The funny thing is, you don’t even realize, the things Mike has done to make you pay for what you’ve done, were done by Mike. You probably still think all the miseries and upsets you’ve suffered through were caused by bad luck or misfortune, not even realizing the truth. That’s how good Mike is. You poor, suffering fool.
I’m thinking Mike IS the Deadpool for this world, either without the other superpowers to enhance his 4th wall breaking or without the insanity to act on it all the time…
If I remember correctly wasn’t Mike the chessmaster of the whiteboard ding dong bandit arc? Switching Joyce’s marker with a sharpie. I could be remembering wrong.
Yep. Apparently Joe has passed beyond her threshold, though. Not that I fault her for that – experiences with real-life Joe types make me like him the least of any character outside the obvious villains (ie Ryan, Blaine, and Mary).
I can’t completely dislike Joe because while he is a horndog, he’s also, for the most part, respectful (he immediately backed off Sarah when she made it clear his advances weren’t welcome), and he’s shown surprising lack of alpha-jock behaviour (he didn’t go homophobic at Danny’s roundabout gay-question, he was more frustrated that Dan was being roundabout AGAIN).
Joe’s a pretty realistic character, actually. He’s pretty much the expected stereotype of sexually charged college male, but at least he hasn’t been extremely jerklike outside of Joyce.
I don’t see him trying to bribe Joyce to swear as particularly reprehensible.
As for the scissoring comment, if I recall correctly it was just after a brief conversation with Danny that got a little too close to his vulnerabilities- I saw him suddenly turning it up the jerk level as his coping mechanism.
I really feel for Joe. He clearly had some issues buried VERY deep. Odds of us seeing him able to dig them up and put them to rest are not high.
Maybe Mike is secretly like Abed (from Community)… He thinks / knows he’s just a character in a fictional work. And all the evil things he does is because he thinks / has decided that he is the antagonist, here to hurt people for the purpose of moving the plot forward? *cue dramatic crowd gasps*
I can’t decide if my favorite thing about that last panel in the WAH comic is Sarah looking ecstatic, Mary looking hateful, even with a huge grin on her face, or Billie looking uneasy about the whole thing.
Mary; “Yes, now I can finally bring about divine vengeance to all these heathen fools without the Ruthless one getting in my way. Now, all I need is a minion, & information I can use as ammo…”
Well, yeah, it’s obv WAH. I was just being silly. I really like the WAH strip and was hoping to bring some levity to the thread instead of thinking about what happened last time Joyce went to a party (as if I could forget).
Notice the word “belives” that is the key word here, joe already have manage strap himself with a springloaded rocket with acceleration going from 0 to over 9000 in less then 9.6 seconds going straight past being a kinda jerk station and all the way to the end station in “big ass jerkhole” town so hard for here to add him back on the “i belive” list >_<
Well said. I feel like Joe became the mayor of Jerkville with the “scissoring” comment at an inappropriate time. Joe seems a lot jerkier in the Dumbiverse than in the Walkyverse. I want Joe to do something to redeem himself, like, I dunno, team up with Amazi-Girl and punch Becky’s dad in the face.
The more realistic the comic gets, the less I like Mike, and the more I hope he ends up getting what he deserves.*
*Which would be one of two things: 1. He realizes what a gigantic ass he is, and eventually grows up and gets better. 2. He lives a miserable and lonely life after alienating others. 3. He ends up on the receiving end from an even worse ass and becomes very hypocritical.
The thing about this version of Mike, though, is that he tends to be a dick in very specific ways that help others grow – see getting Walky the pajama pants.
I don’t think that this Mike uses his assholery exclusively to help people grow, as he did take Joyce’s phone and say “hail satan” to her mother. Even in shortpacked he was a jerk to do what is best for someone during the whole proposal incident. Any version of Mike can be a positive force, which is interesting in DoA in particular as we haven’t gotten a reason for why he would use his powers of assholery for good.
He answered Joyces phone because she was trying to hide from Mom Brown. So, he did her a favor, but he did it in his own inimitable way, ie, with assholery. Was he trying to prod Joyce into some sort of realization or just messing with her &/or her mother (yada yada 5¢)? I dont know, really, but theres something … uh, something, about saying Hail Satan to Joyces mom when Joyce is doing exactly that according to the fundie beliefs that are now giving her cognitive dissonance. Mikes poked at Joyces beliefs, the ones no one in the audience likes, at least 3 times. Walking to gender studies joyce thought he agreed with her then said she cant tell whether or not hes on her side because she cant quite get that hes being sarcastic when he seems to sgree with her.
Nope, it doesnt matter to their experience of him . Which i think is sort of the inverse of what Jason told Amber about Mike in Shortpacked: if he does something you like its because he wants to, but it might not be for the reasons you want.
I dont know if it matters in the end if his actions do have good effects.
And I do think that theres been at least one case where MAYBE he meant well but the effects went negative, which was telling Ethan that it had been a “bonehead” move to come out to Amber RELATIVE to being “isolated” with “some blond asshole” as his “only friend”. Which led to Ethan acting on Joyces come-on, which led to Mike going “WOW!”, which led to Ethan saying “Dont judge me.” Which led me tovthink that Mike maybe didnt expect or want Ethan to jump back in the Closet (not that he fooled many people). Plus he didnt even get the “unfulfilling [straight ] sex” that Mike said hed have been having if he had stayed in the C. Uh where is this going? Mike did not tell Ethan to go back in the closet, even though his words had that effect. Mike told Ethan that hed given up a sucky situation with Amber for an even suckier situation alone except for his friendship with Mike. On the face of it, a fair assessment. Did Mike INTEND to catalyse Ethan jumping back in the Closet? I dont know. what he should have done as Ethans nominal friend was to help him look for a non-sucky, less sucky, or positive alternative as a gay male at IU with a Queen Bongo Mama. But thats not Mikes way. As Mike himself told Ethan, his . Only friend (at the time) was “some blond asshole.” But even Willis has now said that Mike doesnt tell even him what his true motives are.
Not that im convinced that he is an asshole for good
I can’t really see how it helps Joyce grow by drawing penises on her white board. Or Joyce and Dorothy grow by interfering with their search for Walky. Or anyone grow by going to church and making rude comments about Joyce’s mother.
He didn’t draw the penises. Though he did swap her marker so that she ended up drawing a penis she couldn’t immediately erase, so yeah, he’s still responsible for that.
He did indeed draw penises on Joyce’s whiteboard. I can’t link to the comic right now because I’m on my phone but it was in Up All Night to Get Vengeance. Dina showed up to talk about evolution too. I don’t see what character building that did, but then again I always thought the benevolent Mike theory was kinda of bullshit. It’s so nice of him to constantly harass Walky and Dorothy isn’t it? Or to walk away from Walky when he’s freaking out about Billie?
I like Mike. I genuinely do. I think he’s very entertaining in every scene he appears and most of the time he opens his mouth, someone realizes something they either denied or didn’t think of themselves. I like him as a character and I honestly hope he never changes or goes away.
He is also a complete and utter asshole who always chooses the most ill-tempered meanspirited methods to make them come to these realizations. He encourages violence in others, enjoys aggravating others, and in general appears to be the sort of person who would give me a migraine if I spent any time with him in real life.
Again, I like this character. In fact he’s probably in my top five favorite DoA characters and I hope he never changes. But he’s still a dick.
As far as Joyce knows, it it is, but absent Word of God, I’m going to assume that in this ‘verse it’s actually still equivalent to telling him he’d have to get drunk before arriving.
Which is a Thing That Could Happen. If DoA Mike is a happy drunk, that “laughter” bit could be a reference to the fact that Joyce just unintentionally told him to tie one on and come to the party. Guess we’ll see.
Absolutely. There are plenty of people who never touch the stuff in before college, some who won’t try it till they’re 21, and few that are smart enough to avoid it forever. Be pretty funny if Mike is a happy drunk but unaware of it, and we get to see his (probably) horrified reaction to his discovery of the trait.
I feel like the key thing to consider here is Joyce’s specific interactions with each of them. To her, Joe is the sex-addicted asshole from her gender studies class, while Mike is just the guy she once hired to punch him.
Joyce and Mike have had their encounters in the past (the Satan-phone incident, a few whiteboard penises), but there hasn’t been the same sort of continual hostility as has existed between Joyce and Joe.
They have had more encounters, in which Mike asked Joyce about some of her core beliefs in ways that led her to think he was sincerely interested and perhaps even “on [her] side”. Or not. Where as he was baiting herb and being way sarcastic. I think.
Despite all the hating on Mike for that at the time, it does seem to have been quite effective at diverting Mrs. Brown from the question at hand (Becky’s whereabouts), without the fallout landing on Joyce. It sure didn’t earn Mike (if she can identify him) and Walky any Brownie points, but they don’t have to care.
Maybe they considered people by room after all. Walky is on the list, so Mike gets a very provisional if-he-can-behave. Danny isn’t on the list, so Joe gets nothing.
You keep saying that but I’m not seeing it. As I said yesterday, there’s nothing rude about telling someone who makes you feel not only uncomfortable but unsafe to stay away from you.
Well to have someone else track them down just to tell them they’re not invited to a party is pretty rude. But since I don’t think Joe actually cares, and Joyce knows that Joe probably doesn’t care, it seems to be a joke more than anything else.
In any case, Joe can pretty rude to Joyce too. Like the whole offering money to swear situation. It’s kind of like Joyce and Walky’s relationship, except that Joyce doesn’t feel safe around Joe because of his attitude towards sex.
Apparently despite the shitty things Mike has done to her, she still sees him as the man who “protected her honor” (i.e. commit disproportionate violence against a horndog trying to overplay the charm card). That’s… both adorable and incredibly sad at the same time.
Its realistic though, violence is ok but consensual hank-panky? Hell no, growing I was allowed to watch Hammer Horror movies on sunday night on TV and it was all good but when a heavily editied version of Porkys came on (I was 15) it was noooooooooo you shall not watch!
Watching someone get killed is ok but an erect nipple = evil!!!!!
Common experience, especially in US culture. Makes zero sense, but fighting that mindworm off is nearly impossible. Generation after generation has repeated that behavior with their own kids despite railing against it in their youth.
I think it actually makes some sense when you consider that most parents have never murdered anybody, but had sex at least once. Having actually experienced something is an important factor in how people treat it.
Well this is Mike so since he’s whatever you don’t want him to be, telling him he’s not invited probably would have the opposite effect on him so you might as well at least invite him.
The worst of mikes punching of joe was “because” joe stared at Conquests chest. I think that doesnt count as protecting Joyce. I think that was mike doing something he enjoyed. Unless it fell under some clause in his contract which i missed.
I figure Joyce is capable of remembering series of events, instead of single moments like her parents, and takes the whole “forgiveness” thing seriously. This is why it’s “if you can be nice” instead of “if you won’t be mean” – she’s (at least vaguely) aware of how he operates, and would prefer that he do it in a positive manner rather than in a… Mike manner.
Joyce also punched joe in the face AND she punched ryan in the face with a glass. If a face needs punching joyce has shown herself ready to do it herself.
Joyce has consistently referred to Mike as a jerk though. And a couple of days ago she did kick him in the shins as a way of not playing into one of his mind games.
Huh, it seems like Joyce do like Mike more than I thought, at least enoug to regard him a bit like a friend. I have no idea why but I’m glad to see he’s not only a bully to her
I think this is brilliant XD He cannot say he wasn’t invited but considering he is not going to act nice he is not going, or if he is Joyce still wins XD
…Joyce, I can’t decide whether it was brilliant that you invited him under the condition of being nice (thus not inviting him) or idiotic in that you knowingly invited Mike to a social event in which you want things to be non-hostile and fun.
It was dumb seeing as he is completely incapable of being nice in his right mind due to being a malignant narcissist and he’s going to show up regardless if it suits him. The smart thing to do would be to just not tell him about the party because chances are he’d never have even learned of it due to the social isolation that comes from being a raging jackhole.
Shortpacked Mike was both the meanest assholev and the sweetest person in that Universe, the latter WHEN HE WAS DRUNK. We dont know if the same is true in this Universe. We also dont know if its not true. Heck, Mike might not even know, if he hasnt gotten drunk before. The Party might be a chance to find out. Joyce wont be serving booze, but that doesnt mean that everyone will be sober all night.
I’ve been wondering when/if we might find out in this continuity about Mike being a nice drunk. It’s freshman year — Mike’s gotta get drunk sooner or later!
I’m kind of amazed how so many people took yesterday’s silly joke as just way too far, but Mike constantly acting like an actual cartoon character is perfectly valid.
For some reason, today’s strip has made me realize what I REALLY wanna see happen in this continuity: Mike as Amazigirl’s ARCHENEMY. Mike becomes a “super villain” to troll Amber/Amazigirl. They fight and feud. Then, as per tradition, they engage in the MOST EPIC OF HATE-FUCKS!
Nah, Mike’s going one better than that. He’s creating other supervillains for Amazi-Girl to face off against. He’s already responsible for the Whiteboard Dingdong Bandit.
Mike is like Lex Luthor. (stays in the shadows and creates other villains)
Joyce/Whiteboard dingdong bandit is Metallo (Created by Mike)
Amber/Amazi-Girl is superman (Obvious)
Danny is Lois Lane. (Dating the superhero, both hav been kidnapped)
Dorothy is Jimmy Olson. (Reporter and friend)
Daisy is Perry White. (Chief of a newspaper)
Lois was a woman, and Jimmy (Olsen goddamit) and Perry were both guys. You’re already gender swapping all over, why worry?
Having said that, Metallo wasn’t a Lex invention originally, and Mike isn’t mad science-y enough to fit the mold. I’d recast as follows:
Mike is Mister Mxyzptlk (Randomly appearing tormenter with a mean sense of humor)
Joyce/Whiteboard Dingdong Bandit is closer to Bizarro (because she’s a warped version of herself as WDB) but if you extend the metaphor she’s closer to being Two-Face (split personality and all)
Did I mention I’ve worked in three different comic shops over the years? 🙂
Then that means he’s already her nemesis, only acting as the mastermind behind the enemies she faces. Wait, does that make him the The Chessmaster or Manipulative Bastard? Probably the Bastard…
Here’s something else to consider in the “Mike invited/Joe Rejected” arguments…
During the Joyce/Joe date, Joyce talked about god is helping her overcome the sins of pride and lust. After joyce said Lust, Mike was going to punch her; it was Joe that stopped him. (Well, Mike “suggested” he was going to punch her.
So, the guy who attempted to punch Joyce gets invited, the guy that stopped him did not.
(Ok, I’m probably reading too much into one panel of a comic.)
There’s no rhyme or reason to Mike, even less so than in the Walkyverse. He’s just there to be an asshole. This is why people eat lunch, confide their problems, and associate with him; Nothing he does has any actual consequence. He’s just there for a joke.
Interesting. Few people comparing Mike to Deadpool here. I can see it. Maybe Collage life is what breaks his mind, makes him change his name, turns him into an insane soldier for hire…
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Mike: wait for it…
I wonder if Mike and Amber will hook up. Freeing Danny and Ethan.
…nooooo. No. Nope.
I wouldn’t count on it. Mike works best as a minor character who gets dropped in every now and then and he’s likely going to stay that way this time.
Willis has done that before, I doubt it’ll come to pass here, as well.
That moment when you finally realise this strip is a 4th wall break
Great… now I’m imagining a laugh track added to DoA.
Another interpretation would be Mike saying “God’s laughing”. Would fit well.
Nope.
I bet dogs can though…
I can hear it from here.
Mike can hear through the fourth wall.
Yeah, I’m kinda surprised by how fourth wall that went. Weird.
The Mikes have never been completely bound by Willis’ rules.
Mike is bound by one rule: he does what pisses you off.
Also, your mom. For a nickle.
That’s the other thing he does.
Mike is pretty much just a singularity devoted to being a jerk to all people in all parts of the multiverse.
I would just love to see Mike go to this party and end up hooking up with some girl who is just as big of a jerkass as he is.
And then it’s love at first snark for them both. 😛
You mean Carla?
Mikarla is my new ship. It’s habbening.
But that pretty much conforms to rule one.
The walls are thin
Well it’s a fairly fragile wall… I’m pretty sure it’s not up to code.
I’m scared to think Mike knows about us. I hope I’ve never done anything to upset him.
I would say you don’t need to worry since you can go back and fix whatever you did that upset him, but I’m kinda scared he’s still somehow know.
Good thing I’m not noticable then.
Dude, you’re Tacos! Nearly everyone loves tacos!
Why do you think I wear this paper bag over my head? So people don’t notice me.
That…actually makes you more noticeable…
Um…has mike ever really required provocation to injure a person?
Physically? He has to be hired for the job. Mentally? None at all.
The funny thing is, you don’t even realize, the things Mike has done to make you pay for what you’ve done, were done by Mike. You probably still think all the miseries and upsets you’ve suffered through were caused by bad luck or misfortune, not even realizing the truth. That’s how good Mike is. You poor, suffering fool.
Fortunately for you, Mike comes in a pre-angered state, such that noticing your existence is enough to warrant his wrath.
The one rule of mike is that he does the opposite of what you want. By hoping not to anger him you have garunteed that you will and have done so.
Why are you worried about upsetting him? He’ll be just as big a jerk to you if you are nice.
Mike IS the fourth wall
Actually I think he just holds it up, sorta like the Atlas of fourth walls.
Mike and Deadpool being related would not surprise me in the slightest.
I’m thinking Mike IS the Deadpool for this world, either without the other superpowers to enhance his 4th wall breaking or without the insanity to act on it all the time…
Honestly unless I am secretly a comic book character that’s not fourth wall. I have said the exact same thing.
Jack, uh, there’s something… something we’ve been meaning to tell you…
Shhh, he’s not supposed to know until three chapters from now!
Mike. Is. Deadpool…
I am Mike, I am.
I am, I said
I think Mike might really be Deadpool.
Technically Bea Arthur WAS a mom…
I’d buy THAT comic in a heart beat.
For a nickel.
With my penis.
–Wait.
WHAT DID YOU SAY
Finally Mike and Becky one on one
I’m surprised Joyce even considered Mike after what he pulled with her phone.
True, but he did punch Joe.
Agreed. Especially with Joe already exiled.
Joe is exiled because he’s a highly sexual person and she had deep issues about that even before she was nearly raped.
Not to mention Mike drawing a penis on her white board.
If I remember correctly wasn’t Mike the chessmaster of the whiteboard ding dong bandit arc? Switching Joyce’s marker with a sharpie. I could be remembering wrong.
Yes, he was, and Amb- er, AmaziGirl told her.
Hence the “if you can be nice” clause. How very Christian of Joyce, not giving up on Mike. :’)
Yep. Apparently Joe has passed beyond her threshold, though. Not that I fault her for that – experiences with real-life Joe types make me like him the least of any character outside the obvious villains (ie Ryan, Blaine, and Mary).
I can’t completely dislike Joe because while he is a horndog, he’s also, for the most part, respectful (he immediately backed off Sarah when she made it clear his advances weren’t welcome), and he’s shown surprising lack of alpha-jock behaviour (he didn’t go homophobic at Danny’s roundabout gay-question, he was more frustrated that Dan was being roundabout AGAIN).
Joe’s a pretty realistic character, actually. He’s pretty much the expected stereotype of sexually charged college male, but at least he hasn’t been extremely jerklike outside of Joyce.
Joe has been very reasonable to Joyce, considering she hired someone to beat him for thoughtcrime.
I was going to give him a pass, but then I remembered he was trying to bribe Joyce to curse and the whole Scissoring Gender Lesson.
I don’t see him trying to bribe Joyce to swear as particularly reprehensible.
As for the scissoring comment, if I recall correctly it was just after a brief conversation with Danny that got a little too close to his vulnerabilities- I saw him suddenly turning it up the jerk level as his coping mechanism.
I really feel for Joe. He clearly had some issues buried VERY deep. Odds of us seeing him able to dig them up and put them to rest are not high.
He didnt make it all the way even in Shortpacked.
Can Mike hear me laughing? Is Mike becoming Deadpool? Because I am so up for that.
It’s that darn studio audience that he’s hearing.
Pre-recorded, live.. or somehow, did Mike get both?
i feel like, if any character were to carry around a device that played “studio audience laughter” at the press of the button, it would be mike.
WE are the studio audience.
Maybe Mike is secretly like Abed (from Community)… He thinks / knows he’s just a character in a fictional work. And all the evil things he does is because he thinks / has decided that he is the antagonist, here to hurt people for the purpose of moving the plot forward? *cue dramatic crowd gasps*
Will a Drama Button do?
Why, yes, yes it will. 🙂
Joyce is giving Mike a lot of credit.
Wait, what if Willis ships Mike and Joyce for the end game of this comic? I think space time may actually collapse.
So is this party going to be a disaster?
It’s Saturday on DoA, you tell me. Hint, when was the last party that went well in this strip?
This one!
http://woodyafterhours.com/comic/girls-just-wanna-have-fun/
I can’t decide if my favorite thing about that last panel in the WAH comic is Sarah looking ecstatic, Mary looking hateful, even with a huge grin on her face, or Billie looking uneasy about the whole thing.
Mary; “Yes, now I can finally bring about divine vengeance to all these heathen fools without the Ruthless one getting in my way. Now, all I need is a minion, & information I can use as ammo…”
Check the URL, that’s WAH not DoA… Close though.
Well, yeah, it’s obv WAH. I was just being silly. I really like the WAH strip and was hoping to bring some levity to the thread instead of thinking about what happened last time Joyce went to a party (as if I could forget).
I am hearing the laughter.
Awww, Joyce believes the best in everyone.
Not including Joe.
Notice the word “belives” that is the key word here, joe already have manage strap himself with a springloaded rocket with acceleration going from 0 to over 9000 in less then 9.6 seconds going straight past being a kinda jerk station and all the way to the end station in “big ass jerkhole” town so hard for here to add him back on the “i belive” list >_<
Well said. I feel like Joe became the mayor of Jerkville with the “scissoring” comment at an inappropriate time. Joe seems a lot jerkier in the Dumbiverse than in the Walkyverse. I want Joe to do something to redeem himself, like, I dunno, team up with Amazi-Girl and punch Becky’s dad in the face.
Fourth wall
YOU’RE BREAKING THE FOURTH WALL
Closet – DESTROYED
Friendship – DISINTEGRATED
Fourth Wall – DECAFFEINATED
Willis, for a ‘slice-of-life’, ‘coming of age’ story, you LIKE blowing stuff up!
If someone (gatecrashing Joe?) gets thrown out a window during the party we can add DEFENESTRATED to your list.
That last panel has the most sincerely concerned expression that Mike has ever had in this universe.
Which says a few things about Mike, I suppose.
Is God making a cameo finally????
God takes lessons from Stan Lee on how to make a Camio.
Sorry, I was reading Wills’ tweet feed… oh yeah, mike is Deadpool or something, 4th wall and all.
The more realistic the comic gets, the less I like Mike, and the more I hope he ends up getting what he deserves.*
*Which would be one of two things: 1. He realizes what a gigantic ass he is, and eventually grows up and gets better. 2. He lives a miserable and lonely life after alienating others. 3. He ends up on the receiving end from an even worse ass and becomes very hypocritical.
The thing about this version of Mike, though, is that he tends to be a dick in very specific ways that help others grow – see getting Walky the pajama pants.
I don’t think that this Mike uses his assholery exclusively to help people grow, as he did take Joyce’s phone and say “hail satan” to her mother. Even in shortpacked he was a jerk to do what is best for someone during the whole proposal incident. Any version of Mike can be a positive force, which is interesting in DoA in particular as we haven’t gotten a reason for why he would use his powers of assholery for good.
He answered Joyces phone because she was trying to hide from Mom Brown. So, he did her a favor, but he did it in his own inimitable way, ie, with assholery. Was he trying to prod Joyce into some sort of realization or just messing with her &/or her mother (yada yada 5¢)? I dont know, really, but theres something … uh, something, about saying Hail Satan to Joyces mom when Joyce is doing exactly that according to the fundie beliefs that are now giving her cognitive dissonance. Mikes poked at Joyces beliefs, the ones no one in the audience likes, at least 3 times. Walking to gender studies joyce thought he agreed with her then said she cant tell whether or not hes on her side because she cant quite get that hes being sarcastic when he seems to sgree with her.
I dont know whether or not Mike intends good when he does assholery. On the one hand, Willis hasnt given us much of a view into his inner life.
His motivation doesn’t really matter to the people he’s being assholes to, does it?
Nope, it doesnt matter to their experience of him . Which i think is sort of the inverse of what Jason told Amber about Mike in Shortpacked: if he does something you like its because he wants to, but it might not be for the reasons you want.
I dont know if it matters in the end if his actions do have good effects.
And I do think that theres been at least one case where MAYBE he meant well but the effects went negative, which was telling Ethan that it had been a “bonehead” move to come out to Amber RELATIVE to being “isolated” with “some blond asshole” as his “only friend”. Which led to Ethan acting on Joyces come-on, which led to Mike going “WOW!”, which led to Ethan saying “Dont judge me.” Which led me tovthink that Mike maybe didnt expect or want Ethan to jump back in the Closet (not that he fooled many people). Plus he didnt even get the “unfulfilling [straight ] sex” that Mike said hed have been having if he had stayed in the C. Uh where is this going? Mike did not tell Ethan to go back in the closet, even though his words had that effect. Mike told Ethan that hed given up a sucky situation with Amber for an even suckier situation alone except for his friendship with Mike. On the face of it, a fair assessment. Did Mike INTEND to catalyse Ethan jumping back in the Closet? I dont know. what he should have done as Ethans nominal friend was to help him look for a non-sucky, less sucky, or positive alternative as a gay male at IU with a Queen Bongo Mama. But thats not Mikes way. As Mike himself told Ethan, his . Only friend (at the time) was “some blond asshole.” But even Willis has now said that Mike doesnt tell even him what his true motives are.
Not that im convinced that he is an asshole for good
I can’t really see how it helps Joyce grow by drawing penises on her white board. Or Joyce and Dorothy grow by interfering with their search for Walky. Or anyone grow by going to church and making rude comments about Joyce’s mother.
He didn’t draw the penises. Though he did swap her marker so that she ended up drawing a penis she couldn’t immediately erase, so yeah, he’s still responsible for that.
He did indeed draw penises on Joyce’s whiteboard. I can’t link to the comic right now because I’m on my phone but it was in Up All Night to Get Vengeance. Dina showed up to talk about evolution too. I don’t see what character building that did, but then again I always thought the benevolent Mike theory was kinda of bullshit. It’s so nice of him to constantly harass Walky and Dorothy isn’t it? Or to walk away from Walky when he’s freaking out about Billie?
Here and here. I’m genuinely curious what the benevolent Mike interpretation is for that one.
He made Joyce a significantly better artist as you can see from the sequence she drew.
Forgot about that part! I stand corrected.
He made Joyce a significantly better artist as you can see from the sequence she drew.
dammit consider duplicate comment deleted.
I like Mike. I genuinely do. I think he’s very entertaining in every scene he appears and most of the time he opens his mouth, someone realizes something they either denied or didn’t think of themselves. I like him as a character and I honestly hope he never changes or goes away.
He is also a complete and utter asshole who always chooses the most ill-tempered meanspirited methods to make them come to these realizations. He encourages violence in others, enjoys aggravating others, and in general appears to be the sort of person who would give me a migraine if I spent any time with him in real life.
Again, I like this character. In fact he’s probably in my top five favorite DoA characters and I hope he never changes. But he’s still a dick.
the voices deserve their own tag
Such a mean ol’ man…
And seeing that got me thinking of “She In Through The Bathroom Window” and Sal.
But who “quit the Police Department” and got himself a steady job?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrAdX4O1m4M <- Made me listen to this again.
I’m torn about whether or not I believe him because I know that with Mike, the answer is always the opposite of what you want it to be.
Finally, the truth as to why Mike is such an asshole – He’s a rejected Seinfeld character who hears a studio audience laugh whenever he does anything.
That explains everything.
That’s a pretty awful condition to have ;_;²
Least he doesn’t think he’s in a Dan Schneider show.
Okay, I will admit that not inviting Joe and inviting MIKE is kind of shit.
Mike is just there to punch other guys when they do something “guy-ish”.
To be fair putting “if you can be nice” as a requirement is kind of the same as telling him he’s not invited.
It’s actually incredibly brilliant XD
I wonder if that was Sarah’s idea (same for Joe, really).
Does Sarah even know Mike? I can’t recall them every interacting in the comic.
As far as Joyce knows, it it is, but absent Word of God, I’m going to assume that in this ‘verse it’s actually still equivalent to telling him he’d have to get drunk before arriving.
Which is a Thing That Could Happen. If DoA Mike is a happy drunk, that “laughter” bit could be a reference to the fact that Joyce just unintentionally told him to tie one on and come to the party. Guess we’ll see.
Mike not even know that he’s a happy drunk in this universe. He’s 18 right? It wouldn’t be impossible for him to have never gotten drunk before.
Absolutely. There are plenty of people who never touch the stuff in before college, some who won’t try it till they’re 21, and few that are smart enough to avoid it forever. Be pretty funny if Mike is a happy drunk but unaware of it, and we get to see his (probably) horrified reaction to his discovery of the trait.
I feel like the key thing to consider here is Joyce’s specific interactions with each of them. To her, Joe is the sex-addicted asshole from her gender studies class, while Mike is just the guy she once hired to punch him.
Joyce and Mike have had their encounters in the past (the Satan-phone incident, a few whiteboard penises), but there hasn’t been the same sort of continual hostility as has existed between Joyce and Joe.
They have had more encounters, in which Mike asked Joyce about some of her core beliefs in ways that led her to think he was sincerely interested and perhaps even “on [her] side”. Or not. Where as he was baiting herb and being way sarcastic. I think.
Don’t forget… Mike got in the way (and Joyce kicked him in the shins) when her and Dorothy were trying to find Walky and Mike was in the way.
How can all three of you have forgotten “ALL HAIL SATAN”?
Despite all the hating on Mike for that at the time, it does seem to have been quite effective at diverting Mrs. Brown from the question at hand (Becky’s whereabouts), without the fallout landing on Joyce. It sure didn’t earn Mike (if she can identify him) and Walky any Brownie points, but they don’t have to care.
Maybe they considered people by room after all. Walky is on the list, so Mike gets a very provisional if-he-can-behave. Danny isn’t on the list, so Joe gets nothing.
Yeah, this party arc has not really cast Joyce in a good light at all.
You keep saying that but I’m not seeing it. As I said yesterday, there’s nothing rude about telling someone who makes you feel not only uncomfortable but unsafe to stay away from you.
Well to have someone else track them down just to tell them they’re not invited to a party is pretty rude. But since I don’t think Joe actually cares, and Joyce knows that Joe probably doesn’t care, it seems to be a joke more than anything else.
In any case, Joe can pretty rude to Joyce too. Like the whole offering money to swear situation. It’s kind of like Joyce and Walky’s relationship, except that Joyce doesn’t feel safe around Joe because of his attitude towards sex.
Mike thinks he’s a sitcom character? That explains a lot actually.
Hahahahahahahaha
But Mike really did get an invite, wow.
The voices in Mike’s Head mock you and everything you hold dear!
That would be us, though. WE are the voices in Mike’s head.
And we mock each other and all we hold dear all the time.
WE’RE the voices in Mike’s head? o_O
I thought it was that Mike is the voice in OUR heads? Or maybe we’re each in each others’ heads, like some kind of causal loop thingy. 😛
Careful, Think about that too much, & it might end up like dividing by zero… O_O
…That last panel makes me a little bit worried for Mike.
Makes me worried about pretty much everyone he’s ever come into contact with.
Mike like to contact people with his fists.
All the more reason to worry.
He’ll contact your mom for a nickel.
If he does THAT with a fist, that’s something you probably don’t wanna know…
Sarcasm.
Apparently despite the shitty things Mike has done to her, she still sees him as the man who “protected her honor” (i.e. commit disproportionate violence against a horndog trying to overplay the charm card). That’s… both adorable and incredibly sad at the same time.
Its realistic though, violence is ok but consensual hank-panky? Hell no, growing I was allowed to watch Hammer Horror movies on sunday night on TV and it was all good but when a heavily editied version of Porkys came on (I was 15) it was noooooooooo you shall not watch!
Watching someone get killed is ok but an erect nipple = evil!!!!!
Common experience, especially in US culture. Makes zero sense, but fighting that mindworm off is nearly impossible. Generation after generation has repeated that behavior with their own kids despite railing against it in their youth.
I think it actually makes some sense when you consider that most parents have never murdered anybody, but had sex at least once. Having actually experienced something is an important factor in how people treat it.
Well this is Mike so since he’s whatever you don’t want him to be, telling him he’s not invited probably would have the opposite effect on him so you might as well at least invite him.
The worst of mikes punching of joe was “because” joe stared at Conquests chest. I think that doesnt count as protecting Joyce. I think that was mike doing something he enjoyed. Unless it fell under some clause in his contract which i missed.
Actually, I’d say the worst part was when he decided to punch Joe every seven seconds because “men have impure thoughts every seven seconds”.
And it was hilarious.
Joe set himself up for that.
The Conquest thing, on the other hand, Joe didn’t actually do. Connie came up behind him and spoke to him, and when he turned around, her boobs were naturally at eye level. And then Joe got punched.
But, honestly, even though Joe was the one taking all the punch, I think Joyce was Mike’s target.
I figure Joyce is capable of remembering series of events, instead of single moments like her parents, and takes the whole “forgiveness” thing seriously. This is why it’s “if you can be nice” instead of “if you won’t be mean” – she’s (at least vaguely) aware of how he operates, and would prefer that he do it in a positive manner rather than in a… Mike manner.
I wonder if she invited Mike just in case someone needs a good old FAAAAAACE punching.
Joyce also punched joe in the face AND she punched ryan in the face with a glass. If a face needs punching joyce has shown herself ready to do it herself.
…when drugged.
Joyce was 100% sober when she beat the shit out of Joe, so she’s plenty punchy regardless of druggedness.
Joyce has consistently referred to Mike as a jerk though. And a couple of days ago she did kick him in the shins as a way of not playing into one of his mind games.
Huh, it seems like Joyce do like Mike more than I thought, at least enoug to regard him a bit like a friend. I have no idea why but I’m glad to see he’s not only a bully to her
Hmmmm, not so much as a friend then as a “someone who kinda hangout with someone who she’s a friend with and thus can not be all that bad” logic
He’s never acted against her and is a good listener, is what I’ve been assuming.
Becky has not yet mastered the art of 4th Wall Breaking.
Real talk though I got my Tidus on so much I swore Mike heard me.
…What the hell, Joyce.
Second.
C’mon, there’s better people she can invite into a two-person dorm room…
…party.
I can’t completely rule out the idea that this is Joyce’s way of not-inviting Mike. If she’d said he couldn’t come, that’s guaranteed attendance.
…that did cross my mind too.
As ours all, but I don’t really think Joyce can think that far.
I think this is brilliant XD He cannot say he wasn’t invited but considering he is not going to act nice he is not going, or if he is Joyce still wins XD
…Joyce, I can’t decide whether it was brilliant that you invited him under the condition of being nice (thus not inviting him) or idiotic in that you knowingly invited Mike to a social event in which you want things to be non-hostile and fun.
It was dumb seeing as he is completely incapable of being nice in his right mind due to being a malignant narcissist and he’s going to show up regardless if it suits him. The smart thing to do would be to just not tell him about the party because chances are he’d never have even learned of it due to the social isolation that comes from being a raging jackhole.
To the contrary: Mike would almost certainly learn it, as Walky is his roomie and Walky is invited.
Also, malignant, yes, narcissist, no. His bad stuff isn’t for his benefit. Amusement, yes, but it doesn’t make his life any easier.
Amusement is a benefit.
Still doesn’t make him a narcissist. He’s not in love with himself as far as I can see.
“Only if there’s alcohol.”
MIKE uses NICE
…
…
No effect!
Announcing your plans is a good way to hear God laugh.
I always appreciate that Willis never copy-pastas characters.
But does he copy-spaghetti characters?
Mike’s inability to laugh ever must hinder him greatly in his quest to be the meanest fucker
He is your mom’s meanest fucker
for a nickle.
Ah good ol’ Mike… The non giver of fucks.
Give Mike a drink. He will be so nice you can’t stand it.
PS Joyce does like him I think, and of all the people he’s terrorized, Joyce has been the one he’s done it to the least…or something like that.
Voice what voice…the voice he’s screwing Becky over with. Oh that voice.
Is Mike the Pinkie Pie of Dumbing of Age? Like, can he break the fourth wall and stuff?
Well, when he was drunk in the other ‘verse, his favorite pony was Pinkie Pie.
Shortpacked Mike was both the meanest assholev and the sweetest person in that Universe, the latter WHEN HE WAS DRUNK. We dont know if the same is true in this Universe. We also dont know if its not true. Heck, Mike might not even know, if he hasnt gotten drunk before. The Party might be a chance to find out. Joyce wont be serving booze, but that doesnt mean that everyone will be sober all night.
I’ve been wondering when/if we might find out in this continuity about Mike being a nice drunk. It’s freshman year — Mike’s gotta get drunk sooner or later!
Man, this must be one of my favorite strips in a while.
I don’t know what’s funnier how fucking Naive Joyce is or Mike breaking the 4th wall just to say Fuck you.
L
Dammit. Posted before i could finish typing…
Anyway, mike seems to be the men’s R.A.
Resident Asshole.
…
Technically, he CAN be nice.
Dunno, we’ve never seen him drunk in this universe.
No, I mean, he can. Mike just doesn’t want to.
Mike is capable of being sincerely nice while sober. It happens at least once in the other universe.
But since he basically never stops scowling while sober, it’s actually kind of terrifying and hard to tell that he really is sincere.
Except when punched in the face. Then he’s REALLY scary.
You need to get a recording of an 80’s laugh track. an embed it in your page to play in times like thid.
Daniel the Human has an Air-Raid siren on his mobile. Might be more appropriate for when some people are coming your way…
When Joyce “went out” with Joe, Mike threatened to beat Joe if he did anything wrong.
I think there’s some underlying goodness to Mike which he hides very well. Very, very well.
He didn’t just threaten to beat Joe, he physically assaulted Joe and was encouraged by Joyce to do so
Nah, he’s as close to being devoid of any good points as it’s possible to get while still being a human being and not a literal monster.
Joyce paid him to hit Joe if he did anything “objectionable”. He did not do this out of the goodness of his heart.
no he did it out of a love of punching, Joe offered him 50 bucks to leave, and he refused. So he could punch someone in the face.
Just bring lots and LOTS of alcohol.
I’m kind of amazed how so many people took yesterday’s silly joke as just way too far, but Mike constantly acting like an actual cartoon character is perfectly valid.
Double check if it’s actually the same people ?
Does Mike also have an undercut and that’s how his hair works like that?
Magic.
His hair has pretty much remained unchanged from when he first appeared in Roomies!
And barring One exception, you only ever, ever see his face from the sides.
For some reason, today’s strip has made me realize what I REALLY wanna see happen in this continuity: Mike as Amazigirl’s ARCHENEMY. Mike becomes a “super villain” to troll Amber/Amazigirl. They fight and feud. Then, as per tradition, they engage in the MOST EPIC OF HATE-FUCKS!
Please, Willis?
Nah, Mike’s going one better than that. He’s creating other supervillains for Amazi-Girl to face off against. He’s already responsible for the Whiteboard Dingdong Bandit.
Mike is like Lex Luthor. (stays in the shadows and creates other villains)
Joyce/Whiteboard dingdong bandit is Metallo (Created by Mike)
Amber/Amazi-Girl is superman (Obvious)
Danny is Lois Lane. (Dating the superhero, both hav been kidnapped)
Dorothy is Jimmy Olson. (Reporter and friend)
Daisy is Perry White. (Chief of a newspaper)
NO one has the same gender!
Wasn’t Lex a guy?
Crap your right
Lois was a woman, and Jimmy (Olsen goddamit) and Perry were both guys. You’re already gender swapping all over, why worry?
Having said that, Metallo wasn’t a Lex invention originally, and Mike isn’t mad science-y enough to fit the mold. I’d recast as follows:
Mike is Mister Mxyzptlk (Randomly appearing tormenter with a mean sense of humor)
Joyce/Whiteboard Dingdong Bandit is closer to Bizarro (because she’s a warped version of herself as WDB) but if you extend the metaphor she’s closer to being Two-Face (split personality and all)
Did I mention I’ve worked in three different comic shops over the years? 🙂
Oh, I’m a dope – The Whiteboard Dingdon Bandit is the old Superman villain the Prankster. He even “reformed” a few times, so there’s his Joyce side.
clearly Carla is Mister Mxyzptlk
Carla is obviously Spider-Car.
Oops, still can’t say that particular alter ego, I guess.
Then that means he’s already her nemesis, only acting as the mastermind behind the enemies she faces. Wait, does that make him the The Chessmaster or Manipulative Bastard? Probably the Bastard…
META
I like to think the laughter is Walky in the room laughing at the idea of a nice Mike.
‘I can be nice with your mom.’
Here’s something else to consider in the “Mike invited/Joe Rejected” arguments…
During the Joyce/Joe date, Joyce talked about god is helping her overcome the sins of pride and lust. After joyce said Lust, Mike was going to punch her; it was Joe that stopped him. (Well, Mike “suggested” he was going to punch her.
So, the guy who attempted to punch Joyce gets invited, the guy that stopped him did not.
(Ok, I’m probably reading too much into one panel of a comic.)
http://www.dumbingofage.com/2011/comic/book-1/03-men-are-from-beck-women-are-from-clark/lust/
There’s no rhyme or reason to Mike, even less so than in the Walkyverse. He’s just there to be an asshole. This is why people eat lunch, confide their problems, and associate with him; Nothing he does has any actual consequence. He’s just there for a joke.
I think he was listening to that conversation & intervened to alleviate the cringing alone.
So I guess Mike thinks he’s a sitcom villain.
That explains a lot.
He can be nice, if there’s alcohol involved.
Interesting. Few people comparing Mike to Deadpool here. I can see it. Maybe Collage life is what breaks his mind, makes him change his name, turns him into an insane soldier for hire…
With colleges nowadays, I wouldn’t be surprised.
Mmmm… beat panelssss… yesssss….
Danny’s a 4th wall empath…. Is this where the superhero themes take a dramatic spin? Are aliens involved?
Oh god, Mike can see us! Everybody hide!