152

Ron
Posted on October 25, 2011 by David M Willis

152 thoughts on “Ron”

  1. Mkvenner

    Who’s Ron?

    1. b

      He seems to be the guy who had the party, so he probably feels responsible for what happened

    2. narmenduke

      Old character from Roomies. Lived with Billie and Ruth.

    3. Flamedrake

      That guy there. He’s Ron.

    4. Swissaboo

      First off, the guy who gave Joyce her first drink (the one that wasn’t drugged) and secondly, apparently the guy who’s party it was.

    5. Jason

      He’s the louse who gave Joyce the *original* Sierra Mist!

      1. Eggy

        “Louse”? Really?

        Seems like a nice enough guy.

        Didn’t try to date-rape any women.

        Do we really need to equate him to a blood-sucking parasite?

        1. MM

          I believe Jason was referring to the Sierra Mist.

        2. Eggy

          Well, yes…

          And in doing so he called Ron a louse…?

          He was giving stuff away! That’s kind of the *opposite* of a blood-sucking parasite.

        3. Daeva

          I’m sure he was exaggerate for humorous effect.

          …I mean, Sierra Mist is obviously the superior beverage.

        4. Mr. Morningstar

          ooooh I get it. because she wanted Sprite… haha… clever.

        5. Valerie

          I don’t see how. “He’s the louse,” not… “The drink’s the louse…”

        6. Blob Marley

          It’s not Sierra Mist’s fault that it is foisted upon hapless Sprite-seekers! LEAVE SIERRA MIST ALOOOONE!!!

        7. iSaidCandleja-

          He gave Joyce a fake sprite. Of couse he’s a louse.

        8. Aydr

          People around here are far too forgiving of inferior soda.

        9. madd

          I concur.

        10. nothri

          While I agree that Ron seems like a cool dude, I’d hope our standards for who qualifies as a ‘nice guy’ in this comic strip are a bit higher than ‘has not attempted to rape any of the characters’. Just saying.

        11. Tenn

          You know, innocent until proven guilty and all that stuff.

        12. Joebo

          It shouldn’t be the only thing you measure a person against, but having not done it is a definite mark in the “plus” category.

        13. zzz

          Nah it’s just a lack of major marks in the negative category. Otherwise, with all the terrible things out there that it’s possible to do, we’d all start out so far in the positive that anything short of being a serial killer would make a person “nice”.

        14. S.Yeske

          Isn’t the first thing a serial killer’s neighbors say when they find out, “But he was such a nice person!”?

      2. Plasma Mongoose

        Apparently the Sierra Mist VS Sprite issue is SERIOUS BUSINESS in that there parts I take it?

        1. Leorale

          evidently!

        2. griffinguy24

          Especially since 7-Up is the clear winner!

        3. Joebo

          Eww, just eww.

        4. horerczy

          I’m no sure why they care it’s obvious that Sun Drop pwns all yellow drinks.

        5. TsunamiJane

          Ah, but neither Sierra Mist nor Sprite is yellow. They are both “white” {clear} lemon-lime flavored sodas.

        6. Valdrax

          Yellow?
          I see your eyes function as well as your taste buds do.

        7. madd

          I don’t really have much a preference for either. Now if it’s Coke VS Pepsi?

        8. Zuche

          I’ll still pick the root beer every time.

        9. HMRC4EVR

          Everyone is still debating Sprite vs 7UP vs Sierra Mist when Cheerwine is clearly the best soda out there!

          Shots of Cheerwine, followed by Sun Drop chasers for everyone!

        10. Cat

          Hurray for Cheerwine!

          If only Dr. Pepper’s new line didn’t have such a sexist ad line.
          Oh well, there’s Mr. Pibb.

        11. Kabecca

          Cheerwine is the best. Too bad you can only get it in certain states.

        12. Zuche

          That doesn’t sound like a cream soda or a root beer, so it can’t be true.

        13. Andrusi

          Cream soda and root beer are what people in most of the world drink because they don’t have access to Cheerwine.

        14. gangler

          Canada Dry quenches all desires.

        15. Shade743

          Coke. Clear winner. That is the ultimate drink for me. No alternatives.
          And before anyone suggests alcohol is better, I don’t drink it. EVER.

    6. Swissaboo

      “Billie gets major bonus points for not trying to make a move.”
      My god. What sort of people are you hanging out where you’re granting points for NOT doing awful things in the face of a major incident. You shouldn’t be granting points for that. That sounds more like “I don’t grade you down” territory.

      1. Plasma Mongoose

        It sounds like a variation of the No Kid Left Behind policy to me.

        1. Kernanator

          Sometimes I feel the desire to write down all the comments you make and collect them into a book titled “Things that Make Even Less Sense in Context”.

        2. Kernanator

          Plasma, sometimes I feel the desire to write down all the comments you make and collect them into a book titled “Things that Make Even Less Sense in Context”.

        3. Plasma Mongoose

          Kernanator, that is because for some reason, some of my comments end up in the wrong place due to some kind of glitch or if the comment I was replying to was deleted.

    7. HeartlessHealer

      Ron is driving the car. You can work it out by process of elimination. “Which character does not have a pre-established name in this continuity?”

  2. b

    well said sarah

  3. David Herbert

    Wonder if she saw Joyce with the board games?

    1. Daeva

      She was trying hard not to step in and ask to play. SO HARD.

  4. Tunasammich

    Aww, Joyce is leaning against Sarah, they are buds /blub

    I knew I voted that I like Sarah the best in every poll for a reason

  5. b

    I keep refreshing the page just to see how fast the comments appear

  6. Aria

    The host, I guess, and he appears here too

    http://www.dumbingofage.com/2011/comic/book-1/06-yesterday-was-thursday/sprite/

  7. Organs

    I’d love to see Sarah get punched in the face. Seriously. I hate people who are sour to everyone for no reason.

    1. Swissaboo

      Yes! Misanthropists are the worst!

      1. Doom Shepherd

        Of course, some misanthropes have reasons.

        1. Swissaboo

          Misanthropy is just an overreaction to broken naivety. It’s equally foolish, just in the other direction.

        2. agentksilver

          Broken naivety? That doesn’t intrigue you, huh? It ntrigues some of us. That and she’s obviously a good judge of character.

        3. Eggy

          W…Wuh? “Intrigues”? It is one of *the* most common character archetypes on the internet. Seriously. Simply *existing* as a common thing is not intriguing. If the character’s choices and outlooks were examined, *that* would be intriguing.

          Additionally; immediately hating absolutely everyone does not a good judge of character make.

        4. CP

          Girls intrigue me and they’re pretty common. You make the mistake of conflating “I think broken naivete is interesting” with “I think common tropes are interesting.” But something can be both interesting and common, just as much as something can be interesting and uncommon.

          As for her being a good judge of character, the only really debatable judgment she’s made has been against Billie, and it remains to be seen just how fair that judgment is going to turn out to be.

        5. Creaks

          Misanthropy is dangerous if not kept a watvhful eye on.

          Its the beginning stage of lycanthropy.

        6. Doom Shepherd

          Bah. Misanthropy is the natural and rational result of frequently repeated practical demonstrations of humanity’s general suckage.

          And also, repeated morons telling me that puerile story about how many muscles it takes to smile vs frowning, and other idiotic attempts to “cheer me up” or “bring me out of my shell.”

          (People who do this learn to fear my laser face.)

        7. katzgoboom

          Y’know, it only takes four muscles to smile but a lot more to flip someone off. Flipping someone off makes ME smile :3

        8. Creaks

          Heh, someones headed for full blown Lycanthropy.

          Better lock up your snausages and beggin strips folks.

          And any small pets you dont want devoured.

    2. Eggy

      And the fact that everyone glorifies her stormy disposition just makes it so much more infuriating.

    3. Skye McCloud

      I’m sure the fact that she nearly got lost her scholarships, which are the only thing keeping her in school, because of someone who behaved like Billie (though most likely a bit worse) is certainly not a factor in it at all. It’s not as if having such a person as a roommate before didn’t make her hate people who behave that way and thus act sour towards them. This can’t possibly be a contributing factor.

      1. T.C.R.M

        Prior to her avenging angel act, she treated joyce with spite, so she has only recently earned the benefit of the doubt to be fair.

        1. Leorale

          She’s obnoxious, but she did the right thing in the end.

    4. Zuche

      An aversion to getting punched in the face for petty reasons is a very good reason for being sour all the time.

    5. Minder

      Being sour to Billie and Joyce is hardly being sour to everyone.

  8. General Tekno

    Is that DoA Ultra Car?

    Or is it just a red car?

    1. brasca1

      The tag doesn’t identify it as Ultra Car, but it looks uncannily similar.

      1. Daeva

        Proto-car?

        1. lightsabermario

          *cue whistle theme*

        2. Aizat

          Later, Proto-Car becomes Break-Car to fight his brother,Mega-Car only to do a heel face turn when he discover that it’s employer is evil.

  9. Henry

    Given Billie’s expression, it seems Sarah didn’t deliver that with the usual nastiness we might expect.

    1. iSaidCandleja-

      Nah, Billie just recognizes her personality can be abrasive.

  10. NakedDumblydore

    Jeez, Sarah, just how high is that horse of yours? How do you find the oxygen to condescend to people from up there?

    1. lord of dance

      she evolved beyond the need for oxygen after finding out that people can use oxygen to get high

    2. Valdrax

      She’s Sarah. And she can breathe in space.

      1. Michelle J Caboose

        But does she eat nachos?

        1. Zuche

          Yes. With her face.

        2. Tenn

          In her PEEEENIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIS!

          Wait, what?

  11. Janette

    I get the feeling Sarah has her reasons for being jaded. And she probably thinks the worse will always happen. If not, to her they just got lucky.

    I’m theorizing, I’m not the expert on the character.

  12. CelestialEmpress

    Dammit Ron, skip campus and drive to a damn hospital!

    1. lord of dance

      she doesnt need to go to a hospital. she was drugged not poisoned

      1. David

        http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Date_rape_drug#Dangers

        1. lord of dance

          she didn’t take a large dose and it wasnt with alcohol. and yes she could be allergic but thats pretty rare and she would likely be showing signs by this point

        2. AaronS

          The article says especially. We don’t know how hard her body will take the date rape drug. She started showing signs almost immediately after drinking her drink – that’s usually a really bad sign, or so I hear.

        3. Acher4

          I’m actually getting very afraid of what may happen…

        4. Aydr

          Especially when we consider who just pointed out the dangers of roofies…

        5. Terah

          Willis is a master of deceit, and he’s proven that many times.

          I will remain unconvinced Joyce is in any long-term life threatening harm until I see it for myself.

        6. begbert2

          Why yes, I totally believe that Willis will kill off one of his most-main characters this early in the comic. I am truly quaking in my custom baby-seal-leather boots.

          (Hush, you people there, muttering things like ‘Ruth’ and ‘Dina’ in the back.)

        7. Brendan

          I’m pretty much expecting tomorrow’s strip to be Sarah waking up to the sight of Joyce’s cold, white flesh across the room.

        8. Brendan

          It would be a strange yet fitting turn for this comic if Joyce didn’t wake up in the morning…

        9. Fauxlosopher

          I hope you mean that she’s out cold until the afternoon, because if you mean anything more sinister, then NO.

        10. Brendan

          Should not put it past him. We all remember IW!

        11. Mr. Morningstar

          waaaaaait.Is this a hint at something Willis?

        12. katzgoboom

          This isn’t a good sign.

      2. JK9000

        Uh… “drugged” and “poisoned” are nigh-synonymous, you know? Nearly all drugs, especially date rape drugs, easily qualify as poisons.

        1. Gargamel

          So a character might actually die because another thought it was best to “stick it to the man” over doing the sensible if awkward thing.

        2. Michelle J Caboose

          In fact, alcohol is considered a poison.

      3. madd

        Technically, any intoxicant is poison.

        1. Professor Zoot

          Well, that’s getting pretty far up into what could be considered poison. Lysergic acid diethylamide is certainly an intoxicant, but it is less toxic than distilled water . . .

  13. NCP19

    Ron just left his own house party? I like his dedication to the cause.

    1. ryan

      he feels guilty for distributing sierra mist, eve though it was on sale!

  14. ParkRNDL

    <—newest member of the Sarah fan club.

    1. Charles RB

      Sarah is the best character in the whole strip, darn it! (“No, just you” is a classic)

      1. begbert2

        I dunno, man. She’s competing with Dina. And more importantly, Dina’s hat.

  15. Daeva

    Ryan and Ron

    Hmm…

    Does the contrast between these two make anyone else think of Goofus and Gallant?

    1. Leorale

      Gallant’s guests go up to the roof, where they gaze at the sunrise on the mist…

      1. Fauxlosopher

        Goofus’s guests aren’t told it’s BYOB.

    2. Valdrax

      Well, Ryan hardly strikes me as the Gallant type, but Ron did serve Sierra Mist at a party, so….

  16. Derek

    I’m a bit confused by the physics of this car.

    Dorothy is behind Ron, which means she’s not riding shotgun; but she’s not sitting with Joyce, Billie and Sarah, so she’s not in the backseat either.

    Hammer Space? 0_o

    1. doomshuriken

      I think that’s just an odd angle–we’re looking through the driver’s side window. I’m assuming Willis didn’t want to do a profile shot of a newly-established character in his first solo speaking panel.

    2. Acher4

      Actually Dorothy is riding shotgun. It’s on an angle. 🙂

    3. MarcinMN

      It looks big enough to be a van or suv to me. That could mean that it could have the front seats, two more bucket seats in the middle, and then a bench seat in the back.

      When I first saw it, I didn’t wonder about the physics. I just wondered why he was driving a van. lol

  17. Thomas

    Whelp, the decision to let Joyce sleep it off in ONE sense becomes less of a bad decision. It looks like the party organizer would be a witness as to what happened in case Ryan tries to pull something on the girls.

    It’s still a very dangerous idea to let Joyce sleep it off. There are many things that could happen, and some of them can be very, very, bad.

  18. Wandering meme

    Thank goodness for “THRESHOLDS OF TRAGEDY!!!”

    They probably make Sarah think “aww…Joyce looks so tragedorable, drugged like she is…”

  19. BluesBelly

    1) We don’t know the dosage she was given.
    2) If they intend to make any kind of case against this guy, they need to grab the only solid piece of evidence from out of her body as quickly as possible before it’s metabolized.
    3) We still don’t know how much time has passed. The event could have transpired only three minutes ago, and they are only now just leaving the house.
    4) The creator of the comic just sent you informational reference regarding the physiological dangers of date rape drugs. He may just enjoy filling in potholes of ignorance, or he may be informing you so later events take place. WE’LL FIND OUT WON’T WE.

    1. BluesBelly

      ahh balzac I meant to reply to someone else’s post with this. THIS IS FOR YOU, LORD OF DANCE. FOR YOOOOOUUUU.

  20. Aizat

    Well, Ryan is now easy to spot. If you see a guy with bruises and scars, there’s your man unless he somehow undergo plastic surgery and that’s way too ridiculous.

  21. C.

    Is Joyce gonna die?

  22. isitsevenyet

    Doood.

    Has this been pointed out yet? I was reading the archives and saw this:

    http://www.itswalky.com/d/20070221.html

    1. Acher4

      wow…I totally forgot about him.

    2. Wackd

      I think it’s been mentioned, if only because I have vague memories of it being pointed out to me before.

      1. Valdrax

        It has — several times, but I’m glad someone linked it finally.

    3. T Campbell

      Yeah. Original Recipe Ryan seems to have relied exclusively on flattery, but both versions use the telemarketer’s trick of seeming to be just like their “marks” for as long as it takes to “close the sale.” (We can’t say whether OR Ryan was as impatient as his successor, since Ruth caved to him pretty much immediately.)

      Funny that it comes up now, because Sarah reminds me an awful lot of Original Recipe Ruth, as a teenager. She’s got potential, but that damn superiority complex of hers is going to keep getting in her way unless something breaks it. Whatever that is, I hope it’s gentler than what broke Ruth’s.

      1. T Campbell

        (Actually, thinking it over, Original Recipe Ryan would HAVE to be more patient than his successor, since he seems to have waited through a few encounters to build himself up in Ruth’s mind. Which doesn’t mean he’s not a sleaze, or that he wouldn’t turn rapist if he got frustrated enough. I could certainly see him getting more impatient as his sexual history progresses, too.)

        1. isitsevenyet

          Well, I’m assuming the original Ryan was still in high school, too. He very well could have evolved from flattery to drugging once he got to college.

        2. Joraiem

          Is that really an evolution? Seems like a step backwards. Original Ryan was a douche, but he wasn’t breaking laws, at the very least.

        3. isitsevenyet

          Oh, semantics. 😛

          “He may have *moved on* from flattery to using drugs.” There, better? 😉

  23. Chase

    Well shit. She has a conscience after all. Sorta.

  24. JK9000

    And here I thought Sarah was gonna warm up to Billie after seeing how level-headed and useful she was in giving Joyce first-aid. Of course, I guess any familiarity with drugs and/or party culture is going to be a negative mark in Sarah’s book. And now she’s got even more justification to be uncompromising and self-righteous about…

    1. agentksilver

      Sarah does not strike me as someone whose opinion, bad or good, reverses itself immediately. She is now speaking politely to Billie, which is a start.

  25. Azukar

    Hiiiii Roooooon.

    Also, glad Sarah didn’t take the “told ya so” opportunity, even if it was about the size of Indonesia and flashing in neon colours.

    1. begbert2

      No, see – she did all this to proactively prevent the situation from going lower than the “told-you-so” threshold. Having done this, and presuming that Joyce doesn’t die or something, Sarah will be able to unleash her “told-you-so” with twice the cred, once Joyce is conscious enough to appreciate the full force thereof.

      “I told-you-so” is a dish best served cold.

  26. Clementine

    I looooove the way you write, David!

  27. fit-to-freak

    Okay, let just establish that mentioning ‘i told you so’ counts as full told you so. +2 for smugness also.

  28. Tev

    So I guess Ryan wasn’t drinking too? Huh.

    1. Zuche

      Sobriety is recommended when you’re hosting certain age groups, no matter how badly their company might make you want to drink.

      1. Michelle J Caboose

        Ryan wasn’t hosting the party. Ron was.

        But Ryan may have wanted to “keep his head clear,” to be ready to act as soon as an opportunity presented itself. Or maybe to keep from getting so drunk that HE passed out before said opportunity. Or maybe both.

        Or maybe he just doesn’t care for the taste of alcohol.

        1. Zuche

          Sorry. Misread the name there.

        2. Michelle J Caboose

          Oh. You mean I did all that thinking for nothing? O_o

  29. Zuche

    Joyce looks really cute when she’s snoring. I wonder if she’s one of those people who also snores cutely.

  30. Zuche

    Gah! The comments, they’ve gone MAAAAD!

  31. begbert2

    Sarah: paranoid or precognitive? Sure, Joyce at a booze-party is a disaster waiting to happen, but it could easily have been a ‘get sloppy drunk and get carried home’ disaster or a ‘get horrified by the couple sexing it upon the couch and scream’ disaster rather than a full-on ‘get nearly raped’ disaster. I dunno, maybe rape really is that common at college parties, but without knowing that this seems like Sarah acted on an awfully pessimistic guess.

    1. Mrelegos

      Maybe Sarah decided Joyce was right, and that it couldn’t hurt to spend one night dancing…went looking for Joyce and found Ryan…and a baseball bat.

      1. begbert2

        I still assert that the baseball bat was a transformed Amazi-Stool. It was there for long enough to save the day – and as soon as everyone’s back was turned it disappeared quietly into the night. It’s probably chasing Ryan alongside Amazi-Girl as we speak.

  32. Robert in San Diego

    Ron’s “cool dude” status may be considered earned, in part, by his willingness to break out the board games for a room full of mostly drunk people (and Joyce).

  33. Blob Marley

    Any more than five kilosads and you cross the I Told You So threshold.

  34. Locke

    Man, Ron By The Way seems like a pretty cool guy.

  35. Rust

    Kinda shocked at all the Sarah hate, given that really early on in the strip it was established she was getting grief from all the students who were friends with her Stoner Roomie. That kind of harassment will make anyone bitter and resentful.

  36. jasonred79

    Oh look, a cameo by Rayne Sumners!

    Well, the title of his webcomic anyhow…

  37. SgtNumnum

    Ultra Car cameo

  38. BrokenEye, True False Prophet

    Uh…. “The gecko, the land crocodile, the skink, the sand-lizard and the chameleon.”

    Leviticus 11:30

    Yeah, I think I’m starting to scrape the bottom of the barrel here. Time to hit the books.

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