433

Causing
Posted on March 1, 2023 by David M Willis

433 thoughts on “Causing”

  1. Bogeywoman

    Ooft.

    1. Clif

      Slug him Jennifer. Any jury in the world would convict you, but wouldn’t it be worth it.

      1. Laura

        That’s the issue. Joyce asked her to go back to being “Billie,” then triggered her insecurities about her own neuronormativity, Sarah insulted her and physically threw her out of the room, and then she had a (self-instigated) physical confrontation with Ruth and wound up with her head slammed into the floor. She’s probably mildly concussed and still reeling from her brush with her old life and all its concomitant self-doubt and brash defensive arrogance.

        1. Gigafreak

          I thought those happened on a different day? Do concussions last that long?

        2. Max

          Concussions last for however long the story necessitates.

        3. Paradox

          Sometimes symptoms of a concussion can take weeks to go away

        4. Laura

          Post-concussion syndrome can last *years*.

  2. Schpoonman

    Get wrecked, Jennifer.

    1. Decidedly Orthogonal

      Indeed, Ms Billingsworth’s behavior is appalling. One wonders what Booster would say, were they here.

      1. Bryy

        Too bad it’ll take four years for whatever epiphany Jennifer has at the end of this arc to sink in.

  3. TrueVCU

    Walky: [Innocence intensifies]

    1. Doctor_Who

      The entire rest of the meal will just be cutting to him making that face, but with bigger eyes and smile each time, until Jennifer snaps and lunges at him with a butter knife.

      1. Lexi

        I would honestly love to see that. Everything is so serious here, that would certainly bring us all back to… Well, I was going to say reality, but back to something.

  4. Ana Chronistic

    “Just LOOK at him wisely-assing!”

    SureJen.gif

    1. milu

      Can you not see how wise his ass is being?!?

      1. RoyanRannedos

        If we’re arguing semantics, I’m more of an erudite donkey. sips tea and crosses hooves

      2. Lysbeth

        He’s arsing wisdom alright! He’s butting philosophy

  5. Animedingo

    Oooooo get her kicked out

    1. Bryy

      Nah. If anything, Jennifer will start seeing the cracks in her group.

  6. BBCC

    I died laughing at Walky’s ‘I’m innocent and not in trouble face’ here.

    1. Nono

      He did it a lot with Sal growing up, so he’s perfected it pretty well.

  7. Imogen

    Jennifer.

  8. Sirksome

    See this is exactly what I was talking about. If I were Jennifer I’d just leave. This isn’t good for her.

    1. Bogeywoman

      Yeah, if I was getting this irate/disregulated I would leave. I don’t expect she’d recognise that, though. It’d require a little more internal awareness.

      1. Steve C

        I think it’s more a matter of too much pride rather than too little internal awareness.

        1. Bogeywoman

          I think both can be true. Without self awareness/self control pride can cause the same behavioural responses, being essentially shame on steroids. Need that internal awareness to acknowledge/accept that pride is wounded without acting out on it, yknow?

    2. Doctor_Who

      Good thing she has such a track record of making emotionally healthy decisions.

      1. Concolor44

        HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA …

        … ( wheeeeeze ) …

        HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!!!

    3. Karla Jean

      If she leaves she still comes across as the bad guy because she’s being “unreasonable” dropping her plans with her friends because of this guy who’s “not doing anything.” The only move she can make that doesn’t make her look bad is swallowing her emotions and getting through it.

      1. Sporky

        So what if it makes her look bad? If she wasn’t so desperate to be popular at any cost, she wouldn’t be making herself miserable by hanging out with these fuckwads. She should 100% leave, but she’s too obsessed with her own social status to realize that

        1. Vanessa

          Exactly. Ditching these frenemies would be the best thing she’s done for her mental health since last semester or maybe since starting at university.

        2. Karla Jean

          Yeah, being a social pariah is great for mental health I hear.

        3. Carms

          Lol she’s still THE most popular person in her wing. Even after everyone kinda accepted she’s human rather than a cheerleader God. AND she’s still got plenty of clout at her old wing. This is not a person in danger of social rejection, despite her most destructive efforts.

        4. StClair

          What, that bunch of losers? It’s not enough* to be the coolest kid in that group; she wants to take it to the next level.**

          * it’s never enough.
          ** and the next, and the next…

        5. Freezer

          Oh, noes! The cool kids think I’m cool anymore. Oh, the humanity.

        6. Taffy

          Pff. “Social pariah” to who? Raidah? Please, her opinion is worth less than nothing.

        7. Caspar Mulders

          I really don’t think “being ditched from a group that’s basically a hybrid between a prep-school clique and the maffia” counts as being made “a social pariah”…

        8. Taffy

          Also there’s like 3 of them, if we count Asher. Big fuckin’ deal.

        9. Mr D

          Also, I’m betting Asher would value Jennifer more than Raidah, at this point. If the breakup happens, he goes with Billie.

        10. Zal

          Lol, I mean like everyone said yeah obviously being a “social pariah” isn’t great, that for the most part is more a personal issue at this point. Like, it’s no ones fault but her own that she is convinced the group of people who actually like her are “unworthy” of her and that this is the group she has pinned her need for acceptance on.

        11. danimagoo

          Depends on the social group. Being exiled from a toxic social group might hurt initially, if you haven’t recognized or acknowledged the toxicity of that group. In the long run, though, getting out of a toxic social group should be good for someone’s mental health.

        12. Orange Lantern

          Neither is living a lie.

        13. Norah

          Joyce, Walky, possibly Sal! Becky, the women in her own wing, and probably Booster and even Jacob.would be her friends if she’d let them. Any single one of them would be better friends. Radish has fade maturity too, and as annoying as Walky is, seem like he’s better than Raidah.

        14. Norah

          Raidah, not Radish.

        15. Norah

          And Jennifer is not showing maturity by trying to discard her queerness and hang out with a bunch of nineteen-year olds who try to act like lawyers or accountants. Admittedly, breaking up with Ruth was a good idea, but not because she’s a girl. The name change is ok if she got sick of it, but it’s not a childish name. (Billie Holiday, Billie Jean King, Billie Eilish)

        16. Norah

          Ok, Billie Eilish was ptretty young when she started out!

        17. thejeff

          There’s a big difference between “She should leave because Raidah & co are fuckwads” and because she shouldn’t have to put up with Walky.

          The first is obvious. For the second, there’s basically nothing bad going on here. Jennifer’s the one being the problem.

      2. Zero

        But she is the bad guy who’s being unreasonable because of a guy who’s not doing anything. That is literally what is happening.

        1. Clif

          You have obviously never played the game of irritate the other person in such a way that they appear unreasonable if they object. I don’t know if this means you were an only child or if you had unsophisticated siblings.

        2. Caspar Mulders

          Whereas Jennifer hasn’t been unreasonably hostile since well before this lunch started, you mean?

        3. milu

          Well, if you play the game at the (near-)sibling level you know to hone in on the buttons that were there for the pushing.

        4. Schpoonman

          I forgot that Walky and Lucy were invited to breakfast specifically because they were Jennifer’s friends, and therefore their purpose here is to make her look good.

          So silly of me to have read the comic and come to the conclusion that Raidah wants Walky here for reasons completely unconnected to Jennifer. So silly of me to think that Jennifer’s constant hostility for Walky’s is entirely unearned and that it’s not his moral, philosophical, and ontological obligation to bend himself backwards until he breaks for her arbitrary standards.

        5. milu

          Too right! And neither is it his medical, anthropological, entomological, or supercalifragilistical obligation!

        6. Clif

          But is it his morphological, typographical and spiritual obligation?

          We must ask the hard questions.

        7. Taffy

          Weirdly enough, there’s strong evidence that suggests it’s his geometrical obligation.

        8. TulipKitten

          What about his technological obligation? Or his theological obligation? What about his biological obligation?

          I think we should really observe it through those lens, too.

        9. Taffy

          Those fields are pseudoscience, at best. Let’s at least keep this board grounded in hard science, like God intended.

        10. Clif

          I think we can agree that he’s executed his sibling obligations flawlessly.

        11. Erica

          He literally just ordered what he wanted to eat

        12. Xaeon

          The problem here is even Jennifer’s triggers are wholly unreasonable. Walky orders a burger and she starts to criticize him over it. Even if he knew she would react the way she did it doesn’t make her reaction any less problematic. Even in the best case scenario for Jennifer, where the burger legitimately wasn’t something he could order for breakfast, the appropriate thing would be to simply allow the waitress to do her job and tell Walky it wasn’t available at that time. If someone does something to you that they know will make you react like an asshole, you’re still the asshole.

        13. Zero

          I’m certainly familiar with that.
          I’m also familiar with a person screaming at me that everything I do is wrong with utterly nonsensical justifications.

          The character here acting like my mother is not Walky, who just read off the menu.

        14. dalniente

          This. Walky started off just being Walky, not intentionally trying to annoy Jennifer, and then she pulled an entirely undeserved “oh my GOD CAN YOU *PLEASE* JUST BE *NORMAL* FOR ONCE.”

          Which…I can’t remember if this has been confirmed, but Walky has one of the best-written cases of undiagnosed ADHD I have ever seen in fiction. And assuming that’s what’s going on with him, no, he cannot and will not just be normal, and Jennifer jumping down his throat about harmless behaviors just because SHE thinks they’re weird is neither fair nor reasonable. Walky is maybe RESPONDING in a way that might be intended to needle her, but he’s ordering things he probably would have regardless, and Jennifer very much did kick it off by assuming his normal, harmless action of (checks notes) ordering a burger was wiseassery.

          Anyway, stupid games, stupid prizes. The restaurant serves burgers at breakfast time, Walky wants a burger, Jennifer can either be chill with that or die mad about it.

        15. dalniente

          (Also I’m using “normal” up there the way Jennifer and people like her think of it. Walky is already perfectly normal as far as I’m concerned.)

        16. monkyvirus

          I mean he is being smug rather trying to de-escalate. Not saying he’s in the wrong per se but he’s known her forever and he knows how to wind her up. He’s not oblivious to the fact he’s doing it either.

          Obviously Jennifer is in the wrong, but the idea that he’s doing nothing at this point seems inaccurate to me.

        17. shikomekidomi

          Oh certainly, but when someone starts in on you for no good reason, striking back rather than deescalating is a pretty common instinct. He wasn’t doing anything originally but _now_ he’s doing something. A lot of people would side with him anyway at this point, though.

    4. anon

      i’m surprised she and asher even need to be there if raidah was gonna ‘corner’ walky for assumed ‘connections’ versus just keeping an eye but other than him not ‘behaving’ himself it’s not like he would’ve blabbed about anything jen was trying to keep secret from the group as far as i know lol

      1. cbwroses

        The reason given for inviting them in the first place is to get to know them because of their relationship to Jennifer.
        Inviting them without Jennifer would be too blatant, plus they could always refuse as they have no connection to Raidah otherwise and Walky at least has connections to people who dislike Raidah.

        Also, I don’t believe Jennifer is worried about secrets being spilled (they already know she likes Kit Fisto), but for all her protests, she acknowledges her sibling relationship with Walky and feels that anything he does that she would consider embarrassing reflects on her, which is why she repeatedly avoids him when she thinks she’s popular.

        1. Clif

          The reason for inviting them in the first place was to remove them from Sarah and Joyce’s orbit. The fact it was done right in front of Sarah was pure gravy.

    5. Francoinblanco

      I think her whole body wants to leave but we live in a society and it would be rude to do that and what will people say

    6. shikomekidomi

      It’s not a bad idea, but ‘if I was Jennifer I’d leave’ runs into the fact that if she was capable of being that sensible she probably wouldn’t be upset at someone ordering a burger for breakfast in the first place.

    7. thejeff

      If you would just leave, you wouldn’t be Jennifer. She’s upset because she thinks Walky makes her look bad, but leaving would make her look worse. If you don’t care about that, then why start with Walky about ordering a burger in the first place?

  9. Derek

    Walky has had several wise-ass moments, I’m not sure ordering a burger is one of them

    1. Wraithy2773

      It’s how he’s doing it. He’s deliberately messing with Jennifer/Billie, and while one could argue that she’s kinda asking for it with how much of an ass she’s been, Walky could just, you know, not be acting this way pretty easily, particularly when he sees how much its annoying the hell out of her.

      1. Username Taken

        Who can forget when Walky passive aggressively ordered a menu item, or acted annoying by wearing a hoodie and a jacket.

        Walky is now being smug only in response to Jennifer blowing up at him unprompted for like, three different things (how he dressed, what he and Lucy say to each other, ordering a burger).

        1. Wraithy2773

          Walky’s needling Jennifer/Billie and baiting her into acting like a loud, disruptive asshole. He seems quite aware of what he’s doing, and is making no steps to try to de-escalate things. The comparison to “I’m not touching you!” I’ve seen others use is quite valid.

          He’s not being a monster or anything. He’s being a very mild ass here, and one could certainly argue that Jennifer/Billie has this coming given how she treats him. Those are valid arguments to make.

          But he’s not “innocently” doing things, he’s being deliberate. That’s the thing to note.

        2. Username Taken

          Weird take that Walky deliberately wore a hoodie and had a cute exchange with Lucy to needle Jennifer.

          Yes, Walky has chosen to act smugly unapologetic and even teasing in response to Jennifer relentlessly berating him over nothing. He’s not de-escalating things, sure. If he wanted to let her bully him to make herself feel better I guess he could. If it needles her that he has a flippant way of responding to her being a jerk, then maybe she shouldn’t relentlessly berate him over nothing?

        3. dalniente

          Walky is being himself and Jennifer is loudly having a problem with that, and “I’m not touching you, I’m a loveable goofball” is his only recourse in this social situation. I would argue it’s a defense mechanism at being criticized just for the way he exists. I doubt even Walky thinks about it that way, but that’s how I read this. Being a goofball is how he tries to de-escalate; it’s not his fault Jennifer wants him to act like someone he isn’t and finds his attempts at de-escalation grating.

          And what would “de-escalation” even look like, from Jennifer’s point of view? Apologizing (for things he should not apologize for)? Acting to Jennifer’s specifications (at the cost of his own self)? Ignoring her completely (and then getting yelled at for that)? Joining her in pretending to be a different person in order to be liked instead of being liked for who he already is (oh, aha)?

      2. Schpoonman

        Love how this comment section can take the stance of “It’s Walky’s fault for not doing as Jennifer has done and putting on a mask to impress people who aren’t worth the hydration it would take to piss on them if they were on fire.”

        1. thejeff

          It’s a little different, since it’s arguably “to help out his almost sister” rather than to impress Raidah.

        2. Illjwamh

          An argument could be made that he is helping her.

        3. Dot

          This is in fact the argument I would make.

        4. Freemage

          I’m open to it, but I’d want confirmation that it’s deliberate on his part, for the reason of planting a wedge between Billifer and Raidah. I’d love it if it were so–it’d excuse pretty much all of his ‘going along with this farce’ that we’ve seen so far.

        5. Dot

          It doesn’t have to be deliberate to be helpful.

        6. Wraithy2773

          Love how this comment section has so many people taking “Walky is kinda being dickish here” as “WALKY IS BEING AN ABUSIVE MONSTER!”

          Walky knows this is getting on Jennifer’s nerves, and is stoking those flames of rage rather than trying to dampen them. You can argue about how much responsibility he has to de-escalate things, sure, but it’s still what he’s doing.

        7. Cait

          No, Walky is being himself. Jennifer is an unreasonable jerk for expecting him to act differently and nobody else seems to have any problems with it, she’s just being… well, dickish, as you put it.

  10. Mr. Random

    Pushing the buttons.
    Siblings do be like that.

  11. CitrineMonster

    New queen bee huh jennifer?

  12. Cmasta1992

    She’s doing it to herself but I still feel bad for Jennifer here

    1. Caspar Mulders

      I don’t. She’s consistently been acting like a very horrible person for a considerable amount of time now.

      1. Schpoonman

        90% of DoA’s run has been Jennifer constantly lashing out for percieved slights.

  13. shrub

    Well done Walky, you successfully needled Jennifer enough to embarrass her, good for you.

    1. Zero

      She did that by herself.

      1. Wereg

        Yeeaahhh Jennifer really has done all of this by herself. Walky’s been… Kinda sarcastic at worst? If even?

      2. DailyBrad

        Yeah, this is basically a Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote situation, where Walky’s really not *doing* anything.

    2. Jamie

      He ordered a burger.

      1. Bysmerian

        Yeah, this is a bongo eating crackers situation. If the dialogue when Jennifer was telling him “you stink” was any indication, she really wants to stick it to him, while he seems to have developed a deflective sense of humor about this. She’s trying to make it land again like she did back then, but other people seem to not be having it.

      2. shrub

        No.

        1. Bruh

          Yes. The sheer level of unhinged insanity in this comments about this situation is genuinely kind of concerning.

        2. Taffy

          Literally yes, though.

        3. The Oracle

          Yes he did.

    3. Needfuldoer

      [Obi-Wan voice] She has done that herself!

      1. StClair

        “LIAR!”

        (Jennifer would shout that in the heat of the moment, and then later deny knowing the reference if anyone else called her on it.)

    4. Taffy

      He’s literally just ordering food at a restaurant, what the fuck do you mean “needled”? lmao

      1. shrub

        How about they grew up together, that Walky knows exactly what buttons to push, that Walky by his smirk is enjoying watching Jennifer embarras herself, that he’s been given the go ahead from Dorothy to be an arrogant little jerk (sorry I mean cocky)

        You really think this is just Walky innocently ordering a burger

        1. Schpoonman

          Jennifer starts this fight every time. It’s her own fault she has such an insanely poor temper. She doesn’t have to go out of her way to attack everything Walky does, including insulting him just for showing up, but she does.

          Especially given that Walky has seen Jennifer at her worst and lowest, including the time she climbed into his bed because she was so desperate for apparently any kind of affection, why would he ever passively take her unearned abuse?

        2. thejeff

          He’s definitely been needling her since then. It’s not clear to me ordering the burger itself was aimed at her.
          If it wasn’t, everything since follows on her jumping in for no reason.

        3. Abdomino

          The idea that we’re considering Walky, the guy who buys pajama jeans, as some kind of sinister manipulator is insane to me.

          He ordered a burger. He wanted a burger. Jennifer has been nothing but antagonizing the entire time, and he has ordered a burger.

        4. Taffy

          Yes. I really think this is just Walky innocently ordering a burger. If that’s all it takes to set somebody off, even if he knows it will, that’s not in any way him being an “arrogant little jerk”.

          And really, in what way is Walky “having or revealing an exaggerated sense of one’s own importance or abilities”? Words mean things.

        5. Norah

          He’s def trying to irritate her, by the way he expands upon wat he want or pretends to want in his burger.

        6. Zero

          …countering her bad behavior means he’s the one at fault? At worst you’re saying he’s standing up for himself.

        7. Zero

          “Walky knows Jennifer will behave badly, therefore her behavior is his fault and he should always meet her unreasonable unspoken demands to avoid setting her off.”

          Not good reasoning. Not acceptable. I lived like that for 30 years.

      2. eh, whatever

        As a sibling, I can tell you he’s absolutely making fun of her – and she’s absolutely taking it way too seriously. He’s just doing his duty as a brother! It isn’t personal! She should roll her eyes and move on.

        1. Clif

          Yep.

        2. shrub

          It’s not his “duty”, hea just being a little jerk off

        3. Zero

          One person shrieks in the other’s face with no provocation, accuses the other of “causing a scene,” and the other is the bad guy for not rising to the provocation?

  14. Kyrik Michalowski

    Walky is crushing it right now with antagonizing Jennifer/Billie and showing how little she has changed. I just hope he doesn’t get suckered in by Raidah.

    1. Yeet

      He’s been going a little overboard, but honestly it wouldn’t be working if Jennifer wasn’t just mad at him from the start for… Being invited to a thing he didn’t really want to do? Wearing normal college student clothes? Being honest about talking to his gf? Ordering breakfast?
      At a certain point she’s going to have to step back and ask herself why she’s so mad at him.
      Also, anyone else find it weird that she didn’t just… talk to Asher about making an excuse and not bringing Walky along in the first place?

      1. Sporky

        Walky has not “been going a little overboard”, he’s done literally nothing wrong. Jennifer is mad because he ordered a burger, so he defended his order (which he in no way was required to do) by reading the menu

        1. Vanessa

          He’s been a bit smug and enjoyed himself, when his assigned role with Jennifer has always been to be a loser and the butt of her jokes.

        2. Comic.phile

          Not allowing someone to belittle him and make him feel less than isn’t “going overboard.”

        3. Zero

          The way some people are describing Walky here makes him sound kind of like my mother. The only problem is that Jennifer is behaving exactly like my mother.

        4. Jamie

          Which is another example of the sheer overwhelming nature of Jennifer’s self-delusion. Walky gave her a nickname within 10 minutes of meeting her. He’s never fit into his “assigned role”.

        5. sdrainbow

          He’s clearly intentionally performing innocent actions with the full knowledge that they’re pushing her buttons. It’s literally “I’m not touching you”.

          Does that mean Jennifer isn’t overreacting? Of course not, she’s expending way more energy than his behavior warrants. I’d give him a 1/10 on the “trying to irritate her” scale, and her a 10/10 on the “being irritated” scale.

        6. Comic.phile

          It isn’t his fault that she gets irritated every time he breathes.

        7. sdrainbow

          someone has never had a little brother

        8. Schpoonman

          I was the 3rd of 5 kids, and when my younger siblings got on my nerves for breathing I was told to shut up because that was ridiculous.

          Jennifer is the one making a scene. This debacle is entirely her fault.

        9. sdrainbow

          Weird how I EXPLICITLY said that!

        10. Rogue 7

          I had two, and you know what? By the time I was a freshman in college I had gotten over that! Jennifer should to.

        11. Jamie

          It’s true. He’s responding politely to her interjections and it’s extremely irritating to her. Because, for all that Jennifer wishes otherwise, Walky has always had more class. Licking ketchup stains off his shirt included.

          I’ve been in Jennifer’s shoes here. I assure you. Walky has done nothing wrong.

        12. CMasta1992

          This is the correct take but it’s going to be too nuanced to be respected

        13. Schpoonman

          It’s got a single grain of truth in it. Walky has shown he’s more than capable of getting along with Jennifer and other people outside his normal sphere. Any amount of “acting out” right now is entirely on Jennifer’s head for refusing to let Walky be at all. She could have let the burger order go, but she had to make a scene at how embarrassing he was for ordering a menu item.

        14. Taffy

          What a paranoid take.

        15. Felgraf

          This is less “I’m not touching you” and more “MOM he’s looking out MY WINDOW”

        16. Dandi Andi

          I don’t think you’re necessarily wrong about the annoying little brother dynamic at work here; he’s clearly making a gremlin face as he taps there menu. But I do think your missing something important. “I’m not touching you” is all about violating someone else’s personal space. Walky isn’t violating her space. Jennifer is trying to push him out of this space or, failing that, to dictate the conditions for him to be there. That’s bullshit. She has no right to do so. Walky is just asserting his right to be there.

        17. Freemage

          Actually, this is precisely the issue for her. Jennifer has made it abundantly clear that she wishes to sever ties with her old dorm-mates. By accepting Raidah’s invitation, Walky ignored that desire for distance. To her mind, this constitutes ‘violating her space’. Thus, literally anything he does that reminds her of his presence upsets her.

          You can, of course, critique her for taking such a hard-line on abandoning her former associates, but honestly, I’ve seen much stronger ‘cuts’ made to people’s social circles after an ugly break-up.

        18. thejeff

          I’ve seen more thorough cuts, but I’ve never seen it happen where someone tries to cut off someone who’s much closer to them than to the ex. Walky has almost no connection to Ruth, but has grown up with Jennifer and has a very sibling like relationship with her. Though he still sees her other dormmates, she’s more important to him than most, maybe any of them.

          He’s also dating Jennifer’s roommate, which she encouraged, so the idea that she’s just upset because he’s in proximity doesn’t really fit.

          She’s upset because she thinks he’s embarrassing her in front of her mature friends.

        19. Yeet

          yeah, this
          overboard was definitely the wrong word, but he’s clearly matching her jackassery with totally not jackassery and a mildly smug air
          I don’t blame him though; jennifer started off mad because he was there and I don’t think he could actually have made it better so far
          now I wonder if he’ll connect the dots from how raidah’s treating jennifer and how he stood up for sal against his mom
          not likely but it would be a truly stunning turnaround

      2. Zero

        Yeah, that Walky. Reading the thing he wants off the menu to the waitress who just asked him to do that. He’s so dramatic.

    2. Puppeteer Nessus

      By George, this is what Dorothy was saying about him leaning into his dorkness

      1. BarerMender

        Yeah, fore-armed is… um… you know… fore-armed.

        1. Stanistani

          And fore-armed is half an octopus!

        2. Clif

          or 2/3rds of a hexopus.

    3. anon

      i’d hope he’d tell lucy that raidah is also a ‘social climber’ but i’d hope lucy would also steer him in the right direction too

    4. Needfuldoer

      I think she went into this looking for reasons to say to Raidah “this is why I don’t hang out with him much anymore”. She also wants to prove she’s changed to him and to herself, so she’s projecting a caricature of himself on him.

      Of course she’s 0 for 2 right now, so she’s digging her heels in and infantilizing him with this whole “don’t embarrass mom at the fancy restaurant” vibe.

      1. Norah

        Yes, Raidah thinks that it’s immature to act like

  15. Sol

    You can take the girl out of the drama, but you can’t take the drama out of the girl.

    1. cbwroses

      Especially when she prefers it to be pumped directly into her veins.

      1. Archieve

        I suspect since the side plot of Sal being annoyed at her fakeness went nowhere (drama wise) she has been subconscious waiting for something else to cause drama because its still her normal.

        1. darkgloomie

          Wrong drama-seeking girl. Malaya is the one with a chip on her shoulder about Sal. Jennifer here just thinks she’s owee better by the world

        2. Clif

          well, in her mind she’s left her immaturity behind and is hanging with the adults. But there’s no way for her mind to expand the definition of adult to include Walky. I sympathise while finding the situation hilarious.

  16. Stephen Bierce

    *cues up some Garth Brooks*

    1. Qube

      …friends in low places?

    2. Needfuldoer

      Walky can be big on social graces when he has to be.

  17. The Wellerman

    YES WALKY!!! Show us your ADHDemon Power!!!

    ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!! ✌️?

    1. The Wellerman

      *plays “Jadeite’s Theme” from Sailor Moon CD on hacked muzak*

  18. Bogeywoman

    “Walky’s being the same wise ass self he always has been instead of adopting a new persona to impress and be liked by other people the way I think I had to and I am mad about it.”

    1. sakamism

      Walky definitely goes out of his way to annoy her sometimes, but a big part of why he gets on Billie’s nerves is that he never stops being himself (and is almost incapable of being anything but himself) whereas Billie is constantly putting on personas, trying to manage people’s perception of her and trying to act “cool”, however she defines that at the moment. It makes her *really* annoying to me but I also forget sometimes how much it must suck to be that way. I hope we can see her grow out of it eventually

      1. Bogeywoman

        Agreed. Being unapologetically yourself can either uplift folk who admire that or put folk on edge if they value conformity or can’t accept themselves fully.

        1. Needfuldoer

          Or don’t have a definite “themselves” to be in the first place.

          Jennifer’s a social chameleon, and two of her worlds (and personae) are colliding:

          – Jennifer: friend and pseudo-sister to Walky, Lucy’s roommate and Queen of the Nerds
          – Jennifer, Asher’s girlfriend and new friend to Raidah and Carl

        2. Mr D

          I’d actually define Billie as “Fried and pseudo-sister to Walky, Lucy’s roomate and Queen of the Nerds” and Jennifer as “Asher’s Girlfriend and new friend to Raidah and Carl”, as far as Personas go.

        3. Needfuldoer

          She abandoned that persona a couple personality reboots ago.

        4. ischemgeek

          I’d go so far as to day she’s less a social chameleon and more a social shape-shifter. She’ll change everything from her fashion to diet and in some ways even her personality just to fit in with her crowd of choice.

          Ultimately I think what is pissing Jennifer off is she’ll twist herself into a pretzel to fit the mold she thinks others want her to, and Walky shows up bringing a sledgehammer to expected molds and others just accept him for it.

          Jennifer resents that Walky doesn’t have to put in all the work she does and is accepted unconditionally anyway. Meanwhile, she perceives that her acceptance, all through her life starting from early childhood, has only ever been conditional and dependent on her fitting the image others want her to. Even with the Walkertons, she’s accepted by Linda only because she’s “the respectable white passing daughter” Linda didn’t get with Sal. Jennifer rightly perceives if she steps out of her assigned role with anyone, they won’t accept her.

          (The sad part is Walky is probably the only person who’d accept her unconditionally no matter what, which is part of why she’s so nasty to him. I think she keeps trying to find out the limit of his acceptance towards her, not realizing there isn’t one because he loves her unconditionally. I think she and Walky grew up in really similar conditional acceptance environments and where Walky and Sal lean into their own identity with a subconscious “take it or leave it” attitude, Jennifer for her part takes the opposite approach by choosing to be whatever you like)

        5. Norah

          And Ruthless’s girlfriend, though this was a toxic relationship. But because of the abuse on both sides, no because they’re both girls.

        6. Norah

          “Not because “

      2. monkyvirus

        I kind of sympathise with Jennifer (though her actions are awful) but I have a slightly different motive. I am the sort of person who when I’m out and about doesn’t want any attention drawn to me (due to severe anxiety), so I have been harsh on people when I was younger when they were being “inappropriate” (read: not blending into the background). I managed to get a handle on it and can now it’s more of a running joke than me actually getting annoyed with my friends. I was obviously in the wrong trying to police people’s behaviour but I have felt that compulsion frequently.

        I see a similar thing here she’s like “just be normal or you’ll make me look bad” which is silly and unfair. Normal here being the term I think she would use, to her he sticks out by being what she views as immature.

    2. Archieve

      I wonder if the fact that Radiah and Carl continue to act accepting will be the tip off for Jennifer that they haven’t been honest with her either. I’ve no doubt they agreed with Jennifer on these arbitrary standards in the past.

  19. MisterJinKC

    I’m more than a bit concerned about the power Raidah appears to hold over Billie. Those.last panels of Billie’s facial expressions make me think Raidah has blackmail of some kind or something. Saying someone’s first name only and having that be enough to control them is normally a parental right only. And those are usually abusive ones.

    1. GoingOnABearHunt

      The black mail is just the fact that she is that Billie sees her as popular, successful, confident, and she wants to be in on the secret clubhouse. Billie doesn’t need to be blackmailed, when her desperation to feel like important and “cool” is all the incentive she needs to compromise basically anything.

    2. Sirksome

      I doubt she has blackmail on Jennifer. More like Raidah holds power as the “leader” of the group and most “adult” one there, so Jennifer submits to her in the pecking order whether this actually reflect any real truth. Jen does this to herself because Raidah symbolizes ideals she values.

    3. Yeet

      While I doubt we’re heading into a blackmail storyline, “I found your kit fisto fanfiction and I’ll show everyone what you wrote when you were 14” would be pretty effective probably

      1. Laura

        That’s kind of Jennifer’s problem. She sees herself as the Mary Sue of her own fanfic.
        http://wondermark.com/1k76/
        And she becomes filled with impotent rage and anguish when the real world doesn’t turn out the way she planned it: with herself as the hero, in the center of it all.

    4. JA

      I think it’s more that Jennifer has this idea of what being an adult means and entails (and being in this little exclusive club bringing even more obligations), along with wanting to move on from her past and go in a new direction. Then Walky comes in and slots right in with no effort and flouting the rules Jennifer laid out for herself, and it’s upending her new worldview and reality.

      1. Sirksome

        This articulates exactly what I think is going on. I just don’t understand why it’s something worth celebrating.

      2. CMasta1992

        Yeah I think if I’d spent my entire freshman winter break reinventing myself and it working enough to get to be in a group that matches a vision I have for myself and then someone from my past gets to be their original self and rewarded for it that would grind my gears too.

        Not saying Walky has done anything wrong other than somewhat intentionally pissing her off as is just his known dynamic with her but Jennifer is falling into her old role with him too which is clashing hard with her attempted new life.

        1. Caspar Mulders

          I’d be much more worried about “[spending] winter break reinventing myself [i.e., building a fake persona] and it working enough to get to be in a group that matches a vision I have for myself [c.q. being admitted into a particularly nasty clique]”

          Just because someone aspires to something, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a good aspiration, and ends don’t justify means.

    5. Jed!

      Back when Jennifer joined Raidah’s group, there was another character who kept saying Jennifer should lose weight, and then a time skip shows she’s gone. I think Raidah tends to discard members of her social circle when they’re not useful and somebody else is ready to join. It could be that Jennifer thinks she’ll be tossed out for Walky.

      1. Archieve

        And before her there was that other friend (chan?) who had apparently been discarded before Halloween. Radiah says she has an exclusive ‘adult’ clique but it only seems so exclusive because she hasn’t held onto any old friends besides Carl.

        1. thejeff

          I suspect Char and Chan are still around, just isolated from whatever plan Raidah has going with Jennifer. They can’t be trusted to pretend to care about Kit Fisto.

  20. GoingOnABearHunt

    People are commenting about how Walky is needling or tormenting Billie. But he literally is just ordering a burger and not letting her attempts to shame and humiliate him bring down his mood. Her definition of Walky being a jackass is just him refusing to be a victim she can feel superior to.

    1. anon

      yeah i imagine it’d only be an issue if he had ordered ‘one of everything’ (which i imagine doesn’t happen too often unless someone’s super rich or super stoned or like that one youtuber group that spends all day ordering everything off the menu for a food review lol

    2. DojimaKojima

      Yea. He only insulted her since that interaction though, its just Jennifer finding things to be mad about.

      1. DojimaKojima

        He only insulted her *once outside. (still figuring out how to link things)

        1. Dana

          I feel like that was barely an insult, and he should only be faulted for it because he knows Jennifer well enough to know she would take it as one.

        2. Dave

          I feel like this ribbing pales to the actual insulting Jennifer did in the strip prior. In fact, one might say said ribbing was a direct response to her openly being an asshole to him.

    3. Amós Batista

      yeah, it’s not like he shove Jennifer in a corner and kissed her…

      1. Clif

        That’s Ruth’s job.

  21. newlland(Henryvolt)

    Just be cool and order food.

  22. RassilonTDavros

    Ah, there’s the Billingsworth I know and love.

    1. Straximus

      I love that this is posted from an account with a Ruth avatar.

  23. Sporky

    Jennifer shooting herself in the foot yet again, even when the way to avoid it would be to literally not do anything

  24. Axel

    I don’t understand what’s going on with Jennifer. Like, I get that her and Walky antagonize each other a bit, and that she can be very reactive, and that sometimes something can just set you off at the wrong time, but at the same time like… it’s breakfast. Tease him for ordering a burger or whatever, but WHY ARE WE RAISING OUR VOICES

    1. Alongcameaspider

      I think she came into this primed for Walky to embarass her, she wasn’t prepared for the group to be okay with Walky being Walky

      1. Laura

        Yes, it’s confirmation bias. You think of the phrase “bad wolf” and suddenly, you see the phrase everywhere.

        1. Clif

          You’ve noticed it too.

        2. Laura

          https://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/Bad_Wolf_meme

    2. Sporky

      She’s just that obsessed with in-group and out-group bullshit that doesn’t matter. Walky ordering a burger isn’t “sophisticated”, so she flips out, because she thinks that her social status hinges on her being seen as sophisticated and she doesn’t want to be associated with Walky

      1. monkyvirus

        I think that’s right on the money.

        I used to be a bit like Jennifer here when I was younger because I didn’t want attention drawn to me. So I wanted anyone I was in public with to try and blend into the background as much as I was. I thankfulky got a handle on it and never yelled at anyone.

        I think her motive is slightly different she doesn’t want him to embarrass her in front of Raidah through association. But she’s gone totally off the rails and just started criticising for no reason.

        Additionally there may be some jealousy, Walky can be himself and it appears that Raidah dgaf, but Jennifer felt like she had to develop a new persona to join the group and even then Raidah shuts her down in this strip like a parent.

  25. UrsulaDavina

    So Radiah is giving me some cult leader vibes right now, silencing someone by saying their name is creepy to me.

    1. anon

      well, she has to practice to be able to get her future clients to shut up and not put their foot in their mouths but i just thought it was classic “mean girl leader” behavior and billie isn’t the “alpha bongo” for once in the group

      1. Azhrei Vep

        I just read this as her having perfected ‘Mom Voice’ early.

        Some people have that gift, and must be used wisely. Otherwise you end up being a Raidah.

  26. Sirksome

    I don’t get why this is such a big win? Like effortlessly crushing a friends attempt at emotional progress even if unintentional doesn’t seem like a big W to me. I know Jennifer is unlikeable but she is actually trying to be a better person even if for spiteful reasons. She has stopped drinking, and is at east shallowly attempting to have less drama in her life. Her failing her reads more like a tragedy to me.

    1. GoingOnABearHunt

      She is not trying to be a better person. She is trying to make Walky feel small and inferior completely unprovoked, and enraged that her new pals aren’t joining in on her attempts to sacrifice her childhood friend like a lamb in an attempt to have, what, the chance for an ounce of approval?

      1. Vanessa

        No one is going along with the script that’s it’s JENNIFER’s usual role to be effortlessly smug and to crush the spirits of nerds like Lucy and Walky. That’s both why she’s so mad and why this turnaround is so delicious.

        1. Sirksome

          I think there’s a difference in how we’re reading these interactions which is fair.

          To me Jennifer isn’t trying to bully Walky. She’s clearly trying to act like what she thinks an “adult” is like her new friend group. All her criticism of Walky has been trying to communicate that he should act more like an “adult”.

          But Walky smugly counters with “Nah, I’m fine doing whatever.” Which works. Her friends like him. Maybe even more than her soon.

          This is what frustrates her and why this is sad. This isn’t Walky turning the tables on Jennifer for bullying him. This is Jennifer destroying herself socially because she can’t move past the emotions Walky provokes from her when they interact. And Walky knows this too.

        2. Council

          –And what business of Walky’s is that? Jennifer is actively attacking him. She’s repeatedly tried to burn every bridge with him. The moment we see some reflection, even the merest acknowledgement she is in the wrong, she may get some wider sympathy. Until then, you’re firmly in the minority.

          There are few bigger victories than allowing someone hostile to you to fail by doing absolutely nothing but your bare minimum. In the past, Walky would have folded. Hell, I’d bet his now fading slob-like lifestyle came about in part because Jen berated everything genuine he’d ever done. He’s growing, like Jennifer’s pretending to be, and leaving her in the dirt, when he would have happily taken her with him if she let him be her friend. This is all her fault, and good riddance.

        3. CMasta1992

          She’s not pretending. She’s trying and not succeeding there is a marked difference. A huge part of college is trying on different hats until you find who you really are and part of that is attempting to be a vision of yourself that you may not actually fall into.

          Jennifer I think legitimately wants to leave Billie and all that entails behind and this is her first attempt and interacting with someone who is firmly from the Billie era reveals cracks in the transition. This isn’t about Walky or Jennifer being wrong, this is just a part of the college experience.

        4. Council

          I’d disagree on that point, strongly so. Jennifer is willfully ignorant about how personal growth works. She’s gotten a nice haircut, dropped a nickname, dug a shallow hole for all her trauma to go into, grabbed a hot boyfriend, found herself a new friend group, each of whom are sketchy as all get out, and actively ditched the old one with no provocation or thought given to which ones to keep, because the new one has debatably better PR.

          This isn’t how you improve. This is putting up neon signs around your head.

          And I have nothing but contempt for self-deception. Jennifer has everything she needs to get her head out of her backside, take her time to think, and realize the crucial differences between improvement and a new coat of paint. She chooses not to.

        5. Council

          Like, take the nickname for example. We had a whole flashback for that. She adopted it because of peer pressure, and that’s real sh*tty. If she needed to wash her hands clean of it to rid herself of her need to conform over her own best interest, more power to her.

          But that’s not actually what she did, is it? The nickname was never the actual problem. It was a sign of something bad that happened to her at one point. So she got rid of it and pretends the problem is solved. But she still as obsessed with appearances and fitting in as she’s always been.

        6. Council

          Like, what’s even the alternative? Do you think Walky should take her aside and explain? Their relationship didn’t work that way at the best of times. Should the dinner party pivot to become her therapy group so she can handle basic social interaction? I get that it’s sad, but f’s sake, the world doesn’t revolve around rich girls with every resource to get over their own bs. No one else owes it to her to fix it in her place.

        7. Sirksome

          There is no alternative. There is no right and wrong side. That’s not the point at all. The best thing that can happen here is for Jennifer to leave. No one is blaming Walky for anything. If anyone is really to blame it’s probably Raidah for orchestrating this scenario that benefits no one but her. (Unless she’s paying for the meal). My problem is people trying to make Jennifer’s failure her as some sort of comeuppance she deserved for trying to move on with her life.

        8. Clif

          That’s an interesting point. Raidah invited Walky and his girlfriend to brunch, which in Walky’s mind (and mine as well) is an offer to pay for it. But Raidah may have just meant come eat with us. In which case Jennifer is likely to be the one who pays for Walky’s breakfast.

        9. thejeff

          Or Walky pays for it himself, even if he wasn’t expecting too.

        10. Council

          Alright. That’s a solid position. And I’d call it a “right” thing to do, too. It would save Jen a lot of dignity.

          Absolutely not on the “Jennifer tried” camp, though. See my reply to CMasta saying the same thing, just a bit further up.

        11. Zal

          Honestly it is a bit sad that Jennifer is acting this way, and in the spirit of wishing the best for her, I hope this whole interaction finally shakes her to the core enough that she can actually reflect on this incredibly regressive vision of a “mature” friend group looks like. Genuinely I do. And hopefully start to break out of it and actually live a little more authentically. Because she is just so stuck on this incredibly superficial idea of social capital that high-school ingrained in her and she has spent the entire lifetime of the comic chasing this dream that she perceives as the “coolest” friend group.

          Like literally the first major interaction we see between them is Jennifer telling Walky off because they aren’t “in the same social circle”, which she has thoroughly proven meant “I’m better than you”. That is not a good attitude to have.

        12. GoingOnABearHunt

          What you described is EXACTLY why this is not Walkys fault and why it is entirely and solely Billie’s problem for being an asshole.

    2. Sporky

      “Attempt at emotional progress” my ass.

      1. The Wellerman

        Yeah might just be my lack of ability to read subtle social cues, but I’m just not seeing it (*_*)

    3. anon

      I don’t think walky considers it a ‘victory’, he’s just being himself, but a bit ‘extra cocky’ as prompted by dorothy

      But if she did spiral backwards into alcohol because of walky i’m sure he’d feel awful about it

      1. Azhrei Vep

        I think he sees a minor victory in getting the group ‘mom’ to scold Jennifer for being mad at him. It’s a very sibling thing to do.

        He’s probably not doing a victory dance in his head or anything, but that little smirk is about an appropriate amount of celebration for that level of a win.

    4. Sam

      Jennifer has literally come into this attacking Walky for how he dresses, what he orders, and basically just for existing.

      There is literally NOTHING Walky could do that would not provoke her as Jennifer is trying to maintain a precarious position that she is inherently better than him in every way.

      She hasn’t ACTUALLY grown, that’s the point. She changed the labels of what makes her ‘better’ than people from ‘cheerleading’ to ‘being mature’ and ‘adult’, where she still has the exact same internal problem of if she doesn’t feel superior, she feels worthless. We’ve literally been shown before that she still craves high school drama and the power of having stuff that others don’t that makes them jealous.

      Jennifer painted the rose red, she didn’t uproot it and plant something else, she threw some paint on it and told herself it is different now, when the thorns and roots are still the same as they always were.

    5. Mr.Morningstar

      Jennifer is the one with the issue, Walky hasn’t even done anything wrong, he’s ordering what he wants dressing in the way he’s comfy ( and still looks nice) and only biting back at Jennifer when she gives him shit

      Besides she isn’t making emotional progress, she’s doubling down on alpha bongo head cheerleader and wants to be superior to, especially Walky, so him doing just fine pisses her off

    6. Devin

      Rejection of what came before is not the same as an attempt to improve, even shallowly. Insistence that she’s changed when in fact she’s shown almost no signs of improvement is just denial. I grant that we haven’t seen her drink since the timeskip, but I’m not yet sure I’m willing to believe that actually quit.

      I don’t see any victory here per se, and Jennifer’s entire story is sad. But it’s difficult to sympathize with her when she’s so often just unrepentantly mean.

    7. Needfuldoer

      It’s not a big win for Walky, it’s a big self-own for Jennifer. She’s jumping on an opportunity to call him out for being an irreverent goofball, but that’s actually just projection.

    8. Queezle

      Yes, I am both annoyed with Jennifer and feel sorry for her. I think she is acting horribly but seeing someone self-destruct like that is always kind of sad.

  27. Bogeywoman

    Also, props to DW for colour choices. Clothing complements the characters’ skin undertones and is quite nice

    1. Hazel

      I noticed that, too. Especially the contrast between Lucy and Raidah, very nice.

  28. Angel

    Jennifer and Walky really have that Lady Yells At Cat meme vibe today.

    1. StClair

      I was just thinking of that.

    2. newlland(Henryvolt)

      Oh that’s a nice one.

  29. DarkoNeko

    ( ＾◡＾)

  30. Yotomoe

    Luigi wins by doing nothing.

    1. Mr D

      Jennifer is shooting the blue shell while in first place.

      1. The Wellerman

        I think we need much more blue shell mechanisms in real life, for equality’s sake, and to keep the whole game we call life all the more interesting:

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFfga8-3SZI

  31. Switchchris

    She really can’t handle the fact that Walky is very Likeable, even more then her sometimes, he has a chill vibe that is always wafting off of him that makes everybody around him (except her) feel more chill or willing to accept him lol.

    1. anon

      Yeah, a ‘popular’ girl whose used to being liked, while someone being goofy is having a fun time with your clique would get under jen’s skin, even though
      raidah’s got ulterior motives

  32. anon

    Waitress: So, should I make your order a to go/takeout, or…?

  33. JA

    Back up here. Why can’t I, as an adult, order a burger and fries for breakfast?

    1. Comic.phile

      Right?? Who ruled that breakfast has to always be eggs or some such?

      1. DarkoNeko

        blergh, if eggs are on the table and there’s no viable argument to forbid any other salty food 😀

    2. anon

      you can, but jennifer is just being uptight and thinking walky is being ‘immature’ ordering something that’s not technically a ‘breakfast order’ (tho i mean, bacon and eggs even the ‘fancier’ kind can also be associated with younger kids lol)

      1. JA

        Wait what? Since when is bacon and eggs considered kids’ food? Who are these adults out there who seem to just hate life?

        1. Taffy

          Incredibly insecure losers whose entire being hinges on conforming strictly to rules and guidelines shoved onto them by themselves.

        2. Clif

          Humanity you say.

    3. Azhrei Vep

      Depends entirely on where you are. If they aren’t serving them that early at the venue, that’s why.

      Otherwise? Pffft, fuck that noise, order up and enjoy. Maybe toss a in a fruit bowl or something for some more long-lasting energy though, just to start your day off right. Apple’s real good for that. Perfect dessert!

      1. Ed Callahan

        I guess my wife and I won’t be inviting Jennifer the next time we go to our favorite brunch place. Last time we went early but she still got a BLT, with more bacon than I ever knew existed.

    4. Erica

      You absolutely can

  34. Blume

    He knows exactly how to push her buttons. Which annoys me too. Sure, he isn’t doing much. But what he is doing, it feels like he knows it’ll annoy Jennifer. I guess this is a justified revenge, but I’m not into seeing others embarrass themselves.

    1. Comic.phile

      He’s done nothing but exist and defend himself when she’s attacked him.

      1. sakamism

        Exactly. Don’t understand how this can be seen as anything but a self-inflicted L for Jennifer. Like, what else is Walky supposed to do? Accept her attempts to demean him and start acting more meekly when he’s done nothing wrong?

        1. sdrainbow

          begging y’all to have some nuance

          walky’s not doing anything wrong but he’s still totally intentionally ribbing jennifer

          it’s not either/or

        2. Bittersweet

          Yeah, but what is he supposed to do in the situation? He either ribs her by responding or clams up and looks at his hands the whole time. There isn’t a middle ground here for him to go to, he annoyed her by breathing. Should he have changed his order completely because someone else found it annoying? Hell no.

        3. sdrainbow

          That’s what I mean by “he’s not doing anything wrong”

          Nothing about his behavior is inappropriate, I’m just pointing out that he one hundred percent realizes it’s getting under Jennifer’s skin. Look at his face in the last panel of yesterday’s strip – you don’t get that smug because you’re “triumphantly being yourself” or whatever.

        4. Taffy

          Okay and then fucking what? This is exhausting. Yes, he’s aware that Billie loathes him for drawing breath. AND? Should he stop drawing bweath fow speciaw pwincess? Should he leave, which would probably just lead to Raidah saying “good job scaring off a potential asset, you idiot” and Billie being embarassed anyway?

        5. sdrainbow

          “then fucking what”? Then whatever happens next, fucking what. I’m not the writer, I’m not a tribunal delivering judgment, I’m a reader noting my interpretation of the characters’ motivations.

          I don’t think he IS aware that Jennifer (nice lack of respect for her preferences, by the way, really showing your colors here) “loathes him for drawing breath”, largely because I don’t think that’s true. I think he IS misjudging just how deeply his pseudo-sibling ribbing is knocking her off balance.

        6. sdrainbow

          double commenting because, as usual, I forgot there’s no edit function –

          I’ve been on record since this whole thing started that Walky should have walked away from the breakfast. I don’t think Jennifer’s a villain, but I damn sure think Raidah is, so yes, I DO think Walky should get up and leave, preferably in a way that gives Lucy a graceful out and lets her know that something is Wrong.

        7. Taffy

          Alright, well thank you for clearing this up. I was genuinely confused and you’ve clarified beautifully.

          Although I admit to not understanding the “(nice lack of respect for her preferences, by the way, really showing your colors here)” part very well. Not super sure what you mean by that part.

        8. Devin

          They’re referring to calling her Billie instead of Jennifer.

        9. Taffy

          Oh? In that case, whatever. She’s not real, I don’t have to apply real-world behavioral standards to myself for her. Real people get whatever name they pick, fictional ones get whatever I type.

        10. Schpoonman

          Not calling Jennifer “Jennifer” when she’s gone by a different name for most of her 20+ years in existence as a comic strip character isn’t deadnaming her.

        11. Clif

          It’s polite to use someone’s preferred name and I suppose that applies to fictional someone’s as well. Though the fictional characters aren’t likely to get upset at you being rude to them, real people can get upset on their behalf.

          The exception to this is that if you have a good relationship with someone you can get away with calling Taffy, Tiffy or Tuffy or even Taf, cause that’s what friends do. Rules are relaxed almong friends which is something I’ve always felt about half the commentary doesn’t really get, which in turn makes me wonder if they’ve ever had friends, but not really.

        12. Taffy

          Real people can absolutely get upset at me on behalf of a fictional character for using the character’s most commonly used name. They’d be silly to do it, but it’s still technically possible.

          Preferred names matter when the owner of the name is real. The implication that I need to apply my real-human standards to a cartoon character is absurd and unhinged.

        13. thejeff

          I don’t think it being fictional makes all the difference. If it was a fictional trans character and someone made a big deal of deadnaming them, I’d assume they were making a point and saying “but they’re fictional so it doesn’t matter” wouldn’t be a defense.
          I don’t think it’s really the same with Jennifer, though some of those going “I don’t accept her name change because I think she’s just posing” or similar sentiments make me look a bit askance.
          Otherwise, I think it’s kind of good practice to accept it in a case like this one, but also not to make too much of a fuss about it, unless someone’s displaying shitty motives for doing so. Which I don’t see from Taffy here.

        14. Mark

          Or he just ignores her gambit and talks with the rest of the table about something else, like it never happened.

    2. The Wellerman

      Not sure if this is “revenge” though. I think you earthlings call this “comeuppance”?

      1. Azhrei Vep

        I don’t think it’s revenge either. Walky’s just messing with her a little, and probably didn’t expect or even really want a reaction this extreme … but he does find it a little funny. For now.

        I personally think that if she starts to get any worse, he may actually get worried for her. But that’s for the future. Right now the group “Mom” just gave big sis the bad voice because she’s complaining about him doing nothing annoyingly, and that’s worth a smug grin if anything is.

      2. Clif

        Why do you alien viruses always call us earthlings when we are clearly not dimutive earths. Surely you could call us by our proper title, Earthians.

        1. Clif

          Or since earth is just another word for dirt, you could call us Clods. Show some respect.

        2. The Wellerman

          Alright, Clod. 🙂

          BTW for future reference “virus” is not synonymous with parasite. Viruses are non-sentient (technically non-living) pieces of DNA/RNA wrapped in protein capsids.

        3. Clif

          Noted. I would argue about viruses not being living, but it’s a minor point.

        4. Mark

          Terrans. Tellurians. Sol-III autochthons.

  35. Amós Batista

    Jennifer get expelled by Raidah, that put Walky in rhe place will be very hard to see…

  36. Freezer

    And David Walkerton takes the gold in Button Pushing!

  37. legsandgreen

    I’m so happy. I will momentarily put my disdain for Raidah away, because of her weird position of authority over Jennifer, lol.

  38. cbwroses

    Is Jennifer having her “Stop trying to make ‘fetch’ a thing” moment?

    1. Taffy

      She’s having a “Stop trying to make ‘breathing’ a thing” moment, more like.

  39. Icalasari

    Man, she is self destructing hard

  40. Danae Jay, Local Gay

    The part of late childhood where you’re very obsessed with appearing to be a very serious adult, for reasons.

  41. sdrainbow

    Maybe I can put this another way.

    This reminds of, like, Dash and his teacher from the Incredibles. Or maybe the teacher from the Fairly Oddparents but I am much less familiar with that show. I feel like there’s also got to be an example with Hawkeye and Frank from M*A*S*H, but it’s been long enough I can’t think of a specific example.

    In all these interactions, you’ve got one person who is, to all appearances, performing normal, everyday interactions, and another who is going COMPLETELY off the deep end for no apparent reason.

    The “Walky” in each situation is, at worst, guilty of stirring the pot a little bit, being a little bit cheeky. The “Jennifer” in each situation is explosively reacting completely out of proportion. There’s a bit of dramatic irony inherent here because the audience knows WHY the “Jennifer” is exploding so hard, but the characters don’t.

    I’m not trying to make Walky a villain or Jennifer a victim, but I don’t think it’s quite fair to paint Walky as a be-haloéd saint here either.

    1. Icalasari

      His smile in this strip confirms it. That’s the Little Sibling I’m-Not-Touching-You smile

      1. James

        Not wrong, but also Jennifer basically came into this situation kind of determined to be annoyed at Walky. There’s realistically nothing he could do or not do that wouldn’t be winding her up.

        1. Zal

          literally the first major interaction we see between them is Jennifer telling Walky off because they aren’t “in the same social circle”, which she has thoroughly proven meant “I’m better than you”. Likely this whole situation is figuratively killing her.

    2. Dave

      I would put more stock into this interpretation if Jennifer hadn’t been openly hostile to Walky from the moment he arrived. Walky hasn’t started “stirring the pot” out of nowhere; every bit of ribbing from him has been in direct response to Jennifer attempting to denigrate him in the eyes of her peers. The “reacting out of proportion” comparison doesn’t work because Jennifer isn’t reacting, she’s the INSTIGATOR.

      1. Dave

        …I’m not sure why that link isn’t clickable but it was meant to go to https://www.dumbingofage.com/2023/comic/book-13/03-joementum/trying

      2. sdrainbow

        You don’t buy the interaction of “Jennifer opens with aggression, so Walky retaliates with passive aggression”? That doesn’t seem realistic to you?

        1. Schpoonman

          …That still makes it Jennifer’s fault. The vast majority of their relationship has been her taking potshots at Walky for the crime of not kowtowing to her every “I want to be popular” whim, and him not lying down and taking it means he’s actually part of the problem? What the fuck comic are you people reading?

        2. Schpoonman

          I am an incredibly stupid idiot and forgot Jennifer is Chinese and “kowtow” is probably the worst worst I could have used there. Been playing Pokemon and I have a Kingambit, but I’m still the asshole because I had a moment of “wait, isn’t this word charged?” and used it anyway. I’m sorry.

        3. The Oracle

          Until you said it was charged, I didn’t even realize that was a real word. I thought it was one of those borderline onomatopoeia words like “hornswoggle” or “fumfer”, that sorta fit the general spirit of a sentence.

        4. Clif

          I can’t believe you actually said f#mf#r.

        5. The Oracle

          Wait until I say it even louder.

        6. sdrainbow

          I literally have repeatedly said that Jennifer is at fault here. I don’t get how y’all keep coming back like I’m saying Walky is “a sinister manipulator” – direct quote!

          Im just saying Walky is doing this on purpose. That’s it.

    3. Felgraf

      Okay but Jennifer has been making fun of him SINCE HE SHOWED UP. Making fun of his clothes, etc. (What, do you think he *coordinated* with Asher for them to show up in matching clothing?)

      This is not Walky going “I’m not touching you”. This is Jennifer going “MOM, HE LOOKED OUT MY WINDOW” on the car trip.

      1. Icalasari

        I see it as the “I’m not touching you” in terms of, “I don’t even have to do anything to peeve you but give you the LOOK”. Basically, he knows he’s getting under her skin, is relishing it, probably is egging it on a little by hitting the right buttons, but knows this is ALL on her

        1. The Oracle

          Okay, so the worst thing he can be accused of is willfully existing near Jenny.

        2. Icalasari

          Pretty much, yeah. It’s great because it’s all on Jennifer

    4. Tan

      It is worth noting that, in The Incredibles, Dash is in fact doing something wrong; the teacher just can’t prove it.

      Literally all Walky is doing is having a perfectly reasonable answer to every unsolicited criticism Jennifer throws at him. He looks like he isn’t doing anything… Because he isn’t doing anything. There is no hidden aspect.

      1. Icalasari

        He is stirring the pot a little, just in understandable ways. The smug grin, the tapping the menu, etc.

        It’s like, “Well yeah you egged her on a little, but jeeze I would too if she was flipping out over nothing at me like this”

        1. Azhrei Vep

          It’s in rare moments like this that I wish this comic had an official audio version. I’d put down fifty bucks that Walky’s voice in every response to Jennifer recently would have been smugly fake-innocent, and it would be even more hilarious.

        2. Needfuldoer

          He’s hitting back! He’s not supposed to hit back! He’s supposed to order a grown-up breakfast like a real grown-up (because that’s what grown-ups do)! He can’t just order a burger for breakfast! That’s childish! This isn’t McDonald’s!

          Why won’t he just roll over and take being shoved into lockers the infantilization like a good little goofball dweeb Jennifer’s too good to tolerate now that she’s back on the social ladder? Doesn’t he understand she’s trying to look good here?

          /S

        3. Taffy

          You reminded me of my school days, when hitting back was legitimately considered worse than being the one who started hitting in the first place. Even if we had visible bruises, split lips, damaged clothes, whatever, and the other guy’s hair was barely ruffled. And also, even if we didn’t fight back and just took it, we’d get punished worse than the troublemaker because “You were both involved in a fight”.

        4. Needfuldoer

          That’s a whole other bag of seething rage I’d rather leave tied off for another time…

          Fucking negligent, lazy school administration is what it is.

        5. JBento

          Oh wow, this brings back memories, none of them good. Still, “the people in charge are more interested in protocol than justice” was a super-useful lesson for me to learn when I was 7.

        6. Zero

          It’s weird how many of the comments here are about my mother.

        7. Dot

          For all of Billie’s efforts to make herself seem mature and adult, she still hasn’t realized that being an adult means you can order a burger for breakfast.

          Walky has.

        8. Tan

          Okay, yes, to be clear, he is absolutely delivering his retorts with sass. Which, again, is not hidden. Everyone at the table can hear and see and understand the sass just fine. What I’m saying is that Walky didn’t actually do anything to prompt Jennifer to come at him in the first place. It looks like Jennifer started it and like Jennifer is responsible for every step of escalation because she objectively did and is.

          Just because living well is the best revenge doesn’t mean the person living well is actually wronging the other person by doing so.

        9. Needfuldoer

          Yes! She’s getting exactly the replies she deserves.

        10. sdrainbow

          If this isn’t in response to me, I apologize – it’s hard to tell when threads get this long

          That said, this is in support of my interpretation, not in opposition to it. Jennifer is going 10/10 aggro in response to Walky’s 1/10 passive aggression.

  42. DarkoNeko

    Raidah going boss mode. You’re gonna take that lying down, Jennie ?

    1. Clif

      She already has.

  43. Icalasari

    Adding onto this now, I love Walky’s smile there. He knows damned well he’s untouchable right now

    1. Needfuldoer

      And he’s relishing every moment.

  44. PirateTawnee

    Walky in panel 6 is giving me strong “Ford Prefect exuding calm and peace right before he snaps a deers neck to eat it in Life, The Universe, and Everything” vibes.

  45. Fox

    I don’t see Walky intentionally needling her, I see him defending himself and enjoying her over the top reactions because he won’t take her shit anymore. Jennifer is being a raging lunatic here.

    1. Zuzi

      Yeah, I view this as Walky just defaulting to their past relationship structure of “annoying immature brother & exasperated mature sister” and Jennifer doesn’t want that and views him as a threat to her standing in this friend group
      And is handling it the same way she handles a lot of things, badly

    2. Alex

      I wouldn’t say he’s doing anything wrong but I certainly wouldn’t say he’s making any attempt to deescalate.

      1. Scruffy looking nerfherder

        He’s not doing anything he needs to stop to deescalate, sure he’s being a snarky butthole, but he’s only doing it in response to Jennifer’s constant antagonism of him. It’s not his duty to be unyielding nice to somebody attacking him at every avenue.

      2. JBento

        This notion that people who have done absolutely nothing wrong are somehow the ones responsible for making things better for jackasses intent on controlling their lives needs to die in the fiery pits of hell.

      3. Needfuldoer

        It’s all Walky’s fault because he was the one who insisted on… *shuffles notes* ordering a hamburger with caramelized onions.

  46. newlland(Henryvolt)

    I feel like this current subplot perfectly addresses the “Walky” problem so many people seem to have. His mear existence seems to drive certain people up a wall.

    like come on the man is just ordering food, if him doing it with confidence makes you pop a blood vessel that’s more of a you problem.

    1. Taffy

      Yeah but it annoys Billie, which somehow makes it intentional wrongdoing on his part.

    2. Zal

      To me this interaction seems to encapsulate Jennifer’s entire arc thus far. She is very much still stuck in high-school, where it is all about putting on a mask and acting “mature” and “adult-like” and that is the way to be cool. Where as college, at least in my experience, was where everyone was allowed to simultaneously throw away those masks and try to live more authentically. And that was way more cool than anyone still trying to be superficial, because it just didn’t matter anymore. Plus confidence is always cool.

  47. Archieve

    It’s really obvious at this point that Jennifer hasn’t been made aware of the “act nice no matter what” plan regarding Walky. Also Asher seems like he’d rather just sit back and watch then get involved, I wonder if this will be another issue Jennifer has that her own boyfriend doesn’t have her back.

    1. Taffy

      What I wanna know is, what “back” is there for him to have, here?

      1. Laura

        He could just put his arm around her back. That might be reassuring enough to help her calm down and recenter herself. That would be one way to have her back.

        1. Taffy

          Yeah and then half the comments accuse him of sexual assault.

        2. Laura

          Maybe. But since they have a preexisting sexual relationship I think there’s a little leeway for a gentle side-hug.

        3. Taffy

          You might be onto something, here.

        4. Francoinblanco

          If he do that tomorrow’s headlines: Asher controls the girl through physical uninvited contact because he felt she was out of control of her female emotions and needs male intervention

        5. Laura

          Well, perhaps. But I used to do that for my hubby all the time back when we would have dinner with his parents. They would always say something nasty and mean, and I just put my arm around his back as a reminder that I still had his back. There’s something to be said for wordless physical contact. Everyone could use a hug sometimes.

        6. Taffy

          It really is unfortunate how isolated people are from each other, all because physical contact is seen as a weakness.

        7. eh, whatever

          Well, not everyone; I’ve met people who can’t stand being touched at all, they freak the fuck out. But.

        8. Azhrei Vep

          Whatever’s got a point. Some people find that kind of thing super uncomfortable (hi!), but … I’m pretty sure Jennifer isn’t one of them. Or Asher.

        9. Needfuldoer

          No touchy! No touchy! No touch.

        10. Taffy

          Y’know, I’d much rather deal with someone who can’t stand being touched than one of those invasive weirdos who absolutely hhhaaaasss to touch at all times or else be reduced to a quivering wreck. The no-contact people can just say “No” and I’ll fuck off and we can get back to lunch or whatever, whereas the all-contact type has never once stopped before I felt cornered and lashed out.

        11. Laura

          OK. I stand corrected. I’m sorry. I should have known better than to make generalizations like that. I do understand that many folks prefer not to touch or be touched. Saying “Everyone could use a hug sometimes” was boorish, neuronormative, and insensitive. I apologize.

        12. Clif

          At one time I wore a button at Science Fiction conventions that said AUTOMATIC HUG MACHINE. PRESS HERE. And then in the fine print, “at your own risk.”

          During the entire time I wore it, only one person I didn’t know pushed the button. I held my arms wide with a manic look on my face and she screamed. I gave her a slow gentle hug and she said “that was nice.”

          I never saw her again.

          My gay friends, who knew that I wasn’t, always made a point of pushing the button and collecting their hug.

    2. thejeff

      Of course she hasn’t been made aware, any more aware than she’s been made of the “pretending to care about Kit Fisto” plan. That’s because it’s all the same plan and she’s part of the target.

      Which casts a slightly different light on this whole scene. Raidah (and Carl, but who cares about Carl) aren’t going to react badly whatever Walky does, so the whole “Walky’s just being himself and people like him” isn’t necessarily true. They’re faking it.

      1. Laura

        Very true!

  48. Acher4

    Oh yes def, this day/storyline will end with murder. 😛

  49. DiktatrSquid

    Jennifer is being more stuck up than Raidah ever was. She’s trying so hard to be “better” on some arbitrary scale than her former peers. I’m going to enjoy seeing her implode on herself.

    1. thejeff

      Nah, Raidah’s worse. Jennifer’s at least being open about it, even if she’s been silly.
      Raidah’s going to laugh at that stunted man-child’s jokes whatever she thinks about him.

      1. Needfuldoer

        [Malaya, seated at a nearby table, turns around]
        “A-HA! Fakey!”

  50. Zal

    I mean Walky is definitely doing this at least in part just to annoy her, but she also entered into this situation unnecessarily hostile towards his presence. Both of those things can be true at the same time.

    1. sdrainbow

      Careful, you come in here with that nuance and someone’s gonna scream at you

      1. oh no

        *oldish person yells at rain cloud*

        (I’m joking; couldn’t resist referencing a meme.)

      2. The Oracle

        Disagreeing with you doesn’t mean someone doesn’t understand nuance, and nobody has screamed at you. Don’t be a martyr.

        1. Clif

          Why not? The world needs a few good martyrs now and then.

          As long as they are, you know, not me.

        2. JBento

          Well, we still have Steve and Short; man, can’t wait for the next season of Only Murd- oh, wait, martYRS, nevermind.

  51. DailyBrad

    Thinking about this, I wonder if it’s bugging Jennifer that Walky being here is bridging her two worlds in a way she’s not comfortable with, if that’s why she’s flying off the handle like this.

    1. C.T. Phipps

      Jennifer wants to kill Billie and leave behind the past she’s ashamed of. Walky has invaded Jennifer’s world.

  52. Fay

    I’d say a big part of Jennifer’s Thing towards Walky is that he’s her designated target. She mocks him and puts him down to make her feel better about herself and look cooler to other people. The fact that it’s not only not working, but back firing on her is driving her nuuuuuts.

    1. Alex

      There’s probably some truth to this.

  53. miri

    It seems that changing her name and social circle really can’t stop Jennifer from getting in her own way.

    1. Needfuldoer

      It’s almost like outside forces aren’t actually her problem!

      Too bad she’s a walking, talking Principal Skinner “am I so out of touch” meme in that regard.

  54. yarrr

    Maybe Jennifer is annoyed that Wally gets to be himself and be liked, whereas she had to change herself to fit in?

    1. oh no

      I think you nailed it.

    2. Needfuldoer

      She can’t be “herself” if she doesn’t even know who that is. She puts all her energy into molding herself into her perceived ideal of whichever group she’s trying to get with.

    3. DailyBrad

      That makes sense.

      It makes me wonder how much Jennifer knows about who she is. She feels like she’s shaped like whatever container she is poured into, perhaps, but that is obviously straining at the moment.

  55. CianM1301

    Oh, this is absolutely killing Jennifer. And Walky knows it.

  56. Sombrero

    Wise-butt, Jennifer, wise-butt. Don’t let Walky push your butt-ons.

  57. JBento

    I have never liked Walky more than I do at this moment, not backing down from what he personally enjoys that doesn’t affect anybody else just because some overbearing idiot tries to control his life.

    1. Taffy

      It’s a good look on him.

  58. AlaninDC

    Is time travel finally possible? Cuz I think when Billie/Jennifer grew up into middle age, she traveled back to the ’90s to become my first MIL.
    What a fudging itch-bay.

    1. Clif

      It’s too early in the morning*** to look up MIL, but the cool kids say ongo-bay.

      *** Not really, but I haven’t had my coffee.

      1. zee

        Mother in law

        1. Clif

          Thanks.

  59. AlaninDC

    Oh, and memo to Lucy:
    Never tweeze your eyebrows with the lights off (frame #2)

  60. Barswanian

    Jennifer, just because you’re jealous that Walky is being himself and being liked, doesn’t mean you have to take it out on him. Be the geek you know you are.

  61. Suet

    Walky’s personality has evolved!

    Jennifer hurt herself in confusion!

    *plays Digging Your Scene using the potato salad*

  62. oh no

    Turns out, Jennifer was right. She’s embarrassing herself!

    I’m on Team Walky here, since we’re fighting about it in the comments. Don’t be burger-shaped, I guess!

  63. shellshockbp

    The real dessert of all this is going to be what happens if/when Dorothy finds out about all this.

    1. shellshockbp

      New gravatar isn’t working and it’s bumming me out.

  64. The Oracle

    For the heinous crimes of “Not rising to Jennifer’s exact level of exaggerated agitation”, “ordering food at a restaurant”, and “literally minding his own business and in no way harming anyone”, we of the Tribunal sentence Walky “David” Walkerton to the strongest punishment we could think of: Vague gestures and unfollowable hints that he’s actually doing something wrong, just not something we deign to tell the rest of you benighted mortals.

    1. JBento

      Yeah, but he also ordered a menu option by the name it’s called on the menu; that’s Hague-worthy.

      1. Taffy

        What he should have done was gesture vaguely to the item’s spot on the menu and referred to it as “this Hoosier burger thing”, as if he didn’t have a full comprehension of the item’s name and couldn’t figure out how to learn it.

        I mean, that’s what I do to avoid people looking at me and making me forget what I was saying mid-sentence while I order. If they’re looking at the menu, they’re not staring at me, normalize not looking at people so fucking much.

  65. David

    Walky is out-Jennifering Billie. And he is doing it on purpose. She is rightfully annoyed at him. And she is wrongfully Jennifer.

    1. Taffy

      Your name does nothing to convince me you’re not biased here.

    2. Erica

      Rightfully annoyed at him? For ordering a burger?

      1. Taffy

        Ordering a burger while knowing she has an exceptionally low opinion of him, which is Wrong Of Him to do.

      2. David

        No, for showing her off as a hypocrite. It does look like this started out unintentionally, by trying to cast himself in a new social context in a manner amicable to Lucy. Lots of social interactions work in similar manners. But once he figured that his effortlessly moving to top of class in this context annoyed Billie who put a lot more effort into being Jennifer, he is showing off Billie as inferior in making herself classier. And it really matters nothing to him, and the world to her.

        It’s the equivalent of doing backflips before someone struggling to get out of a wheelchair. Before slumping back in a crouched position on the couch.

        1. JBento

          This would only be true if the person in the wheelchair entered a backflip competition and started berating the other person (who is NOT on the competition) for having fully-functional legs.

        2. Doopyboop

          The only one showing Jennifer off as anything is Jennifer herself. This isn’t a case where he’s bullying her and others are telling her to just ignore him. Literally, the list of things he has done today have amounted to;

          -Get dressed in clothing she didn’t think was fancy enough, but that everybody else was perfectly fine with and in fact her own boyfriend dressed the same.

          -Greet his girlfriend in a manner she apparently didn’t think was good enough.

          -Got excited that Jennifer’s bf dressed in the same outfit.

          -Ordered a burger that was in line with the menu, and used vocabulary that was included in the menu to make a request.

          He could have shown up in the butt-taco shirt, or a shirt covered with food stains, and that’d be appropriate to be upset about. But wearing a perfectly average outfit is fine. It has a lot more effort than he usually puts into his outfits, because he’s going on a sort-of date with his gf and eating out with new people. If this was someone like Mary, Dorothy, or Carla I’d be willing to agree that this is some weird chess match, but it’s not. Literally all Jennifer has to do is stop judging every move Walky makes.

  66. AlexaSpuds

    Jennifer should’ve dragged walky outside by the ear like an angry mom or gf and say that we need to have a private conversation, then ask him to stop being a dick, and then when he inevitably snarks again, kick him in the nards, that’s a classic cartoon bit

    1. zee

      Or she could just like, mind her business. Like sure walky is trying to be annoying here but that is very easily thwarted by minding your own business

  67. Kravis

    I know what’s happening here!

    Jennifer’s got the vapors!

    1. Taffy

      Tag urself, I’m the hidden “” that makes the last two words slanty.

  68. Adept

    Billie is not ok. Billie has never been ok.

    1. David

      But Billie has been Billie while Jennifer is not Billie.

      1. David

        I mean, while Jennifer is not Jennifer.

  69. Alex

    I do feel a bit bad for Jennifer here.

    1. David

      She’s about to lose her tag to Billie.

  70. SpongegirlCircleskirt

    Jennifer is to Squidward as Walky is to SpongeBob.

    1. Taffy

      Nice reference to the retro Nickelodeon series.

      1. The Wellerman

        Uh oh… several panels later…

        *plays “Grass Skirt Chase” from SpongeBob on hacked muzak*

  71. Segnosaur

    Interesting dynamics at play here….

    Walky is needling Jennifer/Billie (an old “friend”) in order to fit into a group that includes Ridah (a woman who is antagonistic to his ex-girlfriend) who is only interested in Walky for his “connections” (something Walky doesn’t really care about).

  72. Scruffy looking nerfherder

    The amount of people trying to make Walky out to be some sinister manipulator when Willis has for years shown that Jennifer’s major problem is shooting herself in the foot trying to eliminate anything she considers uncool even if it’s completely unreasonable on her part is proof positive that no matter how straightforward you make your narrative people will infer whatever they want to infer.

    Not sure how you can justify Walky as even attempting to be annoying here when the things he’s been yelled at require Batman level gambits to pull off and knowing what I know about Walky somehow I don’t think he’s out here using genius level intellect to plot down to the minutia Jennifer’s every grievance down to policing the way he speaks for not complimenting his girlfriend’s outfit that he couldn’t even see or curtailing his outfit down to the exact combination necessary to upset her for daring to think that he’s looking nicer than usual.

    1. C.T. Phipps

      I mean, it’s easy to justify because Walky knows he’s being annoying and is reveling in it by that innocent look.

      1. Scruffy looking nerfherder

        I mean yeah he’s enjoying it but who wouldn’t? You’re telling me if somebody was being unreasonable to you and attacking you at every avenue for things that were extremely petty you wouldn’t be a little tickled at them getting instant retribution? His smugness only came out when she attacked his clothing and Asher wore the same thing and everyone getting onto her for saying he’s making a scene while she continuously escalates. All of these are responses to the karma, not direct attacks at her. It’s not like he’s being a jerk to her at every turn and just getting away with it by the skin of his teeth. He is simply retaliating every time she attacks him, which he’s got a right to do. He has no obligation to just be nice to somebody personally attacking him just because it’d be better for her. That’s some you’re just as bad as the bully if you fight back type logic.

        I remind you the things she’s gotten upset about would either require the unlikely scenario of Walky knowing all these things would get to her in a gambit to try and make her look bad in front of other people when he’s NEVER shown any desire for that in any of his interactions with her before(Hell, he even apologized to her over the Billie thing even though she misremembered and it wasn’t him that started Billie at ALL.) or the more likely scenario that Jennifer is continuing what she’s done for years which is try to assert herself as a dominant alpha which she considers to be done by antagonizing the people she’s deemed lesser and attaching herself to crummier people based on their desirable attributes rather than her truly getting along with them and being upset that her blatant, uncalled for antagonism is not only being called out but rebuffed by the people she thought would do the same thing.

        I just can’t side with a side that requires a such a high suspension of disbelief to say somebody who has shown no interest in behaving the way people are describing at any point in his story suddenly taking it up just to hurt the person he still regards as a second sister to the point where he’s doing it down to how he’s dressed, speaks and orders food?

        1. James

          Yeah, Walky is at worst being kind of smug and leaning into the fact that Jennifer is so wound up about nothing.

          This is admittedly entirely personal interpretation, but I don’t think Walky is going out of his way to be annoying or doing anything he wouldn’t be doing even without the reactions he’s getting.

        2. Taffy

          I agree. It seems more like he’d have to go out of his way not to be annoying to her. He’s pretty clearly just not putting in any effort to behave differently than usual, and she can’t stand it.

  73. Caro

    walky did literally nothing wrong. id go so far as to say he did literally nothing

    1. Taffy

      Dude’s just sitting there, and it’s causing Billie to turn red and spread steam from her ears.

  74. Rabisch

    Kudos to Lucy for being the only adult in this table of kindergarten kids. It’s nice to see her talking smoothly to Jennifer, telling her how crazy the scene she’s doing is and standing up for Walky, all in one shot.

    1. David

      Lucy just does not have a clue about what Walky is doing here. The frightening thing here is actually not that he is putting up an act at Jennifer’s level but that he is putting up an act at Ashton’s level. Who presumably is still fooling Billie just fine.

      1. JBento

        What Walky is doing here is ordering his brunch. If Jennifer let him order his brunch in peace instead of trying to control him like the overbearing trash she’s being, she wouldn’t have had to be rightfully scolded, twice in one strip.

        (also, as far as we know, Asher isn’t trying to fool Jennifer at all, in any way whatsoever)

        1. Scruffy looking nerfherder

          People just like acting like every character in this series is a schemer on the levels of Light Yagami. Asher especially gets it to a weird degree. So far he’s been shown to have mob ties, I get it, but so far everything he’s done has been reactive outside of what he did when he was an asshole teen.

          He got blackmailed by Amber’s dad to help him in his scheme and immediately responded by having him put down to insure it didn’t happen again. Not exactly a GREAT thing to do, but nothing that shows he’d randomly just decided to manipulate Jennifer to no real understandable end. His biggest mark is fucking over Sal, but he admits himself that it was a douche thing to do and apologized to Sal directly when confronted about it. I don’t think Asher is really going to be this antagonistic force people expect him to be.

        2. JBento

          Disagree: having Blaine killed is not only a great thing to do, it’s a strong contender for “best thing anyone ever did in this entire comic” award.

        3. huesatlight

          Blaine was probably murdered to keep him from snitching to the feds. The hitman was asking if Amber was Amazigirl before he murdered him. Pretty unsettling how multiple people think murdering Blaine absolves the murderers of all their other wrongs past and future.

        4. David

          You think Jennifer would be fine with Ashton ordering Amber’s father killed?

        5. JBento

          First, I’m going to have to ask you to start calling him Asher, and not Ashton, because it takes me like 2 minutes of just staring at a post to figure out who you’re talking about.

          Second, I have no idea what Jennifer would think of that*, but not telling her that is not deceiving her. She hasn’t asked about it (that we know of), and she’s not personally connected to him.

          *nor do I particularly care, because Blaine had “getting killed” coming a long time ago, and besides, Jennifer’s father has done much worse (even without taking into account that killing Blaine is definitely an absolute positive and everyone involved should get a medal)

        6. Mark

          And Walky is letting her know it, without coming right out and saying “don’t be a jerk” in front of all of her new friends. I’m impressed.

      2. The Oracle

        Frightening???? What a dramatic thing to say. Holy shiiiiit.

        1. JBento

          I don’t think there’s a character in this comic LESS frightening than Walky. I mean, not counting the dead ones.

  75. Wendy

    [Hannibal Buress voice] Why are we booing him? HE’S RIGHT!!

  76. HueSatLight

    I don’t think Raidah was “social climbing” with Walky earlier. I think she’s bad at small talk. I think she’s using Walky as a tool to embarrass Jennifer and to get Jennifer to embarrass herself. She’s mislead Jennifer on how she (and Carl) will react to Walky’s shenanigans.
    As much as I dislike the “Raidah is only capable of manipulation and villainy” read, that’s what I’m getting now. Like she’s trying to drive a wedge between Jennifer and either the Read folks or Asher. Or something else, I dunno. But I do know there’s buttons being pushed here, and Raidah’s the one doing it.

    1. The Oracle

      Whatever she’s trying to pull, it’s a bad time for everyone anyway.

  77. Dandi Andi

    I cannot help but read these two as Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff.

    “How you can sit there, calmly eating a burger when we are in this horrible breakfast, I can’t make out. You seem to me to be perfectly heartless.”

    ” I can’t eat my burger in an agitated manner. The potato salad would probably get on my cuffs. “

  78. zee

    Damn thin rim oval glasses are popular in this town

  79. Grayfinity

    Admittedly, I was waiting for this.

    Jennifer needs to take her own panel 1 advice.

  80. AbacusWizard

    Ditch this brunch bunch, Jennifer! They’re no good for you!

  81. Pimellon

    I just realized all three of them (except Walky) have the exact same glasses

    1. Pimellon

      …and apparently, so does Robin.

  82. Juanoku

    “he’s being a wiseass” yeah when isn’t he

  83. Roborat

    That innocent look on his face is absolutely perfect.

  84. Megan Rivera

    Being nice is free, Jennifer.

  85. IniquitousKing

    Very much of the opinion that the only thing Walky’s done wrong here is want potato salad on a burger. A crime of the highest order.

    Jennifer, on the other hand, is rapidly transforming into some manner of manifestation of pure secondhand embarrassment.

    1. The Wellerman

      On average, only 20% of the embarrassment is inhaled by the initially embarrassed. The rest becomes secondhand embarrassment, and looks like Jennifer is especially susceptible. (:p)

  86. Throwatron

    oh gods Dorothy has made him Too Powerful

  87. Canary

    So mark me as uncomfortable but I’m also curious as to why Raidah is in charge??

    1. Taffy

      Because Raidah said so.

  88. Daniel M Ball

    Billie has turned into a Karen.

  89. TerribleTransit

    Incredible number of people in the comments today not understanding that you can be an active participant in am altercation without being the instigator, or at fault for the situation.

    Like, okay. This is all Jennifer’s fault. She’s wildly overreacting to every single little thing Walky says or does. She’s the one on the offensive, she’s the one picking fights, and she is entirely to blame for this whole argument between them.

    But. Walky is actively participating and making it worse. He has every right to do this! He’s not in the wrong here! But he is not innocently ordering a burger just because he wants a burger. He’s fighting back against Jennifer. Maybe he wanted a burger for breakfast today anyway, but he *knows* it’ll get Jennifer upset when he orders it, and he’s prepared with a tap on the menu and a shit-eating grin to drive her further up the wall when the expected blowback comes. He’s ready for round two when he delays the request to ‘make it French’. He is deliberately and knowingly continuing to escalate the situation instead of making an attempt to calm her down. Again: he doesn’t have an obligation to try and do that! Not simply backing down to placate her is a completely reasonable response.

    To take a much more extreme example, it’s the same way physical self-defense is a completely reasonable response to a physical confrontation when you could reasonably just leave the situation instead. You may have the right to do the thing, but you’re actively choosing the avenue with greater likelihood of harm by choosing to enforce your right to be there. The stakes in the breakfast are, of course, *much* lower, and the difference between escalation and deescalation isn’t nearly so clear-cut, but Walky is still very much choosing fight over flight.

    In conclusion: the fight’s clearly Jennifer’s fault, but Walky isn’t taking it lying down and is actively fighting back rather than being a passive victim to it.

    1. Vukodlak

      Basically this. Jen is being unreasonable and Walky is not.

  90. Zero

    Making an effort to seem mature and adult is very childish.

    “When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty, I read them openly. When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.” -C. S. Lewis

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

*

*

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.