262

Later
Posted on September 7, 2024 by David M Willis

262 thoughts on “Later”

  1. Ana Chronistic

    Jakes had to really hold back

    1. Clif

      Never ever ask a question you don’t want the answer to.

    2. Kazuma Taichi

      dang it’s already a 404

      1. Ana Chronistic

        what the hell

        serves me right for trusting a third-party

  2. NGPZ

    Half of me is legit expecting Sarah to snap and scream “GET OUT!!!!! GET OUT!!!!”

    1. anon

      I do half expect her to shutdown/unwind/etc at some point lol

      Tho if it’s not a facade/act, i imagine she might not act the same way each time or just like, going to be as ‘neutral’ as possible or so and not waste her energy on bs (tho the title of this arc/story line IS ‘love dares you to change’ after all lol)

      but it would be amusing (Tho very unlikely since this is a story even tho there are some cases where it might happen) if she just fucked off into the sunset and just simply dropped out or transferred and nobody ever heard from her again/she just made a fresh start like 100 miles away (although other than doing it as an extreme risk i imagine most ppl don’t have the money for that as opposed to just moving away from their hometown/away from parents)

      1. Mark

        She just got an acceptance letter from Yale.

    2. Taffy

      I love the idea of her screaming at him to get out, and then him being very confused because they’re literally outside and he doesn’t know how to get out of outside.

  3. Sirksome

    Wow. I don’t like Jacob now.

    1. Thag Simmons

      It’s a shitty thing to say but I feel it’s also a relatively natural reaction to Sarah acting so out of character

      1. Kimi

        I mean, if it hadn’t been for the fact that he obviously got together with someone else and also knows that Sarah is/was very attracted to him, I would be all for him asking this. At this point, though, I feel like Jacob and Lucy are both on the list of people who should probably not be asking that question. It almost feels like rubbing it in her face.

        1. Pylgrim

          Not to mention he always teased Sarah about trying to be more personable. So she does manage to do that, after overcoming something that probably should have made her more isolated and hateful and he’s angry? Get a grip. Sounds like reluctanct guilt speaking.

        2. Daibhid C

          I understand some people have such degenerate language that they use the H-E-Hockey-Sticks word for emphasis even when they’re not angry. I know, I was shocked as well.

        3. Zak

          See I read it like Sarah can relax, he’s spoken for she can bottle her feelings cause he’s off the table, so now she just can chill and be happy for people around her. Which the happy part is odd.

        4. Lee

          I was considering this as a possibility too!

        5. Lee

          Personally I don’t think it’s unreasonable? I love Sarah, but she has had an odd habit of objectifying Jacob, whereas Jacob has seen her as a person. I feel like in a way he considers them to be friends – and in a way, it’s college, they are – and he knows her well enough at this point to know something is up. And since he’s tried to get her to open up before, this is a bit brusque but not out of character. Honestly, I’m more bothered by the fact that he and Lucy being the only two not to pass it off as a joke is worse; they’re all supposed to be her friends too. And also possibly Joe at the end there?

    2. Icalasari

      Eh, it’s kind of a fair ask in this case. Sarah’s personality did such a turn I’d be worried

      Not So Fun Fact! Somebody who is grumpy, sad, and angry all the time suddenly being happy can be a sign that they have a suicide planned out, and are happy as they see an escape

      So yeah, Jacob is justified as he doesn’t know Sarah well enough to realize she’s more the, “I will live to spite everybody” type

      1. Bruno

        Okay, stop fighting. Sarah can be about to kill herself AND Jacob can be an asshole.

      2. NGPZ

        I really really sincerely hope this isn’t the case for Sarah,

        Willis’s Twitter and Bluesky indicate that an upcoming storyline will contain Dina in a three-piece suit with her hair tucked in, a Gazebo, and Ghost Mike

        i am rather worried T_T

        1. Nymph

          So… not everyone looks at spoiler panels and some of us would prefer not to have future panels spoilered tbh.

          Up to you whether you care about that or not really.

        2. NGPZ

          The funny thing is they aren’t even always reliable, such as one which featured the booze bottle Dina stole not looking at all like booze in the preview LOL

          Willis’s recent Tweets were visible on the comic homepage via the Twitter feed widget until of course that broke too. Thanks alot, Elon -_-

        3. Nymph

          Still

      3. justin8448

        “I will live a long, happy, and deeply meaningful life just to spite all of you!” certainly isn’t the worst way to live…

    3. anon

      well, maybe not the best way to phrase it but i’m sure he’s as confused as everyone. plus maybe sarah will be honest/blunt with him now that theyre alone tho would be funny if it’s like “seeing lucy kiss you made me snap outta it and get over it/you, i’m just gonna start banging random guys now” (i mean, i doubt she’d say the latter half)

      Tho i wonder if she and joyce would have a one on one convo like “Sarah what the hell?”

    4. HueSatLight

      “oh, are we that kind of friends now?”

    5. Freemage

      Honestly, I’ve been annoyed with most of the cast for this arc. After all the crap everyone gives Sarah for not being a good friend, they’ve all just been ripping on her.

    6. Bash

      Funny, I like him way more. I’m looking forward to seeing him actually get angry.

      1. morleuca

        Get angry for what? Sarah not being upset he hooked up with someone else after showing her just enough interest to keep her coming back for months?

        1. Jeremiah

          That is not something he did.

        2. jflb96

          I don’t know, certainly looks like he did that

        3. Taffy

          Seems to me he gave her a lot of opportunities to be direct and express her interest without any weird caveats (like physically running away from him), and none of that meant he was off the table for anyone else. Like someone who could directly and enthusiastically state their interest and then act on it. He made himself available to Sarah, but it looks like his patience for her skittishness wasn’t infinite and didn’t constitute any form of exclusivity.

        4. Jeremiah

          Nah, can’t be, that would mean Jacob is a human being with his own wants and desires and ability to make his own choices. Sound fake tbh .

        5. jflb96

          No one’s saying that he isn’t that, they’re just saying that he’s made crappy choices

        6. Nymph

          What is this common sense? In my comments section? Nonsense.

        7. jflb96

          Seems to me that if someone who’s struggling to open up keeps coming back and trying again and again, to the point of jeopardising her career because apparently this ‘alcohol’ thing helps diminish inhibitions, that is in and of itself an admission of interest. Furthermore, while there was never any explicit suggestion of exclusivity, it seems to me that someone saying ‘I’ll be here if you ever actually use your words and ask’ is everything but that.

        8. zee

          Months? It’s been like maybe a week since they started talking again

        9. Bash

          We don’t know why he is mad, but he looks mad. That’s why I’m looking forward to whatever happens next.

      2. Nymph

        For what? What is Sarah doing to him by just trying to be happy?

        1. Taffy

          When Sarah experiences joy, the Romanian nanomachines in his spinal fluid emit electronic signals, which are picked up by the Peruvian cybernetics in his brain, which then floods his brain with images of Sephiroth getting railed by Alduin. A man can only handle so much poorly drawn villainous ahegao before he breaks.

        2. Nymph

          Ah that’s honestly super fair. When you put it like that, Sarah’s the villain here for sure. Everyone choose your sides quickly.

      3. thejeff

        Are people reading him as angry here?
        Or just as asking bluntly?

        1. Luminous Lead

          He’s frowning pretty heavily, so reading angry is fair, but I first read him as being unsettled and wanting to cut what he feels is bullshit.

        2. Yumi

          Heavily? I don’t get that at all.

      4. zee

        Same, I like seeing him with some spice. I don’t think he’d mad tho, just confused/freaked out

    7. Jeremiah

      Good for you?

    8. Daibhid C

      Why can’t he just make sarcastic comments about her personality shift, almost out of earshot? You know, like her real friends?

  4. shadowcell

    Dumbing of Age Book 15: So, Like…What the Hell is Up With You?

    1. Eric

      Subtitle:

      Secretly, immensely relieved that my crush is ‘off the table’ and I’ve avoided possible rejection

  5. Charles Phipps

    Sarah: Oh NOW you’re interested.

    1. anon

      Tbf jacob would probably have been interested in at least befriending her

      1. anonymsly

        That has, in fact, been his stated position the whole time he’s known her. ‘Hey, I’d like to get to know you better and be friends.’ What he doesn’t want is to be just a piece of meat. Sarah has actively rejected that proposal pretty consistently the whole time he’s known her, too.

  6. Thag Simmons

    Great question Jacob, but I suspect regardless of what the answer is you’re going to piss her off by asking it.

  7. VolticEXE

    Man, Sarah’s breakdown is gonna hit hard isn’t it?

  8. Cattleprod

    There’s a painting in the back of Sarah’s closet that is indescribably angry at this point.

    1. True Survivor

      What is that a reference to? Is that old SMBC comic (though I think that itself is a reference to a famous literary work)?

      1. ian livs

        I believe it’s The Picture of Dorian Gray

        1. Thag Simmons

          yeah, that’s the famous literary work in question.

        2. True Survivor

          Thank you, guys. I will have to check it out.

        3. HueSatLight

          Netflix is making it into a show, and they’re making Dorian and Basil (the artist) siblings.

        4. Rabid Rabbit

          …well, I didn’t have enough reason to burn Netflix to the ground, I’m glad they’re not skimping on providing me new ones.

        5. Kimi

          It seems like adaptations are always sticking relationships in where they were not needed. I am just glad that it isn’t a romantic one for once. I rather liked that Holga and Edgin in the newest dnd movie weren’t romantically involved. It is nice to have platonic relationships instead sometimes, or the sibling/cousin like relationship, that exists in the original.

        6. Yumi

          Well, in this case it’s the removal of a romantic relationship (or interest) to put in a sibling relationship. So. Kind of an issue in the opposite direction.

        7. Kimi

          Yeah. I just think that creating new interpretations on a literary relationship is just odd. I am better about handling minor changes like appearance or gender as long as it doesn’t change the actual character relationship or motivations/development. Sounds like this resulted in a relationship change, so I wouldn’t be a fan. (Honestly, it is like bad fan fiction at that point.)

        8. Thing2

          One thing I know about Netflix is that they look after the extras in their films. Employ people to keep them warm when they are pretending a Mediterranean climate and there is an icy wind blowing…

        9. Thag Simmons

          I confess I have no read Dorian Grey, but from what little I’ve picked up from others it sounds like that is a “you should make this is it’s own thing entirely” level change. Fundamentally just not the same story

        10. zee

          How very 4kids sailor moon of them

        11. Cattleprod

          Correct, I probably should’ve checked on this comment less than 23 hours later.

    2. Needfuldoer

      Come on in here!

      “AAAH JIBBLIE JIBBLIE JIBBLIE JIBBLIE JIBBLIE”

  9. Sirksome

    Real question here. Is Sarah not allowed to be happy? It’s kind of insulting all her friends are weirded out by her trying to embrace positivity. We just saw her take a huge L from being sheltered and grouchy. If this is a mental breakdown then good for her trying to see the bright side of it.

    1. anon

      probably because she was so ‘chipper’ earlier it threw everyone off balance instead of quietly not saying anything tho that might seem like she’d be ‘sulking’

    2. Davus

      I think that it is more them being concerned. Someone who consistently acts one way and then suddently, dramatically changes comes as a suprise and often means that something big has happened, good or bad. I am curious to see what Sarah says and I am genuinely invested in this next interaction.
      Damn you Willis!!

      1. Proxiehunter

        The interaction we’ll see a week or two from now after tomorrows strip switches to a different group of characters.

      2. saltchocolate

        I’m glad someone said it!

    3. Prince Mech

      Of course she is, but saying it’s “insulting” that her friends are weirded out by her personality doing a 180 in the last 24 hours is pretty dense. If someone you knew suddenly started acting very differently less than a day since you last saw them, you would likely be concerned about them on some level.

      Sarah has spent the last several months defining herself to her social circle as someone moody and at least outwardly, unconcerned about them. To a certain extent it seems most of them understand she’s more caring than she lets on, Joyce and Jacob particularly, but it’s still odd for them to see her acting so out of character.

      Compare with Billie/Jennifer, who’s outward change in personality and social circle for the seeming better is actually a sign she’s the least honest with herself and others about who and what she cares about she’s been in a long time.

      1. Sirksome

        Except everyone knows why Sarah is acting differently. They were all at the party and the one person in the group who wasn’t picked up on it right away. This isn’t some mystery change. Sarah likely suffered an emotional blow when Jacob went to bed with Lucy. Implying a concussion or brain worms when someone has chosen emotional maturity instead of misery is insulting at least to me, but as her friends I choose to believe those were just humorous jabs. Jacob though is questioning rather rudely considering he knows exactly why he thinks Sarah should be upset. She’s not or at least doesn’t want to present that to her peers. That’s her right.

        Also please don’t imply I’m dense just because you disagree with my opinion. I sincerely respect that yours differs from mine and is a valid point of discussion.

        1. Thing2

          Back in the dim distant days when I was at uni and there was pretty much no communication over a long break, I had started a tentative relationship with someone. The very first time I saw him when we got back was in a group of friends and he said “Hello, this is my girlfriend Amy…”
          I think I did a superb acting job. He expected me to, hence the abrupt warning, so no embarrassing myself or Amy. I expected me to, as well.

        2. eh, whatever

          Except everyone knows why Sarah is acting differently.

          Nobody understands why she’s happy about it.

          Jacob though is questioning rather rudely considering he knows exactly why he thinks Sarah should be upset. She’s not or at least doesn’t want to present that to her peers.

          He doesn’t understand why she’s not looking upset, so he asks.

          She goes way beyond hiding being upset – she acts outright happy. Do you understand why? I don’t, and neither does Jacob.

      2. Freemage

        It’s how they’ve been expressing their concerns that is, frankly, A-Grade assholitry. First off, if someone in your group is acting strangely, try to get them alone so you can talk with them seriously about it.
        Second, don’t make jokes about how they must be concussed or otherwise brain-damaged.
        Third, don’t demand an explanation you may not be entitled to.
        Her entire circle is failing, here, and frankly, she’d have every right to turn around and dump ‘cheerful’ for a giant ‘fuck you’.

        1. Tan

          I will note in Jacob’s defense that he did not make a single comment regarding Sarah’s behavior until he and Sarah were alone.

        2. morleuca

          Like all of his flirting and teasing with her, he prefers to do it when no one else is watching.

        3. Jeremiah

          That was an active choice of his part though.

        4. Jeremiah

          *wasn’t

        5. Taffy

          If we’re going that route, didn’t she establish that premise to begin with? I don’t remember her being all squiggly with him when others were around.

        6. Jeremiah

          But that would imply Jacob isn’t some kind of manipulative asshole and we can’t have that no siree.

    4. Thag Simmons

      It’s not unusual to be weirded out by sudden change, and I’d actually say some measure of concern is justified. Appearances can be deceiving and it’s easy for someone to look like they’re on the upswing when they’re really not.

      1. Sirksome

        See if they were concerned they could’ve just asked her. There was plenty of opportunity for it. Instead they were kind of just clowning on her a bit which is fine and maybe I overreacted to that when it’s in good fun, but the first person to actually ask is the last person who should and frankly Jacob looks kind of irritated about it. To me that undercuts a lot of the concern. It seems like it’s not actually about Sarah’s state of mind and more like “Why aren’t you acting the way I expected you to?”

        1. Thag Simmons

          To be clear I think Jacob is very much “this is weird, what’s going on” more than “are you okay?”, but I still think it’s an understandable thing to ask, even if he really could be doing it more tactfully.

        2. Adam Black

          He had plenty of time to say “are you OK”? , before ambushing Sarah in public with a hookup . or after.

          He is not entitled to Sarahs inner feelings. He encouraged her to chase him. he could have asked her out himself.

        3. Thag Simmons

          I am not implying that Jacob is asking if she’s okay.

          I think he’s not unreasonably assuming that this is a mask and that she’s mad at him. Which he could be handling more delicately but I don’t think it’s like morally bad. At least not yet, we’ll see how this goes

        4. thejeff

          He couldn’t really ask her about the sudden change in her personality before he “ambushed” her because it hadn’t happened yet.

        5. eh, whatever

          See if they were concerned they could’ve just asked her.

          That’s exactly what Jacob is finally doing here.

        6. Sirksome

          I feel like we’re assuming these characters aren’t emotionally intelligent. Jennifer knew about Sarah’s crush on him and the expectation she would be upset without even going to the party. Jacob is very aware of at least his own assumption on her mood swing. You can see in the strips before this how guilty he looks when Jennifer brings it up. Good for him for asking, but to me that expression doesn’t read concern. It reads irritation that she isn’t acting the way he expected. That’s not his business though.

        7. Jeremiah

          I fell like you are kind of jumping to conclusions here.

        8. Sirksome

          Probably, but that’s half the fun of talking about the comic isn’t it?

        9. Jeremiah

          Not really? At least I don’t think so, it mostly make discussing stuff unnecessarily frustrating. YMMV I suppose.

        10. Mark

          Maybe they’ve learned that provoking Sarah is the only way to (occasionally) get a revealing response rather than deflection or fiery silence.

    5. Wereg

      Whether they become more positive or more negative, sudden personality shifts are something you should always be wary of. Her friends definitely could have gone about this in a much more polite and understanding way, buuut they’re like 18-19 in a comic.

    6. Newlland(Henryvolt)

      Bring in a good mood is one thing, greeting Joe & Walky with open arms has got to give off a red flag.

    7. zee

      I mean people are allowed to be thrown off by a sudden and dramatic change in personality

  10. Retrikaethan

    …is jacob actually *angry* here? cuz if he’s angry, he’s like the only person in this situation that doesn’t actually get to be. like, i can understand the question itself being asked of sarah’s current hopefully-not-a-breakdown personality but the way he’s asking it seems uncharacteristic of him, like he’s asking “what is your problem” despite sarah pretty much being positive, social, and admittedly close to a 180 of what she’s normally like. despite the out-of-the-blue nature of this change, she has been polite without being curt and otherwise not pulling any of the subtextual “i’m doing this to piss you off” stuff that is usually associated with this kind of 180.

    so, yeah, hopefully this is a “i’m doing this to improve myself” change and not a “i am actively spiraling and likely need help” kind of change.

    1. anon

      i think he’s just confused like the rest of them, even if it’s technically ‘swearing’ i think some ppl would also be like “what the fuck” without necessary coming off as aggressive or so

      Wonder if booster will pop up to psychoanalyze her. if not at least congratulate lucy and being like “I told you you could do better than walky”

      1. Retrikaethan

        what made me think he’s angry wasn’t the swearing but more the face he’s making, eyebrows seemingly furrowed down and mouth curled downwards.

        and yes booster is going to have a field day with this situation.

        1. Yumi

          I could see angry, but I could also see his expression as one of bewilderment. Hard to say for sure from one panel from this angle.

        2. Retrikaethan

          yeah, is why it’s more a question than a statement from me. will have to see what sarah says and how he reacts in the next strip.

    2. Bryy

      Jacob apparently thinks that Sarah’s attraction to him gives them some sort of bond where he can ask aggressive questions like this.

      1. eh, whatever

        This is Indiana, not Alabama. He can ask, and she can reply “I’m not gonna tell you” if that’s how she feels. 😐

        1. Nymph

          Do you think people can’t ask or deny answering questions in Alabama? I would love to know why.

      2. Azhrei Vep

        I don’t think it’s a particularly aggressive question. She’s been acting weird. He wants to know why. Everyone wants to know why. He’s just being the most straightforward about it so far.

        He’s not entitled to know why of course, but there’s nothing wrong with asking in case she decides she wants to tell him. And if she tells him to fuck off, that’s a fair answer, and his response to that will be interesting to see.

        1. thejeff

          He’s also the first person who’s been alone with her since she showed up like this. First chance to ask not in a crowd of people.

          He might not be the best person to ask, under the circumstances, but it would also kind of be awkward not to.

          Jacob’s also not quite as a socially perceptive as he comes off. Like not noticing Joyce’s intentions until much too late.

    3. Bash

      That’s the thing about anger. It’s not always fair. Maybe no one has actually done anything wrong, maybe *you* are in the wrong, but if you feel disrespected or hurt you can still get angry. If someone gave you a bunch of mixed messages and you feel led on, you can get angry. Whether you acted honorably or not.

  11. HueSatLight

    Last Friday, at the same time as Joyce’s Calc class, Joe was in a class of his own. He doesn’t seem like the type who’d skip class, at least not so soon after abruptly leaving in the middle. I guess his class doesn’t have to be MWF.

    1. Sirksome

      I’m so curious about what classes Joe goes to. What are his interests. He’s undeclared isn’t he? What interests does he have? Health and Fitness? Engineering? Animal Science? The first year is when you really get to dip your toe in different pools. I think it’d be cool if at least one character was into medicine. Maybe that’s Joe?

      1. Jamie

        Being like his dad? Feels unlikely.

      2. Michael Steamweed

        Possibly, the freshman year would likely be 60-75% “core” courses (or “basics”), part of the standard associate 2year that’s common to almost all bachelor degrees. He’d take 1-2 major courses. Joe’s advisor might have given him all cores and no major this semester. (So English, Math, Science, History, Intro Psyc, Speech, P.E., etc.)

      3. Azhrei Vep

        Probably something that leads into engineering, but I don’t know enough about how college classes are organized to say what.

  12. Dara

    Jacob speaks for the comment section tho

    1. anon

      i mean, while it might be ‘outta chara’ for sarah to not be ‘grumpy by default’, i’d only be freaked out if say, she suddenly became besties with Raidah lol

      1. Jamie

        I mean, I wouldn’t be freaked out, but I would request an explanation.

        1. Azhrei Vep

          Yeah, not ‘freaked out.’ ‘Weirded out’ better describes their reactions thus far, and that seems fair.

  13. DailyBrad

    I am wondering what his deal is. I’ve felt that some of his behavior has been odd, but this is him getting blatant about it. He goes from pretty much flirting with Sarah (“I like your arms”, and then at the party, pointing out her having her arms bare conspicuously) to sleeping with a girl he’d literally met like twice at that point, and then expecting a fallout, and now being thrown off by it now happening.

    It’s got me intrigued, at least, I can say that much.

    1. anon

      i imagine at their age it’s pretty common to flirt with multiple ppl, usually not right in front of each other but while ppl are allowed to go at their own pace , being swept up with the pace of a party and vibing with other ppl i can imagine leading to a lot of things, tho idk if sarah would’ve ever rly asked jacob out (assuming she wouldn’t have turned him down if he was more shallow and just propositioned a one night stand/fling)

    2. Adam Black

      I agree with you here.

      But i think the answer is we should listen to how he acts, NOT what he says about himself.

      I think the truth is , he is shallow, somewhat easy to manipulate. and is somewhat emotionally manipulative himself. i think he views emotional relationships as very disposable , esp when they dont meet some immediate need or conflict with his self image. This is HOW Raidah manipulated him into a ( mostly?) sexless relationship.

      He had zero agony over dumping Raidah. Zero for rejecting Joyce. Zero for turning his date woth Sarah into a Hookup with Lucy. This is who he is.
      Joe agonized more over Joyce trying to break up him and Raidah. JOE. No guilt, no remorse, no sadness. He’s better at keeping poople at a distance than Sarah is.

      He will dispose lucy pretty quickly. She will break some secret rule he had, and he will claim dumping her is a scruple.

      1. Comic.phile

        Damn, I like your analysis. Great points

        1. Aslan

          It’s not, really. To say he dumped Raidah and rejected Joyce with “no agony” isn’t really accurate and also disregards how much he was motivated by his desire to earn his brother’s esteem. He dumped Raidah because he cheated on her. He rejected Joyce because she deceived his brother. Those are both acceptable reasons to end a relationship with someone. No bizarre explanation that his relationships were “disposable” or that they didn’t “meet some immediate need or conflict with his image.” What Joyce did was fucked up and selfish. Also, what date did he and Sarah go on? He paid her one (1) compliment and showed up to a party that she invited him to. None of that constitutes a date. Could he have made it clear to her that he didn’t share her feelings? Yes. Is that on him? Sure. Everything else? No real basis.

        2. cbwroses

          Thank you.

        3. thejeff

          I wouldn’t say he dumped Raidah because he cheated on her. He dumped Raidah because he realized he wanted to, because he realized he wasn’t really satisfied in that relationship.
          He did it out of order, but the decision to dump came first, then the cheating kiss, then the actual dumping, so the cheating can’t be the motivation.

          Or at least, that’s how I read it. I guess the kiss could have been more impulsive? and then the dumping a reaction to it?

        4. Jeremiah

          It can be both I think.

        5. thejeff

          Just checking back, he explicitly said I need to go break up with Raidah before kissing Joyce. Though he does follow with “I crossed too many boundaries with you today”, so I guess he could have already thought it was too far.

      2. Adept

        A pretty dark read Adam. It may well be true, but somehow I don’t think this is what Willis has been going for.

      3. Jeremiah

        You continue to be very weird. I really hope sometimes you are trolling with these takes because I wouldn’t wanna believe someone could say them seriously.

      4. thejeff

        The lack of agonizing is mostly because it happened very fast from his perspective. He broke up with Raidah basically as soon as he had the chance after realizing his interest in Joyce, then we didn’t see him for months. We didn’t get to see the agony.

      5. thejeff

        Beyond that though, I do think he’s pretty socially oblivious and easy to manipulate kind of fits. An echo perhaps of the sex addict thing from SP!

        He was unaware that Joyce was flirting with him, even though he was responding.
        He’s resistant to wanting casual sex as blatantly as Roz offers it, but he seems to be easily seduced by Lucy who he barely knows. As long you’re not openly rejecting the idea of a relationship, he’s in. Or so it seems, maybe he and Lucy really did just hit it off and have something special, despite not knowing each other.

        But the idea amuses me, because it means Sarah could have gotten with him if she just could have faked it a little better.

      6. Reaver

        What “date with Sarah” ??? The party that she invited him to? As well as Lucy???

    3. Bash

      We see the story from Sarah’s perspective, so it feels like he led her on and treated her badly. But he is actually probably feeling some of the same. She never gave him a clear indication of how she felt. It’s obvious to us that she does care but she just can’t express it. Jacob doesn’t know that. He just sees her pingponging from one extreme to the other and it’s very confusing.

      1. Sirksome

        He knows. Sarah gave him a very clear indication of how she felt

        https://www.dumbingofage.com/2024/comic/book-14/04-for-me-it-was-tuesday/howso/

        He even knows how hard expressing herself and being honest and vulnerable is for Sarah. I agree that Jacob is confused but he is not oblivious.

        1. Bash

          So I guess he knows that’s she’s mad at him? This is the closest they ever got to Sarah admitting she has romantic feelings. And she still couldn’t verbalize it all the way.

    4. Jeremiah

      I don’t think be expected a fallout, it’s the fact she made a full 180 on her whole personality overnight that has him concerned.

  14. Sajuuk-Khar

    Sarah: Blondie…What was it you told me last time? “If you save your breath, I feel a man like you can manage it.” And if you won’t manage it, you will die slowly. 🙂

    Jacob: Wh-what? I didn’t say anything like that???

    Sarah: ? VERY slowly, old friend.

  15. Samniel

    Jacob, you’re kind of the last person allowed to ask that. Even Lucy has more right to ask it since she apparently didn’t know Sarah had a huge crush/lust on him.

    Maybe someone needed to ask Sarah that, but I’d rather it not be… the person who made out with someone else in front of the person he knows has a huge crush/lust on him and then slept with said someone. (after telling the person that he wants a relationship and not just sex)

    1. Corronchilejano

      She’s made attempts to approach him and suddenly becomes distant too. There are plenty more people who wouldn’t be allowed to ask.

    2. anon

      i’m not sure if lucy would since she just learned but i do wonder if she’ll have a one on one convo. although be amusing if joyce was like “…you’re not gonna try to break up lucy and jacob are you?” considering it ‘worked’ once before lol

    3. Deanatay

      You know what I really like about that last panel? It shows that Jacob thinks of Sarah as a close friend, at this point. And you’re allowed to be rude to your friends, sometimes. ESPECIALLY when you’re worried about them.

      1. Kitsuner

        How does it show that? He just looks irritated to me.

        1. Mark

          I think he’s been feeling that he’s acted out of character and damaged his relationship with Sarah (whatever it is), was expecting to be tasked with that and prepared to confess, and now all of this has nowhere to go.

      2. Azhrei Vep

        Wait … asking someone why they’re suddenly being weird is rude?

        1. Reaver

          You must have a warrant to ask why someone’s done a 360 personality change in less than 24 hours yes!

          Otherwise you have NO ALLOWANCE TO DO SO!

        2. Taffy

          You got a loicense for that inquiry, mate?

        3. Reaver

          I’d need to see your WARRENT FOR THAT QUESTION SONNY!

        4. NGPZ

          I think that’s 180 degrees actually.

          Unless of course you are making a math pun about a 360 degree turn on a vector being dubbed an “identity transformation” XD

  16. UrsulaDavina

    Sarah’s internal OS software got an update but everyone was to busy to notice it happening beacuse they were merry,drunk, and horny or a combo of all three

    I don’t know what OS Sarah uses that’s for you all to decide may the OS puns flow!

  17. Dave Van Domelen

    Psychotic break?

    1. anon

      I think she’d not be manic enough for that 😛

    2. Nymph

      Yes. Someone is sad and not throwing a fit about it. They must be psychotic. Makes total sense.

      1. thejeff

        It depends on how you read her.

        She’s certainly not just “not throwing a fit about it”. She’s presenting as happier and more outgoing than she normally is.
        If she’d showed up this morning her usual grumpy self and just didn’t comment on Lucy/Jacob no one would have been really surprised.
        If she really is happier and feels like being more outgoing, that’s very weird personality shift and worthy of a bit of concern.
        If she’s faking it, which I think it more likely, less so.

        1. Taffy

          No.

        2. Nymph

          Wow. You’re so right. What a psycho.

          “this is unusual behavior” and “this is psychotic” are really different opinions, and I was arguing against the latter.

  18. Max

    Sarah snuck into Ruth’s room and took some of her happy pills?

    1. anon

      Ruth is only on antidepressants but i don’t think that would work that instantly/overnight as opposed to her just getitng high lol

    2. Reaver

      That is not how antidepressants work at all lol, it takes 2-6 weeks for them to take effect and before that it’s a ton of side effects that range from 24/7 nausea, Insomnia for days, and a absolute lack of hunger.

      If anything taking one would make her worse.

      1. NGPZ

        the time needed to take effect depends on the anti-depressant, and of course on the individual’s brain chemistry

        and yeah taking them without checking with a doctor can be very dangerous, there’s a reason why they’re prescription only

  19. Reltzik

    Plausible explanation: Sarah realized that Jacob went for Lucy instead of her because she’s emotionally unavailable and positive, decided (following that and Joyce’s armor-piercing-question a couple of days ago) that she needed to change, and is going with a fake-it-til-you-make-it strategy.

    Implausible explanation: After Jacob went for Lucy instead of her, Sarah went out and got laid.

    1. anon

      nothign wrong wit hbeing emotionally available as long as she isn’t traumadumping on strangers

      Tho i don’t know if even if she ‘wanted’ to get laid if that’d rly help her but it’s kinda hard to imagine her dealing with/putting up some of the downsides of a relationship rather than enjoying the ‘honeymoon’ phase lol

    2. Adam Black

      I hope BoTH

  20. Reltzik

    Also, COMPLETELY UNRELATED to anything in the comic recently and 98% unrelated to anything in the comic ever…

    … why the hell am I just today noticing that Unicron is just a one-letter variation of the word unicorn? I’d always kinda assumed it was a variation of the letter omicron.

    (Also, I just checked the transformers wiki trying to see which was the basis of the name and didn’t get an answer, but did see that Unicron’s page had a typo calling him Unicorn, and I can’t decide whether that bothers or amuses me.)

  21. staszu13

    Good question

  22. Taffy

    Oh no, he cussed and furrowed his brow. Now he’s a Bad Guy™ now.

    1. HueSatLight

      He did wait until everyone else was gone, avoiding putting her on the spot when other people were around to gawk. Truly villainous behavior.

      1. Taffy

        I can’t believe Jacob deliberately isolated Sarah in a place she couldn’t escape from and then cussed at her where her friends couldn’t hear him do it. Bad evil naughty cussboy, him.

    2. Jeremiah

      The comment section has an history of being weird about Jacob. I expected nothing else.

      1. Nymph

        The comment section has an history of being weird about _____.

        Just fill in the blank for any given day tbh. I swear half the people hear don’t have conversations with real humans on the regular.

        1. Jeremiah

          I also don’t have conversations with real humans on the regular (that aren’t my family) and yet still think people get weird as fuck.

  23. Dday

    Honestly, after the way she tried to put everything out there, Sarah’s response to all this was about the only option she had that lets her keep her dignity. What’s she sposed to do? Throw a tantrum? Bite a handkerchief and scowl? Get all weepy and beg Jacob to change his mind? I’ve got no idea what she’s thinking or feeling rn but what she’s *doing* makes enough sense… that said, I know what jealousy feels like and can attest it’s pretty damn hard to hide it, especially at her age. It’s not really something you can just switch off.

    1. Bash

      She could just be normal? This weird personality switch is just confusing and drawing more attention to it all.

      1. Dday

        See, *that* would actually be a lot harder.

  24. DiDi

    I feel like Jacob could have worded that better. And that’s what sticks out to me because usually he’s more sensitive and you know, actually knows what “tact” means.

    To blurt this question out in this way feels out of character for him, imo.

    I’m hoping this doesn’t lead to him doing something stupid.

    1. Adam Black

      is he though?

      He wasnt more sensitive going on a hookup when he was invited on a date.
      or rubbing it in his dates face the next morning, and doing nothing to defuse it.

      1. Nymph

        point to me where it was a date

    2. Bash

      I think he’s actually mad here, and feels led on by Sarah. I’m looking forward to what happens next.

      1. Adam Black

        ‘Im mad at you because leading you on, hooking up with a date at your party, and ambushung you with her the next morning, didnt make you Jealous’

        He can manage his own feelings. or ask his new girlfriend.

    3. Jeremiah

      To be fair, this is a very weird situation and he is rightfully confused, so he disregard tact to get straight to the point.

    4. thejeff

      “Tact” also has a long history of working well with Sarah.

    5. Reaver

      TBH everyone could have worded things better..with the power of insight and seeing how things played out already…

  25. PedanticJerkass

    I hope the next comic is:
    Panel 1:
    Sarah (with the same smile and cheery voice): “Fuck off.”
    Panels 2 – however many:
    Jacob, standing still, while Sarah progressively walks farther away.

    1. Comic.phile

      Same

    2. Nymph

      this would be amazing

  26. IntangibleMatter

    Morphine is a powerful drug.

  27. jmsr7

    Isn’t Sarah happy because Jacob has dumped Raidah? You know, that horrible person in a nasty friend group who made her life a living hell last year and is the main reason for her grumpiness?

    1. Jeremiah

      That was months ago.

  28. BBCC

    Thank you, Jacob!

  29. Armadillo

    Eh, I’m with Jacob on this one. If somebody decided to instantly rearrange their entire personality because I decided to date someone else I would be kinda ticked too. It feels like a weird, passive aggressive sort of way to put some kind of pressure on Jacob in my eyes.

    1. RocketRelm

      In fairness to Sarah, this was just the latest in a LONG line of dominoes falling over that piled in, I’m 90+% sure it’s not JUST the Jacob thing.

      1. NGPZ

        I’m actually with ya on this, I think a big part of it ain’t so much about Jacob as much as envying Lucy and trying to emulate her happy-go-lucky gravitas.

        It’s like that one episode of SpongeBob where Patrick tries to copy his every move because of how desperately he wants to win an award, down to eventually pressing his hand against a burning hot grill XD

    2. Sirksome

      I’m interested in this opinion. Why should Jacob feel upset here? He chose someone else. What Sarah does shouldn’t upset him in this way. There should be no pressure on him.

      1. Bash

        Sarah gave Jacob a LOT of mixed signals. She was consistent about being physically attracted to him, but he was looking for a sign that she liked him as a person. And it was always one step forward, two steps back. Sometimes she was friendly, sometimes she was literally running away instead of talking to him. She invited him to the party last night, but she panicked about her decision to drink and wouldn’t talk with him. Then he meets Lucy, and she does talk with him. They go home together. And the morning after, Jacob realizes that what he did might hurt Sarah. You can seem him making a guilty face when they talk about it. And then what happens? She is ridiculously, out-of-character cheerful. Of course Jacob is confused. He’s never known how she felt about him romantically, and this latest thing is just even more confusing.

    3. Adam Black

      isnt that exactly what Jacob did, mostly.

      I dont see why Jacob deserves an explanation. He was the one demanding entitlement to Sarahs inner feelings for a supposed relationship. Sarah wasnt demanding his.

      He is with someone else. He’s off the hook, and so is sarah for needing to explain her feelings to someone who doesnt reciprocate .

      Sarah invited him on a Date and he went on a hookup with someone else.
      He was expecting fireworks this morning and did nothing to defuse them.

      Im with Sarah. Keep them Guessing.

      1. eh, whatever

        Keep them Guessing.

        How does that help anyone?

        1. morleuca

          Why does she need to help him?

        2. Taffy

          He’s holding up a large shelf and needs her to catch the plates that are about to fall off of it.

      2. thejeff

        Sarah did not invite him on a Date.

        Sarah invited him to a party with a group of people, without saying anything about a date, in hopes of getting him drunk to make him more approachable, then panicked and ran away.

    4. jflb96

      Who says that this is because of him dating Lucy? Seems pretty self-centred to see someone’s personality change and decide ‘This is all because of me :)’ without any actual evidence.

      1. thejeff

        The entire comment section 🙂

  30. HueSatLight

    how long until the “Sarah met Arnold last night and they talked for hours” reveal?

    1. Taffy

      4-7 strips, maximum. I’ll put 10 gil on it.

      1. Nymph

        Whoa big spender.

  31. G127

    Jacob and Sarah are not that close. The way he responded to her crush comes across as kind of mean if he wasn’t interested.

    I just don’t see what gives him the right to ask her this question.

    1. Bash

      I think he was interested, and waiting for a sign that she liked something other than his body. But she’s not good at being vulnerable and expressing that stuff. She ran from him on multiple occasions, including at the party last night. He hit it off with someone else, someone who’s able to understand and express her feelings freely. And somehow, that is what makes Sarah cheerful and emotionally vulnerable? I think Jacob also feels led on by Sarah.

      1. Adam Black

        “Jacob also feels led on by Sarah” OMG this is giving me brain freeze.
        Its not true but Good.

        All he has done is lead Sarah on. She invited him on a date in public, and he hooked up with someone else. She was Obviously interested and nothing stopped him from asking her out, for months.

        She ran from him because she thought he was drinking, and she had. She didnt want to be manipulated while drunk. Good for her.

        When has Jacob ever been emotionally “vulnerable”?
        We will see how sad he is when things blow up with Lucy. ( probably none)

        1. Bash

          My comment isn’t really about what we as readers think, it’s about how Jacob feels. I think he’s confused. He doesn’t seem good at discerning romantic intentions, and he probably wasn’t sure if Sarah had genuine feelings for him. In his own mind he might feel like Sarah has been the one to lead him on, when she acts friendly one day and runs away from him the next.

        2. Taffy

          Or when she acts friendly one second and runs away the next. She’s been consistently erratic with the guy, of course he’s gonna be confused.

    2. Adam Black

      I dont see whatever gave him the right, to pry. If hes was never going to ask her out. ‘Open yourself up to me, so you validate im wanted’.

      I hope she dates arnold or someone and flaunts it.

      Sarah was one of my very favorite characters in Roomies, and its been frustrating that DOA turned her into a onenote sourpus.

      1. Nymph

        The constitution gave him the right I think tbh.

        1. Taffy

          Seventh Amendment, for sure.

    3. Taffy

      Why’s it always about “the right”? Why does it matter? He asked, it’s already happened, this is the reality we live in now. Any legalisms no longer apply.

      1. Jeremiah

        Just weird moralizing this comment section like get up to.

        1. Taffy

          Folks wanna act like this is a court of law and they’re paying their lawyer $275/hr to litigate the exact rights and permitted behaviors of these cartoons’ facial expressions and emotional responses to interpersonal stimulus.

  32. Bash

    Oh I am so in favor of this.

    1. ADLegend21

      our replies and Avatar’s are so in character hahaha

  33. ADLegend21

    Oh no.

  34. Adam Black

    im going to defend Jacob here ( who deserved no defense ) on one minor point.

    I dont think he is angry. I think he waited till they were alone to give Sarah a chance to Honestly yell at him, if she wants to.

    I think her knows he deserves to be blasted. ( Mostly for ambushing Sarah in front of a group of people when he believed she would be upset ). he knew.

    i dont think hes entitled to an answer.

    Sarah is acting like Lucy was last night ( maybe a Giant clue right there ) , when she felt ambushed by walky. Being the Bigger woman , refusing to be humiliated.

    although Walky and Dorothy both expressed more remorse (and concern for Lucys feelings ) than Jacob is here .

    1. Mark

      I’m puzzled by this notion that one must have a right or entitlement before asking a question. To demand an answer requires a right or entitlement, but not to request one as a boon.

      1. Azhrei Vep

        Exactly! It’s not that weird to just ask a question, and it’s just as not weird if someone decides to not answer it, as long as nobody gets bent out of shape over it.

  35. Thing2

    Sarah-tonin. Tee Hee.

  36. darkoneko

    Dude, just let her have this.

  37. Arianod

    Funny, now *Jacob* is acting out of character. He usually has more tact than that.

    1. Azhrei Vep

      Is privately asking someone why they’ve suddenly reversed personality that tactless?

      1. Taffy

        Tact is when you don’t cuss or ask a single question.

        1. Azhrei Vep

          So… treating someone like you can’t stand them and they don’t matter is tact?

        2. Taffy

          Presumably. It’s not my view, but I’ll nudge it onto someone else’s plate if it looks like they’d enjoy the taste.

    2. PedanticJerkass

      Maybe he’s asking in an intentionally abrasive way explicitly to try to jar her into a similarly abrasive response, i.e. that which would be closer to what her demonstrable personality has been for the past ever since the comic started?

  38. Rabisch

    I like how Joe looks at Sarah and Jacob walking away and he seems to be worried. I think he knows he would have asked that. Jacob is right to ask her what’s her plan. It’s almost certain that this change in Sarah is due to him, but it’s not clear why she is doing it. Jacob does not like to be manipulated or be part of weird plans. There’s also the great precedent of Sarah’s sneaky plan to make him breakup with Raidah. So it’s better to know what she’s doing.

  39. Allison Branford

    Here’s my late take. I think Sarah is hurt, but also relieved. Jacob was not this wonderful deep soulful person he displays, making Sarah ashamed of her desires. He’s just another horny dude, like Joe, in Sarah’s mind.
    The personality shift is Sarah trying to excise the negativity out of her life, because she’s honestly glad she didn’t open up and get hurt, more than she did.

    1. Jeremiah

      Sarah started wanting Jacob purely because he was hot and she was horny, not really because she thought he was a “soulful person”. (I fell like I am not wording this right but I don’t have the mental energy to rewrite it right now)

      1. Mark

        And because Raidah had him?

        1. Azhrei Vep

          Well, she sicced Joyce on her then, if I remember right. In the Raidah situation, the priority was keeping Raidah away from him more than getting him (in)to herself.

        2. Jeremiah

          She didn’t know about Raidah until after she already for the hots for him.

    2. Plain Marie

      That’s my take as well.

  40. Yeet

    clearly semme is being introduced and she’s been alien-mindwiped /j

  41. thumb

    “I’m high as fuck!”

  42. Clell65619

    Personally, if I knew someone who was exhibiting such a radical personality shift, literally overnight, I would do the obvious thing.

    Start looking for the goatee, This is obviously Sarah from a mirror dimension.

  43. Taffy

    ques·tion
    noun
    a sentence worded or expressed so as to elicit information.

    1. Jeremiah

      I’m gonna need some deeper explanation of this strange new concept.

      1. NGPZ

        I think more specifically Taffy intends to remind us that a sentence being a statement and being a question are not mutually exclusive.

        1. Taffy

          Nah, it just genuinely seems to be confusing to people that you can request information instead of guessing, assuming, or waiting for it to be given unprompted. It’s being treated as an affront, some invasion Jacob is inflicting on Sarah.

        2. Jeremiah

          I say as an autistic person that never leaves the house or interact with anyone face to face: You all need to go outside. (Not you taffy, I mean most of everyone being weird today)

        3. Taffy

          Everyone should go outside, unless they’re at least 80% likely to die from something out there. That’s where all the scary people are, with their mean remarks and their random physical assault and their ordering just enough Baja Blast that the Taco Bell worker has to change out the syrup so you’re forced to wait a few minutes longer than expected and their terrible driving.

          I stay in most days, but when I go outside with the knowledge that any one of those things could happen to me, and then they don’t happen to me, it’s a nice little emboldening surprise. More of y’all should do that and watch yourselves not die, you’ll feel stronger and less upset.

        4. NGPZ

          being a programmer means my lifestyle is naturally sedentary, thus I go on 4+ hour walks a lot to overcompensate

          funny enough it actually helps me be a better programmer haha XD

        5. Nymph

          Wow, why don’t you want Taffy going outside? This is the worst crime of all crimes.

        6. Jeremiah

          The outside was inside them all along.

  44. Colin McKenzie

    Jacob is just a plot device asking what we ALL want to know.

  45. Whirlakitty

    Wow. Jacob is just really an asshole isn’t he?

    1. Jeremiah

      No, not really.

    2. Taffy

      At worst, he’s pretty clueless.

    3. Reaver

      How????

  46. MickeeC

    Gee, it’s almost like she’s trying to play it cool after the guy she’s been basic flirting with for the past arc hooked up with someone else.

    Not to mention how the two of them act INSTANTLY coupley after just one hookup, that had to sting .

  47. Stephen Nedland

    I’m going to go out on a limb here, and suggest that Sarah is beginning to take her meds for anxiety/depression. The retcon being, is that she was diagnosed, sometime after her fallout with Raidah. The reason we just learn of this is that Sarah never felt comfortable bringing it up, and Liz just assumed she was taking her meds, so she also never brought it up.

  48. tim gueguen

    Sarah is actually happy because she’s the only one who realises the party happened on a Friday night, and there’s no classes today.

  49. J

    Don’ look a gift-horse in the mouth, Jacob.

  50. tunasammich

    I don’t think Jacob is being super mean here or something, they’re friends even if not good friends and I think she’ll take it in the spirit it’s intended

    My personal theory is that Sarah realized that by being a huge grump and pushing people away she’s hurting herself and ruining her opportunities for happiness and is legit trying to let go of that and be more chill. She doesn’t have to be devastated about “losing” Jacob or whatever, she can see that if someone she looked down on and thought was a nerd ended up with him she was being self-sabotaging for no reason and he would have been in her league if she had offered him what he wanted in return–kindness and genuineness. She doesn’t have to end up with him, but by tearing her walls down she could end up with someone like him

    1. Yeet

      I’d have the same question for sarah in jacob’s position

  51. Sibre

    Now’s your chance, Sarah. Laugh maniacally and then just leave. Make him wonder for the rest of his life.

    1. Taffy

      That would actually be really funny. She’s planting the seed of uncertainty in his mind, and now every time they interact (she’s gonna be like this forever now btw, she’s just Perky Now) he’s gonna wonder if she’s being genuine, if he’s overthinking it, maybe even if she’s building up to something. Something that never arrives.

      1. Nymph

        Eventually, he spontaneously combusts from the friction of constantly anxiety-shaking like a chihuahua.

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