Zell’s Duel Limit break was like that too…but mixed with aspects ofSabin’ “Blitz” commands
groups of button sequences appear on the screen and as many as possible must be input in the allotted time.
“My Final Heaven” was just one of the possible finishing moves that the combo’s could be ended with…and was the best 😀
The flashbacks may cause Amber problems, but I think Amazi-girl only gets stronger.
Anyways, Blaine doesn’t know, that using Danny as a shield is probably a bad idea. Although this might be the preparation for Danny to redeem himself in the eyes of the readers … by becoming an acceptable loss of course. This level of stupidity cannot be fixed otherwise 😛
that’s silly. even if he does that, he’ll say something that the fandom deems insufficiently reverent towards Amber, and they’ll go back to hating him.
it’s his purpose to be hated. so we’ll hate him, because he can take it. because he’s not a hero. he’s a silent scapegoat, a watchful whipping boy.
In the flashback, Sal’s (and Ethan’s) forearms are bare, like the knife-wielder. Amber’s (and Blaine’s) are covered by long sleeves. Also, Sal seems to be explicitly shown with the knife. Which is not to say that Amber couldn’t have rolled up her sleeves and got hold of the knife . . .
If he has bank accounts, the government can tap them until they’re drained. They don’t look kindly on people skimping out on child support, so have a few fail-safes to make it VERY hard.
Bank accounts get bled dry fast without money going in.
The cost of my abusive stepfather finally slipping up was losing our house, but maybe my own history colors how I see this.
Sammie, I’d agree with you, but Laseema said “Amzi-girl.” Amber’s nowhere near ready to admit that she’s “Amazi-Girl,” but perhaps she’s ready to claim to be “Amzi-girl.”
While it’s true that Amber could have prevented the situation by taking different actions, it’s hardly her fault. Danny could have taken different actions and prevented the situation as well.
Neither of them caused it. The bad guy caused it all by himself.
I knew it I knew it I knew it! It was Blaine that grabbed Ethan! and if I remember right… I think it was Blaine that held the knife too!! ooohh man. I can’t wait to see what happens!!!
Thought: Something traumatized Sal to the point she started swinging a knife. Perhaps she saw someone that had abused her. Perhaps Blane, a known abuser, had done something to her, before that point. And, there he is, paying for his gas. She has a knife. She tries to use it on Blane.
Even if he hadn’t abused her, even seeing abuse (so a stranger abusing a stranger) can certainly be enough to trigger someone. It looks more, to me, like Blaine was trying to “discipline” Amber, Ethan stepped in, and Blaine flipped out at him.
(I’m assuming the “You’re ruining everything” is what he said both times, based on the speech bubble stretching into the second panel.)
My working assumption is that Blaine never even entered the store and that Amber just has reflexive twitchies to *anybody* she cares about getting grabbed as a hostage by *any* bad guy.
Normally I’d agree, but this is Blaine we’re talking about. Given everything else he’s done, not recognizing his daughter in disguise is barely even making the evil-parent-ometer twitch.
You’d be surprised. I cosplay all the time, and I don’t wear masks–but I do wear wigs. I’m particularly known for dressing up as Misty from Pokemon. The thing is, when my cosplay friends first see me out of costume, they literally don’t recognize me. All it takes is a change of hair color/style/clothes and you’re a different person. (Which is why I don’t mind having my pictures on the Internet. No one recognizes me out of costume. ) if a simple wig can make one unrecognizable, I imagine a mask would work even better.
Or, you know, Danny’s testimony. That would make it very straight forward. Danny would have to turn into a total blithering idiot for that not to work.
I dunno…he does seem like the sorta jackass who would’ve read the Evil Overlord List in order to better manipulate those around him, but then showing up to taunt his daughter in a public place is a massive fail in terms of self-awareness, so…
This has the potential for much disaster. I can only hope that this flashback is not incapacitating, and Amazi-Girl continues to fight crime subconsciously despite being distracted by other things.
On a different note which doesn’t fit today’s comic, I made an animated edit based on the comic of two comics ago. Amazi-Girl’s head movements are meant to be breathing. http://youtu.be/29eFqIyQXYU
Danny : “oh shit shit shit! What am I seeing?!?”
As his view is blocked by a well place smoke pallet causing him to see blue gloved punches making contact all over Blaine, all the while hearing.
Amazing-girl: “you son of a bongo! Take him away! Use him as a hostage! You were the one that should’ve went to jail! Not that girl! You put her up to this! Everything wrong in everyone’s life is your fault!”
And continue the incorherant tasting of a super hero as she takes out years of repressed anger and rage out on the source of it all… Her douche bag of a father.
Yup, this is what I think will happen
“‘I have a dream.’ That one day every person in this nation will control their own destiny. A nation of the truly free, dammit. A nation of action, not words, ruled by strength, not committee! Where the law changes to suit the individual, not the other way around. Where power and justice are back where they belong: in the hands of the people! Where every man is free to think – to act – for himself! Fuck all these limp-dick lawyers and chickenshit bureaucrats. Fuck this 24-hour Internet spew of trivia and celebrity bullshit! Fuck American pride! Fuck the media! FUCK ALL OF IT! America is diseased. Rotten to the core. There’s no saving it – we need to pull it out by the roots. Wipe the slate clean. BURN IT DOWN! And from the ashes a new America will be born. Evolved, but untamed! The weak will be purged and the strongest will thrive – free to live as they see fit, they’ll make America great again! …In my new America, people will die and kill for what they BELIEVE! Not for money. not for oil! Not for what they’re told is right. Every man will be free to fight his own wars!”
Something just occurred to me, how old is Faz in the Dumbingverse? He’s too young to be a college student, but is he young enough for Blaine to get charged with child abandonment as a final kick in the ribs on his way out of the story?
If he’s under 18, I’m pretty sure you can be charged with child abandonment, it’s just under more extreme circumstances. Because Dina and her parents were there, he could claim he asked them to watch Faz.
The way Dina had him trussed up like a mummy when last seen, he’s probably been installed in a glass case in the Egyptology area of the Mathers Museum.
You know, Blaine: The whole Evil Manipulative Bastard thing works better if you don’t go kidnapping your leverage the first moment- Wait, why am I trying to give this asshole advice?
Run at her fists, Blaine! You know how weak and womanly girls are! She can’t hurt you! Just run right at them with your face! We’re rooting for you!
What exactly is Blaine intending to do anyway? Was he gonna hurt Amber in front of a witness? What the hell is he expecting to accomplish? I don’t doubt that he’s a short sighted self-justified rage-monkey, but jesus christ.
Probably he was intending it as a “veiled” threat, like “See how easily I can insinuate myself into your life through your friends? You can’t get rid of me, better get in line.”
Alright, I’m officially calling “death of the author” here. Blaine is bantering with his daughter here.
I’m saying Blaine knows, AND NO ONE CAN CONVINCE ME OTHERWISE.
Amazi-girl finally did what everyone of us has tried to do for Danny since this entire misshap started: she finally spelled it out to him.
Now let’s see the ensuing massacre that Blaine’s about to become.
This. If no one else pointed it out I was going to, I’m impressed that she actually said it. I thought that she’d try to avoid doing so- 1. to avoid suggesting any ties to Amber, 2. because she doesn’t like telling people this (if she had just told Danny sooner, this whole incident would’ve been avoided). She didn’t just say “This guy’s a jerk”, she gave specifics about why she’s taking the actions she’s taking, making it easier for Danny to have a clear view of who’s good and bad if it does escalate to a fight. Danny trusts AG, so he has reason to believe her, and if he has two brain cells to rub together he can look back and realize Blaine’s actions were suspicious (and now Blaine’s really shooting himself in the foot).
The great thing about that extended chase sequence is that it proves beyond any doubt that Amazi-Girl is legit capable of pulling off some real Batman-style performance. Assuming her psychosis doesn’t get in the way too much (and/or in the wrong way), this could really get brutal.
I’m surprised in over 100 comments I’m the first to bring this up. But am I the only one who noticed Sal is one of the tags on this page? Oh Willis. lol
I just don’t see how Blaine hasn’t figured this out already.
Then again, Danny has been in close contact with both Amazigirl, Sal, and Amber and he has completely missed the point so maybe the Amazigirl costume really DOES hide the identity well.
If you mean the 5th panel- AG hadn’t yet said WHY Blaine’s a bad guy (she was in the process of saying it as Danny was moving). Also, Danny, Blaine, and AG are in a sort of triangle- Danny’s movement could be towards either of them. So he could be getting closer to his girlfriend, which is normal behavior.
Fuck, this triggered another anxiety attack. My heart is just jackhammering inside my chest. I can’t get over just how close to home Blaine’s abuse hits for me. Much more than I expected. If I didn’t trust Willis to deliver some serious catharsis at some point, I don’t think I could keep reading this part of the plot.
Well, she does wear her hair differently, carries herself differently, and makes excellent use of the Amazi-Voice. The outfit needs a little work, though…
So yeah, there’s Blaine’s breakdown right on schedule, like we could see coming eight strips ago. Has this ass gone through his entire life without ever having his authority challenged because that’s the only way I can imagine he was ever able to convince anyone he should be allowed around people.
Career abusers are master bullshitters and manipulators, and for some reason most people just are not capable of recognizing Predator Face when they see it. People have an enormous capacity for ignoring evil that’s right in front of them, in order to keep from having to be the one who actually does something about it, whether it’s individual monsters like Blaine or sociopathic corporations or tyrannical governments.
Normal people are sociable. On the one hand, they don’t really ‘get’ and don’t expect psycho- or socio-paths and so they don’t pick up the clues well — people tend to overlook or not respond effectively to what they aren’t atuned to. On the other hand, most people avoid violent confrontations and aren’t very good at them relative to those who are. So ‘paths’ have a twofer edge over ‘normals’. Talking about strangers here (vs intra-family abusers), as Danny and Blaine are. That Danny is at the extreme end of the curve of cluelessness only makes this an extreme case. No one knows how they will deal with a psy- or so- until they have — and VERY few of us are Supers, that’s why we identify with them: they’re competent at this.
First kick to the crotch and he’ll let go of Danny. Besides, he doesn’t have a weapon. What is he actually going to *DO* to him, other than maybe *hit* him?
So, has it been confirmed that Amazi-Girl’s mask adequately hides her identity? Given, it is night time, and it is raining, so visual awareness is a bit low, but depending on where the light source is, her dad should be able to see her pretty well. And if her own father can’t recognize her under the mask, then would it be safe enough to say that no one really can?
It’s not just the mask, though. She started wearing her hair differently, her body language is different, her voice change would make Tara Reid envious, and to top it off… people are usually too busy gawking at the yellow and blue superhero outfit to even LOOK at her face.
Oh, this is bad, you absolutely do not ever want to go to the Red Place when there are hostages in the way. This deck doesn’t have an Ends Well card in it.
Wait I get what’s going to happen. Danny said he wanted to find out Amazi-Girl’s identity from like a dramatic situation or something. $10 says she get’s unmasked during the upcoming scuffle.
And here we find out Ethan was actually killed by Sal in the convenience store, and everything that happened in Dumbing of Age so far was a constructed reality in Amber’s mind to cope with the fact that her best friend is really dead.
Amber is very thorough when constructing her own alternate reality. Joyce and her sexless seduction of Ethan represents Amber’s failure to protect him, much weakened from what really happened.
Every scene that didn’t feature Amber was constructed by her as well, she just isn’t aware of them as she is aware of those in which she does feature.
Interesting point: Blaine has either officially assaulted Danny now (for legal purposes) or is on the brink of doing so. If Danny goes to the police after this and files charges things could get very difficult for Blaine, considering that he’s already violating a restraining order.
Hell, I think Amber should have probably called the police from the minute she found out Danny was with her father. Even if Blaine hadn’t technically harmed him at that point, she knew he might have the potential to do something of that nature. Blaine might not end up arrested/punished in that scenario, but the presence of real law enforcement would at least make him hesitate to pull something like this, as opposed to a random girl in a hero costume telling him to knock it off. Now, we have both Danny and Amazi-girl in serious danger, and even the possibility of Blaine being punished in the aftermath hinges on one of them being badly enough hurt to make a plausible case against him.
Well, now I’m expecting two to four days of flashbacks, followed by a cut back to reality … and the aftermath. What happened between? No man can ever know.
Aaaaaaand now the police show up, make Blaine release Danny, hold Blaine for questioning while they check with campus security and give those cute kids a ride home. A total no drama ending because then all will say DAMN YOU WILLIS.
Regardless of how plausible it is that no one’s recognized Amazi-Girl as Amber yet, I assumed that Blaine would recognize her immediately, and be astounded that Danny doesn’t, just because Rule of Funny.
Danny: “But, Amazi-Girl! How do you know all this about Amber’s father?”
Amazi-Girl: “What, are you dense? Are you retarded or something? Who the hell do you think I am?”
What exactly is Amazi-girl ruining? His chance at making up with his daughter? His chance at….attacking her? Really? “Damn you superhero, I just want to assault my daughter and this moron here, give me a bone!”
As Amazi-Girl said, her father wants to use Danny as (emotional) leverage over the daughter he loves to abuse, and because Danny now knows that, the leverage is kind of gone. And that angers Blaine. (And you wouldn’t like Blain when he’s angry. Or not angry, for that matter.)
I’m worried that this won’t end well for Danny. In the original Roomies, Ruth’s death was used as a motivating factor for Danny. What if this time it’s what happens to Danny that acts as a motivating factor for Amazi-Girl? Blaine is at the limit here, and if there was anyone in the Dumbing of Age universe capable of murder, it’d be him.
Granted, I don’t think that’s going to happen. There’s too many plot things happening around Danny for him to be killed off. But dang, he is THAT close to becoming the male equivalent of Women in Refrigerators.
actually walky is just insane, there is no sal and there never was. He just every now and then dresses up as his imaginary twin sister and sexes up the math TA, no one has the heart to tell him, every time you see him ‘talking to his sister’ he’s just talking to thin air. Poor Danny couldn’t even tell with the pants slipping so low.
I still say that Amazi-Girl hasn’t done anything yet that would bring her to the attention of law enforcement. She stopped someone from beating up Danny, she stopped some sign vandals, and she stopped someone from ripping off a bicycle. Hell, if anyone needs to worry about being the subject of an assault complaint, it would be Sarah for her baseball bat beatdown of Joyce’s wanna-be rapist.
She’s wearing a mask. She styles her hair differently. She speaks in a different voice. She’s dressed in a full-body suit that conceals every inch of visible skin below the neck. There’s pouring rain in front of all their faces. The sky is overcast, and it’s almost nighttime. None of this is even taking into account that pale-skinned brunette girls are a dime a dozen on any given public university campus.
If anyone but Ethan and her own mother could recognize Amber under all that crap, they would deserve a freaking medal.
Day started great with this DOA update but then I’ve had a very disapointing evening … So Blaine better get his legs broken in tomorrow’s strip !
If not I will sulk. SULK !
Has anyone else noticed that the hands near Amber in the flashback look awfully big? Even perspective-wise she shouldn’t have manhands at a petite age thirteen.
I think there is a man behind her ready to restrain her from going to Ethan’s aid.
You know, people not really knowing Amber’s appearance or stature or Amber herself is one thing and Danny being……sigh Danny and Amber purposely changing her appearance as Amazi-girl some what so he doesn’t figure it out BECAUSE HE’S DANNY is another. But the fact that Blaine doesn’t realize that that’s his own daughter about to kick his ass is sad. I mean yeah she’s in costume and costumes are meant to disguise you and let you become someone else. But it’s not that hard to put 2 and 2 together. I’m assuming that phone call wasn’t too long ago and she let Amazi- girl slip out then but who knows….He was standing in the shadows outside the dorms but he probably wasn’t there when she burst out the door while changing. But still…………Either way I want to see his ass go down. His daughter and himself need help, but Amber even if she isn’t handling in the best way, know she has some problems while this bastard thinks he knows best and UGH! Please go to jail!
The flashback is likely not of something Blaine did… Not too long ago, Amber had a comparison flashback where she hit Blaine where she had HIS face and HIS enjoyment of causing pain to someone else. This flashback is probably reminding her, yet again, that she is her father’s daughter, because I’m certain that flashback was from the trip her and Ethan took with her father, where she was freaking out about buying a snack at the gas station…
Back then she was outwardly anxious about being in control of how people, even cashiers, perceived her. Something as simple as knowing that she wanted a certain snack, which was beyond her control, was terrifying. Ethan tried to quell it, but I think it will show that he failed… and he failed terrifyingly hard because she perceived it as him trying to take control away from her. This need for control is what she learned from Blaine, who right here, is flipping out because some superhero is ruining his plans to hurt his daughter so she’s submissive again. He’s losing control, and he is reminding her of the person she used to be, and despite having gone to such lengths to repress and correct herself, still is.
You say this won’t end well for Blaine? I’d say Amber is the one who is going to suffer. A lot.
My father was exactly like Blaine, so I understand what girls like Amber go through. When you lash out even at the one who abused you, it terrifies you that you have that kind of rage in you. On one hand, you really really really want that fucker to suffer like you suffered. On the other hand, you are so scared that once you let go and let loose on that abuser, the rage is so complete and terrifying that the satisfaction you may feel by letting that fucker have it physically and or/verbally is short lived when you know that you are capable of that kind of rage that was aimed at you. It’s not black and white. It’s not clear cut. You feel like Bruce Banner. You live life knowing that there is this thing inside you that can snap at any minute and take over and do a lot of damage to yourself and others.
I mean, I get the whole ‘Blaine is an emotionally and physically abusive asshole’ thing, but Amber is showing that same rage and complete lack of control and even enjoyment of it, that Blaine possesses. If anything, like Mike said, she really is her father’s daughter.
That aside, there’s the whole ‘she’s probably gonna to go to jail because she’s looking to beat a man either to death or to an inch of his life’ thing, and I’m guessing ‘anger management isn’t something you learn real well while incarcerated.
Wow
It’s 10.5 months later and I finally understand what was unintended by Blaines melting dialogue box in panel 6/7. ( D’oh )
Granted it existing between 2 panels with an internal drama in Amber’s head is a clue,
as is WOG in the next page. Im probably just a little slow.
I’m sure Willis explictly meant it to be understood correctly, as he telegraghs this ….. But just in case , I’m not leaving any spoilers for new readers.
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Oh no.
I, on the other hand, look forward to Blaine’s future prospects as a legless man.
He won’t be entirely legless, just missing his femurs.
He’s got a really cute nickname now, Torso Boy!
OH YES. A MILLION TIMES YES.
cue… Blaine’s evil mastermind plan recitation… and how it will fail in epic fashion
Uh oh. Uh oh uh oh uh oh.
LIMIT BREAK!
Like Zell’s Duel perhaps?
You can kill EVERYTHING with that limit.
More like Squall’s Renzokuken!
You need a gun-blade for that, Zell’s LB only needs his fists.
Dolphin kick incoming. hold on to your butts.
Just Remember; “Laces up, Amazi-Girl!”
Press the x button in time with the commands on the screen!
Which sounds more like an Amazi-Girl move to you, Meteorain or Omnislash?
Beat Rush, etc.
Ungarmax, pronounced “Angermax”.
Suplex.
Final Heaven of Course!
Amazing Grace
Like Tifa’s Limit Break? Oh, this is going to be good.
Zell’s final limit break “My Final Heaven”
Literally runs around the world before delivering a supersonic blast!
Tifa had the original “Final Heaven” and before executing it she would preform ALL her previous LB in a row.
Zell’s Duel Limit break was like that too…but mixed with aspects ofSabin’ “Blitz” commands
groups of button sequences appear on the screen and as many as possible must be input in the allotted time.
“My Final Heaven” was just one of the possible finishing moves that the combo’s could be ended with…and was the best 😀
Whoops…”My Final Heaven” is actually a Finishing move that is one of many moves in Zell’s Limit Break, Duel!
Wrong game. It’s a Smash Attack. Amazi-PUOUNCH!!!!!!
uh oh! thats not falco! THATS NOT FALCO! wombo combo WOMBO COMBO!
It’s only a Wombo Combo if a teammate helps out. And Danny’s the only other person here.
Sal could show up as player 2.
10 Limit reached. Berserk Anger activating.
C-C-COMBO BREAKER
I thought of Blaine’s text as of Dracula’s voice distortion in Castlevania SotN. And it’s raining hard, too.
HYDRO STORM! (yes, I’m cheap)
They will never be able to wash the blood away from where Blaine is.
They could but it might take a keg full of Coke to do it.
They could do it but they chose to leave it there as a warning for other abusive fathers.
Hooooooly shit. Red flashbacks.
Worse than blue ones, but better than black ones!
Pfft, racist.
Now I’m scared for Amber.
Come on, hold it together. Unless this is when she goes into a blood rage.
Pretty sure it’s already blood rage time.
Amber is a krogan?
She certainly has the same cajones – “you’ve got a quad, Amazi-Girl.”
Oh Hockey sticks! this is Not Good!
You’re even SKEWING THE TEEEEEEXT.
You know she’s pissed when her pure unfiltered rage alone can warp the fabric of reality.
Dude, Amber is turning into Super Buu.
at this point Danny might be starting to suspect that Blaine may not have been entirely above board with him!
hey now don’t be too hasty, it could take a few more literary bricks to the dannynoggin
Time for the other shoe to drop.
It still has a foot in it.
Cool.
Hmmm… Something’s afoot here.
Yet they’re not outside a Circle K, so it’s not strange.
Yet.
Whoa!
Something something no small feet.
Will this cause a fright or fight response?
Oh the fight or flight was hit about 8 hours ago.
Now its kill or be killed….
She can go the way of the Orc and declare WAAAGH!
That’s…amazing. I must use this all the time.
I’m pretty sure she’s taking his SKULL FOR THE SKULL THRONE!
Meanwhile, Dina and Riley are getting milk for their Khorne flakes.
Now can she break his legs?
http://i.imgur.com/9fMpGuA.gif
+1, have all my internets and cookies!
http://25.media.tumblr.com/516627e2f4b55a77b226c8d6dd77ad0d/tumblr_mq5oix9DW11sbu5xto1_400.gif
And that scene always reminds me of this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yxNR-ZkcTQ
That’s twice I’ve seen that gif now, what’s the show?
Its called RWBY. Its by the same people who make Red vs Blue.
Here’s a link to all of it.
http://roosterteeth.com/archive/?sid=rwby&v=more
I believe that the show is called “RWBY” a web animated series by Rooster Teeth.
Also I suspect at least five more comics before combat.
Oh no.
Horrible memories returning…
Must escape reality
“Blaine prepare for a Figure-Four Leg Lock!”
ohhhhh shit
Danny is an incompetent version of Lois lane?
Even with the qualifier “incompotent” I feel like that’s offensive to Lois Lane.
Yeah. He’s really more of an incompetent Jimmy Olsen.
I’m not even sure he’s that. More like Bat-Mite without any powers.
It’s not really offensive if you pick the Superman Returns version of Lois.
Exactly! He really is, isn’t he.
He’s like 1950s Lois Lane. He’s two steps away from trying to trick Amazi-Girl into marrying him.
To make Amber jealous.
Now I’m afraid Amber is going to go into flashback mode and start convulsing on the ground before she has the chance to beat Blaine senseless.
The flashbacks may cause Amber problems, but I think Amazi-girl only gets stronger.
Anyways, Blaine doesn’t know, that using Danny as a shield is probably a bad idea. Although this might be the preparation for Danny to redeem himself in the eyes of the readers … by becoming an acceptable loss of course. This level of stupidity cannot be fixed otherwise 😛
Robbery flash back part 2
Willis is trying to make us subconsciousely hate the color red.
Red shall henceforth be renamed “the color Blaine”
Won’t work. I like Ruth too much and she’s a redhead.
You mean she’s a blainehead
Her hair’s really more blaine-orange than straight blaine.
She’s anything *but* a Blainehead.
And this is why it won’t work.
Ruth is a Dalek in disguise.
Yes, she is, Blaine. What will you do about it?
I get the feeling she’s going to freak out a bit, Blaine is going to kick the crap out of her a bit, and then somehow, Danny will save the day.
And everyone that doesn’t already like him will LOVE him.
No, then we’re just going to bongo that he should have done it before.
Danny could cure cancer, feed the homeless, and end war and I still won’t “LOVE” him, cuz in the end he’ll still be Danny.
Even if Danny became another person, he was once Danny.
that’s silly. even if he does that, he’ll say something that the fandom deems insufficiently reverent towards Amber, and they’ll go back to hating him.
it’s his purpose to be hated. so we’ll hate him, because he can take it. because he’s not a hero. he’s a silent scapegoat, a watchful whipping boy.
a Dan knight.
That was terrible. Brilliant, but terrible.
Agreed.
Not a Danite? (Google it)
A lost tribe. Like , really lost.
So you say, he’s what Amber deserves, not what she needs right now?
Interesting…
Ooh, the flashback’s resuming? Nice.
nah, they just wandered into a Target
Cool! Now they can buy a Blu-Ray player and a $3 box of Cheerios.
Great, Danny becoming aware of the fact he did something terrible has cause a warp in space and time.
YOU FOOL! YOU’VE MESSED WITH THE NATURAL ORDEEEER!
Next thing you know, Danny woke up in the Mushroom Kingdom…as Toad.
That had been turned into a brick.
You think this is terrible?
When Amber can finally work out things with Blaine, be it by seperating his head from his body or whatever, I think that’s a good thing.
I’m more interested in Dannys reaction after Amazi-Girl unloaded rage upon someone who wasn’t obviously (to Danny) the bad guy.
Red panels!!!!
Prediction: the stabbing knife hand is not Sal’s but Amber’s! In her first fit of rage which she hates!
OMG, that makes sense!
Amber gets stabby?
Yeah, I’m okay with that.
In the flashback, Sal’s (and Ethan’s) forearms are bare, like the knife-wielder. Amber’s (and Blaine’s) are covered by long sleeves. Also, Sal seems to be explicitly shown with the knife. Which is not to say that Amber couldn’t have rolled up her sleeves and got hold of the knife . . .
You make a good point. Does the panel show the whole forearm or just the wrist?
Well done Mr Willis
Ah Danny, I think you may be about to collect the payoff on all your screw-ups.
If someone doesn’t intervene, Amber is going to really hurt Blaine.
So… no incentive to intervene then?
If you need me I’ll be over here, not paying attention to you mercilessly destroying that man.
Welp. Plan B on paying for college, Amber?
I got the impression he was already paying unwillingly?? Why would this change? I mean, unless you think she is going to literally murder him.
Because it’s likely Blaine will end up in jail, unable to make money.
If he has bank accounts, the government can tap them until they’re drained. They don’t look kindly on people skimping out on child support, so have a few fail-safes to make it VERY hard.
Bank accounts get bled dry fast without money going in.
The cost of my abusive stepfather finally slipping up was losing our house, but maybe my own history colors how I see this.
Blaine still legally has to pay for it.
Doesn’t help if he loses his income because he’s crippled. “Has to” gets trumped by “can’t” every time.
Might have wealth, vs income (technical sense).
Wait, what is Blaine’s job?
Please.
You mean he provides legal exculpation and signs everything?
No, it’s explaining jokes.
I hope Amber tells Danny after this that she’s Amzi-girl. After this, he deserves to know.
That would be ideal, but i don’t think she’s stable enough to do that yet. This comic being a key indicator of that…
Sammie, I’d agree with you, but Laseema said “Amzi-girl.” Amber’s nowhere near ready to admit that she’s “Amazi-Girl,” but perhaps she’s ready to claim to be “Amzi-girl.”
It’s her fan OC!
Oh boo. Sorry about the typo. Was commenting with WoW brain.
More importantly, Danny isn’t stable enough. Or he’s too stupid. Or both.
Amazi-girl’s face in panel 3 is delightful.
Adorable!
Agreed
Well, Blaine is boned!
It looks like Amber has fired a Kamehameha wave with words inside it.
The N-cha! laser from Doctor Slump?
I’d say they were being innovative by reversing the whole damsel in distress trope, but Danny is the biggest screaming girl in the series.
That’s offensive to females, and all homo sapiens for that matter.
You’re insulting/diminishing Danny by calling him a (big, screaming) girl?
Danny wishes he were the girls in this strip.
At night he tries on sweatervests and weeps silently to himself
On Wednesdays he goes shopping …
He had his chance with Roomies! and he blew it. Now, I get to watch Amber turn to the dark side.
“they”?
David Willis and the voices in his head that inspire him, of course. At least when they aren’t telling him to burn things.
I’m starting to actually feel bad for Danny.
You have the wrong feelings.
You should feel bad for him. Amber put him in real danger.
Amber put him in danger? He’s only there because he was duped by Blaine.
If their places were switched, you would blame Danny for this situation. It is just because of the pre-existing hatred that you feel this way.
While it’s true that Amber could have prevented the situation by taking different actions, it’s hardly her fault. Danny could have taken different actions and prevented the situation as well.
Neither of them caused it. The bad guy caused it all by himself.
Woah, hold up, I don’t even hate Danny.
You should feel bad for him. He’s the target of a massive amount of deranged, unjustified, vitriolic nerdrage.
I think someone’s about to go berserk…
Danny…My love for you…is like a truck.
BERSERKER.
Where’s Guts when you need ‘im.
On his insides. Hopefully that situation will continue to be true, though I’m concerned they will not.
Amber’s PTSD will cause her to go “Flippy” from Happy Tree Friends!
I knew it I knew it I knew it! It was Blaine that grabbed Ethan! and if I remember right… I think it was Blaine that held the knife too!! ooohh man. I can’t wait to see what happens!!!
** If I remember what I was thinking when I first saw the flashback right
I think the knife was still Sal, but the timing of this flashback… I’m definitely thinking Blaine grabbed Ethan to use as a human shield.
Thought: Something traumatized Sal to the point she started swinging a knife. Perhaps she saw someone that had abused her. Perhaps Blane, a known abuser, had done something to her, before that point. And, there he is, paying for his gas. She has a knife. She tries to use it on Blane.
Even if he hadn’t abused her, even seeing abuse (so a stranger abusing a stranger) can certainly be enough to trigger someone. It looks more, to me, like Blaine was trying to “discipline” Amber, Ethan stepped in, and Blaine flipped out at him.
(I’m assuming the “You’re ruining everything” is what he said both times, based on the speech bubble stretching into the second panel.)
My working assumption is that Blaine never even entered the store and that Amber just has reflexive twitchies to *anybody* she cares about getting grabbed as a hostage by *any* bad guy.
And with this strip, I see that I am wrong. I accept it, but do not retract my speculation based on the time and knowledge given to me.
Oh shit! Keep it together AG!
Has he really not realized that her is her instantly? Wow, cartoon villainy is one thing, but this, this is another level of bad parenting.
she’s wearing a mask
Swiper no Swiping!
Swiped no Swiping!!
“Swiper”
Too late, you messed up. Thanks to you, he got away with it.
Fucking IPhone!!!
Next time, Swiper! Next time!!!
Awww, Maaaan!
Plus it would hard to tell with the rain messing with the her hair and blains line of eyesight
Would think that would settle that … but it’s not going to, is it? Are you sure that you understand how the Universe that you’re creating functions? 🙂
You’d be surprised at how covering part of one’s face makes recognition difficult.
“You don’t think I would recognize you because I can’t see your cheekbones?”
Well, yes, but unlike the source you’re quoting, Danny hasn’t seen Amber naked.
not recently, anyway. probably when she was a baby. unless there’s some backstory i’m forgetting.
Danny and Amber didn’t know each other as kids, they met in college.
Trust me, this is the ONLY cartoonish thing Blaine’s done. Everything else is horrifyingly realistic.
I was raised by someone who was basically Blaine, but with enough knowledge of psychology to be more subtle about it.
don’t forget that Blaine is wearing glasses in the rain. He’s probably semi-blinded in this fight.
Normally I’d agree, but this is Blaine we’re talking about. Given everything else he’s done, not recognizing his daughter in disguise is barely even making the evil-parent-ometer twitch.
You’d be surprised. I cosplay all the time, and I don’t wear masks–but I do wear wigs. I’m particularly known for dressing up as Misty from Pokemon. The thing is, when my cosplay friends first see me out of costume, they literally don’t recognize me. All it takes is a change of hair color/style/clothes and you’re a different person. (Which is why I don’t mind having my pictures on the Internet. No one recognizes me out of costume. ) if a simple wig can make one unrecognizable, I imagine a mask would work even better.
Also, people shaving their heads makes them difficult to recognize OR differentiate. As you say, hair greatly affects persona.
I could well be mistaken, but my take is that it’s got absolutely nothing to do with the visual characteristics of Amber/Amazigirl.
What it comes down to a central conceit/authorial assertion that, in this universe, if a superhero/vigilante wears a mask their identity = concealed.
Very cool effect with the words stretching across the last two panels!
Wait, so…Amazi-Girl allows Blaine to not be on IU campus? Okay? so?
The point is that she’s not limited by the jurisdiction of campus security. That’s why she’s still demanding that he leave.
Thanks for ‘splainin!
Where is camera boy when you need him? A pic of panel 6 will prove her innocence when paramedics come for Blaine!
Or, you know, Danny’s testimony. That would make it very straight forward. Danny would have to turn into a total blithering idiot for that not to work.
He said she said at that point though….
Um, “turn into”?
Yeah! Totally impossible!
Blaine done fucked up.
Let’s hope he keeps doing that.
He pushed the Amazi-Girl button…he shouldn’t have done that!
You’ve met with a terrible fate, haven’t you?
I’m just waiting for Blaine to scream out, “NO! THIS CAN’T BE! I AM INVINCIBLE!!!”
Just before he gets sprayed with liquid nitrogen.
You mean like this guy?
I dunno…he does seem like the sorta jackass who would’ve read the Evil Overlord List in order to better manipulate those around him, but then showing up to taunt his daughter in a public place is a massive fail in terms of self-awareness, so…
Blaine is both stupid and arrogant enough to think that he wouldn’t NEED to read the Evil Overlord List.
And now the shit hits the fan.
This has the potential for much disaster. I can only hope that this flashback is not incapacitating, and Amazi-Girl continues to fight crime subconsciously despite being distracted by other things.
On a different note which doesn’t fit today’s comic, I made an animated edit based on the comic of two comics ago. Amazi-Girl’s head movements are meant to be breathing. http://youtu.be/29eFqIyQXYU
Red flashback frames are not time sensitive. Like extra points in football, they take no time off the clock.
Red Frame at night, red frame at night, Whoa oh, oh oh oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh!
After that, death is usually instantaneous.
I think everyone’s hoping for something prolonged.
That 3rd panel though.
It’s one of my favorite Amazi-Girl arts.
You really nailed the “Dark Knight Returns” Terrifying-Batman-Smile. It looks rad.
You should art like this more often!
Poster? 😀 I still have bits on the walls of my room that aren’t covered by Amazi-Girl.
Combined with Dorothy’s “You need to leave” face, you are on a serious roll.
Danny : “oh shit shit shit! What am I seeing?!?”
As his view is blocked by a well place smoke pallet causing him to see blue gloved punches making contact all over Blaine, all the while hearing.
Amazing-girl: “you son of a bongo! Take him away! Use him as a hostage! You were the one that should’ve went to jail! Not that girl! You put her up to this! Everything wrong in everyone’s life is your fault!”
And continue the incorherant tasting of a super hero as she takes out years of repressed anger and rage out on the source of it all… Her douche bag of a father.
Yup, this is what I think will happen
I meant incorherant raging*
Lol man I feel foolish.
When Willis said that no one would die in DoA, did he say “no one would die”, or “no one we would care about will die”?
He did say he might kill off Tony again, so I’m going with the latter.
AND I CARE FAR, FAR MORE ABOUT THIS DOUCHEBAG DYING AGAIN THAN I EVER CARED ABOUT TONY AT ALL.
As in you hope Danny doesn’t die or as in….?
AS IN I AM ACTIVELY HOPING FOR THE DEATH OF BLAINE. Danny has never died. ONE DEATH IS NOT ENOUGH FOR BLAINE O’MALLEY.
I care about Blaine.
Specifically, I care about seeing him suffer.
Ding-dong, Blaine will be dead.
Blaine get’s crushed by a house, confirmed!
“I’m not campus security…and this not a parking lot, this is an operating table..and I’m the surgeon.
Nice!
It’s all falling apart now!
I CARVED MY OWN PATH,
YOU FOLLOWED YOUR WRATH
BUT MAYBE WE’RE BOTH THE SAME
BUT IN THE END,
IT HAS TO BE THIS WAY.
I think it’s time for Jack…TO LET ‘ER RIP!
RULES OF NATURE!!!!
I’M MY OWN MASTER NOW!!!
“‘I have a dream.’ That one day every person in this nation will control their own destiny. A nation of the truly free, dammit. A nation of action, not words, ruled by strength, not committee! Where the law changes to suit the individual, not the other way around. Where power and justice are back where they belong: in the hands of the people! Where every man is free to think – to act – for himself! Fuck all these limp-dick lawyers and chickenshit bureaucrats. Fuck this 24-hour Internet spew of trivia and celebrity bullshit! Fuck American pride! Fuck the media! FUCK ALL OF IT! America is diseased. Rotten to the core. There’s no saving it – we need to pull it out by the roots. Wipe the slate clean. BURN IT DOWN! And from the ashes a new America will be born. Evolved, but untamed! The weak will be purged and the strongest will thrive – free to live as they see fit, they’ll make America great again! …In my new America, people will die and kill for what they BELIEVE! Not for money. not for oil! Not for what they’re told is right. Every man will be free to fight his own wars!”
I am clapping for each and every one of you.
Now I need to rip out some robo-colons to heal myself, AND increase my BP!
And they all lived happily ever after …
Well, this can only end in pain. Of all types.
*Mostly of all types.
Looks like you’re dealing with pain of all typos…
ADDDITIONAL BUUUAAAAAAAM.
(shotguns spit all over screen)
Anyone else get an “I am not left handed” flashback from that line?
More reminiscent of the “…but we’re not *on* my planet, are we?” exhange from Toy Story.
Yeah, this.
Whoa! Danny’s actually been properly kidnapped.
Which give AG a good excuse to beat the shit out of Blaine.
Or call the cops.
Who needs the cops…
AMAZI-GIRL IS THE LAW!!!
Yikes! I know the title of Dave’s next webcomic: “How Blaine Lives Without Leg-Benders”.
Something just occurred to me, how old is Faz in the Dumbingverse? He’s too young to be a college student, but is he young enough for Blaine to get charged with child abandonment as a final kick in the ribs on his way out of the story?
If he’s under 18, I’m pretty sure you can be charged with child abandonment, it’s just under more extreme circumstances. Because Dina and her parents were there, he could claim he asked them to watch Faz.
I wonder what Faz is doing. Maybe he’ll report Blaine to the authorities as revenge.
The way Dina had him trussed up like a mummy when last seen, he’s probably been installed in a glass case in the Egyptology area of the Mathers Museum.
Is this the fastest we’ve ever hit 100 comments?
I’d have to check, but it sure seems like it. Hoooly shit.
The red panel has Ethan in it, not Blane. Interesting.
Because it’s a flashback to the convenience store robbery years ago.
Amazi-Beatdown in 3, 2, 1….
“Do I look like a cop?!”
Tonight they shall pound each other in the most epic of hatefights!
You know, Blaine: The whole Evil Manipulative Bastard thing works better if you don’t go kidnapping your leverage the first moment- Wait, why am I trying to give this asshole advice?
Run at her fists, Blaine! You know how weak and womanly girls are! She can’t hurt you! Just run right at them with your face! We’re rooting for you!
(FAAAAAAAAACE)
Exactly like you did last time, also counter her kicks with your groin: that’s her weakness!
It was pure coincidence that two girls publicly beat the crap out of you in the space of 5 minutes. There is no way that could happen again.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d696t3yALAY
Amaza-girl: Dead or alive your coming with me!
What exactly is Blaine intending to do anyway? Was he gonna hurt Amber in front of a witness? What the hell is he expecting to accomplish? I don’t doubt that he’s a short sighted self-justified rage-monkey, but jesus christ.
Probably he was intending it as a “veiled” threat, like “See how easily I can insinuate myself into your life through your friends? You can’t get rid of me, better get in line.”
Maybe provoke her to violence first? That seemed like the original plan at least.
Go on Amazi-Girl- you’re the knight in spandex here!
Save your Danny in distress from the hate spewing daddy!
Seriously though.
You have a decent excuse now, work out those daddy issues.
Blaine is so amazingly screwed now.
Come on Amber… fail this will roll towards the “berserk” end of the spectrum and not the “fetal ball” end.
Or level up from Angst, evolve Sonic the Hedgehog powers, and turn into a berserk fetal ball.
Alright, I’m officially calling “death of the author” here. Blaine is bantering with his daughter here.
I’m saying Blaine knows, AND NO ONE CAN CONVINCE ME OTHERWISE.
Oh my God, you killed Willis!
You bastards!
‘DEATH TO THE AUTHOR!’
“Wait! That’s not what I–”
‘INTO THE FIRE!’
Amazi-girl finally did what everyone of us has tried to do for Danny since this entire misshap started: she finally spelled it out to him.
Now let’s see the ensuing massacre that Blaine’s about to become.
This. If no one else pointed it out I was going to, I’m impressed that she actually said it. I thought that she’d try to avoid doing so- 1. to avoid suggesting any ties to Amber, 2. because she doesn’t like telling people this (if she had just told Danny sooner, this whole incident would’ve been avoided). She didn’t just say “This guy’s a jerk”, she gave specifics about why she’s taking the actions she’s taking, making it easier for Danny to have a clear view of who’s good and bad if it does escalate to a fight. Danny trusts AG, so he has reason to believe her, and if he has two brain cells to rub together he can look back and realize Blaine’s actions were suspicious (and now Blaine’s really shooting himself in the foot).
oh man oh man oh man oh man oh man
and it turns out…
it was ancient aliens the whole time!
IT BEGINS
The great thing about that extended chase sequence is that it proves beyond any doubt that Amazi-Girl is legit capable of pulling off some real Batman-style performance. Assuming her psychosis doesn’t get in the way too much (and/or in the wrong way), this could really get brutal.
I’m surprised in over 100 comments I’m the first to bring this up. But am I the only one who noticed Sal is one of the tags on this page? Oh Willis. lol
Sal is in the tags because Sal is in the flashback panel, grabbing Ethan.
I just don’t see how Blaine hasn’t figured this out already.
Then again, Danny has been in close contact with both Amazigirl, Sal, and Amber and he has completely missed the point so maybe the Amazigirl costume really DOES hide the identity well.
Yes, she wears a mask.
Okay, this time I’m mad. Amazi-girl hates this dude and tells him to back away, and he STILL walks forward?
To me, that’s his biggest stupid sin to date. What the heck?
Or is he too dazed by lovingly looking at Amazi-girl’s face to notice anything?
If you’re referring to Danny, I think you’ll find that Blaine moved, not Danny.
If you mean the 5th panel- AG hadn’t yet said WHY Blaine’s a bad guy (she was in the process of saying it as Danny was moving). Also, Danny, Blaine, and AG are in a sort of triangle- Danny’s movement could be towards either of them. So he could be getting closer to his girlfriend, which is normal behavior.
Fuck, this triggered another anxiety attack. My heart is just jackhammering inside my chest. I can’t get over just how close to home Blaine’s abuse hits for me. Much more than I expected. If I didn’t trust Willis to deliver some serious catharsis at some point, I don’t think I could keep reading this part of the plot.
I actually just think that Amazigirl has the ablility to Clark Kent at will.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ClarkKenting
Well, she does wear her hair differently, carries herself differently, and makes excellent use of the Amazi-Voice. The outfit needs a little work, though…
Holy shit. I hope Danny makes it out of this okay. And hopefully not at the cost of poor Amber’s sanity.
Also holy shit, I just realized that this exact situation happening to Ethan is probably what drove Amber to become superhero in the first place.
That’s my take, as well. The moment Sal took Ethan hostage was the moment Amazi-Girl was born.
*vibrates*
A Hanz-Zimmer theme just started playing from the shere epic-BWAAAAAAAAAHM DADADADADAD BWAAAAAAAAAAAHM-ess
Yippee kiyyey, …
I’m half-expecting Amazi-Girl to go Super Saiyan right about now.
Oh hell here it comes
So yeah, there’s Blaine’s breakdown right on schedule, like we could see coming eight strips ago. Has this ass gone through his entire life without ever having his authority challenged because that’s the only way I can imagine he was ever able to convince anyone he should be allowed around people.
Career abusers are master bullshitters and manipulators, and for some reason most people just are not capable of recognizing Predator Face when they see it. People have an enormous capacity for ignoring evil that’s right in front of them, in order to keep from having to be the one who actually does something about it, whether it’s individual monsters like Blaine or sociopathic corporations or tyrannical governments.
I think it’s more that most people prefer not to go through life automatically assuming the worst of everyone they meet.
And actual psychopaths are rare enough that giving a person the benefit of doubt at first is usually the safer bet.
Normal people are sociable. On the one hand, they don’t really ‘get’ and don’t expect psycho- or socio-paths and so they don’t pick up the clues well — people tend to overlook or not respond effectively to what they aren’t atuned to. On the other hand, most people avoid violent confrontations and aren’t very good at them relative to those who are. So ‘paths’ have a twofer edge over ‘normals’. Talking about strangers here (vs intra-family abusers), as Danny and Blaine are. That Danny is at the extreme end of the curve of cluelessness only makes this an extreme case. No one knows how they will deal with a psy- or so- until they have — and VERY few of us are Supers, that’s why we identify with them: they’re competent at this.
Now, Amber. Beat him to a frothy pulp.
First kick to the crotch and he’ll let go of Danny. Besides, he doesn’t have a weapon. What is he actually going to *DO* to him, other than maybe *hit* him?
Can he seriously not tell that that is his daughter/?! Wow. Those masks are GREAT for obscuring your identity…
Oh, this is not going to end well. For anybody.
Thank God Amber left the bolt cutters behind a few strips back.
I still liked Blaine better when he was dead.
http://www.shortpacked.com/2012/comic/book-14/01-deady-dearest/lastrespects/
We all do, Edward, we all do.
So, has it been confirmed that Amazi-Girl’s mask adequately hides her identity? Given, it is night time, and it is raining, so visual awareness is a bit low, but depending on where the light source is, her dad should be able to see her pretty well. And if her own father can’t recognize her under the mask, then would it be safe enough to say that no one really can?
It’s not just the mask, though. She started wearing her hair differently, her body language is different, her voice change would make Tara Reid envious, and to top it off… people are usually too busy gawking at the yellow and blue superhero outfit to even LOOK at her face.
… And if she had a Chest Window like Daisy wanted, nobody would THINK of looking at her face. 😉
When people have asked Willis before, he only says “she has a mask.” So I think we’re supposed to just accept it.
That. It is a Willis-verse.
It’s a central conceit. You either accept it, or it’s going to mess with your suspension of disbelief.
Her disguise might not look like much to you, but it’s probably better than Superman, Robin, or Zorro.
Blaine, who is Amber’s bane, is about to lose his brain all over the terrain in the rain.
Holy shit. I have Ruth now. Score! ^_^
… There really needs a erase option.
Let’s do the mind warp again!
break his FACE!
Oh, this is bad, you absolutely do not ever want to go to the Red Place when there are hostages in the way. This deck doesn’t have an Ends Well card in it.
So is this sentence happening in the future and the past? Or is the speech bubble overlapping?
Well, he sure danned up this situation.
Danny in distress.
You could say Dan’s El in Distress.
I gotta stop reading this first thing in the morning. It’s starting to traumatise me.
Commencing beatdown in 5…4….3…..
Wait I get what’s going to happen. Danny said he wanted to find out Amazi-Girl’s identity from like a dramatic situation or something. $10 says she get’s unmasked during the upcoming scuffle.
Amazigirl has a back-up mask underneath her primary mask? She is Amazigirl.
Paralysis or Super Amazi-action?
And here we find out Ethan was actually killed by Sal in the convenience store, and everything that happened in Dumbing of Age so far was a constructed reality in Amber’s mind to cope with the fact that her best friend is really dead.
So, Joyce’s scenes with him?
Amber is very thorough when constructing her own alternate reality. Joyce and her sexless seduction of Ethan represents Amber’s failure to protect him, much weakened from what really happened.
Every scene that didn’t feature Amber was constructed by her as well, she just isn’t aware of them as she is aware of those in which she does feature.
Interesting point: Blaine has either officially assaulted Danny now (for legal purposes) or is on the brink of doing so. If Danny goes to the police after this and files charges things could get very difficult for Blaine, considering that he’s already violating a restraining order.
Is there a restraining order involved? We just know that he’s barred from campus grounds.
If you grab someone against their will while screaming at someone else, that’s pretty much the definition of assault and battery.
Hell, I think Amber should have probably called the police from the minute she found out Danny was with her father. Even if Blaine hadn’t technically harmed him at that point, she knew he might have the potential to do something of that nature. Blaine might not end up arrested/punished in that scenario, but the presence of real law enforcement would at least make him hesitate to pull something like this, as opposed to a random girl in a hero costume telling him to knock it off. Now, we have both Danny and Amazi-girl in serious danger, and even the possibility of Blaine being punished in the aftermath hinges on one of them being badly enough hurt to make a plausible case against him.
Well, now I’m expecting two to four days of flashbacks, followed by a cut back to reality … and the aftermath. What happened between? No man can ever know.
Tomorrow’s strip: Cut to Joyce.
Aaaaaaand now the police show up, make Blaine release Danny, hold Blaine for questioning while they check with campus security and give those cute kids a ride home. A total no drama ending because then all will say DAMN YOU WILLIS.
Regardless of how plausible it is that no one’s recognized Amazi-Girl as Amber yet, I assumed that Blaine would recognize her immediately, and be astounded that Danny doesn’t, just because Rule of Funny.
Danny: “But, Amazi-Girl! How do you know all this about Amber’s father?”
Amazi-Girl: “What, are you dense? Are you retarded or something? Who the hell do you think I am?”
The god Dam Amazi-girl!
and then shit. got. REAL.
Danny Wilcox: Damsel in Distress.
What exactly is Amazi-girl ruining? His chance at making up with his daughter? His chance at….attacking her? Really? “Damn you superhero, I just want to assault my daughter and this moron here, give me a bone!”
As Amazi-Girl said, her father wants to use Danny as (emotional) leverage over the daughter he loves to abuse, and because Danny now knows that, the leverage is kind of gone. And that angers Blaine. (And you wouldn’t like Blain when he’s angry. Or not angry, for that matter.)
The secret is, he’s angry all the time.
Stomp his instep, Danny! Stomp it hard and run away!
Dat third panel face >:D
I can’t wait to see where this goes!
Calling it now, the ends with Blaine fleeing, humiliated, and creating a costume to become Amazi-girl’s first supervillian.
Where did the car go?
I’m sure that somewhere out there is a real-life person who just happens to be named Blaine O’Malley.
He is probably an okay guy and hardly villainous at all.
I wonder if he has chills down his spine from all the people wishing doom and suffering for a fictional character that shares his name.
I would feel kinda bad for him if so.
Huh.
And what about all the bad guys out there that aren’t called Blaine?
They stay completely undetected!
Ah, Blaine, you had to go & induce another flashback, didn’t you?
Well, she was RUINING EVERYTHING!
I want both Blaine AND Danny to get punched. Maybe that will teach em. If not, more punching is then required.
what lesson does danny need to learn that merits him getting punched
He dared to reject Amber. Apparently, that makes him evil.
Nahp I just cant stand him as a character. He is a clingy oblivious moron who needs to learn how the real world works.
That and his face is oddly punchable.
So he’s Joyce.
Its more that I cannot stand oblivious morons. Thats all. Has nothing to do with Amber at all, actually. He just irritates me.
This doesn’t look like it will end well
But… is it a great strip today? We need to know!
Time to cut off Blaine’s Johnson – Big Lebowski style…
I’m worried that this won’t end well for Danny. In the original Roomies, Ruth’s death was used as a motivating factor for Danny. What if this time it’s what happens to Danny that acts as a motivating factor for Amazi-Girl? Blaine is at the limit here, and if there was anyone in the Dumbing of Age universe capable of murder, it’d be him.
Granted, I don’t think that’s going to happen. There’s too many plot things happening around Danny for him to be killed off. But dang, he is THAT close to becoming the male equivalent of Women in Refrigerators.
Amber killed Sal, and Walky revived her using evil magic.
actually walky is just insane, there is no sal and there never was. He just every now and then dresses up as his imaginary twin sister and sexes up the math TA, no one has the heart to tell him, every time you see him ‘talking to his sister’ he’s just talking to thin air. Poor Danny couldn’t even tell with the pants slipping so low.
Or Maybe Sal is Walky instead. Plot twist, Walky died when Sal was young and she dressed up like a dude to comfort herself.
Pretty sure Dorothy would have found out by now.
Not ashamed to say I signed up with slipshine for walky does a sex, and if that story is canon the male twin DEFINITELY is still around.
Aw yeah. Somebody’s everything is about to get ruined.
And then Amber ran away and there was no further violence.
And then the internet exploded.
after she delivers an amazi-beat down and Blaine is on the ground she should amazi-groin stomp him several times.
Dan is realizing what’s going on too damn late
Or should I say… *puts on sunglasses*
Too DAN late
The problem is, the cops are on the look out for Amazigirl the vigilante. If the cops came, they’d book her for assault just the same.
I still say that Amazi-Girl hasn’t done anything yet that would bring her to the attention of law enforcement. She stopped someone from beating up Danny, she stopped some sign vandals, and she stopped someone from ripping off a bicycle. Hell, if anyone needs to worry about being the subject of an assault complaint, it would be Sarah for her baseball bat beatdown of Joyce’s wanna-be rapist.
***checks watch*** c’mon …. c’mon … (tap, tap, tap).
HOW CAN BLAINE NOT RECOGNIZE HER AND DANNY AND GOD DAMN DO I NOT HAVE ENOUGH SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF FOR THIS.
She’s wearing a mask. She styles her hair differently. She speaks in a different voice. She’s dressed in a full-body suit that conceals every inch of visible skin below the neck. There’s pouring rain in front of all their faces. The sky is overcast, and it’s almost nighttime. None of this is even taking into account that pale-skinned brunette girls are a dime a dozen on any given public university campus.
If anyone but Ethan and her own mother could recognize Amber under all that crap, they would deserve a freaking medal.
Day started great with this DOA update but then I’ve had a very disapointing evening … So Blaine better get his legs broken in tomorrow’s strip !
If not I will sulk. SULK !
Amber’s face in the third panel… I’m more creeped than I’m scared.
I vote Amber beats Blaine to death with a crowbar in a scene eerily reminiscent of the Death of Jason Todd and by Blaine, I mean Blaine…and Danny.
Has anyone else noticed that the hands near Amber in the flashback look awfully big? Even perspective-wise she shouldn’t have manhands at a petite age thirteen.
I think there is a man behind her ready to restrain her from going to Ethan’s aid.
You know, people not really knowing Amber’s appearance or stature or Amber herself is one thing and Danny being……sigh Danny and Amber purposely changing her appearance as Amazi-girl some what so he doesn’t figure it out BECAUSE HE’S DANNY is another. But the fact that Blaine doesn’t realize that that’s his own daughter about to kick his ass is sad. I mean yeah she’s in costume and costumes are meant to disguise you and let you become someone else. But it’s not that hard to put 2 and 2 together. I’m assuming that phone call wasn’t too long ago and she let Amazi- girl slip out then but who knows….He was standing in the shadows outside the dorms but he probably wasn’t there when she burst out the door while changing. But still…………Either way I want to see his ass go down. His daughter and himself need help, but Amber even if she isn’t handling in the best way, know she has some problems while this bastard thinks he knows best and UGH! Please go to jail!
Little do we know hes going to make danny woop his ass, surpise twist!
What is she ruining Blaine?
The flashback is likely not of something Blaine did… Not too long ago, Amber had a comparison flashback where she hit Blaine where she had HIS face and HIS enjoyment of causing pain to someone else. This flashback is probably reminding her, yet again, that she is her father’s daughter, because I’m certain that flashback was from the trip her and Ethan took with her father, where she was freaking out about buying a snack at the gas station…
Back then she was outwardly anxious about being in control of how people, even cashiers, perceived her. Something as simple as knowing that she wanted a certain snack, which was beyond her control, was terrifying. Ethan tried to quell it, but I think it will show that he failed… and he failed terrifyingly hard because she perceived it as him trying to take control away from her. This need for control is what she learned from Blaine, who right here, is flipping out because some superhero is ruining his plans to hurt his daughter so she’s submissive again. He’s losing control, and he is reminding her of the person she used to be, and despite having gone to such lengths to repress and correct herself, still is.
You say this won’t end well for Blaine? I’d say Amber is the one who is going to suffer. A lot.
My father was exactly like Blaine, so I understand what girls like Amber go through. When you lash out even at the one who abused you, it terrifies you that you have that kind of rage in you. On one hand, you really really really want that fucker to suffer like you suffered. On the other hand, you are so scared that once you let go and let loose on that abuser, the rage is so complete and terrifying that the satisfaction you may feel by letting that fucker have it physically and or/verbally is short lived when you know that you are capable of that kind of rage that was aimed at you. It’s not black and white. It’s not clear cut. You feel like Bruce Banner. You live life knowing that there is this thing inside you that can snap at any minute and take over and do a lot of damage to yourself and others.
This is honestly kind of sad.
I mean, I get the whole ‘Blaine is an emotionally and physically abusive asshole’ thing, but Amber is showing that same rage and complete lack of control and even enjoyment of it, that Blaine possesses. If anything, like Mike said, she really is her father’s daughter.
That aside, there’s the whole ‘she’s probably gonna to go to jail because she’s looking to beat a man either to death or to an inch of his life’ thing, and I’m guessing ‘anger management isn’t something you learn real well while incarcerated.
Wow
It’s 10.5 months later and I finally understand what was unintended by Blaines melting dialogue box in panel 6/7. ( D’oh )
Granted it existing between 2 panels with an internal drama in Amber’s head is a clue,
as is WOG in the next page. Im probably just a little slow.
I’m sure Willis explictly meant it to be understood correctly, as he telegraghs this ….. But just in case , I’m not leaving any spoilers for new readers.
That grin on the 3rd panel just gets to me.