Chapter: Chapter 9: Forsaking All Others
;____; thank you for all the super nice comments on the page last week!!! I really appreciate hearin’ from y’all, even if it is just to gnash your teeth and rend your clothing!
Things continue to change apace…
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TRANSCRIPT
Panel 1 (textless; Imogen looks from the screen over her shoulder, at Jonathan)
Panel 2 (textless; Imogen stands up and we see from behind as she looks down at Jonathan sleeping)
Panel 3 (Imogen grabs Jonathan’s pillow)
Jonathan: bnuh?
Panel 4 (Imogen wields the pillow over her shoulder, distressed)
Imogen: You… asshole!!!
I’m clenching my jaw in hopes he doesn’t go for the emotional manipulation of:
– Accusing her of being the asshole by breaking into his phone
– Acting like she’s jumping to conclusions and it’s just a “close relative/friend”
– Holding the fact that he’s the “bread winner” in the home, so she’d be destitute without him anyway. (“Who would want you anyway.” “You’re lucky I’m with you.” “What are YOU going to do without ME?”)
Aaaahhhhhhh. I live for your comics lol
LORDIE I’M SCARED FOR THAT
looks at script
looks away
yeah, about that…
Ugh, yeah, not a shock, unfortunately.
It’s unequivocally going to be every single one of those things.
Sigh, that just means it’s realistic.
J: “What will you do without me to pay for everything?!”
*Alex kicks in the door, power-lifts Imogen over her shoulder like that meme*
A:”She doesn’t need you for anything anymore, asshole.”
Yes, but that’s just going to make Alex more conflicted about *her* feelings – you can’t just hit on someone who needs you for support, they might not feel like they have the luxury of saying no!
Even as an ex, Jonathan is going to be an obstruction to shipping 😖
“How are you going to pay for a divorce attorney?”
Oh my God!!! It’s so amazing seeing Imogen finally standing up for herself. And I love the mirroring/callback to Alex throwing pinecones at her brother – it’s such a subtle. cool way to link them.
She put bricks in that pillow case, right? Right???
I just want to buy her a drink and give her a big hug!
And even then, in thatshe’s only hitting him with a pillow, because Imogen at least, is an intrinsically good person.
Like Bobbi and their half-brick comment above, my first thought was a wry “No, you put it over the face, and…”
Congratulations on creating an all-to-real odious cheater and manipulator, showing us the pain they cause, and making us unambiously root for the one they hurt. Ow, right in the feels.
I come back to the comic almost every day to stare at the artwork and secretly wish a bonus page would appear before my eyes. I neeeeed to know how this is gonna play out.
When the power went out, Jonathan gaslit Imogen for being unhappy about the situation, degraded her ability to understand finances, farted around on his phone until she fell asleep… and then he decided he wanted sex.
This behavior hit pretty close to home so my indignant little heart has decided that Jonathan wasn’t just farting around on his phone, he was clearly texting the woman he’s having an affair with.
Having an affair is only the tip of the iceberg of his bad behavior. As readers, we have the luxury of rereading the comic to catch the red flags; I worry that Imogen has been so trained to justify and accept his behaviors that it’s going to take her time and space to identify the ones that are less obvious than cheating.
Are the kids going to hear her yelling? Lucas was sleeping on the couch in the living room when they got home on Valentine’s Day, does he know that Jonathan asked for a threesome?
I wish every day were Wednesday… thank you for such engaging and beautiful work, Lindsay!
If Lucas knew Jonathan was cheating and was expected to keep the secret, it could in part explain why he’s so sad.
I was just thinking about this yesterday!
Trying to be optimistic here and hope that Imogen stands her ground, because I know this guy is going to throw the old gaslighting trick. I just feel it in my bones, based off of personal experience. “What? Naw, you’re crazy.” “Why are you looking through my personal business?” “What I do is none of your business, I don’t go prying into YOUR things.” “All the crap I do for you, like pay YOUR bills, keep a roof over YOUR head! I don’t deserve this treatment.” You know, turning the blame around on her instead of owning up to his own screw up. I’ve known these types.
Believe me when I say it takes a LOT to learn to stand up for yourself. If you know someone like this, don’t give in. Be fierce. Be strong. Don’t put up with it. You are NOT crazy.
Well, hitting him seems appropriate, but doesn’t a pillow sort of send the wrong message? “Pillow-fight” has overtones of childlike fun and friendliness, also of ineffectuality. Really liked the previous page, though; the blanks are full of multiple meanings which explicitness would unnecessarily constrict.
hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh