Verbal Backspaces in Webcomics.
- 8-Bit Theater:
- In response to a rant from White Mage about his manifold personality flaws, interpersonal inabilities and grievous moral bankruptcies, Black Mage objects to only one of those points and insists that he has friends. After a Beat Panel, presumably one where he's thinking about the people he spends time with on a daily basis, he amends this to a friend, and even that still gets him called out.White Mage: What you have is a highly dysfunctional relationship based exclusively on abuse.
Black Mage: Right, a friend. - At a point where the Light Warriors appear entirely boned, Red Mage tries to find the silver lining for Black Mage:RM: Look at the bright side, Black Mage. You can die in peace now that Sarda absorbed all of your evil.
[stab]
RM: Most of your evil.
[stab]
RM: Some of your-
[stab]
RM: (muffled by a knife directly in his face) Ah'll thud ub now.
- In response to a rant from White Mage about his manifold personality flaws, interpersonal inabilities and grievous moral bankruptcies, Black Mage objects to only one of those points and insists that he has friends. After a Beat Panel, presumably one where he's thinking about the people he spends time with on a daily basis, he amends this to a friend, and even that still gets him called out.
- Scott and one of his coworkers
in Basic Instructions.Coworker: I don't envy your cat. She's dependent on someone else's whims, and she has no freedom.
Mullet Boss: You two'll have to work this Saturday.
Scott: Why?
Mullet Boss: Because you want to keep your jobs.
Coworker: I envy your cat. - In Cucumber Quest, Cucumber tries to nickname Princess Nautilis, and backtracks., Because it condenses to Nautie, like "naughty".
- Adding to the humorous UST of Viana and Thomas in Deer Me:Thomas: I'm moving out.
Viana: No, you can't go! I need you! (beat) Toooo... offset the cost of rent here.
Velvet: (smirking) Mh-hmmm...
- Escape From Heaven: In "Teen Comix 1", a kid walks around wearing a shirt that reads "No Fear"... until he runs across someone whose shirt reads "What if they made Simpsons porn illegal?" The shirt changes to read "One Fear".
- Exterminatus Now: In this strip, Virus insists that they absolutely have to report Eastwood's theft of a forbidden relic to Command. Eastwood points out that he used Virus's ID to get in, meaning that Virus is implicated.Virus: So it's agreed we're not reporting to Command.
- Freefall: Mr Kornada pulls this during the sentencing phase of his trial.The Mayor: [The robots] believe in second chances. They want every human to have the opportunity for redemption.
Mr Kornada: Those robots have the right idea.
The Mayor: And they believe the path to redemption is through hard work and service to others.
Mr Kornada: Rotten machines. They should all be destroyed. - Friendship is Dragons: Rainbow Dash and Rarity wonder what to do about the Alicorn Amulet, with Dash being for keeping it for herself, and Rarity opting to crush it underhoof. The DM responds by saying that the Alicorn Amulet is "inde—", thinks better of it, and amends it to "in the perfect position for Rarity to destroy it".
- Girl Genius:
- When the traveling show is being asked to put on a royal command performance, but they don't want to stick around, Abner suggests putting on a more... risque... show (The Socket Wench of Prague) in the hopes of being run out of town.Master Payne: Say... now that's a good plan.
Circus worker: Sir — there's a note from the palace. The prince wants a specific show. The Socket Wench of Prague.
Master Payne: Okay - not so good plan.
Circus worker: "P.S. Tart it up."
Master Payne: Downright terrible plan.
Abner: ALL RIGHT! - When Gil loses control of his automatic cage in a crowd, Krosp establishes the cage just wants to catch someone, and won't hurt them if it does, and shoves a small child towards it. Zeetha is horrified, but Krosp points out no one was hurt. Behind him, Gil gets walloped by the child's mother, and he amends this to "well, no one important".
- When the traveling show is being asked to put on a royal command performance,
- Homestuck: Beyond Canon: When Jane, who has become a racist authoritarian since the original Homestuck, goes off on a rant about how trolls are inherently cruel and barbarous, Jake asks for some clarification:Jake: Could I have that once more sans the raci - I mean, in Layman's Terms?
- In Misfile, on Ash's 18th birthday:Rumisiel: It's your last day to do anything REALLY wild and have it wiped from your record. You should go all kinds of crazy today. I was thinking...
Ash's Dad: *glares*
Rumisiel: You know, it's probably tomorrow in Japan already. Today is as good a day as any to start acting like a responsible adult. - The Order of the Stick:
- After abandoning the party when they go to rescue his bard, Roy has a change of heart.Roy: Well, that's gonna change now. Thanks for setting me straight, Dad. I'm gonna pack up my gear and go rescue Elan!
(Durkon runs by screaming in terror)
Roy: I'm gonna pack up my gear and go rescue the entire rest of the party! - Also, in a different strip:Vaarsuvius: But now we must defend ourselves against two highly skilled legal professionals—
Lawyer: Kitty kitty! Hello, kitty kitty! Hello!
Vaarsuvius: ONE highly skilled legal professional and one man in a very expensive suit. - After the gang catches on to Xykon's Kansas City Shuffle in the attack on Azure City:
- In a flashback to Durkon's childhood:Young Durkon: I, uh... I need ta know tha answer ta a question Ma willnae answer.
Thirden: Is this about sex? Please let it be about anything other than sex.
Young Durkon: How did Ma get hurt? An' how did me pa die?
Thirden: ...So how about that sex, huh?
- After abandoning the party when they go to rescue his bard, Roy has a change of heart.
- Paranatural:
- When Max first wakes up after the whole Ghost Train debacle, it takes him a minute to remember his filter.Max's Dad: Oh ho! The son rises! How'd you sleep, li'l guy?
Max: Mmn. Briefly. I feel like I got hit on by a train. Hit by a train. - Max tries to comfort PJ over being a ghost. Because Max is not that good at being comforting, this goes through a few iterations.Max: SO MAYBE IF YOU DIDN'T HAVE SUCH A BAD ATTITUDE ABOUT HAVING DIED—
PJ: w-what whoa
Max: G-GHOSTS ARE COOL. I WISH I WAS DEAD
PJ: keep trying
Max: YOU'RE GOOD, AND NOT BAD.
PJ: Thank you Max, that's relatively inoffensive of you.
- When Max first wakes up after the whole Ghost Train debacle, it takes him a minute to remember his filter.
- Penny Arcade: 2005/11/11:Gabe: I have an idea.
Tycho: We're not going to murder anyone.
Gabe: I don't have any ideas. - In Questionable Content, while Hannerlore is helping Marigold deal with the large amount of money she's made through streaming, she suggests that Marigold could hire a business manager. At that point Robot Girl Momo comes in to remind Mar of her schedule and tell her how various things she's organized are going. Hanners corrects her suggestion to say that what Marigold should do is pay the business manager she already has.
- Schlock Mercenary:
- An unusually cheerful example appears toward the end of Book Ten:TAG: Success.
Captain Tagon: Hah! We're back in the fight!
Ennesby: The fight is over, sir.
Captain Tagon: Hah! The fight's over, and we're still standing! - Another one here:Ebbirnoth: And Lieutenant Pibald here is a genius.
Pibald: I didn't say anything smart. I was just whining.
Ebbirnoth: And Lieutenant Pibald here is an idiot-savant. - When Tagon has to fire Nick:Tagon: Turn in your uniform and issued weapons and armor to Chief Warrant Officer Thurl. Go have a nice, long life where nobody shoots at you.
Nick: I'm going back to Mall-One to see Liz.
[pause as Tagon remembers all the problems they had at Mall-One]
Tagon: Keep the weapons and one set of armor. If somebody does shoot at you, shoot back. - Schlock amends one of his own statements:Murtagh: Maybe that's what we're looking at...artificial organisms that have been running amok for millions of years.
Ebbirnoth: Oh. Yeah, and we've got an example of that right here. It's what Sergeant Schlock is.
Schlock: I have not been running amok. [beat] Okay, but not for that long.
- An unusually cheerful example appears toward the end of Book Ten:
- Skin Horse:
- After Tip's first client interaction goes badly:Sweetheart: Sorry friend. That could have gone better. Tip doesn't really have the training for field work. Or the shoes. Sometimes I wonder if being our token human has cracked him even more. When you come to, I'll see that you only deal with the other members of our t—
Unity: Sweetheart! Praise me! I punched out these monkeys real good!
Sweetheart: With me. You will only deal with me. - And again when Tip's reaction to her saying "This is a job for Tip" means it becomes "This is a job for Tip, supervised by me."
- And Queen Elana of the Florida Zombies, at the end of "The Dreadful Future":Elana: You make a good point. In the balance, you did more good than harm.
Unity: Y'hear that? I made a good point!
Elana: Let us part as friends.
Unity: Everybody! I made a good point! Would you sign a statement re: me making a good point? I will frame that sucker.
Elana: Let us part as friends who don't see each other that often.
- After Tip's first client interaction
- During Undine's first encounter with Heartful Punch in Sleepless Domain, Undine briefly mentions what she believes to be a rogue Magical Girl but, not ready to speak of it, tries to change what she's talking about to unfortunate effect.Undine: ...Then maybe sh—it's gone after all. For now.
[Heartful Punch snorts]
Heartful Punch: Sorry, you said "shits". - In Tweep, regarding embarrassing yearbook pictures:Jack: Now, before you do anything, just remember... we've got witnesses. I mean, "company."
