A couple years ago in what appears to be my last content-related review of Aeire and Chris Daily’s slice-of-life webcomic Punch an’ Pie, I speculated about the role Heather had played in her breakup with Angela four years ago. It struck me then that Heather had a tendency to sabotage her relationships (though how much of her breakup with Aidan was due to him and how much was her own passive-aggressive tendencies is left to personal opinion). But in this case, with Lucy, the ongoing breakup is not just justified, but may be for Heather’s own good.

The irony of the situation is that back in 2011, Heather was wondering just what her relationship with Lucy was… was she Lucy’s girlfriend, or just a source of cereal and milk (and occasional sex)? It seems that the latter was closer to the mark, though there’s a word that better depicts her relationship with Lucy: slave. Interestingly enough, today’s confrontation is due in part to Lucy’s own efforts to improve Heather’s assertiveness… on her job, at least. Add in a push from a friend who helped her realize that yes, she was being taken advantage of, and we end up with yet another relationship flameout.

Yet until these last couple of updates, when Lucy told Heather she was going to sleep with another girl and a married man (while his wife watched) and asked if Heather wanted to join in, it still felt very much like Heather was overreacting. Yes, leaving clothes around and not getting milk and groceries is impolite, but that’s not exactly the sort of thing you break up over (and to be honest, I’m not sure Heather was planning to break up with Lucy… more that she was planning on confronting her and insisting Lucy do her fair share). But this latest bit provides Heather with full justification to dump Lucy on her cute distracting behind.

Oddly enough, Angela was even invoked (if not by name). Like Lucy, Angela is polygamous (at least, in theory). But to be honest, I don’t recollect her sleeping with other people while dating Heather. Sure, she was constantly paranoid that Heather was going to cheat on her, but I suspect that was more Angela’s own over-developed sense of self-loathing than anything else. I must admit, I do hope Heather does admit this to herself after her breakup with Lucy wraps up; Angela has her flaws, but she showed Heather far greater respect and affection than Lucy seems to have. Admittedly, I’m prejudiced for Angela, but in this case I suspect my sentiments are justified.

The question now is what’s next for Heather? While I have long theorized that Punch an’ Pie would culminate with Angela and Heather reuniting, now that Daily has taken over the authorial duties I’m unsure as to the ultimate direction the comic will take, even with Aeire holding the editorial reins. Undoubtedly in the short run we’ll see the comic shift focus back to Angela and her own relationship woes. And it seems likely at some point the two will meet up again; Aeire laid entirely too many roots leading to that eventuality for Daily to ignore. Mostly, I wonder as to if either girl would be capable of having a health relationship with the other, what with their past baggage and what they’ve experienced in dating others. For all that these two have grown, I can’t help but feel something is still lacking from the comic before it can begin to consider wrapping up.