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✪ Jonathan H. Gray says: “Beware the Tide Pods of March” ✪ @jongraywb.bsky.social ⋅ 7h
BNO News @bnonews.com ⋅ 8h
David M Willis! @damnyouwillis.bsky.social ⋅ 1d
Joshua J. Friedman @joshuajfriedman.com ⋅ 1d
trash panzer @panzertron.bsky.social ⋅ 1d
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Kekeflipnote
SOLVED: Mike actually landed inside Amazi-ber’s head and stuck there like an earworm
…So he’s safe as long as Amber and/or Amazi-girl doesn’t encounter any other earworms that might replace him?
Folks, for Mike’s sake we have to keep her (them?) away from “Mickey” by Toni Basil!
…Dammit, now it’s in my head for the next month.
That’s easy to fix …
“It’s a small world after all…”
We all live in a yellow submarine…
Boom!
Considering this is Amber:
“I know, I know I’ve let you down
I’ve been a fool to myself”
I’d go with:
I’ve become so numb, I can’t feel you there
Become so tired, so much more aware
By becoming this all I want to do
Is be more like me and be less like you
How about the Ducktales theme instead?
I feel like the Transformers theme might fit better.
Any song by They Might Be Giants. As a bonus, the songs are all short.
For god’s sake, then, KEEP IT THERE! You are the keeper of the earworm!
I can’t keep track if it’s more believable that Mike is in a coma or dead anymore.
It *does* make sense that Blaine would lie if he was dead – after all, you can’t leverage dead people. (See: Knives Out)
Schroedinger’s Mike!
I think the potential narrative arcs with him alive are more robust than the narrative arcs with him dead. But who knows.
Would that make Mike “CATatonic”?
He’s whatever you don’t want him to be.
He’ll do what you want — sometimes! — but not for the reason that you want.
Panel two is another one of those effective multi-image ones Willis trots out every so often to impress us.
It’s an interesting combination of being both a display of dynamism and action in a single panel, and also strangely reminiscent of a “Billy tries to get home” Family Circus panel.
Well it worked, I am very impressed. I am curious, however, as to why the guard is facing that direction, kind of defeats the purpose of being a guard if he isn’t watching the direction threats would approach from. Also, is he deaf, the first guard Amber/AG tied up is right there.
Mike will always be alive. In HERE
*et forehead touching*
“I’ll… be… right… here.”
/Mike gives the finger
I see him everytime a vending machine gives me a nickel
Can we just talk about how she flipped that dude with herself in midair and how awesome that was?
No. We’re too busy being impressed by Mike’s ability to mentally project from inside his coma.
Pish posh. You want to be impressed, Ayu was able to physically project from her coma.
Still unshaded, right?
Mike always casts shade whether he’s there or not.
For a second, I thought Mike was an imprint on the door. That was kind of a cool visual.
Thats better than being an imprint on the ground I guess
Or being a chalk outline.
So is Mike astrally projecting or Amber’s newest personality?
I prefer that he’s a ghost.
The third option is that he’s a hallucination which is more the way AG is framing it.
I don’t think Amber is schizophrenic.
However, this is already Hollywood DID since the personalities don’t communicate.
You can hallucinate if you haven’t been sleeping, which she hasn’t. No schizophrenia necessary.
And they are communicating. Literally last strip. They haven’t been and it’s been a sign of them having a further split.
They are communicating.
I believe that is CT Phipps’ point. In real life, people with DID do not display communication between the personalities. Thus AG and Amber should not be able to communicate scientifically – but do because this is fiction and Rule of Cool.
Our resident commenter Cerberus has talked before at length about how her own alters interact with each other, as I recall.
(Though I could be misremembering.)
People – I was just attempting to interpret the grammar of CT Phipps sentence. I don’t claim to know anything about DID (and I don’t) – I was merely confused because my reading (as written above) seemed to be the opposite of how others were taking CT Phipps meaning. Since CT hasn’t (to my knowledge) clarified either way, I can’t be sure who interpreted them correctly, but that was all I was trying to do.
Usually hosts of DID systems that don’t know they have DID don’t communicate with their alters, because it’s in their best interest not to know about them. But once it’s safe/useful for them to communicate, the host and many alters absolutely DO communicate with each other in real time. Bringing down amnesiac walls so that multiple alters can talk to each other is called integration and it’s a big part of the process of treating DID.
The unusual thing here is that Amber is weirdly accepting of the fact that she has an alter (though I’m sure she doesn’t think of it that way) and the communication is surprisingly good right now for someone who isn’t even getting treatment. But, perhaps it’s the most beneficial for them to be able to communicate during this crisis.
One of the primary things I’ve learned about DID systems is that there are a MILLION ways for them to work, so anytime you say “They don’t do this” someone probably has a system that does that.
That’s not correct at all, though. Alters can choose whether or not to communicate. Amber won’t remember AmaziGirl’s memories like her own, but AmaziGirl can still talk to her like you and I would be talking. There’s an entire treatment model in psychology around this concept, it’s called integration.
That’s how TV DID works where they never communicate at all ever. I’ve read around on DID forums before and a lot of people communicate with at least some alters, and some are at a place where they can just sit in a room talking to their alters for hours because they’re so tight-knit that it is like always having their best friends with them.
Communication is more an issue if an alter is hiding or doesn’t want to talk.
Psychosis can arise from lack of sleep or stress but you could also just have it without a supporting condition behind it… but Amber actually does have a condition where psychotic symptoms do tend to occur pretty commonly already: PTSD. Psychotic symptoms commonly occur in people with PTSD, so she doesn’t need to have schizophrenia specifically to have hallucinations.
Whether alters communicate depends entirely on the plural system, its members, whether they are on good terms with each other, and whether they have reason to keep things from each other. Frankly, AG may have just been trying to let Amber complete midterms before dumping what happened on her.
Communication like is shown here is entirely possible. Speaking aloud isn’t entirely necessary, but its probably for narrative benefit. I do know a system (a…much larger one that Amber/AG) that uses a messaging server to communicate. I don’t think its strictly necessary for them, but it makes communication easier.
Granted…the events of that night were arguably not a good idea to withhold, regardless. But we still don’t know what happened after Mike fell.
It’s more than that, since they haven’t been communicating since Ryan’s stabbing. They were having problems even before that, but that definitely drove the wedge deeper.
True, but I suspect that under not midterm circumstances, AG would have tried to immediately talk to Amber again, weirdness after Ryan’s stabbing or otherwise. I suppose it’s a moot point now, since they uh…kinda HAD to cooperate once they got kidnapped.
Heaven forbid Amber gets a Mike personality, talking about moms and nickels.
That… could be amusing.
No, seriously, having a Mike alter popping up to make Mike comments on situations with or without Mike still in the comic has the potential to be freaking awesome. Especially if the two get into an argument over said situation.
Hovertext has me thinking more about AG’s chest than I necessarily want to (DESPITE THE GRAVATAR).
Uh-huh.
Narrator voice: She did not have a chest window
We are Spirits In The Material World
are Spirits In The Material World
are Spirits In The Material World
are Spirits In The Material World
Yes
OK, so SpectralMike isn’t A-G in camouflage. Nice to see the girls branching out and adding a male personality to their mix.
I’m running on the theory that Mike has psychic powers myself. He’s projecting to Amber from his comatose state in the hospital. Hey if Amber can still knockout guys and do parkour on no sleep then I think it’s believable!
…Why would you wear a bra to bed even if you weren’t planning on sleeping? I’m a barely B and that fucker comes off the second I’m home.
Maybe to help her stay awake.
This was part of my thinking on it. Also, not everyone responds to bras the same way, and it could definitely depend on the type of bra (like if it’s a sports bra or a cupped bra without wire).
At first my reaction was the same as Diane’s because that’s a pretty common view/experience, but it does vary for people.
Honestly, I was wondering why Willis bothered to point it out. The only thing I could come up with was the AG dude-flip. Amber is built like my wife, and she needs to wear a sports bra for any athletic activity. So… good to know I guess?
Yeah I kinda didn’t need my attention drawn to a character’s boobs either. Just let her be cool, bro.
Anyway some bustier women are more comfy sleeping in bras, some aren’t.
Yeah, that makes sense. I posted this right before bed, and didn’t think about it hard. I’m now realizing I got a few sports bras that I can just sleep in, especially after a hard work day. (I feel so bad for people who have to use wired bras…that just sounds horrible…)
My assumption is that Amber never went to bed and so she never removed her bra. But what do I know?
Right, the discussion was more around the idea that many people remove their bras as soon as they are home, whether they’re about to go to bed or not. But then, many do not.
Though dorm rooms aren’t quite as much “home”, even when you live there. You’re sharing space and there aren’t quite the same assumptions of privacy. Friends wander by unannounced, your roommate can show up with guests at basically anytime, etc.
Doesn’t apply so much at 3 in the morning when your roomie’s already asleep, but still.
Literally the exact second.
… I haven’t worn a bra since “Social Distancing” began.
Nightshirts and sweatpants for weeks now.
When I drive out to pick up my kids’ lunch (the local schools are giving out free lunches via drive-thru – awesome program), I just throw a jacket on overtop of my night clothes because why get dressed?
I sometimes put a bra on in an effort to get myself to focus. It does not work that well. I have also definitely done the “coat over pjs while running an errand” move as well. The other day I put a hoodie on over my onesie.
Please take care of yourselves.
I’ve worn one once, when I went out for supplies. I just don’t feel comfortable not being in actual clothes in public. Sometimes I forgo the bra, but it’s always jeans/shorts, t-shirt, can’t do it in the jammies.
And I forgot to uncaps the email, and now the gravitar makes this even more terrifying…
My wife has done most of the supply runs. And she has worn far more bras (mostly sports bras) than I, being built more like Amber (that is to say, busty) for her supportive comfort during the day. She still doesn’t wear them to bed, though.
And now I’m questioning my memory. Did I put on a bra for the grocery store that one time or did I go sweat pants, t-shirt, and jacket? I’m not sure.
That gravatar sure makes it a little weirder.
If I recall correctly, this avatar (I think it should change…) would of been a wiser choice, but late night, I prefer Ethan anyways.
Probably a sports bra. I tend to sleep in them cuz otherwise I feel too heavy when I wake up. And it makes sense to point out cuz otherwise those flips would *hurt*
One guard stole David Willis’ shirt.
Nah, he just bought the shirt from Willis’ new clothing brand.
Damn You by Willis.
Let’s call him Dale.
Either Mike’s dead or he’s being threatened to be dead but he can’t be both!…Or can he?!
Gonna revive this fucker just to kill him again.
Maybe his middle name is schrodinger?
I have been enjoying seeing Ghost Mike. Even if it’ll disappear when Real Mike is revealed.
I always love subconscious visions of people appearing when they’re not really there…Heather.
TWIST: Mike was dead??
TWIST: Mike is alive and Amber/AG see him
TWIST: Mike is appearing in her head as a hallucination/ghost
TWIST: Amber/AG find Mike in the hospital
TWIST: It’s actually another hallucination, and now she has two hallucinatory Mikes in her head. The person she saw as Mike was actually some old man who is now very confused.
TWIST: Everyone in the hospital is Mike
TWIST: That’s also a hallucination
TWIST: They’re actually all ghosts
TWIST: Mike is fine, he’s just tired because they were up late, and he didn’t come home last night because he was busy doin’ ur mom
TWIST: Amber has been dead this whole time
TWIST: Every character who’s ever served as the basis for a viewpoint in a strip is actually Joyce in a different sweatervest
TWIST: Joyce is actually just Mike in a wig.
What if Mike is bees?
*nods* I’m listening, I’m listening…
Calm down, M. Night Samalamadingdong.
Wait, how is Amazi-girl able to take down 2 government agents within earshot of each other? I know she has the element of surprise here but didn’t she have trouble dealing with Carla’s crew earlier?
They are hired bodyguards, not government agents.
Even still, they should be properly trained to deal with a situation like this
They have to attend special bodyguard training classes… if they are actual bodyguards and not some random people Robin hired to ACT as bodyguards. We don’t know if Robin vetted them and even still, you could attend classes all you want, but that doesn’t change your personal attitude. Bodyguards are still people who yes, may not pay attention to their surroundings or let themselves get distracted, because they’re still people.
AG had trouble with Sal and the Skater Gals because she was overly focused on Sal, which let the other three overwhelm her to hold her back. Which is quite different from surprise attacking people.
Even if you are a master in self-defense and martial arts, a surprise attack could kill you if someone randomly stabbed you. It doesn’t matter what skills you have if you aren’t able to see the threat coming because you’re looking at your Twitter feed.
She probably just hired a local private security company. Those guys must spend their time at shopping malls and corporate lobbies when they’re not Robin’s Uggtroopers.
At least he’s not glowing blue.
And looks nothing like Hayden Christiansen.
…stop beating up the poor guards. Give Becky a call.
Amber forgot her phone, remember? It’s not like there’s phones just sitting out in public that you can use for a modest per-call fee. Even if such magic future tech existed, where would she get the nickel it would cost?
Besides, talking about it in person leaves no paper trail.
amber forgets phone for five minutes.
(…)
amber is forced to beat up a bunch of innocent people to kidnap her friend.
amber: “I KNEW something like this would happen if I ever lost my phone.”
Her fears have been validated! This is why routine is important.
(Amazi-ber and Becky will probably come up with a plan. I wouldn’t be surprised if it becomes a *Dr. Evil finger quotes* “kidnapping”.)
Oh, no doubt. Becky is itching to be able to rescue Joyce for once. I just feel that there could have been some way to start the conversation other than “beat up some guys in uggs”
Well, she has to get to Becky to have a conversation. Who knows if Toedad and/or the Blaine arranged to have whoever they released tailed.
Wait, Ross made the decision to release Amazi-ber on his own. Blaine’s going to blow a gasket; there’s no way he’ll ever accept that Amber ‘is’ Amazi-Girl, even if she shows him herself…
“Beating up”, hell, the move she just pulled has a very high chance of leaving the guy permanently paralyzed or dead. A little harsh for a guy whose greatest crime was not being very good at his job.
Thanks to Amber’s stubborness Amazi Girl is handicapped when playing Dishonored… Does this makes Mike the Outsider?
Schroedinger’s Mike
Simultaneously is and isn’t doing your mom for a nickel, until someone opens the door and lpoks.
Hmm. “Mike” is talking to AG as if she has only Amber’s knowledge of what happened the previous night. He’s conspiring with Willis to maintain his own secrets, because of course he is, because Mike. (Neither AG nor Amber would know whether he lived through the intervening day, so this is mostly a joke. But Mike totally would participate in making the audience’s life more difficult if he had that power.)
I think Ambazigirl have started to doubt Mike being alive and that is what’s showing on their projection of Mike.
It looks like hallucino-Mike sees “one Amber”, not knowing whether it’s AG or Amber. Since he’s a construct of her own brain, that could imply the line starts to blur for herself.
But AG would know that Blaine didn’t throw him, as Mike reminds them here. He’s responding to AG’s comment, which was based on Amber’s knowledge of what Blaine said.
What’s interesting is that it suggests that Amazi-Girl doesn’t know more about what happened to Mike than we do. I’m not sure how that happened.
The way he phrased it, that she should know Blaine didn’t throw him “now that [her] two brains are talking”, made more sense to me directed toward someone who had to be told what happened (Amber), rather than someone who witnessed it (Amazi-Girl). I wonder if Ron again is on to something with the observation that Amb/AG’s own hallucination doesn’t seem to care which alter it’s speaking to.
Mike is starting to sound like the ghost of Henchman 24 when he was haunting 21.
You’d be surprised how much you can actually do on little to no sleep.
After 3 nights without sleep during finals week I was surprised by the pain I felt. During the 4th night some F’er pulled the fire alarm in my dorm. Twas like being dragged from Heaven down into Hell…I imagine.
Surprised you didn’t sleep through it.
Getting serious henchman 21 and 24 Vibes off of this.
I feel I am missing something with the mouse over text… Admittedly oblivious white male here… Maybe I’ll ask my wife when she gets home.
Heavy physical activity (flips, running, etc) are often very awkward and painful if your boobs aren’t strapped down
Press X to Doubt on that alt text, everybody I’ve ever met who wears a bra would toss it first chance they got, sleep or not, cause they’re just uncomfortable, especially after all day.
Nah, I know of some of busty women who sleep with bras on. Amber’s pretty well endowed. I wouldn’t be surprised if she want to wear her bra is she wasn’t gonna be sleepy.
That’s exactly why she’d keep it on. I find it much harder to fall and stay asleep wearing a bra, it’s the all-nighter toolbox equivalent of keeping bright lights in your field of vision.
The real question we should be asking: “Did Mike fuck Blaine’s mom, and if so, is he continuing to fuck her in the afterlife?”
Now that you made me noticed that…
Nope, he still ain’t real. How would he know that Blaine told her that he was thrown off the building by Blaine?
Someone spiked her pizza with psilocybin.
Nope, just lack of sleep. Back when I was working a job that had basically 3 days of 12 hour night shifts every weekend I frequently had hallucinations on the third day because of limited sleep with the kids at home making noise.
I know all about sleep hallucinations, they suck royally, at least Amber/Amazi-girl’s Hallucination is somewhat helpful
I once went all week with (maybe) 4 hours sleep during a military exercise. I don’t remember having hallucinations. Mind you, I don’t remember anything after day two.
The fact he looks more like the Walkyverse Mike than the Dumbingverse Mike is making me jokingly think “oh hey, he’s reality hopping.”
Me, too. The ghost of Walkyverse Mike wanders the multiverse, helping/hindering all the Ambers
Her two brains are conectiiiiiiing
Also she’s actually abducting Becky, wtf…
That was the plan.
Speaking as a nonbinary person in possession of a certain amount of boob, I’ve never understood the problem so many people seem to have with bras?
I spent my entire boob-having time on this earth up until the age of twenty or so (after which I switched to chest binders) wearing bras every minute I wasn’t showering, because having my tits bouncing around was so much less comfortable than just having them strapped in place. Maybe it all comes down to boob shape?
Pretty similar experience here, though it does depend on type of bra– which for me, is almost always sports bra, which I do find pretty comfortable. I also find binders comfortable to sleep in (which I’ve only ever done by accident because, you know, don’t sleep in binders).
There are probably a number of factors as to what feels comfortable to people, very YMMV.
Someone please put Amber into therapy. This is increasingly painful to read. I’m dreading that A/A-G will meet Robin and her increasingly weak psyche will not survive the experience.
Speaking as a newly discovering myself nonbinary person how do I find a good binder I am *struggling*
underworks, my good friend…. underworks will set you free. i’m not sure if i can post links here, so let me just say, spring for one of the ones that are cotton lined, and if you have any amount of tum at all, probably do not get a full tank binder cause it’ll roll up and hurt your bottom ribs.