Week 79! (Patreon)

This panel's from 068 - Not Quite the Right Moment, also during the Autumn Ball arc right near the end. It was suggested by TheShadowyShadow.

I've already gone into somewhat heavy detail on Gus and Ashley's relationship in terms of history and origin and so forth in earlier updates and pretty much with how things went in the comic itself. For this arc specifically, though... well, it was pretty much just a continuation/redo of the final "arc" that was going on in the Old Canon, where it was leading to. Had this arc happened and finished in the Old Canon, it would have differed due to Felicia having existed, goin in a "Ashley is just using Gus to get at Felicia" angle rather than this "Ashley gives Gus a chance despite his behavior" angle.

I do recall, when coming up and planning the whole Ugly Truth arc with Gus, that I actually looked back on the comics up to that point and kind of realized they didn't fit together very well, between this happy-ish ending where it seems like Gus and Ashley both learned a lesson about each other, and yet I would have a joke or two still with Gus still engaging in the same behaviors and Ashley still having that attitude towards him. Thus the part where Ashley points out that Gus just reverted to his old behavior despite her giving him one more chance in the Ugly Truth arc, and it actually kind of fits because changing yourself, it turns out, is actually pretty hard to keep going permanently.

Also, dang, skinny Gus.