Discussion (173) ¬
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Meredith Rose @mrose.ink ⋅ 6h
Alex Wayne @aawayne.bsky.social ⋅ 9h
David F Walker a.k.a. BadAzz MoFo @davidfwalker.bsky.social ⋅ 1d
Arren @arrenm.bsky.social ⋅ 3m
David M Willis! @damnyouwillis.bsky.social ⋅ 1d
Nothings Monstered @nothingsmonstrd.bsky.social ⋅ 18h
Shaenon K. Garrity @shaenon.bsky.social ⋅ 12d
Gillian Branstetter @gbbranstetter.bsky.social ⋅ 1d
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Damn, that nose looks hard to kiss around.
Also, AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH
Aaaaaahh
Carol/Cheryl startled scream is appropriate here.
Damn, Mike has all a response to all of Ethan’s questions. He’s really been preparing for the ~~months~~ days he’s been planning this
…. probably, though Mike’s good at off-the-cuff answers as well.
Mike, you little shit
It’s not a trick, after all tricks are for kids.
Illusions, Keulen.
“I’ve made a huge mistake.”
*squirts lighter fluid*
I’m way too on board with this
Well, comments like these are hard to follow
No, Pablo’s comments are hard to follow.
Damn it, you’re hard to love, Mike – but you’re harder to hate.
Point is, you’re getting harder either way.
I’d upvote you so hard.
Don’t take this the hard way, but do we really need another chain like this?
While hard to take, it has been thrust upon us.
It’d be hard not to at this point.
Hard to believe just how easily comment chains like this can pop up. Mr Willis could crask down on it, but personally I think he has a soft spot for them…
Comment chains are a hard indicator of a strong and friendly community in any online site. You’d be hard pressed to find an angry message board that could pull one off.
Some really hard snakes are going to spring out any moment now. Ruby would be pleased.
I am having a hard time following this chain.
They should erect a sign of hard wood outside to make sure no one disturbs them.
Boys will come along a dime by the dozen
That ain’t nothing but ten cent lovin’
Pretty little thing, let me light your candle
–Dave, harder to hold is closer to fine
I am having a hard time figuring out why I should follow this chain.
You sure are stroking each other’s backs here…
Gentle strokes for hard folks.
The both are, really.
Guys, I think Ana’s head just exploded.
No, no, you’re mistaken. She’s a werewolf
And oh my god!! I thought Mike said HANG out, so this took me by total surprise
This is going to end poorly
Aaand it’s a centipeedle
She only wants to be loved, but is also a literal monster. Kinda like Mike!
I’d be happy, once I got the snake out of my mouth. Scaly baby delivered via makeouts.
Mike’s a Goa’uld?
Or a face hugger
Or some unholy abomination that makes snakes appear from nowhere during tongue-to-tongue contact with another human being.
And now, I think I might have inspired a horror writer.
You have inspired me, to make friends with more snakes and also this supposed snake creator.
He’s a Xenomorph, and makes out with the little tongue-mouth.
*immediately cuts to Danny serenading passerby with his ukelele, completely oblivious*
(I swear, if I’m right, ughhh)
yes. kiss each with your lips and touch each with your hands!
Generally works better that way than the other way around, yeah.
Poor choice of metaphor, Ethan. Where’s that cerebral bleach?
Don’t be daft, Ethan. The spring loaded snake isn’t owing to pop out of his MOUTH
Ahahahaaha
I was going to make this joke, but your version came out better.
But not better than Mike’s snake
Damn it I want to ship them but I know it will end badly because of Mike’s planning.
I know, it’s so conflicting. But I’ve been starving for a M-M romance (and I can’t afford Slipshine just yet).
I don’t know man, I see this working well given their history. Mind you, I MUUUUUCH preferred Danny/Ethan, but this works very well anyway. Ethan and Mike have known each other forever and thinking back on it, this was bound to happen.
The reason I think that this was meant to be, as well as perfect is mostly due to the fact that they’re complete polar opposites and Mike is warming up to that. Mike is a total asshole, whether sarcastic or not and Ethan… well he’s Ethan, the complete nice guy capable of loving anyone. See where I’m going with this?
We’ll see about that. Not sure I buy the “opposites attract” thing, isn’t it more likely that similar people date one another?
But yeah I get your points. The two are acquainted, Ethan’s desperate (I know the feeling), and Mike is looking to cause trouble and may very well end up caught in this tangled love web).
Mike catching himself in this web would be the best way to make him a more interesting character.
Opposites attract but if you don’t have enough common ground, your bound to crash and burn after the initial endorphin-rush peters out.
Oh no. People seldom date people like them, and when they do it’s generally not in a healthy way. “These parts of my life are unhealthy but you’re just like me! I don’t have to change! Everything is okay!” *
Example- Jacob using his and Raidah’s similarities as a shield against his apparent fear of sexuality. Now, I might be misreading some of the hints (and if I am it’s still a way such a character could work, thus proving my point). But Jacob has talked about the way he’s perceived and vocally approved of Joyce dating Ethan for “safety”. He didn’t seem happy to realise Joyce was crushing. And when we’ve seen him and Raidah together, what hints are there that it’s a good relationship? Where is the chemistry, the spark, the want for each other? It’s almost completely absent. Jacob very much reads to me like someone using his and Raidah’s similarities- “we need to work hard and not get distracted from that”- as a shield. Again, I may be misreading it, but we can see how their similarities in my theory are being used unhealthily.
Of course, with people no generalising rule is absolute, but yeah, “opposites attract” is common enough to be a useful well-known phrase, and not just about pure sexual attraction. (In fact, many people WILL date the opposites they’re attracted to.)
* (Not to say that dating opposites is inherently healthy, in fact it’s often something that can be explored, and oh my god I could work psychoanalysing fictional characters into my diploma if I were allowed.)
Well maybe, if it wasn’t for the fact that Mike’s explicitly stated he’s doing this to screw with Danny.
I don’t think it’s gonna work out at all. I feel like this is going to end with Ethan torn between Mike and Danny, and if he picks Mike he’ll be disappointed, because he’ll want a relationship and Mike won’t be offering anything but sex.
And then, once Ethan’s picked him and burned his bridges with Danny, Mike’ll dump him so he doesn’t even get sex.
Mike’s not even in this for the sex.
Okay, I have commented on the alt text not showing for me recently. I know how to make it work on my mobile; I’ve done it for a couple of years now. In the past few weeks it simply no longer works the same. Previously a shadow box formed over the strip with the alt text in it. Now it shows a blank box that acts like a magnifying glass over whatever it is placed over (even the strip itself). I’m not the only person who has commented on it. I assume it is an incompatibility with a recent iOS update.
“and then a spring-loaded snake pops out of his mouth, obviously”
That shows up when you tap three fingers on the screen twice and can be toggled off under accessibility options iirc, alt text can be displayed by single tapping near the image
I’ve had trouble with it in Safari, but if I load the site in the chrome app the alt-text works fine. (hope this helps)
I also read the strip on Safari on an iPad and have had the exact same issue. I have yet to find a workaround for the problem.
I use Safari on an iPad, and it works fine for me. … But it’s an old iPad.
Alt text won’t work on my iphone (and yes I do know how its supposed to work, at the risk of having someone explain again), mouse-over works on my i mac in Safari and Firefox.
I don’t like Spiders N’ Snakes
And that ain’t what it takes to love me–you fool you fool!
I don’t like Spiders N’ Snakes
And that ain’t what it takes to love me–like I wanna be loved by you!
BTW, what happened to the OTHER crickets that escaped from Carla’s baggie?
I want to believe they’re just out of frame, like one second away from interrupting these two.
A cricket might spring out of Mike’s mouth. That’s probably why he wants to make out with Ethan anyway
Duh. How else was he gonna bait a snake inside, with no crickets?
Hang on, wrong reptile, sorry.
Nothing, there were no crickets, only lettuce.
They’re waiting for their own perfect comedic timing.
See, Mike normally has a point to why he targets people.
(Standard disclaimer: Mike is a complete asshole who manipulates people and is completely shitty so that were he a real person I’d feel really bad about telling people to stop hitting him because they might go to jail.)
He normally targets people that are riding on their high horses. But why is he targeting Danny/Ethan?
What’s his motive beyond just standard douchbaggery?
IIRC, he’s trying to make Danny jealous in order to force Danny/Ethan to acknowledge their feelings for each other.
No, he’s trying to make Danny jealous just because he wants to turn him into a whimpering mess. If Danny and Ethan do end up acknowledging their feelings for each other or their relationship progresses in any way, it won’t be because it’s the end goal of Mike’s grand master plan.
Amber/Ethan… Ethan is gay.
Amazi/Danny…. Danny comes out as bi or gay.
Amber and/or Amazi breaks down, Mike is there to “fix” her, Mike now has a girl who will tie him down as a girl-friend.
Member when Amazi was hunting for whoever drew penises all over the place?
I don’t get where you are going. Are you running on shortpacked-assumptions!
That should have been a question mark.
Why not an interrobang? 2i Por que no los dos !?
–Dave, >|eam aje sll!>|s umop-ap!sdn yw
But they already did acknowledge their feelings for each other.
To my knowledge all that happened is they came out to eachother during that Questioning meet up, and dismissed the idea of them getting together as totally inconsiderate to Amber. Or is there a scene im forgetting?
Well Danny said that Ethan is really hot … I thought that would count.
Didn’t they already acknowledge their feelings for each other? I thought they did.
I find myself in a similar position. I understand the motivation to the point of ‘seduce one and make the other jealous’ but I still feel as though I’m missing something.
Does he normally have a point? Beyond douchebaggery. Has he really being targeting “people that are riding on their high horses”?
Is that why he keeps screwing with Walky and Dorothy? Amber? Ethan?
Targets of opportunity is what it looks like to me.
The snake isn’t in his mouth, Ethan
I don’t think Mike would be able to talk so clearly with a spring-loaded snake in his mouth anyway.
Plot twist: it’s the spring-loaded snake in his mouth we hear talking. That’s why Mike looks so angry all the time: he hates the snake.
Mike can do anything if it’s to be an ass
*tugs collar* It’s it hot in here or is it just this unlikely scenario?
But what will poor Danny think?
He might have to play a sad song on the ukulele.
He could play for them as they make out
I don’t know, sad song + make out? Sounds like it wouldn’t fit the tone.
Does he know any villain songs?
“Give me your hand, and take what you willllll toniiiite.
ANd I’ll give it as fast, and as hhhh-igh as the flaaames will rize…”
Iron&Wine’s ‘Cinder and Smoke’ is pretty passionate + sad.
update on my friend whom I suspect is being taken advantage of: we met and talked and I think she’s been fed a lot of lines about the Bible that were only partial because she was surprised when I told her the Old Testament condones slavery
maybe I can break the spell of whatever they’ve been a telling her
I’m glad to hear it. If she finds religion important (even if that’s recent) I’d suggest she actually read the bible herself and come to her own independent conclusions. Context can’t hurt.
This will not only help her decide what she wants to do, but she’ll be able to spot obvious bullshit they’re selling her.
Glad to hear. It’s really interesting to read Biblical-times history too, because so much of scripture doesn’t hold the same implications now that it did culturally then.
Ethan, I’ve got a quick question for you:
True or false: thinking with your dick always leads to positive results?
Well a lot of guys think of their dicks as divine rods, so why not go divining with them?
True! Just ask your local free clinic how many STD tests come back positive
Well, how often HAS Ethan thought with his dick…? I don’t think we’ve EVER seen it, actually. He’s not a character that’s strongly driven by his libido in general. See him getting to college where there’s probably access to all sorts of LGBT groups and clubs and fuckbuddies and him starting to date someone he could never be into.
In fact, yeah, it feels like he’s more likely to be driven to do the opposite of his libido, not to go with it. So I think it’s somewhat healthy for him to let his dick drive him a little here.
…Or I WOULD, but he knows Mike well enough to know he’s a dickhead, so when it explodes he may well have a helping of “this is my fault, I should have known this would happen” as well as the other fallout.
What’re they doing with their faces? Is that how kissing works?
They’re making sure their noses don’t stab each other.
–Dave, nor their cheekbones neither
Even when it is a trick I feel like Mike does what he does when he feels like it, it’s like the same things Morty says about Rick ” he’s not a villain but he’s not a hero , he’s like some crazy fucked up demon god like Mephisto.
There are a few shades between those two extremes.
As much as this comic could use some boys smooching… these are the wrong ones. Sigh. The good ship Dethan is in for some stormy weathers, eh?
I thought the ship was christened Danneef. But, yes, Mike is roiling the waters.
Ethanny
Fuck, Ethan’s last line is smooth.
…no tricks?
Mike’s, you mean? It is an encouraging thing to hear from someone who is this close to kissing you.
Woops. Yes. Mike.
“Jaffa, kree!“
Will we get a Slipshine of this?
I hope so.
You know, just *once* I’d like to see Mike’s hair get all mussed up. Just ONCE.
I’d like to see him with crazy bedhead that stands out in all different directions, not just one. Or how about wavy hair, or even curly hair?
How about a blond AFRO? Just to piss off Sarah. Mike is not above doing this.
Ok, we’ll just need to contrive a scenario in which Mike having bad hair will mess with someone. Maybe next time Sal’s hair goes frizzy Mike decides to become ‘twinners’ or something like that.
(Don’t judge me i’m running on Mtn Dew right now)
In all universes, it is an accepted fact that his hair defies physics and is 3.5 dimensional.
Mike’s a hard nut to crack. I suppose Ethan will still give it a shot.
oh my god the possible innuendos from your comment
Is it ruining the fun to say that’s intentional, though?
Now the snake hidden in his pants, on the other hand….
No, Ethan, no! Danny wanted you to find a NICE guy.
Also, bonus points for Mike if the snake isn’t spring-loaded.
The devil is currently in negotiations to have Mike signed on as head of his Incubi when he dies, may god have mercy on our souls.
So, is that a co-position with Larisa, or will she be his supervisor?
I don’t know if Mike seems less like his douchey side when he makes out, but I hope this is just consensual funnin’ and not something that will come back to bite Ethan in the ass.
And Honestly. I was here for the Iconic Ruth and Billie Kiss. That strip meant a lot to me. This? I am about this for different reasons.
Like it is Mike, even if it’s for fun it’s also a manipulative plot to break people’s spirits, everything he does comes with a side of assholery that also often has some sage moral wisdom buried in there
I mean. To be fair, Mike’s plan here only really extends to “Make Danny Jealous”. But considering Mike doesn’t do commitment, the most likely way this will end up is with Danny and Ethan talking about their feelings and getting together? Or worst case scenario Ethan gets to explore his sexuality a little more and Danny remains mildly jealous. It’s not like Mike and Ethan are going to actually get together in anything long-term.
There are two take-aways from this comic, at least in my view:
1) My theory that Mike is aromantic seems to be borne out. He doesn’t connect emotionally with people and really only does things because he’s bored and wants a distraction;
2) Ethan really doesn’t seem that fooled and is going into this knowing that an emotional commitment from Mike is literally impossible.
I am of the honest opinion Mike is a psychopath/sociopath in this universe.
Also, hi! I know you from QC fora!
wasn’t it just yesterday someone reminded us that those terms are terribly outdated and based on a bunch of false assumptions?
ah, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychopathy#Criticism_of_current_conceptions : “Half of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist consists of symptoms of mania, hypomania, and frontal-lobe dysfunction, which frequently results in underlying disorders being dismissed.[26] Hare’s conception of psychopathy has also been criticized for being reductionist, dismissive, tautological, and ignorant of context as well as the dynamic nature of human behavior.[27] Some have called for rejection of the concept altogether, due to its vague, subjective and judgmental nature that makes it prone to misuse.”
Mike’s certainly *something*, though.
Sexualities are the same across universes, and Mike has been shown to be capable of forming a lasting emotional and romantic connection in another ‘verse.
I would love to see aromanticism more explored (especially separate from asexuality). In fact I’d love to see romanticism being different from sexuality explored more, in webcomics (and other media). But in thiso case, I think it’s probably safe to say that part of Mike is consistent across ‘verses.
As for Ethan’s perspective, I think he doesn’t expect Mike to be establishing a romantic connection here either. Honestly though, that’s what I want to see- Ethan to walk away without being screwed over, with Mike having developed real feelings for him. But I never try to predict what will happen, because I know I’ll likely be wrong!
Eh…I’ve made worse decisions with who I sleep with…
“How about… SKATEBOARD tricks, Ethan?!”
Slipshine backdoor pilot storyline?
Ethan, notice how Mike dodged your last request. Red Alert! SHIELDS UP!
That’s when I began to pray:
Lord, show me how to
Say no to this
I don’t know how to
Say no to this
– “Say No To This” from Hamilton
Run, Ethan, run.
…and I just had a notion about how this will go. Ethan, upset, maybe feeling used, goes to Amber, and Amazi-girl beats the crap out of Mike, leading to a rupture between Amber and Ethan, possibly a more serious breakdown of Amber’s alters.
everyone of ethan’s friend’s shouting in the background: NO
On the bright side, if Mike is cruel enough it may cure me of my annoying tendency to ship Mike and Joyce.
I-
Mike and Joyce? Mike… and Joyce?
I’m not judging, I just really want to understand… why?
I hope Mike gets hit by a fucking bus. Or better yet like a caravan of buses.
There’s a catch. There has to be.
That said, if Danny sees them….Can he join?
He just got a text that someone’s on their way over. Obviously.
Ah know I’m going some heat for this, but…
All hands abandon ship! Abandon ship!
….my avatar just makes this worse.
Having trouble seeing why people tolerate Mike and his cruelty. I mean, at least some of his shennanigans are known to others, so why are they still cool with him?
It’s not that unrealistic, when I was younger I’ve had friends of friends who were total shitheads and when I tried telling my friends this they were like “yeah, I know, buuuut…”
Removing bad people from your life is ideal but it’s easier said than done, unfortuntely.
noooooooooooo
As much of a douche as Mike is at least Ethan feels comfortable enough around him to (1) acknowledge his sexuality and (2) act on it. Sure it’s not ideal but in a way this is moving forward for Ethan.
Sure, because Mike intentionally set up Ethan learning that he’d had sex with another guy on the floor as part of the prep work for this scheme.
I honestly think this might be an intention of Mike’s. He’s been pretty openly distasteful of Ethan’s prior return-to-the-closet scheme, and side-eyes Ethan doing stuff that’ll have him self-loathing.
I don’t think Mike’s a nice guy, but he is ultimately a long lasting friend of Ethan’s and Amber’s. If he cares about anyone at the college, it’s those two.
We know his intention. He said it explicitly to himself (and us): “I was waffling on whether to seduce either you or Danny to turn the other into a jealous, whimpering mess, so you it is.”
Mike doesn’t have friends. There’s no hidden higher motive here.
I really wish people would stop pretending Mike’s primary motivation for basically everything he does is to hurt people and any positive outcomes are merely a byproduct of that.
“ISN’T to hurt people” jeez
It’s no coincidence that Mike’s only “friends” (Amber & Ethan) have self-esteem issues and are reluctant to call him on his hurtful, manipulative crap, let alone cut ties with him.
I dunno, Ethan said outright to Mike’s face something like “If you’re my friend, and I’m 50-60% sure you are…”
And then Mike agreed not to do the thing Ethan asked him not to do… technically, anyway.
(frustrated tooth grinding)
*S L I P S H I N E*
and suddenly there is a giant camera above their head and ethan doesn’t know and mike shows it to danny later to hurt him………for………..reasons.
Oh my.
That last panel is hot, very hot.
YES IT IS.
THIS PISSES ME OFF, AND THAT IS CONFUSING? BUT IT IS HOT.
god i wish that were me
my gravatar made this less funny
my partner pointed out that mike is doing a very good job of not telling a lie here, and i just yelled MIKE IS A FAIRY
Nice reference!
Also just mentioning something here: a long while back, like last year, <a href="http://www.dumbingofage.com/2017/comic/book-7/03-the-thing-i-was-before/skip/#comment-1201827" Cerberus compared Mike to Iago. Now I somehow completely missed this, which is weird because Iago is my favorite villain of my favorite Shakespeare play, Othello.
And now that I have that label to put on Mike he makes a LOT more sense. Just calling him a bully doesn’t fit quite right, though it demeans him in a way I like. No, Mike is evil like Iago is evil; he sets up these elaborate games with at times the flimsiest excuses possible, but he’s not really doing it for the excuses. He’s doing it to amuse himself, because he is nothing more than an asshole and all he can produce in this world is shit.
That being said, Ethan also summed up Mike pretty well when he mentioned that Mike doesn’t have “friends” so much as “people he’s willing to stand next to.” And Ethan’s the most consistent of those people. So I have to wonder if Mike will actually succeed in driving away his most forgiving friend with this, and actually find himself alone. Because I want to see what happens to an asshole when the world stops producing things for it to process and digest.
Stupid sexy Mike. >:(
I am 90% certain that this is going to turn out to be a dream. That last panel is a dream-kiss-that-is-going-to-be-interupted–panel. I have seen this many times in the past.
thank you willis
If he slaps or ruins that beautiful face in any sort of way trying to mess with him. I’m catching a case of the ass, man!
I didn’t… I didn’t realize I shipped it
Why do Ethan and Amber tolerate Mike? Why do the Asgardians tolerate Loki? Because Loki is entertaining and breaks the monotony of long winter nights. Ethan has known Mike for years. Is he really this bored?
It’s a TRAAP!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4F4qzPbcFiA
…really: remember this strip? http://www.dumbingofage.com/2016/comic/book-6/04-it-all-returns/percent/
(that took a long time to find)
jmsr
*Sits stonefaced*
*excited squeee fills the room*
*Remains stonefaced*