Booster is a psychology major who has a tendency to armchair therapist their friends. This is 100% beneficial for Walky since they wouldn’t see a professional to begin with
I got my Dina, and she arrived with her hoodie down! I am taking that to mean I am a special boy and going to invest in Bitcoin and play the lottery today.
I think they all arrive with the hood down. You have to squeeze her head to get it in there without pulling on the hood. (which would probably tear since there’s no give in it)
Some day he’ll fail his way upward to the presidency, many years from now.
Having no earthly idea how he managed it, he reaches out to the most competent person he knows: Dorothy Keener-Brown is his running mate.
D.K.B. is the brains in the White House at last, President Walky (hey, Eisenhower was called “Ike”) is just voluntarily parroting her plans and getting laid like JFK. Femme fatale honeytrap spies are sent to seduce him, and all fail because he isn’t the one making the decisions. He just has to be exactly enough of a smartass (being a smartass is his specialty!) to poke holes in other people’s arguments in a debate, and then present his VP’s rebuttals (heh, reBUTTals) at a later time.
It gets out that the POTUS and VP once banged. This has no effect because D.K.B. is married to a woman. Femme fatale spies attempting to honeytrap D.K.B. also fail because Joyce Brown-Keener-Rosenthal is the only woman she is actually attracted to.
They try seducing Joeseph Rosenthal-Brown for state secrets. They fail because the queue to his bedroom is too long.
They try seducing Joyce Brown-Keener-Rosenthal at last. She accidentally seduces them. Joyce pulls, actually.
America is safe, thanks to the power of Polycule (and President Walky the fourth wheel).
Who cares if DYW writes this – *reality* needs to do it. Best option is to get Seanan McGuire on the job since she appears to have the contract for reality.
Gigafreak
Failing that, I think it might almost fit in as an Oglaf story.
Lol I skipped a word and read that Joe’s bedroom is too long. Like he’s sitting at his desk or bed and it’s simply too far away from the door and the reporters do not want to walk that far
sadly, I don’t think Booster would take any hints on shutting up, nor do I think Walky has the authority or energy to throw them out. Especially after overdosing on fast food.
He’s in a bit of a catch-22 because Booster is still in the room with him and for sure will not leave him alone. Bad choices all around for Walky. Might as well get up and face the music.
Nope! Pretty sure just Asher, Sal, and Dina. Jouce and Dorothy don’t even understand How bad it is or else Dorothy would be Dorothying it all up.
SunflowerBanjo
She did try to! Dina made it clear that everything had already been handled and Dorothy had her, “Then what am I supposed to do? ?” moment. So she is aware that the extent of the injuries Amber sustained are quite severe.
Gotta appreciate that this is Indiana, not Australia. An adult calling a fellow adult “Champ” in the downunderverse is fight talk (Because we’re a nation of idiots)
When Ethan talked to them about being a bad friend, they responded in a way that still makes me wonder if Booster really understands what friendship is. And not in a MLP “learning what friendship is”, but in a genuinely incapable of making proper connections outside of a sociopathatic need to meddle in affairs and analyze people’s issues for their own amusement.
I don’t know if Booster likes Walky, but more than half Walky’s friends don’t seem to like Walky, so who knows.
That said, considering that Bosster told Ethan that friends are therapists that deflect with jokes, and that’s basically Walky’s whole deal, it seems like they do consider him a friend.
… the because the internet just LOVES to take a word and run with it, huh 9-9
zee
Pmo especially bc psycho/sociopathy is not a thing! They’re effectively only useful for discussing movies n shit, they’re not real!!! There’s ASPD, which is demonized enough already and booster sure as shit doesn’t have it. Ppl just see an autistic that doesn’t present like Dina or Joyce and go “oh yeah this is evil. They have the Evil Person Disease™”
heck while we’re at it it really must be said — any notion of there being some mental disorder(s) responsible for popular conceptions of “innate criminality” or some shit is literally a product of decades of copoganda
sickolesbian
and when you try to explain this people just ignore you and continue to talk about the mythical evil psycho sociopath
very frustrating to see this from other neurodivergent people, like, im BPD! people who are ASPD are my siblings in personality disorderhood, i wont just abandon them because of the horrific amount of stigmatization!
also sidenote i believe we should move away from the model of psychology that creates these highly stigmatized labels for traumatized behavior, instead looking for concepts that aren’t inherently stigmatizing.
that said im still using it as a framework to understand myself currently
omg thank you so so so so so so so much for this comment. calling it the “evil person’s disease” is such an accurate put down for this mentality. all of the Internets to you, fellow netizen.
Pocky
And I love it when people just let bad writing of a on the spectrum character get away with bad behavior, making us look like this is always normal. but go off I guess.
I swear; it s either the trope of complete selfish behavior, or being some kind of cartoon childlike person. And when we complain about it, we’re just talked over by people assuming the worst.
Nymph
Saying that this is a normal way for neurodivergence to appear (especially in someone undiagnosed and unaware) is literally just a fact? No one, literally NO ONE said Booster should get away with “bad behavior” (here defined by you, as a subjective term) because they might be on the spectrum.
I personally relate to Booster, because this is how I personally behaved all through university. So, sorry it’s a trope, but that doesn’t make it unrealistic. They’re analytical, lonely, and trying to connect by proving to everyone around them how intelligent and observant they are. They get a dopamine hit from the drama, but they tell themself that they’re helping friends, so it’s fine to get a kick out of it.
They’re 18/19, they’ll grow out of it, learn, and probably experience a little shock when their psych classes get to neurodivergence.
I’m sorry you personally don’t see yourself in Booster, or any of the ND characters in this comic, but others do. I do. The author presumably also does. Maybe people get defensive because “sociopath” is assuming a lot of malice from someone just struggling to connect with the people around them in a way that feels meaningful.
Pocky
I don’t think we’ve ever gotten enough of Booster’s motivation behind kicking up drama was anything other than doing it for kicks. I can understand wanting to project your own experiences on them, and wouldn’t want to take that from ya. But I’m not loving thew way they are portrayed, and how people’s gut defense is that this behavior is something inherent to neurodivergence, or some kinda phase. I REALLY doubt you (or others who see themselves in Booster) ever did anything as mean spirited. I’m there with you in having to really struggle to learn and grow through that kind of feeling though. Makin friends doesn’t come easy, and whoo boy does it sting to be questioned on competency and intentions.
Especially because a lot of the trope would usually kinda rely on Booster not gleefully enjoying the chaos making. I’m gonna go out on a limb and assume this is how Willis writes Bulmeria, or Raiah, and its just not sitting right with me. Could be a case of Willis not having the most nuanced perspective on a subject, could be that his is hyper specific and really doesn’t work for me.
Perhaps sociopath is a harsh word, but I have dealt with way too many people irl who do shit that is terrible for kicks. Most of which I would argue aren’t exactly undiagnosed as anything other than being bad people. But I wont pretend I haven’t seen some folks use their neurodivergence as a shield when they are just being a creep or being a jerk. Doubly so when its some big content creator or something, and they get caught doing some real bad stuff.
So yeah, I don’t wanna take Booster away from y’all. But I can’t say the way they are being portrayed as neurodivergent representation doesn’t rub me the wrong way.
Doopyboop
As a personality disorder, sociopathy is in fact still a form of neurodivergence. There’s a difference between saying someone is being sociopathic vs someone is being an asshole.
216 thoughts on “Not her fault”
NGPZ
awe, “champ”, how affectionate XD <3
also, yay, the 48 hour curse has been broken!
HAVA NAGILA!
Cholma
Alternatively: Have A Tequila!
Formedras
Harvey and Sheila? (Moved to West L.A., flew TWA?)
Pocky
Honestly, gettin out of that room bein stuck with Booster is probably way better for Walky’s mental right now.
Gigafreak
I kind of suspect that is exactly Booster’s plan
Elf grrl
Booster is a psychology major who has a tendency to armchair therapist their friends. This is 100% beneficial for Walky since they wouldn’t see a professional to begin with
jeffepp
So, who else got their Dina?
NGPZ
I unfortunately cannot afford one,
but very thankful it’s finally happening,
Dina gonna be among so many other toys,
in the bedrooms and cars of so many enbies, girls and boys
I am so happy… ??
Allen Alberti
know there is no way I could have known this, but I wish I had! If we can convince DYW to do a second run, hit me up, and I will spot you a Dina!
Bryy
I already got them one for XMas.
NGPZ
yes, she’s now room-mates with the very first Spit plush ever made!
(San Francisco, 1980s) <3
she gonna get to know all Bryy's dino toys after their Black Friday shift with his young cousins ^-^ :')
RassilonTDavros
Me!
Cholma
Y0! She’s adorable. I set her next to Wallace & Gromit (from FeltedFriends dot Shop in the UK)
Allen Alberti
I got my Dina, and she arrived with her hoodie down! I am taking that to mean I am a special boy and going to invest in Bitcoin and play the lottery today.
Cholma
I think they all arrive with the hood down. You have to squeeze her head to get it in there without pulling on the hood. (which would probably tear since there’s no give in it)
zee
She’s ready for pick up at my proxy shipping company, I just have to wait a lil longer now
Theluxland
Ok but now that you say it, I do have a very good Dina. Just the opposite gender.
KiaStirling
me! she arrived on monday I think
Bryy
I did!
EpochFlame
champion of getting dumped rip
Gigafreak
Some day he’ll fail his way upward to the presidency, many years from now.
Having no earthly idea how he managed it, he reaches out to the most competent person he knows: Dorothy Keener-Brown is his running mate.
D.K.B. is the brains in the White House at last, President Walky (hey, Eisenhower was called “Ike”) is just voluntarily parroting her plans and getting laid like JFK. Femme fatale honeytrap spies are sent to seduce him, and all fail because he isn’t the one making the decisions. He just has to be exactly enough of a smartass (being a smartass is his specialty!) to poke holes in other people’s arguments in a debate, and then present his VP’s rebuttals (heh, reBUTTals) at a later time.
It gets out that the POTUS and VP once banged. This has no effect because D.K.B. is married to a woman. Femme fatale spies attempting to honeytrap D.K.B. also fail because Joyce Brown-Keener-Rosenthal is the only woman she is actually attracted to.
They try seducing Joeseph Rosenthal-Brown for state secrets. They fail because the queue to his bedroom is too long.
They try seducing Joyce Brown-Keener-Rosenthal at last. She accidentally seduces them. Joyce pulls, actually.
America is safe, thanks to the power of Polycule (and President Walky the fourth wheel).
eskimolos
Suddenly I’m super looking forward to whatever might come after DoA finishes, if only because it might look something like this.
Sharizard
Willis! Ditch all your current plans and write this please.
eh, whatever
thirded
Poppakat
Oh my yes. Sorry Willis, this is the story you need to be writing.
tim Rowledge
Who cares if DYW writes this – *reality* needs to do it. Best option is to get Seanan McGuire on the job since she appears to have the contract for reality.
Gigafreak
Failing that, I think it might almost fit in as an Oglaf story.
Airyu
Lol I skipped a word and read that Joe’s bedroom is too long. Like he’s sitting at his desk or bed and it’s simply too far away from the door and the reporters do not want to walk that far
Gigafreak
Joyce has FastPass, Joe made her a card
Bryy
hey
if zach morris can do it
Dot
Walky is a better person than me, after the day he just had I’d feel perfectly within my rights to just tell everyone to fuck off for 24 hours
Yotomoe
Walky had a Nuggets related fatality.
Yotomoe
oops wrong reply.
Decidedly Orthogonal
Nuggets is never wrong!
Pocky
sadly, I don’t think Booster would take any hints on shutting up, nor do I think Walky has the authority or energy to throw them out. Especially after overdosing on fast food.
Nono
Booster would recognize the hint.
They just probably would ignore it.
apocryphascribe
He’s in a bit of a catch-22 because Booster is still in the room with him and for sure will not leave him alone. Bad choices all around for Walky. Might as well get up and face the music.
QueenofSodor
feel like walky texting this unprompted would just make amber wonder if the accident was 7 years ago and she has to let go
Alongcameaspider
Do either of them know the condition Amber is in at the moment?
Cimorene
Nope! Pretty sure just Asher, Sal, and Dina. Jouce and Dorothy don’t even understand How bad it is or else Dorothy would be Dorothying it all up.
SunflowerBanjo
She did try to! Dina made it clear that everything had already been handled and Dorothy had her, “Then what am I supposed to do? ?” moment. So she is aware that the extent of the injuries Amber sustained are quite severe.
Yotomoe
Walky had a Nuggets related fatality.
Clif
Does that mean Booster gets automatic As?
RassilonTDavros
I mean, if we’re gonna go along those lines, she might think he’s talking about Mike.
Sisyphus
I’d say Walky is entitled to a bit of a wallow, but I don’t know if his GPA can hold up to both coasting and wallowing.
Yotomoe
To be fair Walky, if you did that Amber would probably crawl her ass out of her bed and into your room.
Yotomoe
Also I also like Champ. Champ is a fun nickname.
I’M A CHAMPION.
NGPZ
gonna be the very best
like no one ever was
Sisyphus
Gotta appreciate that this is Indiana, not Australia. An adult calling a fellow adult “Champ” in the downunderverse is fight talk (Because we’re a nation of idiots)
NGPZ
a nation of idiots?
nah that’s the United States XD
Sisyphus
Can we call the United States a nation anymore?
NGPZ
… hell even calling it “united” is a stretch at this point
we’re the British Empire’s over-glorified, festering, abandoned TRASH CAN
Gigafreak
Dustbin. A British trashcan is called a dustbin.
eh, whatever
Rubbish bin. It’s a garbage can that is called a dustbin (and collected by a dustman).
Reltzik
There can be more than one nation of idiots! It’s a non-exclusive status!
Reltzik
… though I suppose we’re still going to fight each other for the title despite it not being exclusive. Because idiots.
Aura
That was my first thought as well!
Suet
That stab wound? not your fault
That Garbage Roof? not your fault
Not taking back the speedrun record? sooo your fault
Steamweed
I’m thinking Amber might appreciate it, if she believed it. Not sure about that part.
Nono
I wonder if Booster actually likes Walky. Like I want to say yes but it’s kinda hard to tell sometimes.
Pocky
When Ethan talked to them about being a bad friend, they responded in a way that still makes me wonder if Booster really understands what friendship is. And not in a MLP “learning what friendship is”, but in a genuinely incapable of making proper connections outside of a sociopathatic need to meddle in affairs and analyze people’s issues for their own amusement.
cbwroses
I don’t know if Booster likes Walky, but more than half Walky’s friends don’t seem to like Walky, so who knows.
That said, considering that Bosster told Ethan that friends are therapists that deflect with jokes, and that’s basically Walky’s whole deal, it seems like they do consider him a friend.
https://www.dumbingofage.com/2023/comic/book-13/02-turning-saints-into-the-sea/punish/
Dante
Truly, people will see an autistic character and go “is this a sociopath?”
NGPZ
“sociopath”,
… the because the internet just LOVES to take a word and run with it, huh 9-9
zee
Pmo especially bc psycho/sociopathy is not a thing! They’re effectively only useful for discussing movies n shit, they’re not real!!! There’s ASPD, which is demonized enough already and booster sure as shit doesn’t have it. Ppl just see an autistic that doesn’t present like Dina or Joyce and go “oh yeah this is evil. They have the Evil Person Disease™”
NGPZ
yup, it’s still ableism period
heck while we’re at it it really must be said — any notion of there being some mental disorder(s) responsible for popular conceptions of “innate criminality” or some shit is literally a product of decades of copoganda
sickolesbian
and when you try to explain this people just ignore you and continue to talk about the mythical evil psycho sociopath
very frustrating to see this from other neurodivergent people, like, im BPD! people who are ASPD are my siblings in personality disorderhood, i wont just abandon them because of the horrific amount of stigmatization!
also sidenote i believe we should move away from the model of psychology that creates these highly stigmatized labels for traumatized behavior, instead looking for concepts that aren’t inherently stigmatizing.
that said im still using it as a framework to understand myself currently
Tequila Mockingbird
omg thank you so so so so so so so much for this comment. calling it the “evil person’s disease” is such an accurate put down for this mentality. all of the Internets to you, fellow netizen.
Pocky
And I love it when people just let bad writing of a on the spectrum character get away with bad behavior, making us look like this is always normal. but go off I guess.
I swear; it s either the trope of complete selfish behavior, or being some kind of cartoon childlike person. And when we complain about it, we’re just talked over by people assuming the worst.
Nymph
Saying that this is a normal way for neurodivergence to appear (especially in someone undiagnosed and unaware) is literally just a fact? No one, literally NO ONE said Booster should get away with “bad behavior” (here defined by you, as a subjective term) because they might be on the spectrum.
I personally relate to Booster, because this is how I personally behaved all through university. So, sorry it’s a trope, but that doesn’t make it unrealistic. They’re analytical, lonely, and trying to connect by proving to everyone around them how intelligent and observant they are. They get a dopamine hit from the drama, but they tell themself that they’re helping friends, so it’s fine to get a kick out of it.
They’re 18/19, they’ll grow out of it, learn, and probably experience a little shock when their psych classes get to neurodivergence.
I’m sorry you personally don’t see yourself in Booster, or any of the ND characters in this comic, but others do. I do. The author presumably also does. Maybe people get defensive because “sociopath” is assuming a lot of malice from someone just struggling to connect with the people around them in a way that feels meaningful.
Pocky
I don’t think we’ve ever gotten enough of Booster’s motivation behind kicking up drama was anything other than doing it for kicks. I can understand wanting to project your own experiences on them, and wouldn’t want to take that from ya. But I’m not loving thew way they are portrayed, and how people’s gut defense is that this behavior is something inherent to neurodivergence, or some kinda phase. I REALLY doubt you (or others who see themselves in Booster) ever did anything as mean spirited. I’m there with you in having to really struggle to learn and grow through that kind of feeling though. Makin friends doesn’t come easy, and whoo boy does it sting to be questioned on competency and intentions.
Especially because a lot of the trope would usually kinda rely on Booster not gleefully enjoying the chaos making. I’m gonna go out on a limb and assume this is how Willis writes Bulmeria, or Raiah, and its just not sitting right with me. Could be a case of Willis not having the most nuanced perspective on a subject, could be that his is hyper specific and really doesn’t work for me.
Perhaps sociopath is a harsh word, but I have dealt with way too many people irl who do shit that is terrible for kicks. Most of which I would argue aren’t exactly undiagnosed as anything other than being bad people. But I wont pretend I haven’t seen some folks use their neurodivergence as a shield when they are just being a creep or being a jerk. Doubly so when its some big content creator or something, and they get caught doing some real bad stuff.
So yeah, I don’t wanna take Booster away from y’all. But I can’t say the way they are being portrayed as neurodivergent representation doesn’t rub me the wrong way.
Doopyboop
As a personality disorder, sociopathy is in fact still a form of neurodivergence. There’s a difference between saying someone is being sociopathic vs someone is being an asshole.