makes it more likely to happen.

      1. King Daniel

        Like what happened to Mike, right??

        1. Yumi

          Mike’s due to show up with the police any second now.

        2. King Daniel

          Not judging from the condition he was in in the poſt-fall flaſhback, he’s not.

        3. Yumi

          That was before enough questions were asked.

        4. clif

          True.

    4. BBCC

      I’m guessing they have or will shortly, they just haven’t mentioned it yet. They’d probably want to tell her about her dad probably being dying in the basement (and whether or not they’ve called an ambulance) first.

    5. C.T Phipps

      No one is calling the cops. No one is EVER calling the cops. Sarah said not to.

  11. Kravis

    It’s no bad news, Becky!

    It’s only dad news!

    Ok, I’ll show myself out…

    1. King Daniel

      it’s bad dad news

      1. Koms

        Hopefully not dead dad news.

      2. Kravis

        It’s Toedead news!

    2. SuperZero

      In Becky’s case, that’s a subset of bad news.

  12. William Leonard Reese Jr.

    So I have to imagine that Amazi-Girl and Walky are still in the house together, likely watching over the goons and Blaine, tying them up and what not, while Joyce is in the basement with Ross.

    I pity pretty much everyone involved here. Well of the innocents I mean. They’re going to all need therapy or counseling of some kind after witnessing a murder as well as the complicated feelings to knowing that one of the kidnappers ending up holding off the Murderer long enough for them to more or less escape in the first place.

  13. Dracke

    have they called an ambulance or the police already?

    1. Delicious Taffy

      Have you?

      1. Yumi

        Several times. They’ve blocked my number and I’m due in court.

        1. clif

          But did you ask them about Mike while you were at it?

  14. Derek

    Why would Becky come without the calvary? That seems like really bad judgement on her part

    1. King Daniel

      Hey, in her defenſe, it’s rather difficult to lug around Calvary without the aid of heavy machinery.

      Now, as for cavalry…

      1. Marsh Maryrose

        Your majesty, stop trying to make long s happen. It’s not going to happen.

        1. Yumi

          You say that like I haven’t been quietly hissing to myself each time it’s been used tonight.

        2. King Daniel

          Apologies, brain do weird things when it’s been up for a day and a half w/o basically sleep (semester finals week on top of everything else going on – including, possibly, having to move by June – just now getting a chance to doze off for real).

        3. Jamie

          This is a less sinister reason than I’d hoped was motivating that. 😛

        4. Miri

          Sleep well and I hope everything seems a bit more manageable in the morning (because sometimes sleep makes a difference even if nothing else has changed)!

    2. Marsh Maryrose

      Becky wants people to not get hurt. She went with Ross the last time because it was the only way she could de-escalate the situation and make sure that no one got hurt.

      She thinks her dad is going to try to church the gay out of her. She has no way to know that she was just a pawn in the scheme of someone she doesn’t even know exists.

      So of course she’s not going to call in the cavalry, because that’s how people get hurt and she doesn’t want that.

    3. Bagge

      She had all those guards but amazi-girl beat them up

  15. Juanoku

    Their inexistent rivalry grows by the day

  16. woobie

    If Becky can tell there is bad news but can’t see Joyce, she would likely start freaking that something happened to her. Worrying about Dads is less likely; they are supposed to be indestructible.

  17. BBCC

    Oh, sweetie. That wacky shield is gonna break in a big way at some point today I’m guessing.

    1. abysswatcher1993

      Comedy isn’t a reliable source of coping in a healthy way. It is just to deal with pain, like aspirins.

  18. abysswatcher1993

    Oh Becky, comedy isn’t going to protect your heart.

    1. Bagge

      It has so far

  19. Rikunda

    We still don’t know about Mike by the way.

    1. clif

      Sure we do. He’s in the hospital being guarded by some nice Korien gentlemen.

      1. clif

        Koreans as well.

        1. Needfuldoer

          There’s a nice Corian countertop, too.

  20. Bagge

    Becky gets the truth straight, Dorothy gets to be the responsible one. Everyone wins*.

    *)Except the ones who are dead

    1. DonDueed

      But it’s no use crying over every mistake.

      1. Diane

        Now I want cake…

        1. TemperaryObsessor

          Know that science is fun, glad their are no shot guns on the people who are still alive.

  21. Beef

    oh man this is gonna suck

  22. Felian

    Becky stop antagonizing Dorothy, dammit

    1. Bagge

      You know, right now I don’t begrudge her any coping mechanism, no matter how petty

      1. Diane

        That’s basically how I felt. I initially was “For Real Becky?!” then thought about all that’s happened, and what’s about to happen and decided, ya know, naw, you can have this.

    2. Deanatay

      Sarah: Yeah, Dorothy, stop being so mean to Becky.

      Dorothy: But… I… we don’… she… RRRGH! *storms off*

      Becky: Dang, that girl’s got some anger issues.

  23. Keulen

    I still don’t get why Becky keeps pushing this idea that her and Dorothy don’t get along. It makes no sense, they clearly do get along just fine.

    1. Willo

      It’s more of a joke to her I think, because Joyce adores Dorothy it was a jealousy/nemesis issue. She may think she’s a perfectly nice person, but she’s still competition for Joyce’s attention.

    2. Laladoria

      Jealousy over Joyce. At least that’s where it started. Hard to tell if that’s still it, or if she just thinks it’s funny now.

    3. Zee

      Is a joke

  24. DarkoNeko

    She just can’t help it lol. Poor Dotty

  25. Needfuldoer

    Obviously there’s a physical explanation for everyone but Becky being in shadow (she’s the only one facing east soon after first light), but I can’t help but find it symbolic as well.

    Becky hasn’t really seen how the situation’s going to affect her yet.

  26. Sombrero

    This is getting increasingly epilogue-y. Is Willis going to end DoA and start another strip? More probably, he will reboot DoA after Book 10. But, which way will he go?

    The conventional way: with Blaine and Ross out, other parents will take the role of main villains (Carol & Linda very probably).

    The Star Wars way: somehow the Head Alien, Monkey Master and scifi hijinks will appear and please Walkyverse fans.

    The Shortpacked! way: Rose and the new Slipshine character leave college and go to work somewhere with Mike. The rest of the cast reappear gradually later. The strip writes itself from the daily news, because no fiction can be wackier than current reality.

    1. Someone

      The comic buffer is still growing(Now going to August) so I don’t think it’s that, unless THAT’S the length of the epilogue…

    2. Needfuldoer

      This chapter is a “season finale”. We’re seeing some of the major conflict from the first 10 years wrap up, and we might see a time skip, but there’s still plenty we haven’t really dug into yet.

      Ruth and Billie still need to recover.
      Amber and Stacy still have legal matters to deal with.
      Most notably, there will be repercussions back in La Porte as the Browns deal with the fallout of this whole affair. Hank, Joyce, and Carol will have conflict to sort out. Becky is likely to be the executrix of her father’s estate and will have to deal with that if he dies in this arc.
      Blaine has the law and Gramps to answer to.
      Is Fuckface okay?

      1. Masumi

        And Joyce doesn’t know she has a sister, yet!

      2. Regalli

        In plot points going forward after this season finale and its fallout, we still have:

        – Amber and Sal joining roller derby (if Willis has been sitting on models for as long as they implied when it happened, there are Plans, and at least Sal’s not going to leave even if Amber’s in some way sidelined)
        – Walky’s grades, Sal’s grades, and the related drama of Linda Walkerton’s expectations for the twins (or lack thereof) and emotional/financial abuse.
        – Ruth and ‘Sir’, who was DEFINITELY not set up to only appear in the fallout of Ruth’s depression being revealed.
        – The fallout of Joyce and Sarah’s manipulation of Jacob to get back at Raidah.
        – Malaya’s continuing gender questioning and, also on the Malaya axis, Mary’s one-sided rivalry with Malaya.
        – The ongoing arc of Dorothy’s overfocus on studying and academics as a way to her goals at the expense of leisure time (which appears to be relaxed, but I’d be surprised if she’s at equilibrium now,) and her eventual transfer to Yale, successful or not.
        – Stacy and Richard (Joe’s dad) were ‘getting pretty serious’ and he’s helping out with their legal fees. Joe is damn certain Richard doesn’t know how to do monogamy and that insistence that Stacy’s different, THIS time will work out screams of magical thinking Joe’s probably seen before to me. (Once again, I give that one til Thanksgiving at latest to get Incredibly Awkward.)
        – Joe’s continuing arc of Learning To Respect Women, But Also Himself. He’s backslid, but I don’t think that’s gonna last forever. Especially since he’s going to be damn concerned about Joyce once he finds out.
        – Robin DeSanto’s election – even if Becky gets to resign after becoming executor of Ross’s estate (and that shit takes MONTHS to resolve, my grandfather passed away at the beginning of January and we still haven’t closed his estates, and we’d already dealt with his house,) her BEING involved means that if Robin somehow wins, there will be angst.
        – Dina, Becky, and developing intimacy when one of you is gray-ace, and the other’s still sorting through what parts of your faith need discarding and what parts you take value in. A much softer arc, but hey, we needed some fluff here.
        – Ethan and Danny (and Mike, if he survives) and the love triangle with a side of Concern For Amber.

        So yeah, there’s a fair bit for season two just focusing on established plot threads.

        1. BBCC

          On that note about the grades – Mama Walkerton’s coming to visit tomorrow, comic time.

          Won’t that be nice? 🙂

        2. Needfuldoer

          I can hear the “SALLY HOW COULD YOU LET YOUR BROTHER GET KIDNAPPED?!” already…

        3. BBCC

          My eye is twitching in anticipation.

        4. Sombrero

          I would love her to be also mad at Dean McHenry for letting Walky be kidnapped in HIS campus. She could threaten to re-marry him.

        5. BBCC

          TBF, *I’d* be cowed by that threat.

    3. Opus the Poet

      The New Comic is Dumbing of Age, After Mid-terms

  27. ValdVin

    Becky’s a charm here. Going into the old, practised rhythms of conversation can be quite the balm when times are troubled.

  28. PiotrW

    Okay, what about Blaine? Did he get captured by or did he escape?

    1. Needfuldoer

      He’s hog-tied and has Amazi-Girl’s cape taped over his head, on top of all his other injuries. If only from oxygen deprivation, he’s not going anywhere.

  29. Alaric

    “Why do you hate her?”
    “She refuses to admit that we’re enemies!”

  30. Ryek Hvek

    Bikkerin is like Bufferin, but specifically formulated to work against headaches that follow arguments with friends.

  31. Alan in DC

    Does that house/retaining wall/steps look familiar to anyone? DW is usually pretty accurate with his use of local visuals, but I’m stuck.

    1. Marsh Maryrose

      Maybe he didn’t want to make the location of the murder house too obvious.

      Coma stairs, no problem, that was a public place. As is, kinda, Robin’s/Becky’s place.

      But actual people are probably living at the murder house, so maybe he made it a bit more generic.

    2. Needfuldoer

      It looks like a generic craftsman-style house to me. Millions of them went up after WWII. You could even mail-order one through Sears in the ’30s!

      1. Opus the Poet

        That’s why you’re supposed to capitalize Craftsman, it’s a Brand Name.

  32. JessWitt

    I’m hoping ToeDad’s comatose so he can wake up one day and realize the error of his fundie ways. But that’s very likely a pipe dream at this point.

  33. Alan in DC

    Ross’s head injury causes him to lose 75% of his brain power.

    The current Administration hears about this and puts him in charge of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission

    1. BigDogLittleCat

      I just spit my lunch all over my screen. Heehee!

  34. Heather

    “Just give it to me straight, Dot. Y’know the opposite of me.”

  35. Rabisch

    I love how everyone is sad for Becky. She has good friends.

  36. Deanatay

    Panel 7 Dina expressionless as usual, but her hat looks VERY concerned.

    1. Needfuldoer

      Dina’s hat should copy her expressions, like the little duck head on Wade’s life preserver on Garfield and Friends.

  37. Wakeangel2001

    “your dad was secretly bailed out of prison by a mafioso who duped him into kidnapping a bunch of college students, then he was killed with a hammer by that mafioso trying to defend us.” The good news is this proves that he wasn’t BAD, just insane and stupid…so…there’s that…

    1. Reltzik

      Ross wasn’t trying to defend the kids. Blaine ballpeened Ross out of fury because Ross let Amber go in the belief that she was AG, and using AG to bring in Becky was their plan. The only person Ross was trying to defend was himself.

  38. Roborat

    I trust Amazi-Girl will be smart enough to hide the costume and become Amber again before the police finally show up?

  39. valis_kr3

    Did anyone call a cop? A doctor?

    1. C.T Phipps

      Again, I think the fact no one is calling the police is a storybreaker for a lot of people.

      Even with Sarah’s justification.

  40. C.T Phipps

    Fun fact: I’m assuming Blaine’s bail money for Toedad will exceed the entirety of Amber’s college fund.

    Which will be forfeit now.

    1. clif

      The bail is to insure you show up for your court date, but I’m reasonably sure being dead obliviates that requirement, so the bail should be returned. Not a lawyer and don’t play one on TV but would be really surprised if bail was forfeit. The cost of Blaine’s lawyers will exceed the bail though.

      1. C.T Phipps

        Just thinking Amber no longer having money for college seems like a reasonable twist.

  41. TlalocW

    I shouldn’t be so emotionally invested – I guess that’s a testament to Willis’ storytelling and art – but I hope there’s further fall-out coming for both Joyce’s church and her mom. But I’m bitter lie that.

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