Or as Badtranslator would have it, “Open doors is a dinosaur and the ground” (8 passes).
Or even just the rather reductive “Open the door and” (35 passes). Good to see that some concepts are universal, even if dinosaur walking and floor getting-on are not.
Yeah, that bummed me out. The last strip also made me sad since Papa Walkerton looked geniunely happy to see Sal and then had to be dissapointed since she had plans to ditch them.
Yeah, the last strip is why I’m playing watch and wait with the elder Walkertons…Charles was actually trying there, I think. Not that I blame Sal at all for feeling awkward to the nth power and wanting this to end as soon as possible, but a bit of genuine effort was being applied on Dad’s part!
We’ll see with Linda…I think independent of any factors that may unique to a particular universe, Sal and Linda’s relationship might be difficult.
“Oh, and there was that one time I made him strip and I ogled all that sculpted caramel. . . I’m sorry, I lost my train of thought there for a moment. What was the question?”
I love how her parents know her well enough to realise that “Not Super Serious” actually means she’s normal levels of serious with Walky, as let’s face it, they kinda are. She’s brought him clothes. She’s made micro-transactions on this boyfriend, she’s invested in him…
At first, I thought this might be Sal’s “I show up and they don’t bother me for another year or two” kind of thing. Now I see this is Sal’s “Hey, maybe you might notice for just a minute. A second?”
This makes me sad Willis. Very very sad. Like not getting soup from the Soup Nazi sad.
I knoooooow! I thought it was like a sibling rivalry thing but no. Walky is the favorite, so much so that it eclipses her presence. I want to hug the poor gal.
I’d assumed Sal was exaggerating when she said Walky was the faboured child and was bitter because her parents had sent her to that school hoping it would be best for her but now… well she does seem to be telling the truth
They need to do some wacky scheme where Sal cuts her hair and Walky puts on a wig and fake boobs, and they switch places to prove that Sal is just as good as Walky.
Ten bucks says Dorothy’s parents turn out to be passive aggressively disappointed in her for choosing someone who’s not up to their insanely high standards.
But seriously, I can see some major character flaws within him. He’s kind of bland, not to mention whiny (dear God is he whiny). To be honest, I can only see him as an obstacle that needs to be hurdled, or a coat you need to take off before you can face the world. Dorothy got over him, and Amber only seems to be into him because he’s the only option she has at the moment.
This could all change, of course, but the point still stands.
But you can’t form a lasting relationship on that. Danny’s just a safety net, if you will, something Amber latches on to because he represents the life and love she could never achieve, and you know there’s no chance of him doing anything surprising.
He’s a self-centered, self-righteous, sanctimonious prick, and his stupidity and hypocrisy got a much more likeable character killed. And then for the extra touch of class, he stole the deceased’s girlfriend. Fuck him.
(Okay, yes, I’m maybe still a little bitter about the other universe.)
Yeah, but that’s the point. It’s like suddenly getting an awesome house, a maid to do chores, a tailor to make you expensive clothes, and a world class chef to cook your food. There’s nothing wrong with the things all your friends have, but everything is going to seem sub-standard after all that. “Hey, what happened to your clothes? Oh, those are the ones you always wear? Okay then.”
Or, going on that, Walky’s parents will be disappointed in their own child after seeing the Keeners.
That second one. Linda looks in today’s panel less like intrigued and more like worried… (You get that girl & her family over here to be evaluated by me, right now!!!)
Yet. It’s not a character trait that is too difficult to hide, especially when your daughter is, thus far, keeping up with the extremelly high standards.
of course, lad. We spiffy folk love to use skeedaddle when we leave the haberdashery in such a swiftness we can’t give a proper farewell, and the haberdash would think that we’d pay him a fine how-do-you do if you did not say something.
I’m 23 and I’ve been saying skedaddle for several years. Honestly, as long as I can remember. I never thought that was odd until reading the comments here. 😀
Never mind, reloaded the page twice and finally got it. And in exciting news I am reading this when I should be finishing packing to go back to college tomorrow morning. I blame this on your excellent writing Willis.
She was actually trying to get some positive attention from her parents, and of course her brother’s situation eliminates that possibility. Walky didn’t intend for that to happen, but still, I do feel sorry for Sal.
i don’t know if sal should be happy she dodged the bullet of dealing with her parents or supremely depressed by the fact walky getting a girlfriend is a greater priority than a reunion with her after such a long time
The saddest part is how easy it would be for Sal to just leave and not see her mom for years and years with out so much as a “Hi, how are you doing, how was school, any boys in your life?”. This comic hurts in a way that cannot be described because neglect is almost more painful than disdain.
It does hurt more than disdain. At least with dislike, your parents pay attention to you. With neglect it’s like you don’t even exist, like you don’t matter anymore.
Yeah, I am not gonna lie. This is another reason why Walky is almost exactly like me.
I can totally feel for Sal here, because my sister has the same problem. She has two brothers who always eclipsed her in school, shew was always the one who partied more and has always been the “immature” kid.
My parents try very much to show that they love us all the same (and they DO love us all they are in no way as horrible as the Wlakertons), but it kinda stills hows that the one they worry the most about is my sister. Is it legitimate? Maybe?
I will come out and say that I don’t always get along that well with my sister, but I think that parental favouritism played a big part in that. So keep on going Sal. You can do more things then your parents your credit for!
Based on Willis’ posting the Walky pic as the end of this storyline on Tumblr I say this will either end with them admitting they are “serious” or them breaking up.
Well yes. That way I can always say called it.
I also predict that by the end of this storyline Amber will ether reveal her secret identity to Danny. OR NOT.
The issue isn’t addressed
They die before the issue is resolved
They get married
Dorothy announces she’s pregnant
… with twins
… and Walky is not the father
Walky announces he’s gay/bi/trans*
Dorothy finds Allah and rejects PMHP
Love triangle
… leading to an open relationship
.
.
.
My thoughts exactly. That’s just weird. Walky may not act like it, but he is an adult. I quess they pay his tuition and that’s why they think they can treat him without any respect. Besides I think Linda’s obsession with Dorothy is scary and almost aggressive.
I’m older and it was very common when I was growing up for parents to treat the boys like the golden children and the girls like second class citizens. It reflected the culture at the time. But at least our parents acknowledged that we existed, even if we were the less favored children. I cannot believe how Linda is just ignoring Sal. I’d like to kick her ass, seriously.
I am still undecided on this. I am leaning towards Mom being so in shock that she has been completely distracted by her socially inept son having a girlfriend that she is totally focusing on that; and not that she is deliberately ignoring Sal. One of the next few panels may have her snapping out of it and turning her attention to Sal, only to realize that she has left. On the other hand, you and the others may be correct, I am going to wait and see what develops.
Woah, what did Charles do to deserve the hate, other than express happiness at seeing his daughter, complement her usual look, and then be sad that she was obviously ditching them?
That compliment was a hidden insult. “You look *so pretty* when it’s long and straight.” As in, “But you don’t now that it’s in its naturally curly staight.” Though now we know why Sal is so invested in keeping her hair long and straight despite the hours-long maintenance it takes.
Well let’s see. His entire interaction with Sal consisted of pointing out that he likes her straight hair over her curly hair, a pretty loaded statement for a lot of people of mixed race (which he should well know, as he’s mixed race himself). Did he notice that she was wearing the same high school uniform that she wore for FOUR YEARS? No. Any attempt to give her attention to compensate for Linda’s obsession with Dorothy? No. Any attempt to curtail Linda? No. Any attempt to make time with Sal? Nope. Just “oh, you’re going to a hair salon? Well, that’s too bad. See you next year.” It’s nice to blame the squeakiest wheel, but so far I can see why Sal doesn’t want to spend time with either of them.
Yeah, you’re reading a LOT into like ten seconds of interaction.
He was happy to see her, he acknowledged her, there’s nothing wrong with preferring one hairstyle over another, and he’s sad that she’s ditching him.
Also, he’s at fault for commenting on her hair, but he’s also at fault for -not- commenting on her dress? It really reads to me as if you’re looking for excuses to justify hating on him.
There’s nothing wrong with preferring one hairstyle over another, but his immediate response is to tell her how he prefers her hair instead of asking any further about why she changed it. Unless Sal put a lot of tonal inflection in her voice her response of “It just happened” is pretty neutral. Charles’s response would be fine if she’s replied “Yeah, I changed my hair and I hate it.” but it’s pretty judgmental as is. A not-self centered parent could have probably mustered up a “It’s a big change, how do you about it?” or a “Really? Tell me about it!” or a “Wait, why are you wearing your high school uniform?”
I will admit putting personal bias in this. One of my college roommates was biracial, adopted with a white family and spent a lot of in her childhood hearing about how her hair was difficult and unmanageable while the white child in that family was often complimented on her hair. That family was very kind to her on the whole, but statements like Charles’s comment can carry a lot of baggage.
Quick Walky, drag Sal off and convince her to take your place as a decoy, thus starting a long series of misunderstandings where everybody thinks Dorothy’s a lesbian!
Really not seeing what the Walkertons (especially dad) did to garner such hate, or what Sal has ever done to deserve any sympathy. Her mother didn’t immediately drop the conversation she was already having to dote on eher criminal daughter. Boo hoo. Her dad actually does talk to her, but instead of making an effort herself, she immediately begs off with a lame excuse.
Meanwhile, the supposedly favored son is being talked to like he’s a particularly thick headed five year old.
Meanwhile, Danny, whose character flaws are pretty obviously the fault of his parents, and which are only harmful to himself, is a subject of regular hate and derision, even in the comments of comics in which he doesn’t even show up.
Willis, it is clear that, regardless of your intent, DoA is going to be read *dramatically* differently by people who know the Walkyverse and people who do not. No way around it. : )
You don’t have to be white to be those things, and you don’t have to be those things to be white. And Hipsters, people with first world problems, and “old timely English gentlemen” don’t….really have anything to do with each other, so I’m uncertain what your point is.
But I imagine Willis is talking about the fact that most of his audience is caucasian, which means we didn’t grow up in the shadow of african american history and the civil rights movement. So, for example, to someone like me, suggesting you like someone’s hair straight (when they usually apparently straighten it on their own) is simply expressing a styling preference, while to someone like Sal, it has a subtext of “I sure wish you were whiter, honey.”
It’s hard, as a robot, to fully explain how what Sal’s dad said was hurtful to her. I can only tell you about what I read in a few sources by African Americans.
In his Autobiography, Malcolm X talks about how it was popular to straighten you hair if you were black, because their hair is by know means straight. I don’t know about now, but back then hair straightening wasn’t exactly healthy. The chemicals used were noxious.
When he was in prison, it was pointed out to him that the only reason black people would straighten their hair was to look more white. In fact, reading his book, you get the opinion that was a huge driver in African American culture: valuing whiteness. Parents would often favor lighter skinned children. (Although, IIRC, that wasn’t true of Malcolm X’s parents. With his mother, it was the opposite.)
This social pressure amounted to black people not accepting who they were or valuing their natural features. Learning this in prison, Malcolm made an effort to learn more. That’s why he turned to Black Islam, because it was a religion that valued African American culture. Or, at least, represented itself as one.
Sal’s hair is naturally curly, and her dad’s remark suggests that he doesn’t value that, but only when she changes her body to conform to his preferences. It’s one thing say “I like your hair down.”
I think that it’s pretty obvious that the Walkerton’s are treating both David and Sal poorly. Mom is being very demanding of meeting David’s new girlfriend, and not taking “no” for an answer. I’m sure he’d prefer to NOT be the favorite.
But Sal is ignored. Mom doesn’t necessarily need to drop everything and dote on her, but it would have been nice if Dad had asked about classes and how she was liking school. You know, typical parent stuff. Instead, he subtly suggests that the way her hair is naturally isn’t good enough.
As that fleshling Mr. Roger’s once said, “You are special just the way you are.”
I’m not sure I’ve ever met a parent (at least the kind of parent who’d come to a parents’ weekend) who wouldn’t react to their son’s new girlfriend similarly…
Actually, I think it was specifically mentioned that she doesn’t like her hair this way when it first went “foomp”.
I think there’s a difference between taking an interest in you’re kid’s boyfriend or girlfriend and angrily saying “You ask her and her family out to dinner!” Compare Mrs. Walkerton with Dorothy’s mom who just teases her daughter, but doesn’t make any demands.
As strange as it is to hear from a Decepticon, I appreciate the context, Megs. I wasn’t strongly aware of the history involved, and while I don’t really know that we’ve seen enough to condemn her dad for this (If she straightens the hair herself as an act of rebellion, this could be his way of saying “Hey, you don’t have to change it back just because we’re here.”) I can at least see where the other perspective is now.
Condemnation is, I think, I little strong. But it’s certainly something we can criticize him for. It’s possible, even likely, that he doesn’t subscribe to the kind of politics I’ve seen others do. And so doesn’t think it should bother Sal, and so doesn’t notice that it does.
The hair comment really struck me as being unkind, especially in light of the history of hair straightening in the US. She didn’t bring up her hair, HE did – to say he liked it better before. That’s like saying, “Hey, you got your hair cut! I don’t like it, you were prettier before,” and in this case, there’s an undercurrent of “man, white girls have better hair” to it (whether that’s intentional or not).
I still remember hair-related comments from my mother – considering I was always the favorite child and this has stuck with me (I’m 36 now, this was back in high school & college), I can’t imagine how damaging it would be to have your parents saying that crap when they are otherwise ignoring you.
I agree that it’s unkind. Reading my preceding comment, I want to make clear that I think it’s possible that he’s ignorant of how much it bothers her, because he’s made a decision that it shouldn’t bother anybody.
Wasn’t aware of the hair thing. Working with a number of black women, I always assumed that most of them straightened their hair for ease of care, since curly hair is a pain in the ass.
Um, yeah, Rex, when your child that you haven’t seen in years shows up, you -do- stop your conversation with the one you’ve seen regularly to greet them, hug them, let them know they’re valued, and THEN you go back to your conversation. Walky’s mom is being a horrible parent.
Hell, that’s not even a family thing! It’s COMMON MANNERS to pause your conversation to say hello to a new arrival.
Haven’t seen in years? They’ve only been in school for a couple of weeks. Yeah, her relationship with her mom is obviously strained at best, and I’d definitely be more sympathetic to Sal is she didn’t just use “mommy doesn’t love me” as an excuse for bad behavior.
Walky says he has barely talked to his sister over the past 5 years: http://www.dumbingofage.com/2010/comic/book-1/02-uphill-from-here/helmet/
While that’s certainly possible with Sal coming home every summer, that doesn’t feel right to me. Also, Walky seemed genuinely surprised by Sal, to paraphrase him, finding leather instead of Jesus. Again, possible, but harder if she comes home every summer.
None of which, however, really does anything to answer why Sal does nothing to try to turn her own life around or to even act like a decent human being and is treated like some sort of folk hero while Danny has actually moved on, shown some growth, and even done a couple of admirable things, and is treated like pond scum. Aside, of course, from people who can’t separate these characters from their Walkyverse counterparts.
Or you could actually offer some examples of why Danny is worse than Sal instead of just tossing out the name of a logical fallacy as if it constituted an actual argument.
You say Sal has “done nothing to try to turn her own life around,” when she’s the only person in the cast who we know has actively sought out tutoring to help improve her understanding of her math assignments. We know that she saved up for and purchased her own motorcycle. You say she doesn’t “even act like a human being” when we know that she stands up for her roommate when she is being bullied. In fact, I’m not sure we know of anything that suggests that Sal HASN’T “turned her life around.” I mean, how many convenience stores have we seen her knock over in the present? Is she like, devouring live chickens on-panel or something? Does she demonstrate any less poor judgment than anyone else in the strip?
I couldn’t care less if “Danny is worse,” but your dehumanization of Sal sets off some red flags.
17 internets for you, Willis. I didn’t even see this stuff coming, but you called it, way up-thread…. Plus and extra internet for creating such an interesting complex character as Sal!
You know, it’s not even that Linda doesn’t greet Sal. (Although she doesn’t, and even if it’s only been a couple of weeks that’s not very nice of her.) It’s that “no avoiding the subject” line. As if Sal’s presence is nothing more than an excuse not to discuss Walky’s romantic life, and as easily dismissed.
Wow, So far I’m totally unimpressed with virtually all of the parents. Talk about your major issues and agendas! I think I like Dina’s the best so far.
Next comic, I’m going to make a list of all the characters who have bad parents versus those who have good parents seen thus far. I’m legitimately curious as to the ratio.
Let’s look at it:
– Wilcoxen: Emotionally manipulative jerks who either encourage Danny’s stupid behavior (follow Dorothy, she’s going places) or belittle him. Two points, for sure.
– Walkertons: Linda basically wants nothing to do with Sal, and Charles’s comment about her with straight hair is so very, very loaded. They’re quite, um… supportive of Walky, but the fact that they’ve basically ignored Sal’s enough to put them on the bad side until further evidence exonerates them. I’m tentatively giving them another two points.
– Browns: Encouraging their daughter to cut one of her friends out of her life against her strong beliefs otherwise. Think they’re doing the right thing, but still contributed to extreme shelteredness, seem to be the sort who go “I can’t be racist, I have a black friend!” judging by their response to Sarah. Nice if you agree with them, but still. SERIOUSLY uncomfortable. Two points as well.
– Siegals: “You made my son think he was gay.” Admittedly, not talking to Ethan himself, but that’s still enough to put them on this side of the list. Two points.
– Any Billingsworth: Conspicuous in their absence. Significant signs of neglect. One point because we have no idea what this family situation’s like, but it’s clearly fucked up.
– Dr. Rosenthal: is CREEPY around Sarah, who’s his son’s age, which suggests he’s a sexual harassment lawsuit waiting to happen, but any evidence we have of bad parenting is pure speculation. I’ll give him half a point for jerkery.
That’s 9.5 points on the bad scale.
– The Saruyamas: Literally so passive I’ve got nothing. Letting Blaine and Faz in was bad, but it’s possible Dina didn’t explain enough of the situation to them in time. Once Blaine was in, they could not get him out. Quite possibly contributed to Dina’s social issues. Quite possibly have their own significant ones. I DON’T KNOW.
– The Snows: Sierra’s a well-adjusted individual, and what we’ve seen of her parents suggests they’ve contributed to this. Reno in particular made a good impression by trying to slow down Blaine. I’m putting them on the good scale.
– The Keeners: So far, the worst they’ve shown is nosiness about a potential new boyfriend. Tentative two points, same as the Walkertons.
– The Warners: Oh yeah, they’re on the good side. Two points.
– Stacy O’Malley: Due to Obvious Circumstances, I’m counting Stacy on her own, and I’m counting her as at least mostly good. She had no way of knowing she’d probably be needed, and even if she did, I honestly think being absent from that situation was probably a good idea. It gave Blaine one less person to target, and meant Amber didn’t have to worry when running that Blaine might target Stacy instead. Amber also seems fairly well-adjusted, and since we know how she could have turned out from the old universe, that’s a very good sign. Good point.
So I’m giving it 7 points good, to 9.5 bad. Note also that I couldn’t judge the Saruyamas, considered putting Dr. Rosenthal as half and half on both sides (I didn’t because, while we have no real evidence of bad parenting, we have no evidence of good parenting either, and he’s still a total sleaze), added a point for the Billingsworths because even if we haven’t seen them, the reason why is enough to merit it, and did not include Blaine. That last one is because Blaine would significantly skew it, as his assholishness is worth more than two points on its own. Other parents may be sketchy, but Blaine is the only one we know, beyond all reasonable doubt, is abusive. We only have a few interactions for most parents from this story to judge them on, but Blaine has enough of a presence in about a week’s worth of strips to be clearly worthy of judging, plus Amber’s comment, plus he had a significant, similar presence in the old universe that informs a lot about his subplot here.
I would argue in Dr. Rosenthal’s favour. While I do agree that he came on way too strong with Sarah (and based on his son’s comments, it’s definitely not unusual, and the fact that she’s probably around half his age doesn’t do him any favours), I personally wouldn’t judge him based solely on that (especially since Joe himself is virtually the same, plus a few extra subtlety points).
Sexual activities aside, we’ve only really seen Joe’s dad in two situations. Both those cases showcased a very specific trait. So the only other thing that we have to judge him on is Joe himself, and I think that we can mostly agree that Joe is a stable, well-adjusted individual (again, sexual activities aside). And even there, Joe has very clear rules and morals, as we have seen previously.
Overall, I think that Dr. Rosenthal has a fairly good chance of being a better parent than most of the others here, if we use his son as any indication. Of course, we haven’t met the ex-Mrs. Rosenthal, so we don’t know how much of Joe’s character is a result of her parenting. Fact is, we just haven’t seen enough. Either way, I would personally put Dr. Rosenthal on the positive side of the ratio.
there’s a difference between not getting enough attention and being flat-out ignored. I mean, you’d at least expect a hello or some form of acknowledgement. even outright hostility would probably be nicer.
also, we don’t know if that is the reason she held up those grocery stores 5 years ago, or something that resulted from doing that.
;~; I really feel for Sal; there was a girl I used to date whose parents would be more involved in her younger brother’s life, and it still really crushes her that they care more about his needs. Her younger brother, unfortunately, is NOT like Walky; way more immature and mean.
I’ve been sitting back and thinking about this Walkerton situation. My conclusion is that a lot of people here who think the Walkertons aren’t doing anything wrong or that “not enough attention” is “shallow” really need to research mental and emotional abuse.
Even if for some reason you don’t care about the racial baggage in Mr. Walkerton’s comment, “I liked you better before” isn’t really a nice thing to say, especially when you brought up the topic. It just reeks of “You’re not good enough.” What if Sal actually preferred her hair that way? That comment could have really hurt. Mr. Walkterton didn’t know one way or the other.
Then we have Mrs. Walkerton who, as far as I can tell, hasn’t even said one word to her daughter. It doesn’t matter if she hasn’t seen her daughter in 5 years or 3 weeks, she should at least say hello and goodbye, shouldn’t she? Take SOME interest in her daughter? She doesn’t need to be following her son around while he’s on the phone; she could say goodbye to Sal then, right?
I think its also important for people to keep in mind that parents are the people you grow up with. What they do is what you think is normal. If Sal was ignored at home while she grew up, and Walky was the golden child, then YES. That would fuck her up and cause her to act out. It’s not shallow; that’s a real thing that really happens to real people.
I dunno, after reading way too much about abuse (mostly narcissistic parents and parents with other personality disorders) it just makes me sad to see people who don’t recognize harmful behavior.
I…it feels to me like the Walkertons don’t know that they’re doing wrong by Sal. That doesn’t excuse it, at all, and I really am wondering which came first, the emotional pain or the criminal activity, how this dysfunction happened.
I do think someone needs to fucking shake the shit out of them and say PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR DAUGHTER, which is a 180 from my previous position, so there’s that.
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EVERYBODY BAIL D=
EJECT!
ABANDON COMMENT THREAD, REPEAT, ABANDON COMMENT THREAD!
EVERYONE SCATTER!!!
SQUAD BROKEN!
RALLY SQUAD!
JETTISON THE AIRLOCK!!!
Stormies!!!!
EVERT!
THIS IS NOT A DRILL! REPEAT, THIS IS NOT A DRILL!
You will stand your ground!
NO RETREAT!!!! NO SURRENDER!!!!!
NO CAN DO, SIR. WE BE SKEDADDLEING
DRIVE THEM BACK!
CLOSE DOWN THE CIRCUS!
EVACUATE THE ZOO!
CHEESE IT! ITS THE SHIP-POLICE!
OPEN THE DOOR
GET ON THE FLOOR
EVERYBODY WALK THE DINOSAUR
Or as Badtranslator would have it, “Open doors is a dinosaur and the ground” (8 passes).
Or even just the rather reductive “Open the door and” (35 passes). Good to see that some concepts are universal, even if dinosaur walking and floor getting-on are not.
Though I will always have a place in my heart for
Agor y drws
Yn mynd ar y llawr
Pawb yn cerdded y deinosor
and of course
Kapıyı açmak
Katta olsun
herkes dinozor yürüyüş
YOU! RUN THAT WAY! YOU!! RUN OVER THERE!! YOU!!! KEEP RUNNING AROUND IN CIRCLES SCREAMING LIKE A LITTLE GIRL!!!
AAAAaaaAAAaaaAAAaaaAAAaaaAAAaaa
NO! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! THE LINE MUST BE DRAWN HERE! THIS FAR AND NO FURTHER!
Aaaaaaaaaaand Iiiiiiiii will maaaaaaaaake them paaaaaaay for what they’ve done!
THERE ARE FOUR LIGHTS!
LOOM!!!
Seriously, no privacy
Sal has privacy. She has all the privacy in the world.
I know! So sad for her. I wonder which came first: her acting out or their ignoring her.
I don’t care about Walky and his stupid girlfriend. Just feeling all the feels for Sal…
Yeah, that was the first thing I thought too…I feel so bad for her. 🙁
ABORT MISSION
This is why you do not talk on the phone in front of your parents, Dorothy!
Yeah, what sort of teenager hasn’t figured this out? It’s practically why texting was invented in the first place.
This is why they invented texting.
Poor sal.
I second this.
Thirded
quadrupled? she’s trying so hard to get her family to notice and praise her too…
Who? Oh, yeah the other one.
Thank you, thank you! That was my Walkertons Impression! For my next rendition, the Sorayamas!
“…………..”
lol
Seriously. They may come second in the worst-parent contest (like every other parent here) to Blaine, but that’s still just… Ow.
Yeah, that bummed me out. The last strip also made me sad since Papa Walkerton looked geniunely happy to see Sal and then had to be dissapointed since she had plans to ditch them.
Yeah, the last strip is why I’m playing watch and wait with the elder Walkertons…Charles was actually trying there, I think. Not that I blame Sal at all for feeling awkward to the nth power and wanting this to end as soon as possible, but a bit of genuine effort was being applied on Dad’s part!
We’ll see with Linda…I think independent of any factors that may unique to a particular universe, Sal and Linda’s relationship might be difficult.
The very least she coulda done was try ‘n’ get Sal to ditch the hair thing to go have lunch anyway.
who’s to say that isn’t going to happen?
Yeah…. let’s hope it get’s better. Sal always made me sad in the old universe and this last bit is sad to.
I mean come one, new universe let’s aim for happy eh?
Trust me, “Not super serious” can be very, VERY interesting.
Woof woof!
Where I’m from “not super serious” is code for “yes, we are dating now back off before I rip your head off for asking me about my personal life”
She’s Not SUPER Serial, you guys.
But is she Super Sentai?
Dotty? No. But I can totally see Sal as a Kamen Rider though.
I can totally see Joe as Hentai Kamen
Still can’t believe that’s a real movie.
I love you for also knowing what that is.
How about Super Sempai?
Or maybe she’s a Super Saiyan?
Don’t think so, I haven’t seen her taking 8 episodes to power up yet.
“I mean, we maybe kissed a bit, and he might’ve slept in my bed once or twice, but y’know, we’re not serious or anything.”
“Oh, and there was that one time I made him strip and I ogled all that sculpted caramel. . . I’m sorry, I lost my train of thought there for a moment. What was the question?”
Dorothy, you’re drooling.
Super serial brings us back to Belle Gunness from Joyce’s home town. I don’t think that even Blaine has that kind of ambition.
Im totally super cereal you guys!
– al gore
I love how her parents know her well enough to realise that “Not Super Serious” actually means she’s normal levels of serious with Walky, as let’s face it, they kinda are. She’s brought him clothes. She’s made micro-transactions on this boyfriend, she’s invested in him…
Last panel: Sal’s Rodney Dangerfield impersonation.
No respect, No respect I tell ya.
Take my parents… No really, take them!
So, meeting the parents….my number 4 worst nightmare.
At first, I thought this might be Sal’s “I show up and they don’t bother me for another year or two” kind of thing. Now I see this is Sal’s “Hey, maybe you might notice for just a minute. A second?”
This makes me sad Willis. Very very sad. Like not getting soup from the Soup Nazi sad.
Soup Nazi’s just a jerk. Seriously, the dude had ONE job..
But it’s good soup! I didn’t even do anything wrong!
I knoooooow! I thought it was like a sibling rivalry thing but no. Walky is the favorite, so much so that it eclipses her presence. I want to hug the poor gal.
I’d assumed Sal was exaggerating when she said Walky was the faboured child and was bitter because her parents had sent her to that school hoping it would be best for her but now… well she does seem to be telling the truth
I feel so bad for Sal. No wonder she rebels.
Chicken/egg. We don’t really know what came first.
The correct answer is Jason.
They need to do some wacky scheme where Sal cuts her hair and Walky puts on a wig and fake boobs, and they switch places to prove that Sal is just as good as Walky.
For some reason I imagine that’s happened already.
“Walky! Are you dressing up as your sister in there?”
“No, mom!”
And we can have Jason teach Sal how to speak like a proper lady!
I mean, sure, she won’t actually sound like Walky, but she doesn’t ANYWAY, so why not British it up?
Imagining Sal saying British stuff is quite amusing. With a y’all or two slipped in. (Habits are hard to break)
Unfortunately Sal’s strong accent may give things away…
Not entirely sure their parents would notice.
Thus Sal, all alone, assuming Marcie’s with her parents as well.
Not necessarily. Sal has not been properly dismissed yet. She might yet get roped into coming on this dinner meeting thing.
yeah, I think you need to acknowledge someones existance before you can invite them anywhere
Nay, I say! How do you think Dina goes anywhere?
she’s not so much invited as swept along
Ah, parents…
Aww, poor Sal. Damn you Linda, treat your kids equally.
this isn’t a drama bomb. This is a atom smashing Drama CERN.
a Dramapocolypse, if you will.
A veritable Dramatastrophe.
True Dramaggedon.
The four Dramamen.
Comedy, Tragedy, Tragicomedy, and Bob.
Never laugh at Bob. He’s a psycho.
The only thing missing from Dotty’s mum is the suggestive eyebrow waggle.
Well, from what I can see, she has no eyebrows.
Hence why I said they’re missing.
She lost them in a propane grill incident. It’s still a touchy subject, so don’t mention it.
She may want to see a doctor about that.
Eyebrow tansplants?
Sounds like a market niche!
Someone contact Mr. Sin from Sam & Fuzzy.
The newly arrived hovertext agrees with you.
This makes me feel a hellova lot better.
Is hovertext gone now?
No
(Refer to hovertext) What I want to know is how Mr. Willis knew what my daughter’s new tattoo is? Someone has some ‘splaining to to.
argh, to *do*.
Ten bucks says Dorothy’s parents turn out to be passive aggressively disappointed in her for choosing someone who’s not up to their insanely high standards.
So, just like every cliche story then.
Ten bucks says that they are happy their daughter dumped that loser Danny for a caramel sculpture.
Seriously, Yotomoe. You are outright hostile towards Danny. Want to talk about it?
HE POISONED OUR WATER SUPPLY, BURNED OUR CROPS AND DELIVERED A PLAGUE UPON OUR HOUSES!!!
He did?
HE PUT MY PEOPLE IN THE SHOWERS AND MURDERED THEM EN MASSE!
No, but are we just going to sit around until he does?
Yes… And type while we’re at it.
And he turned me into a newt!
…well, I got better.
Danny deserves no sympathy.
But seriously, I can see some major character flaws within him. He’s kind of bland, not to mention whiny (dear God is he whiny). To be honest, I can only see him as an obstacle that needs to be hurdled, or a coat you need to take off before you can face the world. Dorothy got over him, and Amber only seems to be into him because he’s the only option she has at the moment.
This could all change, of course, but the point still stands.
Does he really have no redeeming qualities that Amber might like? Maybe they have an awesome Dom/Sub relationship going on.
You just explained why he’s perfect for Amber. He is 100% NOT Blaine. Way better than her being interested in someone who is similar to him.
But you can’t form a lasting relationship on that. Danny’s just a safety net, if you will, something Amber latches on to because he represents the life and love she could never achieve, and you know there’s no chance of him doing anything surprising.
Or maybe I’m reading too much into it.
Yeah, go with the “reading too much into it” theory.
He’s a self-centered, self-righteous, sanctimonious prick, and his stupidity and hypocrisy got a much more likeable character killed. And then for the extra touch of class, he stole the deceased’s girlfriend. Fuck him.
(Okay, yes, I’m maybe still a little bitter about the other universe.)
“Ten bucks says that they are happy their daughter dumped that loser Danny for a caramel sculpture.”
So you’re suggesting that Dotty is Pygmalion and Walky is Galatea?
INTERESTING…
That would explain why she’s trying to get him to dress like a gentleman.
Dorothy’s parents don’t really seem the pressuring types. I think Dotty’s intense drive to succeed is all self generated.
Yeah, but that’s the point. It’s like suddenly getting an awesome house, a maid to do chores, a tailor to make you expensive clothes, and a world class chef to cook your food. There’s nothing wrong with the things all your friends have, but everything is going to seem sub-standard after all that. “Hey, what happened to your clothes? Oh, those are the ones you always wear? Okay then.”
Or, going on that, Walky’s parents will be disappointed in their own child after seeing the Keeners.
That second one. Linda looks in today’s panel less like intrigued and more like worried… (You get that girl & her family over here to be evaluated by me, right now!!!)
“don’t really seem”
Yet. It’s not a character trait that is too difficult to hide, especially when your daughter is, thus far, keeping up with the extremelly high standards.
Wait, there are people still using skedaddle?
of course, lad. We spiffy folk love to use skeedaddle when we leave the haberdashery in such a swiftness we can’t give a proper farewell, and the haberdash would think that we’d pay him a fine how-do-you do if you did not say something.
righto
I say, Yotomoe, that was most righteous response indeed. *sips tea*
I say Candyman, have you flogged the stableboy recently? He needs to know we notice him.
Has he “flogged the stableboy” recently? Bit of a personal question, eh what?
pffffff Skedaddle? 🙂
alright I have said that before……..
It’s a little odd hearing that word from anyone younger than 30 but it’s still very much a word.
Skeedaddles: Taste the rainbow.
TASTE THE RAINBOW, MOTHERFUCKER! Always wanted to say that.
Ahhhhh! (dies of skittles ovedose)
Sorry wanted to say OVERDOSE
I hate my keyboard
TASTE THE RAINBOW!!! I’m pretty sure Ruth had an ovarydose in that hallway.
I’m 23 and I’ve been saying skedaddle for several years. Honestly, as long as I can remember. I never thought that was odd until reading the comments here. 😀
Is there hovertext? Because my computer isn’t picking it up for some reason.
Never mind, reloaded the page twice and finally got it. And in exciting news I am reading this when I should be finishing packing to go back to college tomorrow morning. I blame this on your excellent writing Willis.
She was actually trying to get some positive attention from her parents, and of course her brother’s situation eliminates that possibility. Walky didn’t intend for that to happen, but still, I do feel sorry for Sal.
It’s as dissatisfying to see her lack of attention as Mike not receiving his quarter. It’s just not right.
5 nickels?
Man, I don’t see how he isn’t rich now, with all those 5 cents, what is he doing with that money?!
Have you not seen the mothers filling the halls?
You were supposed to say, “Your Mum!”, but your variation will serve…
So basically Dorothy’s parents are my parents, but not pagan….
i don’t know if sal should be happy she dodged the bullet of dealing with her parents or supremely depressed by the fact walky getting a girlfriend is a greater priority than a reunion with her after such a long time
wait i missed yesterdays strip this isn’t as bad as I though
Well, Linda is still pretty much pretending she’s not there at least.
Finally figured out who Dotty’s dad reminds me of. Philip Seymour Hoffman!
Ah hahahahaha! Wonderful man. We’re all, we’re all very fond of him. Very free-spirited.
Is your girlfriend a…goer…eh? Know what I mean? Know what I mean?
I beg your pardon?
Does she… go?
Wait, that’s a really gross question to ask, especially with a wink wink nudge nudge…
A nod’s as good as a wink to a blind bat. Know what I mean? Say no more. Say no more!
What are you insinuating?
She asking does she like to get her “Pipes Cleaned?”or her “Garden Plowed”
simple stuff.
What about photography? You know, candid photography? Snap, snap, grin, grin, wink, wink, say no more!
The saddest part is how easy it would be for Sal to just leave and not see her mom for years and years with out so much as a “Hi, how are you doing, how was school, any boys in your life?”. This comic hurts in a way that cannot be described because neglect is almost more painful than disdain.
It does hurt more than disdain. At least with dislike, your parents pay attention to you. With neglect it’s like you don’t even exist, like you don’t matter anymore.
I just can’t imagine such a hollow feeling. Trying to picture it makes my heart feel like there’s a brick in it.
Anyone here ever get through season three of Moral Orel?
Rewatched it 3 times.
-gives Sal a hug, then gives Yotomoe a hug-
It’s ok, you can pretend I’m Sierra.
Well I do like the idea of a hug from Sierra…carry on.
Just ignore the shoes… and the beard.
Why do you say that? It’s like saying don’t look down when you are on a high place.
Re Sal: It’s hard to make your escape count if no one knows you’re there in the first place.
Maybe she isn’t making her escape, at least not part of her. There’s a little bit of her deep down that says “Hey, Mom, Dad. Notice me?”
Dad did!
And here I thought that Ethan and Joyce were going to be the Awkward Power Couple this weekend. Daaaaang.
Gay on Christian premartial hanky panky! :()
Yeah, I am not gonna lie. This is another reason why Walky is almost exactly like me.
I can totally feel for Sal here, because my sister has the same problem. She has two brothers who always eclipsed her in school, shew was always the one who partied more and has always been the “immature” kid.
My parents try very much to show that they love us all the same (and they DO love us all they are in no way as horrible as the Wlakertons), but it kinda stills hows that the one they worry the most about is my sister. Is it legitimate? Maybe?
I will come out and say that I don’t always get along that well with my sister, but I think that parental favouritism played a big part in that. So keep on going Sal. You can do more things then your parents your credit for!
Based on Willis’ posting the Walky pic as the end of this storyline on Tumblr I say this will either end with them admitting they are “serious” or them breaking up.
That’s a pretty wide prediction!
Well yes. That way I can always say called it.
I also predict that by the end of this storyline Amber will ether reveal her secret identity to Danny. OR NOT.
Possibly somewhere in the middle.
I don’t know… they could decide they like what they got now. So, I predict either serious, break up, or status quo.
Now THAT is a wide prediction.
any options left now?
The issue isn’t addressed
They die before the issue is resolved
They get married
Dorothy announces she’s pregnant
… with twins
… and Walky is not the father
Walky announces he’s gay/bi/trans*
Dorothy finds Allah and rejects PMHP
Love triangle
… leading to an open relationship
.
.
.
SEMME is reformed
Now that I’d like to see.
Are all parents as super-interested in their childrens’ love lives as these guys? If so, man, I’ve been missing out!
Also, hi guys, I’m back.
I missed you. But my aim is improving.
Didn’t you make that joke before?
I do tend to repeat myself.
It’s the only way to get better.
I missed you too, I guess my calibration was off. 😀
I have sadi many times that I am basically walky minus the abs. So yes, my mom is exactly like this. My sister is even worse.
I missed you too
Oh wait…
My gun turns out to be a mop-handle with a toilet roll scope duct-taped on…
My thoughts exactly. That’s just weird. Walky may not act like it, but he is an adult. I quess they pay his tuition and that’s why they think they can treat him without any respect. Besides I think Linda’s obsession with Dorothy is scary and almost aggressive.
Welcome back. I have to admit I didn’t miss you, however in my defence, I didn’t notice you were gone. I apologize, I am not very observant sometimes.
I really hope Charles calls out Linda on her bullcrap eventually.
Oh hell no,you’re not going eneywhere your going to face the music damnit
There may be trouble ahead,
But while there’s music and moonlight,
And love and romance,
Let’s face the music and dance.
RUN, Sal, run!!
Sal tried, even put on that stupid outfit. So yeah, Run Sal Run. Nothing to see here, and nothing sees you either.
I’m older and it was very common when I was growing up for parents to treat the boys like the golden children and the girls like second class citizens. It reflected the culture at the time. But at least our parents acknowledged that we existed, even if we were the less favored children. I cannot believe how Linda is just ignoring Sal. I’d like to kick her ass, seriously.
I am still undecided on this. I am leaning towards Mom being so in shock that she has been completely distracted by her socially inept son having a girlfriend that she is totally focusing on that; and not that she is deliberately ignoring Sal. One of the next few panels may have her snapping out of it and turning her attention to Sal, only to realize that she has left. On the other hand, you and the others may be correct, I am going to wait and see what develops.
Sal. Your blessings. Count them. (Or save WALKY)
Charles and Linda, you are both just terrible. I’m hoping Dorothy’s parents end up bonding with Sal (should she get dragged along).
Woah, what did Charles do to deserve the hate, other than express happiness at seeing his daughter, complement her usual look, and then be sad that she was obviously ditching them?
yeah Charles is making an attempt to reconnect unlike Linda seems to be using Dorothy as an excuse to not even acknowledge Sal’s exsistence
That compliment was a hidden insult. “You look *so pretty* when it’s long and straight.” As in, “But you don’t now that it’s in its naturally curly staight.” Though now we know why Sal is so invested in keeping her hair long and straight despite the hours-long maintenance it takes.
I thought Sal liked her hair that way, and Charles’ line implicitly included something like “I approved of your (hair) decision”.
Well let’s see. His entire interaction with Sal consisted of pointing out that he likes her straight hair over her curly hair, a pretty loaded statement for a lot of people of mixed race (which he should well know, as he’s mixed race himself). Did he notice that she was wearing the same high school uniform that she wore for FOUR YEARS? No. Any attempt to give her attention to compensate for Linda’s obsession with Dorothy? No. Any attempt to curtail Linda? No. Any attempt to make time with Sal? Nope. Just “oh, you’re going to a hair salon? Well, that’s too bad. See you next year.” It’s nice to blame the squeakiest wheel, but so far I can see why Sal doesn’t want to spend time with either of them.
How much do you expect in 4 panels a day? Jury’s still out for me, unless they go off without any words spoken at all.
Yeah, you’re reading a LOT into like ten seconds of interaction.
He was happy to see her, he acknowledged her, there’s nothing wrong with preferring one hairstyle over another, and he’s sad that she’s ditching him.
Also, he’s at fault for commenting on her hair, but he’s also at fault for -not- commenting on her dress? It really reads to me as if you’re looking for excuses to justify hating on him.
Somewhat redacting this, since I have a little more perspective. See the post by Megs below.
There’s nothing wrong with preferring one hairstyle over another, but his immediate response is to tell her how he prefers her hair instead of asking any further about why she changed it. Unless Sal put a lot of tonal inflection in her voice her response of “It just happened” is pretty neutral. Charles’s response would be fine if she’s replied “Yeah, I changed my hair and I hate it.” but it’s pretty judgmental as is. A not-self centered parent could have probably mustered up a “It’s a big change, how do you about it?” or a “Really? Tell me about it!” or a “Wait, why are you wearing your high school uniform?”
I will admit putting personal bias in this. One of my college roommates was biracial, adopted with a white family and spent a lot of in her childhood hearing about how her hair was difficult and unmanageable while the white child in that family was often complimented on her hair. That family was very kind to her on the whole, but statements like Charles’s comment can carry a lot of baggage.
I want to give Sal a hug.
This is a strange feeling. Usually I want to give her a smack.
I think Dorothy’s parent will do no worse than tease a little and make suggestive jokes. They seem cool like that.
My parents are like that. It’s not bad or harmful or anything, but it still gets on my nerves…
Hmm. To falcon punch or to not falcon punch, that is the question.
Quick Walky, drag Sal off and convince her to take your place as a decoy, thus starting a long series of misunderstandings where everybody thinks Dorothy’s a lesbian!
Oh.
Okay.
Welp, I was fuckin’ wrong. Sorry, Sal.
Poor Sal. No wonder she acts out so much. Her parents completely ignore her in favor of her manchild of a brother.
not entirely true. Her mother completly ignores her for her manchild of a son. Her father spoke to her and was happy to see her.
After Blaine and Ethan’s Mom, favoritism seems kinda minor on the list of parental sins
This is ISS S.A.L Bot reporting in! Aborting mission! Aborting mission!
Really not seeing what the Walkertons (especially dad) did to garner such hate, or what Sal has ever done to deserve any sympathy. Her mother didn’t immediately drop the conversation she was already having to dote on eher criminal daughter. Boo hoo. Her dad actually does talk to her, but instead of making an effort herself, she immediately begs off with a lame excuse.
Meanwhile, the supposedly favored son is being talked to like he’s a particularly thick headed five year old.
Meanwhile, Danny, whose character flaws are pretty obviously the fault of his parents, and which are only harmful to himself, is a subject of regular hate and derision, even in the comments of comics in which he doesn’t even show up.
Willis, it is clear that, regardless of your intent, DoA is going to be read *dramatically* differently by people who know the Walkyverse and people who do not. No way around it. : )
Mostly I just think there’s no way around my readers being pretty damn white.
You mean full of hipsters and people with first world problems?
‘Cause whenever anyone talks about things being “white” I imagine it being full of old timely English gentlemen, for some weird reason.
Now why would anyone think of me as an old timey British gentleman?
*Adjusts bowtie and has a cup of tea*
You don’t have to be white to be those things, and you don’t have to be those things to be white. And Hipsters, people with first world problems, and “old timely English gentlemen” don’t….really have anything to do with each other, so I’m uncertain what your point is.
But I imagine Willis is talking about the fact that most of his audience is caucasian, which means we didn’t grow up in the shadow of african american history and the civil rights movement. So, for example, to someone like me, suggesting you like someone’s hair straight (when they usually apparently straighten it on their own) is simply expressing a styling preference, while to someone like Sal, it has a subtext of “I sure wish you were whiter, honey.”
It’s hard, as a robot, to fully explain how what Sal’s dad said was hurtful to her. I can only tell you about what I read in a few sources by African Americans.
In his Autobiography, Malcolm X talks about how it was popular to straighten you hair if you were black, because their hair is by know means straight. I don’t know about now, but back then hair straightening wasn’t exactly healthy. The chemicals used were noxious.
When he was in prison, it was pointed out to him that the only reason black people would straighten their hair was to look more white. In fact, reading his book, you get the opinion that was a huge driver in African American culture: valuing whiteness. Parents would often favor lighter skinned children. (Although, IIRC, that wasn’t true of Malcolm X’s parents. With his mother, it was the opposite.)
This social pressure amounted to black people not accepting who they were or valuing their natural features. Learning this in prison, Malcolm made an effort to learn more. That’s why he turned to Black Islam, because it was a religion that valued African American culture. Or, at least, represented itself as one.
Sal’s hair is naturally curly, and her dad’s remark suggests that he doesn’t value that, but only when she changes her body to conform to his preferences. It’s one thing say “I like your hair down.”
I think that it’s pretty obvious that the Walkerton’s are treating both David and Sal poorly. Mom is being very demanding of meeting David’s new girlfriend, and not taking “no” for an answer. I’m sure he’d prefer to NOT be the favorite.
But Sal is ignored. Mom doesn’t necessarily need to drop everything and dote on her, but it would have been nice if Dad had asked about classes and how she was liking school. You know, typical parent stuff. Instead, he subtly suggests that the way her hair is naturally isn’t good enough.
As that fleshling Mr. Roger’s once said, “You are special just the way you are.”
But wasn’t she about to relax it anyway?
I’m not sure I’ve ever met a parent (at least the kind of parent who’d come to a parents’ weekend) who wouldn’t react to their son’s new girlfriend similarly…
Actually, I think it was specifically mentioned that she doesn’t like her hair this way when it first went “foomp”.
I think there’s a difference between taking an interest in you’re kid’s boyfriend or girlfriend and angrily saying “You ask her and her family out to dinner!” Compare Mrs. Walkerton with Dorothy’s mom who just teases her daughter, but doesn’t make any demands.
As strange as it is to hear from a Decepticon, I appreciate the context, Megs. I wasn’t strongly aware of the history involved, and while I don’t really know that we’ve seen enough to condemn her dad for this (If she straightens the hair herself as an act of rebellion, this could be his way of saying “Hey, you don’t have to change it back just because we’re here.”) I can at least see where the other perspective is now.
Condemnation is, I think, I little strong. But it’s certainly something we can criticize him for. It’s possible, even likely, that he doesn’t subscribe to the kind of politics I’ve seen others do. And so doesn’t think it should bother Sal, and so doesn’t notice that it does.
I doubt that he’s a bad person, as fleshlings go.
The hair comment really struck me as being unkind, especially in light of the history of hair straightening in the US. She didn’t bring up her hair, HE did – to say he liked it better before. That’s like saying, “Hey, you got your hair cut! I don’t like it, you were prettier before,” and in this case, there’s an undercurrent of “man, white girls have better hair” to it (whether that’s intentional or not).
I still remember hair-related comments from my mother – considering I was always the favorite child and this has stuck with me (I’m 36 now, this was back in high school & college), I can’t imagine how damaging it would be to have your parents saying that crap when they are otherwise ignoring you.
I agree that it’s unkind. Reading my preceding comment, I want to make clear that I think it’s possible that he’s ignorant of how much it bothers her, because he’s made a decision that it shouldn’t bother anybody.
Wasn’t aware of the hair thing. Working with a number of black women, I always assumed that most of them straightened their hair for ease of care, since curly hair is a pain in the ass.
This is an amazing comment, not just because you summed up the issue very well, but you also open it with “as a robot”.
Um, yeah, Rex, when your child that you haven’t seen in years shows up, you -do- stop your conversation with the one you’ve seen regularly to greet them, hug them, let them know they’re valued, and THEN you go back to your conversation. Walky’s mom is being a horrible parent.
Hell, that’s not even a family thing! It’s COMMON MANNERS to pause your conversation to say hello to a new arrival.
Haven’t seen in years? They’ve only been in school for a couple of weeks. Yeah, her relationship with her mom is obviously strained at best, and I’d definitely be more sympathetic to Sal is she didn’t just use “mommy doesn’t love me” as an excuse for bad behavior.
You forgot the part about Sal being sent away to Catholic school.
I didn’t forget about that. I’m just pretty sure Catholic school lets out for the summer and the kids get sent home, the same as any other school.
Walky says he has barely talked to his sister over the past 5 years: http://www.dumbingofage.com/2010/comic/book-1/02-uphill-from-here/helmet/
While that’s certainly possible with Sal coming home every summer, that doesn’t feel right to me. Also, Walky seemed genuinely surprised by Sal, to paraphrase him, finding leather instead of Jesus. Again, possible, but harder if she comes home every summer.
Granted.
None of which, however, really does anything to answer why Sal does nothing to try to turn her own life around or to even act like a decent human being and is treated like some sort of folk hero while Danny has actually moved on, shown some growth, and even done a couple of admirable things, and is treated like pond scum. Aside, of course, from people who can’t separate these characters from their Walkyverse counterparts.
confirmaaation biiiias
Or you could actually offer some examples of why Danny is worse than Sal instead of just tossing out the name of a logical fallacy as if it constituted an actual argument.
Mr. Willis hasn’t actually indicated whether or not he agrees with you. It’s possible he agrees that Sal is worse than Danny in this universe.
Or, it’s possible he thinks neither one of them is that bad.
You say Sal has “done nothing to try to turn her own life around,” when she’s the only person in the cast who we know has actively sought out tutoring to help improve her understanding of her math assignments. We know that she saved up for and purchased her own motorcycle. You say she doesn’t “even act like a human being” when we know that she stands up for her roommate when she is being bullied. In fact, I’m not sure we know of anything that suggests that Sal HASN’T “turned her life around.” I mean, how many convenience stores have we seen her knock over in the present? Is she like, devouring live chickens on-panel or something? Does she demonstrate any less poor judgment than anyone else in the strip?
I couldn’t care less if “Danny is worse,” but your dehumanization of Sal sets off some red flags.
*slow but steady applause*
17 internets for you, Willis. I didn’t even see this stuff coming, but you called it, way up-thread…. Plus and extra internet for creating such an interesting complex character as Sal!
You know, it’s not even that Linda doesn’t greet Sal. (Although she doesn’t, and even if it’s only been a couple of weeks that’s not very nice of her.) It’s that “no avoiding the subject” line. As if Sal’s presence is nothing more than an excuse not to discuss Walky’s romantic life, and as easily dismissed.
Wow, So far I’m totally unimpressed with virtually all of the parents. Talk about your major issues and agendas! I think I like Dina’s the best so far.
Next comic, I’m going to make a list of all the characters who have bad parents versus those who have good parents seen thus far. I’m legitimately curious as to the ratio.
Let’s look at it:
– Wilcoxen: Emotionally manipulative jerks who either encourage Danny’s stupid behavior (follow Dorothy, she’s going places) or belittle him. Two points, for sure.
– Walkertons: Linda basically wants nothing to do with Sal, and Charles’s comment about her with straight hair is so very, very loaded. They’re quite, um… supportive of Walky, but the fact that they’ve basically ignored Sal’s enough to put them on the bad side until further evidence exonerates them. I’m tentatively giving them another two points.
– Browns: Encouraging their daughter to cut one of her friends out of her life against her strong beliefs otherwise. Think they’re doing the right thing, but still contributed to extreme shelteredness, seem to be the sort who go “I can’t be racist, I have a black friend!” judging by their response to Sarah. Nice if you agree with them, but still. SERIOUSLY uncomfortable. Two points as well.
– Siegals: “You made my son think he was gay.” Admittedly, not talking to Ethan himself, but that’s still enough to put them on this side of the list. Two points.
– Any Billingsworth: Conspicuous in their absence. Significant signs of neglect. One point because we have no idea what this family situation’s like, but it’s clearly fucked up.
– Dr. Rosenthal: is CREEPY around Sarah, who’s his son’s age, which suggests he’s a sexual harassment lawsuit waiting to happen, but any evidence we have of bad parenting is pure speculation. I’ll give him half a point for jerkery.
That’s 9.5 points on the bad scale.
– The Saruyamas: Literally so passive I’ve got nothing. Letting Blaine and Faz in was bad, but it’s possible Dina didn’t explain enough of the situation to them in time. Once Blaine was in, they could not get him out. Quite possibly contributed to Dina’s social issues. Quite possibly have their own significant ones. I DON’T KNOW.
– The Snows: Sierra’s a well-adjusted individual, and what we’ve seen of her parents suggests they’ve contributed to this. Reno in particular made a good impression by trying to slow down Blaine. I’m putting them on the good scale.
– The Keeners: So far, the worst they’ve shown is nosiness about a potential new boyfriend. Tentative two points, same as the Walkertons.
– The Warners: Oh yeah, they’re on the good side. Two points.
– Stacy O’Malley: Due to Obvious Circumstances, I’m counting Stacy on her own, and I’m counting her as at least mostly good. She had no way of knowing she’d probably be needed, and even if she did, I honestly think being absent from that situation was probably a good idea. It gave Blaine one less person to target, and meant Amber didn’t have to worry when running that Blaine might target Stacy instead. Amber also seems fairly well-adjusted, and since we know how she could have turned out from the old universe, that’s a very good sign. Good point.
So I’m giving it 7 points good, to 9.5 bad. Note also that I couldn’t judge the Saruyamas, considered putting Dr. Rosenthal as half and half on both sides (I didn’t because, while we have no real evidence of bad parenting, we have no evidence of good parenting either, and he’s still a total sleaze), added a point for the Billingsworths because even if we haven’t seen them, the reason why is enough to merit it, and did not include Blaine. That last one is because Blaine would significantly skew it, as his assholishness is worth more than two points on its own. Other parents may be sketchy, but Blaine is the only one we know, beyond all reasonable doubt, is abusive. We only have a few interactions for most parents from this story to judge them on, but Blaine has enough of a presence in about a week’s worth of strips to be clearly worthy of judging, plus Amber’s comment, plus he had a significant, similar presence in the old universe that informs a lot about his subplot here.
Yeah, that’s more or less what I expected: Fairly close, but more bad than good.
As far as we know at the moment, yeah.
I would argue in Dr. Rosenthal’s favour. While I do agree that he came on way too strong with Sarah (and based on his son’s comments, it’s definitely not unusual, and the fact that she’s probably around half his age doesn’t do him any favours), I personally wouldn’t judge him based solely on that (especially since Joe himself is virtually the same, plus a few extra subtlety points).
Sexual activities aside, we’ve only really seen Joe’s dad in two situations. Both those cases showcased a very specific trait. So the only other thing that we have to judge him on is Joe himself, and I think that we can mostly agree that Joe is a stable, well-adjusted individual (again, sexual activities aside). And even there, Joe has very clear rules and morals, as we have seen previously.
Overall, I think that Dr. Rosenthal has a fairly good chance of being a better parent than most of the others here, if we use his son as any indication. Of course, we haven’t met the ex-Mrs. Rosenthal, so we don’t know how much of Joe’s character is a result of her parenting. Fact is, we just haven’t seen enough. Either way, I would personally put Dr. Rosenthal on the positive side of the ratio.
Dorothy’s are pretty centered and reasonable.
Mike’s are best.
I’m still not convinced that Mike’s parents haven’t been trolling their son for the last eighteen years.
They turn into police hating bikers whenever he’s not around?
Man, her mum won’t even *look* at her. 🙁
Let me get this straight, the reason why Sal rebels is because she doesn’t receive enough attention?
A bit shallow if true.
Being ignored by your own family is not pleasant. There is nothing shallow about it.
there’s a difference between not getting enough attention and being flat-out ignored. I mean, you’d at least expect a hello or some form of acknowledgement. even outright hostility would probably be nicer.
also, we don’t know if that is the reason she held up those grocery stores 5 years ago, or something that resulted from doing that.
so, hard to call right now.
;~; I really feel for Sal; there was a girl I used to date whose parents would be more involved in her younger brother’s life, and it still really crushes her that they care more about his needs. Her younger brother, unfortunately, is NOT like Walky; way more immature and mean.
I still love how Sal looks like a poofy-haired version of reverse-gendered Walky from their stint in Canada.
I’ve been sitting back and thinking about this Walkerton situation. My conclusion is that a lot of people here who think the Walkertons aren’t doing anything wrong or that “not enough attention” is “shallow” really need to research mental and emotional abuse.
Even if for some reason you don’t care about the racial baggage in Mr. Walkerton’s comment, “I liked you better before” isn’t really a nice thing to say, especially when you brought up the topic. It just reeks of “You’re not good enough.” What if Sal actually preferred her hair that way? That comment could have really hurt. Mr. Walkterton didn’t know one way or the other.
Then we have Mrs. Walkerton who, as far as I can tell, hasn’t even said one word to her daughter. It doesn’t matter if she hasn’t seen her daughter in 5 years or 3 weeks, she should at least say hello and goodbye, shouldn’t she? Take SOME interest in her daughter? She doesn’t need to be following her son around while he’s on the phone; she could say goodbye to Sal then, right?
I think its also important for people to keep in mind that parents are the people you grow up with. What they do is what you think is normal. If Sal was ignored at home while she grew up, and Walky was the golden child, then YES. That would fuck her up and cause her to act out. It’s not shallow; that’s a real thing that really happens to real people.
I dunno, after reading way too much about abuse (mostly narcissistic parents and parents with other personality disorders) it just makes me sad to see people who don’t recognize harmful behavior.
I…it feels to me like the Walkertons don’t know that they’re doing wrong by Sal. That doesn’t excuse it, at all, and I really am wondering which came first, the emotional pain or the criminal activity, how this dysfunction happened.
I do think someone needs to fucking shake the shit out of them and say PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR DAUGHTER, which is a 180 from my previous position, so there’s that.
Oh, I’d bet real money that the emotional pain is the -reason- for the criminal activity.
Hey, Walky, maybe be less of a shit sibling, by the way. Take a break from your cartoons and see why your sister is feeling sad, you little asshole.
omg Sal is a Canadian lesbian? SAUCE: http://avalonhigh.com/d/20000131.html
Poor Sal, she got all Polly-anna’ed and everyone’s ignoring her.
Man, Sal’s parents are the only people in the universe who don’t see how cool she is? Parents suck, dude.
Man it wasn’t till a reread that I got just how sad this strip right here is. She actually says bye twice and is ignored for something trivial.