26-10-17 What a man

[Fluffy]

On the contrary, I think James needs to stfu before Tracy adds a few bruises to his blue balls.

As for the strip itself - Alright, Gary! Way to stick it to both of them! (well, moreso to James, seeing as Gary was enjoying Tracy's ministrations before James ruined it by trying to take over).

And the whole 'The birthday boy is still waiting for his special bj, Gary!' line? If I didn't already want to punch James before, this would have done it for sure! How blind/self centered does a guy have to be to not only notice that Gary walked away - not because Tracy wouldn't let James finish Gary off - but because James tried to take over, in the first place - utterly ruining the sexy times; but to think Gary would be enticed to stay at the mere reminder that he was there to blow the birthday boy - because, clearly, making James happy on his special day was far more important than acknowledging Gary's obvious discomfort with James' advances?

I sincerely hope Tracy's death glare in that last panel spells the end of her ridiculous relationship with a guy who clearly doesn't appreciate her.

[LarsenSan]

Ring Ring

Hello, this is TheEighth.....Ah hello Satan.....OK I'll be sure to tell them.....

hangs up

Satan needs some help getting the pilot lit, because HELL HAS FINALLY FROZEN OVER!!!!

FUCK! I was going to post the exact same joke!

[Spidrift]

I expect Gary's leaving the threesome to have ramifications back a work, one way or the other. Tracy never really liked Gary, more than she used him for her purposes. Generic helpful advice aside, she wanted - and got - more from their relationship. Enter James, who literally got everything he ever wanted out of Gary until now. Tracy goes to Gary for relationship advice, of all people. Makes me wonder what actually is in that cadeau. They can't help but to pass each other at work. Fun times.

I expect Gary will tell Peggy of his strength of will and she will be turned on. Positive reinforcement sex ensues. Peggy & Gary's relationship develops, barring unforeseen* awkwardness.

*Gary's life is always awkward.

I can't imagine Peggy being turned on by signs of maturity. They seem to be the minimum she (all too optimistically) expects of a grown human being.

And Tracy never struck me as disliking Gary; yes, she uses him somewhat, but she seems to be perfectly amiable to him between manipulations, and she knows a fellow video games geek. I suspect that the next time she sees him, she'll thank him for the needed nudge here, for reasons that we readers may or may not have seen. Nor would it be right to underestimate that "generic helpful advice"; it seems that she and Peggy, the two women who actually kind of understand Gary, have finally pushed him into a development that feels 1,359 strips late (if it sticks). Note that it's her generic helpful remarks that Gary flashes back to at the crucial moment here.

On the contrary, I think James needs to stfu before Tracy adds a few bruises to his blue balls.

I didn't say that he needs to keep talking for his own health.

And the whole 'The birthday boy is still waiting for his special bj, Gary!' line? If I didn't already want to punch James before, this would have done it for sure! How blind/self centered does a guy have to be to not only notice that Gary walked away - not because Tracy wouldn't let James finish Gary off - but because James tried to take over, in the first place - utterly ruining the sexy times; but to think Gary would be enticed to stay at the mere reminder that he was there to blow the birthday boy - because, clearly, making James happy on his special day was far more important than acknowledging Gary's obvious discomfort with James' advances?

I've been assuming that the grapefruit trick was insanely effective and pleasurable. Because oral sex (real or simulated) is an addictive drug in the Ma3 universe, and like all addictive drugs, makes addicts behave like crap.

I sincerely hope Tracy's death glare in that last panel spells the end of her ridiculous relationship with a guy who clearly doesn't appreciate her.

It might, especially if Tracy has just realised that James is lurching into the upper half of the Kinsey scale. But it might not. Remember, their sexual relationship was born out of a flaming argument, and Tracy basically acknowledges in this very strip that their relationship involves a lot of arguments and making-up. Some couples do seem to work like that, and these two are both people with strong opinions who thrive on being challenged, however much they hate it. That talk Gary just suggested may happen, and solidify their relationship.

[lordoffiling]

For everyone wondering what this arc was doing in this, the ostensibly final chapter, you now have your answer.

We are about to see Gary’s final form. No longer a Virgin spineless ooze in the shape of a doormat, but a sexually adventurous man with a fully functioning spine and the word “no” in his vocabulary.

[suranae]

Maybe.

[X3N0-Life-Form]

Well, to be fair I think none of us believed Gary's character was capable of changing. I figured he'd make it to the last page basically unchanged.

I mean, out of everything that happened to Gary, I'm pretty sure this right here is the most significant event in his life that we've witness. Not him getting devirginated, or joining the mile high club with a model, or learning & using a magical oral technique, certainly not banging DiDi, but this.

EDIT - Oh and nice job with the flashback to sell this character moment, I'm not sure everybody would have bought it otherwise.

[samtheman]

Gary finally stood up for himself and got the hell out of there but this isn't over because remember Tracy and James are Gary's coworkers and he'll still have to deal with them at work. So congrats Gary, James has probably become your new gay (or at least bisexual) stalker much like how Sonya is (was?) towards Zii.

[Error of Logic]

Ladies and gentlemen, watch out for flying pigs...

We have character development breaching off the port bow!

And it's neither on James' nor Tracy's part.

[christopheftw]

Yay!

The significance of the flashback is that it is showing an (admittedly slow) evolution of Gary’s growth -in the flashed back strip he finally did a grownup thing upon specific strong prompting. Here, he has taken remote advice and applied it to a situation to process his feelings and do the right thing for himself and everyone else there.

Although they are secondary characters, I’d like to follow this arc a bit longer, because I would like Tracy and James to get their issues a bit sorted as well, both in their relationship and individually (especially for James).

[Quinlan1973]

HALLELUJAH! It's about damn time, Gary! Now if you can just do this with most everyone else in your life, you may lose the nickname of doormat.

[Bat-dork]

I am carefully optimistic here. This was a significant moment for Gary, but growing a spine is a process. There will likely be a mix of backward and forward moments, if only because Gary can't stop being Gary overnight.

Then again, if his next move is to proactively call someone other than Peggy, and tell her he wants to bang, I'd almost fully retract.

[Jackass Mask]

This sums up my reaction.

[rogermart]

So Gary's tipping point is a man touching his junk. (I know he didn't mind with Matt but that time he wanted to learn)

Which shows us 2 things: 1. Gary is capable of having a spine , and 2. Gary is not bi.

Also, I'm starting to believe that Dillon-Halloween story, because James is sounding a lot like him.

It's a spooky ghost story for Halloween.

You see, once upon a time, there used to be a character in Ma3 who really, really craved cock. His name was Dillon and he was the most flamboyantly gay man you could design. Eventually, he was cast out in exile to a different webcomic, known by the letters "SDB". But he didn't like it there, so he disappeared from that webcomic entirely, and after a while "SDB" died. And Dillon died with it! Now Dillon's angry ghost, hungry for spotlight and gay sex, has come back to haunt Ma3 and he is possessing James, turning him into a ravenous power bottom.

[Khazuki]

Well it is about fucking time. Jesus Christ.

[MoonshadowDark]

Anyone find it clever that the plot finally delivers on a titular Ménage a Trois and it completely fails for the characters involved?