400

Ukulele
Posted on June 6, 2017 by David M Willis

400 thoughts on “Ukulele”

  1. Emperor Daniel

    “Some say they’re a sign of progress. Others say they’re both literally and figuatively the worst. It is not for me to tell you which is right and which is wrong; ukelele must figure that out for yourself.”

    1. Colineo

      Is this what Leonard Cohen was singing about?

      1. Pablo360

        It’s said there was a secret chord
        That David played and it pleased the Lord
        But you need to put your finger ten frets up on the G string to play it so fuck that noise

        1. maarvarq

          I once again regret the absence of an upvote facility, but then I’d only be able to upvote Pablo360 once anyway.

        2. The_L1985

          And if you break your G string, it only gets worse. Especially if it’s not the one on your instrument.

      2. Merle

        Now I’ve heard there was a sacred word
        That Jala said and it name the Lord
        But you dont really know of magic, or us.
        It goes like this – a tav, a resh
        A fearsome joy, a fervent wish
        The Comet King incanting haMephorash…

        Wait, wrong universe.

        1. Ethereal

          Somebody has to, and no one else will.

  2. Ana Chronistic

    Danny 5 is alive!

    1. Mordecai

      Patreon exclusive of Carla’s creation taking down Clint to “Holding Out for a Hero”

  3. AnvilPro

    Danny has been broken by what he feels he made Amber do

    1. Armchair Daemon Slayer

      And his personal desire to have people gossiping about him call him a “good egg.”

      ….

      To anybody from a Midwestern or Heartland state (like Indiana,) does that expression actually exist?

      1. Yumi

        The expression “good egg”? Yeah, that’s a thing.

        1. Reltzik

          It was a thing approximately 100 million years ago.

        2. Yumi

          So you’re saying that it was the dinosaur eggs that were good eggs.
          Dina would agree.

        3. ValdVin

          Wasn’t it originally a thing about when collegians started on the ukulele the first time, like a.century ago?

          Part of me is worried that Danny’s new car is in the next strip, and it’s a Stutz Bearcat.

        4. foamy

          Just like the music he’s trying to play? :v

        5. Inspector Hound

          I’ve used it. Granted, about thirty years ago, and semi-ironically.

        6. fogel

          In contrast to someone who is a “rotten egg”.

        7. Armchair Daemon Slayer

          I see. Neat.

      2. Remmington Steele

        Sounds very Jeeves-and-woosterish

        1. Andrew_C

          It is, old bean

  4. fillerusername

    Okay I’m assuming I’m not supposed to feel this way but…Danny is fucking adorable. “A good egg” Awwww!

    1. fillerusername

      You play that ukulele Danny! I believe in you! Dream you’re little dream!

      1. fillerusername

        *your

        1. fillerusername

          I JUST NOTICED HIS UKULELE MATCHES HIS T-SHIRT!

        2. Reltzik

          He hues to a simple color palette.

        3. Wizard

          After that line, I think I may dye.

        4. Emperor Daniel

          Ever been to the Nether? You can find a lot of zombie pigment there.

        5. Dave

          The puns…THEY BURNNNNNN!

        6. Reltzik

          Why do you think we need to get them out of us?

        7. Individual Lies

          I think the puns are a natural response to Willis’ cliffhangers.

        8. Emperor Daniel

          Ever notice that the puns seem to drop off in majorly-plot-heavy or super-serious strips? Yeah?

          It’s the First Law of Thermodannymics.

        9. Felix

          *Thermodydannycs

    2. JetstreamGW

      Danny is a pretty good egg. If a bit… DAN about things.

      1. SgtWadeyWilson

        I dunno, seems a bit scrambled to me, but I guess he is trying to see things sunny side up. Too bad for Joe this ukelele thing isn’t gonna be over-easy, then again, guess the yolk’s on him for not being a better friend.

        Okay, I’ll omelette I may have a problem.

        1. Individual Lies

          Christ, dude…Think you can nail it down to just one?

        2. SgtWadeyWilson

          Just one? But then how will I express my individuality.

          Okay, not just may. (I blame Inspector Gadget.) I will try to tone it down.

        3. Individual Lies

          I think you redefined what it means to individualize a pun.

          I would italicize my words but I honestly don’t know how.

        4. SgtWadeyWilson

          Whatever
          …but without the spaces.
          Whatever
          If I didn’t do that right, this post will look funny, but I’m okay with that.

        5. SgtWadeyWilson

          Okay, I lied, anybody know how to show somebody how to do this?

        6. Halpful

          <i> html italics </i>

          …man that’s a pain with autocorrect.

          Also, you probably could have googled both of these.

        7. SgtWadeyWilson

          @Halpful But this was funnier.

          Also, thanks, you’ve been very Halpful!

        8. Individual Lies

          I could’ve googled how to do it, but I was too lazy to move my mouse all the way up to open a new tab and conduct a search.

    3. Larkle

      Naw, don’t worry. Danny is being pretty adorable here.

    4. Lokitsu

      Danny is channeling Charlie Brown. Thank God nothing bad can come of that.

      1. Valerie

        As long as he doesn’t try to kick a football, everything should be fine.

  5. Adept Arcanist

    I love that we’ve just jumped to this sudden roomies!-esque shenanigans with Joe and Dan.

    1. pjeseb

      I don’t. I can’t decide if the characters are trapped inside some kind of weird, time-displaced dream-world, or if I am.

      What happened to Amber?! What happened to Dorothy!? I needs to know!

      (Deep ancient-pharaoh voice) TELL ME!!

      1. Phantom

        Willis: Oh you’ll find out. I’m about to post it-
        TELL ME!!!
        Willis: No, I’m not going to tell you, you just have to wait and see
        TELL ME!!!
        Willis: What’s wrong with this guy?!

        Kudos to you if you get the reference

        1. Goblin Scribe

          THEY UN-PULLED THE DRAMA TAG
          im hilarious

      2. begbert2

        Amber killed Ryan, and snapped. Then, in her mental disarray, she killed Dorothy, and snapped further. Things proceeded from there, and we’re with Joe and Danny now because they’re the only people left alive in the Dumbiverse. Well, aside from the crazed former vigilante which stalks their every step.

        Joe slept through the whole thing, which is why he’s so calm, but Danny, well, as you see.

      3. Loquat

        I predict that Amber, having either killed or critically injured Ryan, is now in some sort of official custody (jail or psych ward, depending on which direction Willis wants to take the story), and Danny’s broken with reality because of it. Dorothy, meanwhile, has some lingering trauma/PTSD but is otherwise okay.

    2. Emily

      The fact that I’ve never really been invested in Amber’s arc makes me much more able to see the humour in this severe mood whiplash.

  6. MM

    I read that Emaj7 chord as Emoji. Probably about as accurate, musically speaking.

    1. Tacos

      I thought it said that too.

    2. Jhon

      Me too.

    3. Techhead

      That’s okay, I also initially Bwtf# as Bongo. Except not Bongo, but the other word.

    4. TheGrammarLegionary

      If I recall correctly, the next chord should properly be another F, then Dm, then back to C, then G, and finish with Am. At least, that’s what I’d go with, but I also would’ve stayed on Am and left out the F to start with, then transitioned straight to the G, and left the C out. My guess is Danny learned the standard four-chord song pattern, then screwed it up on his way back to Am (getting A7 instead). Also, as a music teacher, THANK YOU WILLIS for these moments, because I truly appreciate actual musical notation being used well.

      Side note: if anyone’s wondering, that Bwtf# is actually playable, if you don’t bother with the first fret (they get blocked out anyway), and could be interpreted as a B♭9(-5).

      1. Needfuldoer

        Would it be playable as drawn if you use a capo?

        (…Asked the idiot with two months of middle school piano lessons and a year of off-and-on guitar dabbling under his belt.)

        1. ValdVin

          I thought the uke was tuned to the same notes (but not the same octave) as a guitar.

          Well, Willis did the homework, as he does on everything. Danny’s uke is tuned “standard” and the drawn chords are on-key (haha).

          , sometimes referred to as “C tuning.”

  7. Optimal Optimus

    This strip makes me feel like punching Danny.

    1. Hera

      What , WHY!?

    2. Emily

      He is a good egg how dare you!

    3. Lokitsu

      “Good old Danny Wilcox… how I hate him so”

  8. Foxhack

    I’ve never heard of the Jesus Chord.

    1. MM

      But you don’t really care for music, do ya?

      1. Loki

        Well, it goes like this.

        1. Godfather

          The fourth, the fifth.

          The minor fall, the major lift.

        2. DinaWho

          The baffled king composing Hallelujah…

        3. Chris Phoenix

          It’s “battle king.”

          Leonard Cohen put a lot of religious imagery from the Old Testament in this song (e.g. “she cut your hair” is clearly a reference to Samson).

          One of the things King David was known for, in addition to being a poet and a wife-stealer, was being a warrior. “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.”

          So, “battle king” makes a whole lot more sense as an allusion to the Psalmist than “baffled king.”

        4. Frederic Garber

          Actually, it’s baffled. It makes sense too. David in the stories isn’t exactly the deepest thinker, and he certainly would be wondering why these chords worked, and they’re not even the Same Four Chords from Those Magic Changes!
          Also, David at this point —maybe— had a little bit of Dannylike confusion over who he was “singing Hallelujah” with, right Jonathon?

          Bible Study is full of sexytimes shenanigans, if you know where to look!

        5. John

          The baffled king composing Hallelujah.

        6. Halpful

          The baffled king composing hallelujah

        7. Tomas

          [Perfect three part harmony.]

        8. Mr. Bulbmin

          [And that is what we call utter perfection.]

        9. Emperor Daniel

          (As opposed to udder infection, which is a horrible thing you never want to have happen to your cattle.)

        10. Showler

          Ryan’s head explodes.

        11. Reltzik

          The Burger King’s composting? Hallelujah!

        12. TamiDOA

          Thank guys! You have NO idea how much I needed this thread today.

        13. Emperor Daniel

          The booger keen’s pot-roasting? Hallelujah!

        14. Foxhack

          what the hell did I just walk into

        15. Reltzik

          A booger keen pot roast, apparently.

          A better question would be WHY.

        16. Emperor Daniel

          Why, Fox clearly did not “walk” into this at all, but rather typed into it! The Emperor will not sit still for this!

          . . . the Emperor will walk five paces, and then sit still for this.

        17. Reltzik

          Fox’s fingers walked across the keyboard! THAT CLEARLY COUNTS AS WALKING!

        18. Emperor Daniel

          I’m the Emperor, and I decide what counts as walking, AND I SAY . . . it counts as walking!

          Speaking of the Imperial demesne, has anyone seen Norton II ’round these parts lately? Totally not asking this to deflect attention from the fact that I usurped sole leadership of the diarchy from him or anything. *cough*totesworthit*cough*

        19. Tomas

          HAAA-LE-LUU-
          UU-UU-UUUU-
          JAAAAH!

        20. Remmington Steele

          One does not simply walk into DOA.

        21. Cholma

          The “Am” the “F”
          The “C” and “G”
          The baffled Dan composing “good egg” music…

        22. Chris Phoenix

          It’s the “battle king” (see my comment above) but “the battle Dan” doesn’t work. Hm….

        23. NickG

          A quick scan through 7 versions on my iTunes and several lyrics sites shows all of them using baffled.

    2. Wack'd

      Bwtf# is also foreign to my ear.

    3. Peter Huppertz

      In some circles, this is called a DontTryThisAtHome augmented 11th.
      In some other circles, it’s called a Holdsworth Clusterfuck. |
      (Allan Holdsworth was a guitar player with otherworldly talent and a vast knowledge of harmony. Oh yeah, and Very Big Hands. People have injured themselves trying to play some of his chords.)

    4. Garry

      I think you meant to say the G sus chord.

      ….I’ll leave forever now. I’m sorry.

      1. Arian

        😀

      2. Bucket

        That got an audible laugh out of me!

      3. The_L1985

        *groans from the erstwhile piano student and choir member*

  9. Commodore Jeep-Eep

    Just defenestrate the damn thing.

    1. Slipdance

      And Joe, in his consternation, demonstrates defenestration.

      1. Emperor Daniel

        And Danny, at his destination, contemplates conflagration.

        1. jeffepp

          In the ’80s, when you defenestrated something, it burst into conflagration. No one knows quite why.

        2. Reltzik

          Well, it was pitched. All you need after that is some sort of ignition.

      2. Reltzik

        +1 for classical reference.

  10. Bloop

    https://youtu.be/OZaR_4us6Ec

    Play on, Danny.

  11. Yumi

    Dammit, Danny, stop making me love you.

  12. TSB

    “I will be loved by making myself The Dude With The Thing.” A whimsical, inoffensive thing. This is one of the most universally recognizable college experiences yet portrayed in DoA.

    1. ellernock

      oh god, my first semester of college (art school) there was one of those in particular. he was like? stereotype hipster man? he carried around a guitar case everywhere and rode a bike and wore hats and had a beard and i hated him, because the professor for the class i shared with him loved him even when he painted stuff on his guitar case. but the fact that i can remember this one dude six years later….Thing Dudes are universal. i did like the one guy in my time studio class that was really good at making puppets, though, he was cool.

    2. Kernanator

      I was The Guy with the Crocheted Shark Hat.

      1. Ferret

        I was The Dude with the Fedoras right before neckbeards ruined the fedora.

        1. Emily

          Ah the Golden Age of fedoras when they were just seen as eccentric and not a sign you were a maladjusted man-child.

        2. Jhon

          I must now get a fedora.

        3. Valerie

          I’m going to strongly suggest against that.

    3. abacuswizard

      As a college student, I was The Guy in the Cape.

      15 years later, I’m still The Guy in the Cape, but now I work here.

    4. Michael

      I… I tried to make my thing magic tricks. I think I may be worse than Dan.

      1. Joe

        I dunno, it’s easier to run away from The Dude Doing Sleight Of Hand. The Dude With The Ukulele can still be heard from further off.

        1. SgtWadeyWilson

          I was The Dude Doing Sleight of Hand once. I don’t think the magician who invited me on stage noticed though.

    5. Yumi

      I’m not a dude, but at one point I tried to get really into knot tying.

      1. SgtWadeyWilson

        With your grav that comes off a little… well, let’s just say I feel guilty about my first interpretation.

    6. McBogue

      In college I was The Guy who Avoids Eye Contact and Rarely Talks.

      “Mr. Popular” I was not.

      1. SundaesChild

        *walks in, sees McBogue has same Thing*
        Damnit, again? Guess I’ll have to go change…unless my Thing is showing up to parties with the same Thing!

    7. Delicious Taffy

      Haven’t gone to college, yet, but if I ever do, you can bet I’ll wind up being the Power Rangers Guy.

    8. Marsh Maryrose

      In my second round of college, I was The Guy Who Lived on Roller Skates. I didn’t think about this until now, but I was a proto-Carla.

    9. Raven

      My campus had a Dude with a Unicycle.

    10. DaveTheInverted

      As a high school student, I was The Guy With The Orange Backpack. (Then people started writing on it, and the orange became somewhat muted.) I still have it in a box *coughmumble* years later.

  13. Grethelwveir

    This is hilarious, but I’m still reeling from the whiplash…

    1. MatthewTheLucky

      Tomorrow: Danny is revealed to have utterly lost it with horror.

      Oh, wait, he’s already playing the ukelele.

    2. Bluewind

      It’s may not be as much whiplash as we think. It’s days later. Danny probably knows what happened (whatever that is). He feels like he needs to show that he’s a “good egg” and odds are it was caused by recent events (maybe blaming himself, somebody else he knows blaming him, or rumor mill). Joe whose usual advice to him involves getting back out there and finding someone else jumps straight to that when Danny starts not being there a lot. That makes Joe’s reaction to Danny taking up the ukulele less light humor and more serious. Has Danny been trying out a laundry list of new things to make himself look wholesome and good? Did he throw himself into a new hobby to take his mind off what’s going on? It could also be something lighthearted after the recent storyline, but only time will tell.

  14. Slipdance

    I think my last attempts at playing a string instrument were in the chord of ‘Jesus’ too.

    1. Shiro

      I played the violin when I was in my tweens, so I can concur.

      1. Needfuldoer

        There’s nothing like the screech of a child-size violin to nurture a budding appreciation for music, is there.

    2. Dean

      I played the cello in high school. As I recall it was in the chord of ‘Oh Jesus, no.”

  15. Loki

    I am not against the ukulele per se, but does it have to be that color?

    1. Sam

      Yes, it has to be that exact colour of blue and black, no other colour scheme is suitable for Ukulele Danny.

      1. inqntrol

        Also he has a shirt with the same colours, maybe he’ll wear it when practicing the Ukulele to match colours.

      2. Kryss LaBryn

        Does that make him Uke Danny? 😀

    2. Reltzik

      Danny must secretly want to play the blues.

      ….

      …. the ukulele blues.

      ….

      ….

      …. Okay, I’m not saying it’s IMPOSSIBLE. Norah Jones could pull it off.

      1. SundaesChild

        A new genre is formed, a real Folk Blues. (I’m so sorry.)

        1. Schpoonman

          How dare you attach a ukulele to the Seatbelts.

      2. Rukduk

        Or just play “Mr. Blue Sky” a lot.

  16. MissFortune

    Bwtf# is the only chord you hear at middle school orchestra performances.

    1. Gesc

      Bro wrf.

      1. Gesc

        Foiled by autocorrect!

  17. Wraithy2773

    …damn it, Willis, do you get off on trolling us?

    *notes use of song primarily sung by women about men being sung by bi-curious-at-least Danny*

    1. MatthewTheLucky

      Also the guy who’s lost his superhero.

      1. BenRG

        Precisely. Danny ISN’T over Amber in any way. I don’t know if that is a good thing or a bad thing for either of them.

        1. Li

          I disagree? If the song was about Amber, he would have changed the pronouns.

        2. Spencer

          I think he’s just singing the song as is, not about anyone in particular.

          Also I’m pretty sure he’s over Amber by now given how he’s been talking to her and seems fed up with her.

        3. thejeff

          Being fed up with an ex is far from proof you’re over them.

          Or frustrated, for that matter.

        4. Spencer

          Yeah but given Danny’s character arc and his frustrations with her I think it’s more likely that he’s over their relationship. They’re done. He doesn’t even seem particularly concerned about her Amazi-Girl actions anymore.

          Not to say he doesn’t care about her or doesn’t want her to be healthy and safe, he’s just not romantically attracted to her anymore.

          He got over Dorothy pretty quickly anyway.

        5. Spencer

          Or I’m totally misreading it anyway. I do actually want them back together but it’s doubtful it actually happens so maybe that’s why I think the point to Danny’s character is that he’s over her but idk

        6. Spencer

          Well “fed up” is probably the wrong term to used. Maybe more frustrated with her.

    2. Showler

      With all the “Hallelujah” talk up top, I was confused how Leonard Cohen’s song came to be primarily sung by women.

  18. Derek

    Joe looks genuinely concerned

    1. Jay

      I think it’s equal parts concern for Danny and for his own sanity if he has to listen to Danny play the ukulele.

  19. HeinousActsZX

    What you think of of when you hear this song likely depends on when you were born.

    Some think of dancing, some think of sentient robots, some think of giant gingerbread men.

    1. Halpful

      I think of waiting hours for a few mp3s to download. 🙂

      1. Reltzik

        Yeah. The internet’s huge now. Utterly massive. You wouldn’t know from looking at it that in it’s younger days it had a very tight baud.

        1. Chris Phoenix

          On behalf of me and the five other people who get this pun, GROOOOAN!

        2. DaveTheInverted

          Seconded.

    2. Cephalo the Pod

      Sentient robots?

      1. Delicious Taffy

        The song in question is played during the climax of The Iron Giant, in a certain, shall we say… controversial DVD release.

        1. Kryss LaBryn

          Oh goddammit you can’t leave me hanging like that. What should I Google?!

          –Also the song is Shrek to me, ha ha. So Sad Ogres, I guess.

    3. bejouled

      I think of giant gingerbread men.

      And I love this song!!

      Also I think it’s adorable that the first song Danny learns is about yearning for a dude. He has very much accepted his orientatio

      1. bejouled

        n

        1. Emperor Daniel

          Plot twist: “Orientatio” is the name of a love interest in Danny’s future.

        2. Delicious Taffy

          Orientatio, the doubly-racist caricature! He’s a buck-toothed, bowl-cut-having Chinese man, who dresses up like a matador and speaks in a confusing blend of English, Spanish, and Cantonese!

        3. ICSM

          So, Faz in a costume?

        4. Delicious Taffy

          I don’t think Faz is a racist caricature, though, so much as a zero-dimensional arrangement of colors with nothing interesting to justify his use.

        5. Reltzik

          …. but if he was 0-dimensional, he would have a point.

        6. Delicious Taffy

          Okay, you have to be using cheat codes, because you never seem to run out of ammo.

        7. Roborat

          I thought it was a boss in the Bayonetta game.

    4. Tomas

      I think of a tv series whose lead actor accidentally killed himself with a gun full of blanks.

      1. Jhon

        http://propguys.com/gundanger/

    5. DinaWho

      It’s mildly amusing that a post upthread turned into a rendition of ‘Hallelujah’, a song that gained renewed prominence after being featured in ‘Shrek’. Meanwhile, the song Danny plays is ‘Holding Out for a Hero’, a song that gained renewed prominence after being featured in ‘Shrek 2’.

    6. Inbar Fink

      I think of this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4-2DhikzYY

      I’m sorry

    7. Bluewind

      I think of some fighting guy punching some other fighting guy… what movie even was that!?! I can’t even remember if it was martial arts or not. One of the guys was Jean Claude Van Damme I think. It wasn’t in a place with a big crowd, but still indoors. I wonder how old I was when I watched it with my dad? Whatever it was.

    8. OBBWG

      I think my vinyl Bonnie Tyler album.

    9. hof1991

      I think of Bo riding his motorcycle into church to save Hope from a forced marriage to evil Larry. They used it when he rode a horse to save her a different time. Later he rode the motorcycle through a stained glass window too. A motif that they used to build a theme.

      In college I was the guy who watch Days of Our Lives (with my wife-to-be), so that worked out OK.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6auLe4xhmo

    10. Amazi-Stool

      Some think of dancing, some think of sentient robots, some think of giant gingerbread men.

      And Some Wear Leather, Some Wear Lace.

  20. Jess

    I’M LAUGHING

  21. Tacos

    If Joe is willing to give you a hug then maybe you should take that as a sign that the ukulele is not the instrument for you.

    1. MM

      Unless you are an attractive female, in which case it might very well be your instrument: he’s just got other plans.

    2. Reltzik

      I dunno, Danny may have just found a way to play “the game” and WIN as a bi-curious more-romantic-than-sexual guy.

      …. and I’m not sure if it’s even scummy the way he’s doing it.

  22. Passchendaele

    this is too happy and silly and the ukelele is great, I know the whiplash is coming. XD

    1. Passchendaele

      honestly I play most instruments in the jesus chord, ’cause I only know how to play the piano (and not that well).

    2. Godfather

      🙁 🙁 🙁

  23. Mada

    I’m waiting for Joe to just explode and scream at Danny for apparently living in denial over what happened three days ago

    1. Judas Peckerwood

      Yup.

  24. Nick Piers

    Danny? Go, go! Your lady needs you!

    Tonight, Joe repays his debt!

  25. Shiro

    Now go find Leslie and do a duet of We Are the Crystal Gems!

    1. Delicious Taffy

      Duet? I’d recommend a quartet instead, especially if they intend on doing the extended song.

  26. Stephen Bierce

    Who’s got all the ladies chasing him around?
    Freddie the Freshman–the freshest kid in town
    Who crashes all the parties and turns them upside down?
    Freddie the Freshman–the freshest kid in town
    He plays the ukulele, he plays the saxophone
    And the pretty babies just won’t leave him alone
    Who got flunked at Bloomington, Harvard, Yale and Brown?
    Freddie the Freshman–the freshest kid in town!

  27. Black

    Yeah, this guy is clearly in need of an intervention.

  28. Sushi

    Danny’s sweatshirt -might- say IU, but his color scheme says he’s considering a transfer to KU. Just sayin’.

  29. Reltzik

    There’s Danny, he’s a jolly good egg who’s driving head first off the cliff of insanity. The ukulele shows it true, we all ken it, it be coming soon. We all be going mad at this Bonnie Raitt.

    …..

    Wait, that was Bonnie Tyler?

    …..

    …..

    this commentor’s offensive text has been replaced with a placeholder until the site moderator can devise a filter embarrassing and/or amusing enough to replace it with

    1. AutobotDen

      What about good ol’ “Spud Pirate Nonsense”?

    2. Halpful

      eeeee, new filter! 🙂

      1. Gesc

        Quick, give me a vague enough reference of what was there!

      2. SgtWadeyWilson

        Is it really a new filter, or is Reltzik just being funny?

        Because if I had thought of it before, I’d have totally done that for a laugh… or even just a groan.

        1. Reltzik

          I was just trying to be funny.

        2. SgtWadeyWilson

          Not just trying, I laughed. Then I saw other people’s reactions and second guessed my own amusement.

    3. HMH

      I really wish I knew what I was missing, here.

      1. JetstreamGW

        Nothing. he’s just jacking around with italics.

  30. Li

    He is a good egg!

  31. Godfather

    I seriously hope that Joe or Ethan (or both) will offer real comfort to Danny, because it sounds like after the three day break, everything got WAY fucked up. 🙁

    1. Hera

      Considering Ruth is technically responsible for both girls involved, I’m worried about her mental state. #EveryoneNeedsTheraphy.

  32. AutobotDen

    … Is it just me or does that last chord say “Jesus”?

    1. pjeseb

      It does, and it’s not just you.

      1. AutobotDen

        *squinting at the chords* … “Am F C G A7 Bwtf# Jesus”… Code, perhaps?

  33. nobodybasically

    Is the “good egg” line a reference to something? I feel like “There goes [blank], s/he’s a good egg” sounds like a familiar phrase.

    1. C baker

      It IS a familiar phrase, but not a reference to anything.

      https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/good%20egg

      1. Kernanator

        I listen to the Journey into Misery podcast, which is about comic books, and instead of calling characters heroes or villains, the hosts call them “good eggs” and “bad eggs”.

    2. Inbar Fink

      Danny used it back in the Walkyverse, describing how he always wanted to be nicknamed “D.J”, “There goes D.J, he’s a good egg”

      1. Lingo

        “How I hate him!”

        1. Joe Covenant

          “What a blockhead!”

    3. Leorale

      In the Walkyverse, Danny always wanted to be considered a “good egg”. Nobody knows why.

      1. Leorale

        *has always wanted
        Somebody please find that strip where he wants to name a kid DJ.

      2. SgtWadeyWilson

        He just wants Ethan to crack him open, then he’ll pour out what’s inside onto a surface that’s obviously hot enough to fry an egg and… Dang, full-tilt pun setting on my brain apparently also works for innuendo-based fanfiction…

        Who knew?

    4. DonDueed

      Caddyshack. The Chevy Chase character calls Danny Noonan a good egg. May not be what DYW had in mind, though.

      1. DonDueed

        Correction: it was the Brian Doyle Murray character who called Noonan a good egg.

  34. C baker

    Maybe Joe is right. That’s a rather… um… interesting choice of song.

  35. Inbar Fink

    Danny continues to be adorable from the last strip, and I DO believe this is the smell of Joe Character Development I smell

  36. Roger Sterling

    “I’m going to fucking slap you.”

    Is something I’d write were I stupid enough to use the language of physical assault to express my extreme displeasure with the author’s pointlessly drawing out his lurid cliffhanger. But I’m reasonable.

    1. Hera

      Words and actions are different, you do know this, yes?

  37. Fart Captor

    Well, at least he’s not butchering “Time of Your Life”, like absolutely every last guitar player when I was in college.

    1. chris73

      (Long day at work) I read that as “Time of my life” and I thought that’s an odd choice for college students to play

    2. Halpful

      Yeah… that was one of the few songs I learned outside of guitar class.

      Then I re-learned it. Several times.

      Chances are I’ll start learning it again in a few years; the guitar is still here right beside me. I honestly don’t know how I got a guitar. I wish I’d ended up with a keyboard instead; I could actually play music on that. …Once.

      I’m surprised to hear it’s a thing, though, because usually people joke about Stairway to Heaven.

    3. DinaWho

      Just to clarify, are you referring to the Green Day song?

      1. Halpful

        Yeah… at least, I was.


        It’s something unpredictable
        But in the end it’s right
        I hope you had the time of your life

        I have the feeling I missed a lot of subtext in that song. I just liked how it sounded. And that the chords were easy. 🙂

        1. DinaWho

          We performed that song at my high school graduation!

        2. TheGrammarLegionary

          One of my best friends actually requested that I play that at his wedding for the dance with the parents. One of my proudest moments.

      2. Fart Captor

        Indeed. That and Semisonic’s “Closing Time” were basically inescapable

        1. Fart Captor

          Though I suppose technically its called “Good Riddance”, which I’ve always liked better.

          I used to really like that song >:/

        2. Jaime

          I remember that song was REALLY popular when I was graduating college – it was pretty much inescapable. (I’m dating myself here.) At the time I thought it was really profound because my undergraduate experience kind of sucked. (I got really sick and almost died; came back to a bunch of “friends” who thought I was faking it; and kept doggedly persisting in a long-distance relationship with someone who, as it turned out, was not really a good person.*)

          That’s not to say that I didn’t have good times as an undergrad – I certainly DID (one time my roomate and I drank her boyfriend not under the table but into the TUB, where he spent the night singing incoherently and then snoring), but the bittersweet quality of “Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)” really captured that moment in my own life.

          I just downloaded Carly Rae Jepsen’s single “Cut to the Feeling” because, according to teh internets, it is THE song for summer 2017. I mean, I don’t hate it, but…I don’t feel like it’s anything that special either.

          I’m really getting old, aren’t I? 🙁

          PS: Get off my virtual lawn! 😛

        3. Roborat

          Wait, you are dating yourself? Well, at least that means you always get to stay overnight.

        4. StClair

          I first heard it years later, but at a really appropriate time (for me) – City of Heroes, my beloved MMORPG, was about to close down. 🙁

    4. RacingTurtle

      Anyway, here’s Wonderwall

    5. SgtWadeyWilson

      At least fucking up is how the recording of that song starts, unlike most beginners’ favorites.

  38. Rukduk

    Funny, yesterday I was going to make the joke “And this is the moment Joe realized: he’d been a bad friend” and now Joe actually thinks it. Also, I’m guessing that “Jesus” chord is in fact the ukulele calling for the sweet release of death as it appears Danny cannot actually play the ukulele. Shame. It had such a promising future before he bought it too.

    1. missilentmurmur

      I’m wondering if Joe is joking here

  39. Keulan

    Oh jeez Danny, perhaps you really do need a hero just to help you play the ukulele.

    1. Emperor Daniel

      “I never thought a hero would ever come my way . . . “

    2. Absorbingman

      Anyone can be a hero. All you need is sliced italian bread.

      1. Roborat

        Or a red suit, just don’t lose the manual.

  40. Madock345

    Don’t ever put on a shirt, Joe. XD

    1. Reltzik

      It’s not polite to stare, but I suppose it’s okay to sneak a pec.

      1. Emperor Daniel

        And of course, Danny is bicepsual.

        1. Roborat

          Well, unless he falls in love with the ukulele, then he would be tricepsual.
          .
          .
          .
          OMG, punning disease is spreading.

        2. Reltzik

          It’s textually-transmitted.

  41. Arianod

    OMG it’s worse than it looked. Poor Danny.

  42. Eli

    Okay so I’ve been playing the ukulele for five years and i relate to this strip so much. Just…how is one supposed to use those chords? My hand just doesnt work that way!

    1. Emperor Daniel

      Little-known fact about the ukelele – it was designed as a covert way for the sneeple to identify each other without the humans being any the wiser.

  43. JohnInCA

    Do it Danny! Get that sweaty man-hug from Joe, for all of us!

  44. Professor Fate

    Just be glad it’s not an accordion, Joe. Or a trumpet. Or a vuvuzela. Or a harmonica. Or a tuba. Or a snare drum. Or a kazoo. Or a comb and tissue paper.

    1. Kernanator

      You think those are bad? Try a clarinet!

    2. dg

      Heaven help the day Danny feels that only the Theremin can express his angst.

      1. Arian

        Don’t Play the Theremin!

  45. tenkiforecast

    Well, he’s not attempting to play a French Horn for the first time, so that’s a plus. You want to hear an instrument in raw pain, novice on the French Horn.

    1. Jay

      Yeah, a French Horn amateur may be awful to listen to, but the ladies LOVE how they kiss! *rimshot* #dirtymusicjoke

    2. Arian

      I’ve Lost My Horn! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHWnFJ4_61U

    3. Roborat

      I don’t know, listening to a beginner on a Saxophone is pretty painful.

  46. LittleWyvern18

    was this song choice inspired by rupaul’s drag race season 9

    1. David M Willis

      it was inspired by either short circuit 2 or shrek 2, pick your poison

  47. Jay

    Oh my FUCK . . . !

    I’ve read nearly all of Willis’ comic work.

    I just genuinely laughed for five minutes straight. Not saying this is THE best. But ONLY because I can’t remember if any other comic had me react in a similar fashion.

    “Bwtf#” and “Jesus” NEED to be added to the musical notation lexicon NOW.

    1. TheGrammarLegionary

      Working on it… As I stated above, the former could be a B♭9(-5), though the ‘Jesus’ chord appears to require extra fingers and/or hallucinogenics.

  48. Derek

    If Danny follows that song up with “Total Eclipse of the Heart” then I will no longer exist.

  49. DuckDuckMoose

    Pffffffffffffffffft

    The other panels are adorable and all, but the Jesus chord (Jesus major? Jesus minor? Jesus augmented or diminished?) is really what holds the strip together.

  50. Poskie

    Hahahahaha WHAT HAPPENED WITH AMBER AND RYAN FOR THE LOVE OF GOD

    1. Emperor Daniel

      Amber pounded Ryan’s face in the most epic of ragehates.

      His faaaaaaaaaaace.

    2. zoelogical

      the suspense is thrilling

    3. Alopex

      She ran him clear out of the strip.

      You’ll be able to see her chasing him through the background of today’s Marmaduke

    4. Roger Sterling

      Amber hung him from the cliff of the strip’s corner.

  51. Spencer

    It’s a pretty fitting song for both of his love interests tbh.

  52. Reltzik

    Bonnie Tyler’s actually good for studying topology.

    I distinctly remembering that I was trying to devise a function transform to demonstrate homeomorphism between general cases of the cardioid curve and the closed conic.

    It was a total ellipse of the heart.

    1. Dandi_Andi

      That was as excruciating as it was beautiful. Thank you for that.

    2. 3oranges

      Calculus, too! Suppose you are given a curve E with a horizontal line H at some local maximum Mi, and want to find another line perpendicular to the curve.

      Then since H just touches its peak before it leaves Me, it’s a tangent, and so you just call Me angle of the norming.

      Look, these are hard, I’m only trying to keep up.

      1. Roborat

        Okay, that is it, I have had enough. I have summoned the pun ninjas, they will soon be coming for both of you.

        1. Reltzik

          “Hey, Hata. Been a while. How’s it going?”

          “Oof. I haven’t been able to socialize with anyone. New kid.”

          “Ah. So I guess that means you’re here on business? Another contract?”

          “Not a serious one. The client didn’t read the fine print.”

          “So my honorarium’s still good?”

          “Yeah.”

          “Okay, let’s do this.”

          “Didja know that Ghandi had really scarred feet from going around barefoot? And that his hunger strikes left him weak? And his deep, spiritual beliefs also included dietary restrictions that left him with bad breath?”

          “Soooo….?”

          “So he was a super-calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis.”

          *grooooaaan* “You kill me.”

          “Okay, that’ll do it. Both honor and contract are satisfied.”

          “Great. Here, take a hundred for a tip this time. Buy your kid something nice.”

  53. moriarty70

    Found it! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmAgwnJE3x4

  54. NinjaNick

    Play something else, Danny.

    1. Danni

      like be wherever you are

    2. Inspector Hound

      Oh, Danny boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling
      From glen to glen, and down the mountain side.
      The summer’s gone, and all the roses falling,
      It’s you, it’s you must go and I must bide.

  55. Derek

    ?The sun is bright, our shirts are clean
    We’re sitting up above the sea
    Come on and share this jam with me?

    ?Peach or plum or strawberry
    Any kind is fine, you see
    Come on and share this jam with me
    I’ll do my best to give this jam the sweetness it deser-er-er-erves?

    ?And I’ll keep it fresh
    I’m jammin’ on these tasty preserves?

    ?Ingredients in harmony
    We mix together perfectly
    Come on and share this jam with me?

    1. vlademir1

      Hey, I’ll only share this jam with you… if you let me drive my van into your heart…

      1. Hera

        Considering where your Gravatar is from should I assume you mean that literally?

        1. vlademir1

          1. Woot someone who is familiar with Higurashi. You make #10 in the six or seven years I’ve used Rena’s eye on all my online accounts.
          2. No, you shouldn’t assume that.

  56. C.T Phipps

    Joe, you’re justified in killing Danny now. It’s a mercy.

  57. abacuswizard

    Young men playing ukuleles in comic strips have always been the cat’s pajamas–just ask Harold Teen.

  58. zoelogical

    danny

    can you play wonderwall

    1. shammers

      LMAO this made me laugh harder than the strip

      1. zoelogical

        <3 bless u

        I'D BE SORRY MR. WILLIS BUT I'M NOT GETTING PAID OR ANYTHING

  59. Teddae

    danny
    you’re adorable and all but

    are you ok danny

    1. Jaime

      Danny are you okay?
      Can you tell us
      That you’re okay Danny?

      1. Danni

        hes singing i need a hero! of course hes not okay! its a terrible song

        1. Hera

          It’s a fantastic song!

  60. Jaime

    I have nothing but respect for the creative process, especially because I am a (not very talented creative) writer myself. I know that the artists whom I read and admire are in no way obligated to cater to what “I want” from them. I am a “Song of Ice and Fire” fan and I agree with Neil Gaiman’s famous essay: “George R. R. Martin is Not Your B!tch.”

    (Well, I don’t agree with his terminology, but I agree with the sentiment.)

    All that being said, I now say sincerely,

    DAMN YOU WILLIS!!!!!

    😛

  61. newllend(henryvolt)

    Oh yeah by the way Danny your Ex-girlfriend might have witnessed a murder carried out by your other Ex-girlfriend…but it’s probably not your problem anymore so don’t sweat it man.

  62. brasca1

    Well it looks like Danny has lost his mind. Maybe Amber will take him back.

  63. motorfirebox

    There’s no saving him, Joe. Best to just light him on fire now. It will sound like he’s screaming in horrible agony, but that’s actually just relief at being set free.

    1. SgtWadeyWilson

      “They told me to be the change I wanted to see in the world, but they all screamed in horror at my self-immolation.”

      -Some pyromaniac, probably

      1. Hera

        I’m laughing to hard at this. XD

  64. Figrin

    I was ready for the Gsus joke.

    1. Kathleen

      Oh shit! Did not catch that pun

      1. missilentmurmur

        me neither, awesome

      2. Inspector Hound

        Likewise, thank you.

    2. Saucistophe

      My aching fingers and tired brained do remember that chord too.
      I also remember saying “dangit, let’s try an easier song”. Many times.

  65. Bagge

    I’m like… 20 percent sure that Danny is not messing with Joe.

    1. Eldritch Gentleman

      It feels like some severe denying the reality to me.

  66. Hielario

    What’s so wrong with playing ukelele? Someone on my dorm has two.

    1. Bagge

      They are a good egg

      1. shammers

        They’re good eggs, Brent.

    2. Kryss LaBryn

      “We’re going to need a bigger nerd boat.”

    3. Roborat

      Ah, smart person, brought a spare in case the original meets a tragic fate.

  67. Tim

    BWTF#? Ben’s World of TransFormers#? I think you put the hashtag on the wrong end. 😉

  68. Eldritch Gentleman

    Yup the whole thing with Amber went to hell and poor Danny is currently losing his mind…

  69. Ryek Hvek

    “Danny, that Ukulele is about to encounter a Shillelagh”

    It never goes well for the good egg with a ukulele

  70. Bicycle Bill

    These are not the same ukulele chords that I know, unless Danny is using a different tuning than the traditional G-C-E-A / “My Dog Has Fleas” format.

  71. Liliet

    The funniest part of this is that Joe is making an absolutely accurate observation…

  72. Hera

    Damn it William!
    What happened to Amber!?

    1. Emperor Daniel

      No no no, you’re damning the wrong person – it’s Damn You Willis (Willis being his surname), not Damn It William.

    2. BenRG

      Probably she’s waiting to hear if the Bloomington PD is going to charge her with attempted murder. However, given the fact that there’s likely CCTV of Ryan pulling a knife on Amber and Dorothy, the discussion at the ADA’s office is likely soon to turn to whether they can convince a jury to accept a charge of ‘excessive force’ when Indiana is a SYG state.

      1. Guairdean

        Much will depend on who Ryan’s father turns out to be. If his father is in a position of power and wants to avoid unpleasant publicity, the entire incident will be swept under the rug. After all, you can’t let your spawn’s rapey tendencies get in the way of a business or political career. Dear Old Dad might decide that a good cosmetic surgeon and a couple of years in a military academy will straighten him out. Or, at least teach him better tactics.

  73. KSClaw

    Maybe Danny should start learning “O Danny Boy” instead

    1. Guairdean

      How about Mason William’s “Classical Gas”?

  74. Joe Covenant

    So are we all agreeing that Joe’s “Only then can the healing begin” line a nod to why the three day jump and Danny’s apparent at *must* be known across campus?

    (That face certainly doesn’t look to be the face of an angry/annoyed Joe – that’s a real look of concern…)

  75. Potatamoto

    And when Danny is diagnosed with cancer, the chemo will finally complete his transformation into Charlie Brown. It’s only a matter of time, now.

  76. BenRG

    Danny, seriously now: What happened with Amber was bound to happen eventually. Too much pain, too much compartmentalisation and too much denial from too many people (including Amber). You were a lone voice (with the exception of Sal, who Amber would never have listened to). Don’t blame yourself, mate.

    1. Spencer

      Yeah it’s totally Amber’s fault she was attacked by a knife wielding rapist and didn’t have the fortitude to calmly disarm him.

      1. BenRG

        I think that Danny is more worried by the fact that, after disarming Ryan and knocking him down, Amber then did something dramatic like try to skin him alive or carved ‘Rapist’ onto his forehead.

        1. Spencer

          Thanks for the spoilers.

  77. DarkoNeko

    Sadly, I cannot read guitare tablatures

  78. Zaxares

    Is it bad that I read the final panel as “He’s gotta be Jesus” and went “Oh no. After what happened with Amber, he sought solace in Joyce’s arms and she went “Have you heart the gospel of our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ?”

    1. Spencer

      Joyce and Danny? Pff, that’d never happen.

  79. mecklejay

    I don’t blame him for having trouble. Em, E7, and Em7 are fine, but almost anything else involving B and E are going to be a nightmare for a new uke player. The real question is, how’s his singing??

    1. ValdVin

      I’d guess his singing is probably fine, else it’d be drawn in a funny way like the last several chords.

      Guessing Willis knows his way around the Lexicon of Comicana, and the famous “broken note” isn’t in use here, so…

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

  80. Vulcanodon

    I love to hear people who are not good at singing, sing anyway.

  81. Vulcanodon

    This is fascinating; we are seeing Danny’s reaction, three days later, just as we saw Dorothy’s reaction through the window when it happened.

  82. hof1991

    For a uke, the Jesus chord is the sound it makes when you smash it to pieces.

    1. Reltzik

      And then bring it back from the dead by reassembling it without any tools so badly that people scarcely recognize it, and try to play again.

      1. Pinkie

        Why do Germans call a viola a Bratsche?

        Because that’s the sound it makes when you sit on it.

  83. hoop

    #BWTF?

    BEN YEE CAMEO CONFIRMED

    1. Tim

      Beat you to it, Hooper, by 6 hours. Lol!

  84. CoMa

    Here’s me thinking this might not be because of the Amber-knife-thing (but ‘just’ the Amber-thing), because it has been kept a secret (or just the names involved have been kept secret) and students only got to know that something happened, with the police, campus security and university keeping details to themselves.
    It’s pretty much unlikely, but it’d also be pretty interesting if this is the beginning of Danny later finding out about Amber’s involvement…

    1. CoMa

      Also: If he’d found out, no wonder he’d be off. I mean, his ex-girlfriend and his complicated ‘new’ girl-(or possibly ex-girl-)friend were BOTH involved in the incident. Must’ve been quite a shocker.
      (supposing he knows of the attack)

      1. thejeff

        Yeah, if he knows, this is Danny having a breakdown.

        If he doesn’t, this is just Danny trying something new as part of the rest of the stress and changes in his life. It reads more like that to me.

  85. Sarpiedon

    know how I know you’re gay? You play the ukulele.

  86. StClair

    I’m waiting for someone – maybe Joe, maybe someone else – to take it away from him, smash it against a wall, and hand it back with an insincere “Sorry.”

    1. BenRG

      “Clearly a music hater!”
      — Buggs Bunny
      — ‘What’s Opera Doc?’

      1. 3oranges

        ‘Long-haired Hare’, I think. The finale of It’s Walky! was based on* that one!

        *To a very very very small extent

    2. Vulcanodon

      That’s OK Worf

  87. Pat Myers

    Somewhere after midnight, in my wildest fantasies
    Somewhere just beyond my reach is someone reaching back at me
    Racing on the thunder and rising with the heat
    It’s gonna take a Superman to sweep me off my feet!

  88. JohnnyO

    I’m working backstage on a production of Footloose right now, I did not want to be reminded of it while enjoying my morning webcomics. Damn you, Willis!

  89. Cerberus

    Comic Reactions:

    Panel 1: I’ll admit, Joe’s concern is really touching here and a major moment of growth for him. Yeah, sure, he’s expressing it in antipathy for the ukulele, but I think it’s more the fact that his best friend is changing without him and he’s genuinely worried that he’s been a terrible friend and support.

    And well, he has, partly because of his dislike of feelings, partly being burnt out on being Danny’s main confidante, partly he was trying to reinvent himself as a bit of a douche. But I think he doesn’t like how that’s all getting him left behind by Danny and Dorothy and what little support network he had. Especially as his new support network with Jacob is very likely to be superficial given that Jacob isn’t really all that into the whole “do everyone” machismo culture.

    And so it’s just really sweet to see him grow and recognize that stuff is happening and changing and he actually wants to be there to support the people he cares about. It’s a very important first step.

    Panel 2: Oh Danny… I feel so bad for him here, because you can see the cracks of his low self-esteem in the fantasy he’s constructed here. He wants to be seen as a good person and thinks he needs a prop to do so, which kinda heavily betrays how hard it is to see himself as a good and lovable person thanks to all the sniping he’s gotten from his parents over the years.

    But yeah, it also shows why finding a new hobby that is self chosen is such a big deal for Danny. Because it’s one of the first things he’s gotten super into not for someone else but for himself and part of a whole new self-discovery into what he likes and wants as well as embracing a bit of queer culture. (Thank you Rebecca Sugar for somehow enfolding the ukulele into queer culture).

    Panels 3-4: Ah, yes, the delightful torture of just learning to play an instrument. I sympathize with Joe. Also, I see your song choice Danny and give it a hearty pink, purple, and blue thumbs up.

    And aw, another big step for Joe. Like, for his ideas of masculinity and his own preferences, he’s not at all a fan of hugs so for him to offer that and to be a receiver of the dreaded feelings all because he reads this as a cry for help? That’s honestly the first real valuing of this relationship as it is rather than how he’d like it to be that we’ve gotten from him and it’s genuinely heart-warming.

    I really want to support Joe’s continued growth here and I hope it’s not ukulele contextual.

    1. Scar Man!!!

      wait, his parents suck too? Can I get some strip links? I missed that

      1. Spencer

        His parents were emotionally abusive to him on Freshman Family Weekend, told him that following Dorothy with no ambition of his own was a good idea and berated him for not dating her anymore, and one of the alt texts specifically stated that they don’t ever compliment him.

        1. Emperor Daniel

          Also, I believe Willis said (back in the days when the entire comments section was just ragging on Danny all the time) that the comments-section-of-the-time’s opinion of Danny was basically how his parents considered him, too.

        2. Li

          Aka: “way to DAN IT UP, Danny”

        3. Felgraf

          And as someone who works with kids in a camp context (and thus is a state mandated reporter)-
          Not ever complimenting your kids (like. Never ever) is a form of child abuse. Like, it is *super damaging* to growing children to not receive *any* positive reinforcement from their parents. Emotional Neglect is absolutely one of the things we’re trained to watch out for, and are required to report if we find out it’s happening.

          (I realize you may very well know this-but other readers may not!)

    2. zoelogical

      who knew that the way to joe’s heart was a ukelele

  90. Showler

    My guess is that we will stick with Danny and Joe until they walk out the front door and through the police tape.

  91. Usayasha

    Danny, singing a song about how he needs a big strong hero, while playing the uke, after being asked about his love life. There is subtext and then there is SUBTEXT.

    I mean, we already knew he was crushing on Ethan, but I still appreciate the implications of this strip, even if some of them were unintentional.

    1. zoelogical

      frick

      i love that in this interpretation, ethan is his hero

      …i think danny just likes dating superheroes tbh. like: he has excellent taste in partners. Future President of the United States (even if he didn’t think she was really gonna do it?); Amber, who while messed up is at heart a pretty sweet person who deserves exactly none of the shit hand she has been dealt in life; and while he hasn’t dated Ethan yet that interest is…very telling

  92. Fire_daws

    WHAT HAPPENED TO AMBER, WILLIS?

    1. Delicious Taffy

      She died.

  93. Hielario

    Wondering how the theck does “I need a hero” on an ukelele.

    1. Hielario

      sound*

    2. zoelogical

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2yQAMOUIaQ

      1. Scar Man!!!

        so… not too good.

        1. zoelogical

          eh. depends on whether or not you like ukelele, or the song itself

          i think that’s pretty good for a low-quality youtube cover

        2. zoelogical

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfW9nVWXrlI

          try frou frou’s cover tho because that is bomb

      2. Jhon

        Legs.
        …there was music too?

  94. Brumagem

    If you’re gonna ukelele at least get a decent ukelele and not that crap plastic…thing

  95. zoelogical

    i’ve kind of been thinking about danny’s choice in partners and like

    i think, with Dorothy, there was a genuine connection; but like; he also wasn’t really willing to support her in her goals? and he did not have goals himself, he was just tagging along with her. he was trying to bring her down to his level and like that was going nowhere fast so it was a good thing she broke up with him, because he never would have recognized it on his own. he would have just been satisfied to be mediocre

    with Amber/Amazi-girl, like, he saw her as extraordinary. he could idealize her; but also she was someone who needed him even if he didn’t know what to give. and i think there may have been some very specific ways in which he related to her: i.e. the emotional abuse, the feeling like you aren’t good enough. but he couldn’t understand that he was dating Amazi-girl and not Amber, and why there was a significant difference; and that’s continued through their relationship

    with Ethan tho there’s just kind of a connection? a shared feeling, and support. and like someone who engages with Danny where he’s at. and i think probably, like, sexism really plays into those different dynamics, unfortunately; he couldn’t quite see them as people with their own stuff going on, or recognize that their experiences were outside his own experience. i don’t know if that’ll play out the same with Ethan or not, but i suspect not. but also a lot of their connection was wordless. and joy.

    so who knows!!

    1. Spencer

      I don’t think Danny idolizes Amber anymore. He wants her to be safe and happy, and he probably understands at this point that he’s not going to be the person to give that to her. He’s been more willing to take her to task over perceived hypocrisies, call out her harmful viewpoints, and walk away from her when she stonewalls him. These strips now, I think, are Danny trying to live for himself without putting Amber first.

      Ethan I kind of see as basically a Compliment Machine. He grew up with Amber so whenever he sees someone hurt themselves he’s all over trying to help. And while Amber needs Danny’s support, she kind of doesn’t know how to give it back. So it’s good for him that Ethan is there to be compassionate and understanding about his problems.

      1. zoelogical

        mmm. yes.

        with Ethan/Danny here it is.. kind of like mutually compatible poor coping mechanisms…. i can’t really think of Danny going out of his way to support Ethan back, tho

        1. Spencer

          I see Danny as giving him some confidence, which is what Ethan lacks. Ethan thinks his sexuality will be the end of the world and ruin his life, and then his nice friend comes in and tells him how hot he is. It gives Ethan a chance to normalize himself and his attraction to men. Danny is the first time something normal happened to Ethan since finding out he was gay, being his best friend’s sorta-ex aside.

          Other than that, Ethan doesn’t really have any problems to deal with the same way Danny does with his cripplingly low self esteem, which Ethan is great at confronting while Amber tried her hardest to deal with.

        2. zoelogical

          heck that is some good headcanoning right there i tell you what

          give it time, i’m sure we’ll find a problem under the sofa somewhere. or MAYBE IN THE VERY BACK OF THE CLOSET

        3. Spencer

          Well there’s Mike being a sex predator out to ruin his self esteem, so that’s a problem.

  96. NelC

    “Danny, put down the ukelele and nobody needs to get hurt.”

    1. NelC

      ^ukulele :p

      1. Spencer

        Don’t worry. Most everyone else has made that mistake today.

  97. Steven Fisher

    Bwtf# is my new favourite chord.

  98. Roborat

    Love the chords, nicely done Sir Willis.

    And I can sympathize, I am currently trying to learn how to play guitar, learning chords is not going well.

  99. McBogue

    DAMN YOU WILLIS! Look what you’ve made me do…

    Somewhere after midnight on the campus of I-U
    Somewhere in the darkness there is someone looking out for you
    Racing across rooftops and leaping down from trees
    You’re gonna need Amazi-Girl to bring them to their kneeEEEES!

    *sobs quietly*

    1. Spencer

      It does work surprisingly wellfor both Amber and Ethan, Danny’s two love interests.

  100. Tenn

    Beewhatthefuck-sharp is notoriously hard to pull off. And if you pull it off, your fingers are notoriously hard to pull off.

    And look! It’s a gospel choir’s favorite chord!

  101. No I Haven't Had My Coffee Yet

    “Dan” can mean egg in Chinese, so there’s that.

  102. Li

    I like these last two strips. I appreciate both the breather and the inherent tension. I like the pacing of this, even though it’s frustrating. Good pacing SHOULD sometimes be frustrating.

    Also, people who hate the ukulele have never heard it actually played well. White people are notoriously bad at it. (And I say that as a white people.) If you can find vids of actual Hawaiians playing it, it is pretty awesome.

    1. BBCC

      I think Danny’s new interest is a good thing and agreed about the pacing. I like that I want to tear my hair out waiting sometimes.

  103. Exilon1

    The hug is exactly why Danny started playing the ukelele.
    God damnit clever boy
    (why stop at a hug tho)

  104. Vulcanodon

    Maybe Danny sees a ukulele and Joe sees a gun. And this exchange is from Danny’s perspective.

    1. chris73

      That would be an awesome twist

    2. StClair

      Wow that’s dark.

  105. Jade

    How much longer will Danny need to play before he gets more than a hug?

  106. FinalOwen

    Danny is an awkward bisexual Jim Steinman fan. I’ve never felt so close to a character. 😛

    (Also, methinks he’ll be very happy watching Bonnie/Meat videos from that era. They were very equal opportunities when it came to fanservice.)

  107. rectilinearpropagation

    He’s a good egg!

    He’s lost it.

  108. Raibean

    But really someone should get these kids some therapy

  109. Griffin Fredette

    well
    danny IS a good egg, I’ll give him that

  110. NelC

    ‘Holdin’ Out For A Hero” on the Uke:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmAgwnJE3x4&spfreload=10

  111. Paul

    Today, holding out for a hero. Tomorrow, settling for grindr.

  112. Thereisabearthere

    People who suck at the ukelele eventually become people who are kind of sort of good at the ukelele, and a slim group of those people become really good at the ukelele. My college had a great ukelele player, she was really cool, even though playing the ukelele was the only aspect of her personality anyone on campus was aware of.

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