Look Back In Anger, Part Five

Be sure to check back in Friday for the conclusion of the flashback storyline. It's kind of a shame - I like these younger character designs!

55 thoughts on “Look Back In Anger, Part Five

  1. I see her talking and all i can hear is “herppppa derp~”

    Though that said in her ramblings, she has a slight point….derp indeed Tracy…

    1. Heartless, cruel, but…yeah, they’re at a crossroads and he’s choosing the slow lane, or whatever metaphor might better suit Tracy’s actions. 😀

    2. she would have had a very valid point, had she not fucked her boss…lol her point is still valid, but she is not.

  2. She’s got a good point, I like that she’s not just some arbitrary bitch character. Much as I like Nate for the lolz, he is slacking.

    1. Yeah, but a little warning would have been nice.

      “If you don’t get off your arse and do something with your life, I’m going to fuck an old guy.”

      1. Sometimes the comments are even more ROFL inducing than the comic can be, this sir, is one of those times, on that note, I feel weird complimenting the guy I just jokingly told that the line for gaining greater readership by mass fellatio should start with me, it seems more real after a compliment:P

        1. Go read Living With Insanity. It’s like his comments, in comic form.

        2. LOL, I already do:D

  3. The profanity counter went nuts this time!
    Panel 1: Fucked, Fucking.
    Panel 2: Bullshit, Whore, Fuck.
    Panel 3: Fucking * 2.
    Panel 4: Quite the letdown, actually 😛 (Unless we imply a different meaning on the word drag, perhaps?)

    1. sorry, all I heard her say was – “mee mee mee, I’m a little bitch”

  4. I started reading on Monday, reading the entire archive in one day. I’m really enjoying the comic. Keep up the good work!

    1. Thanks John! Glad you’re enjoying it!

  5. ..(sexy) bitch got a point.

    Nate dosen’t really have the drive in the future or here to do anything.

    …Does this count as a Start of darkness trope?

    1. ‘Bitch’ doesn’t have a point. Three years later, she’s still working the same dead-beat job. They’re both going nowhere, she’s just too proud to admit that she’s got nothing going for her besides a pair of breasts. At least Nate is intelligent and faithful, he could turn that into something. She’s just going to be working off lower-average wage until she kicks the bucket.

      SYNOPSIS: Stupid bitch is stupid.

      1. Be fair now, she’s been promoted one more level since… It’s not hugely impressive, but it’s not nothing.

  6. Damn ambitious little harlot and look how far she has come. Pun totally intended.

  7. What a harlot. And I’m not even talking about using sex to get ahead, but for doing it when she was in a relationship. How do we know that Nate doesn’t have the drippydick because of this?

    I’m starting to realize that the thematic conceit of Treading Ground is that every character is a loser in some way. I just have to figure out what Aya’s problem is to make this theory stick!

    By the way, GREAT dialogue lately.

    1. yeah this would definantly put tracy in that douche catigory and maybe aya’s fatal flaw is her need to try and fix these obviously very broken people

      1. Aya’s flaw is she doesn’t get rid of the people who are problems in her life, such as Rose.

    2. Oh yeah, the writing IS better, more natural.

      Hey Nick, do you write the text/ do the art or do you let one guy handle the Text?

      1. It’s a one-man shop around here. I do the writing, art, site design/coding, merchandising, and anything else that needs to be done. (My wife is great for art-checking and feedback, though.)

  8. OK, now here’s the thing. I never liked people who slept around just to get somewhere, but when you got somebody as a boyfriend who COULD get somewhere, but doesn’t want to bother…

    Jesus, I may prefer Gray to Black and White, but this one is a little too complex for me.

  9. This is my question…if she wants to get somewhere in life why in the world doesn’t she get out of the grocery store work world and find something better rather than sleeping with the boss to get ahead in a crap job? That right there proves that she’s no better than slacker Nate who has no ambition at all. So which is worse: no ambition or ambition so limited that that you sleep with the boss to get something slightly better?

    1. Point well made.

    2. That is an incredibl point right there, also add into the fact that Nate was going to give her that job anyway and that pretty much tarpedos her defence. And after all the time after that and she’s at the same position, looks like her carear plan really paid off.

      1. If I’m not mistaken, Tracy is not Bookkeeper anymore. She is now the Customer Service Manager and Nate is the new Bookkeeper.
        Not that she has advanced a lot, but she did at least move up 1 job.

  10. Well if you like the past designs then have/DON’T have them get a haircut, or something. Say they liked it better that way or something. It’s your comic, you can make any retcons you want, and explain them however you want, it won’t affect this new reader…

    Gotta say, I read through the entire thing in like a day, and I like the story as of so far! Can’t wait for M/W/F’s now!

  11. Wow…just Wow…I’ve had so many friends who have been in this classic situation right here(but replace the crap job with High School and Community College). As much of a good point Tracy makes, I’m gonna have to side with Nate. That was a total bitch move right there! There’s nothing more emotionally damaging then finding out your girl was fucking behind your back!

    I’m liking this Nick! The story is all starting to come together(sort of)! I love these moments when things start to make sense! It makes the plot that much more intriguing! I can’t wait for the conclusion!!

  12. I do like the writing in this comic. Both Tracy and Nate are clearly at fault here. Seriously, when your plan for funding your future life is winning the lottery…

    1. You also realise nate is an 18 yearold highschool drop out. He clarly doesn’t think things through completely

      1. Sure, I don’t claim she’s blameless, but Nate not thinking things through isn’t an excuse for him either when it comes to this magnitude of sheer stupidity. Who is right or wrong is probably impossible to tell and frankly not even meaningful to discuss; however, it’s a situation that feels authentic, isn’t it?

  13. I took it as one of those “Yeah I did it” comments, where no matter what you claim, the other person will still think you did it.

    I don’t think she actually did the deed. Maybe flirted to get that spot, or puts up with some sexual harassment to get it/keep it… but didn’t actually do it.

    Remember, her bio says “purported” harlot.

    1. Hate to say it bud, but the 2nd panel explains it all, even if she did mean some sarcasm, she only reinforces it in the 3rd and 4th. She’s a harlot/whore and it’s explained through and through here; I’m just glad karma bit her in the ass on this one and she threw away a relationship and her morality for probably not even a dollar raise per hour, and a position she would have got for free anyway, which she has not moved on from in 3 years.

      1. Some people climb ladders. She found herself a brass pole, too bad the skank oil makes it so damn slippery. Haha

  14. Y’ know, even though Nate’s a slacker, sleeping with the boss doesn’t make things any better, Tracy. A little warning would definitely have been nice, but hey, your loss.

  15. As John, I read the entire archive few weeks ago, and I can’t let the story down now. Very nice webcomic.

    A french reader.

  16. I have to say, I’ve been reading since before EoC, and I’m still loving this comic.

    Especially now that it updates more than when the stars align

  17. It’s funny how art (in any form) imitates life in more ways than one.

  18. I don’t know. Something in the back of my mind is making me rethink the whole sleeping around. There is something in the way she said she sleep with him just rings “off” to me. The way she says it sounds more angry at him for accusing her than a true admission of sex. I think she has reached the breaking point with her “loser no ambition” boyfriend and is taking the opportunity of his accusing her of cheating as an exit strategy.

    I agree that the butt pat could be evidence of sex but it could also just be a sign of a jerk boss being a jerk.

    1. I think its the, “you know what? You’re right” comment that implies that she didn’t actually do it. It does sound more like frustration than an actual admission. Like many people in a relationship that just want an argument over because they’re fed up with the other person, she dropped the “you’re right, you’re always right. That’s exactly it” bomb

      1. I’d completely failed to realize that possibility…nice work, gentlemen!

        1. But go back to the previous strip, and look at her eyes in the last panel. Can’t tell if she’s looking at Nate or the guy patting her butt, though it doesn’t change the fact that she looks smug about something. Perhaps realizing that Nate saw the butt-pat? I dunno.

  19. Say what you will about Tracy, but as a character, I find her an extremely likable villain. 🙂 Whether it’s true or not that she went to the mattresses with the boss (which could just be a strategic remark), it just makes it that much more hilarious that she and Nate are both still at Food Baron, years later.

    Ah, Tracy. You’ve come a long way, baby! Way to be the Seifer Almasy of “Treading Ground”. *^_~*

  20. haha, how can anyone say she has a point? woo, I’m banging my boss to get ahead at a GROCERY STORE? dang. she’s dumber than nate; he’s only 18, why should he have to be a winner? what were you people doing then, litigating divorce cases?

    I actually like her much less, now .. I figured she was more cunning than this

  21. That’s sad Tracy….:(
    Hope she repents this now. I’m a girl and I’m totally on Nate’s side.

  22. Tracy totally reminds me of my ex-girlfriend. 😐

  23. I like the younger character designs too! Maybe after this you can have your main cast stumble on a Fountain of Youth in the back of the store!

    Also, Tracy = Bitch. The math don’t lie. Betrayal is betrayal, and bettering your own life is no excuse; in fact it’s like twisting the knife. If she didn’t want Nate dragging her down, then there’s a rather simple mechanism to avoid that. It’s called a break up.

  24. so she is not only a whore but a stupid illogical whore

  25. Question: Did you allude to this in an earlier strip? I can’t be arsed to look back through the archives, but I swear Nate once mentioned this. Ah well, nice story arc so far, keep it up!

    1. I never directly implied anything, but there was enough to speculate on.

      Thanks!

  26. I love this comic, and read it every time it updates, the sad thing is, I can seriously relate to it lol. I work for Food Lion, which this really seems almost based off, and he’s got it down to a peg, it really is the worst place in the world lol.

    Love the comic man, keep up the great work

  27. When it all comes down to it, i think its kinda sad that she sleep with a guy to get ahead in the Grocery Store biz.

  28. dude, i so hope rose and nate get back together

  29. She could have just… you know. Submitted a resume. Applied at the local community college. Something. I’m all about sexual agency, but in this case I’m voting “ho.”

  30. Okay, this arc has completely changed how I look at both Nate and Tracy. Nate is now a character that I slightly dislike, when he was my favorite character before. And Tracy is my new favorite character.

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