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The hospital waiting room?

50 (33.3%)

Faye on a trip down Deriver Denial?

26 (17.3%)

Emergency Cast Meeting?

45 (30%)

The police station, charged with the assault (or even murder) of Pintsize?

9 (6%)

Weird archetype-filled dream sequence for Faye in which she sees her life as a strange Pyroland-like fantasy and is Elightened?

20 (13.3%)

Total Members Voted: 139

[TieDyeKat]

I just have no words... or more specifically, few that aren't considered profane.

Damn.

Warning - while you were typing, enough people saw the comic and gasped to cause a vacuum that's interrupting the traditional flow of time and space.  You may wish to curl up in the fetal position, try not to cry, and cry a lot.

DID JEPH JUST KILL FAYE?

[ysth]

... and while Faye does tend dissolve her problems in ethanol...

The solvent that solves nothing. (Why must I pun?)

To get under the others' hide.

[Half Empty Coffee Cup]

God fucking damnit, Jeph! Was that supposed to be Friday's cliffhanger?

Literally shaking. 

[Zalder]

WHAT THE ALMIGHTY FUCK?  I, just, no words. 

[mustang6172]

Tomorrow's comic will be Winslow attempting to reboot Pintsize.

[Method of Madness]

Fuck. Also interesting use of your brief consciousness, Faye.

Tomorrow's comic will be Winslow attempting to reboot Pintsize.

I do hope Winslow messes with Pintsize pretending centuries have passed.

[swapna]

Is there any narrative universe in which trailing-off beeps in a hospital setting doesn't mean death?

Holy. Shit. This comic.

Holy balls, I read this comic so different...
first - Marten finally did the right thing and instead of  chatting with his girlfriend and finally checked on Faye.

second - Faye is concious for short periods of time (which is, considering... well, it's not bad. It could be a lot better, but it also could be way worse)

third - she punched Marten, apparently. Not great, but it explains her drifting off into unconsciousness; it means they're not only treating her alcohol poisoning through the IV line, they also gave her a rather strong sedative (Nobody wants to deal with a violent drunk person)

[Half Empty Coffee Cup]

I'm going to cling to that third point of yours, swapna, if you don't mind.

[Zalder]

Is there any narrative universe in which trailing-off beeps in a hospital setting doesn't mean death?

Holy. Shit. This comic.

Holy balls, I read this comic so different...
first - Marten finally did the right thing and instead of  chatting with his girlfriend and finally checked on Faye.

second - Faye is concious for short periods of time (which is, considering... well, it's not bad. It could be a lot better, but it also could be way worse)

third - she punched Marten, apparently. Not great, but it explains her drifting off into unconsciousness; it means they're not only treating her alcohol poisoning through the IV line, they also gave her a rather strong sedative (Nobody wants to deal with a violent drunk person)

I now choose to interpret today's strip along these same lines.  Those last two panels though, chilling. 

[Penquin47]

I hope that's what happened.

Pretty sure Faye's not gonna die here, but this is really scary.

If it's NOT Faye who punched Marten, who did?  Angus?  Sven?  Dora?  Claire?  Dora's the one with the history of punching people, but the one with the least justification.  Not that there's any justification for punching Marten for this, but you know what I mean.  (Okay, "because I'm in a lot of pain and he's there and it makes me feel a little better" is KIND OF justification.)

[TheEvilDog]

Dang.
That's all I've got.

[Ravenswing]

Wait. He does know what's going on. He knows about her and Angus breaking up - and that she's doubting herself over it.

You're a lot more sanguine about third-person omniscient than I am.

Consider: this is a hard-drinking crowd.  The gang routinely gets blitzed.  Note that Dora didn't do more than bat an eye at the concept of Faye showing up to work hung over and with booze on her breath.  What I expected from Friday's strip wasn't "OMG my friend is dying!!!!" so much as "(sighs)  This is no good, I'd better start getting her cleaned up."  That first panel tonight was, I figure, Jeph's way of letting us know that Marten was finding her unresponsive, and THEN freaking out.

Consider twice: So Faye just had a messy breakup.  But why would Marten figure on it being a five-alarm emergency?  Okay, it's been a long time as far as we readers are concerned, but the actual timeline of this comic hasn't advanced very far from Day One.  In real time, I don't think Dora dumping Marten is as much as a year, and it could be a good deal shorter an amount of time than that.  Of course he'd be concerned for Faye, but I don't think with his history he'd approach it as a shocking, dismaying development.

[Zalder]

I hope that's what happened.

Pretty sure Faye's not gonna die here, but this is really scary.

If it's NOT Faye who punched Marten, who did?  Angus?  Sven?  Dora?  Claire?  Dora's the one with the history of punching people, but the one with the least justification.  Not that there's any justification for punching Marten for this, but you know what I mean.  (Okay, "because I'm in a lot of pain and he's there and it makes me feel a little better" is KIND OF justification.)

It looks like the strip is being narrated though Faye's POV (fading in and out), so it looks like it was she who punched Marten.  I'm sure there is gonna be a lot of discussion after about what that punch meant.

[mustang6172]

Has everyone forgotten that Faye punching Marten was a running gag in the first 500 strips?

Is there any narrative universe in which trailing-off beeps in a hospital setting doesn't mean death?

Holy. Shit. This comic.

Holy balls, I read this comic so different...
first - Marten finally did the right thing and instead of  chatting with his girlfriend and finally checked on Faye.

second - Faye is concious for short periods of time (which is, considering... well, it's not bad. It could be a lot better, but it also could be way worse)

third - she punched Marten, apparently. Not great, but it explains her drifting off into unconsciousness; it means they're not only treating her alcohol poisoning through the IV line, they also gave her a rather strong sedative (Nobody wants to deal with a violent drunk person)

I think the beeps would be more indicative of death if they became further apart.  Literary folks call this a "cliffhanger."

[bears!]

I spent the weekend re-reading the comic from the beginning, and I'm amazed at how much Jeph's art and writing has progressed. This story is so much more powerful than even strip 500 (which was a punch to the gut in its own right). The look of concerned love on Marten's face in the first panel is so obvious and masterfully done.

It's also interesting to see how the writing Jeph does about alcohol has changed since the strip started (and since his sobriety). In the part of the comic I'm in now, Faye's drunkeness is treated as a punchline and never really that much of a cause for concern. There's even a strip somewhere back in the 600s where she gets drunk at work behind Dora's back, and we never see any negative repercussions for her doing that. It's obvious that this plotline is highly influenced by Jeph's own brush with drunken self destruction. I think we're getting a glimpse into just how messy and terrifying that night was.

I don't think she's dead. (Fuck, I hope she's not dead.) My hope is that this storyline will lead to a "Faye goes to AA" plotline (that possibly features Jimbo and/or Steve). Not dead Faye. That would be too terribly sad.

I wonder who's going to tell Angus. I hope none of the group takes it out on him.

third - she punched Marten, apparently. Not great, but it explains her drifting off into unconsciousness; it means they're not only treating her alcohol poisoning through the IV line, they also gave her a rather strong sedative (Nobody wants to deal with a violent drunk person)

Not sure how sedatives would interact with the alcohol in her system, though. Not saying you're wrong, I just know that there are mixtures that are dangerous and should never ever be done (alcohol and tylenol, alcohol and xanax, etc).

[Method of Madness]

Has everyone forgotten that Faye punching Marten was a running gag in the first 500 strips?

Nobody's forgotten that...not exactly the same scenario, but I do agree that the punch was intended as comic relief in today's otherwise terrifying comic.

[Kugai]

Ahhhh  FUCK!

[creatureshock]

So, think Faye's family will show up?  I am honestly hoping Marten contacts her family and they come up to see her. 

[sluthy]

I'm sure there is gonna be a lot of discussion after about what that punch meant.

I don't put more importance in the punch than Faye being drunk and generally angry at everytihng and everyone, especially anyone trying to help her. Drunks/drugged people lash out at paramedics very frequently, basic primal reaction to being restrained like 'fight or flight'. She doesn't have any reason to resent Marten in particular right now.

[Zalder]

Has everyone forgotten that Faye punching Marten was a running gag in the first 500 strips?

Nobody's forgotten that...not exactly the same scenario, but I do agree that the punch was intended as comic relief in today's otherwise terrifying comic.

Hmm, I didn't read it as comic relief, I read it as indicative of some anger that Faye is carrying around about what a mess her life is at the moment, and how things might have turned out differently if her and Marten had happened way back when.  I read the punch as Faye lashing out at something she maybe longs for in the back of her mind. 

That or she's just surly.

[Half Empty Coffee Cup]

Has everyone forgotten that Faye punching Marten was a running gag in the first 500 strips?

Nobody's forgotten that...not exactly the same scenario, but I do agree that the punch was intended as comic relief in today's otherwise terrifying comic.

I don't consider there to be anything relieving about it, myself. Consider the possible reasoning: "Fuck you, Marten, for saving me."

[Kugai]

I'd say the same thing sluthy.  I'm not ever sure she's totally aware very much of things at this point.

I can see her mother and sister turning up now.

[Natswash]

Has everyone forgotten that Faye punching Marten was a running gag in the first 500 strips?

Nobody's forgotten that...not exactly the same scenario, but I do agree that the punch was intended as comic relief in today's otherwise terrifying comic.

I don't consider there to be anything relieving about it, myself. Consider the possible reasoning: "Fuck you, Marten, for saving me."

I actually had a roomate my first week at college who collapsed in a puddle of his own puke and hit his head on a corner on the way down and wasn't responsive. I called the RA and when my roomate got back the next morning (after being taken to the hospital the night before) was actually mad that I got him the help he needed.
It could be one of those punches

[ankhtahr]

Oh.

[Method of Madness]

Wow. I'm surprised he was mad even after the fact.

[emmyelf]

New person here! Hi!

It's entirely possible that Jeph might kill off Faye, but I don't think it's likely. I think that rehab will be talked about, and potentially even going an intensive outpatient (or inpatient) program to get her back on her feet. Dora will probably feel guilty, but I hope she stays firm on her stance of firing Faye. Faye's actions aren't Dora's responsibility. 

As for Angus, I think he's still HERE, but I can't really see him rushing to Faye's side. Faye and Angus are very alike, and I can see Angus being concerned, but saying that it's her own fault, and that her welfare is no longer any of his business.

Now a lot of people seem to think that Claire is gonna be all pissy. I'm sure that he is probably now in a waiting room, and is calling Claire to fill her in. He probably didn't just say "I can't come over bye." Marten probably gave a reason, even one like "there's an emergency."

[Natswash]

Wow. I'm surprised he was mad even after the fact.

I think he was mostly mad because he then had to explain the hospital bill to his parents.

Welcome Emmyelf! I agree with your characterization of Angus and Marten and how they're dealing with things, I personally wouldn't be surprised to see her come sit up with Marten in the waiting room

[Smallest]

Has everyone forgotten that Faye punching Marten was a running gag in the first 500 strips?

Nobody's forgotten that...not exactly the same scenario, but I do agree that the punch was intended as comic relief in today's otherwise terrifying comic.

I don't consider there to be anything relieving about it, myself. Consider the possible reasoning: "Fuck you, Marten, for saving me."

If it was intentional, that's not unlikely.

[battyone]

I haven't felt the need to post in nearly 7 years...

...Damn

[Is it cold in here?]

Welcome, new person!

How long has it been since we had a strip with no dialog?

This worked really well. Excellent writing.

Faye shocked the EMT with that punch. I would have expected EMTs to be nearly impossible to shock.

[SomeCanadianWeirdo]

I suspect the punch was more a case of Faye thrashing around and Marten thinking he could help calm her down, only to get punched because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Faye dying seems exceedingly unlikely, if only for the fact half the readership would probably take off if she does.  But a "near death experience" sequence wouldn't surprise me.

[swapna]

I spent the weekend re-reading the comic from the beginning, and I'm amazed at how much Jeph's art and writing has progressed. This story is so much more powerful than even strip 500 (which was a punch to the gut in its own right). The look of concerned love on Marten's face in the first panel is so obvious and masterfully done.

I can't say how much I agree with this. The art has gotten so much better, you won't believe it's the same artist.
I must say, even if you read the strips from a few months ago to now - you can tell that he didn't have the whole 'saying a lot without words' thing that well yet, but this one is really good.

I don't think she's dead. (Fuck, I hope she's not dead.) My hope is that this storyline will lead to a "Faye goes to AA" plotline (that possibly features Jimbo and/or Steve). Not dead Faye. That would be too terribly sad.

Don't think so either. QC-Universe is slice-of-life and slapstick, and I don't think it's 'death-of-main-character'-serious

third - she punched Marten, apparently. Not great, but it explains her drifting off into unconsciousness; it means they're not only treating her alcohol poisoning through the IV line, they also gave her a rather strong sedative (Nobody wants to deal with a violent drunk person)

Not sure how sedatives would interact with the alcohol in her system, though. Not saying you're wrong, I just know that there are mixtures that are dangerous and should never ever be done (alcohol and tylenol, alcohol and xanax, etc).

Yeah, but they're at the hospital and they know what they're doing. And they have access to all kinds of good drugs


On Faye being violent: She's black-out drunk at the moment. Drunk/Drugged people are violent, often enough, especially if they are violent even when sober.

7 replies? I really have to type faster.

[emmyelf]

Faye shocked the EMT with that punch. I would have expected EMTs to be nearly impossible to shock.

You know I agree! The first time I had to go to the hospital for my seizures was when I was 13. We were stopped at the side of the road because it had happened while my mom was driving and she thought I had died. The EMTs came, and noticed I was coming around. They told her that I would be in a postictal state, (when the brain recovers basically) and that I might be unpredictable. I was fine (apparently) until they tried to put the IV in me, at which point I tried to attack them. My 13 year old self was no match for them, but they were not surprised. My mom was actually a bit surprised at how calm they were.

Perhaps it was WHO she hit, rather than the fact that she did it that surprised them.

[sluthy]

I think the next strip will be another silent one, with Marten nervously sitting in the waiting room, in the same position in each frame as the hospital moves on around him and more friends (Dora, Hanners, Angus?) join his side in varying states of worry.

[Is it cold in here?]

It's a direct and predictable result of her own unforced choices, but I feel a bit of compassion for someone who's going to wake up in a hospital with no good idea how she got there and possibly in restraints.

[ReindeerFlotilla]

Likely Faye is super impaired during that brief flash of awareness. She's probably mad at the world (Dora fired her, Marten's off having romantic adventures) and not in any condition to look at those feelings rationally. She might recognize that she's in a hospital because of Marten, she might not.

I do think it's meant to be comedy. But it's dark comedy. Unexpected punch, but expected puncher. Bad timing. It's an incongruous moment in a dark strip. There isn't supposed to be deep meaning about it, and I think sober Faye would be pretty mortified, if she weren't likely to wake up to a steaming hot plate of "Why me?"

She's definitely not in her right mind, but then she hasn't been since her dad died.

Someone (BenRG, I think) said Marten's growth has been coming along since Padma. But Faye's meltdown has been coming along just as long. Her attempt to sass Marten about the hiking "date" went somewhere she didn't want, and while it's played for laughs, her fear that Marten might chase Padma to LA is a bit of an overreaction given the situation.

It's looking more an more like Faye didn't break up with Angus because long distance is hard. She did it out fear of abandonment. All of the choices she's made (major ones) come down to giving into that fear or wrestling with it. Her over reaction to getting fired is probably another aspect (Dora abandoned her--not really, but to a person with a pathological issue around abandonment, it would look that way).

We'll have to see. Maybe this strip signifies Faye looking death in the face. I'm still unconvinced she's an alcoholic. A scare like this would certainly jerk someone who isn't out of the bottle. (If she is, it wouldn't. The only medical scare I've seen work, to any degree was "well, your liver has stopped working." He was "lucky" in that he actually had an autoimmune disease, and his drinking was just helping it attack his liver. He regained partial function after he stopped. At the same time, I keep waiting for the news that he fell back into the bottle and drank himself to death.)

[TieDyeKat]

Tomorrow's comic will be Winslow attempting to reboot Pintsize.

[freeman]

Tomorrow's comic will be Winslow attempting to reboot Pintsize.

No, no. It'll be a yelling bird, then a glorious week long robot side comic and then 6 day guest week. Then, the whole Faye hospital episode wont be ever mentioned again.

This is because all the Northern European readers called Jeph and ridiculed him for putting Faye to hospital for merely puking on the couch. Also, the man has to learn to draw on his feet now.

You puny Americans, calling ER for anyone over 16 passing away from a little drink....

[MrNumbers]

I would like to point out that today's - Mondays if you're reading this In The Future - comic is titled "Close to Home"

It seems to imply Jeph is talking about this from first-hand experience which... I mean, it's one thing to know that, and it's another thing entirely for him to show us that through the eyes of one of his characters.

Warning - while you were typing a new histrionic has posted. You may wish to pass the kleenex.


Warning - while you were typing "while you were typing", 3 more people climbed into the panic-ball. Put on some darjeeling tea to calm everyone down, this is going to take some time.


Warning - while you were typing "while you were typing "while you were typing"" more replies were posted. It appears crisis mode in the forums has made it impossible to post. Just mutter darkly and keep writing red text jokes.

[Kelamin]

The way I see it there are two possibilities. Faye has either died of alcohol poisoning or has passed out in hospital after punching Marten. Now with the passing out, I don't think she's going to wake up 100% ok. Alcohol poisoning is serious business and I don't think Jeph is going to play it off as "she went to emergency after being vomitiously drunk and is now 100% fine."

I could be totally wrong, I just want to know what happens next!

[Is it cold in here?]

Is she in the ICU?

How often do they have The Machine That Goes Beep in regular care settings?

[Kelamin]

Not as much in regular care settings but definitely par for the course in High Dependency units and Intensive/Critical Care units. Occasionally Emergency departments depending on the issue. Sometimes in cardiac wards for those that have irregular heartbeats. Yeah, either way it's not a good sign.

[TRVA123]

Can people please stop posting about how "she's just a little drunk and doesn't need to be hospitalized" or about how Faye's "clearly a pussy for passing out after only X amount of alcohol"?

I mean seriously, at minimum you're trying to start an incredibly annoying pissing contest. At maximum you are being (and encouraging others to be) dismissive of what is looking to be a serious situation.

I get that it might just be a way to lighten the mood, but it is not helping. I just find it annoying.

*edited for punctuation.

[Method of Madness]

Thank you, TRVA. I agree.

[Natswash]

Is she in the ICU?

How often do they have The Machine That Goes Beep in regular care settings?

I see you have the machine that goes "Ping! Beep!"
I don't know how common it is in every ICU, but they do keep it attached for alcohol poisoning cases as far as I know

Warning - while you were typing 3 people had more valid things to say than a Monty Python joke. Shame on you

[akronnick]

Not as much in regular care settings but definitely par for the course in High Dependency units and Intensive/Critical Care units. Occasionally Emergency departments depending on the issue. Sometimes in cardiac wards for those that have irregular heartbeats. Yeah, either way it's not a good sign.

Pretty common actually, but they usually turn the actual beeper off.

I had surgery about a year ago and they had me on it for the first day after the surgery.

When my son was born, the put his mother on it, and every time I've been in the ER in the last few years they used it.

All it is is a little thing that clips on to your finger, not all that invasive actually.

Warning - while you were typing, medical science has had three major advances and two minor setbacks. You may wish to review your post.

[Omega Entity]

Can people please stop posting about how "she's just a little drunk and doesn't need to be hospitalized" or about how Faye's "clearly a pussy for passing out after only X amount of alcohol"?

I mean seriously, at minimum you're trying to start an incredibly annoying pissing contest. At maximum you are being (and encouraging others to be) dismissive of what is looking to be a serious situation.

I get that it might just be a way to lighten the mood, but it is not helping. I just find it annoying.

*edited for punctuation.

Agreed.

[Is it cold in here?]

Especially since we don't know what those white things were in her puke.

[cesium133]

Looking at the titles of the recent comics (specifically the first two):
Hospital-bound
Homeward bound
The Great Schism
Heavy Stuff
Close to Home

Well, Faye's clearly hospital-bound... I wonder if the titles may be hinting that she may end up going back to Georgia (probably not permanently)...

Warning - while you were typing a nuclear war has broken out. You may wish to use Baby's First Orbital Railgun against that annoying yelling bird.
Warning - while you were typing the nuclear war was lost. It turns out the only winning move is not to play.

[ReindeerFlotilla]

Is she in the ICU?

How often do they have The Machine That Goes Beep in regular care settings?

I see you have the machine that goes "Ping! Beep!"
I don't know how common it is in every ICU, but they do keep it attached for alcohol poisoning cases as far as I know

Warning - while you were typing 3 people had more valid things to say than a Monty Python joke. Shame on you

No. It's a machine that goes "Ding! Beep!" when there's stuff.

Warning - while you were typing a new reply has been posted. You may wish to review your life choices.