447

Sweeten
Posted on July 19, 2017 by David M Willis
There's a pair of new shirts in my TeePublic store.  They're $6 off for the next day or so!

447 thoughts on “Sweeten”

  1. Ana Chronistic

    “your nickname as a baby was Stabby McStabface, before you got to kindergarten and became Li’l Disembowler!”

    “MOOOOOOOM”

    1. Ana Chronistic

      yay Stacy!

    2. Tofusmith

      I mean wasn’t she a pretty stabby kid though?

    3. Tofusmith

      I mean wasn’t she a pretty stabby kid though?

      1. NotPiffany

        Just that one time.

        1. Clif

          I’m just yay! Amber is alive.

        2. Baf

          Is she? Or is Amber’s mom talking to a tree?

        3. Djaevlenselv

          So, Amber died in the brawl with Ryan and was reincarnated as a tree. Yeah, I can work with that.

        4. Ragingagnostic

          We still don’t get to see what she did to Cryin’ Ryan. That is disappointing.

        5. Lingo

          That’s still pretty significantly stabbier than the average kid.

          At least, back in my day. I don’t keep up with the latest fads.

        6. Pablo360

          Kids these days always going around stabbing each other. Why don’t they resolve their conflicts like adults, with pistols at twenty paces?

        7. Clif

          That’s only because most kids have limited access to sharp knives.

        8. Arawn

          Oh come on now; Ben Carson isn’t our age and when HE was a kid he went around stabbing people. Lucky for the person he stabbed he ‘hit his belt buckle.’

        9. TachyonCode

          I stabbed my childhood bully at age 6, in the hand, with a pencil. That was not quite three decades ago. All that happened was we both got suspended for a week.

        10. Kamino Neko

          Twice, though I’m pretty sure Ethan is the only other person who knows she stabbed Sal. Even Sal doesn’t seem to recognize her. (*insert banned joke here*)

          But, this being Amber, I’m sure she believes everybody knows about that, now, too.

        11. NotPiffany

          Did she stab two people as a kid? I thought she only stabbed Sal.

          (Stabbing Ryan doesn’t count. She wasn’t exactly a kid three days ago in comic time.)

        12. Kamino Neko

          Hmm…I think I misinterpreted some of the down-thread conversation.

          In my defense I had just woken up.

    4. MechaBill

      Judging by this strip:
      http://www.dumbingofage.com/2017/comic/book-7/03-the-thing-i-was-before/wellyikes/
      “Stabby” might be a misnomer. More like “Slashy”.
      It would also explain how Ryan survived since slash wounds are generally less lethal but bleed more and are probably more painful.
      One stab to the thoracic region has a good chance of killing or incapacitating him, after which further attacks could be considered excessive force. Slashing him probably left him mobile which could justify more attacks. For example, a slash to the forehead would cause massive bleeding which would blind him but the small blood vessels would close preventing him from bleeding out. After that, she can simply pick any target she chooses since he would be blind and disoriented by pain and fear, yet on camera it would look like he’s still a threat.

      1. CoMa

        unrelated to your comment: Heck, that was already more than a month ago??!

        related to your comment: maybe she also considers the incident with Sal from earlier parts of her life too (there indeed it was “stabbing”). Also: Now I need to get this version of what we didn’t get to see out of my head…

      2. merbrat

        Seems legit. Amber *does* like Slash Fic!

  2. Doctor_Who

    Amazi-Tree will cast her shade over evil-doers.

    1. Achallenger

      At least she it’s behind the tree instead of in it

      1. Doctor_Who

        Amber’s future.

        1. Lone Wolf

          I suppose there are worse fates than being Bill Murray.

        2. Needfuldoer

          What if you’re Groundhog Day Bill Murray?

        3. N0083rp00F

          Slightly soggy Oh Henry Bar anyone?

    2. Achallenger

      Why wood evil doers care about shade? If they got legs they could just leaf it.

      1. Michael Steamweed

        Are you trying to start a branch of puns in these comments?

        1. LookingIn

          Why not? It’s fertile ground!

        2. Plasma Mongoose

          Wood you mind if I joined in with the sappy puns?

        3. adjudicus

          Yew wood be very welcome to

        4. tyersome

          Yesssss, let us embark upon this treemendous endeavor.

        5. N0083rp00F

          The root of the issue is where everyone pines for puns yet the harvest is meager at best.

        6. Cephalo the Pod

          No! This is all too much! I must seek a-xylem!

        7. tyersome

          So sorry, but they’re really phloem now

        8. Dean

          I’ve been pining for a good pun thread.

        9. jy3

          Oakay, this has gone on long enough.

        10. tyersome

          Sorry, nothing will stem the flowering of this divine pun thread.

        11. Whirlwitch

          You’re right, the jokes are all getting acorny now. If I get subjected to too many I wight twig out and go barking mad.

        12. tyersome

          Sorry, while I beleaf it is wrong I now want to seed that.

        13. transgressingwaffle

          Leaf these puns alone. Oakay

        14. Southern Belle

          I don’t wanna be a birch but these are getting repetitive now. Yule need to be more creative than that.

        15. tyersome

          I’m knot sure bud I hope more cambium covered …

        16. Rob of Ages

          You guys are so chol-ordinated with these puns that I should probably leaf these to the professionals. I’ve had my phyll.

    3. Dusk Rain

      Like, literal shade or verbal shade? Cause she is pretty good with those snappy oneliners (and kudos on that pun).

    4. Aeron

      My leaves of justice will BLOT OUT THE SUN!

    5. LeslieBean4Shizzle

      What really? No one has made a “stabbing tree” joke yet?

      Cause… she’s like the Giving Tree… but she gives stabs.

      … I see, perhaps, why no one else made this joke. It seems like a winner, but the set-up is more difficult than I expected.

  3. Time Sage

    Well at least she’s not in jail?

    1. C.T Phipps

      I remember saying, “Amber has a chance of not being punished for stabbing the respected white boy rapist. After all, she is a attractive Caucasian girl.”

      1. Plasma Mongoose

        If you are going to be charged with a crime, you are far better chance of getting a lighter sentence if not getting away with it as a white girl, on the other hand, if you are a black man facing the same charge, you are pretty much screwed.

        1. darkgloomie

          Depends on the crime, iirc. Apparently juries are waaay harder on white people committing fraud and other white collar crimes

    2. RandomDude

      LAW FACT: Stabbing a neo-nazi is a misdemeanor charge for vandalizing an object you don’t own.

      1. AeromechanicalAce

        But what if you DO own the object you’re sullying with nazi blood?

        1. Plasma Mongoose

          Can Nazi blood be using in mystical rituals?

        2. Dusk Rain

          As a witch I would say no, but I suppose it depends on one’s path?

        3. Jamie

          I feel like it really ought to depend on what you’re trying to achieve, but I don’t know anything about real magick.

        4. Friscovi

          I doubt it, but I’m pretty sure it can used to cure impotence. I for one at least got a bit of an erection watching Richard Spencer getting hit in the face.

        5. Vincent

          I believe there are certain laws that say you keep what you kill..?

      2. motorfirebox

        Yes sir, killing a gang member’s only an $18 fine, you can mail it in.

      3. StClair

        In Skyrim, the fine for killing a member of the Thalmor (Nazi elves, basically – even other high elves don’t like them) is the same as that for littering.

    3. Ferdinand Rosenthal

      She could easily pull self-defense. You don’t go to jail for that. Unlike those downers at the Bad Webcomics Wiki, in many states, the use of force and weaponry in the use of self defense can be a *lot*, up to and including the death of your attacker.

      1. Ferdinand Rosenthal

        Specifically, there’s no real ‘duty to retreat’ in Indiana.

        1. DSL

          You take Bad Webcomics seriously? The overbearingly self-absorbed rant site whose logo is the Civil Defense logo reimagined as Goatse?

  4. C.T Phipps

    Wow, Mrs. O’Malley is having a normal parental reaction!

    1. Charie Spencer

      “Yeah, we’re all pretty much still 4 to our parents”, said the 58-year-old.

  5. AnvilPro

    Amber not in jail? Granted I know shit all about the justice system but, even though it was obviously self-defense, I’d assume she’d still be held for more than 3 days for what I imagine she did to Ryan.

    1. Emperor Daniel

      Given that her mom is here, Amber may be out on bail.

      1. C.T Phipps

        Not necessarily. America can have wildly different attitudes on the use of violence than European countries, depending on the state. That includes cops not arresting people in this sort of thing.

      2. Fart Captor

        When Amber broke her glasses, she had to wait days until her mom had the money to replace them. I doubt she’d be able to afford bail.

        1. MeghanTheDreamCrusher

          I could be wrong but I’m pretty sure she was just waiting for them to be made and come in.
          Whenever I’ve gotten a new pair it usually takes about three to seven days.

        2. Fart Captor

          I’m afraid you is wrong:

          http://www.dumbingofage.com/2015/comic/book-6/02-that-perfect-girl/astigmatism/

        3. Halpful

          oh! another thing I have in common with amber. (except mine’s so mild I was around 30 when I got my first pair)

        4. MeghanTheDreamCrusher

          Well sonovabongo

        5. Knayt

          There’s a few different types of bail, and one of them is that you don’t pay anything unless you don’t meet the terms of your bail. I’m pretty sure the standard way of determining what bail is is almost entirely judge discretion as well (though I don’t know any judges personally, just some lawyers, so my law knowledge is a bit weaker on that side).

    2. fillerusername

      If he didn’t die and it was clearly established as self defense then 3 days seems reasonable. She wasn’t the one who ended up being charged with anything.

      1. Raibean

        It might actually be harder to get out if he’s alive because then it turns into he said/she said.

        1. Dara

          Except there’s a witness. He said/_they_ said.

        2. segnosaur

          Plus, you know, the knife probably had his fingerprints (and may be something he was known to own). Not to mention the possibility of security camera video.

    3. Goblin Scribe

      If the police want to keep her for an extended period of time, they have to charge her with something. Self-defense isn’t a crime, so if they have good evidence it was self-defense, they don’t have to charge her with squat—and therefore *can’t* arrest her.

      Imagine the justice system where every victim who fought back in self-defense was taken to trial.

      1. Goblin Scribe

        [obligatory extremely depressing joke about how the American justice system’s handling of…eh, take your pick.]

      2. C.T Phipps

        In fact, it’s illegal in America to hold someone over 24 hours without charging them. Theoretically.

        1. Sam

          With an exception where it gets extended to 72 hours I think if you can prove it is an emergency and that you need info the person has ASAP I think. But yes, they can’t like hold Amber indefinitely regardless if they aren’t being charged.

        2. Leorale

          Or here in NYC, they can set high bails and hold you for YEARS at the infamously awful Rikers Island while you’re awaiting trial. That’s right, you weren’t tried or found guilty of anything, but you can’t afford the $8000 bail, so you get to miss three years of your kids’ childhoods.

          Sure, it’s unconstitutional, but it’s not like you can afford a lawyer, either.

        3. Leorale

          I met a father with a bail of a million dollars (due to previous gang activity). He’s been in for nearly a year so far. No trial date set. Four children who love him and each other. It’s gonna be a long, long time before they’ll get to be in the same room together.

        4. Questionor

          At that point you’ve been arraigned and charged with some kind of crime. You’re waiting for your trial indefinitely not waiting to be charged. CT Philips was saying they can’t hold you with out charging you with a crime. That’s the step before setting bail and stuff. I think he’s right about the 24 hours but my knowledge of that rule comes from watching L&O so YMMV.

        5. Leorale

          True; this is related, but it’s a different injustice.

        6. Ophidiophile

          Which is why people should probably stop waiving their right to a speedy trial. Waive that right, and you’re at the mercy of the district attorney.

        7. Leorale

          They didn’t knowingly waive any rights. This treatment was the norm, not an exception.

      3. Nightsbridge

        Yeah, that would be gross perversions of justice. Good thing our system of law is so balanced.

        Eyes black/trans folk getting jail time for fighting back against people who came after their lives.

        But seriously, I’m glad Amber is with us again.

        1. Whirlwitch

          Luckily it wasn’t Carla, Sarah, or Sal.

      4. Random832

        In most states self defense doesn’t create a legal obligation on the state to not charge you in the first place.

        1. Random832

          Did the gravatars change?

        2. Random832

          Huh, my phone must have a different email saved.

    4. butting

      Three days later might indicate a psych hold; Stacy would be bringing her back to the dorm from hospital in that case.

    5. Sam

      If they see her actions as a case of self-defense where Amber is the victim they legally cannot hold her for extended periods of time, that would be an abuse of police authority as she isn’t the criminal, she is a victim and a witness.

      You don’t put someone in jail if you aren’t charging them for a crime.

    6. motorfirebox

      If they don’t charge you, the longest the police can detain you is 36-96 hours (depending on the state). If it’s a relatively clear-cut case of self-defense, I wouldn’t expect Amber to still be in custody three days later.

    7. Aletheia

      I’m not a lawyer or anyone involved in the legal system, but I read a lot of true crime things, heh. As far as I remember/can tell*, if the police determine something is truly done out of justified self-defense, the person who is using that as a defense usually isn’t arrested unless that can’t be determined right there and then. In Amber’s case, they had the wannabe-rapist there, stabbed, with a weapon in his own hands, as well as (probably) campus surveillance footage that showed him sneaking up on the girls (and, on further investigation, undoubtedly footage from him sneaking around campus all day), another eyewitness’s account of what happened, and the post about him being, well, the wannabe rapist. Nothing would have pointed to Amber being guilty of attacking him outside of self-defense at that point.

      If new developments occur during the likely still-ongoing investigation, the police could still turn around and charge her for something if they feel that she had broken a law and hadn’t acted in self-defense (or had exceeded reasonable force, or whatever). If that happened, she would be arrested, and either go to jail or get out on bail. At trial, her lawyers would likely present the case that she did act within the boundaries of self-defense, and the jury would determine if she was guilty or not of whatever charges she was facing. 🙂

      *Keep in mind, this is all highly jurisdiction-dependent; what happens in one part of the country can vary wildly from another part, and I may be mixing parts together unintentionally, heh.

      1. Tom T.

        That’s actually a pretty good recap of the way the legal proceedings around George Zimmerman’s killing of Trayvon Martin unfolded.

      2. Alopex

        * with his own weapon in his own ribcage

      3. Drew

        This is a good summary of how the police and DA weigh the variables in a self defense case. Since the action was “off stage” its hard to know exactly what happened. However, it looked to me like she took the knife, beat him down, stabbed him once and then went in for a kill stab/slash. Standing over an attacker that has been wounded and no longer a threat and executing them (or attempting to) will usually bring charges from the DA. So don’t do that IRL if you ever find yourself in such a situation. Retreat and call 911 after they are wounded and no longer a threat. Every jurisdiction and every situation is different so YMMV. (See American X for a situation where SD became a manslaughter charge for the victim executing the attacker. Much different circumstances but legal framework the same.)

        1. thejeff

          Of course, as you say it’s hard to know exactly what happened.

          If he was still struggling after the first stab, stab again. Honestly, if you just stab a couple times quickly, you’re probably fine. You’re not required to step back from the possibly still dangerous assailant to assess the damage you’ve done and see if it’s sufficient.

          Mostly though – don’t stab people. Avoid situations where you need to. Expect to get cut if you do try to take a knife away from someone – even if you’re successful.

        2. Drew

          True, but just know DA’s drool if they think there is the slightest opening tomcharge someone, especially if there is a politically element. One case a DA charged a homeowner who shot a home invader bc homeowner used a 10mm pistol. All legally ownec and a SD slam dunk but caliber of gun was 1mm more than what the police in the jurisdiction used and so was “excessive force”. Another incident, a licensed owner of an automatic M16 style black rifle (an employee of the manufacturer) shot and killed a biker, after an armed gang of bikers had been trying to run him and his wife off the road for several miles in a high speed chase which ended with the shot biker rushing him with a bowie knife while another gang member advanced with a revolver (chase had ended). This man was actually convicted because he used an automatic military style rifle and the jurisdiction was in a gun panic at the time. I always tell people who are buying guns for self or home defense to check what the police in their town use and don’t get anything more powerful. Even then its no guarantee you’ll be safe in an otherwise legit SD situation if the DA thinks they can convict you bc of the mood of the jurisdiction and get political points in the process.

  6. Emperor Daniel

    Oh my gods, that tree is preserving Amber.

    Usually it’s the other way around.

    1. David M Willis

      get out

      1. Emperor Norton II

        You heard the man, Daniel. There can be only one emperor in this comment field.

        1. Empress Kamino Neko

          Mwahahaha. And you can’t complain, because exact words. >_>

        2. Pablo360

          An empress is a female emperor, ergo is an emperor. Your pedantry is less powerful than my pedantry.

        3. King Daniel

          *comes back* It is moi! Not Emperor Daniel, certainly not! I am a new person, totally! You can tell by my different gravatar! *cough*

        4. Emperor Norton II

          Oh, hello, absolutely new person that we have never seen before.

          I’m sorry you had to witness DYW tell Emperor Daniel to get out before you had a chance to meet your namesake, but as I’m sure you can see, it was really necessary, what with him thinking he could tell jokes and everything. Jokes? In this comment field? Hah! We are all totally serious at all times!

          *Damn You Willis, our affectionate nickname for the creator of this comic. Thought you wanted to know, since you’re so new.

    2. Doctor_Who

      Do you think Dina was disappointed when her roommate turned out to just be someone named Amber, and not literal amber from which she could possibly extract dino-DNA?

      “Hi, I’m Amber, it’s very nice to…what are you doing with that drill and syringe?”

      “…Nothing.”

      Nah, that’s silly. I doubt Amber even realized she HAD a roommate for about a week. She just thought the place was haunted.

      1. Pablo360

        By a ghost with inimitable fashion sense.

      2. Loki

        Boring answer: Dine would surely be aware that DNA deteriorates too fast, even when trapped in amber.

        1. Needfuldoer

          Just patch the bad spots with heron and salamander DNA.

          Chaos.

        2. Rob of Ages

          Misread that as “heroin and salamander DNA.”

          Now THAT’S chaos. That’s probably how you end up with Rampage: World Tour instead of Jurassic Park.

    3. Magdalana

      i wish i had more upvotes

      1. Plasma Mongoose

        I wish there was an upvote option.

    4. Lingo

      Wow. Well played, your Highness.

    5. Tacos

      I see what you did there.

    6. Ferdinand Rosenthal

      Good one.

  7. fillerusername

    If she only had to stay off campus for three days I’m guessing that solves the “Is he dead?” question.

    1. TheOthin

      I think even more conclusive was a few days ago when Rachel described Ryan as having been “caught”.

      1. fillerusername

        That too.

    2. Fart Captor

      I think it probably wasn’t that she actually had to, so much as she really wanted to be elsewhere for a while after what happened

  8. Puckish Rogue

    Might just be me but Stacey is looking particularly fine in that first panel

    1. Lingo

      Stacy’s a mom who’s got it going on.

      1. Puckish Rogue

        Richard and I agree with you

        1. Cholma

          She’s all you want and you’ve waited for so long?

        2. Clif

          So does Joe’s dad.

    2. JessWitt

      She’s got it going on.

  9. Yumi

    Yay, Amber! If people judge you, just fucking own it.

  10. Shiro

    Awwwwwwh Amber’s mom ♥

    Also I’m irrationally worried Amber’s hiding her face because of some Joker-esque transformation or something :c

    1. inqntrol

      “Do you want to know how I got these scars?”

    2. Lingo

      Yes! I’ve been wondering about that ever since I noticed that the only preview panel with Amber on the Tumblr doesn’t show her face!

      1. Lingo

        Then again, if she now has a scar or something, it may be a lot harder to hide her secret identity.

        1. Kamino Neko

          I hope she doesn’t have a scar…It’d screw with my mind to jump her higher on the ‘most attractive DoA girls’ scale.

      2. MeghanTheDreamCrusher

        The twist is that she’s fine

        1. Beef

          Honestly, I doubt David Coppafeel took a break from being stabbed to take the knife back and attack amber

      3. Shiro

        Oh jeez now I’m even more worried :c

    3. Alopex

      She went to prison and got a tattoo

      1. Shiro

        Not…not that Joker. We don’t talk about that Joker.

    4. Lingo

      I’ve got a new theory: She just keeps the mask on 24/7 now. Whether she’s Amber or Amazi-Girl.

      It’s like a security blanket … for her face.

      1. Dusk Rain

        Obligatory faaaaaaace.

    5. ValdVin

      The scars are from an incredibly creepy silent movie. It’ll make you appreciate the backgrounding done for the Joker.

      http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0019130/

  11. ValdVin

    I like Stacy here. And yet I know that “sometimes Mom thinks I’m four” bit way too well.

    1. Tom T.

      My son actually is four, but sometimes I still think of him as being two.

      1. ValdVin

        Is four old enough for the “Daaaaad (or Mommmmm), you’re embarrrrassing meeeee!” “No I’m not!” exchange yet?

        (We don’t have kids, but I remember my Mom being blithely unaware of this for way too long.)

        1. Katherine

          I don’t have a kid myself, but I have friends with a four-year-old and he’s still pretty blithely unaware of the fact that embarrassment can exist. Tantrums galore and he doesn’t seem to care that we all just stare at him while he screams. Maybe by seven or eight?

    2. OnyxIdol

      My mother always viewed me as a four year old 🙁

  12. Viktoria

    Amber, you have now stabbed multiple people in circumstances where you had other options. Being listed as the Crazy Stabby Girl is kind of deserved at this point.

    1. Puckish Rogue

      I think we can go with the extenuating circumstances excuse for her first one and for the last one…well if you produce a knife then you get what you deserve

      1. Spira

        Whether or not it’s deserved doesn’t mean they aren’t gonna think of her as crazy stabby girl. Plus let’s be honest she probably went further than ‘self defense’ stabbing considering Dorothy’s reaction to the whole thing.

        1. Puckish Rogue

          As far as I’m concerned if someone threatens your life and produces the means to do it (in this case a knife) then you can go to town on them as much as you like, short of killing or crippling them

          If, in the course of defending yourself or others, you do happen to accidently kill or cripple them then I’m fine with that as well

    2. Shiro

      …I mean with Sal, absolutely I see your point, but what was the other option with Ryan? Nicely saying “well friend I have the knife with which you were attempting to carve me up a moment ago, best be on your way quietly now”?

      Like it’s possible she took it overboard but at this point, we don’t have that information.

      1. butting

        Oh hell. Sal. Has Amber talked with anyone about her?

        “Remember when I snapped back in my teens and stabbed a kid who tried to pull a holdup? She’s, uh, living in my dorm and, uh, I don’t think she’s worked out who I am yet.”

        1. Lingo

          Oooh, good point. It’s about time Sal put two and two together.

    3. Fart Captor

      It definitely is not deserved. The first time she was like 8, and being egged on by her shitlord father, and the second time it was to defend herself and Dorothy from being maimed or killed by a rapist.

      I’m sure some people will think that, and the “stabby” part is accurate at least in the sense that she has stabbed someone a lot more than most people have, but no, she does not “deserve” to have people treat her like that’s all she is.

      1. BBCC

        Amber was 13 at the robbery. She and Sal are the same age.

        But yes, this is not deserved.

  13. C.T Phipps

    Mind you, there’s no obligation to arrest someone for stabbing someone.

  14. Derek

    SHE’S NOT IN JAIL

    1. Delicious Taffy

      Being soulbound into a tree isn’t much better.

      1. zoelogical

        eh, i mean. at least she has a house

        1. Reltzik

          It’s not REALLY a house if all you have over your head is a canopy.

        2. zoelogical

          but at least your roots are thoroughly in the ground!!

      2. Lingo

        She’s in Squirrel Jail. She was captured by Squirrel Girl.

        1. Delicious Taffy

          I’m not versed in Squirrel Girl lore. Is she of legal drinking age? I want to include her in a crossover fanfic, but I don’t want to deal with writing an underage drunk superhero.

        2. Dusk Rain

          I know it’s not the same Squirrel Girl (I think) but now I’m picturing Grace from EGS capturing her as politely as possible. “Umm… it’s for your own good, you know. Sorry.”

        3. UniqueSnowflake2

          “More like Amazi-Squirrel.”

  15. Stephen Bierce

    *lays off the soundtrack duties a moment*

    1. UniqueSnowflake2

      *plays “Cut to the Feeling” on the hacked Muzak*

  16. Dana

    Crazy Stabby Girl: 8
    Not that Joe would actually rate her that high, but I couldn’t get into Joe’s head on this if I wanted to.

    1. Opus the Poet

      He would rate her whatever he thought would make it least likely to be her next victim. Joe may be stupid but he’s not lacking in self-preservation.

    2. Betty Anne

      I guess I thought she was “Bean Bag with Glasses,” which is why he specifically apologized to her on his sign? (So as not to get stabbed?) Or did he already use that moniker for someone else?

  17. Siddlaw

    I feel like Amber is going to have some sort of drastic appearance change and that’s why she’s a black shadow now. Like David could have easily shown some of her not darkened.

    1. Tom T.

      Maybe she stabbed Ryan’s face off, so he stole hers and ran off, and now she has to wear his while she hunts him down.

      1. Delicious Taffy

        …Jesus Four-Person-Bicycle Christ, dude.

        1. Rectilinear Propagation

          I think that’s just the plot to Face Off.

        2. Delicious Taffy

          Nah, that movie is about two weirdos pretending to be each other for shiggles.

        3. Needfuldoer

          “John Travolta and Nicolas Cage do impressions of each other” is the perfect pitch line for a crazy shut-your-brain-off sci-fi movie.

        4. Ferret

          The best part is when Nic Cage pretends to be John Travolta pretending to be Nic Cage.

        5. Cephalo the Pod

          No, it’s more like that one iteration of the Joker.

      2. Dean

        Maybe she has a burning skull instead of a face and rides around on a motorcycle meting out justice to evildoers.

    2. zoelogical

      maybe she’s got a mohawk now

  18. mister gray

    I hope Ryan or whatever the rapist’s name was is in a coma from all the stabbing he got.

  19. motorfirebox

    Jeez, you stab one person. I mean two people.

    1. Plasma Mongoose

      Once you pop, you cannot stop.

      1. Pablo360

        Once you go knife, you’re like that for life.

        1. Reltzik

          Once you slash, you can’t rehash.

      2. foamy

        Bet you can’t stab just one?

        …. I feel bad now.

        1. tyersome

          Yeah, this thread is all edgy, but seriously ya’ll should cut it out …

        2. transgressingwaffle

          Cut it out. It’s not knife to make such sharp puns. And don’t stab me in the back by posting under me with more knife puns.

        3. tyersome

          Sorry, but I’ve been honing my knife puns so long its whetted my appetite for more …

        4. Deanatay

          Let’s just hilt these comments right here. This thread has lost its tang. Not as sweet as it used to be.

        5. Tan

          Well you’re gonna feel really foolish when it turns out it was just a phone

          (note: joke)

        6. Vulcanodon

          Yeah, a Motorola Razr.

        7. tyersome

          Is this a callback to some swordid épéesode?

  20. Passchendaele

    me, before clicking the link to doa: we’ve had a casual, funny ending to the joe storyline so amber’s going to show up, isn’t she.

    after clicking the link: called it, but I’m too busy feeling sad for it to be a victory. :-:

  21. Skater Girl (@syleegrrl)

    Amber, take the offer and be grateful. I kinda wish I could hold my mom’s hand. Then again, she’s dead and I can’t remember a time when she ever actually did hold my hand.

    1. Sam

      This is… pretty sad. But Amber still has every right to refuse if that is what she wants to do.

  22. Dave

    Hey I’m just glad she hasn’t been in JAIL this whole time. I figured she’d been arrested for murder.

    1. Sam

      Well Rachel said Ryan was caught so he isn’t dead.

      1. Pablo360

        What, you’re saying you can’t catch a ghost? Then Melissa McCarthy totally scammed me!

        1. Pat

          They didn’t actually do a lot of catching in that movie. They caught one; it didn’t keep.

  23. Ninjamaid

    Maybe the ‘Joe’s List’ fracas will distract everyone from Stabby McStabbington and her identity crisis.

    College kids brains don’t really have the room for dealing with two scandals at a time.

    1. DaveM

      More likely it’ll be the other way round, and Joe will be let off the hook again. It’s kinda his thing.

  24. Black

    Well, nice to see her mom isn’t always distracted by a booty call…

    1. Sam

      There is no Joe’s Dad to woo her this time.

  25. Danieleon

    So … stabbing someone (even if he’s a rapist maniac) with the background of stabbing someone else before doesn’t get you to jail or at least some psychiatric hospital?

    Freedom™ must be a hell of a drug

    1. NotPiffany

      She was a juvenile when she stabbed Sal. The record of that is probably sealed.

      1. Clif

        Freedom is a hell of a drug. So is Security, but they have unpleasant interactions.

    2. DinaWho

      Someone mentioned upthread that the 3-day timeline might be consistent with an involuntary hold, so it’s possible she was hospitalized.

    3. Sam

      The second stabbing was done in self-defense with Dorothy as a witness to prove that and likely campus cameras catching him stalking about??? They don’t have anything to charge her for as she didn’t do anything legally wrong.

      And stabbing someone once before, when it was likely a trauma response or mental breakdown due to literally witnessing a hostage situation, doesn’t change that. That isn’t a background in stabbing people randomly for no reason so it doesn’t give them reason to think she may have been the attacker or anything and you don’t jail the VICTIM and I don’t think you can force the victim into a psychiatric hospital for subduing someone when that is a reasonable response to the circumstances.

    4. Rectilinear Propagation

      1) We don’t know yet that she hasn’t had some sort of therapy.

      2) How are they supposed to legally impose a punishment without a conviction? “This was clearly self-defense so we’re not going to even charge you with anything but we’re going to force you into a hospital anyway.”

      1. Leorale

        Could they have had her on watch because she might be a danger to herself and others? It’s probably not imminent danger, though.

    5. Tarmaniel

      In a blatantly obvious case of self defense like this one, Amber might not have even been arrested at all.

      1. Danieleon

        Well, don’t know how Indiana laws work but here on Mexico you get a free vacation trip to jail if you kill someone on self-defense because of human rights and stuff, even you’re being held at gunpoint.

        For example, if someone brokes into your house and threatens to kill you but you got a handgun you can’t shoot him unless he fires first, and even then if you shot at his knee and ends crippled you can be sued and THEN sent to prison

        1. Tarmaniel

          In some US states it is perfectly legal to use lethal force in response to petty crimes, let alone self defense against someone threatening your life. In Texas, for example, the threshold is literally $50, if they are stealing or destroying property worth more than this it is perfectly legal to just shoot them outright. There was a case a year or two ago where a restaurant owner shot someone fleeing with the tip jar in the back and wasn’t even charged with a crime.

          In a red state like Indiana it’s unlikely someone would even be arrested in a case like this, actual charges are phenomenally unlikely.

      2. hof1991

        No arrest for what was clearly self-defense. A night of giving statements, but no jail cell or fingerprinting. In everyone’s view, she is the victim. She would even be given a victim’s advocate if warrented.
        No bail because no arrest.
        No requirement for therapy because only a judge could impose that for a crime and no crime.
        No involuntary hold, because again, no crime or sign she is a danger to herself or others.
        But Stacey likely was notified and came to get her. A couple of days back home is her punishment.

  26. Archivist

    Why isn’t this new tree character tagged.

    1. Rambling Idiot

      Amber turned into a tree.

    2. UniqueSnowflake2

      Gary Oak? Chris Pine? Douglas Fir? Joey Chestnut? Sherlock Hemlock?
      Willow Shields? Rowan Blanchard? Ash Williams?

      1. Rectilinear Propagation

        I was going to insist on longleaf pine but then I finally saw what you did there.

      2. transgressingwaffle

        Dipper Pines

  27. JessWitt

    It’s nice to see more of Stacy. Shame it was under unpleasant circumstances.

  28. JohnnyO

    Oh god she’s alive and not in prison. I’m going to do something different than our usual refrain and say “bless you, Willis.”

  29. BBCC

    Amber, congratulations! It’s a mom!

    1. Delicious Taffy

      What’s the count, so far? Something like 5-ish?

      1. BBCC

        Depends. What are we counting?

        1. Delicious Taffy

          Moms in this comic who aren’t complete heels. I count Dina’s, Dorothy’s, Sierra’s, Mike’s, and Amber’s.

        2. BBCC

          Carla (assuming she has one) and Becky’s are decent. Well….Becky’s mom WAS decent.

        3. segnosaur

          I’m pretty sure Carla does have one. Wasn’t there a strip where she talked about her parents making her an Ultracar because there were no toys for sale?

        4. Delicious Taffy

          I don’t remember Becky’s mom having any particular characterisation. Is there some confirmation she was decent, or are people drawing conclusions based on certain things?

        5. Fart Captor

          We’ve only really seem the little flashback ghosts while they were at Becky’s house, but she seemed from that like she was a very warm, attentive mom. Becky clearly thinks the world of her. Hank also noted that Bonnie seemed nice, but it didn’t seem like he knew her well

      2. Dusk Rain

        Mike’s gonna need a whole quarter.

  30. Gojira

    I’ll never understand Amber. Why would you fear people when you’re stronger than them? All this time I thought she was in jail and the rapist was admired and supported by the public, that that’s clearly not the case!

    1. Nightsbridge

      People don’t normally want to be remembered as a violent, stabby person.

      1. Gojira

        Only because violent stabby people spend most of their live in prison. But to stab someone and not go to jail? That’s living the dream!

        1. Pablo360

          I don’t want to know your dreams

    2. ValdVin

      She doesn’t want people to notice her en masse, or even more than several at a time,even if it’s an unalloyed positive reaction, like a successful presentation at an office meeting.

      Okay, I’m projecting a bit here.

      But Amber is introverted and I understand.why she’s dreading this. Good interactions can make me nervous if I don’t get to pick them.

      1. Gojira

        No, this isn’t a case of introversion. This is phobia, a fear of things that can’t hurt you.

        1. TheHorseCouncil

          It can be both. I myself am an introvert. But when you have been made to feel shame for being lacking in areas that are considered societally “normal” you tend to start over examining how people view you. This is often made worse if you ever decide that should you act out of YOUR “normal” ,as those around you or even brief aquaintances know you, SUDDENLY that’s also to be made a huge deal out of. “Omg this person is so quiet, or never does x thing let’s aaallll make a huge stink out of how different and new or out of turn this person is behaving.” NOW that makes you even more self conscious. Makes you not want to see people. Add that to bad behaviors like yelling, fits of rage, and violence and now you feel like a pariah. And you don’t want to be the pariah.

        2. Gojira

          People call me introverted. I don’t care what they think. Probably because I’m introverted.

        3. Halpful

          You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

        4. Nightsbridge

          You have an incredible shallow imagination about ways that someone can be hurt.

    3. Sam

      Anxiety isn’t rational. It doesn’t matter if she is stronger than them if she doesn’t intend to hurt them and psychologically, she is more fragile than a lot of them. The worst thing isn’t what they will physically do, it is what they will say and the way they will look at her which will make her own mind overthink things and stress her out because she has anxiety which makes a lot of attention terrifying.

    4. Deanatay

      Trauma can do weird things. If an adult terrorizes and abuses a child, when the child grows up, and the adult grows old and feeble, the child can still be afraid of the adult. It’s a learned reaction.

    5. Marsh Maryrose

      The thing that Amber is really, deeply, truly afraid of, more than anything else, is that she will become the violent, abusive asshole that her father is. She has spent a third of her life repressing what she fears is the violent, abusive person within her.

      …And then old Rapeyface corners her into a situation where violence is not only necessary for self-preservation, but righteously justified.

      Ryan deserved whatever happened to him, and let’s hope he doesn’t manage to screw up Amber’s life any further via the legal system.

      But he’s already hurt her badly by forcing her into a situation where she had unleash her demons. Deity knows how far back he’s pushed her recovery.

  31. Josh Spicer

    I imagine a Minnesotan accent for Stacy and it makes me feel happy.

  32. Fart Captor

    Emergency mom hugs!

  33. Trolldrool

    Shut down the stairs? Are they implying there was enough blood outside the door that it took a whole day to clean it all off?

    1. Michael Steamweed

      At the very least, it was a crime scene. The police probably needed it roped off so they could get their investigation done. (Whole lotta blood spatters?)

    2. Lingo

      Nah, just Police Tape surrounding a Crime Scene. They usually leave that up for quite a while.

      1. Trolldrool

        Oh, thank you. I probably shouldn’t be reading this at 6:30am. My brain seems to automatically assume the worst.

    3. Vulcanodon

      I imagine the use of bleach and a pressure washer.

  34. Kugai

    SHE RETURNS!!!!!!!!!

    And about bloody time too!

    I have a feeling that Amber is going to be pleasantly surprised by her greeting

    Well, maybe not from Mary who, in all likelihood,be her usual First Class bongo Mode about it..

    1. Dusk Rain

      I’m not sure if “about bloody time” was a pun but if so my hat’s off to you.

    2. Lingo

      In fact that’s probably why Mary’s so happy: she’s looking forward to lecturing Amber. She’s got someone new to feel superior to.

  35. Rukduk

    …You know, I kinda want Amber to have found a way to bind trees to her will and fuse with them now. I’m not sure why.

    1. Rectilinear Propagation

      …I think I’m missing a key reference.

      1. Rukduk

        Honestly? I think I am too. But someone joked about the tree Amber’s hiding behind being a new character, and now I’m picturing Amber as human-sized Ent.

        1. Rectilinear Propagation

          Ah, I thought maybe you were comparing her to some other character with tree powers, possibly a super hero character I hadn’t heard of before.

        2. Aphrodite

          Due to trauma Amber becomes Poison Ivy.

        3. tyersome

          I though she was played by Ulmus thurman?

        4. Delicious Taffy

          It was one time, come on.

    2. Pablo360

      How can she fuse with trees? They can’t dance!

      1. Dusk Rain

        They can now!

    3. Amazi-Stool

      Ambertar – The Last Treebinder!

  36. boop

    i’m just really glad this is tagged Amber
    i’d hate for Amazi-Girl to use things as an excuse to keep Amber out of the drivers’ seat indefinitely

    1. RacingTurtle

      This is an excellent point

    2. Dusk Rain

      Ooh that’s right, it will be interesting to see how Amazi-girl reacts to this too, and how the alter situation develops further. *wishes I could hug both of them*

  37. pjeseb

    Think of it this way, Amber: it’s harder to think of someone as the Crazy Stabby Girl when you see her holding her mom’s hand.

    1. Pablo360

      Assuming it’s attached.

      1. Cephalo the Pod

        Attached to what?

        1. Pablo360

          The new and improved Parentron 2000

  38. Optimal Optimus

    Look, Amber is a basket-case. She needs professional help. But, isn’t she also a hero?

  39. Roger Sterling

    Hey it’s Amber’s mom.

    Good on you, being a parent again. Don’t get sidetracked this time and try not to fuck any dads on your way through the parking lot.

    1. Adam Black

      Or she hits on Joe. They look alike.

    2. Delicious Taffy

      Don’t shame Stacy for that. She can fuck all the dads she likes, on her way back.

      Even Joe’s.

      1. Roger Sterling

        Normally, I’d agree. Except that because she was busy with Joe’s dad, Blaine got to Amber’s floor. And there’s no sign Stacy ever owned that.

        1. Fart Captor

          She shouldn’t. The only thing she’s guilty of is being a little rude by not letting her daughter know she would be running a little late. She is a single adult woman who is allowed to have sex if she wants to.

          She is not responsible for the actions of her abusive ex husband, and had no reason to assume he would show up, in violation of a restraining order. That crap is entirely on him.

        2. BBCC

          She did actually text Amber saying she’d be a little late and would get to see her later that afternoon.

  40. John

    Hm, so Amber is about to walk into the lobby where Joe’s free-lady-doughnuts booth is operating.

    Kind of hoping she gets a standing ovation from the ladies present.

    1. Bagge

      Hope so too. And a free doughnut.

    2. OnyxIdol

      I had the same idea. Not an unlikely outcome.

    3. Needfuldoer

      I like to think Stacy is trying to calm Amber down while they walk past the restocked donut desk, while Joe and Danny are trying to wrestle a full box away from Beef, who already has three donuts in his mouth.

  41. Keulan

    I’m kinda surprised Amber isn’t in jail for stabbing the shit out of Ryan.

    1. Tacos

      Why would she? It’s in self-defense and Ryan most likely isn’t dead.

    2. Sam

      Self-defense doesn’t get you sent to jail particularly when there is a witness to say so and Ryan was ‘caught’ so he isn’t dead.

  42. Bagge

    GIVE AMBER ALL THE HUGS, NOW!!!

    1. Leorale

      She probably doesn’t want hugs right now but I’m sure she’d like a nice note that people still like her! or maybe we could give her a free donut, I hear those are quite popular.

  43. Tacos

    So I see Amber didn’t go to jail. Makes sense since she’s not only a white girl but I assume the campus cameras recorded the whole thing which would corroborate Amber’s claim of self-defense.

  44. Adam Black

    But everyone will know I want twinkee. They will see me and KNOW

    1. McBogue

      I was wondering if anyone else would remember that.

      http://www.dumbingofage.com/2013/comic/book-4/01-the-only-dope-for-me-is-you/twinkies/

      Of course, the fact that she’s repeating that behavior now is probably not a good sign. 🙁

  45. @zombieundergrnd

    I’m just wondering if being crazy stabby girl moved her up or down on Joe’s list.
    That would say a lot about his own kinks.

  46. Rectilinear Propagation

    Is it not well known at this point that Ryan is an attempted murderer? I know loads of people were all “we don’t know if the accusation is true” about the attempted rape, but I’d think the guy getting arrested for coming at them with a knife would have gotten around.

    Just wondering if people really are going to blame her for stabbing someone who was going to stab her. I’m sure a few will, because there’s always a few, and of course there’ll be stares because that’s how people are, but is she really going to get people acting like they’re scared of her?

    1. Gespenst

      i mean, social anxiety’s a thing lmao

      1. Rectilinear Propagation

        I wasn’t questioning Amber’s reaction to being back, I was wondering how right she’s going to end up being about how she gets treated.

        1. Fart Captor

          I imagine it will depend.

          That dude in the hoody and other dickbags will probably see her as the “crazy stabby girl”, but I doubt many the people on her floor will react that way.

        2. Deanatay

          Amber timidly pushes open the door to the dorm, pokes her head in. Ruth is standing in the middle of the lobby, arms crossed, glaring at her. Amber’s eyes go wide in panic, and she almost retreats, but Stacy’s hand on her back gently pushes her forward into the lobby.

          “..Uh, um… I… um…”

          Ruth, still glaring, steps forward, uncrosses her arms, and… begins to clap.

          After a few seconds, all the students assembled behind Ruth join in the applause. Ruth leans over to a stupefied Amber and whispers,

          “Welcome home… Crazy Stabby Girl.” And winks.

          Ruth straightens up and turns to the other students. “Eh, I woulda torn his femurs out, but her way works, too.”

    2. Adam Black

      You can be Both. Respect Amber as the hero, and be afraid of her because she’s Stabby Lady.

      I had a gender flipped situation happen to me, and I was the only person who knew the “Aggressor ” was an out of control attached victim. And I admired the fuck out out him because I was a prior. ( But he was also a Boxer who turned the tables and got super Stabby and part of me was terrified about what he might do if pushed next time . An then his father showed up with a gun… It got out of control in public in a supermarket , really fast ….) I mean I offered personal friendship and support to him and told him I knew he was in the right. ( But the part of the back of my brain was screaming “psycho”. And the rest of it felt vengeance intoxication. ) . Im not sure why his lawyer never asked for my testimony. It would be like not having Joyce or Dorothy make a statement.

  47. showler

    David hiding a new look for Amber?

    Wait, we’ve seen her in preview panels, haven’t we?

    1. Lingo

      Just one … from the back.

    2. Solenoid

      One, with her back turned to us.

    3. Angel

      I mean, she was in a knife fight. Wouldn’t be surprised if she caught some stabs/scrapes/bruises to the face.

  48. figureaddict

    Withough reading all the comments, I’m guessing flashback?

    1. UniqueSnowflake2

      Flashbacks are blue.

      1. figureaddict

        Right you are, and I glossed over the mention of the stairs. Thought they might be flashing back to after when she stabbed Sal.

        1. Solenoid

          Flashbacks are also red! Blue flashbacks are preferable though.

        2. Dusk Rain

          Yeah the red ones are scary. Primarily for the flashbacker.

  49. Adam Black

    Amber, you were always the crazy stabbing lady.
    But now you get to be the hero, too

  50. Delicious Taffy

    It’s okay, everyone. Amber’s a tree, now, is all.

  51. Lingo

    OK, there’s Amber finally. Now where the hell is Ethan?

    1. Fart Captor

      That’s a good question

    2. Delicious Taffy

      What’s with the sudden surge of Ethan-based concern, lately? Did I miss a strip showing him in some sort of danger? Last I remember, he was crying tender tears of sorrow for his court-mandated shagging of Mike (okay maybe that’s an exaggeration, but).

      1. Lingo

        Well Joyce vaguely asked about Ethan. And in this particular storyline I would expect Ethan to be with Amber trying to support her. (Though admittedly not right this second, necessarily.)

    3. ValdVin

      Yes.there is he?

      I wish Ethan or someone as close, as trusted, were here for Amber. Rather than make an entrance to.the whole place, go somewhere else (with Stacy of course) and try to make it less overwhelming, less all-at-once.

      And it hasn’t been covered, but Stacy must like Ethan, right? (If Amber’s only family member on the scene didn’t approve, I think we’d have it touched on in Amber/Ethan conversation.)

    4. showler

      He needed to find a larger tree to hide behind. For support.

  52. Véronique Bellamy

    YAY! Amber is alive and not in Prisneyland!

    1. Lingo

      Prisneyland is the best Disneyland.

  53. Swoop

    How far in advance Does Willis write ? I’m really interested in seeing if anything changes in the way he writes parents and parental dynamics . Now with the twins he clearly loves more than all of the Transformers franchise. This is not a dig at him now, I’m just excited to see how his personal experiences will affect his art.

    1. Emperor Norton II

      He usually has a buffer of roughly three months, sometimes a bit more.

      1. BBCC

        Between all the ads, you can find his buffer watch, which will tell you how far ahead he’s written.

        1. Swoop

          Well thank you too friend!

      2. Swoop

        Thanks for the info friend!

      3. Kamino Neko

        It dropped as low as 2 shortly after the sprogs were born.

  54. MechaBill

    *Amber walks into the hall*
    *People stop and turn*
    *Silence decends*

    *Slow Clap*

    1. Cybersnark

      *Joyce hug*

  55. OnyxIdol

    So my guess is she will be lauded as a hero. Which could go two ways:
    1. It boosts her self esteem
    2. I does the opposite because she doesn’t believe the praise.

    1. Zaxares

      It will probably go both ways. Publically, she’ll be applauded and commended for saving her friend and protecting herself from a “knife-wielding mugger/rapist”. But at the same time, Amber is very perceptive and she’ll probably also notice that people are now hesitant to be alone with her, and will probably keep their distance. (It’s unfair, but understandable. Even if what she did was justified defense, most people would still be uncomfortable to be in a room with someone they know stabbed the sh*t out of someone else.)

      So the contradictory reactions might end up making her psychological state even worse. :/

    2. BenRG

      It will probably be more complex than that. Those who know her the least will praise her as a heroine; those who were closer to her will be shaken (especially Dorothy). Amber did lose it at that moment and she knows it. The key will be whether her friends and true family can help her confront those demons and gain more control over it. The first step would be to persuade Amazi-Girl take a more hands-on approach whenever Amber has a crisis, either emotional or in facing down trouble.

  56. zoelogical

    that amber’s mom still treats her like she’s four….is probably part of the problem……

    anyways i’m still getting all the Chara feels from this and i am super misty-eyed. damn u stabby children and your conflicted feels and moral ambiguity. wow!!!!!!!!

    …im even getting Chara and Toriel feels from this, w o w.

    1. zoelogical

      this was not an invitation for Undertale discourse. please do not take this as an invitation for Undertale discourse. but as always Undertale discussion is encouraged and welcomed

      1. Rectilinear Propagation

        It only just recently occurred to me that if “Megalovania” is Chara’s/your theme in the No Mercy run then “Hopes & Dreams” is probably supposed to be Chara’s/your theme in the Pacifist run.

        I mean, even if that’s wrong I’m mad at myself for only recently having that thought given that Asriel has a song called “His Theme” 2 tracks later at the end of the fight.

        1. zoelogical

          idk like. Megalovania feels almost too fun to be Chara’s theme at that point!! it is so fun it is almost mocking you with how hard you are failing. and, i mean, the point is that sans is trying to force you to give up. so. liiike. idk. and also it’s very…sans to have a “song that might play when you fight sans”, and then for him to steal a song from elsewhere for his own boss fight. i d k.

          i kind of feel like hopes&dreams is more of a Frisk theme, because the pacifist playthrough seems to be very much about Frisk learning to be their own person with their own…hopes and dreams, haha. and take ownership over their decisions. which is why you have to leave them be.

          but then again my interpretations tend to be very straightforward

          ….listening to them, tho, megalovania and hopes&dreams feel very similar?? same beat, same sort of bassline, i think? but very different thematically. you may be onto something there

        2. Rectilinear Propagation

          Yes, Frisk! I still find the Frisk, Chara, and you the player sort of being the same person but not thing confusing.

          But yes, it being specifically Frisk’s theme makes sense.

        3. zoelogical

          the way i understand it is that Frisk is the character, Chara is the ghostly narrator, and you are the driving force behind both. which is kind of like the trinity thing of God the son, God the Holy Spirit, and God the Father, o.O. come to think of it.

          buuut idk it could just be everyone’s theme. i mean, like, that’s the culmination of everyone’s hopes and dreams right there

        4. Cephalo the Pod

          I don’t know about it being too “fun”.
          The intensity of the track is, I find, very fitting for No Mercy. At the same time, though, I personally view the track as an embodiment of Sans’s aggression.

        5. Shiro

          For a long time, my ringtone was His Theme. I just really like the song. Then I went to visit a friend who also loves the game, and at one point my phone rang in the middle of a grocery shopping trip. They heard the opening notes, their eyes widened, and they went “You monster why would you”

          I was laughing so hard I had to tell my dad to hang on til I got ahold of myself.

        6. zoelogical

          it’s so beautiful

          for a long time “battle against a true hero” was my exercise music. then i stopped exercising, c’est la vie

        7. Shiro

          My new ringtone (new phone) is Spear of Justice, RichaadEB version. It was almost Battle Against a True Hero, though.

        8. zoelogical

          !!! nice

    2. Shiro

      Btw the collector’s edition box set of Undertale went up on Fangamer today, just in case either of y’all were waiting on that. I definitely was.

      1. zoelogical

        ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

        that’s wonderful to know and i will be enjoying vicariously through other people

        that friggin ad was amazing

    3. BenRG

      I’m forty-three years old; my mother still treats me as a child (and I can’t really resent her for it). This appears to be a universal truth of the relationship between generations.

      1. zoelogical

        idk it’s one of those things that’s sort of in flux like. you might not resent it, but someone else could, and both of you would be totally right in your reactions. because you have entirely different relationships with your parents!! and some parents don’t treat their children like children at all, even.

  57. Opus the Poet

    Is that a shopping cart in the background?

    1. zoelogical

      i think it might be a bench

    2. Rectilinear Propagation

      I think it’s supposed to be a bench.

    3. Lingo

      That was my first thought too, lol

  58. meerkat

    I can confirm that that is an actual thing parents feel

    1. Dan

      I’m only an uncle and I feel that.

      1. Delicious Taffy

        Hell, I keep forgetting my brother is only 4 years younger than me.

    2. Bagge

      Nah, not for me.

      Granted, my kid IS four years old and I keep thinking in terms of a toddler soooooo…

    3. hof1991

      My kids have kids and I feel like that.

  59. Joslyn

    I’m glad Amber has her mom to give her love and support.

  60. Tenzhi

    Amber’s Groot impression needs work.

    1. zoelogical

      needs more “groot”

    2. FacelessDeviant

      You sure that Stacy isn’t just taking her daughter to school. And that daughter happens to be a female ent from LoTR ?

      1. Dusk Rain

        Wait you’re saying IU is where the female Ents disappeared to? It all makes sense…

      2. Tacos

        So IU is where all the Entwives went. Somebody had better go tell Treebeard.

        1. FacelessDeviant

          He’s probably on his way. But you know ents and speed.

        2. Rukduk

          Now, if Quickbeam knew he’d already be only a couple of miles outside of Bloomington, but since he wasn’t in the movies I guess he was just too impatient for that.

        3. Rukduk

          He is gonna be pissed if he sees a picture of what the US looked like 400 years ago and what it looks like now.
          “Where did all of the trees go?”
          “We, uh, sorta, maybe, cut them down?”
          “WWWHHHAAAAATTTTTT?!?!?!? There is no curse foul enough in any language for what you have done!!”
          “Oh God they’re marching on us! Why are they so fast when they’re angry? Why?!?”

  61. CleverTrousers

    Sal’s totally the talking tree.

  62. Drakkin the Alien

    “Your honor, we shall see today how this uppstanding boy was dragged like a lamb to the slaughterhouse, after being assaulted in public, bullied online, and scarred for life ….. we shall see how this alleged rape victim never existed… and we shall see how this girls, one a known computer hacker, and the other known for her cold heart and manipulative social aggendas have colluded together to build up a false nutcase defense with the intent to… murder!!” I’m soooo disappointed that Ryan didn´t got an evil attorney… 🙂 Probably this means his family actually let him fall alone. He had it comming!

    1. Dusk Rain

      “He had it coming, he had it coming, he only had himself to blaaaame!”

      1. Rectilinear Propagation

        “And then he ran into my knife.

        He ran into my knife 10 times.”

        1. FacelessDeviant

          “…butt first”

  63. Halpful

    yay, we know where amber is! 🙂

    speaking of amber… I’m not sure if it’s a good or bad sign that parts of my brain are questioning the authority of the Communication Gatekeeper. I didn’t even know it was a thing a few days ago (although it seems obvious now). it keeps me from saying things I’d regret, but it also keeps me from saying things that would be really useful to say, and I’ve had some really frustrating “why can’t I just fucking ask for things” moments lately.

    deciding whether to let a voice have the keyboard when it might be Wrong On The Internet is one thing, but… some of the more bizarre mental blocks just… don’t even. I seem to be scared that if the wrong thing comes out first, nothing else will get listened to and that wrong first impression will doom everything? huh. that’s connected to my writer’s block. perfectionism. but it’s only half fear, the other half is something weirder. like certain forms of output are so Wrong they’re nauseating, and I can’t see any kind of logic behind it. it just feels intolerably twisted and awful and I’d rather chew my arm off, for no apparent reason. :/

    brains are fucking weird.

    1. Rectilinear Propagation

      I seem to be scared that if the wrong thing comes out first, nothing else will get listened to and that wrong first impression will doom everything?

      OMG, I KNOW THAT FEEL.

      I got that one due to the fact that it literally happened all the time as a kid.

    2. Dusk Rain

      *appropriate gesture of support*
      Not sure if this is at all the same but I get really bad anxiety about writing sometimes. (Not fun stuff like stories, but important stuff like cover letters…) Brain issues are frustrating.

    3. sultryglebe

      I used to sometimes get this feeling of nausea at odd moments. Reading Sartre’s La Nausee in a French class let me know that I wasn’t the only one, but it didn’t really help. Eventually I realized that I always thought that there was something wrong with me – objectionable, bad, disgusting – and that a lot of that came from my father’s problems with himself and how he interacted with our family, and it has stopped. I don’t know if that will help.

    4. zoelogical

      -paps-

      idk like half the struggle is just…getting real comfortable with screwing up

      1. Local vigilante

        Yup. I swear I am working on this while typing up comments here. As someone who has dealt with m.h issues the fact that amber is outside is big even if she is hiding behind a tree. Like still going to class would be good. If she can continue to walk on the commons that is still some place to build from up to going to class. But seriously she needs to go to class because without disability documentation a certain number of missed classes is an auto fail in United States universities. I assume she has disability documentation now or is filing it which will help. Professors are willing to waive the absence rule if you participate frequently and turn in good work.They are probably super lenient and her professors are likely trying to work with her because turning a person who fought a date rapist off would look hella bad. But at some point they will likely be less lenient unless Amber shows yeah she is doing the work or making progress towards it.

        Maybe Amber could do online courses if IU offers them or online integrated courses. Online courses do require intense discipline and quality is a crapshoot. It is not an ideal solution or a preferable one but it maintains a baseline enrollment status.

        Amber has a tendency to isolate herself before the attack which likely is intensified those instincts. I suspect she is definitely demonizing herself. Her mum is trying to be supportive but not encourage her tendency to isolate herself. That is a fine line to walk as a parent.

        Some universities are more lenient about the absence rule. And yeah the way universies deal with m.h issues is not ideal. I was on and over that absence line a few times where a decent relationship with the professor saved my grade.

        1. Halpful

          ” the fact that amber is outside is big even if she is hiding behind a tree”

          yup. yay amber 🙂
          (I went not just outside, but to the gym today! jerkbrain still wants me to hate myself for losing an hour and a half to the internet afterwards, even though this is the first day I didn’t need multiple of hours of internet *before* I could get myself to the gym)

          “a certain number of missed classes is an auto fail in United States universitiesa certain number of missed classes is an auto fail in United States universities”

          wow. wtf. that’s the sort of thing I expect from a place that’s more daycare than college. …oh, but those are called universities too in the US; hopefully it’s just those ones with such infantilizing policy.

    5. Halpful

      yay, replies 🙂 *hugs everyone who likes hugs*

  64. Dracke

    “My four year old psycopath”

  65. Reltzik

    In similar situations, other people might turn to hard drink. But Amber doesn’t drink her problems away, so she turns to sapsarilla.

  66. Leorale

    Stacy O’Mally: great mom, or greatest mom??

    (Yes I know she missed a lunch date to hook up with Joe’s dad. But remember her only other known partner is Blaine, whom she survived & escaped with her kid, so, she gets to have some positive sexytimes if she wants.)

  67. AgentKeen

    Yeah, based on the 4 year olds I’ve met, they seem like they’d be pretty stabby. They just never get given anything sharp enough to try.

  68. nlips

    So it’s known that Amber stabbed McStabby…

    But is it known that Amber is Amazi-girl?

    Did he reveal her secret?

    1. Tacos

      Even if he said it, who’d believe a rapist and attempted murderer?

    2. Lingo

      Definitely not. Walky casually suggested that Dorothy go interview Amazi-Girl at her usual time tonight, and Dorothy changed the subject.

  69. Danni

    stacy can get it

  70. Zatar

    Holy fuck she’s finally back.

  71. BenRG

    The thing that Willis does well with Amber and Stacy is the difficulty experienced by parents of young people with mental illness. Even though he sweetens it with humour, you can sometimes see the stress Stact goes through just trying to not allow Amber to simply shut down and hide away forever.

    It’s good too see that Amber is still mostly functional and hasn’t gone catatonic or worse. I’m thinking her next arc will be learning that she isn’t a monster and that, in many ways, her reaction to Ryan was natural, explicable and even somewhat excusable.

    1. Zatar

      I’m hoping that other people being cooler with her then expected will help her.

  72. Arianod

    Crazy Stabby Girl is finally back :’)

  73. FacelessDeviant

    “I’m sorry tree, I didn’t mean to bark at you. We can leave if you want to.”

  74. CJ

    Seems to me like Amber knows she went over the top while defending herself and Dotty and expects others to see that. Though they most likely see “there was this would be rapist at our doorstep and he got was was coming to him. Great job, thanks!”
    But I suppose that feels extra weird when you know you overreacted.

    1. Fart Captor

      She didn’t. It was extreme, but it was justified. He’s the one who threatened her, cornered her, and came at her with the knife. Amber just made sure he never got the chance to use it on her or Dorothy.

      Killing him and hacking him into little cubes might’ve been an overreaction. If He’s alive, he deserved what he got.

      Not that it will stop Amber from thinking she’s violent and dangerous anyway.

      1. Icalasari

        I mean, it was sort of over the top if he was hospitalized. But still justified – Of course somebody who is fearing for their life may go over the top in defending themselves

        1. Josh Spicer

          Of course he was hospitalized. Dude tried to stab someone so he retaliated by stabbing him back. That tends to put somebody in the hospital.

      2. CJ

        Actually, as we still don’t know what state the damn rapist is in, we do not know if she went over the top. But Dorothy’s face when seeing her deal with him registered so much shock it is likely that she went a bit far. And I do not blame her in the least if she did. Anyone coming after you with a knife has lost any reason to complain, even if he ends up dead.
        I was trying to point out that
        A) most girls in the dorm would happily have danced on the rapists grave, so they are unlikely to hassle Amber for putting a knife in him
        B) Amber seems to think she went over the top and this will make if feel extremely weird if someone praises her for it.

        1. Fart Captor

          Ah, okay. I was taking “over the top” to mean “past what was justified”, when it seems you actually meant “drastic”. I can definitely agree with that.

          Sorry about interpreting that so uncharitably. I’ve been letting myself jump too quickly to confrontation lately

        2. David M Willis

          pretty sure he’s in Indiana

          ….i’ll see myself out

        3. Alan Lafond

          Eviscerated. 😀

  75. Anowan

    Oh, I feel you Amber. It felt so liberating when I went to high school and was no more our middle school’s “girl who will automatically punch you if you call her a whore to her face, it’s hilarious, she has no anger management skill”. I don’t want to imagine what it would be like if I went back to punching people.

  76. acher4

    phew

    Amber is ok…

    ish.

  77. DJTsurugi

    Fluttershy?! ~<3

    1. BenRG

      With the same dark side too!

      1. Vulcanodon

        Yeah – you really don’t want to piss Fluttershy off!

  78. Tobias

    Glad to see Amber finally evolved. Does this mean she’s part grass-type now?

    1. Derek

      Grass/steel type or grass/fighting type probably.

      1. Cephalo the Pod

        Amber is now Grass/Steel.
        Amazi-Girl is now Grass/Fighting.

    2. DinaWho

      If she’s Grass/Fighting with Steelworker as her ability, she’ll essentially be all three. I mean, since she’ll get STAB on her steel moves too.

      (pun not originally intended)

  79. darkoneko

    In her brain too, apparently

  80. Joe Covenant

    YAY!

    (that is all)

  81. Zatar

    Amber’s Mom is a parent I like.

  82. Nenja

    Amber is back!

  83. Temperaryobsessor

    Grass/fighting most likely. I’m pretty sure most humans are some combination of psychic fighting and normal.

  84. maarvarq

    I’d like Stacy to hold my hand!

    1. BenRG

      I’m afraid that she’s known to be interested in Joe’s dad. Could Amber and Joe end up as siblings-in-law?

      1. Temperaryobsessor

        She’s shown interest in him as a one night stand, not as a long term partner.
        Just so long as Joe’s dad is up front about the type of relationship he wants, what he is willing to commit to, and its not one sided, and Amber’s mom goes into the relationship without the expectation to change him, and not thinking its not great but can I do any better it should be relatively fine.

        1. Puckish Rogue

          and they say romance is dead

  85. Delicious Taffy

    Just got around to checking out the Thirteenth Doctor’s first bit of footage. The reaction on YouTube seems extremely fair and measured, with surprisingly little reactionary self-crystallisation from sexist weirdos.

    1. Mr.Morningstar

      Wait what? I haven’t watched doctor who in ages the next Doctor is a woman? Thats awesome!

      1. UniqueSnowflake2

        Still not a ginger, though.

        1. CoMa

          They’re probably taking one step at a time.

  86. Tomas

    But Amber, it’s free donut day!

  87. Robert

    I’m almost wondering if this is a flashback. Like the first day of freshman orientation or something. I mean even the leaves are brown. Unless there is just a whole bunch of counseling that we were not let in on between Ryan’s supposed demise and Amber’s return

    1. Jdorr

      Defenintly not a flash back, she directly referenced the tuan incident

      1. Jdorr

        How did my phone correct Ryan to tuan?

        1. UniqueSnowflake2

          You can tuan piano, but you can’t tuan fish.

        2. Puckish Rogue

          Can Tina Turner tuan a tuna?

      2. Kamino Neko

        It’s also not covered in a blue or red filter, and brown leaves are way more in line with early October than late August/early September, so I’m not sure why that’s supposed to be in support of the idea it’s a flashback…

  88. Cephalo the Pod

    …Huh.
    Y’know, for whatever reason I figured Amber went into hiding or something. This is actually a lot better than I was expecting.

    But now I’m wondering what this will mean for Amazi-Girl. Has no one noticed the local vigilante’s abrupt absence over the last few days?

    Joyce’s question to Danny earlier “today” had me thinking that maybe Amazi-Girl had been unmasked. Not that other possibilities didn’t exist, it just got me to thinking.

  89. ExcretusMaximus

    Did I miss the comic where this happened? The last I saw was Dorothy making a scared face. Did it all happen off-camera, and now is being revealed in bits and pieces? I just want to be sure I didn’t miss anything.

    1. Leorale

      You didn’t miss a comic, it’s getting revealed over time.

      1. ExcretusMaximus

        Thanks.

  90. Ryek Hvek

    I would pay good money to have a very-young Julie Andrews sing “Stabby” to the tune of Show Me

    Here I must slink,
    cuz ev’ryone thinks,
    I b’long in the klink,
    “Stabby”

  91. Roborat

    As others have said, I don’t think Amber has anything to worry about. She will be applauded as a hero, she stopped a rapist, after all. She isn’t the crazy stabby girl, she is the brave heroine who protected her friend.

    1. Porto

      Except to everybody who doesn’t believe Amber/Dorothy. To them, she’s the crazy girl who stabbed an alleged rapist, because somehow I figure they’ll forget about the damned knife he brought in all their circle-jerking about feminism or whatever

      1. Lingo

        Yeah you can count on Mary to be a jerk about it I bet. That’s probably why she’s so happy: she’s looking forward to lecturing Amber.

        1. Puckish Rogue

          Might just be my age (40s) but I’ve learnt its not a good idea to lecture someone thats been known to stab/slash people

  92. Moose

    After reading just the first panel, I thought Amber had formed another new personality, maybe two. Didn’t occur to me that was her mom.

  93. Ryek Hvek

    Okay, I went to the tee-shirt store. Where is the CRAZY STABBY GIRL shirt?

  94. C.T Phipps

    I wonder if Amber will resent it if we bought her a hockey mask and machete.

    1. Ryek Hvek

      You can’t stab with a machete, so get her a Zorro sword.

      1. Puckish Rogue

        Yeah you can, you just got to have the right motivation 🙂

        http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IRUjxh6Of7o/VBND-efDo-I/AAAAAAAANr0/Rmyf3z0NtCo/s1600/F13-2009-richie.jpg

        1. Ryek Hvek

          I stand corrected 🙂

        2. Puckish Rogue

          Always wondered what Amber would look like in a hockey mask

  95. Ryek Hvek

    Stabby Girl theme music

    1. UniqueSnowflake2

      Stabby Girl, Stabby Girl,
      Why are creeps fighting you?
      Stabby Girl, Stabby Girl,
      It’s not your fault.

      Dad won’t even take you to the shrink;
      He can’t understand why you have this kink;
      Stabby Girl, Stabby Girl,
      It’s not your fault.

      1. Ryek Hvek

        Hey there, Stabby Girl,
        how come the roofie boy is stalking you.
        Can’t he see that you are gonna do
        a number on him.

  96. KingMonster

    Ashlyn the Neck Stabber sequel?

    1. KingMonster

      Or maybe it’s more of a spiritual successor?

  97. Orion Fury

    Heaven or Hell – New Challenger: Maple Oak! Accept Fight or Flight?

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