133

Resident Assistant
Posted on February 27, 2013 by David M Willis

133 thoughts on “Resident Assistant”

  1. Jen Aside

    I GOT MY EYES ON YOU, DOOR

    1. Aizat

      WELL, I GOT MY EYES ON YOU, BILLIE!

      1. Skull025

        WELL I GOT MY BILLIE ON DOOR!

        1. Aizat

          WELL, BILLIE GOT A DOOR ON MY EYE.

        2. Totz the Plaid

          Billie’s wearing her heart on her FAAAAACE!

        3. BlueRam

          The Door’s gonna wear her femurs if she doesn’t turn back around.

        4. AckAckAck

          Her femurs will turn into lemurs if her tenure of acting demure is over.

        5. The Hazmat Kid

          Her lemur’s manicure is sure to lure a pure-bred cow’s manure?

        6. G.G.

          Well that escalated quickly.

        7. Tan

          This is your Billie. This is your Billie on a door. Any questions?

        8. AckAckAck

          There’s a fetish for that.

        9. Reaver

          Mike has a fetish for your mom…for a nickle

  2. Firedud

    Seems someone’s having second thoughts.

  3. Ragnal

    Um…where’s the joke? <_<

    1. Yotomoe

      I happen to find doors hilarious.

      1. Groove

        I do not understand your strange, door-based humor. I mean sure, if it was a door slipping on a bananna peel or a door throwing a pie, but that door is definitely the straight man of the comic.

        1. Steven

          Don’t be ridiculous. There are no straight men in Willis’ comics.

        2. RobjustRob

          Ba dum tssh

    2. Doctor_Who

      That if she walks any farther, she is going to bump her nose on panel four’s border.

      1. Josh

        The Joke’s on you, panel 4 doesn’t have a border

    3. Aizat

      It’s a Brick Joke. This is going to make sense later.

      1. Jesse

        You don’t know that. You’re just making excuses.

        1. Aizat

          Well, I’m just spit-balling here.

    4. cdot

      the door is about to try and makeout with her

    5. AckAckAck

      She’s moon walking all the way.

    6. Jesse

      I agree. Need a punchline.

      1. bunivasal

        You know what’s cool? The way that nobody cares what you need, and will continue to not care until you’ve drawn your own comic.

        1. Jesse

          Really? You’re going down the “You do it, then” route? Just because I don’t have my own website doesn’t mean I don’t have anything to say. This is primarily a comedy series, so I think it’s reasonable to expect a punchline, or at least something happening by the end. Instead, the last panel is completely superfluous. Some of the comments here are more entertaining than the strip they’re about. It’s just not a good installment. I should have said “Needs a punchline”, because the strip’s the one lacking.

        2. Li

          Being a humor strip doesn’t forbid it from ever discussing other topics in tones appropriate to them. Or, to put it another way: punch lines for the “Joyce was almost raped” storyline were similarly not present in every single comic. Or Joyce’s dream sequence with Ethan, on a similar note.

          This isn’t the first strip without a punchline, it won’t be the last, and IMHO the final panel emphasizes Billie’s mood.

          The “you make it then!” response you got was really silly and always is, but this complaint is not likely to produce changes, and if it’s a dealbreaker, you might want to read another web comic. Even Shortpacked isn’t always gag-a-licious.

          But again, this observation is based on you wanting something you are unlikely to get in this instance, and NOT on the ridiculous notion that feedback has no place in an artist’s comments section.

        3. Jesse

          I’m not saying every strip has to end with an actual joke, but something interesting should happen. The near-date-rape had tension, and Joyce’s dream was fascinatingly screwed-up. This has a faint character moment, followed by an anti-climactic picture of a door. Billie’s still walking away, I get it, what now? Don’t get me wrong though, one dull strip does not undo all the entertainment I get out of the series, and I do want to see where this part is going.

    7. HLY

      I don’t think this is a humour strip 😉 I think she’s instead thinking wether to confront or report Ruth

    8. Gordon Blvd

      patience , my friend……………………

      1. G.G.

        Ain’t nobody got time for that!

    9. Skyboatpilot

      You don’t need jokes. Storyline! Character development! Lesbians! That’s all I need.

    10. Roborat

      She was expecting Dina to appear.

  4. Wonder Wig

    She wanted some of that Resident ASSistant.

    1. Yotomoe

      She was gonna make a ResiDENT in it.

      1. Aizat

        I hope the Resident isn’t EVIL.

        1. The Hazmat Kid

          I hope the EVIL isn’t DEAD

        2. vsophi

          I hope the DEAD isn’t WALKING.

        3. 0kami

          I hope you’re WALKING the LINE.

        4. hmrc4evr

          The whole floor could be directly in the LINE of FIRE.

        5. HEYOUGUYZ!

          Netflix’s selection of movies beginning with “fire” is surprisingly lame.

        6. seven5three

          http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcVEOc7ZYgk

          Billie just needs to HOLD the LINE.
          LOVE isn’t always on TIME.

        7. Makkabee

          She shouldn’t be alone right now. If I were her I’d ask the FIRE to WALK WITH ME

        8. G.G.

          Do we have to make our own jokes at this point?

        9. Tomb

          Maybe she should FIGHT FIRE with FIRE.

        10. HiEv

          I think you mean she should FIGHT FIRE with ST. ELMO’S FIRE.

        11. Lukkai

          And her feelings are alternating between FIRE and ICE.

          (Yeah, I’m on skiing holidays right now. Why you asking?)

  5. David Herbert

    Yeah, I’d want to avoid her too.

    1. Aizat

      I would’ve prefer to confront her.

  6. Plasma Mongoose

    Billie is still pissed off it seems.

    1. Aizat

      Well, she’s currently confused rather to confront Ruth or to “confront” Ruth.

      1. Josh

        With her penis.

        1. TacosForever

          I think it’s the lack of any penises involved that’s confusing Billie.

  7. timmeh

    Is she walking towards or away from the door?

    1. AckAckAck

      Schrodinger door?

      1. Darth Cariss

        If we don’t get a resolution to this strip then she is both walking twords and away from the door at the same time.

    2. Tina

      I think the 180 rule was broken. Either that or she looked at the door and walked away. It isn’t super clear.

      If you’re not familiar with it, here’s a link to wikipedia. It’s a filmaking term, but I guess it would apply to comics too.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/180-degree_rule

  8. Michael

    I can already feel myself bracing for a Friday cliffhanger.

    1. AckAckAck

      It’s Ethan hanging on a real cliff to avoid berserking Joyce.

  9. Count Dracula

    “That lousy door is making fun of me for being illiterate! What a jerk!”

    1. Yotomoe

      Billie also hates “pull” and “push” doors. She only reads them after she makes a fool of herself.

      1. AckAckAck

        Better than “solve the puzzle to open the damn” door.

        1. thomas0comer

          Better than “Kill all the enemies who have done nothing but exist to open the” door.

      2. John

        “Midvale School for the Gifted.”

  10. arjay2813

    BILLIE GO IN RUTH’S ROOM!! grrr, the force is not with me T.T

  11. John

    I’m… not really sure what Billie’s doing here?

    1. Aizat

      She’s torn between the desire to continue doing with Ruth and the desire to say “WTF Ruth?”

    2. insomniac

      She is dramatically not knocking on Ruth’s door.

      1. John

        Yeah, but… is she just not knocking in passing? Or did she stop and stare at Ruth’s door for a while before deciding to walk away? Did she just happen to pass Ruth’s room on her way back from putting the moves on Daisy? Or did she come down here deliberately to confront Ruth, and then change her mind and not do it? I can’t tell!

    3. Yotomoe

      Walking.

    4. AckAckAck

      I think she’s just back from the newspaper office back to her room and passed the RA door.

  12. Memyself

    I’m not sure I understand. Did she pass the door, then turn around to go challenger Ruth?

    1. someguywithakatana

      She shot a look of anger at the door and continued walking by it. That is the door in the final frame.

      Took me a second to get, myself.

      1. Memyself

        Ahh… Thanks.

      2. Odentin

        Not quite. Look at the perspective on it. She’s walking to the left in the second panel, and then to the right in the third. She had to have turned around. Time is a factor, though. Did she turn around immediately turn around? Or did she reach her destination and then pass by the door again later?

        1. someguywithakatana

          The second panel is from the perspective of the door. Between panel two and panel 3, the perspective shifted around to the other side of Billie. This is part of what makes the scene difficult to interpret, as it violates the 180 degree rule.

        2. someguywithakatana

          The door behind Billie being visually indistinct from the one she’s looking at doesn’t help either, but if you know what you’re looking for, you can figure it out.

        3. DEG1377

          Don’t cross the Line of Action!!!

          >__<

        4. G.G.

          Hollywood does…

        5. Gregory

          Hollywood does a lot of things wrong. Very frequently.

        6. AckAckAck

          Actually that’s just the door across the RA door, so Billie just pass the hall once.

  13. Shpla

    Okay I feel stupid, what is the significance of the lack of panel boarder on number four?

    1. Markus

      None too significant. Willis always has one panel frameless. It does work quite well here, as Billie has walked out of frame in this one.

    2. dcmeserve

      Foreshadowing!

      Sorry, I’ve been reading the ShortPacked comments a lot lately.

  14. Aeron

    Little does she know that the door is staring back.

    1. Aizat

      Well, as they say “The doors have eyes”.

      1. Yotomoe

        Who says that?

        1. Aizat

          Farmers.

        2. AckAckAck

          Corn farmers?

        3. anickel4u

          Pepperidge farmers, and they do remember!!

        4. The Hazmat Kid

          Iowan corn farmers.

        5. G.G.

          You guys don’t quit do you. lol

  15. Nexev

    How plot relevant is glaring at a door? Shes mad at ruth but that was already established. This is just a three panel equivalent of the word very.

    1. Yotomoe

      It’s a bit more complex than that, me thinks.

    2. Aizat

      Well, you can say a lot without even saying one thing.

    3. Kemp

      My guess: Billie’s immediate action to Ruth was anger. I’m pretty sure she hasn’t expressed anger at Ruth since then, though – even when describing the event to Daisy. So Willis may be trying to show that Billie hasn’t internally given Ruth any pardon in the time since – fury wasn’t just her gut reaction, it’s her state of mind.

      Whether you think it was necessary clarification or not is another thing…

  16. Andrea

    I think Billie was expecting to see Ruth out in the hall like usual.

    1. Weiss

      yea, thats what i thought too.

    2. anickel4u

      That seems correct.

  17. Davriel

    Ruth saw everything through the peephole.

    1. phlebas

      Mm. I was expecting a sneaky ‘Ruth’ tag.

  18. Weiss

    I’m bettin Billie misses Ruth hasslin her. thats why she stares at the door, which Ruth usually hang out near.

  19. Dierna

    Oh look… a door… yay?

  20. PainfulBuggery

    A kiss you can’t forget Billie? You can’t avoid what you can’t forget. You’ll have to confront it someday.

  21. Kurodansei

    Please enlighten us to the perspective of this comic Mr. Willis!

    1. Kurodansei

      I’ve had a long and confusing day I don’t need this!

      1. Raine

        See the diff between panel’s 3 and 4? Where it’s black bordered and not? Billie snuck into Ruth’s room inbetween there =D

      2. AckAckAck

        You want the truth? YOU CAN’T HANDLE THE TRUTH!

  22. Kernanator

    In the super secret 5th panel, a tear drops from the peephole.

    1. AckAckAck

      So the door (and stuff inside it) is an eldrith abomination?

  23. AckAckAck

    The last panel is leaking through the fourth wall! Billie will appear in front of me in 3…..2…..1…..

  24. alicemacher

    Ambillievalence.

  25. jsepeta

    Maybe Ruth killed herself, and Billie is stomping around all mad hoping for Ruth to come out, and when she realizes Ruth is dead, she’ll be all sad like Juliette.

  26. Migenro

    In the Walkyverse, you know how this will end up to be

    1. AckAckAck

      All out brawl?

  27. 0kami

    Next week next week next week next week next week next week …

  28. thelastnerd

    WHOA LET’S SLOW DOWN HERE. This story is moving at an ALARMING pace…

  29. DannyBoy

    I demand you go back to dinosaurs, Willis!

  30. Yarrr

    This comic is funnier if you read it right-to-left.

  31. Animal

    Go on, Billie. You want some of that hot red stuff. Go oooooonnnnn!

  32. Zababcd

    For clarity, I think perhaps the order of panels 1 and 2 would have been better reversed. Alternatively, I second the comment from DEG1377 earlier about the line of action; see the 180-degree rule.

    I feel like prefacing that comment with ‘I don’t want to tell you your business, but’. It’s clearly untrue; I enjoy pretending that I know something about making webcomics. But it’s really the only opportunity to use that phrase.

  33. Gregory

    She’ll be back. Nobody can resist making out with a cute redhead. She’s addicted already, she just doesn’t know it yet.

  34. Notebooked

    On the one hand, this confidence/anger may be just a front, and she’s actually conflicted — perhaps not with her treatment of Ruth, but with newfound confusions about sexuality rising. On the other, she may be about to knock on that door and lay down ground rules for their interaction, prepared to leave if things go nasty.
    On the one hand, I’d like to see something supportive happen between these two. On the other, I realize how boring it’d be if Ruth clung to the sort of vulnerable/desperate frame of mind she had in the last comic she saw her in, and Billie managed to help her with few complications…

    Willis writes the best soap operas ever.

  35. Arkadi

    You want the Ruth, Billie? You can’t handle the Ruth!!

    1. HMRC4EVR

      Okay….I’m both ashamed I didn’t think of that first and awed by how awesomly perfect it is for this strip.

      To you I give an internet and a lifetime supply of Ranch Doritos.

      1. Arkadi

        *Bows* I shall use them wisely and for the good of mankind.

  36. Kemp

    Irrelevant to the story: That second panel is probably my favorite shot of Billie in the series. The stooped posture, the furious yet subtle expression, the shadows – for some reason, it leaves a strong emotional imprint on my mind.

    Contextual spatial disorientation aside.

  37. DSL

    DOOR: “What do you think you are doing, Billie?”

  38. Dr.Z

    Is Ruth avoiding Billie by staying in her room?

  39. Wazat

    So by raise of hands, who ships Billie and the door?

  40. piemanpie24

    The one time I decide to miss a strips release and go to bed is the time when a strip that continues the Ruth/Billie storyline is released. Ugh. Never going to bed before 12:02 on weeknights again.

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