232

Forbidding
Posted on June 16, 2022 by David M Willis

232 thoughts on “Forbidding”

  1. The Wellerman

    OK, there’s one problem solved.

    Albeit in a “there’s always a bigger fish” kind of way. ?

    *plays “Trouble” by Shampoo on hacked muzak*

    1. Doctor_Who

      Wow…someone other than me who remembers that song.

      Though I feel it works best with dancing Power Rangers.

      1. PirateTawnee

        Remember it? I saw them live, before they were famous, when they just randomly showed up at a pub gig a friends band was playing and the manager said “yeah, ok, you can play a few songs”.

        1. Roborat

          You saw power rangers before they were famous? Wow, that is pretty cool.

      2. bibulb

        Curiously enough, I will always remember it in conjunction with TMBG’s “Sensurround”, for precisely that same reason.

        1. Taffy

          I knew that singer sounded familiar. Never got around to looking it up though, because all I had to go on was “that song from Power Rangers that plays for five seconds when the kid’s dad pulls into the driveway”. Thanks, stranger.

      3. Taffy

        Wow, that video is really uncomfortable to watch. The flashing colors are fine, but the two women sort of deadpan staring straight into the camera and doing that creepy swaying motion was very off-putting. Good song though.

      4. Koname

        For all the times I watched the Power Rangers movie on vhs I’m sad I’ve never seen this before. Thank you for this beautiful addition to my memory banks.

        1. Taffy

          Yeah, it wasn’t on any of my copies, either. There were a lot of tie-in music vdeos for those old Saban shows, though, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise.

      5. TheMirai

        You forget how much of your brain is taken up by songs you heard on Power Rangers: the Movie until moments like this.

      6. JA

        Wow, of all the forgotten songs to come across, I was not expecting that one.

    2. True Survivor

      Good evening Wellerman,
      I wanted to checkout that model you posted yesterday, but every time I try to view it (or any link to imgur) I get an ‘Imgur is temporarily over capacity error 403’ message. Do you have any idea how to solve that? I know the issue isn’t my cache as I cleared that. Any way fun Obi-won quote.

      PS.

      How come everyone rips on The Phantom Menace for a million different things but no one ever points out that Naboo’s Ocean going all the way to the planet’s core (and those depths being filled with gigantic sea predators) is not just ScyFi impossibility but completely insanely impossible?

      1. The Wellerman

        ??? Awe thank you.

        Is this the link you were talking about? https://imgur.com/a/2bxbYxJ

        Perhaps try with a different browser or device? Turn off VPN if you have it?

        Re: Ocean to the Core, yeah that’s a VERY interesting thing to think about actually — just what WOULD happen in the core of a planet composed completely of water, experiencing internal pressure and resultant extreme heat from gravity? ?

        In a place like that, just maybe cyanobacteria able to withstand extreme temperatures could exist as life in a place like that, but just about nothing else. Look at me, geeking out at STEM like this ?

        Thanks True, warm feeling coming back again ?

        1. True Survivor

          It was the VPN. Thank you so much for figuring that out – it would have taken me eons to think of that. Great model by the way.

        2. The Wellerman

          Thanks! ??? Glad I could be of help.

          you think you could find someone to help me finish that model? if so, I might just release an au naturale version to everyone here!

        3. King Daniel

          Realistically at those temperatures and pressures, water wouldn’t be liquid anymore. You’d most likely have some strange form of ice (“classic” terrestrial ice is classified as ice-Ih with very rare instances of ice-Ic in the upper atmosphere, but known ice phases created in laboratory settings go all the way to ice-XIX), like is thought to exist in the interior of some of the solar system’s ice-moons like Ganymede, Enceladus, or Triton.

          But if we’re going to rag on the Star Wars franchise for unrealistic physics, we’d have to go all the way back to 1977. 😛

        4. The Wellerman

          So knowledgeable!!!! ? you wouldn’t happen to be a STEM major too, would you?

        5. King Daniel

          Not officially (at the moment, at least), but it’s long been a major interest yeah.

        6. Stifyn Baker

          MST3K mantra invoked.

        7. Opus the Poet

          Is this related to the Vonnegut McGuffin Ice9?

        8. King Daniel

          While the exotic phases of ice have many unusual and interesting properties, the capacity for causing world-ending catastrophe is not one of them; real-life ice-IX in particular is comparatively “boring” when compared to the ice-nine of Cat’s Cradle, and is only stable anyhow when at a combination of very low temperatures and very high pressures. Vonnegut’s MacGuffin has its properties more in common with certain (as-yet-still-theoretical, as it’s extremely difficult to study in quantity) aspects of strange matter than it does with actual exotic ices.

      2. Thag Simmons

        I’ve definitely seen people point it out, but I suspect a lot of people just don’t have the technical knowledge to notice that it’s wrong. I certainly don’t.

        1. True Survivor

          Great comic. Thanks.

        2. The Wellerman

          Huh, kind of reminds me of that pseudo-explanation trying to make the biblical global flood seem scientifically plausible, the one with the water “getting squeezed out” of the planet’s interior like that, shooting into the sky to “form comets”.

          If only they actually walked through the physics, and knew that real comets out in space contain cyanide and other toxic compounds.

        3. Andy

          Speaking as someone who grew up religious, there is a very specific type of weird in trying to make the Bible make scientific sense. I liked it when I was younger but now I don’t get it. If it’s miracles and God is all-powerful, who gives a damn if the science works?

        4. Laura

          It makes the Bible more interesting. Trying to figure out what the writers might have actually been referring to, if it were some kind of natural phenomenon reported in the mythological and literary terms of the time.

          History Channel (pseudoscience, I know) has a lot on what natural occurences in history might have made their way into oral legend and finally been written down generations later as Bible stories.

        5. The Wellerman

          Originally I was talking about the kind of propaganda in Joyce and Becky’s “specially designed” science textbooks, but yeah I guess it’s fascinating that way too.

          In particular I’m really interested in the fact that First Temple Judaism (7th century BCE) actually used cannabis in religious rituals ? (and to think this stuff is called “””Devil’s Lettuce”””)

        6. Laura

          Catholic cathedrals, too, in medieval Europe. Great, hanging incense burners full of the stuff.

        7. Roborat

          @ Laura
          Well, it would certainly make those hours long services tolerable. And the sun shining through the stained glass would look awesome.

        8. Joshua Kronengold

          Reminds me of how a lot of European history makes more sense once you reflect on how throughout much of history, potable water was fairly rare and stable fruit juices were generally unknown, which resulted in most people drinking fermented beverages at basically every meal.

        9. Andy

          I can understand looking at it from a secular perspective. I just don’t get it from a believer’s perspective anymore. I suppose back then I would’ve thought something along the lines of “see, this proves the Bible is right!” but now it’s more like “okay? don’t see why this is necessary but good for you I guess?”

        10. The Wellerman

          Well, if you’re a Bible literalist / Fundie like Joyce and Becky at the start of the comic, it quite literally means THE WORLD:

          https://www.dumbingofage.com/2015/comic/book-6/02-that-perfect-girl/originalsin/

        11. Andy

          I get that, because the sect I was raised in took many things many things literally. I just don’t understand the emphasis on shoehorning science and history into prove that the bible is true.

          “Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see” is a passage I had to memorize. “You believe because you have seen, but blessed are those who have not seen and still believe” is one I may have slightly wrong, but those are Jesus’ words to Thomas. It seems to me that Bible literalists should be more focused on accepting that science cannot detect God or his miracles than the other way around. So I understand why they do it; I just don’t understand anymore why they think it’s necessary.

        12. Laura

          Doubting Thomas! Thomas rocked.
          “Test and prove all things; hold fast only to that which is found true.” -1 Thessalonians 5.21

        13. JA

          The volcanic eruption that created Crater Lake in Oregon 8000 years ago is remembered in Native American mythology as a massive battle between the underworld and the sky.

      3. Oberon

        Oh, scientific realism, you say? What exactly is keeping the laser of a light saber from carrying on? Or, if there is some claim that it is not a laser, what is it and what stops it at a convenient sword length?

        PS: Tell her parents what, exactly? That she made shower shoes out of jugs?

        1. The Wellerman

          My guess is that it’s plasma kept inside an electro-magnetic field maintained by smart materials and room-temperature superconductors working in tandem, but that’s just my headcannon ?

          BTW Ruth would have told Carla’s parents on telling Joyce about Dina and Becky playing each other’s clams ?

        2. SamBC

          Most of that at least used to be canon, not sure if it still is. The plasma is actually looping, which provides a gyroscopic effect, so while the blade is effectively weightless it still has resistance to spinning. I think they came up with that to explain why it looked like effort for the actors, like they were waving a plastic stick. Of course, that’s because they were waving a plastic stick (albeit not in A New Hope, the prop was much more complicated).

        3. Oberon

          “BTW Ruth would have told Carla’s parents on telling Joyce about Dina and Becky playing each other’s clams ?”

          Why would Carla’s parents care? Either that Carla told or that Becky and Dina had sex?

        4. Taffy

          Who needs hard science for a cool laser sword? Star Wars has always felt more like magic than science anyway, but since there’s a lot of shiny metal stuff and spaceships it gets special treatment.

    3. Clif

      Everyone’s got their Kryptonite. Even Carla.

    4. SamBC

      One of the rare examples of someone even vaguely famous from my bit of London (where I was born and lived the first 13 years of my life, anyway).

  2. Doctor_Who

    So, I happen to be re-reading the excellent comic Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye, and I’ve discovered who Carla reminds me of.

    1. AGV

      That’s a good edit

  3. Akane

    Good job, that’s assuming Joyce didn’t hear her through the door already, which she well may have.

    1. Ray Radlein

      She’s probably already in a medically-induced semi-coma of blissful sleep

  4. DojimaKojima

    The Ultimate threat. I can’t believe Ruth would go there… 🙁

  5. ThunderNight

    oh no, her parents would probably take away all her flannel shirts

    1. Rabisch

      OH NO!!!!

    2. Casi

      Truly a fate worse than death

  6. alongcameaspider

    Everything we know about Carla leads me to feel like she has a good relationship with her parents so I choose to interpret the end of this strip as her not wanting her parents to be disappointed in her

    1. True Survivor

      To be honest, having your parents disappointed in you is a fate worse than death. I think I’d rather break my femur than have that happen.

      1. Kyrik Michalowski

        My father broke his femur while he was home. He said it hurt more than anything he had felt before and he is retired veteran.

        1. Opus the Poet

          Can concur, that was the most painful injury I’ve ever had, and I was on fire once. That didn’t hurt until I wasn’t on fire.

    2. anon

      I’m pretty sure she’s said “I actually /like/ my parents” at some point when becky was trying to get her vote for robin lol

    3. King Daniel

      Carla outright told Becky once that “unlike seemingly everyone else on this floor, I actually like my parents,” so I agree with this.

    4. DailyBrad

      Yeah, she likes her parents and is very proud of them. I also get the impression they’re very supportive of her, so yeah, she doesn’t want to disappoint them.

    5. Kim

      Aw! All these comments are very sweet, in a way. I was wondering what people’s interpretation of her relationship with her parents where. And the comment-section delivered <3

    6. Needfuldoer

      I like this take. It’s a good take!

  7. Nono

    Dang, you’d think Mary would have learned that threat by now.

    1. The Wellerman

      Nah, she doesn’t have the power and trust granted to her by the University, not quite the same caliber coming from Mary.

      Speaking of which, where is that little bigoted bugger? The Empress of Evolution is eager for her next meal! ? ?

      1. Doctor_Who

        Maybe Dina already got fed up with her…literally.

        Honestly though, I can’t think of a single person on that floor who wouldn’t gladly help hide the body.

      2. DailyBrad

        Probably getting railed by that weird BF of hers.

        1. eh, whatever

          Before marriage?

        2. Needfuldoer

          Mary’s defining trait is being a hypocrite, so yes.

          Remember what happened in the old continuity.

        3. Hilzabub

          Garfunkel and Oates have a fun song about one loophole that Mary may be using. Or her boyfriend is using it.

        4. Roborat

          And I know exactly what song you are referring to.

        5. Oberon

          Well that loophole can’t be used by only one of them. So probably “that Mary is using with her boyfriend.”

      3. Opus the Poet

        Last mention of Mary was https://www.dumbingofage.com/2021/comic/book-11/04-hompk/hompkhompk/ , Last actual Mary in-comic was the previous page. It was implied that Ruth broke Mary and Dina up, several headcanons have it that Dina ate Mary and Ruth and Carla covered it up and disposed of what was left of the body that Dina couldn’t eat.

    2. Thag Simmons

      Carla’s parents are implied to have bankrolled a major legal campaign to strike down anti-trans bills, so Mary definitely hates them and they’d probably hate her.

  8. Ana Chronistic

    oh she DOES have an off button =o

    …can you imagine that call, tho

    “Hey, Mr. and Mrs. Rutten, your daughter told one of her dormmates that two of the other dormmates had SEX”

    “who is this”

    [inb4 I was checking out a book I’m apparently credited in]

    1. The Wellerman

      Ooooo! May I ask what book? ?

      Also in light of a belated activity, how do you like your hotdogs?

      1. Ana Chronistic

        Click my name!

        (watch me forget to change it back to my Tumblr, but at least this time I didn’t accidentally hit “Flag”)

        1. Ana Chronistic

          (n/m I’ll just change it back now)

          anyway Spike Trotman sketched the person for the Chapter 1 break and never finished it so I inked it so now I get a credit woo

        2. vlademir1

          So I clicked the wrong name while assuaging my own curiosity and… scrolling down I see Shokugeki no Inosuke? He’d certainly be a better choice than every active dark chef in Shokugeki no Soma‘s horrid final arc at least.

        3. Ana Chronistic

          Haha you’re like the first person to comment on that! Thanks!

          I have this whole series of “surprising characters with the same VA” but there hasn’t been much interest ??‍♀️ only other I’ve done so far: https://sgpsketch.tumblr.com/post/52694663560/ms-fidgetune

        4. Ana Chronistic

          *whole series in mind

          (also, Hashibira Soma worked too well)

        5. The Wellerman

          Oooooo! HOLY WOAH this really looks like my kinda thing, thank you!!! ??

          Also, you said once hotdogs are a real attention-getter too, but how do you like ’em?

        6. Ana Chronistic

          They get my attention when I smell em and I’m hungry (which is basically always)

    2. Yumi

      “How did you get this number?”

      Idk what Ruth has access to as an RA, maybe emergency contact info that has Carla’s parents? But since they’re such a big deal, I like to imagine that to contact them, Ruth first has to get through several levels of assistants or try to go viral to convey this information. And she was prepared to do it.

      1. Shade

        Honestly as big a deal as they are they also sound super supportive of their daughter. I imagine mentioning she’s Carla’s RA would probably get her patched through directly in seconds.

    3. Ray Radlein

      “Your daughter was outing details of a private relationship between two girls on her hall”

      (nevermind that it hardly qualifies as “private” in the strict sense)

    4. Laura

      I mean, exactly. WHY is this such a big deal? Kids gossip. Grownups gossip. They gossip ALL THE TIME.

      And this was information that Becky and Dina had freely offered (at the top of their lungs) to any and all passersby. There is nothing “private” about their “business”.

      All Ruth is doing is ordering Carla to play in of Becky’s little exclusion game (“I’ve got a seekrit, you can’t hear it, everybody else gets to hear it, just not you-oo, nanny nanny boo boo…”) towards Joyce.

      I do NOT think that Joyce personally gives two hoots whether or not Becky and Dina have sex. But ordering others to exclude only one particular person on an open secret? That’s not respecting privacy. It’s just mean-girl games.

      Sorry, I’m not usually this snarky. Exhausted.

      1. Laura

        …I’m sure mean boys play similar games. I just said “mean-girls” because of the movie.

      2. alongcameaspider

        To be entirely fair to Ruth she doesn’t know it’s specifically excluding Joyce, she just knows Carla somehow got this information and was planning to tell Joyce against Becky’s and Dina’s wishes

        If she had all the context she’d likely be handling it a little differently

        1. Laura

          That makes sense. But Right didn’t say, “I forbid you from gossiping about Becky and Dina’s private business,” or “…from telling anyone else about…” which would make sense if it were really about protecting privacy. Instead, Right just said, “don’t tell *Joyce*” (right outside Joyce’s door, which Joyce has just walked through into her thin-walled room, in front of Joyce’s roommate and best friend, apparently presuming that Dorothy and Sarah too would collude to keep Joyce in the dark). It just gets too much “conspiracy of silence” for me.

        2. Laura

          Ruth, not Right. Sleepy. Typos.

          Thanks, alongcameaspider — I do appreciate the reality check for me. Good to rebalance my thoughts. 🙂

      3. Yumi

        I disagree about the attitude of Becky not wanting Joyce to know (or at least, thinking she doesn’t want Joyce to know). Becky clearly has a lot of anxiety around Joyce knowing, and whether Joyce would really care or not isn’t really the factor that’s the issue.

        I do think that it’d be preferable to get people onboard with “can you not tell Joyce” before telling them what it is that they don’t want shared with her. Not everyone’s signing up to keep secrets. But I get having anxiety about a particular person learning something about you, even if it’s something you’re excited about or proud of.

        1. Laura

          Yeah, that makes sense Yumi. Thank you for the perspective.

        2. Thag Simmons

          If Becky really did not want Joyce to know she wouldn’t be telling anyone, or she’d at least be more discerning about who she was talking to.

          Like as far as Carla knows and in Becky’s own words, this is not actually a big deal and Joyce finding out is inevitable.

      4. The Wellerman

        Snarky? That’s alright Laura, we’ve all been there! ?

        What did you have for Dinner tonight? Sorry, all I can think of right now is food! ?

        1. Laura

          …OK, I can answer one question. 😉

          I am currently having THE BEST HOMEMADE THAI FOOD EVER!!! Nom nom nom nom nom…

        2. The Wellerman

          ? sounds great! However, I have no Thai noodles. Any think you’d think to do with eggs and/or hotdogs?

        3. Laura

          Microwave egg drop soup is the best way to cook an egg, IMHO.
          Penny hotdogs, fried in butter, mixed in with mac n cheese, with a little catsup on the side.

        4. Laura

          Or eggs over easy on toast with steamed (microwaved) spinach and Worcestershire sauce.
          (Or, in the alternative, with a sauce of mustard, mayonnaise and dill, or with a sauce of mustard, mayonnaise, and nutmeg.)

        5. Yumi

          Now I want egg drop soup, but I must slumber, and tomorrow it will be hot yet again and discourage my soup cravings. But I’ll have to remember that for some future date.

        6. Laura

          SUPER easy to make.
          1) Pour soup in bowl.
          2) Crack an egg into soup.
          3) Microwave on low power with a dish under the bowl and a dish on top (so the egg doesn’t explode onto the microwave ceiling).
          4) NOM.

        7. Laura

          Dish or other covering LOOSELY on top (not sealed) so steam can escape.

        8. The Wellerman

          Laura, how long on low?!?? We must know!!!

        9. The Wellerman

          Sorry, just that this sounds REALLY good! Thank you! ?

        10. Laura

          How long depends on your microwave wattage, your tolerance for runny eggs (cook ’em well to avoid bird flu), your choice of bowl, and the quantity of soup.
          Today I cooked egg drop soup on #2 power for 15 minutes, then nuked it another 1.5 minutes on full power. But that’s just me.
          You could just as easily cook it for shorter on higher power.
          Main thing is you just want to keep an eye on the soup so the soup doesn’t boil over and the egg doesn’t explode. The soup is always just on the verge of almost boiling. “C’est au ‘feeling’,” as my French buddies used to say. “It’s by feel.”

        11. Laura

          Why shelled eggs explode in the microwave:
          https://www.livescience.com/61109-why-microwave-eggs-explode.html

          (Even microwaved scrambled eggs will explode unless you watch and stir.)

        12. alongcameaspider

          This comment reminded me I should eat something before going to bed so thanks for that (I work closing at a retail store so I get home late)

        13. Laura

          Sleep well.

          Eat well.

          Get home safe.

          Take good care. 🙂

  9. Schpoonman

    This just makes me think of Hermione threatening to write Mrs. Weasley a letter concerning Fred and George in The Goblet of Fire.

    I’m sorry.

    1. Yumi

      Man, I wish I could still appreciate a Harry Potter reference the way I used to.

      1. RassilonTDavros

        You and me both, even if as time goes on it’s gotten increasingly obvious that she was like this all along.

      2. The Wellerman

        If it’s any consolation, I know of an anime that’s very much like Harry Potter, but it has messages against elitism, and it’s just super cool! ?

        Want more details?

        1. FaerwenOfValenwood

          are you talking about Little Witch Academia because that show is RAD

        2. thakoru

          I literally just finished rewatching Little Witch Academia on Netflix; it’s so good. It really does just scratch that Harry Potter itch without any of the baggage. (Also, I 100% headcanon Akko as autistic, no further questions.)

        3. FaerwenOfValenwood

          haha, I headcanon Akko as having ADHD! probably because I see a lot of my teenage, undiagnosed-gremlin-ass self in her

        4. The Wellerman

          I headcannon her as neurofluid ? such an unrecognized genius in her, lovable little screwball ?

        5. Lion

          It’s Little Witch Academia, we all know it’s Little Witch Academia, and it is amazing + a far better alternative to Harry Potter.

          Also the Owl House, that’s a good Harry Potter alternative. Especially since it has a prominent nonbinary character and gay stuff that’s actually built up, so it’s basically giving a polite middle finger to She-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named by its very existence. >=)

        6. Yumi

          The Grudgby episode of the Owl House had a particularly pointed one.

        7. FaerwenOfValenwood

          I’ve been meaning to get into Owl House but my brain hasn’t allowed it yet, lol. seems like my cup of soup given the “filling the witch-school-shaped hole in my soul AND giving the finger to the Shitty Author” vibes

        8. Yumi

          The Owl House is really good. Makes me want to make a bunch of fan videos for it, but my brain’s not cooperating on that front… regardless, it’s a really good show, love the world building, love the characters, love the plot.

        9. The Wellerman

          All EXCELLENT shows up there, but I found myself that none could compare to the wizarding anime masterpiece that is Black Clover ?

      3. zee

        I once again call Percy Jackson supremacy
        (We’re even getting a tv show next year o3o)

        1. Ana Chronistic

          Ooo, I’m down for a PJ show

          At least get me through book 4 so I can see my Daedalus ?

      4. Keulen

        While I still like the HP series, I definitely can’t enjoy it as much as I used to now. Meanwhile I’ve been re-reading my old Animorphs books and they’re still as good now as they were back when I was a kid.

        1. Schpoonman

          Animorphs is a series that needs a reboot with a lot of TLC and a very large check for KA Applegate to come back and rewrite the end of the series, no ghostwriting, please.

        2. Taffy

          The TV show or the books? I was very happy with the books. The Ellimist was so cool.

  10. RassilonTDavros

    Holy shit, an authority figure that Carla actually respects!?!

    I mean it makes sense. I kinda love this, actually

    1. Maveric1984

      Of course she does! She loves her parents. Didn’t she say that her dad built her an UltraCar toy because there was no merch when she was a kid? They obviously doted in her as their only child. She’s one of the few characters that has GOOD parents (the other being Dina, Dorothy, and Mike).

    2. The Wellerman

      Respect is one thing. Fear, that is different.

      1. RassilonTDavros

        True. I didn’t really interpret Carla’s reaction here as fear, in part because she seems to have a better relationship with her parents than almost anyone else in the cast– if anything, it came off as a performative display of fear– but you’re right that it’s a possibility.

      2. zee

        This, does not look like fear, given the context we have on Carla’s relationship with her parents. This strikes me as “oh dip i don’t wanna disappoint my parents bc their opinion means a lot to me”

    3. Doctor_Who

      Of course she respects them. They invented Carla.

      Seriously though, I can’t not just picture Carla’s parents as Joe and Rachel like they were in the other universe, which doesn’t really work seeing as they live down in the same building as her and are the same age.

      Maybe they’re just two people who bear an uncanny resemblance to Joe and Rachel.

      1. Bladeglory

        Maybe that’s the real threat. If Ruth interacts with them, Willis might have to draw them, and drawing them requires figuring out what they look like… Willis, not wanting to design them unless they have more significant plot relevance, has given Carla a great fear of getting them involved in anything.

        mindblown.gif

        1. shellshockbp

          Or this just becomes how Willis inserts himself and his wife into the Dumbiverse

        2. King Daniel

          Maggie has already appeared in the Dumbiverse (untagged), and according to Willis on Tumblr, their Dumbiverse counterpart is the “reclusive but wealthy” creator of Dexter and Monkey Master.

        3. Needfuldoer

          Oh, yeah! I think the author commentary in the appropriate book says Red Car Lady is modeled after Maggie (and the car after theirs).

          https://www.dumbingofage.com/2015/comic/book-6/01-to-those-whod-ground-me/hostage-2/

      2. King Daniel

        Clearly, Dumbiverse-Carla’s parents are named Giuseppe and Raquel.

    4. thakoru

      “Unlike everyone else in the entire world, I actually like my parents. [That] makes me the cool rebel, if you think about it. I’m doing 4D chess on y’all.”

  11. NinjaNick

    Owned!

  12. BBCC

    Oh yeah, unlike 99% of this hall, Carla likes her parents!

    Nicely handled, Ruthless.

  13. True Survivor

    Who holds a textbook like that? That is far to large a volume to hold up to your face like that long enough to study.

    1. Laura

      Unless you’re extremely nearsighted and a little spooked so are holding your hands up rigidly.

      1. True Survivor

        That makes sense.

        1. Laura

          Also, Carla’s got way core strength and upper back strength from all that Roller Derby. Holding textbooks that way could be a training calisthenic. I used to do similar ones.

    2. Needfuldoer

      She’s hiding behind the book.

  14. LiterallyJustSomeGuy

    So… is RUTH going to tell Joyce, or…?

  15. Cattleprod

    She COULD find a way to tell Joyce anonymously, but if she can’t take credit what’s the point?

    1. Kyrik Michalowski

      You are definitely sounding like Carla, which is always a good thing except for all the times it is not good.

    2. DailyBrad

      Right, it would go against the whole point giving her stated reason was wanting to see her reaction, something she can’t really do without saying it herself.

  16. Yotomoe

    Damn, you didn’t have to go nuclear, Ruth.

  17. TrueVCU

    What’s a king to a god?

  18. Yotomoe

    I couldn’t help myself.
    https://i.imgur.com/ei2a2tJ.png

    1. Kyrik Michalowski

      I’m not religious, but by the gods your art is fantastic. Well done.

      1. The Wellerman

        ? He’s a real Porn Lord (Hentaishin)

      2. FadingMemory

        At this point Yoto’s fanart is just as much a part of daily updates as the comic itself.

        1. The Wellerman

          If only I could crank out DOA fangames nearly as frequently, then we’d really be somewhere!

    2. Hoboturtle

      I mean if you can’t help yourself then you can’t help yourself.

      What am I going to do to stop you?

      Not a damn thing.

    3. The Wellerman

      “Here! Here! Here! SEE ‘EM?!?!?!” ???

    4. DailyBrad

      I’m not *not* happy.

    5. Cmasta1992

      Annoyed lusty arc Joyce hits different

      1. Yotomoe

        Joe wouldn’t stand a chance.

        1. DailyBrad

          A very relatable Joe moment, if so.

    6. Taffy

      There’s a really nice annoyed/dismissive energy to this one that hits just right.

  19. UrsulaDavina

    So there is a way to defeat Carla… Mary must never find out! Well actually it probably wouldn’t be effective Mary would quote scripture or something and Carla’s parents would hopefully tell her in polite terms to f^_!k off. Also I doubt Mary has the know-how or wherewithal to aquire the phone number.

    1. Suitora

      “Hey, Mr. and Mrs. Rutten? Your [redacted] is infiltrating the girls dormitory!”

      “Oh, God. Is this Mary? Carla told us all about you! Didn’t you get that pie thrown in your face?”

      1. Needfuldoer

        “Thank you so much for telling us! We’ll take care of the problem right away!”

        The next morning, Mary gets a box marked “Ruttech” by overnight FedEx Express. She gleefully tears into the box expecting a reward, but gets another pie in the face, delivered by a cartoon gloved hand on a spring. After just enough time passes for her to realize what happened and wipe her eyes off, the hand flips her off and party popper confetti shoots out of the box (complete with sarcastic party noisemaker sound effect).

    2. DailyBrad

      Yeah, Mary lacks the access, the imagination, the authority, and currently, the interest, given she seemed to be consumed with spending time with her weird boyfriend when we saw her last and was even civil with Carla with no ulterior motive at the time since she seemed to be in honeymoon mode.

  20. ADLegend21

    Power Move!

  21. Ozaine

    “Yes Skylynx, and this time no force in the universe can stop me.”

    “Oh, Alpha Trion!”

    “That’s not fair Galvatron”

    —

    dunno why Alpha Trion would want to stop Prime, but that was my random brain association off Carla’s declaration and I thought I’d share in case it amused.

  22. Mr. Random

    Tell them she was mean?

    1. DailyBrad

      Sharing peoples’ personal business just to troll and cause drama is pretty crummy behavior, and I say that as someone who honestly finds Carla usually perfectly harmless.

    2. Strain of Thought

      Tell them that Carla’s going around trying to out other queer people for engaging in queer activities to people that may get angry at those queer people for doing so.

  23. FaerwenOfValenwood

    I will always and forever be a huge fan of Ruth’s Big Grin of Spite

  24. AGV

    Dang, Ruth pulling out the big guns

  25. Kyrik Michalowski

    Well, even Carla has some authority figures in her life. The only difference for everyone else is that Carla actually likes her parents.

    Also, are we placing bets on whether or not Joyce already heard it? Or are we still traumatized over the jugs comment?

  26. Cerusee

    The people Carla actually likes and respects! Her secret weakness!

  27. DailyBrad

    I like that Ruth knows how Carla ticks. It probably helps that the two do generally seem to like one another and get along, so she’s had plenty of time to observe Carla and know the gambit to employ, as evidenced by the grin. That’s the face of someone who knows they’ve got the winning card.

  28. sdrainbow

    If Carla worked at a Jimmy John’s, she would be the cashier who takes my order of “number eleven, no tomatoes” and says “right, gotcha, number eleven with extra tomatoes”

    no, this incredibly specific example isn’t drawn directly from recent experience at all and I haven’t been furiously fantasizing about being a Karen about it, why would you say that

    1. RassilonTDavros

      …I feel like the extra tomatoes thing was something that Walkyverse Mike did at some point.

    2. Jess

      That’s my order too! ORDER TWINSIES!

    3. Taffy

      Tomatoes are a common allergen, and putting them on/in something when they were specifically requested as an omission is basically poisoning a person. I’ve worked with food long enough to know that you’re getting paid to make the sandwich that was ordered, not your Super Special Revengewich that’s totally gonna stick it to those evil customers. If you’re working at a sandwich place, you already aren’t getting paid enough, so why jeopardise that and risk an even worse financial situation with a potential allergic reaction that could cause serious harm or even death and can be directly traced back to you with just the receipt for the meal? Food safety isn’t a joke and even it it’s just a simple taste preference, just make the damn thing and stop acting like you know better.

      /rant Sorry, I’ve worked with a lot of people who like to play stupid games with people’s food.

      1. hazel

        Agree and you should say it

      2. thejeff

        I’ve worked in fast food too and it’s far more likely the cashier just misheard or wasn’t paying enough attention than that they’re deliberately messing with you.
        They’re not paid enough to care.

        Unless it’s a pattern with a particular person of course.

        1. Taffy

          I’ve seen it more as a deliberate thing, personally. I’ve definitely messed up a sandwich, but only during rushes and I always send an apology back with the replacement.

        2. sdrainbow

          He was deliberately saying it wrong “as a joke”. It’s happened before.

          Honestly, the actual difference between Jimmy Johns Guy and Carla is that Jimmy Johns Guy doesn’t ACTUALLY do the thing I specifically requested him not to do.

      3. Rainhat

        I used to work in food service, and … I’m not cute, I’m not doing The Act, I’m not even especially fast making things, but what I have going for me is that you’ll get EXACTLY what you ordered and the idea of adulterating food in any way makes me gag.

        1. Taffy

          Seriously, fuck The Act. As long as they get what they ordered and you’re not being outright nasty to them, why even bother pretending to be ecstatic about making minimum wage? Nobody’s fucking fooled, so who’s it even for?

        2. Schpoonman

          For our shitheel bosses who punish us for not playing along. It’s why I try to discourage fellow linecooks from visibly being shitty employees. Steal food when you can, milk the clock for every concievable second, but know that these asswipes will take every real and imagined reason to cut your paycheck, deny requested time off, and in general treat you as a modern serf, so pick your battles carefully.

          All that being said, at least Americans turn off almost every filter they have when they’re in a restaurant (I once heard it described as microdosing what it would be like to be super rich and have staff waiting on you hand foot and suddenly every bad customer made a little more sense), so I can’t imagine any employee anywhere making it if they deliberately made food wrong more than twice.

        3. Taffy

          Yeah, the store managers really do seem to be the only ones who actually care if an employee pretends not to hate their job. Of course, I’m of the opinion that you have to be a certain type of empty-souled control freak to want to be in charge of a fast food place. That or a hopeless optimist, and those always end up leaving after a year or two.

          American labor needs a complete overhaul. Nobody’s happy, everyone knows it, but we still play fuckin’ make-believe like anybody actually wants it. The loudest, whiniest customers get everything they want instead of being rightly told to fuck off until they fix their attitude, and it’s pathetic.

        4. Taffy

          Oh, and just to pile on, it’s not like any of those “bosses” ever do any actual work most of the time. Boo-hoo, I had to count the stock to make sure we didn’t run out of stuff and then fuck around with everyone’s schedules for no conceivable reason*, and then I took five orders and cried about it for 45 minutes. Wow, my job is soooo hard as a store manager, and my salary is higher than your wages for two years because bits just sooo hard being the biggest baby in the workplace at all times.

          *Obviously the reason is to keep people on edge and under-rested so they’re more compliant out of pure exhaustion but we’re not allowed to say it.

      4. pwnship

        Totally agree and that’s my secret nightmare.

  29. Reltzik

    Once again, Ruth establishes a reign of terror over her domain.

  30. Bagge

    Oh no, Ruth has her number

    1. StClair

      which happens to be her parents’ number.

      1. Bagge

        The drawback of fame

  31. Robbie IronWill

    I absolutely love Carla. She has actually become my favorite character tied with Danny. Also, is it weird that Carla’s “I do what I want and want everyone to know about it” attitude sexy? I think she pulls it off so that it’s charismatic and confident.

    1. Alex

      If Robert Downy Jr is any indication some people are VERY into that.

  32. Rabisch

    Dunno why, but this is kinda adorable ♡. Carla really don’t want to disappoint her parents and Ruth wants to preserve the secret, for have the absolute pleasure to be her the one telling it to Joyce!!!

  33. chuckroast

    Very nice to finally see Carla shut up for once.

  34. Arianod

    Straight to the nuclear option, huh.

    1. Francoinblanco

      Tacticall nuke incoming!! Weeop weeop
      Carla im dissapointed

  35. Rogue 7

    Good for Ruth.

  36. Darkoneko

    Wow DAMN

  37. The Other Mike

    “And I will tell them in a note I will enclose with your femur, which I will mail to them.”

  38. temperaryobsessor

    To be fair, what Carla was about to do could be spun as a homophobic outing easily.
    Honestly since Becky isn’t being an ultra hypacrit, cheating, or sleeping with someone else’s girlfriend this is only anyone elses’ business because she’s choosing to tell everyone. And its only Joyce’s business because she’s singling Joyce out publically.

    Honestly Joyce is most likely to be annoyed at A. the person who elected to disturb her sleep for a situation where no one is on fire, and B. the part of her that reflexively cares about premarital sex. The worst she’d do is use this as fuel for her pro athiesm campaign. But Carla doesn’t actually know that and her parents certainly don’t.

    1. JBento

      “To be fair, what Carla was about to do could be spun as a homophobic outing easily.”

      Hardly. The fact that they’re two women in a romantic relationship is not the secret.

      “since Becky isn’t being an ultra hypacrit”

      Counterpoint: she definitely is.

      Regardless, this is pretty terrible behaviour by Carla, just not for those reasons.

      1. Yotomoe

        I mean Carla doesn’t KNOW that the two women in a romantic relationship isn’t the secret. All she truly knows is that Becky asked her not to tell Joyce because of Joyce’s reaction. And as we’ve previously seen, Carla doesn’t actually know these people well enough to actually have the prior knowledge that, say, Becky and Dina being a “thing” isn’t a secret. Even charitably there’s a chance that Becky hadn’t come out to Joyce yet and that’s not Carla’s place to come out for her.
        I say this to say we, the READERS, know that isn’t the case. But there’s not really a way for Carla to know that.

        1. JBento

          Literally everybody knows Becky and Dina are in a relationship. They make out in the halls. If I tell somebody who SOMEHOW doesn’t know “Elton John is gay”, I’m not outing Elton John.

        2. Yotomoe

          Do they? After a cursory glance through the strips, while they have held hands in public, I don’t think they’ve ever “made out in the halls”. And even if they did, Carla hasn’t been present for any of that based on my second cursory glance.
          And y’know what. If world renowned openly homosexual pianist Elton John, when introducing me to a knew group of people said “Oh, please don’t tell this guy that I fucked this guy” I’m not gonna make any assumptions on what this guy knows or why Elton wants me to keep this secret. I’ll just tread lightly and follow his lead.
          Which is a weird comparison to two 18 year old girls on a college campus.

        3. JBento

          Clearly, they are an example of discretion for the ages:
          https://www.dumbingofage.com/2016/comic/book-6/04-it-all-returns/quiet-2/

          https://www.dumbingofage.com/2017/comic/book-7/03-the-thing-i-was-before/sooner/

          The only way this relationship could be more public is if they posted it on YouTube (or TikTok, or whatever it is kids use these days).

        4. temperaryobsessor

          They are out about dating but not about being actually sexually active. To be honest if one person were singled out and I had no context my first question would be if they were being cheated on.

        5. JBento

          Sure. As I said, Carla is definitely being a shit in this situation. She’s just not being a HOMOPHOBIC shit.

        6. temperaryobsessor

          I don’t think Carla is actually being homophobic but leave out a few details and it could sound like it.

    2. JBento

      Also, this: ” her pro athiesm campaign”? It’s not a thing that’s happening or has happened.

      1. GeekyWarrior

        I believe temperaryobsessor is referring to Joyce’s recent change of faith. The same change of faith that caused Joyce to shout “Hell isn’t real and you can love whoever you want” to a bewildered couple who was on their way to just get lunch.

        https://www.dumbingofage.com/2021/comic/book-12/02-ill-leave-you-a-phantom/disappointing-2/

      2. Needfuldoer

        I’ve finally figured all this out, and I’m not ceding shit. [Becky will] come around. She’s smart. She’ll understand.”

        I think that’s the closest she’s gotten to a “campaign” so far. Becky’s the one trying to drag Joyce back to her viewpoint, but she might project that as “Joyce is trying to turn me atheist”.

        1. Taffy

          I like it when Joyce says the “stronger” swears.

  39. MegaBee

    Game: Ruthless

  40. John

    …Fuck you, Carla. You are simultaneously delight, and a complete and utter piece of shit.

    1. Taffy

      That’s a bit extreme, isn’t it?

    2. Schpoonman

      I’m going to give her the benefit of the doubt and assume she is aware enough of the social dynamics to understand that she’s not playing with a secret that could ruin lives. I REALLY hope she is, anyway.

      Of the two salarian types of secrets, she knows it’s the safe-to-pry secret.

      1. Alex

        She kept Ruth and Jennifer’s relationship quiet at first and only revealed it because she wanted Ruth to get help for her suicidal tendencies. So I think you’re right, and she wants to expose this secret because its just dumb freshman drama from her standpoint.

  41. Valerie

    I wonder who her parents are. They’re big-shot inventors like Ultra Car’s, but they obviously can’t be Joe and Rachel.

  42. Alex

    D’ya think Carla’s parents are scary or she just secretly wants their approval? It sounds like they were good parents so she may actually care what they think.

    1. Taffy

      I think she just gets along with them and doesn’t want to get in actual trouble with them. Doesn’t seem like she’d secretly want anything if they’re decent.

      1. Alex

        Secretly in that she probably doesn’t want her friends to know.

        1. Taffy

          Makes sense. They might hold it against her.

        2. The Wellerman

          Hey Taffy fam fam! How have you been? Just asking, don’t mean to love bomb, just worried about my friend. ?

        3. Taffy

          As the kids say, “We existin'”. Mostly thinking about BLT sandwiches and cottage cheese.

        4. The Wellerman

          ??

  43. Lily

    tbh i’m surrprised this hasn’t been tried before (but fame aside i guess only ruth and other higher ups would know how to contact carla’s parents [although these days i can imagine there be some passive aggressive tweets from students like “dang that ruttech daughter sure is a piece of work” or so lol])

  44. elfroyalty

    this is the comic strip of all times. amazing. i love carla so much, her expressions are SO wonderful here.

  45. poyo

    is forcing others to keep your secret a secret something an RA usually does ? i lived at home for college lol

    1. Lily

      dunno much about college but id’ assume the RA’s job is to ‘keep the peace’ more or less, ruth just does so more by intimidation

  46. Felian

    Wait what, Carla shows deference to ANYONE?!

    1. Taffy

      Her dad made her a cool transforming toy with rocket launchers and her mom made her. Of course she respects them. Her mom is also probably super hot, so

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