Spin off stories and other adventures from the world of Atomic Robo!
Empowered
Adam Warren
A sexy superhero comedy (except when it isn't) about the never-ending struggles of a plucky but very unlucky young superheroine.
Girl Genius
Phil Foglio, Kaja Foglio
In a time when the Industrial Revolution has become an all-out war, Mad Science rules the World...with mixed success.
Lighter Than Heir
Melissa Albino
A young Volant woman joins the military in an effort to upstage her war-hero father.
Demon's Mirror
Harry Bogosian
Based loosely off of "The Snow Queen", a story by Hans Christian Andersen, we see things take a different turn as the demons become central characters, and the side characters stick around. Yup, that's the only differences. Enjoy!
Spinnerette
Krazy Krow, Rocio Zucchi, Pablo Rey
When a lab accident gives Heather Brown spider powers and six arms, she does what any midwest comic geek would do: Become Ohio's #3 superhero!
Awaken
Koti Saavedra/Flipfloppery
Superpowers, monsters and conspiracies. Piras, the spoiled Dameschi heir, fights to recover his identity after becoming a terrorist!
[un]Divine
Ayme
A highschool senior thought giving up his soul for a demon was a good idea. It wasn't.
Helvetica
J.N. Wiedle
This story follows Helvetica's quest to uncover who he was in life, his existential crises, and his struggle to to make death worth living.
Anarchy Dreamers
Emily Ree
Sparkly undead kids fight society's worst Nightmares in this pastel-punk urban fantasy coming-of-age!
Laws and Sausages
Zach Weinersmith
Your cartoon guide to the American governement!
Starhammer
J.N. Monk, Harry Bogosian
A teen girl inherits a powerful alien artifact and proceeds to make a series of increasingly poor decisions
Star Trip
Gisele Weaver
Jas is a human taken from her home planet on a trip across the galaxy she will never forget.
Go Get a Roomie
Clover
Experience the queer journey of an upbeat hippie and the friendships she makes along the way! A tale of self-discovery and love of many forms.
Manly Guys Doing Manly Things
Kelly Turnbull
A weekly comic celebrating the finer things in life. Like manly men, lumberjacks, and time traveling special ops agents.
Atomic Robo
Brian Clevinger, Scott Wegener
The robot punches monsters and bad robots and one time he was a cowboy.
Ozzie the Vampire
Eric Lide
Ozzie and her best friend Kimmy are your average everyday normal art students – except one is an immortal vampire with superpowers and the other possesses a magic talking grimoire. Also they have to save their town from a demonic invasion.
Heroes of Thantopolis
Izzy Strontium Hall
A living boy fights to save the City of the Dead.
Monster Pulse
Magnolia Porter Siddell
Four kids run afoul of a creepy secret organization's experiments, which turn their body parts into fighting monsters. Part sentimental coming-of-age story, part monster-training shonen manga, with just a bit of sci-fi body horror.
Wychwood
Varethane
When Tiara's pyrokinesis is finally noticed, she is captured by a magical research organization for study. If she cooperates, she could be helping to save humanity from a dire threat - but can she trust them?
Parisa
Ellen K
Two friends, Nolan and Gwen, take it upon themselves to escort the amnesiac spirit Lelief across the world of Parisa.
Wilde Life
Pascalle Lepas
Oscar decided to rent an old haunted house, and that's when things got weird...
Never Satisfied
Taylor Robin
Lucy Marlowe, a magician's apprentice, competes against other apprentices for an important, magical, Goverment Job.
Sam & Fuzzy
Sam Logan
Troubled by gangster rodents, lovesick vampire stalkers, or confused ninja assassins? Don't panic! Sam and Fuzzy are here to help. (For a reasonable fee.)
Devil's Candy
Rem, Bikkuri
A lush fantasy about boy genius Kazu Decker, the girl he constructed for his 9th grade science project, and the world of devils and monsters they live in.
The Mash
L.F. Garcia, Danigami
In a world shrouded in mystery and threatened by great evil,a young mummy prince will use his new life to unite with other monster children to save it.
Little Red & Wolf
Aoi Maneki
Delve into the daily lives of two famous fairytale characters, and their adventures in this big weird world we all live in.
Witchy
Ariel Slamet Ries
In the witch kingdom Hyalin, the strength of your magic is determined by the length of your hair.
Guilded Age
T Campbell, John Waltrip, Florence Machina
Welcome to the saga of the working-class adventurer! Enjoy the complete story with new annotations daily!
Awkward Zombie
Katie Tiedrich
Gags and goofs about videogames and the things that happen in them.
Dumbing of Age
David M Willis
Joyce has been homeschooled her entire life until now, when she's suddenly a freshman in college! Things don't go well.
The Hunter of Insania
Aoi Maneki
Wiol Alkko sells fake magical objects to those desperate for cures. When he tries to scam a real witch, she curses him: within a year, Wiol must learn and respect magic, or succumb to corruption of body and mind.
Between Failures
Jackie Wohlenhaus
The low stakes adventures of an assorted group of 20 somethings trapped in the declining years of American retail. They are naughty and say lots of swears.
Cyanide & Happiness
Explosm
Satire, dark humor and surreal humor.
Elephant Town
Danielle Corsetto
The long, slow tale of Kris, Paul, Berto and Mirando, four people who live in the same creaky old house, but don't know each other. New chapter updates every 2 months.
Ghost Junk Sickness
Studio CARTRIDGE, Laura Lee
Two hunters try to survive and end up being pushed to pursue a deadly bounty dubbed "The Ghost".
Tove
Severin
The end of the world is coming, and Tove doesn't want to be a hero, but SOMEONE has to look after her little brother.
El Goonish Shive
Dan Shive
WARNING: This comic often ignores the Laws of Physics
MASKLESS
kickingshoes
In a world where people can wield the magic of elemental Masks, all Ashe wants to do is help. Maskless and useless, with dreams of fire and smoke on the back of his tongue, he finds himself on a strange, dangerous path to uncovering the secrets of these incredible objects, and the source of the monsters plaguing his home.
Nerf Now!!
Josué Pereira
A cute webcomic about fanservice, video games, and... love. Mostly video games, though.
Stand Still, Stay Silent
Minna Sundberg
A few generations after the end of the world, a small, poorly financed research crew is sent out to rediscover whatever is left of the forbidden old world in the south.
The Glass Scientists
Sage (S.H.) Cotugno
A gaslamp fantasy comic about the life and times of a ragtag group of mad scientists and their enigmatic leader, Dr. Henry Jekyll.
Peritale
Mari Costa
A fairy godmother with no magic tries her best to successfully fulfill a Fairytale and win the respect of her peers.
Novae
KaiJu
A historical romance with a touch magic and a dash of astronomy. It chronicles the romantic adventures of Sulvain, a sweet tempered necromancer and Raziol, a passionate 17th century astronomer.
The Din
Karin (Karrey)
The Din changed the world, mankind & its technology. Gregg Emilio dreams of flying in a sky that hasn't carried airplanes in a century.
Knights Errant
J.R. Doyle
Wilfrid's humble quest for revenge becomes bigger and bloodier by the day.
Sufficiently Remarkable
Maki Naro
Two young women living in Brooklyn discover that you're always coming of age.
Jailbird
Charlie Davis
An all-ages comic about a recently escaped prisoner's struggle to understand the outside world, and vice-versa. Also, a magic cape!
No Need for Bushido
Suburban Samurai, J W Kovell
The flash of a blade, the clash of steel! A runaway princess and her samurai companion navigate a fractured country on the brink of war.
The Sanity Circus
Windy
Magic, monsters and mysteries await in the odd city of Sanity. It's up to Attley and a colorful group of characters to find out just what is going on.
Sister Claire
Yamino
In the troubled aftermath of a great war between Witches and her fellow Nuns, novice Sister Claire just wants a purpose.
Demon Street
Aliza Layne
Two kids explore a world full of monsters and magic trying to find their way home again. But when home has been stolen from you, where do you go to get it back?
BOOKMARK Click "Tag Page" to bookmark a page. When you return to the site, click "Goto Tag" to continue where you left off.
BUFFER WATCH
Comics are currently drawn and uploaded through:
First thing I thought of when I read your comment was “oh they’re talking about COVID” and then I saw “at night” and I instantly felt better. For some reason I prefer people being in danger of getting beat up versus COVID being part of the Dumbiverse.
Being outside is better than being inside, with covid, other things being equal. More so in the day when the sun’s UV light actually kills the virus, but cold weather when people are inside more is when all kinds of viruses spread.
It’s a great idea, but not particularly feasible in this case. While Joe can worry about Mike, Mike’s not going to stop haunting Amber while he does so.
It’s an interesting proposition. Losing a friend, especially the way Amber did can cause a lot of grief especially when you feel like it was your fault they died. Sort of an indirect responsibility for either not protecting them or in Amber’s case, her dad did the deed. The thing about this pain is that there’s a level of deniability. You can try to convince yourself that it is not your fault and honestly that is a justifiable thing people can back you up on.
The pain Joe is feeling specifically that he’s sorta been a scumbag most of his life. I wouldn’t say nobody’s in his corner but nobody has high expectations for him. And he has to worry that he will never be able to be anything than a scumbag in the eyes of people. Or even worse, what if he can’t stop being a scumbag and ends up hurting the people he loves. It’s the opposite of a deniable pain. It’s a responsible pain. He has to admit that the way he’s acted isn’t the best and he fears that he won’t be able to change that. I can imagine in comparison to that self loathing, losing someone and learning to not blame yourself might feel preferable, because at least you don’t HAVE to admit that you’re a shit person that sucks to process that.
I mean still not something I’d say out loud. Particularly to the grieving party.
He’s not really being serious anyway. Trading your pain for someone else’s isn’t actually a thing that’s humanly possible. The closest you can get is piling someone else’s pain on top of yours.
By the same token, nobody died because Joe was a dick. Mike would not have died if he wasn’t friends with Amber, and Amber might have been able to prevent his death had she made different choices. That’s not an easy thing to shake.
My thought process for that is that every single decision you make in life changes the course of how you’ll die. Saying “he wouldn’t be dead if he didn’t know me” is…a guess. We will never know because he DID know you. Hell maybe if he never met Amber he would’ve just wandered into traffic one day by accident. Death is inevitable and every choice we make just changes how and when it comes. I’m not saying that’s the headspace Amber is in but that’s probably something a therapist could work out with her.
Your friend dying trying to protect you from your evil dad is very inarguably a “he died because he knew me” scenario, and I don’t think the logic you describe would actually do anything to alleviate the feelings of guilt.
But Amber’s grief is layered with and bleeding through her beliefs that she’s a monster (stabbing Sal, turning Ryan into a Crazy Golf course with his knife, beating up her dad, being nasty to Dan…), feelings of responsibility (her dad, her fight, her tuition causing him to completely lose the plot, her DID delaying the point before anybody knew about this) – and I think the problem is when you feel responsible for something it doesn’t matter if you’re blaming yourself for action or inaction, you feel like it is your fault. Amazigirl wasn’t able to defeat Ball-Peen Mad Dad and his ToeDad sidekick single-handedly and Mike died tackling her mess for her. And Mike thought of her as a friend and she probably didn’t always think kindly towards him (not undeservedly, but guilt and he saved her and she didn’t save him and she was supposed to be the one saving people as an atonement and therefore she feels that she has proof she isn’t/wasn’t good enough, and therefore that she didn’t recognise his capacity for self-sacrifice is further “proof” of her inadequacy in her mind)…
I’m not dismissing Joe’s feelings of not being good enough but his issues are considerably less complicated than Amber’s.
However I do think they could be good for each other. Joe sees the good in Amber and I don’t think he’s going to give up on her or let her push him away. Amber desperately needs that. Conversely, she may be able to provide a sense of perspective for him. Being a womaniser is pretty shitty, and yeah Dr Dick hurt Joe’s mother doing the dirty on her – but he didn’t emotionally, physically and financially abuse her. He didn’t probably cheat on her with the teenager who babysat his kid. He wasn’t a lower-ranking mobster. He didn’t destroy his child’s mental stability. He isn’t a kidnapper or murderer… Dr Dick has one big flaw and he’s plausibly showing he’s recognised it and intends to do better with Amber’s mum. It’s only been a few months and they’re already married but arguably taking on Amber as a stepchild who he’s welcoming into the family open-heartedly (and with the pending court case and tuition fees etc, open-walletedly) is an even bigger commitment. And while “hot younger woman he’s very sexually compatible with” definitely plays into things, he clearly also cares about Stacey as a person, and wants to be a good partner to her. It’s way too early for Joe to believe he’s changed, but with time Dr Dick may be able to convince Joe by example that it’s never too late to decide to do and be better.
Me either! But Amber made it very clear that she was NOT Amazigirl and that was WHY she was able to keep on inflicting serious damage after he had been neutralised. It was a vicious enough attack to freak out Dorothy who would almost certainly not have been underestimating the level of threat he posed before Amber taught him fear and pain. AMBER thought her level of response made her a monster.
In fairness, I think Dorothy would have been horrified at ANY amount of stabbing. We’re also not shown what happened so it’s hard to say if he’d been neutralized or not. All we know is the police filed it as self defence.
While it’s certainly possible something’s changed, everything we saw of Richard last semester showed that he hadn’t realized or addressed anything. He wasn’t feeling the urge to cheat, so it wasn’t ever going to be a problem.
He told Joe that it’s different with her and that he feels really protective of her, after everything her mob stooge ex put her through, when Joe went off on him about how he was jumping in dick first, incapable of commitment, etc.
Not saying I believe he’s no longer viewing all women through a sexualised lens, has addressed his impulse control issues, fully acknowledged how much his behaviour hurt Joe’s mum or the damage seeing all that left on Joe, etc – but I do think he’s aware his behaviour wasn’t OK, that Joe’s still upset with him because of the pain he caused Joe’s mum, and that if he wants Stacey to be happy with him long-term, that means he needs to be faithful (or if she’s open to swinging/a poly relationship, they need to have clear guidelines and open communication for that to work)…
Yeah, he said “she’s, like, fifteen years younger than me and super hot”.
I read it as he thinks he’s found someone who’ll keep him so interested he won’t want to cheat, so he doesn’t have to address any of his problems. He’s found the right woman now, so he doesn’t have to do anything else.
Wait, something is wrong here. A disturbance in the force like a billion voices cried out in pain and were suddenly cut off. Ok, I was too lazy to look it up but you all know what I mean.
1) Joe, you should’ve gotten yourself a hot beverage! You look so cold!
2) Their frosty breath gave me a feeling of “wrongness” for a split-second; I eventually identified that feeling as discomfort with unmasked faces in a convenience store. Thanks, coronavirus. You don’t exist in DoA, so leave me alone
Amber definitely has something going on, and would probably find group therapy or one-on-one psychological help beneficial. She has to get over her “I am the world’s most burdened individual and nobody else in the world is even remotely equipped to deal with me” attitude to be receptive enough to take that step, though. Blaine wins as long as she maintains that mindset.
Uh…. I’d be a little careful of categorizing her thinking in that binary.
Therapists are a total crapshoot, and even if they DID know about DID, clinical psychology as it is is HARDLY an exact science, and categories and interrelationships of conditions and neurodivergence are changing all the time like an ancient fucking maze or something (a necessity, given how this kind of science started out in a VERY bad place).
If she makes the choice NOT to take that risk with therapy, it’s HER choice, not her father’s.
Besides, what’s a win for him now? You can’t celebrate or cash in victories when you’re DEAD.
It takes a while to find the right therapist, but I eventually did, and we click well enough. I’ve recently been telling her about media I relate to. She’s tried Bojack Horseman and found it “inane,” but loves Arcane and Tuca and Bertie.
My therapist adored it. She says she personally knows all of the “bad therapists” Bertie sees in the first episode of season 2 and was laughing her head off particularly at “Bluebird” and Crystal Lady.
If anything, Amber needs more support to boost her self-esteem. She has a lot of Blaine damage to patch up, and nihilistically accepting it will only keep her stuck where she is now.
*Sigh* God I’m tired of people conflating these concepts.
Alright. I will extend the benefit of the doubt that you used the wrong word by mistake, that you meant to say “asocial”, and explain.
Asocial: A- comes from latin, and means “not-“.
Anti-social: Anti- comes from greek, and means “against-“.
When you say that someone is asocial, you say that they have some amount of lack of interest in or aversion to social activity.
When you say that someone is anti-social, you say that they are an enemy of society, and hostile to social order.
These words are not interchangable. Media will paint introverts as sociopaths, but that’s false and awful. Asocial behavior can be healthy. Being asocial and being a public enemy are different things.
Regardless of where it was stolen from, it’s English now and means whatever the heck English speakers generally mean when they say it.
There is a distinction between asocial and antisocial but it gets kind of blurry. Unfortunately, words can be used as weapons, intentionally or unintentionally.
The first job of any media is to engage, and if misusing words is what it takes, that’s what will happen. This should not be surprising. But this in turn doesn’t make it right.
I’m about as moderate as someone who advocates for the death penalty for CEO’s can be, but the proposed conclusion doesn’t follow. There are plenty of ethical ways of producing and consuming under capitalism. The problem is that the system favours psychopathic behaviour, not that it insists on it. The creation of the corporation, stocks, and limited or zero liability is where the problems really arise.
Nope, and she doesn’t fit the criteria for it either. Sarah is distant due to past negative experiences but still enjoys close relationships when she has them, still has some desire for this connection, has clear expressions of her emotions, has shown interest in relationships (mainly for sexual pleasure), has clear motivation and goals, still reacts to criticism etc..
Someone that has Schizoid Personality Disorder usually feels disconnected from others without a clear specific memory, low self-esteem or anxiety causing it and come across as very apathetic, vague, passive and aloof.
Also, Sarah’s ability to express anger decreases the likelihood significantly as well. Most people with SPD are unable to or only rarely express anger or hostility and are very unlikely to even if you directly provoke them unlike many conditions including other personalities disorders which tend to cause anger problems, increased aggression and defensiveness for a variety of reasons.
It is a more logical explanation for her pathological hatred of any form of human contact than anything currently presented in this strip. By her own admission, she’s always been like this even before she was roommates with Dana. The meta-explanation I’ve found is that this was Sarah’s personality in the Walkyverse timeline-but DoA’s approach is too grounded for that to be a satisfying explanation to me.
And honestly, if she doesn’t check every last one of the boxes for SPD, she is only the second character in this strip with a disorder that doesn’t neatly match the criteria of the DSM (I’m looking at you, Amber)-to say nothing of the fact those criteria are frequently fluctuating and that diagnoses are never so straightforward.
Further confirmation that Joe, Amber et al are in Bloomington — the sculpture the two are walking past in panels four and five is located in front of the Jacobs School of Music, which is located kitty-corner from the convenience store.
I imagine Joe doesn’t care so much for Mike… after all, I think their only interaction was Mike third-wheeling his first date with Joyce and constantly punching him.
Mind!Mike works like Sam Beckett, leaping from person to person, but instead of taking over their bodies he pushes them to better themselves by being a dick to them.
With Amber, ghost Mike is the voice of reason. Delivered in Mike’s inimical style of course, but still the sensible one giving sensible advice.
With Joe, ghost Mike would create a sanity crisis, self doubt, fear, etc.
So basically, I’m down for it. Not least because it would mark the slow introduction of the Science Fiction/Fantasy element that I’ve been waiting for and may never see.
Honestly what I came here to say. Their relationship ain’t perfect, but I’m genuinely surprised at how well they work as brother and sister. They’re surprisingly sweet to each other.
I think most of us would agree that trauma from the death of a friend, on top of the trauma from everything else, is bigger than “is it okay for me to kiss this cute girl I like???”
Like, I agree with the antipathy against the Shitlife Olympics, but I think this one’s pretty fair.
So, that curvy sculpture, plus the bike rack, plus the no dialogue, plus the “stupid stuff bubbles up” comment, made me think for a moment that reality was somehow breaking down into an Escher painting.
BEWARE Alt-text Willis. For soon you will be visited by three spirits. First the Spirit of comic panels past (that were drawn in their present). Then you will be visited by the Spirit of comic panels present. Lastly you will be visited by Frank. He’s mute and won’t tell you anything useful about the future, but you’ll have to feed him and let him crash in your guest room for a month.
Loading ...
Okay, I’m wary any time we have people outside at night now.
These are big beefy Joe and hyper competent fighter Amber, though. Who are you wary for, their attackers?
Have no fear. Night Guy is patrolling the area.
Probably.
I’d hope he’d be keeping Lucy warm! It looks cold out there
Why would Night Guy need to keep Walky’s girlfriend warm?
Night Guy is clearly Ultracar, they have a heater, very useful for keeping people warm!
First thing I thought of when I read your comment was “oh they’re talking about COVID” and then I saw “at night” and I instantly felt better. For some reason I prefer people being in danger of getting beat up versus COVID being part of the Dumbiverse.
Being outside is better than being inside, with covid, other things being equal. More so in the day when the sun’s UV light actually kills the virus, but cold weather when people are inside more is when all kinds of viruses spread.
Unfortunately, it’s only like 5pm for Amber and Joe right now! The night is cold and long.
It’s a little more than dead friend grief. That’s really just the icing on what is a multi-layer cake of neurosis.
Yeah, like she says, boiling cauldron of issues where dead friend is simply the most recent addition
the icing on the cauldron
Well put.
Yes, but don’t assume Joe would know that. He’s only aware of the stuff he’s witnessed.
I sometimes wonder if there’s ever a bottom to MY cauldron.
*EVEN a bottom.
Oh, look, some stupid stuff bubbled up right there.
It is not stupid, “ever” or “even” are both perfectly valid and grammatically correct ways to express the sentiment.
Even the Black Crochan had a bottom. You just need to find a small furry creature to befriend.
**captain America Meme**
“I got that reference.”
Also, that movie thoroughly traumatized me as a child.
I blame that movie for my interest in D&D and pretty much all things fantasy.
There’s a movie?
Depends on your definition of movie.
You’d need the right sort of crunchings and munchings.
like Scabs™ and new BBQ Scabs™
there’s no bottom. but most of what’s in there is remarkably okay, ok?
let me suggest you treat yourself the way you’d like to treat other people.
Well it isn’t a terrible idea to switch problems, maybe you ca reach find a solution for the other.
Likelihood is low since this isn’t smarting of age, but there is still a chance.
It’s a great idea, but not particularly feasible in this case. While Joe can worry about Mike, Mike’s not going to stop haunting Amber while he does so.
Always love when characters have a dynamic where each takes turns being the voice of reason
Huh. Wonder how poorly this is gonna go.
I don’t think it’s a serious suggestion, and this is probably the end of the scene.
Uh… check the blurry preview on Patreon.
Usually when I make a wrong guess it takes a little longer to be proven incorrect.
These two make me glad their parents got married.
TheAnxietyExchange(tm)? Is there an app for that?
If only my programming powers can quell my anxieties…
This should go well.
Joe’s trying but he’s woefully underequiped to help Amber with her problems
Yet somehow still better than Amber.
They’re both very trying.
It’s an interesting proposition. Losing a friend, especially the way Amber did can cause a lot of grief especially when you feel like it was your fault they died. Sort of an indirect responsibility for either not protecting them or in Amber’s case, her dad did the deed. The thing about this pain is that there’s a level of deniability. You can try to convince yourself that it is not your fault and honestly that is a justifiable thing people can back you up on.
The pain Joe is feeling specifically that he’s sorta been a scumbag most of his life. I wouldn’t say nobody’s in his corner but nobody has high expectations for him. And he has to worry that he will never be able to be anything than a scumbag in the eyes of people. Or even worse, what if he can’t stop being a scumbag and ends up hurting the people he loves. It’s the opposite of a deniable pain. It’s a responsible pain. He has to admit that the way he’s acted isn’t the best and he fears that he won’t be able to change that. I can imagine in comparison to that self loathing, losing someone and learning to not blame yourself might feel preferable, because at least you don’t HAVE to admit that you’re a shit person that sucks to process that.
I mean still not something I’d say out loud. Particularly to the grieving party.
He’s not really being serious anyway. Trading your pain for someone else’s isn’t actually a thing that’s humanly possible. The closest you can get is piling someone else’s pain on top of yours.
Trading is not possible, as far as I know.
But long ago, I used to be able to transmute my anxiety radiations, into a passion for science.
It was a flow-state where I lost all sense of time and self, where I had intense focus. It was a cognitive euphoria SUPER NOVA.
For some reason, I haven’t been able to do this for a very long time.
On top of everything else, sometimes I wonder if I’ve lost the spark, and worry that I’ll never be able to experience this brain power ever again
It’s been SO LONG. I feel AWFUL.
I JUST WANNA FEEL LIKE MYSELF AGAIN!!!
It is harder to establish flow with all the extra stress of these times. That doesn’t mean it is gone forever. I hope you find it again soon.
+1, what saltyglebe says.
(Or sultryglebe, I was typing without glasses. Salty and sultry can be in agreement regarding the glebe.)
By the same token, nobody died because Joe was a dick. Mike would not have died if he wasn’t friends with Amber, and Amber might have been able to prevent his death had she made different choices. That’s not an easy thing to shake.
My thought process for that is that every single decision you make in life changes the course of how you’ll die. Saying “he wouldn’t be dead if he didn’t know me” is…a guess. We will never know because he DID know you. Hell maybe if he never met Amber he would’ve just wandered into traffic one day by accident. Death is inevitable and every choice we make just changes how and when it comes. I’m not saying that’s the headspace Amber is in but that’s probably something a therapist could work out with her.
Your friend dying trying to protect you from your evil dad is very inarguably a “he died because he knew me” scenario, and I don’t think the logic you describe would actually do anything to alleviate the feelings of guilt.
But Amber’s grief is layered with and bleeding through her beliefs that she’s a monster (stabbing Sal, turning Ryan into a Crazy Golf course with his knife, beating up her dad, being nasty to Dan…), feelings of responsibility (her dad, her fight, her tuition causing him to completely lose the plot, her DID delaying the point before anybody knew about this) – and I think the problem is when you feel responsible for something it doesn’t matter if you’re blaming yourself for action or inaction, you feel like it is your fault. Amazigirl wasn’t able to defeat Ball-Peen Mad Dad and his ToeDad sidekick single-handedly and Mike died tackling her mess for her. And Mike thought of her as a friend and she probably didn’t always think kindly towards him (not undeservedly, but guilt and he saved her and she didn’t save him and she was supposed to be the one saving people as an atonement and therefore she feels that she has proof she isn’t/wasn’t good enough, and therefore that she didn’t recognise his capacity for self-sacrifice is further “proof” of her inadequacy in her mind)…
I’m not dismissing Joe’s feelings of not being good enough but his issues are considerably less complicated than Amber’s.
However I do think they could be good for each other. Joe sees the good in Amber and I don’t think he’s going to give up on her or let her push him away. Amber desperately needs that. Conversely, she may be able to provide a sense of perspective for him. Being a womaniser is pretty shitty, and yeah Dr Dick hurt Joe’s mother doing the dirty on her – but he didn’t emotionally, physically and financially abuse her. He didn’t probably cheat on her with the teenager who babysat his kid. He wasn’t a lower-ranking mobster. He didn’t destroy his child’s mental stability. He isn’t a kidnapper or murderer… Dr Dick has one big flaw and he’s plausibly showing he’s recognised it and intends to do better with Amber’s mum. It’s only been a few months and they’re already married but arguably taking on Amber as a stepchild who he’s welcoming into the family open-heartedly (and with the pending court case and tuition fees etc, open-walletedly) is an even bigger commitment. And while “hot younger woman he’s very sexually compatible with” definitely plays into things, he clearly also cares about Stacey as a person, and wants to be a good partner to her. It’s way too early for Joe to believe he’s changed, but with time Dr Dick may be able to convince Joe by example that it’s never too late to decide to do and be better.
I shed no tears over rapist Ryan shedding skin and blood. He was there to hurt people and he got hurt instead.
Me either! But Amber made it very clear that she was NOT Amazigirl and that was WHY she was able to keep on inflicting serious damage after he had been neutralised. It was a vicious enough attack to freak out Dorothy who would almost certainly not have been underestimating the level of threat he posed before Amber taught him fear and pain. AMBER thought her level of response made her a monster.
In fairness, I think Dorothy would have been horrified at ANY amount of stabbing. We’re also not shown what happened so it’s hard to say if he’d been neutralized or not. All we know is the police filed it as self defence.
While it’s certainly possible something’s changed, everything we saw of Richard last semester showed that he hadn’t realized or addressed anything. He wasn’t feeling the urge to cheat, so it wasn’t ever going to be a problem.
He told Joe that it’s different with her and that he feels really protective of her, after everything her mob stooge ex put her through, when Joe went off on him about how he was jumping in dick first, incapable of commitment, etc.
Not saying I believe he’s no longer viewing all women through a sexualised lens, has addressed his impulse control issues, fully acknowledged how much his behaviour hurt Joe’s mum or the damage seeing all that left on Joe, etc – but I do think he’s aware his behaviour wasn’t OK, that Joe’s still upset with him because of the pain he caused Joe’s mum, and that if he wants Stacey to be happy with him long-term, that means he needs to be faithful (or if she’s open to swinging/a poly relationship, they need to have clear guidelines and open communication for that to work)…
Yeah, he said “she’s, like, fifteen years younger than me and super hot”.
I read it as he thinks he’s found someone who’ll keep him so interested he won’t want to cheat, so he doesn’t have to address any of his problems. He’s found the right woman now, so he doesn’t have to do anything else.
Re: Joyce! The end is nigh!
The end is HIGH. On multivitamins.
This end up.
Wait, something is wrong here. A disturbance in the force like a billion voices cried out in pain and were suddenly cut off. Ok, I was too lazy to look it up but you all know what I mean.
1) Joe, you should’ve gotten yourself a hot beverage! You look so cold!
2) Their frosty breath gave me a feeling of “wrongness” for a split-second; I eventually identified that feeling as discomfort with unmasked faces in a convenience store. Thanks, coronavirus. You don’t exist in DoA, so leave me alone
Lots of people say RE in a sentence like in an email! I know I picked it up from hearing others do it.
I do it, but I do it semi-ironically.
Has anyone armchair diagnosed Sarah with schizoid personality disorder yet?
Sarah? Why her? She is a bit anti-social but i cannot recal any evidence of mental illness.
Or did you mean to say if Amber was diagnosed?
Frankly I am sick and tired of you humans and your tendency to label personalities as mental disorders
Amber definitely has something going on, and would probably find group therapy or one-on-one psychological help beneficial. She has to get over her “I am the world’s most burdened individual and nobody else in the world is even remotely equipped to deal with me” attitude to be receptive enough to take that step, though. Blaine wins as long as she maintains that mindset.
Uh…. I’d be a little careful of categorizing her thinking in that binary.
Therapists are a total crapshoot, and even if they DID know about DID, clinical psychology as it is is HARDLY an exact science, and categories and interrelationships of conditions and neurodivergence are changing all the time like an ancient fucking maze or something (a necessity, given how this kind of science started out in a VERY bad place).
If she makes the choice NOT to take that risk with therapy, it’s HER choice, not her father’s.
Besides, what’s a win for him now? You can’t celebrate or cash in victories when you’re DEAD.
It takes a while to find the right therapist, but I eventually did, and we click well enough. I’ve recently been telling her about media I relate to. She’s tried Bojack Horseman and found it “inane,” but loves Arcane and Tuca and Bertie.
Ooo! I LOVE Tuca and Bertie!!!!
In all honesty, that show’s been more calming and assuring to me than any therapist I’ve met, which is really saying something
My therapist adored it. She says she personally knows all of the “bad therapists” Bertie sees in the first episode of season 2 and was laughing her head off particularly at “Bluebird” and Crystal Lady.
“HA. Like anyone else in the world is even remotely equipped to deal with me.”
– Amber O’Malley
https://www.dumbingofage.com/2019/comic/book-9-comic/02-but-the-sun-still-shines/equipped/
If anything, Amber needs more support to boost her self-esteem. She has a lot of Blaine damage to patch up, and nihilistically accepting it will only keep her stuck where she is now.
*Sigh* God I’m tired of people conflating these concepts.
Alright. I will extend the benefit of the doubt that you used the wrong word by mistake, that you meant to say “asocial”, and explain.
Asocial: A- comes from latin, and means “not-“.
Anti-social: Anti- comes from greek, and means “against-“.
When you say that someone is asocial, you say that they have some amount of lack of interest in or aversion to social activity.
When you say that someone is anti-social, you say that they are an enemy of society, and hostile to social order.
These words are not interchangable. Media will paint introverts as sociopaths, but that’s false and awful. Asocial behavior can be healthy. Being asocial and being a public enemy are different things.
COSIGNED
No, it comes from Greek, and means “-less” more than “un-” or “not”.
Regardless of where it was stolen from, it’s English now and means whatever the heck English speakers generally mean when they say it.
There is a distinction between asocial and antisocial but it gets kind of blurry. Unfortunately, words can be used as weapons, intentionally or unintentionally.
The first job of any media is to engage, and if misusing words is what it takes, that’s what will happen. This should not be surprising. But this in turn doesn’t make it right.
As sad as it is, I guess there is no ethical production or consumption under capitalism, is there?
I’m about as moderate as someone who advocates for the death penalty for CEO’s can be, but the proposed conclusion doesn’t follow. There are plenty of ethical ways of producing and consuming under capitalism. The problem is that the system favours psychopathic behaviour, not that it insists on it. The creation of the corporation, stocks, and limited or zero liability is where the problems really arise.
Nope, and she doesn’t fit the criteria for it either. Sarah is distant due to past negative experiences but still enjoys close relationships when she has them, still has some desire for this connection, has clear expressions of her emotions, has shown interest in relationships (mainly for sexual pleasure), has clear motivation and goals, still reacts to criticism etc..
Someone that has Schizoid Personality Disorder usually feels disconnected from others without a clear specific memory, low self-esteem or anxiety causing it and come across as very apathetic, vague, passive and aloof.
Also, Sarah’s ability to express anger decreases the likelihood significantly as well. Most people with SPD are unable to or only rarely express anger or hostility and are very unlikely to even if you directly provoke them unlike many conditions including other personalities disorders which tend to cause anger problems, increased aggression and defensiveness for a variety of reasons.
Nor does Amber, if that’s who they meant.
She’s got a ton of problems, but I wouldn’t peg that as one of them.
It is a more logical explanation for her pathological hatred of any form of human contact than anything currently presented in this strip. By her own admission, she’s always been like this even before she was roommates with Dana. The meta-explanation I’ve found is that this was Sarah’s personality in the Walkyverse timeline-but DoA’s approach is too grounded for that to be a satisfying explanation to me.
And honestly, if she doesn’t check every last one of the boxes for SPD, she is only the second character in this strip with a disorder that doesn’t neatly match the criteria of the DSM (I’m looking at you, Amber)-to say nothing of the fact those criteria are frequently fluctuating and that diagnoses are never so straightforward.
Maybe you meant paranoid personality disorder.
‘Schizoid’ is one of those words that is really hard to confuse with other ones lol
I guess people are just trying to figure out ways for your post to have made more sense.
” The stars in your brain galaxy don’t align with my current categories and calculations.
I know MY science and maps are perfect, so it’s YOUR stars that must be wrong! “
FYI this is meant to be read tongue-in-cheek.
No. I meant Sarah
Why does she need to be?
Further confirmation that Joe, Amber et al are in Bloomington — the sculpture the two are walking past in panels four and five is located in front of the Jacobs School of Music, which is located kitty-corner from the convenience store.
Yes, but the persistent snow proves it’s an alternate universe Bloomington somewhere in northern Indiana.
I imagine Joe doesn’t care so much for Mike… after all, I think their only interaction was Mike third-wheeling his first date with Joyce and constantly punching him.
Rejoice, Joe! You worry too much!
Beat me to it.
Suddenly we get a brief genera shift to science fiction and Mind-Mike jump over to Joe’s head.
Mind!Mike works like Sam Beckett, leaping from person to person, but instead of taking over their bodies he pushes them to better themselves by being a dick to them.
So we can call it Quantum Asshole.
Joe looks at Amber and sees Ghost Mike in her eye, who then leaps into Joe’s and detonates.
None can overcome the power of Ghost Mike: Bites the Dust.
With Amber, ghost Mike is the voice of reason. Delivered in Mike’s inimical style of course, but still the sensible one giving sensible advice.
With Joe, ghost Mike would create a sanity crisis, self doubt, fear, etc.
So basically, I’m down for it. Not least because it would mark the slow introduction of the Science Fiction/Fantasy element that I’ve been waiting for and may never see.
That coffee is going to get cold real quick.
If it’s hot enough it might actually turn to frost right then and there!
you know this is a wierd page to say it on, but these two make good siblings.
Honestly what I came here to say. Their relationship ain’t perfect, but I’m genuinely surprised at how well they work as brother and sister. They’re surprisingly sweet to each other.
I’m afraid Joe just said one of those said things that will make Amber have one of those REALLY bad interior reactions.
Man, i’d never get outside with so little clothes when it’s so cold. You’d find a dead ice statue of me the next morning
It might just be one thing, but it doesn’t mean it’s not important, Amber.
I dunno, I don’t like shrugging off other people’s problems or worries just because the ones I’m dealing with are plentiful and crippling to me.
And out of everyone Amber is the closest to me irl. But after reading her, I always feel I have to check myself lol
I think most of us would agree that trauma from the death of a friend, on top of the trauma from everything else, is bigger than “is it okay for me to kiss this cute girl I like???”
Like, I agree with the antipathy against the Shitlife Olympics, but I think this one’s pretty fair.
I’ve probably spent way too much time trying to shrug off my own problems because I know there are other people who have way worse problems than me.
Problems are individual. They’re still your problems regardless what problems others have or don’t have.
Occasionally you can turn one of your problems into someone else’s problem, but that’s rare and usually comes with a price.
I have a feeling that Joe is going to be demoted to worst brother again lol
So, that curvy sculpture, plus the bike rack, plus the no dialogue, plus the “stupid stuff bubbles up” comment, made me think for a moment that reality was somehow breaking down into an Escher painting.
Reality is an Escher painting; you usually can’t see it because you only get a small part of the entire picture.
Not just reality… this entire campus is an Escher print.
Not one of those echo-ey, wavy segues to a flashback?
I thought we were being given a brief look into how sleep-deprived Amber seems everything at the moment
For that, you need Wayne and Garth waving their hands and making do-do-do sounds.
Is the sculpture symbolism of how each of their warped problems are valid?
Can Amber really trade Ghost Mike to Joe? I thought he was a free agent.
> free agent.
Close, but it’s spelled “figment”.
BEWARE Alt-text Willis. For soon you will be visited by three spirits. First the Spirit of comic panels past (that were drawn in their present). Then you will be visited by the Spirit of comic panels present. Lastly you will be visited by Frank. He’s mute and won’t tell you anything useful about the future, but you’ll have to feed him and let him crash in your guest room for a month.