Streaming
Posted on June 26, 2015 by David M Willis

401 thoughts on “Streaming”

  1. Jen Aside

    Throw food at the appropriate moments?

    no wait

    [aww, date night]

    1. lejwocky

      at the late night… christian-forbidden-feature… picture … show…

      1. Rich

        Toast!

      2. MeghanTheWorldEater

        In the back row (Fudge the back row!) I wanna gooo!

        1. Yet_One_More_Idiot

          At the back row, in the dark, Ruthie’s gonna let it goooooo~ (her insecurities that is…for the duration of the movie)

          Cue lots of adorable hand-holding and footsies in the dark. ;P

        2. jpic89

          Fuck the front row!

        3. Roborat

          Hi back row!

        4. thejeff

          You fuck ’em! I’ve seen them.

      3. Shawn L.

        I’m pretty sure Frozen isn’t “Christian-forbidden”. More like hyper-controlling-parent-forbidden, given Becky’s explanation.

        1. Aisling

          Frozen has magic, so obviously it promotes satanism and demon posession. *rolls eyes*

        2. Oddball

          Of course it does, as does eating a cheese danish (and enjoying it!), praising something other than God himself, blood moons (MADE OF BLOOD), and even walking down stairs before prostrating yourself before God and saying 10 hail marys and a hymn just to round it out. Luckly, I chose something else, and now I am a happy and fulfilled heathen who hugs trees and enjoys nature.

        3. Stumplove

          You wanna danish?

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nb41ONJeMc&hl=en-GB&gl=SG

        4. pumpkincat

          Becky’s AND Joyce’s. It’s really amazing that both/either of them is as well-adjusted as they are, considering.

        5. Yvonne

          Actually, that reasoning was spot on for some Christian parents that I knew growing up.

        6. honeynutqueerios

          you knew my parents growing up?

    2. LeslieBean4Shizzle

      …. DAWWWW!!~!
      <3
      <3

      1. LeslieBean4Shizzle

        Considering the subject matter that ended up directly above it, my daw suddenly seems a bit out of place.

  2. Corvidium

    Ruth remains the best character

    1. Eric

      I can’t agree more.

    2. chris73

      The fall Ruths going to experience is gonna hurt big time

      1. Corvidium

        Hush, you

        1. chris73

          Sowwy

        2. Rich

          At least she’s going to survive this time around. Do not need another traffic fatality, thanks.

        3. Icalasari

          What if Billie is the one who dies and causes Ruth to go into a horrific downward spiral that results in her becoming a broken shell of her former self?

          …Why are all the webcomics I read going down such paths?

        4. Haven

          Yeesh, more like Bumming of Age.

        5. Tacos

          Willis has already said nobody will die in this comic.

      2. -Sentinel-

        But she’ll have NO REGRETS

        1. Leorale

          T.T

        2. Justin

          Don’t be silly. She hasn’t acted with integrity yet!

        3. you can't see me

          I see what you did there.

        4. Joseph

          She is ALL regret

        5. Gangler

          She is made of Regret and it’s stronger than you.

        6. Weyland

          She is the high prophet of regret, and your heresy shall stay your feet!

    3. Architex

      I get the feeling she suddenly had this idea when she was missing Billie. How sweet <3

    4. Cheryl

      What about got dumped guy? He seems cool.

      1. HeySo

        Lousy superhero, though.

        1. Oddball

          “I’ll stop you, EVIL doers! Just…just after…I stop remembering…this is the bank Jennie and I used to…G-go to…OH GOD!” *Curls into a ball and starting crying like a baby*

        2. AgentKeen

          That might make some criminals uncomfortable enough to just stop what they were doing.

        3. HeySo

          “Oh gods.. oh, geeze, okay. Hey, hostages, is there a doctor in the building? I mean, like, a psychiatrist or something.”

    5. Pecker Holder

      How does acting like an abusive sociopath make someone a ”best character” in a socially focused comic?

  3. Kris

    I feel like an awwwww<3 would be appropriate here.

    1. LiaHansen

      +1

      1. LeslieBean4Shizzle

        +2

        1. Arianod

          +3

        2. Dean

          +5

          (sorry, thought we were doing an arithmentic sequence)

        3. The Churro

          +8

          (in that case)

        4. saki

          +13

        5. Lieutenant Dan

          +21

        6. dmaxx

          +20! I WIN(\^~^/)

        7. Deanatay

          Goddamn Fibonacci sequences….

          +34

        8. Bill M.

          +55 (Fibonacci continues on!)

        9. LeslieBean4Shizzle

          +89

  4. Packy

    Awwwwww!

    1. LiaHansen

      +1 for teamwork

      1. LeslieBean4Shizzle

        +2

  5. Wonder Wig

    I couldn’t imagine Ruth enjoying a movie about an ice queen opening up about her feelings. Shocking.

  6. shadowcell

    “oh ruth,” purred billie, “inexplicable and flagrant abuse of power gets me so hot…”

    1. LeslieBean4Shizzle

      … next slipshine…

      1. Bagge

        … their entire relationship

      2. Leonid Islay

        I want to believe.

  7. Mr. Random

    What happens when they all start singing along with the movie?

    1. Plasma Mongoose

      YouTube parodies happen.

    2. DarkoNeko

      A lot of blood and broken femurs.

    3. Oddball

      …they all look at each other and well, on the next slipshine…Joy is kicked out of her own room…oh My!

  8. Plasma Mongoose

    Whose hands are those? Ruth/Billie or Becky/Dina?

    1. Dean

      Ruth and Billie. Check the skin tones. Neither is dark enough for Dina.

      1. Plasma Mongoose

        I suspected as much but those colours looked close enough to be Becky/Dina to fuel fans.

        1. JWLM

          Also, Becky’s skin has yellow undertones and Ruth’s has pink undertones. That’s Ruth’s arm.

          Although I do want to know where Willis has hidden her freckles.

        2. That Damn Rat

          Okay, your ever-changing avatars were something I thought I was used to, but the pantomime crocodile or whatever the hell that is, gave me pause.

        3. Plasma Mongoose

          Even I need a break from my usual girly gravatars on a rare occasion.

        4. Oddball

          I think the alligator is about to sing, LETS WATCH!

        5. Rich

          Lindsay Ellis would approve. Very fond of singing alligators, she is.

        6. Roborat

          Well ok, we will let it go (hah, managed to work that in), as long as that is a cute girl crocodile.

        7. Marika Oniki

          It’s Plasma Mongoose’s Big Lipped Alligator Moment!

        8. AgentKeen

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FX82GGq1l74

        9. Plasma Mongoose

          I’ll buy that for a dollar. ^_^

        10. Deanatay

          Ruth’s hands aren’t pink – they’re stained red from repeated femur-rippings.

      2. Rich

        Plus the background is the wall they’re standing against. You can tell the experienced couple, they’re at the back of the theater. Poor Becky’s right up front, the newb.

        1. DarkoNeko

          Speaking of which, she got just front of Amber, blocking the view XD

        2. fogel

          I expect that Becky would be very happy to make-out in the front row with everyone watching–probably like it more than being in the last row.

        3. Rich

          Takes two to tango, although Dina sure is doing better on the social anxiety front right now, isn’t she?

        4. TwinBladeWarrior

          Now I think about it sitting at the front means not having to look at everyone elses faces which is what caused the anxiety attack last time.
          Clever girl indeed

        5. fogel

          Right, it works for both Becks and Dina.

        6. fogel

          For some people ‘right now’ is how Social Anxiety works: doing fine one instant, having a good time, the next instant, ‘not so much’. Amazing how fast the tide can reverse 180°.

    2. PINtempest

      Yes

    3. Pier

      Ethan/Danny just for the fun of it. 🙂

      1. Leorale

        man don’t I wish

    4. Heatth

      Ruth and Billie. You can tell because it is close to the wall (also because they were the focus of the previous two panels)

  9. Twilightomens

    Ruth is my role model from this comic.

    1. fogel

      “You’re coming to my party or I’ll break your legs”?

  10. Dean

    This is Ruth’s way of saying that she REALLY wants everyone to enjoy watching Frozen.

    1. Doctor_Who

      It’s Frozen, of course they will enjoy it.

    2. shadowcell

      LET IT GOOOOOOO
      LET IT GOOOOOOO
      YOU DON’T HAVE FEMURS ANYMOOOOOOOORE
      LET IT GOOOOOOO
      LET IT GOOOOOOO
      SO I’LL THROW YOU OUT THE DOOOOOOOOOOR
      I DON’T CARE
      WHAT THEY’RE GOING TO SAY
      LET THE FROSH RAGE OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON
      the blood never bothered me anyway

      1. Opus the Poet

        Sorry, I already gave today’s Internet to someone else…

      2. DarkoNeko

        Here, have mine.

      3. saki

        Frosh sounds very similar to Frosch in German, which means frog. I was extremely confused for a second there.

      4. saki

        Oh and also

        DO YOU WANNA BREAK SOME FEMUUURS
        IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE THE FEMUUUUUR

        1. StClair

          tibias’re fiiiiiine…

        2. shadowcell

          SO SHE’S A BIT OF A FEMUR-BREAKER…

        3. saki

          SO SHE’S GOT A FEW FLAWS
          LIKE HER EXCESSIVE DRINKING
          HER THING WITH THAT STUDENT
          THAT’S A LITTLE OUTSIDE THE UNI’S RULES

          (I don’t do rhymes well…)

  11. Skizz

    I was really hoping that would happen. Now I hope drunk Billie reacts in a dignified, mature manner. What are my chances?

  12. Marc in MN

    Haha. “And you all may live.” Is this still a party or has it turned into a hostage situation now? 😉

    1. JessWitt

      It can be two things, three counting the secret lesbian rendezvous.

    2. Hoodiecrow

      Once Ruth is involved, everything becomes a hostage situation. If she ever marries Billie, helicopters will be circling the building, and the police will be negotiating on a loudspeaker.

      And they WILL GIVE IN TO HER DEMANDS.

  13. Doctor_Who

    I would totally be okay if this became a thing. Like whenever Ruth wants to have a date with Billie she just hijacks her residents and forces them all to hang out.

    “Everyone put down the textbooks, we’re playing Monopoly. Bible-chick, you’re the shoe.”

    “But it’s finals week, we need to study!”

    “Either you’re going to get very well acquainted with that shoe, or with mine.”

    1. StrawGirl

      I concur!

    2. Sam

      Love it, love everything about it.

    3. AgentKeen

      I’m trying to decide what argument fundies might have against Monopoly.

      1. Chris ashtear

        Promotes the worship of money over god, im guessing

        1. Leorale

          I would be extremely surprised if there isn’t a Christian version of Monopoly. That game has like an everything version of it.

        2. Jen Aside

          I found this? http://www.urantiansojourn.com/2010/01/christian-monopoly/

        3. Jen Aside

          oh yeah, forgot Bibleopoly

          regardless of its skin, it’s still a shitty game, though, and you’re better off playing Power Grid

        4. Bermuda

          Motha
          Fuckin’
          Power Grid

          is the shit

        5. Leorale

          –yep it is called Bibleopoly: the Biblical Game of Fun and Faith.

          “The object of the game is to be the first player to build a church in one of the Bible cities. In BIBLEOPOLY, you can’t win by destroying your opponents. You will only win by assisting the fellow players. Cooperation is what allows you to gain the things necessary to build your church and be a winner.”

          https://swissdiva.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/bible-opoly3.jpg

        6. David M Willis

          Whoever made a Bible-based game about how you shouldn’t destroy your opponents has never read the Old Testament book of Joshua.

        7. Leorale

          Right? Bibleopoly should include razing everything to the last fruit tree.

        8. David M Willis

          Spare a woman or child, and you lose your next turn.

        9. Leorale

          Also, you don’t go to jail, you go to Hell. FOREVER

        10. Plasma Mongoose

          So if you go to Hell, you just need to roll doubles to get out again.

        11. HeySo

          So, it’s basically God of War, then, but a board game?

        12. fogel

          War of Yahweh

        13. fogel

          They read it BUT that doesn’t make The Bible ‘intrinsically’ violent, not like some so-called ‘Holy’ books that I could name.

        14. Li

          If this is an Islamaphobic comment, you clearly haven’t actually read the Quran, and should like… stop.

        15. fogel

          Nope, it’s a sarcastic dig at the folks who rant about Islam being ‘intrinsically violent’, SUPPOSSEDLY in contrast to Christianity and Judaism. I have a cousin who made me crazy with that shif ….

        16. Leorale

          as usual Jen Aside was faster. But yeah Monopoly is a terrible game, everyone should just play Machine Of Death and solve problems while shouting a lot 🙂

        17. MeghanTheWorldEater

          I really really hate to say it but…that actually sounds like fun…

          Hmm do they have an atheist version?

        18. Li

          Actually yeah, there’s a couple of cooperative games of monopoly out there!

          Introducing: Co-Opoly

        19. alicemacher

          That is a super cool idea.

        20. Li

          Ikr? I think it sounds like a fun game. And all my monopoly games turned into wars of attrition anyway. They tend to stop being fun long before they’re over unless you play by house rules to shorten the game.

        21. Jen Aside

          You may also want to try Pandemic (stop four plagues) and Flash Point: Fire Rescue

    4. Dean

      Also works if Joyce is the iron.

    5. poppaboo2electricboogaloo

      Are Hall Monitors(I forget what Ruth’s job is, sue me) not allowed to date other students or something?

      1. John

        RAs aren’t allowed to date the students they have authority over, which in Ruth’s case means most of the ladies in the comic.

      2. JWLM

        Resident Ass. — err, I mean, Resident Assistant.

        And yes, somebody pulled the relevant bit of the IU disciplinary code out a few days ago. It bans RA/resident relationships. (FWIW, I agree — those relationships are tainted by a huge power imbalance.)

      3. Jen Aside

        If we’re going strictly by the for-real university’s rules, I didn’t see an explicit ban on it?

        [but DoA might have other ideas]

      4. tim gueguen

        “Hey, guy, did you know RAs are not allowed to sleep with students on their floor? I guess that means I’ll have to have sex on the bed.”

        -Cal Evans, RA in training, State U.

        1. fogel

          Or somebody else’s floor….:-)

        2. Chris

          Undergrads… awesome Canadian animation.

      5. Rich

        As people (including myself) have pointed out, that part of Ruth/Billie’s problems is easily fixed by just having Billie request a room reassignment so Ruth is no longer her RA. Swap with somebody up or down a floor and the issue disappears.

        Won’t happen for drama’s sake but compared to the situations Sal/Jason and Penny/Joe are in, easily corrected.

  14. poppaboo2electricboogaloo

    It’s at this point I’m reminded we don’t have a Blu-Ray of the first Land Before Time.

    My life is full of misery.

    1. JustCheetoDust

      They’re probably in the process of adding feathers remastering.

      1. poppaboo2electricboogaloo

        ….I think Ducky would look adorable regardless of said feathers.

        1. Rich

          You know, when I hear the name Ducky I think “that guy from Pretty In Pink” rather than a cartoon dinosaur. He would look odd covered in feathers – bit like that one guy in Barbarella.

  15. MM

    “Do you want to build a snowman?” has never seemed like a more suggestive question.

    1. Pier

      “Umm, my body fluids are not that many. I or we can try though.”

    2. Captain Batson

      If you think that, then we clearly haven’t been reading the same fanfictions.

      1. cynthash

        After Min Soster Burgdagskake, I think I’ll answer the snowman question with a fork. 😉

        1. LeslieBean4Shizzle

          … where is the brain bleach? I think this set of comments has scared me for life. And ruined that song for me.

  16. CommunistCanada

    This is going to end really badly for Ruth. I don’t know why, but I can’t see this ending happy for her.

    1. -Sentinel-

      You don’t know why? I know why.

      This is a David Willis comic.

      1. CommunistCanada

        I figured out why. Amber’s been staring all nght at Ruth. She’s going to see the hand grab and interepet it as sexual assault, seeing as the last time she saw Ruth and billie, they were about to fight.

        She’ll either point it out or return as amazi-Girl.

        1. chris73

          Returning as Amazi-Girl and smacking Ruth in the head (not that I condone violence against women) would be awesome!

        2. Heavensrun

          I don’t condone violence against women. I do condone violence against brutally violent bullies and assholes. That said, Ruth hasn’t really done anything that would justify such a response, at least in this situation.

          Really all she did was start feeling lonely and go to a party to find her girlfriend while putting up her typical terrifying bully front. I’m not sure what the appropriate response to that is, because the first part deserves hugs, the latter part deserves arm punchings.

        3. Someone

          Of course she has done plenty to deserve getting smacked in the head from the beginning of the strip. Mainly assault, thievery, abuses of power, and just in generally being a controlling bongo. If theres anyone I hate its people use who’s positions of power to threaten people.

        4. brasca1

          Agreed, but I fear it will be the fundamentalist hypocrite Mary who will bring Ruth down. Aside from Billie she has no friends or allies that will support her and would probably back someone as repulsive as Mary if it meant removing a resident assistant that as far as they know is an abusive threatening bully.

        5. Someone

          The weird thing is that Ruth is like, okay i am both banging one of my charges (highly against the roles) and drinking on campus (Also against the rules). Im gonna act like a bongo to the rest of my charges so that they hate me enough to turn me in if anyone finds out. Great plan there Ruth.

        6. thejeff

          Ruth is also alcoholic and nearly suicidally depressed. “Great plans” aren’t really in character. You’re right that the behavior is self-destructive, that’s the whole point.
          It’s also why she’s a sympathetic character, despite acting horribly to nearly everyone.

        7. Tacos

          Amber is sitting in front of them though. She’d have to turn around to see them.

        8. saki

          Amber seeing hand-holding as sexual assault seems like a stretch to me. A very stretchy stretch. Now if she caught them kissing, that’s another thing. I really hope neither of these two is stupid enough to kiss in this situation…

      2. Opus the Poet

        You sir or madam have won this complimentary Internet, enjoy.

  17. Mandy

    D’awwwww

  18. Budgie

    this comic will soon be engulfed in a lesbian singularity
    TWO lesbian ships in ONE comic? why, that’s completely unheard of!

    1. Makkabee

      Now I really miss “I Was Kidnapped by Lesbian Pirates from Outer Space” — not only was it filled with lesbian ships, it even had lesbian spaceships!

      1. Opus the Poet

        Yep that strip sank under the weight of all its lesbianism, not because the creator got ripped off royally (seriously, read about the shitty way Rosalarian got treated over that)

        1. Makkabee

          I remember reading her message to the readers about that. I hope the company that did all that to her goes belly-up and she gets the rights back some day.

      2. saki

        No spaceships, but lotsa lesbians and various other LGBTQ characters in Go Get A Roomie. 🙂

        1. Disloyal Subject

          Surely Lilian has dreamed at least one spaceship?

        2. saki

          That’s quite possible, but what with my memory being rather terrible and all…

    2. curiousg

      Maybe Danny and Ethan too!

    3. Spencer

      Billie and Ruth are bi. Dina isn’t sure yet.

  19. Makkabee

    Mandatory fun!

    1. Kelly

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Gv0H-vPoDc

    2. Deanatay

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zq7Eki5EZ8o

  20. -Sentinel-

    “Got-dumped guy”. Awww, Ruth remembers Danny. She really does care.

    1. fogel

      What? His real name is Whitebread.

      1. Arkham

        Wonderbread?

        1. fogel

          That too?

  21. Stephen Bierce

    *plays Foreigner’s “Cold As Ice” on the Muzak outside*

    1. fogel

      Holds up cigarette lighter.

    2. Deanatay

      Sry, I think Makkabee & company have the soundtrack covered.

    3. Deanatay

      Also – what about “Secret Lovers” by Atlantic Star?

      (Yeah I’m not consistent)

  22. Captain Batson

    So all Ruth knows about Danny is that Dotty dumped him? That sounds about right.

    1. That Damn Rat

      Really, what else is there to know?

      1. Disloyal Subject

        Amazi-girl is hitting that, rooms with Joe, kinda cute; nonthreatening nerd.

        1. Rich

          I think you could add “he resisted the temptation to have casual sex with Billie thirty seconds after they met” to that list. Seems like that might be particularly relevant for Ruth, but I doubt she knows about that incident.

          Hey, she and Danny do have something in common. They’ve both seen Billie topless. 🙂

    2. Rich

      That’s literally correct. Do an archive search on Ruth+Danny. They’ve never spoken a word to each other before this, she never knew his name, and the only time they were on panel together was in two strips on the first day in the dorms when Dorothy was asking her for advice about breaking up with her boyfriend.

  23. Sam

    No one is allowed to LEAVE, Ruth would get lonely again!

    1. Bagge

      She wants an almost audience to her and billie. And she wants to see the movie.

  24. Idon'tcarenomore

    Awwww indeed.
    Ruth want company, Ruth makes company. Love Ruth.
    Hope she can find happy and keep it.

    Becky and Dina are okay with it all.

  25. JessWitt

    Got-Dumped Guy. Ruth just made Danny’s ideal superhero alias.

    1. Hoodiecrow

      Amazi-Girl and her sidekick Got-Dumped Guy. Could work.

      1. MeghanTheWorldEater

        It’s Amazi-Girl! And Got Dumped Guy! The amazing Dannng it up wonder!

        1. Dean

          Would he wear Robin-syle briefs and pixie boots?

        2. Opus the Poet

          How else would he hold his tights up? http://thedevilspanties.com/archives/10690

        3. saki

          Holy hell how have I never thought of that! It seems like such an obvious solution but here I’ve been struggling to pull my tights up whenever no one’s looking!

        4. Opus the Poet

          Isn’t the Internet a wonderful thing?

        5. saki

          Yes. Yes it is. 😀

        6. Rich

          Old trick. Remember it the next time you hear somebody joke about superheroes wearing their underwear on the outside. Of course they do – they’re double-layering like any sensible tights-wearer does.

        7. saki

          I shall! :3

          Well it still looks ridiculous, but when your job description includes running / flying around all day night, you can’t be readjusting your clothes every two minutes.

    2. BenRG

      Will Danny ever get respect in- or out of strip? Nah… Didn’t think so?

  26. Tacos

    Ah ha, so Ruth showing up wasn’t really about finding people to bust. It was about spending some time with Billie. Watching Frozen is just a bonus.

  27. LiaHansen

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nn0fsbOTqx4

  28. AnvilPro

    I hope the next year of comics is just the characters reacting to every scene and joke of the movie

  29. RJ

    I am going to be chuckling about “Got-Dumped Guy” for days.

  30. Hoax

    KNEW IT
    ABSOLUTELY KNEW IT
    CAAAAALLED IT
    ᵗʰᵒᵘᵍʰ ᴵ ᵈᶦᵈᶰ’ᵗ ˢᵃʸ ᵃᶰʸᵗʰᶦᶰᵍ ʰᵉʳᵉ ᵇᵘᵗ ᴵ ˢᵗᶦᶫᶫ
    CAAAALLED IT

  31. LouisvilleRobin

    Blushing happy Dina makes me happy.
    Also yay for Billie and Ruth.

    1. hythrain

      Is it fair to say she’s blushing? Doesn’t Willis always put some colour under almost everyone’s eyes (if not everyone)?

  32. Carms

    Is she really aggressively trying to make it a normal thing for her to hang out in the company of Billie? she might be. that’s great. ohman Ruth, your tactics…. are something else.

  33. arjay2813

    anyone else imagine willis finishing this, look at the last panel and then do this? http://k37.kn3.net/taringa/9/9/7/6/6/3/8/pedrocoro1/D05.jpg?538

    1. arjay2813

      i mean 2nd from the last

  34. Marc

    Becky and Dina being cute in public: cute!

    Ruth and Billie being cute on the sneak tip: farking adorable!

    1. That Damn Rat

      Strictly speaking as they’re in a residential dorm, they aren’t in public.

      1. John

        There’s like twenty people in that dorm room. I think that counts as “public”.

        1. HeySo

          Oh wow, you see those extra 10 or so people also?
          Maybe I’m NOT as crazy as I thought!

        2. Pope William T Wodium

          Ten is *like* twenty.

        3. HeySo

          Keep that in mind when I eat an extra ten of your cookies~

    2. Halloween Jack

      Decky ship is best ship.

  35. Ashley

    OMG Ruth MISSED Billie!
    My heart, it melts.

  36. Regalli

    … Ruth, you are a ridiculous human being and I love you.

  37. Keroshino

    Welp, I am now 100% on board with the Becky x Dina shipping!

  38. A Scientist

    Oh crap, what if, in my effort to laugh at *all* the appropriate moments, I laugh also at an inappropriate moment?

    Also, what is the policy on singing along?

    1. vlademir1

      Well, if this were a Monty Python movie I’d expect everyone to quote every line 1/3 second ahead of the cast all through the movie, sing along and laugh uproariously the entire time. I expect Disney movies require a similar mentality of audience investment and participation.

    2. Opus the Poet

      Would you tell these guys not to sing? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWnGwj9s-Fk

  39. Kimbo G Pataki

    She remembers her residents’ names at least. She’s a better RA than I was.

    1. Nono

      Remember how she started out calling Billie by her last name? That swiftly dropped.

      My guess is because it would mean Willis would have to give last names for every female resident Ruth had to interact with.

  40. Shanunu

    But in real actual buttpounding college, could an RA police a party like this? Would they be allowed to?

    1. Kelly

      “buttpounding”?

      1. Bagge

        I’ve been partying all wrong ( actually my parties usually involve board games)

      2. HeySo

        Lets not get ahead of ourselves, by getting behind ourselves.

  41. man beab

    I love Ruth so much. She’s probably the most self-aware of the whole bunch.

  42. Totz_the_Plaid

    Until I read the alt-text, I thought it was Becky’s hand moving toward Dina’s, not Ruth’s toward Billie’s. I suppose that’s what happens when you have two pairs of white/Asian girls matched up in the same scene…

    That said, Ruth’s expressions in the final couple panels are fantastic.

  43. Romanticide

    Ruth is amazing when she is aiming for hard-ass but nice 😀

  44. Lone Wolf

    Clever girl…

  45. neeks

    “WE ARE GOING TO HAVE FUN OR SO HELP ME I WILL TURN THIS DORM PARTY AROUND!@”

  46. feli

    Smooth Ruth. That kinda rhymes.

  47. Opus the Poet

    Loving the Dina-Becky interactions. I won’t go as far as to proclaim OTP, but they will do for the moment.

    1. MeghanTheWorldEater

      But but…look how adorable they are!

      I’ll proclaim otp! #>//<

      1. vlademir1

        Nah. OTP is Willis/butts. Just behind that is Joe/girls and Mike/assholery.

        1. MeghanTheWorldEater

          …did you just deny a fangirl her otp..?

          -gives Amber’s deathglare-

          You shall know the fury of a thousand suns!

          -gets really grumpy and obnoxious-

        2. vlademir1

          Nah, I just made light of the entire silly concept of OTP via a silly joke.

        3. MeghanTheWorldEater

          Well then I present to you a poorly made unsourced quickly cobbled together argumant in favor of my otp.
          They’re so friggin adorable and I just -squeees-
          (Am I fangirling like a pro or what?)

        4. John

          Citations are required for this ship.

        5. nothri

          Meghan….eater of worlds or not, that’s Rena your going up against. Don’t try to fuck with Oyoshiro-sama’s number one fan girl. It won’t end well. And then it won’t end well again. And again. And again….

        6. Kamino Neko

          The only timelines that go well are the ones where she’s confronted when she goes mad. So…yeah, not fucking with her makes things worse.

        7. Disloyal Subject

          Isn’t “grumpy and obnoxious” the default setting for most World Eaters?

        8. MeghanTheWorldEater

          No that’s hungry and obnoxious. There’s a subtle difference :p

        9. Spencer

          I dunno man, Raksha was pretty cool.

          *If you get this you are gigantic nerd and I love you*

        10. Rich

          So are all three of you talking about different world eaters at this point?

  48. but I'm a cheerleader

    Please tell me that this was inspired by the movie But I’m a Cheerleader

  49. ozaline

    Whosoever posses this laptop, if she be worthy shall have the power of Frozen.

  50. Steven

    I am so freaking conflicted!!

    On the one hand, I am a big fan of telling people who use threats, to shove it where the sun don’t shine.

    On the other Frozen is the best and Sarah just dissed it.

    1. Hoodiecrow

      Reality is a poor storyteller, and when characters like that appear in reality’s stories it won’t end well.

      Willis is a good storyteller, so I’ll root for Ruth in the confidence that I won’t really regret doing so later on. It might end badly or well, but I don’t think it will end with a sickening feeling.

      1. Rheios

        I find reality to be a fairly amusing, or at least interesting, storyteller at the very least. Maybe not all the time but when you’re writing billions of interconnecting stories some of them are going to have to suck just by statistics.

    2. Deanatay

      Sarah didn’t actually diss Frozen in particular, she dissed all Disney movies in general. There was no hatred directed at Frozen itself.

  51. derick

    I’m actually getting a bit of a creeper vibe from Ruth right now. It seems like she’s being a bit controlling and possessive.

    1. Hoodiecrow

      She’s been that from day one. And also neglectful, dishonest, abusive, and a lot of damning qualities. And very occasionally, we see that she is so caring that she might hurt herself if she can’t keep it in check.

      She’s a terrible person and a wonderful character.

      1. Bagge

        Wonderful summary

      2. StClair

        yes, well said.

    2. LiaHansen

      I don’t think she’s being controlling of Billie though- everyone else, yeah, but Billie’s been wanting to spend more time with her in public

  52. Spazman

    Ruth: “…..and I swear to Cheese, if any of you start talking or a cell phone goes of I’m going to rip your skull out of your head and beat you to death with it.”

    Dina: “That is not physically posible.”

    Ruth: “Hypotheses need to be repeatedly tested to determine their veracity. Are you our first volunteer?” *crackles knuckles*

    1. you can't see me

      Ruth wouldn’t say I swear to cheese.

      1. fogel

        Everyone should say I Swear to Cheese. And wiigii. And Quelle Fromage.

    2. TwinBladeWarrior

      Referencing

      either way I don’t think anyone could be that cruel to Dina

      1. TwinBladeWarrior

        …i hate html tagging sometimes. lets try again

        This clip from Red vs Blue or general skull murder?

  53. DarkoNeko

    Ruth’s face in the 2nd to last panel is kinda heart breaking.

  54. Bagge

    Adorable Becky and Dina are adorable

    Got-dumped-guy stares at his phone and wants to leave. I think he and Amber are communicating behind our back

    Like someone said yesterday, Ruth actually did a great job preventing a possibly escalated drunk situation. Now ask she has to do is to” contain” the source of the problem

    1. BenRG

      Prediction/Theory: Amber and Danny may both plead bathroom break and slip out. Ruth assumes that it is for ‘personal activities’ but it is actually for superhero business!

  55. epershannd

    collective ‘awwwwww’

  56. dudeface

    hypersonic squee.

  57. The Thing

    Back-of-the-room snogging is a go, I repeat, back-of-the-room snogging is a go.

    I need a go/no-go on sneaky groping.

    1. overdosed

      a sneaky groping is inbound i need a go/no-go on a near future let it go pun

      1. fogel

        Inbound hot …

  58. NinjaNick

    Squee!

  59. Adj

    I was having a bad day. Then I read this. And now all the AWWWWW! has turned things around nicely.

  60. BenRG

    Wow! Ruth must really like Frozen! Either that or she wants to make out with Billie on a movie date and needs to be sure no-one passes them mid-clinch.

  61. overdosed

    “luagh at the jokes appropriately”
    what funny jokes are there in frozen?! (except for all the let it go puns people make)

    1. Gordon

      If you’re a child, Olaf is a riot. What is not intrinsically funny about a snowman who can’t wait for summer? Same for the reindeer. Animals who act like people are hilarious.

      It’s been awhile since I saw it, but they usually toss a few jokes in to appeal to the parents, as well. There’s an oblique dick joke in there with “Foot size doesn’t matter.” Inside Out has “There are no bears in San Francisco.” “I saw a really hairy guy. He looked like a bear.” Hell, the trailer for the new Shaun the Sheep movie has a reference to Hannibal Lecter in it. Those jokes aren’t for the children in the audience.

      Whether they are funny or not is a matter of opinion, though, I guess.

      1. Bagge

        “Anna being hyper” gets me almost any time…. which is about half of the screen time. I like that movie, but I had to battle a five-year-old for the DVD so naturally I haven’t seen it that often (you do NOT stand between a five-year-old and her favorite princess, not if you value your femurs).

        1. Kamino Neko

          You can’t just watch it with her? (Is she like my niece and won’t let you?)

        2. Bagge

          Neighbor, so it’s not always practical. But she has reenacted a good portion of Elsa’s scenes for me.

      2. Rebecca

        I mean… I’m 23 and laughed so hard at Olaf I almost cried. So there’s that.

    2. saki

      Uuhhm all the puns in In Summer? My favourite: the unspoken puddle.

  62. John

    So… odds that Joyce and Sarah are the only people in the room who don’t spend the entire movie making out?

    1. Rich

      I’m going to say Ethan’s out of luck too, unless Danny’s a whole lot more drunk than we think.

  63. Bagge

    “Man, what a party. three women almost came to blows over a freshman, everyone got drunk and started ‘experimenting’, the RA busted the place but actually joined in, then there was a ‘forbidden’ movie and plenty of lesbian ‘action’ if you know what I mean.”

    1. Bagge

      Come to think of it, that’s actually a pretty tame description compared to the REAL drama that’s going on.

  64. The Gardener

    Dina’s smile! I think there’s mutual crushin’ going on

  65. saki

    Things that are adorable:
    Ruth’s face in panel one
    Ruth and Billie’s faces in panel 6
    Basically everyone’s faces in panel 4
    DINA’S SMILE OMG 😀

    Okay, fangirling aside… I had suspected Ruth was only crashing this party to be with Billie, but I couldn’t tell if that was a reasonable guess or if it was just my fangirl brain getting ahead of itself.
    Speaking of fangirling… I can’t wait to see if Danny and Ethan end up sitting next to each other~ .

  66. CJ

    I think Danny just got a text from Sal…

    1. BenRG

      Possibly; I wonder if Danny is going to end up with the guy with an embarrassment of riches: More potential romantic partners than he can count on the fingers of one hand but all of them with huge piles of baggage that come with the deal!

    2. Rich

      I was wondering about that. Sure looking at something on his phone

  67. Spencer

    Man, does anybody in-universe even like Danny besides Amber and Ethan?

    1. ChocolateRat

      Sarah said she thought Danny seemed all right. Considering Sarah doesn’t like most people I think that means something.

      1. Spencer

        I loved their few interactions. I know it’s pretty hard to find ways to get them together, but the combination of Danny’s blind, naive honesty and idealism compared to Sarah’s unrelenting cynicism made such a good combo.

    2. Nono

      Sal?

    3. Shadow Eagle

      Sal likes him, to a degree.

    4. Rich

      Dorothy’s certainly still his friend despite the breakup straining relations – he chose her to go to with his sexual identity issues. Sal likes him for the tutoring help and game loan. There are a lot of characters he just hasn’t interacted with much, if at all, so still a cypher to them.

      1. Spencer

        You guys have a good point on Sal. Even with their brief interactions Sal’s given Danny a lot more time and patience than she has with even Billie or Walky. I hesitated to include her since it hasn’t been a whole lot, but I agree that it’s significant enough that Sal counts.

        Also, good call on Dorothy. I think those two will patch things up more when Danny decides to close the book on their relationship. The worst parts of their interactions have been mostly due to circumstance and hurt feelings, but otherwise I think they can still get along.

    5. BenRG

      Amazi-Girl does; yes, I know you already mentioned Amber but… well, it’s complicated.

      I also think that Sal at least acknowledges that he has his good points. I don’t know if I’d go so far as ‘like’; I’m not sure that Sal really does that or is even entirely capable of it.

    6. Bagge

      I don’t think anyone in universe DON’T like him, except Joe and its more of a mutual ” it’s complicated” ( they’re a little married). Walky had some sort of feud brewing over Dotty, but that was even more laughable than Becky’s and Dorothy’s ‘feud’ and was over when they met.

      1. Rich

        It’s telling that Joe is supposedly his best friend (immortalized while riding a dragon together, even) but almost no one mentions him. Joe is a lousy “friend” at best. I’d argue he isn’t one at all.

        1. Spencer

          I genuinely cannot see Danny and Joe lasting as friends, even if Joe isn’t so amazingly terrible as to drop him when he comes out.

        2. Sam

          I doubt Joe would drop him as a friend for being bisexual but, it is true that their friendship doesn’t seem like the kind that should last because they are very different people with very different views that do not actually seem to mesh well.

        3. Bagge

          They were friends as kid and they grew apart. It’s sad but it happens.

          Although I’m not sure we have seen all sides of their relationship yet.

        4. Kamino Neko

          Yeah, Joe wouldn’t drop him for being bi…he might drop him for emoting about it, though.

        5. Spencer

          I remain unconvinced. Maybe not directly for being bi, but any attempt to express or even talk about it will send the dude into convulsions. He’s already shown himself as unwilling to talk about the possibility of being attracted to a guy.

        6. timemonkey

          No, he showed himself unwilling to have the emotional conversation such a confession would require. He doesn’t care what Danny wants to bang, he just doesn’t want to have to walk the path of feelings to get Danny okay with it.

        7. Kamino Neko

          He showed himself unwilling to have any sort of deep emotional conversation. The potential coming out wasn’t the first time he’s done that, though it was the biggest deal for Danny, so it got the biggest reaction ‘shit, no, don’t start getting all emotional’ from Joe.

  68. OnyxIdol

    I find it hard to believe Sarah would put up with Ruth threating her like this.

    1. OnyxIdol

      *threatening

    2. David M Willis

      if so then you probably missed the first storyline http://www.dumbingofage.com/2010/comic/book-1/01-move-in-day/stragglers/

      1. timemonkey

        That was hard to believe too. We know you want her to inspire fear, she just doesn’t.

        1. Spencer

          Yeah, Ruth is fine enough as a character and she needs to be this tyrannical force for her story, but it’s a huge strain on the suspension of disbelief that nobody has reported her abuse, and that everyone kowtows to her.

        2. Ensiform

          I agree. She is just a snobby martinet in glasses. I get why a timid freshman might be scared, but some of the other, older students? It’s hard to believe.

        3. Rich

          One of the other characters is a vigilante superhero. Both the RAs we’ve seen are sleeping with their students. Compared to them, an over the top RA with personal problems doesn’t begin to strain disbelief.

          Moreover, as was pointed out at length yesterday, everyone in that room has secrets they’re hiding, some of them quite damaging. Playing nice with the local authority figure is what you do when you’re trying to cover up your own misbehavior. Sarah’s the only sophomore in that room, and she’s colluding with Joyce to let Becky live in the dorm. That’s plenty of reason to sit down, shut up, and keep Ruth happy right now.

          And the Ruthless act doesn’t work on everyone. Sal takes none of her crap. Dina’s fear emulation is the height of sarcasm. Billie’s her lover and knows better.

        4. Willoughby Chase

          Good words.

          I was going to leave it at “it’s a webcomic with vigilante superhero who should be behind bars”, but yours is a far better and more complete answer.

        5. Kamino Neko

          We’ve seen one RA and two TAs sleeping with their students. (Wait? Is Penny a TA? I assume she is, since she shares office space with Jason, but I suppose she might not be.) I don’t think we’ve even met the guy’s RA, have we?

        6. Rich

          Whoop, sorry, I was trying to type TA up there, not RA. Penny and Jason are both terrible people, ethics-wise.

          Although heaven knows what the Trekkie RA is up to. We never see him.

        7. Spencer

          Excellent post, but I feel like arguing it.

          It really is just the abuse going unreported when it happens in plain view of a dozen witnesses that raises a flag for me. Billie is one thing, but Sarah and Mary were physically dragged back to their floor for a meeting, and Mary in particular was genuinely assaulted by Ruth. There were witnesses. She had the imprint of a giant dick on her face. Why would she not immediately run down to Security and scream “the crazy RA just assaulted me!”

          As for Amazi-Girl, she’s “realistic” in that she can continue her actions because for whatever reason the cops still haven’t been called. I think to the general populace of IU, Amazi-Girl is just some weirdo running around in a cape. A novelty to glance at in the IDS, since by and large nobody is aware of her violent, illegal acts.

        8. Bagge

          Billie actually tried to report Ruth, but chose to go via the newspaper to cash in more personal glory instead of official channels, which actually daisy called her on before getting distracted by the sexiness inherent in the situation. ( Daisy kinda channels the commentator field sometimes, doesn’t she?)

          I dunno how realistic it seems to you, but I have no problem with everyone waiting for someone else to report her.

        9. Spencer

          Yeah, I can see that. Her physical abuse has been largely directed at Billie, barring a small handful of other occasions. Bystander Effect is pretty shitty, yo.

        10. Bagge

          Yeah. Also, most people have their reasons.

          Sarah don’t want shit blowing her way. She is still afraid of losing her scholarship and can’t afford to piss off the RA
          Joyce genuinely forgives and thinks the best of people
          Mary want to attack her personally instead
          Sal doesn’t fight via official channels, and she has learnt the hard way that sometimes it’s not worth fighting people like Ruth. (she has been close though)
          Billie… yeah, we know that one.
          Dina emulates the other’s behavior
          Amber is just a shy little nerd. No need to pay attention to her.
          Amaziegirl… I think we will see more of that. She has already broken up one fight and Amber’s stinky-eyes might indicate that Amaziegirl will take an… interest in the RA.
          Carla takes no shit and gives no shit.
          Agatha, Sierra and the other people with less screentime might be tempted to report her, but also afraid to rock the boat. Ruth claims to have the blessings of the higher-ups and she is clearly able and willing to go to insane lengths to keep her authority. Someone should do something… but maybe not me.

          Dorothy. I got nothing. She is strong, capable, willing, has a strong sense of justice and prefers official channels. Also, she is a fan of the local masked vigilante. Taking down a local tyrant seems just like the thing she would jump at. Maybe she saw how Billie’s attempt was shot down by Daisy, but I simply think that this is one of the instances where we see how young Dorothy actually is. She falls in the usual trap of not acting against what is presented as normality. “OK, the RA is a bit forceful but that is the way it is supposed to be around here. I’m sure the higherups would do something if she really stepped out of line”. If nothing changes I think Dorothy might take action in time, but she is not there yet.

        11. Bagge

          Roz… still got nothing. She might just have other fish to fry (also, she knows that the Dean is not a fan of her)

        12. Rich

          Why would Roz have an issue in the first place? If anything, she’s probably a fan – Ruth did smack Mary a good one, something I’m quite certain Roz would like to do herself.

        13. Greenygal

          Given Roz’s “Fight! Fight!” body language in this strip, maybe she thinks having a violent RA is funny.

        14. Rich

          There are valid reasons to appreciate a brawler RA. You have problems with a stalker or rowdy drunks (visiting or otherwise) having an RA who can and will throw them out on their ass is nice, especially if campus security is as crappy as it was at the schools I went to – they weren’t good for anything but writing parking tickets.

          Moreover, Ruth’s only been violent toward three people that I know of – Billie, who started the fight where she got tossed and is now her lover, Mary, who got smacked across the face, and her fight with Amber’s helldad. The latter two cases lead to the comments section cheering so loud NASA could hear it through the Mars rover, and certainly didn’t earn her any ill-will from the characters other than Mary. And Billie seems pretty happy with the way things worked out.

          Ruth mostly runs on the threat of force, not its application.

  69. Arkham

    Amber looks like she is already having withdrawal symptoms from video gaming.

  70. Les

    As kids, we used to refer to situations like this as Forced Family Fun (FFF)…

    1. DarkoNeko

      Most of them seems to not care.

  71. timemonkey

    Yup still hate Ruth.

    1. timemonkey

      I made this comment right before I fell asleep at my computer and missed my bus into work.

      1. Tenn

        Karma. 😛

        1. timemonkey

          The only karma one should get for hating a terrible person is good karma.

        2. Narf

          Not sure that’s how karma works, dude. :p

  72. CJ

    BTW: Is there any way to change my automatically assigned avatar without creating an account for a gravatar?

    1. Opus the Poet

      If you have gmail you can add a .1, .2, .3, .&tc… to your addy to get a valid address that checks out as yours and get all the avatars you want in addition to a Gravatar.

    2. timemonkey

      It’ll also change each time Willis adds a new one to the pile.

      1. CJ

        Thanks, so I’ll have to hope Willis does that soon.

  73. Ensiform

    Man. I know this is based on real experiences and that there are colleges all over the country like this. But the entire idea of a college where the teachers give a damn if you happen to have a party or drink, much less fellow students getting all authoritarian and moral about it, is hilarious and sad and utterly alien to me. Thank god for small liberal arts schools with a history of celebrating free thought.

  74. HeroErix

    This is totally unrealistic. What College student doesn’t want to watch Frozen?

    1. Rebecca

      A lot of them. Frozen was good, but there are better Disney movies to watch. XD

      1. Adj

        Arguing against Frozen? You need to let it go.

  75. Adork

    If they are watching Frozen they should follow it up with the How It Should Have Ended clip on it. Makes it all better.

  76. RVB

    Joke’s on them – there are no jokes in Frozen, aside from how lame the movie was.

    1. Em

      Perfect gravatar is perfect.

  77. Kraken

    I almost feel like Ruth is doing this so that these dumb drunk kids sober up. At first I thought she was just visiting for kicks, but I have the sneaking suspicion that she’s more perceptive than she let on. Also, Billie, of course, but a girl’s gotta be able to multi-task, right?

    1. Romanticide

      hey! that is a good guess. At least I like that one XD

  78. RonMexico

    No offense, but I kind of hate the Ruth character. Even if it’s because you’re trying to hide your real feelings and use it as a shield, there’s no excuse for being a bully. Also, nothing about her character makes it even remotely believable that she could issue threats like “I’m going to kill you” and people would take her seriously. She’s kind of an awful person.

    I mean, I love this series overall but I could totally do without Ruth. Sorry.

    1. Spencer

      For lack of a better description, we aren’t really “supposed” to like Ruth as a person. As a fictional character whose actions have no actual impact, where she can fling Billie across a room only for her to get up and walk as if nothing happened like she’s in Tom & Jerry. For the last couple years we’ve also been delving into what makes Ruth tick as a person and what drives the absolute worst of her behaviour, so we have a greater understanding of her as a person rather than “horrible asshole”.

      Ruth is abusive and her actions should not be tolerated, I’m not going to be sad when she gets fired, and I get genuinely frustrated when I see people sweep her behaviour under the rug because she has “issues”, but they are what they are, I guess. It’s not like the comic doesn’t also put her through the ringer as a direct consequence of her actions.

      1. Rich

        You know Billie started that fight after threatening Ruth herself, right? Took the first swing with Ruth’s permission, and she was thrown onto a padded armchair, not body slammed into the floor or a wall. I think pretty much everyone has done worse to friends or siblings while roughhousing – I know I certainly have. It was hardly a brutal martial arts beatdown, just an object lesson.

        If you’re going to be honest and fair about things, Ruth is rarely violent. She talks tough and maintains a menacing persona, but aside from Billie she’s done nothing but smack Mary and fight Amber’s father. If you want to find legitimate criticisms, violence isn’t really it.

        Her thieving and confiscations are much more problematic (albeit still rare) and her drinking is obviously a real problem. The relationship with Billie is also an ethics violation, but it’s so easily fixed with a room swap I have a hard time calling her out on it – Billie is simply not a coerced junior partner in that relationship, which is the real danger in that sort of situation. Probably ought to be in therapy (and maybe on meds) for depression as well, but that might cost her her job if the school’s sufficiently intolerant of mental health issues.

        1. Spencer

          Bro, no.

          She flung her into a chair, she tripped her, she slammed her into a wall and shoved her tongue down her throat, after Billie helped sober her up she pushed her down onto the ground, she tried to strip her in public, she fucking launched a campaign of psychological torment on Billie out of a misguided grudge against her.

          “Aside from Billie”, God, who do you think I was talking about?

          Violence is absolutely a legitimate criticism for Ruth and you will not even attempt to tell me otherwise.

        2. Rich

          That’s your opinion and you’re welcome to it, but you haven’t changed my mind and I don’t appreciate the demand that I do so or shut up. And I’m not a bro, which is an insult where I come from.

          I’ll give you another chance to clarify here – if her behavior toward Billie is so inexcusable, why are they now in a relationship? Are you arguing that Billie has been intimidated or coerced into having sex with Ruth? Or that Billie’s self-image issues make her vulnerable to psychological manipulation and their entire history has been a twisted courting ritual for Ruth? I give Billie more credit for agency than that, and she’s been the one actively pushing for them to stay together on several occasions.

          Or is there some other point you’re trying to make?

        3. Spencer

          I wasn’t demanding that you change your mind, I was telling you that I plain will not listen to yet more justification why Ruth’s abuse is okay.

          And my bad on the “bro” thing. It wasn’t my intent to use a term that’s insulting where you’re from.

          Anyway, yes, Ruth’s behaviour to Billie is completely, totally, 100% inexcusable by any definition of the word. She hounded Billie and verbally and physically attacked her whenever she felt like it. She used her position of authority to try and hurt her any chance she got, even threatening to get her expelled for drinking on campus which she only found out by breaking into her room, not to mention how she did the same thing.

          As for their relationship, that’s fucked up too, which I think should be evident because it starts from Billie and Ruth giving up on sobriety and entering into a suicide pact. I don’t doubt that they care for each other, maybe even love each other, but that doesn’t change the fact that both of them are incredibly damaged and suffer from severe problems. Billie totally does have a warped self image, and she barely registers how wrong things are going between her and Ruth, between having the genius idea of “forced moderation”, begging Ruth to let her stay in her room all the time, oh, and the entire basis of them staying together being that Ruth wants to kill herself and Billie is forcing her to take her with her.

          Ruth needs help. She’s a victim of her alcoholism, her depression, and doubtlessly from her grandfather, and she needs to be removed from her position and given that help before she ends up hurting herself or Billie. That does not make the genuinely horrible shit she’s done even remotely okay. There’s an explanation, but that doesn’t mean there’s an excuse. I’ve spent way too much of time listening to the excuses of abusers and I’ m not letting someone else say that shit to me again.

      2. JWLM

        As one of the most avid shippers of Ruth + Billie, this.

        Ruth is abusive, both physically and socially. She behaves sadistically towards all of the freshmen in her care. She’s secretly violating the IU dry campus agreement — and we don’t know whether she’s even legal in Indiana.

        At the end of the day, she’s really a pretty ugly person, no matter how much fun we have with her.

    2. timemonkey

      I really wish she wasn’t the only Canadian character around. It really bums me out she’s my countries only representation in a comic with so many great characters.

      1. fogel

        I think that Mike and Mary might be closet Canadian immigrants. 🙂

  79. JBento

    Here’s hoping that the Let It Go song resonates with Ethan, because I really feel sorry for that poor bastard.

    Also, I’m torn between this strip making Ruth adorably murderous or murderously adorable.

    And Dina smile is best smile. I’m willing to tolerate Becky if it means we get more of those.

    1. -Sentinel-

      “Here’s hoping that the Let It Go song resonates with Ethan, because I really feel sorry for that poor bastard.”

      Don’t be! He can now gay-marry in any state he chooses!

      1. Em

        YAY!

        But his parents are shit, and he’ll only poke a couple fingers out from under the door. So I kinda feel bad for the poor guy.

      2. timemonkey

        First he needs to stop listening to his asshole parents. Fortunately, between Amber, Joyce and now Danny he’s going to get a lot more support on the personal front. (yeah, Danny doesn’t know yet but being a supportive guy who wants to help is the kind of guy Danny is).

      3. saki

        OH MY-! I HADN’T HEARD THAT NEWS YET I-I-I-I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MY HAPPY FEELINGS THIS IS SO GREAT 😀

        *calms herself* Oh hey, “gay-marry” is totally a reference to Community, isn’t it? 🙂

        1. timemonkey

          People have been saying gay-marry for decades.

        2. saki

          Aw I didn’t know that. English isn’t my first language and Community’s the only place I heard that expression. ^^

  80. AeroQC

    Seriously, who says no to a Disney movie? Oddly enough, they seem to get more and more enjoyable as you grow up. Not only do you still laugh at the obvious kids jokes, but you understand the in-jokes and underlying messages of the movies as well. Inside Out was so good.

    1. Romanticide

      Disney Movies got way more enjoyable when the stopped being the only option (or mostly) at entertainment in my opinion.

  81. Spencer

    It took me until now to realize that Ruth is forcing everyone to stare at the TV without leaving because she doesn’t want anyone to notice her and Billie.

    1. Rich

      That was the first thing I thought of. You never made out with someone in the back row of a movie theater, did you?

      1. Spencer

        I wasn’t able to distract people by risk of femur-tearing, unfortunately.

  82. Sammael

    I don’t like Becky/Dina pairing.
    Now, before I get attacked for homophobia, I want to say its because I was hoping Dina would be an asexual character.
    There are almost no asexual characters in… well anywhere and I thought David would be capable of writing one that’s not a joke.

    1. Nightsbridge

      We haven’t revealed it quite yet, but I’m pretty sure Carla is one.

    2. Spencer

      Dina can still possibly be ace. All we know from Willis’ other work is that Dina is at the very least hetero-romantic, and being ace doesn’t preclude someone from being in a relationship.

      Carla, who usually hangs out with Sal and co, is also asexual.

      1. Spencer

        To clarify: Dina in Willis’ other work (which is a separate continuity to this one) had a relationship with a guy, but it was never confirmed as sexual. I didn’t mean to imply that she was exclusively into men romantically. She could also be bi-romantic or demisexual.

    3. Em

      My best friend is ace and she has a steady boyfriend. Being ace *can* mean that you don’t want to have relationships, but it doesn’t have to mean that. Relationships don’t mean that you have to have sex. My friend does not have sex with her boyfriend, but they do make out. A lot. xD She just doesn’t feel the need to have sex, even when she kisses her boyfriend. It’s just not a thing for her. Some people don’t like the idea of sex, some people have had sex and hated it…there are a lot of reasons why people ID as ace! I think Dina can have a very rewarding sex free relationship with Becky. I would also love to have an arc where she and Becky discover her asexuality, and Becky is totes fine with it and still wants to date her because she likes Dina for Dina, not for her sexual parts.

    4. Sam

      Well he said the characters would have the same sexualities as before and someone said Dina had shown interest in guys before. It doesn’t make it impossible for her to be asexual, she could be bi-romantic and asexual, but, there is also the worry that making Dina asexual would fall straight into the trap of ‘awkward people = asexual’, and if you’ve paid attention to the comments when she kissed Becky, a lot of people DID assume she was asexual because she was awkward…

      Carla is actually asexual though.

    5. dailybrad

      Carla is asexual, Dina already wasn’t. Willis has made a point of not changing previously established orientations if it contradicted past materials. Dina already had her dealings with Walky and Mike in the past continuity and wasn’t asexual there.

      Ultracar was asexual, but not aromantic, and Carla is probably in the same boat.

  83. Golbez

    Cuz everytime we touch…..

  84. Em

    AHHHH AHHHH SO CUTE!

    “Got-dumped-guy” Sick burn Ruth.

    1. Rich

      If you do an archive serach on Ruth+Danny, she literally never knew his name. The only other time they’ve been on panel together was when Dorothy asked her advice about breaking up with him, and Ruth and Danny exchanged zero words in the process. If anything, the fact that she remembers him as well as she does is almost a compliment. Almost.

      1. Rich

        Further fun facts from archive diving, Ruth’s been in 162 strips to date and Billie has been in 391. They’ve shared a strip 134 times. So most of our time with Ruth has been spent with Billie around, although they haven’t always been a couple, obviously.

        So, our take on Ruth’s behavior is largely filtered through the lens of her relationship with Billie. Billie’s had a lot more time to interact with other characters independently – although a fair number of her solo strips have involved her worrying about Ruth.

  85. Jepmz

    Is the bulletin board purposely a square symbolism of how their love for eachother hasn’t changed? 🙂

  86. Roborat

    Wait, she set all that up so she can play high school crush with Billy in the back? That is soooo cute.

    1. Rich

      Well, she may also be making sure the drunken freshman are all safely under her gaze for long enough to sober up a bit, instead of having them potentially wandering off where campus security might need to take notice. Pretty sure Ruth knew sending Billie to the party was likely to result in some boozing going on even at a Joyce party.

  87. dailybrad

    I think in addition to wanting to be able to watch it with Billy and not have people hassle them, she also wanted them to not bolt on Joyce’s party. I don’t know what all she is aware of, but probably enough to know how shitty that’d feel.

  88. Edupoet81

    Apparently, Ruth was missing Billie.

    I suspect she is aware that people have been drinking, and that’s part of why she wants to keep an eye on everyone. It is a dry campus after all, and the majority of the party guests are in violation of that. Even so, I suspect that as long as no one does anything blatantly objectionable under the influence, Ruth will…. let it go.

    Okay, couldn’t resist. I don’t care how overdone that is at this point. It was in my head, and I had to ….ummm…. release it. (I figured repeating it twice in one comment would be overkill.)

    And now I really want to watch Frozen again.

  89. Tenn

    I don’t really have anything to say about the comic today, but CONGRATULATIONS, CITIZENS OF THE US OF A! Your Supreme Court did good. 😀

    1. Someone

      YAY!

    2. Jen Aside

      Now the DoA cast can gay-marry each other! =D

      1. Someone

        I like to think that the reason for the legalization was because the supreme court members are all really big dumbing of age fans and wanted to make Becky happy!

        1. David M Willis

          Gay marriage was already legal in Indiana!

        2. Someone

          Still, she would probably move out of Indiana when she got her life together. Get as far away from toe dad as possible

        3. fogel

          Almost all famous people from Indiana are from Indiana.

        4. JWLM

          Technically, no. Had The Supes decided the other way — and it was close, only 5-4 — then the decision which had overridden Indiana’s definition of marriage would have no longer held, and same-sex marriage would no longer have been legal in Indiana. Under those circumstances, I doubt that any marriages solemnized after 10am Eastern Daylight time, June 26, 2015 would have been considered valid.

          Of course, they could simply have flown out to the West Coast, married, and then flown back had the decision taken the middle ground offered by both parties (whether or not SSM was legal within your boundaries, you must recognize all marriages if they were legal in the state in which they were solemnized), but the Supes had made it pretty clear during oral arguments that they really weren’t interested in that dodge.

    3. nothri

      I’m glad someone said it. And yeah. In like….the first time in years and years I can unequivocally say I’m proud to be an American! I was pretty proud to be a Texan until I read Texas’ response to the announcement. Now I’m just okay with being from Texas. Still proud to be an Austinite, though, where we aint dragging our feet on issue certificates like some lame ass counties are.

      1. fogel

        Didn’t Rick Perry want to secede from Austin?

        1. nothri

          Not EXACTLY. Rick Perry did suggest succeeding from America and forming the independent nation of Texas. In response some dude from Austin drafted an online petition to allow Austin to succeed back into the Union in the event that Texas succeeded. Last I checked it had a few thousand signatures.

  90. Alex Boston

    I know you do these strips months in advance, but if you create some DoA/Supreme Court ruling on Gay Marriage wallpaper, I bet that would go over well.

    1. JWLM

      I think Willis has already done that:

      http://www.shortpacked.com/index.php?id=2160

  91. Waanii

    i just imagine that reliant k is playing, possibly mood ring, because I can imagine Joyce having that on the play list

  92. JA

    And then Mike, wherever he is, yells “HANDS CHECK!”

    1. HeySo

      Somehow accidentally saving three lives, reuniting a lost family, helping a family of ducks across a road, burning down the mall, creating an impromptu thrash metal concert, all while wearing nothing but a rainbow flag.

      Because of reasons, okay?

  93. AgentKeen

    I didn’t notice Amber’s face until I saw a close-up on tumblr!
    Ahahaha, she doesn’t know how to process this.

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