364

Option
Posted on April 27, 2015 by David M Willis

364 thoughts on “Option”

  1. Jen Aside

    “oh don’t worry about it, you can have a ‘drunk-to-English’ translator at your State of the Union addresses”

    1. Safgaftsa

      Just as well, since Billie washed out of journalism.

    2. cesium133

      If Warren G. Harding can pull off presidenting while intoxicated, Dorothy can, too.

      1. John

        I’m… not sure Harding’s was a presidency to be emulated.

        1. Rich

          I’m sure it wasn’t. Whenever I get too depressed about the parade of executive clowns we’ve had during my lifetime, a quick refresher on Harding’s time in office helps cheer me up.

        2. fogel

          “When I was a boy they told me that anybody could grow up to be president; I’m beginning to believe it.” Clarence Darrow

        3. grantimusmax

          Hmm.. yeah, drinking and presidency never mixes. Ulysses Grant? Crippling depression/alcoholic. Andrew Jackson? Genocidal Lunatic/alcoholic. It’s just a bad idea.

        4. Awnman

          I’m gonna defend Grant here. Grant had issues with alcohol sure, I am not denying that. He got stupidly drunk in both California and at Vicksburg. Both those however shared the quality that Grant was bored. But the idea that Grant was drunk during his presidency is one with very little evidence behind it. As for your allegation that he was chronically depressed is again one I can find very little support for. He was melancholy but never overly depressed, certainly not crippling. Even in the worst of his failures in Galena Illinois he never became depressed as we would define it today. He was never sucidal and was always full of energy to continue trying. I personally defend Grants actions during his presidency but that’s an entirely different conversation

          Sources
          Grant: Jean Edward Smith
          Grant a Biography: William McFeely
          The Civil War, a Narrative History: Shelby Foote
          Battle Cry of Freedom: James McPherson
          And less convincing but
          Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S Grant : Ulysses S Grant

        5. Rycan

          Of course a Civil War general would come to Grant’s defense. How’s the afterlife been treating you, Ambrose?

        6. Dan

          I also want to point out that he got migraines, which have been linked to depression. In fact, Abraham Lincoln also suffered from both migraines and depression but hated alchohol.

        7. Dan

          Heh, perfect avatar for that comment yeah?

        8. Felix

          http://www.quora.com/Who-is-the-most-underrated-American-president

        9. fogel

          Good link: thanks.

        10. Jon Rich

          I really, really love that comment. Tks for making me smile while I slog through writing a paper.

        11. Jon Rich

          I really, really love that comment. Tks for making me smile while I slog through writing a paper.

        12. Regalli

          I mean, he was better than Buchanan!… Which is just about the lowest bar you can clear, “Watch your country dissolve and do nothing because you’re about to hand it off to someone else so why does it concern you.”

        13. Safgaftsa

          That’s why you can’t skip Intro to Logic.

        14. Captain Batson

          That’s just because you’re a Negative Neville.

  2. DarkoNeko

    nooo alcohol doesn’t solve any problem ! (neither does milk)

    1. Bagge

      alcohol is a pretty good solvent

      1. Architex

        You could say it’s a component of many solutions.

        1. boomwolf

          The fact that your icon is Billie just gives that comment a little more “oomph”.

        2. Architex

          I’m all about that good context.

        3. K^2

          Since we aren’t talking about pure alcohol anyways, I’m pretty sure it’s fair to say that alcohol IS a solution. And you know what they say. If you aren’t part of the solution, you are part of the precipitate.

        4. DarkoNeko

          Hehehehehehe

      2. Rich

        Pretty good antiseptic, too.

        1. Leorale

          I hear you can use it to get permanent marker off a whiteboard.

        2. leadsynth

          Hairspray will do the trick. (Hmm, hairspray has alcohol in it. I wonder if that’s why.)

        3. Rycan

          Most likely.

        4. Rich

          Yes. Similar to the reason nail polish remover is good for removing Superglue – it has acetone in it.

        5. Rycan

          Though some nail polish removers have been reformulated, since acetone isn’t a very nice chemical. Although I have to wonder if the replacement will prove to be even nastier.

        6. Clif

          If Joyce had only known.

        7. Bagge

          Can’t you use another pen somehow… *playing with fire*

        8. Rycan

          Great, now you’ve caught the whiteboard on fire. Hope you’re pleased with yourself.

        9. Bagge

          A burning whiteboard sounds pretty badass, actually. “You have 30 seconds to take notes before the fire alarm goes off”

        10. Screwball

          *Writes “Where are my marshmellows?” on burning whiteboard*

        11. Rycan

          Soak a paper towel with a little bit of alcohol, and it’ll pull permanent marker off almost anything until the alcohol evaporates. Exceptions are in cases where the ink soaks into the surface, such as paper.

        12. fogel

          So it won’t work on cloth, either?

      3. Plasma Mongoose

        Coke is a better solvent, it can remove blood-stains from just about anything…

        1. DarkoNeko

          Great ! let’s tell Joyce.

        2. K^2

          Different class of solvents, really. Now rum and coke? That can dissolve just about anything. Dirt, rust, impulse control…

        3. DarkoNeko

          …teeth.

        4. Roborat

          panties

        5. Rycan

          We had to dissolve just about everything we wanted to analyze in organic chemistry. Strangely, we never tried using either Coca-Cola or cocaine as a solvent in that class.

        6. fogel

          It would have been a waste to use one of those 2.

        7. fogel

          The ceiling? You know, if there were a geyser of blood from a severed jugular…

    2. Rycan

      Milk’s pretty good at solving hunger.

      1. xKiv

        Not for the lactose-intolerant, though. Unless you also propose a modest modification?

        1. Rycan

          Which is why they were more likely to starve, up until recently. Lactose intolerance used to be almost universal, until domesticated livestock showed up, and we learned to harvest their milk. Now, in regions where people have been milking livestock for a long time (or people from those regions), lactose intolerance has become rare.

          Not saying we should just let the lactose intolerant starve, of course. Just giving some context to my previous comment.

    3. Screwball

      Alcohol can solve problems. It burns pretty well if you get the right stuff…

  3. Bagge

    Good call, Danny

    1. The Kojie

      “Can I be weird?” has got to be the best line I’ve read so far. I mean, it just perfectly controls the situation in a way that permits awkwardness. I shall use this.

      1. leadsynth

        “Can I Be Weird? A Fifth Dumbing of Age Collection”

    2. Rich

      For a minute I thought he was insane but on consideration, who else in his social circle is he going to talk to that would be better?

      Still, when the ex-girlfriend who dumped you the first day on campus is your best option for difficult discussions about your sexual identity, you need a wider circle of friends.

      1. DarkoNeko

        To his defense, he tried Joe first.

        1. luxlucis

          To his further defense Dorothy is pretty good in these kind of situations.

        2. Rich

          Sure she is, but this is still the kind of awkward situation you should try not to put an ex into, especially a recent ex. But then, awkward is pretty much Danny’s thing, isn’t it?

        3. DarkoNeko

          eh, they both have a new significant half now, so…

        4. Jericho

          I’m just imagining Dotty: “Why is everyone I know secretly gay?”

        5. Rycan

          I don’t think she suspects Walky being sexually attracted to men. Now McNuggets, that’s definitely up for debate.

        6. TrueVCU

          Also seems more like he’s bi than gay.

        7. Bagge

          Joe SHOULD have been a good person to talk to about this

        8. Spencer

          Joe’s basically the worst best friend ever.

          And the worst wingman, something you’d think he’d excel at.

        9. Bagge

          I don’t think he’s the worst best friend… but he’s pretty bad. At least for Danny’s needs (and Joe think Danny is a pretty bad best friend to his need). Joe would be a good best friend if Danny was just like Joe.

          As for being a bad wingman… yeah, he is. He doesn’t quite manage to live up to his own image of himself, but in opposite to – for example – Walky he isn’t aware of it yet.

        10. DarkoNeko

          I don’t wanna call him homophobic, but if anything he’s really, reaaally scared by the idea.

        11. Kamino Neko

          I don’t think that’s what’s going on with him. He just doesn’t like FEELINGS. Certainly not Danny Feelings.

        12. DarkoNeko

          Hmmm…

        13. Rycan

          Can’t say it paints him in a better light, but it’s certainly a different light.

        14. timemonkey

          Joe probably would have been a good person to talk to, except they allowed themselves to get sidetracked onto another topic.

      2. K^2

        Nah. Exes-you’re-on-good-terms-with are the best people to talk things out with. They already know most of your skeletons, and even if that’s the reason they’ve ran off, if they are still talking to you, it’s a good sign that they can handle a few more.

  4. Doctor_Who

    Panel 4 is the best Danny face ever.

    1. grantimusmax

      Agreed. Needs to be a magnet.

      1. Doctor_Who

        I think Danny just needs to have sclerae more often. Really improves his range of expression.

        1. JessWitt

          It may improve his sex appeal – to me, anyway.

        2. Plasma Mongoose

          Eye-whites can improve almost any character’s sexiness.

    2. Jason

      Yeah, I was just coming to say that the art in this one feels different, particularly panels 4 and 5. And I like it.

  5. timemonkey

    Oh please let this go where I want it to go. Please. I’ve been ever so good.

    1. LeslieBean4Shizzle

      I have not been good, but I still hope it’s going to the place where you think it’s going.

    2. DarkoNeko

      I’m… not really looking forward that. Poor Amber 🙁

      1. Doctor_Who

        I don’t see how this negatively impacts his relationship with Amber at all. He’s still into girls. Maybe now she just has someone to share her appreciation of Iron Man/Captain America slashfic with.

        1. DarkoNeko

          The way things are going, this may be the 2nd boyfriend in a row that’d ditch her for men ^^;

        2. Rycan

          And we’ll see if someone who’s already unhinged can become more unhinged.

        3. saki

          He’s not gonna ditch her for men – he likes girls, and he likes her. Talking to Dorothy will (finally) make him realize it doesn’t have to be on or the other since she’ll certainly tell him bisexuality’s a thing too. However, Amber will very likely convince herself Danny’s gonna leave her for a guy, given her past experience…. So unless Danny decides never to tell her – which we all know Willis won’t allow – people are gonna get hurt. But on the long-term it’s still a good thing – no point in Danny lying to himself the rest of his life.

        4. Rabid Rabbit

          He appears to be unaware that he’s allowed to like both. Admittedly, Dorothy might be the right person to set him straight* about that.

          As it is, however, he is likely considering the fact that pursuing Ethan would involve dumping Amber for the guy who dumped her because he was gay.

          *I meant to do that.

        5. Spencer

          Danny doesn’t know that Ethan is gay.

        6. DarkoNeko

          Yet.

        7. saki

          Considering what happened with Joyce, there is a chance he might decide to come out though. Fingers crossed.

        8. AgentKeen

          I mean, there’s a lot more going on here than just Danny thinking he might not be into just girls.
          -First time he’s into another guy (as far as we know), so that’s confusing
          -Amber’s already specifically mentioned that her last boyfriend turned out to like guys and she has some baggage from that
          -The guy he’s crushing on IS her last bf (I’m pretty sure that makes it multiplicative instead of additive if I’m up on drama math)
          -This is only the second girl he’s had sex with, so that’s gonna factor into everything else (‘am I really gay since I’ve only been with 2 girls? She’s only the second girl I’ve been this close to, I can’t hurt her!’)
          -And it’s Danny. He’s not going to cheat and doesn’t want to hurt Amber, but he also tends to overthink, and part of him feels like even considering to kiss someone else is as bad as cheating.

        9. neeks

          Technically what she said was that she worried that he’d leave her for more attractive people, which was not completely invalid a concern, she just didn’t specify the gender of people he’d be leaving her for.

        10. No Name

          She did, however, mention having bad gaydar and asked if Danny had “consummated” his previous relationship. Danny may act stupid sometimes, but he’s not a complete idiot.

        11. Rycan

          You forgot to add that he’s dating someone with the emotional stability of a volcano.

        12. Gigafreak

          Well, there’s a supervolcano underneath Yellowstone National Park. Like Amber, it’s usually pretty calm but does need to blow off steam at regular intervals.

        13. Random832

          And if it ever erupts for real it will destroy North America. Whether that also is like Amber is left as an exercise for the reader.

        14. Andrew_C

          And most likely cause a global extinction event, don’t forget. Yellowstone too.

        15. Rycan

          On the plus side, Amazi-Girl will have finally found a supervillian – herself.

        16. Rich

          One obvious problem that could come up is the exclusivity thing. Have Danny and Amber/Amazi-Girl had that talk? Do they both have the same expectations if they haven’t? Hard to do much bisexual experimentation if you’re trying to stay in an exclusive relationship with your girlfriend.

        17. Spencer

          They’re both pretty clearly completely monogamous. Danny is self explanatory, but Amber’s described sex as “weird and personal” so I’d assume she hasn’t considered ever going beyond one person at a time.

        18. Rich

          I don’t really see that as being established, the question really hasn’t come up yet. If true, then the Danny-Amber pairing will have to break before we see a Danny-Ethan (or whoever) pairing. Really not a fan of what that might do to Amber, who’s got a whole raft of problems already without her current boyfriend dumping her to go off with her last boyfriend who dumped her.

        19. Spencer

          I don’t think Danny even knows how to break up with somebody, let alone so he can pursue somebody else.

          Unless Willis goes for an OT3, Danny and Amber will break up before Danny/Ethan ever happens.

        20. Rich

          In terms of minimizing emotional damage to everyone involved, an OT3 might actually be the best-case scenario. There’s more drama in having some sort of ugly break between Amber and Danny revolving around Ethan, but exploring an open or poly relationship in the strip would be more interesting and way less predictable. Might not last given the personalities involved, but you could tell some good stories around it.

          And yes, I know the prospect of a MMF threesome on Slipshine would fill some people with glee.

        21. John

          We’ve seen Amber having MMF threesome dreams. I’m pretty sure she would be totally down with anything Danny and Ethan might get up to, assuming Danny comes back to her. And maybe lets her watch. Or maybe play too.

        22. DarkoNeko

          I’ve been thinking about it, but it’s likely to end as “well” as Mike threesome thing.

        23. neeks

          Eeeh you can like polyamorous situations philosophically–and pruriently–but still have hangups about implementing them in your life.

        24. John

          Yeah, but, from a meta-perspective, that Willis has taken the time to establish that Amber’s into dude-on-dude, not just once but on at least three separate occasions that I can recall, smells a lot like foreshadowing to me.

        25. timemonkey

          John, that’s simply a trait she carried over from the other universe, nothing special to this situation.

        26. fogel

          John’s point is kind of a ‘Chekov’ s fantasy”? If the author puts a fantasy in the first act it will be enacted by the 3rd act (or whatever the equivalent Times are in DoA).

        27. Trolldrool

          Lots of people are incredibly turned on by imagining a sexual scenario, such as watching their partner have sex with someone else or having sex in public, but when actually confronted with them either in real life or from watching it in porn, it loses all the appeal. Namely because personal fantasies don’t always match up to one’s expectations of reality.

        28. Majere

          Monogamy is the assumed default in any romantic relationship unless an open relationship has been explicitly agreed upon. The risk of hurting your partner is too great to assume openness in the relationship without establishing it with them first.

        29. K^2

          It would still have a negative impact. Dany might manage not to Dany it up, but Amber has too much baggage associated with Ethan. Not saying it will be devastating, but there will be fallout.

        30. Rich

          Amber’s also been pretty unhappy with Ethan about the way he handled his relationship with Joyce. That seems to have resolved itself okay, but it’s a factor on top of the past Amber-Ethan dating history.

      2. Screwball

        Go out, admire a few cute guys, maybe both try hooking up with him then use him in a 3some?

        The joys of dating a bi-sexual…

    3. Dammy

      I see the look on your face. You have not been good, evil jester.

  6. Kris

    Go ahead say something to Amber. See what happens.

    1. John

      “You’re… you’re still into girls too, right?”
      “Yeah, pretty sure.”
      “Cool. Can I watch?”

      1. Doc

        I think if Danny told Amber he was into dudes she would probably try to kill Sal. Because that’s what rational Ambers do.

        1. grantimusmax

          The previous was a true fact about the Amber.

        2. DarkoNeko

          …ooh, yeah. She doesn’t know he’s helping Sal for maths yet, does she ? ^^; That’s gonna end well.

        3. Rich

          Bonus points if there’s a miscommunication at some point about Sal sexing it up with her tutor and people assume that means Danny instead of Jason. At that point I could see Amber getting pretty steamed.

        4. DarkoNeko

          if THAT happens then Dotty will have ample news of mass murdering to report.

        5. awkweirdness

          I can see it now. Billie gets mad at how Dorothy gets all the stories. Then Billie gets told to research why it sounds like there is another person in Ruth’s room…

        6. Screwball

          If things travel in this general direction, I want THIS ^ to happen too… 😛

        7. Rycan

          Dorothy won’t be reporting. She’ll be hiding from someone who will be desperate to hide their identity.

        8. Idris

          I dunno…

          I mean, it’s Danny. The guy who dumped her because he wanted to stay loyal to her. She has personal confirmation that he’s not gonna fool around.

          The only way she’s gonna give that rumour, if it happens, any credence is if Sal’s involvement fries her brainmeats enough that she doesn’t even give it a second of thought.

        9. Majere

          Ugh that scenario sounds like it was pretty much just lifted straight out of a terribly 90s sitcom.

      2. DarkoNeko

        …threesoooome. (not)

  7. Opus the Poet

    If alcohol is the solution, then your problem is non-polar.

    1. Opus the Poet

      I thought the readers here were smart, or at least educated. There are so many puns that could be made from that setup line…

      1. DarkoNeko

        Bear with us, it’s like 7AM here.

    2. Stumo

      So, a grizzly problem?

    3. Rycan

      No no, you have it all wrong. Alcohol isn’t the solution; you use it on the problem to obtain the solution.

  8. Architex

    Amber’s right next door though.

    1. Jason

      Wow that’s a good point. Either he knocked softly or he waited till he knew she was gone.

    2. saki

      Good thing Dorothy’s not the type to yell out “You’re into dudes?!” in surprise

      1. Screwball

        Cue that exact reaction in 3, 2, 1…

  9. RHagen

    Didn’t hit the sauce until I was in my 20’s. Dear lord did it help…

  10. TheLurkerAbove

    I love Dorothy’s outfit. ^_^

    1. Doctor_Who

      Is she dressed as the 1990s? Because that’s basically what I wore every day from 5th grade to 10th.

      1. Screwball

        You can see similar outfits in Australia every now & again, especially in certain areas. I believe the term the local Humans use is “Bogan”…

    2. saltchocolate

      I was thinking the same thing! (But Doctor_Who may also have a point, because I loved the 90s.)

    3. Bagge

      Me too.

  11. grantimusmax

    Man, Danny really knows how to Dan things up immediately, doesn’t he?

    1. MeghanTheWorldEater

      I just realized we don’t have an opposite to Danning it up.
      We need one.
      But I dunno who would work..Joeing it up?

      1. Kavonde

        No, Joeing it up requires a subscription to Slipshine.

        1. Someone

          Miking it up, Danny always tries to do good but his actions have netagive consequences, Mike on the other hand tries to do evil, but his actions help in the long run.

        2. DarkoNeko

          Is he really trying to do evil, tho ?

        3. Rich

          He’s just trying to amuse himself, with maybe a slight interest in pointing out hypocrisies in others. In some ways, that’s a worse motivation than evil.

          Still curious to see if drunken DoA Mike turns out to be a Really Nice Guy like Walkyverse Mike.

        4. APersonAmI

          1 Enhancement, Animate Object, War, Revitalize, Life, Fast Heal.
          2 Time, Fate, Harm.
          I am going to say that climbing into the bed belonging to your roommate, taking pictures of them with their girlfriend, and threatening to use these pictures of innocent intimacy to ruin her career is evil. I don’t care why he did it. Doing that is Not Okay.

        5. APersonAmI

          GODAMMIT

          Should have cleaned out my word docomuent before spellchecking that comment…

        6. Rich

          Which deity was that domain list for, anyway? 🙂

        7. Rycan

          And now you’ve screwed up your character build. You’ll wind up with a healer/spellcaster who is dedicated to fighting the evil that is unwanted candid photography. “Be at peace with the world, let it’s energy salve your wounds. . . is that a camera? THE WORLD SHALL BURN!”

        8. saki

          He -might- have done that in order to hint at Dorothy she might want to be more careful with this stuff if she’s going to be president one day. Of course it’d be simpler to just tell her that straight-up, but that would actually be nice, and Mike doesn’t do straight-forward nice.

        9. Spencer

          That’s not his place to teach her, and doing something awful to “teach” somebody still means you’re doing that awful thing.

          I can’t believe so many people here justify Mike’s behaviour. It’s gross.

        10. Greenygal

          Taken most generously, that might be his motivation. But being an asshole to someone in order to convey a message that you could just tell them, and that is not your business in the first place, does not absolve you of being an asshole.

        11. DarkoNeko

          I’m fairly sure he was just pissed she spent the nice in his room and decided to be an arse until she got out.

        12. Rycan

          Like Mike ever needed an excuse.

        13. saki

          Hey, I’m not defending him. Just throwing that out there. I tend to assume the worst in people so I’ve taken a habit of trying to imagine the best in them because otherwise this world is just too fucking depressing.

        14. Rycan

          I’m afraid you picked the wrong character to try that out on. The reputations of Becky and Danny could sure benefit from that thinking, though.

        15. saki

          I don’t pick, it’s an automated reflex at this point.

        16. John

          I’m going to point out, again, that Mike waited until Dorothy was awake and aware of his actions, and told her what he was doing, and so she was able to stop him with a minimum of fuss. He did not have to do that. He could have taken the pictures a few minutes earlier, when Dorothy was asleep and unaware, never told her about them, and the first she’d have known about it was when they came out just in advance of Election Day and ruined her career, and she would never have had a chance to stop him.

          Whatever else you may say about Mike, he isn’t stupid or short-sighted. He’s cunning, observant, and makes subtle long-term plans. His roommate farts in bed, Mike doesn’t punch him, he does something apparently nice for him that ultimately causes him to break up with his girlfriend. Doing something minor now that comes back to bite Dorothy in the ass in twenty years is exactly the sort of gambit he’d come up with. But he didn’t do that. Ergo, he was not actually attempting to ruin Dorothy’s career. He was just being a dick to make some point to her. Maybe just that if she’s gonna sleep over with her boyfriend, they should do it in her room, not his.

        17. Spencer

          I’m glad we’ve concluded that Mike is a disgusting, abusive asshole with no redeeming qualities.

        18. Majere

          Yeah, Mike’s a real standup guy for not doing the literal most evil thing possible in the situation and instead just settling for being a preachy and invasive douchebag.

        19. fogel

          I don’t know whether he INTENDS either good or evil. At least part of what he does is to point out people’s self-deceptions, inconsistencies, hypocrisies. I don’t know what he gets out of it. Though he sometimes seems to get satisfaction out of getting people to react to his provocations.

        20. Rycan

          Pointing out self-deception and hypocrisy is a great way of provoking people. So, Mike does that on a routine basis. Doesn’t mean he actually wants to help them resolve those conflicts.

          I’ve come to conclude that people ascribe good intentions to him because his asshole behavior is often used to move a plot forward.

        21. fogel

          Rycan, I agree, with one addition/change: it’s not that Mike is used, its that WILLIS uses Mike. And that interests me. As well as the particulars of how he uses him. Mike is a major asshole. I don’t know his intentions and I dont think/ believe that the good he occasionally triggers –which isn’t what usually happens when he Mikes people — justifies his behavior, at all,it doesn’t. But Mike is a Shakespearean Fool, transfigured in really smart and interesting ways by Willis.

        22. Majere

          No, Mike is unequivocally an evil person. Like, even if he intends the occasional beneficial consequences of his cruelty (which I doubt) it wouldn’t excuse the initial cruelty in any way. Mike seems more like he just enjoys making other people miserable because he’s a shitty person.

        23. fogel

          Evil? Cruel? Seriously. Maybe he is and I don’t recall it, I really don’t keep track of what he does, I just recall a few episodes from each Willis-verse. And what I recall him doing isn’t evil in a way I understand. Not even obviously sadistic. Willis made him an interesting, maybe unique character, NOT just another tedious psychotic-villain (Sydney Yus anyone?) and not a smug selfriteous bongo. Making him the Anti-angry-drunk was Pratchett-level. (And I knew a guy who was as nice as could be when sober but mean when drunk, which was bloody disorienting.) Willis used Mike in Shortpacked to make an incisive critique of American fantasy pop culture in contrast to the Reality of American actions in the world. I just don’t accept that he’s irremedibly cruel evil with no redeeming character given that Willis made him interestingly complex and uses him, sometimes, for interesting stuff. Especially since, as John points out better than I could, that the frothing at the mouth over him supposedly trying to ruin Dorothy’ s presidential run has no basis in what Willis actually showed. Mike is a duck and other things of that sort, but cruel and evil? He makes people hella uncomfortable, but who has he harmed in DoA? Maybe I didn’t register it or forgot. If so, . I really would appreciate someone pointing it out for me.

        24. Spencer

          He repeatedly assaulted Joe at Galasso’s.

          He tried to humiliate Walky and Dorothy in their gender studies class.

          He drew dicks on Joyce’s whiteboard despite it her repeated insistence he stop.

          He told Ethan that he should pretend to be straight, but some argue he was being facetious which apparently means it’s okay to say something like that when a gay kid is at the lowest part of their life and might be prone to a suggestion that gives them back a sense of stability.

          He told Amber that she was doomed to become a violent abuser like her father because she was attracted to passive men like Ethan and Danny.

          He photographed Walky and Dorothy while they half awake with the stated intent of posting it online to shame Dorothy.

          But, hey, he’s just doing it because he cares so much! That means it’s okay and not totally fucked up! That’s how abuse works, right? It’s okay as long as the abuser means well!

        25. Rycan

          Spencer, you forgot the time he slipped his books into Walky’s backpack (he needed exercise!), and when he bought pajama jeans for Walky, which ultimately precipitated a breakup with Dorothy that was only fixed by Joyce’s intervention (they needed… hell, I can’t dream up an excuse for that one).

        26. fogel

          Spencer, that’s not what I intended, really. Mike is ducked up. I don’t think he means well. I don’t think he cares. IF he does, I and I don’t know that he does, then the way that he acts on those feelings is fubar and just plain wrong. Period. Without excuse. He’s a duck and an a-hole. He treats people like carp. If that’s evil I won’t argue against it. It’s certainly no way to act. But I’d still take Mike over every psycho power mad villain in popular entertainment and every smug selfrighteous prig and bingo. Willis is doing interesting things with mike and im interested in seeing what he does further. (And I still believe that John is right about the camera incident. Mike was a duck in that. But he was a duck for what we know for sure that he did. We don’t know that he actually took any pics, tho he could of when D&W were snuggling in their sleep and we don’t know that he posted anything, though he could have when they were asleep. I am inclined to think that he waitedctillvthey were waking up because he wanted to get up in Dorothy’ s face. WHICH WAS A JERKFACED THING TO DO IN ITSELF even if he actually took no pictures. And I do not think he meant well. But even if he did mean well he acted like a total duck, unacceptably. heck, If I was on the receiving end of Mike’s shit I might have come to blows already. I dislike Mike. But I am interested in what Willis is doing with him as a character.

        27. fogel

          http://www.shortpacked.com/index.php?id=1880

          A different universe, I know,but it’s a big part of the reason that I’m interested to see what Willis does with him in DoA.

        28. fogel

          First part, yes. Second part, I don’t know.

      2. Screwball

        I just realized we don’t have an opposite to Danning it up.
        We need one.
        But I dunno who would work..Joeing it up?        .
        Un-Danning it up?
        Sal-ing it up?
        Billie-ing it up?

        1. fogel

          Miking it up?

    2. Idris

      Hmm? How so?

      He has an issue that probably shouldn’t be left unresolved because bad things could happen if it’s not dealt with. There’s three people he feels he’s close enough to in order to discuss it with. And he’s trying to have the discussion in the right order. Sadly, Joe was useless, so he has to move on to Dorothy. And, honestly, he’s handling it about right so far.

    3. Jimmy

      Please explain. He needs someone to talk to about this and since Joe wasn’t any help, Dorothy is his next best choice. I don’t see him doing anything wrong here.

      1. grantimusmax

        I was referencing the opening line being “Umm, can I be weird?” As far as being awkward, asking permission for being awkward only serves to make things more awkward. Now then, as explored in the above threads, asking “Can I be weird” can immediately relieve tension as well. I was just going at it that, first thing in the morning, as an opening line to your ex? That’s pretty Danny.

        1. No Name

          It was going to get awkward anyway. At least this way Dorothy is expecting it

        2. Majere

          It seems like a pretty good way to brace someone for a conversation that is 100% going to be awkward and weird just by virtue of the content.

        3. Spencer

          It’s a pretty common thing to say when you yourself don’t know how to approach the topic you’re trying to talk about.

          At this point I think of any use of “danning” as “I can’t think of a clever comment so I’m just going to use a meme that’s already been beaten into little squirming giblets.”

  12. catsonmars

    dat persepolis poster

    1. Hors Service

      I was going to say the same thing 🙂 One of my favorite BDs

    2. Rich

      Worth a nod, for certain.

  13. Aegon01

    That panel 5 eyebrow raise though

  14. boomwolf

    I’m running through every possible way this could go in my head…. so far, none of these routes end happily.

  15. Spencer

    Kinda figured this would happen eventually. There really is nobody else he can talk to about his sexuality issues besides Dorothy.

    The only question is how completely awkward he’s going to make this, the poor bastard.

    1. grantimusmax

      The only answer to this is “as awkward as humanly possible.”

      1. MeghanTheWorldEater

        That doesn’t sound awkward enough for Danny.

      2. madock345

        No, as awkward as is Dannyly possible. That’s far more awkward than mere humanity could manage.

        1. Someone

          at the end of the strip, it will turn out that Danny is the god of awkwardness. And he will use his awkward abilities to save the world.

        2. Screwball

          …In the most awkward way possible…

    2. saki

      Eh, Dorothy dated him long enough, I’m sure she’s used to handling his awkwardness.

  16. Doc

    Well Willis, looks like there won’t be a Carla magnet at this point, you tease.

    1. David M Willis

      Dude, if we don’t reach $60k, I will eat a hat I will have just bought because I don’t currently own any hats.

      1. Hoboturtle

        70k goal: I will for realz eat a hat.

        I wonder if it would actually cause a growth in funding.

        On a related note, im gonna search up “eating hat” on youtube and see what I get.

      2. Captain Batson

        … Will it be a Dina hat? I imagine those are as delicious as they are beautiful.

      3. Rich

        You cheated by buying a hat made out of bacon, didn’t you?

        1. Khrene

          Well, anything is a hat in my book, as long its is worn on the head before consumption.

          I mean wouldn’t it be great to watch someone go head-to-mouth with some flapjacks?

      4. Rycan

        Mmm, boiled leather.

      5. Bill

        Back when I was in college one of my chemistry professors dissolved his hat in a mild acid, then neutralized the acid with a base.  He then filtered the solution, spread the precipitate (all that was left of the hat) on a piece of bread, and ate it that way.

        1. Screwball

          The power, of SCIENCE!

  17. Stara

    Woo! D^2! But really, I will like to see them interacting in a way that highlights their compatibilities and personalities. These two did lose their virginities to each other, after all.

  18. Urukak

    It occurs to me that depending on exactly what brand of fundamentalism Joyce’s family ascribes to, it’s possible she’s actually consumed more alcohol in her life than Dorothy/Danny have by way of communion wine.

    1. Urukak

      Wait, actually I distinctly remember a strip where Danny is talking to his parents about going to church, so maybe not him.

    2. John

      Danny’s family’s religious, too.

    3. saltchocolate

      FYI: communion “wine” in a lot of Protestant churches is grape juice!

      1. DarkoNeko

        Grape juice ? but it’s as bad ad red wine for clothes. Why would they do that ?

        —

        Ah, i realize people may need a bit of context there.
        Catholic priests (in france, anyway) uses white wine. For praticality purposes ^^;

        1. John

          So if the wine is supposed to be Jesus’s blood… then French Catholics drink his pus?

          Ew.

        2. Rycan

          If your white wine is opaque, something is either very wrong or you’re actually looking at milk.

        3. DarkoNeko

          Like I said, praticality. By your logic they should drink litteral blood anyway 🙂

        4. Random832

          White grape juice is also a thing.

      2. David M Willis

        For me it was grape juice and for Joyce it was, too.

        1. DarkoNeko

          but only the priest & assistants get to taste it.

        2. David M Willis

          neither joyce nor i ever had a priest

        3. DarkoNeko

          ….I still have much to learn.

        4. Rycan

          Many Protestant denominations want nothing to do with priests – they don’t want a priesthood lording over them, I think. It’s the denominations which more closely resemble the Roman Catholic Church that will have ordained priests.

        5. wwwhhattt

          And they might share communion with the parish anyway (see Anglican/Episcopalian churches).

        6. Hors Service

          Oh? Now I’m curious. Who leads the worship in christian communities where they don’t have a priest, or the equivalent preacher? Is it a primitive-christian style with one of the christians doing it, and the role cycling? Who manages church assets? A resident association kind of group?

        7. Trolldrool

          Part of Martin Luther’s original message was that every man was his own priest if he could read the Bible for himself. That’s why he used Gutenberg’s printing press to mass produce the Bible in german, since until then it was exclusively written in Latin or Greek.

        8. Rycan

          The preacher is the pastor in those cases. But management is done by committee. With congregationalists, the structure stops there – each congregation is completely independent. For other denominations, you’ll have ruling councils. But all this governance is done by laymen (laywomen may or may not be allowed to participate).

        9. Bill

          Not necessarily true.  As a somewhat-fallen-away Catholic I can vouch for the fact that the Catholic Church allows the bishop of a diocese the latitude to grant permission for receiving communion in both forms (the consecrated bread as well as the wine).  Most bishops have given blanket permission for this, leaving the ultimate decision up to the pastors of the individual parishes.

        10. wwwhhattt

          And Joyce is protestant, so depending what her church is like anyone could’ve decided.

        11. Alan Lafond

          I can confirm that directly. I am Catholic, and at my local parish (St Michael’s Church in Belleville, Ontario) we receive both the body and the blood every Sunday. Although it is left to each person’s discretion, so those who choose not to partake don’t have to. (Usually children, but some adults too.)

        12. Julez

          I remember the protestant church that my mom’s boyfriend at the time brought me to. The communion was grape juice and they had coffee and snacks afterwards, and apparently that was enough to win over 7 year old me and get me dragging my mom back to church every week.

        13. Rycan

          Jesus died for your refreshments.

  19. John

    That’s a more casual look that we usually see Dotty in. I like it.

    1. Rich

      Agreed. Maybe a bit of Walky’s influence? She’s got him dressing with a little more class, she might be getting a more casual at the same time.

  20. MeghanTheWorldEater

    So I’m probably about to sound like an idiot (as if that’s unusual) but sounding board? Is that like an actual saying? Is that a thing?

    1. John

      Yes? (#4)

      1. MeghanTheWorldEater

        Oh so it is.
        …I still think it sounds weird >.>

        1. No Name

          It is particularly favored among business people and politicians, as one of those suitably jargon-y phrases.

    2. Spencer

      So I now realize there is no possibility of this ending well. As level headed as Dorothy is, I doubt she’d be able to walk Danny through his confusion, and even if she could, that’s too easy for David “Damn You” Willis.

      1. Spencer

        Weird. This wasn’t meant to be a reply.

  21. Mr. Random

    The eyebrows have left the building.

    1. grantimusmax

      They’re practically in low orbit at this point.

      1. boomwolf

        Probably gonna crash into the closet…

        1. Rycan

          Well, the radioactive debris of that closet, at least.

  22. Mallow

    Holding out hope for Danny. He seems to be trying to approach this as best he can, and it’s probably best to talk to someone about this before dropping some huge bombshell on Amber.

    Don’t make me regret this, Danny >:(

    1. grantimusmax

      I have a feeling Danny will blossom once he gets out of college–speaking as someone who acted in embarrassingly similar ways to Danny back in my day what when I was a whippersnapper. The real world can be good shot in the arm for the perennially awkward (or doom; it’s 50/50).

      1. Tribbly

        Hell yeah. As someone who spent the majority of his freshman year in a state that could only be described as “Maximum Danny”, Ive found the overwhelming amount of Danny hate disturbing.

        Of course, if Danny is still acting like this by the end of sophomore year, I’ve got no probs with jumping on the hate train.

        1. Murdock

          “Maximum Danny” has got to be the best term I’ve heard in a while.

        2. Rycan

          “Sir! The reception is paralyzed with awkwardness!”
          “We’ll just have to break the ice. Bring out the hors d’oeuvre early.”
          . . .

          “It’s no good, sir! The situation is at Maximum Danny!”
          “Maximum Danny? Well, what are you waiting for? Pull the fire alarm!”

  23. Keroshino

    It’s times like this…Alcohol can be your best friend!

  24. Shanunu

    Come on I’m sure tons of other people didn’t drink in high school. I can’t be the only one, can I?

    1. grantimusmax

      Teen tee-totalers unite! (More out of tragic un-hip-ness, but whatevs.)

      1. jess

        I got paid for sobriety. Woo.

        1. DarkoNeko

          uh, seriously ? How does this work ?

        2. Opus the Poet

          Probably the same way I get paid to take drugs… The Government does it.

        3. Opus the Poet

          That needs more explanation. I an a professional lab rat, I take pharmaceuticals that are pending FDA approval as part of the final human experiments prior to that approval, and also take approved drugs in combination to check for interactions. My “best” interaction was between a popular cholesterol drug and a hypertension cocktail-in-a-pill. I literally killed biting insects, fleas would take one bit and drip dead, mosquitos would die before they could pull out, and ditto every other biting bug. I was instant death to insects. Since the only thing that could kill that fast was a neurotoxins and I already had brain damage I was taken off the combo and the cholesterol med as quickly as possible, and the hypertension cocktail was withdrawn from the market for a year and given a “black box” warning when put back on the market, because the cholesterol med was the one they give to people who can’t take statins.

        4. 4th Dimension

          The more you talk the more your history sounds like an origin story. Now just add falling into a vat of chemicalls . . .

        5. Roborat

          How are you still alive???

        6. Jess

          Mom and Dad said (and I quote) “If you don’t go off, get drunk, and make stupid decisions. We will pay you a large amount of money on your 21st birthday.”
          Personally, since I wasn’t sure if I would be a stupid drunk, I just didn’t drink.

    2. boomwolf

      Honestly, I couldn’t do it, mostly out of fear of what I would say/do.

    3. curiousgeorgie

      Nope, not the only one! It actually didn’t even occur to me at the time that other people in high school were drinking. I mean, it’s not like I thought people really waited until 21, I just figured it was a college thing. And none of my close friends drank. I was…maybe a little bit naive on a lot of things. But also happy, so there’s that.

    4. DarkoNeko

      I don’t like beer.

      1. DarkoNeko

        …Well, on the other hand, i really enjoy sipping on crème de liqueur, but there’s no way I’d drink enough of the stuff to get drunk.

        I guess I have a sweet tooth more than anything ^^

    5. Jason

      I still don’t.

      1. AgentKeen

        Same here.

    6. Rich

      Never a drop till I hit 18, which was legal drinking age in my home state back then.

    7. Spencer

      I never did and still haven’t. Partly because I’m a square and partially because I’m scared to ever lose control of myself like that. I’ve seen what it can do to people and I don’t ever want that to happen to me.

    8. Tribbly

      Kind of a running joke I have is a ever-growing list of reasons I give people for why I don’t drink alcohol. The main reason is that I don’t want to be one of those people who consistely makes shitty decisions and then uses the “alcohol made me do it” excuse.

      1. DarkoNeko

        Yeah, like we need alcohol for those, anyway.

    9. John

      I’m 40 and I still don’t.

      1. Rich

        Oddly enough, that’s about when I stopped. Although I think I had two beers last year, so I guess technically I’ve fallen off the wagon again.

    10. Rycan

      Well, you can add a lot of Mormons and Muslims to the list, for a start (some will break the rules and drink anyways). I’m on the list, too – I don’t drink for personal reasons.

    11. Screwball

      Daniel the Human can’t drink, poor bugger’s allergic to the alcohol. He can stare down a drunk, face to face, but after a few minutes his head gets a little spiny. Just from the fumes on their breath. Damn he’d be a cheap drunk tho, just hand him the lid…

      Me, tastes alright, but does nothing. I prefer better tasting stuff…

  25. JessWitt

    Let bi-gones be bygones, or some thin’ like that.

    1. Liz

      This pun makes me happy.

  26. lekoppa

    Can I just say, I really love Dotty’s new outfit? Draws a nice balance between casual and clean-cut.

  27. caesaria82

    Ooooooooh. I am so ready for this conversation between these two 😀

  28. Cerberus

    I wonder if she’s guessed the bisexuality thing or if she’s imaging some horrible abusive relationship or horrific crime from the “she’d kill me” thing.

    1. luxlucis

      Probably the second but as extreme.

    2. Spencer

      She’s already considered Amazi-Girl as someone who can put a grown man in the hospital, and she’s seen that she’s capable of almost impossible physical acts. If Danny is that scared to talk to her it is, completely hypothetically, possible that he’s in an abusive relationship.

      Although the lightheartedness of the last panel makes me think otherwise. She might just be wigged out at the idea that it’s something Danny has to tell *her* of all people.

      1. Rycan

        He’s perilously close to being in one, though. Amber has her demons under control, but sometimes she slips.

        1. Rich

          She clearly knows that she has self-control issues. Certainly seemed honestly concerned that she might have hurt him in that one sex scene’s aftermath. Of course, knowing you’ve got a problem and managing it effectively are two different things.

  29. Catullus

    So, the possibility exists that Danny’s going to end up going to the meet-and-greet for ‘questioning’ students. If so, he has a good chance of running into Ethan. Whatever happens, Ethan and Danny end up hanging out by May 20…

    I’m liking the way things are shaping up here.

    1. AgentKeen

      I’m thinking that’s Dorm Party.

      1. Someone

        Curse you curse you for posting right before me and making my post look redundant curse you!

        Kidding

      2. saltchocolate

        It must be—and I just had a thought that is off-topic for today’s strip, but would have been appropriate just a couple days ago! I hope Joyce invites Jacob, too!! I really want the Jacob/Sarah thread to pick back up….

        1. Rich

          Ethan’s almost certainly on the guest list. Good chance his roommate will stop in as well, especially if he’s had second thoughts about the way he parted company with Sarah. He was kind of harsh there, even if she was as well.

    2. Someone

      That looks like it could be the party.

  30. AgentKeen

    So, Dotty thinks this is about Amazi-Girl, right?

  31. Morty

    Wait, he’s going to Dorothy with this? Has – has Danny finally made an intelligent decision?

    1. Spencer

      The only reason he’s going to Dorothy, you know, his ex-girlfriend who dumped him the first day of college and every interaction since has been less than pleasant, is because he’s out of options. He can’t talk to Ethan or Amber about it and Joe proved himself totally useless.

      That Dorothy is also the best person to talk to, however, is pretty fortunate.

  32. Nena

    I think I may know where this may be heading…

  33. awkweirdness

    Wait! I am I the only one who thinks Dorothy will recommend the meet for those who are questioning therefore leading to Danny meeting Ethan?

    1. Spencer

      Would Dorothy even know about it? Not unless Joyce happens to walk in, I suppose.

      1. awkweirdness

        Who knows? Maybe since she does some of the newspaper articles she heard about it through the communications department? Or maybe Sierra somehow knows about it.

        1. Bagge

          She might recently have got an incentive to look into queer resources at campus… at least I hope so.

        2. Rich

          If not, Danny’s probably about to give her a reason to do so, and there’s a computer in the room. The internet is a wonderful thing, and that flyer Joyce was lugging around is surely duplicated online.

  34. Ivoire

    And here we see the majestic eyebrow, surely returning home to its young.

  35. ravenstromdans

    Is it at all weird that this is the sexiest outfit I’ve seen Dorothy in?

    (I must have a thing for female lumberjacks or something.)

    1. Plasma Mongoose

      If Dotty really was a lumberjack, then it would be OK for her to chop down trees, wear high heels, suspenders and a bra…

      1. Rycan

        A lumberjack in high heels is an accident waiting to happen.

        1. Julez

          From experience, high heels and dirt is a bad combination… they sink in and its awkward.

        2. Roborat

          My wife did that in her wedding dress in the backyard during the reception, it was hilarious.

      2. grantimusmax

        +1 for the reference, +5000 for it going over people’s heads in such a delicious fashion.

        1. Julez

          Oh I got it. Just funnier this way. ^_^

        2. Rycan

          Yeah, didn’t get the reference, but made me think of that time someone decided to hike a mountain trail in cowboy boots. We wound up airlifting him out of there, to avoid having to haul him all the way down with a busted ankle.

          Heels and forests do not get along very well.

        3. Screwball

          I’m a Lumberjack & I’m OK,
          I sleep all night & I work all day.
          I cut down trees, I wear high heals, suspenders & a bra.
          I wish I’d been a girlie, just like my dear Papaaa…

    2. Rich

      If your formative dating experiences took place when grunge-scene fashion was the thing, plaid overshirts are a perfectly normal attraction trigger. Unless you lived in a logging community, that seems a more likely source.

  36. NF

    4th panel Danny may be my favorite Danny drawing ever.

  37. nothri

    Argh. Dammit. I’m interesting in this story and problem, but I’m far more interested to learn how poor naked Billie saves herself from public exposure. Also, the last few characters interactions have kinda heavy and I was hoping for some relief to all of that and I doubt we’re gonna get much light heartedness here.

  38. DarkoNeko

    It just occured to me that they both know Amber’s secret. But does Dotty know that Danny knows ?

    1. Bagge

      No, and he doesn’t know that she knows… but both knows that the other has a connection to amazigirl so the might engage in some more cryptic dialog about her… night class.

      1. DarkoNeko

        I recall Amber complained to Danny about someone (in what terms, i do not remembers) busting off her cover. If she mentionned it was the girl next door then Danny may have connected the dot(ty)s

      2. Spencer

        To clear things up:

        After they had sex, Amber told Danny that Dorothy had figured it out.

        Dorothy knows Danny is dating Amazi-Girl. So she’s presumably connected the dots. I don’t think she’d mention Amber otherwise.

        1. Gigafreak

          Even if Amazi-Girl’s secret identity isn’t “open” between Danny and Dorothy, Dorothy is aware that Danny is still friends with Amber anyway.

  39. Benvincible

    Dude. Danny’s face. Panel 4. It is your best art you’ve ever done, no joke.

  40. heavvymetalqueen

    Oh!Oh! YES! I didn’t think of this but suddenly it’s what I’ve always wanted. I am a sucker for ex-that-actually-become-friends (I am best friends with my ex and my mom’s ex-husband from back in the day has been more of a father to me than my real one has ever been so it’s a setup I know it can be very healthy and sweet) BUT also YES DANNY Dorothy is DEFINITELY the most mature person you have around and the best person to discuss your questioning sexuality!!

  41. Bagge

    I know Danny just hyperboles, but I still think it’s downright creepy to hear that “not if I want to live” line about a person who not more than two weeks ago beat a man into hospital.

    1. Jen Aside

      to be fair, Dorothy doesn’t know that was Amber?

      1. Bagge

        I’m pretty sure she has connected the dots. Anyway, Danny knows and that’s what makes it creepy. “My partner who is prone to violence might react violently to this statement…”

        1. timemonkey

          No, she connected enough to ask but accepted the denile.

        2. Rycan

          She accepted Amazi-Girl’s denial, but that doesn’t mean she actually believed it. The whole floor knows who Blaine really is after Parent Day, so Dorothy may have decided not to press the point.

      2. DarkoNeko

        She explicitly asked “Amazi-girl” wether it was her. Amazi-girl said now, Dotty smiled.

  42. Davecom3

    Well, for the most part, if you don’t cover the stuff up with something, the smell or taste is going to trigger your gag reflex. After you’ve covered it up for a few drinks, you’ll find it’s easier to get down. There are those, however, that can notice it more than others, so they might not even accomplish some or all of the mixed drinks.

  43. Koms

    Danny here and Paulo from BCB will have something to talk about just about now.

  44. Idon'tcarenomore

    People seem to forget that Dorothy did not ‘dump Danny the first day of college”.
    She said good-bye to him in HS, and he didn’t take the hint.

    He followed her, literally, to college. He really had no plan in mind except to be with her. When he showed up all ready to carry on, she shot him down. Because it was the only way to get thru to him.

    She told him, again, she was planning on going to Yale and she fully intended to be President. She was not going to spend time goofing off. As he himself had no plans for his future, and likely would not be able to follow her to Yale at any rate, she was not going to date him: they had no future together.

    And she walked away. I for one, don’t blame her at all. She knows what she wants and intends to work for it to get it. Walky may throw her off the track, only time will tell. But, Danny had no chance with her past HS, and she never let him think otherwise, just the opposite.

    She is a good one to go to for help. She knows him and she won’t judge him. Outside of suggesting he goes to the meeting for those ‘questioning’, not sure what she can really do. Sometimes just listening helps.

    Poor Amber. Screwed again, literally.

    1. Rycan

      You’re right, but I don’t think Danny sees it like that.

    2. Greenygal

      Mmm, no, she did let him think otherwise, and regretted it: http://www.dumbingofage.com/2010/comic/book-1/01-move-in-day/kindness/ It looks to me like Dorothy figured that they would go to separate colleges and so she did not need to actually say “I do not want to date you anymore,” and because she did not say it, Danny did not get it. So, yes, Dorothy dumped him the first day of college, ironically because she’d been trying to be kind.

      Which doesn’t make her a bad person or a bad choice for this discussion, and I’m really looking forward to it.

      1. Rich

        Yes, she may have discouraged him earlier, but the actually break came on the first day of college. Unless she actively avoided communicating with Danny well back into senior year she had to know he was attending the same school as she was. Failing to deal with the situation until well after he was locked into his college plans is by far the worst thing she’s done, and even she admits it.

        At least she seems to have learned that lesson, and is already prepping Walky for a breakup when she leaves for Yale. Have to kind of wonder what she’ll do if she can’t get in despite her best efforts, or if Walky buckles down and pulls his grades up to a point where he make it in himself – or worst-case, if both those happen.

    3. Just Me

      It’s always good when you can still be friends with someone you formerly had a relationship with. They tend to know you best and can be very easy to talk to. Smart move for Danny to go to Dorothy about this.

    4. Spencer

      That’s not at all what happened. Dorothy clearly didn’t want him to follow her to college, but they were still together until that night. Even if she had checked out prior to going to IU, it wouldn’t have killed her to say it before he actually went.

  45. Idon'tcarenomore

    PS Alcohol is not the answer. It never is, or will ever be.

    Having been married to an alcoholic for many years, until I couldn’t stand it anymore, not even with Alonon’s Help: I speak from experience.

    I never drank till college. I drank to party with him, and to keep up with him. Party every weekend thru college. Party every weekend thru work.

    Then when I had my first blackout, I quit dead. Scared the shit out of me.
    Period, never took another drink until several years later when I had a glass of champaign at New Year’s.

    My husband didn’t. He started pretty much drinking most of the week, just a little then a little more.

    Pretty soon, we couldn’t go out unless it was somewhere he could either bring his own booze or buy it.

    He nearly killed us one night coming home from a party. That’s when I joined Alanon. Tried to get him to join, but he said, “he didn’t have a problem, no one body he knew at work or his friends thought he had a problem..it was just me.”

    Alanon taught me to not enable him and to stand by him as long as I could. And to recognize when the time came no one but he could help self.

    Anyway, sorry for preaching. Point of this whole thing is: if you think alcohol or drugs is the answer…you’re asking the wrong questions.

    1. Plasma Mongoose

      I chose to be a teetotaller because I found out that my father and many of his relatives had major problems with alcoholism and I just didn’t want to end up on that bandwagon…

      1. Rycan

        Similar situation here. Especially when you look inside yourself, and can easily see yourself becoming the next one in the family.

    2. Rycan

      It’s amazing and terrifying how seven lousy atoms can change a person.

      1. Gigafreak

        Ethanol is made of nine atoms, though. C2H5OH.

        1. Rorror

          2+5 = 7, duh!

        2. Rich

          …yeah. Everybody knows you can’t add letters. That would be silly.

        3. Rycan

          Oh right, the carbon atoms actually count.

  46. Totz the Plaid

    Depending on how you interpret it, I arguably got through High School without alcohol.

    I consumed alcohol on a couple occasions before graduation, but first was a supervised tasting of beer (I had half a bottle, but it was still supervised, and done so I would know more-or-less what I was missing and so it wouldn’t hold that sort of mystique). It was also during the summer, so it had no effect on my school year whatsoever.

    The second time was also more-or-less supervised, but it was at a friend’s house, alongside friends, and it was really more of an “I know I could get in DEEP trouble doing this, but I feel safer if my son and his friends drink here under my supervision and don’t leave this house until they’re sobered up rather than them getting into trouble elsewhere unsupervised since teens are all-but guaranteed to drink anyway” thing.

    I’m the only one who stayed sober (never been drunk, been light-headed-ALMOST-buzzed once, and buzzed-ALMOST-drunk once, but never DRUNK, and both of those occasions were after I turned 21), since I don’t want to get drunk (I figure I’d likely be either a weepy or confrontational drunk, and I just don’t want to be either of those), so I helped supervise it. That was during the school year, but in the middle of a break, so I’m not sure if you’d count it.

    Actually, that second occasion included a hilarious moment where a friend, who was drunk, decided to supervise me to prevent me from getting drunk and decided to make sure my cup (which contained water) wasn’t full of alcohol, and did so by grabbing it from my hand, spilling half of it on himself, and drinking a sip.

  47. Nono

    I almost feel like that rainbow poster in the bottom right is like a subtle jab.

    I mean it’s a hippie poster (probably Sierra’s) but still.

  48. Nono

    Wait, we know that Danny knows that Dorothy knows, but does Dorothy know that Danny know that Dorothy knows?

  49. Rycan

    Underage sobriety: when you’re too young to be sober, yet still are.

  50. Julez

    I managed to make it through high school without drinking. No drugs either. My siblings have no idea how I pulled it off but it’s easy if you have no friends and don’t go to parties.

    1. Jimmy

      Same here exactly.

    2. aroree

      Oh, exactly. >< Good thing I'm an introvert and don't care that I don't have many friends and don't go to parties….

    3. Screwball

      Daniel the Human’s head’s WAY too messed up for him to try rugs. I’ve seen how his head works, it’s downright SCARY at times… O_O

  51. Jimmy

    I really hope this goes well. I want Danny to have someone to talk to and share how he feels without judging.

    I can relate more to Danny than any other character in this strip, and people hating on him really makes me uncomfortable.

  52. Toes14

    If I had to bet on any of the DoA characters not using alcohol, my money would be on Dina.

  53. Volkai

    Wait, is getting through high school without alcohol unusual?

    Does the occasional (1) glass of wine only with dinner (as provided by parent(s)) count as ‘without alcohol’?

    1. Ashley

      I think it does because the stereotype of underage drinking is getting beyond shitfaced on whatever beer/liquor you can get you hands on and having to hide it from your parents.

    2. Rich

      You’re fine. Sobriety doesn’t equate to total abstinence at all.

  54. local vigiliante

    I initially read underaged sobriety as sorcery.

    1. SonicBlueRanger

      Yer a Wizard Danny. Also yer Bisexual but The Wizard things the big news.

  55. Random832

    So… does Danny know Ethan is gay?

    1. Gigafreak

      http://www.dumbingofage.com/2014/comic/book-4/04-the-whiteboard-dong-bandit/flustered/
      Probably not!

      1. Greenygal

        On the other hand, Dorothy knows. So presumably she’s going to spend this conversation attempting not to say anything she ought not to, while thinking “if only you knew”. Not that Ethan’s sexuality is relevant to whether or not Danny’s bi, or that Danny would actually do anything if he knew, but I still bet that Danny’s going to say something desperately ironic and Dorothy’s going to bite her tongue real hard.

  56. The E-man

    I’m so excited for this conversation!

  57. Gigafreak

    In which booze is considered as a way to deal with Danny’s problems with Ethan

    Because you can’t spell Ethanol without Ethan

  58. Crumplepunch

    Well, I can’t see this going poorly.

  59. Ashley

    Panel 4 is the best Danny expression so far.
    I also did not drink until I was 21 but I’m actually glad about that because I started drinking when I got friends I enjoyed being drunk with.

  60. Torra

    Ohhhh ohhhh so Dorothy is now going to know that Ethan is gay and Danny is bi, and ooooh oooooooh, the wheels are in motion!

    I somehow want the dots to connect and Danny go to this ‘questioning’ meet. Ahhhh

    1. Torra

      Also wow Danny actually looks good having whites in his eyes huhh

  61. aroree

    I got through High School without alcohol….

  62. Tenn

    Danny confiding in Dorothy makes me very happy. ^_^

  63. Skai Cyan

    Speaking of Joe, I was just thinking about him. Dude’s been MIA from the comic for weeks now hasn’t he? Wonder what he’s up to.

    1. saki

      Avoiding feelings the best he knows how, by running after girls, same as always?

    2. Rycan

      Probably inside somebody right now. Or wishing he was, at least.

  64. Tacos

    So they got through high school without alcohol huh? Me too, I’m a teetotaller.

  65. JA

    I never drank in high school either.

    1. Deanatay

      Me neither.

  66. caramelundqueer

    I’m thrilled with this development. I’ve been rooting for him to talk this through with Dorothy for awhile. It’s awkward I’m sure but she definitely feels like the best/safest option.

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