Comic Transcripts

[[Two friends meet.]]
Friend: Hey! How ya doin’?
Unfortunate: Well
Unfortunate: Not great, but let’s unpack this.

Unfortunate: The simplest thing to say is just “fine”.
Unfortunate: But my PARROT is missing. Her cage is open when I got home. I don’t know if I’ll ever see her again.
Unfortunate: So I’m WORRIED, and FRUSTRATED because I can’t remember if I latched the cage properly this morning.

Unfortunate: But YOU don’t care about my parrot. You can EMPATHIZE, but your knowing about the parrot affects YOUR life not in the least. If anything, it brings you DOWN a bit.
Unfortunate: As my friend, you may listen to my complaints for MY sake – assuming there is some value to me in venting. But as YOUR friend, I wish to spare you having to hear about something you don’t care about and cannot affect.

Unfortunate: So, to answer your question, “I am fine.”

[[The dog from the previous comic flies out of the air, hitting the unfortunate in the neck.]]

{{header: land on WONDERMARK.COM}}
{{alt-text: Stay with me here.}}

#821; In which Things are Not Fine transcribed by in

[[Two friends meet.]]
Friend: Hey! How ya doin’?
Unfortunate: Well
Unfortunate: Not great, but let’s unpack this.

Unfortunate: The simplest thing to say is just “fine”.
Unfortunate: But my PARROT is missing. Her cage is open when I got home. I don’t know if I’ll ever see her again.
Unfortunate: So I’m WORRIED, and FRUSTRATED because I can’t remember if I latched the cage properly this morning.

Unfortunate: But YOU don’t care about my parrot. You can EMPATHIZE, but your knowing about the parrot affects YOUR life not in the least. If anything, it brings you DOWN a bit.
Unfortunate: As my friend, you may listen to my complaints for MY sake – assuming there is some value to me in venting. But as YOUR friend, I wish to spare you having to hear about something you don’t care about and cannot affect.

Unfortunate: So, to answer your question, “I am fine.”

[[The dog from the previous comic flies out of the air, hitting the unfortunate in the neck.]]

{{header: land on WONDERMARK.COM}}
{{alt-text: Stay with me here.}}

#821; In which Things are Not Fine transcribed by in

[[Two friends meet.]]
Friend: Hey! How ya doin'?
Unfortunate: Well
Unfortunate: Not great, but let's unpack this.

Unfortunate: The simplest thing to say is just "fine".
Unfortunate: But my PARROT is missing. Her cage is open when I got home. I don't know if I'll ever see her again.
Unfortunate: So I'm WORRIED, and FRUSTRATED because I can't remember if I latched the cage properly this morning.

Unfortunate: But YOU don't care about my parrot. You can EMPATHIZE, but your knowing about the parrot affects YOUR life not in the least. If anything, it brings you DOWN a bit.
Unfortunate: As my friend, you may listen to my complaints for MY sake - assuming there is some value to me in venting. But as YOUR friend, I wish to spare you having to hear about something you don't care about and cannot affect.

Unfortunate: So, to answer your question, "I am fine."

[[The dog from the previous comic flies out of the air, hitting the unfortunate in the neck.]]

{{header: land on WONDERMARK.COM}}
{{alt-text: Stay with me here.}}

Stay with me here.

#821; In which Things are Not Fine

  — April 3rd, 2012

[ Tags: , , ]       Permalink: https://wondermark.com/c/821/

(The start of this sequence.)

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Applications open for Genius Northwest – an IRL gaming competition

May 8, 2026 by David Malki !

Last year, I participated in Genius Northwest, a gaming competition inspired by the Korean gameshow The Genius and its ilk.

It’s a reality show without the cameras — a 3-day, all-inclusive weekend retreat structured around a series of challenges and puzzles, in which personalities and dealmaking matter as much as playing games.

It’s truly a remarkable thing. I came in dead last in the competition, but I still had a great time participating.

The event is held annually in the Pacific Northwest (hence the name) and applications are now open to participate in the 2026 competition!

Learn more — and apply — at GeniusNW.com.


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