The Comics Curmudgeon

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Do answering machines dream of … anything at all, really?

Ziggy, 2/11/08

Every once in a while, something deeply strange and more than a little bit wonderful peeks out at you from the cracks in the tired old surface of a long-running comic strip. Today, Ziggy, having long failed in his quest to make human friends, and routinely mocked and derided by his own pets, is searching for companionship from a machine, which, he sadly believes, will be able to soothe his loneliness. But he’s not satisfied with the run-of-the-mill answering machines that merely record phone messages and play them back at the touch of a button; instead, he’s searching for an advanced model with basic decision-making abilities. In so doing, he touches on a philosophical dilemma that has troubled great thinkers for centuries: can truly rewarding affection come from an entity lacking free will? If Ziggy’s answering machine is forced by its programming to love him, can what it feels truly be said to be “love” at all, rather than mere slavish devotion? But, on the other hand, if the answering machine is allowed to decide on its own what to feel about Ziggy, won’t it respond with the same mixture of pity and disgust universally held by the service employees, animals, and newspaper readers who encounter him daily?

Dick Tracy, 2/11/08

I was going to laugh mightily at Dick Tracy’s decision to make up, and then explain in a footnote, a completely nonexistent slang term for being nefariously rendered unconscious by a baddie with a roofie and/or a dart gun, but then I consulted Urban Dictionary and found that “smacked” can mean getting high from smoking marijuana or taking Ecstasy. While this doesn’t necessarily conflict with the narrator-supplied definition of “foreign substance in system,” it obviously puts an entirely different spin on the scenario: the problem is not so much a stealthy, sinister baddie willing to do anything to kidnap the Chief, but rather an out-of-control drug problem that’s affected even the police force’s most elite officers. Fortunately, once Chief Liz has been recovered, Dick Tracy will deal with the hippie slacker responsible, probably with the butt of his pistol.

Gil Thorp, 2/11/08

OH SWEET SWEET SWEET lunging out of the mental hospital and into the third panel at a bizarre, inexplicable angle: it’s self-bashing Tyler! Who, uh, looks actually pretty much exactly like Andrew Gregory. Really, is there a Valley Conference rule that says that one spit-curled player must be on the court at all times?

Spider-Man, 2/11/08

Oh, man, no matter how often Spider-Man is felled by getting hit in the back of a head with a lead pipe with absolutely no warning from his spider-sense, it never gets old. Never.

Mary Worth, 2/11/08

do it Drew do it just turn the wheel a little to the left LIFE’S NOT WORTH LIVING do it do it do it

This entry was posted on Monday, February 11, 2008 at 01:56 pm and is filed under Dick Tracy, Gil Thorp, Mary Worth, Spider-Man, Ziggy.

156 responses to “Do answering machines dream of … anything at all, really?”

Gagott68
February 11th, 2008 at 2:02 pm [Reply]

SM: So Spidey can’t overcome a large oxen henchman or a small scrawny jailbird. Figures.
Chris Opperman
February 11th, 2008 at 2:03 pm [Reply]

Die, Drew! Die!
Uncle Lumpy
February 11th, 2008 at 2:04 pm [Reply]

At least the Mary Worth Department of Roads put up a guardrail. That curve was a menace.

Say, I wonder if Wines’ is still open?
Kurdt
February 11th, 2008 at 2:05 pm [Reply]

My explanation: Ziggy wants to have sex with an answering machine and wants to make sure its consentual.
Good luck there Zig, you bloated sack of sadness you.
El Santo
February 11th, 2008 at 2:07 pm [Reply]

S-M — Ah, so Spidey proves that he is not an elephant, but instead a fragile little girl.

Mary Worth — So if Drew bites it, does he go to creepy stalker heaven? And if he does, will a certain Mr. Kelrast be waiting, clutching a bottle of Wild Turkey?
The Comics Creator
February 11th, 2008 at 2:07 pm [Reply]

“foreign substance in system”

…like botox…
Projectyl
February 11th, 2008 at 2:09 pm [Reply]

DT: “Foreign substance in system”? That’s an awful lot of verbal contortion to avoid the word “drugged”. Maybe the author wanted to leave open the possibility that the guard had been injected with, say, Spackle. Or oatmeal.
Moon Mullins
February 11th, 2008 at 2:09 pm [Reply]

Drew, Drew, Drew what Aldo’s done, done, done before!
B
February 11th, 2008 at 2:13 pm [Reply]

Hah! Spidey went down like an elephant. Wait, Spider man is not an elephant? Oh.
Rainbird
February 11th, 2008 at 2:13 pm [Reply]

Did someone write, the other day, that Fred Basset is now being written by a new person? I notice that the owner has a child with her, which has never been there before. Granddaughter? Neighbor? What? And why is she driving her to school. Has the pension run out and they can’t go rambling about anymore, and must now be nanny to some child?
Lucas Archer
February 11th, 2008 at 2:14 pm [Reply]

If that’s the same curve that Aldo went over, then it would provide a pleasant symmetry. All we can hope is that he’ll have the same shocked look as he careens into the abyss, after which the murderous residents of Charterstone will be able to induct Vera into their horrific club of death.
Reedzilla
February 11th, 2008 at 2:14 pm [Reply]

Drewmania 2008 is go!

One can only hope he’s clutching a clumsily shaded half-empty bottle of cheap hooch just out of view.
Rainbird
February 11th, 2008 at 2:15 pm [Reply]

Josh, I really thought it was the same curly haired guy in GT. Little did I know there was more than one of them about.

That’s what I get for skipping the captions.
Uncle Lumpy
February 11th, 2008 at 2:15 pm [Reply]

Reflecting on what kind of answering machine would best fill the void of a pointless existence (curses upon you, Josh), I would have to choose an older analog model. More warmth, and none of the empty, snappy comebacks and brittle discourse you get from the ALGJU 3000, for example.

But to be loathed by an inanimate object — I gotta say, Ziggy’s opened a door here, and I pray humanity can find a way to get it closed.
Uncle Lumpy
February 11th, 2008 at 2:15 pm [Reply]

Reflecting on what kind of answering machine would best fill the void of a pointless existence (curses upon you, Josh), I would have to choose an older analog model. More warmth, and none of the empty, snappy comebacks and brittle discourse you get from the ALGJU 3000, for example.

But to be loathed by an inanimate object — I gotta say, Ziggy’s opened a door here, and I pray humanity can find a way to get it closed.
Uncle Lumpy
February 11th, 2008 at 2:16 pm [Reply]

Yipes! Sorry, digital technology — sorry!
Baka Gaijin
February 11th, 2008 at 2:18 pm [Reply]

Pickles: Is Mrs. Pickles trying out for DTWOF, sticking her head in a bush like that?

Blondie: Dagwood, just eat the kid’s sock in “Find Six Differences.” It’ll taste better than that bagel.

A3G: Deja vu all over again.

Pluggers: Can’t afford a dryer, can’t move the old washer out.
mojo
February 11th, 2008 at 2:18 pm [Reply]

Poor Dick Tracy! Thwarted by incompetence at every turn! Careful, there, Tracy–your professional incompetence might put an unwelcome spotlight on another humiliating shortcoming–your stubby, stubby thumbs!
hypochrismutreefuzz
February 11th, 2008 at 2:19 pm [Reply]

And Drew rounds Dead Man’s Curve on his way to fiery death!
mere cog in the machine
February 11th, 2008 at 2:24 pm [Reply]

14,15 et al: I was just shooting the breeze with my toaster and he tells me he can’t fucking stand Ziggy. Maybe he ought to get a vacuum cleaner.
snork3455
February 11th, 2008 at 2:24 pm [Reply]

“HNNNHH” could mean so many things. Sure, it looks like some attempt at forming an onomatopoeia, but most people would just say “OW JESUS FUCK uunnngh” or something to that effect, not let out what seems to be a world-weary sigh. Maybe it’s an acronym. Any ideas? I’m puzzled.
snork3455
February 11th, 2008 at 2:25 pm [Reply]

Also, SPLANNG.
infallible
February 11th, 2008 at 2:26 pm [Reply]

Having completed extensive repairs, the city unveils Kelrast Pass, named in memory of a lost soul that met his demise due to heartbreak, drink, and gravity. Little did they know that another wanderer was suffering similar troubles. As he sped along that very same path, with safe driving being the last thing on his mind and his senses dulled by sweet confections and bitter loss, the way known as Kelrast Pass would soon claim another victim. Thus, the pattern of destruction was established, and though the locals muttered “curse!” in hushed voices, little did they know that the “accidents” that occured were merely the mechanations of a coy neighbor. One that made sure that ignoring her advice would be the last mistake those men ever made.
Inspector Dim
February 11th, 2008 at 2:32 pm [Reply]

Cripes! For the first time in his at least 35 years on this planet, Jon Arbuckle is going to get some.

The only question that remains is how much Garfield is going to be involved.
Cheese-n-Pear
February 11th, 2008 at 2:34 pm [Reply]

DT: I was left wondering why the guard was described as “smacked”, rather than the non-footnote-worthy “drugged”. The footnoted definition could imply that the foreign substance was a bullet or a knife. Of course, that would make the guard more than unconcious, unless another footnote came to our rescue and redefined that word for us. But anyway, we can probably rule out the possibility that the guard was flattened by a bulldozer.
dimestore lipstick
February 11th, 2008 at 2:36 pm [Reply]

Are we certain Dr. Drew isn’t just trying to cheer himself up by trying to sing eighties pop hits?

I’m pretty sure he’s about to break into Soft Cell’s “Tainted Love”…
Sometimes I feel I’ve got to
Run away I’ve got to
Get away
From the pain that you drive into the heart of me
The love we share
Seems to go nowhere
And I’ve lost my light
For I toss and turn I can’t sleep at night

(chorus)
Once I ran to you (I ran)
Now I’ll run from you
This tainted love you’ve given
I give you all a boy could give you
Take my tears and that’s not nearly all
Oh…tainted love
Tainted love
Skullturf Q. Beavispants
February 11th, 2008 at 2:38 pm [Reply]

Today’s Wizard of Id, if you interpret it charitably, refreshingly has a bit more to it than the usual “barely a joke” type of jokes so typical from the “dinosaur strips.” It could be construed as making a point about prayer and sport, the same point made in the Onion once when somebody, on the subject of prayer before high school football games, said “But what if both teams pray before the game? Won’t that put God in an awkward position?”
Nightingale
February 11th, 2008 at 2:39 pm [Reply]

Is there any particular reason that the La Cuccaracha (stupidness of a strip) today has the EXACT SAME “joke” as an earlier Herb and Jamal, which was just as stupid, only a few days earlier? lame, lame lame
Oxy10
February 11th, 2008 at 2:44 pm [Reply]

DT: The Urban Dictionary also defines smacked as “A man or a woman who is ugly.” or “when you have been taken down in a verbal barrage of insult”. Since most every character in Dick Tracy is smacked, we can only conclude that a belligerent and verbose baddie spouted a series of not very nice comments about the guard’s personal style.
alex matthews
February 11th, 2008 at 2:46 pm [Reply]

I am feeling very sick at the sight of Dick Tracy’s hideous shrunken baby-arm in panel 2. Or maybe his head is rapidly expanding to the size of an Easter Island statue so that he is totally unable to fight crime and has to lie on the couch with his head kept upright and facing the TV via a complex pulley system.
PapaFrita
February 11th, 2008 at 2:48 pm [Reply]

I honestly don’t remember a moment in Spider-Man where his spidey-sense went off anywhere except in front of a TV. There might have been one time where he was web slinging and thought about something he saw on TV, but that could have just been bad art.
ltrftp Hedly
February 11th, 2008 at 2:49 pm [Reply]

First, Drew’s head:
New hair color;
Face elongated, head not.
But he looks 1/10 second away from rapture.
And a little like James Dean.

I don’t know what I mean.
But he looks weird.

Being a DC man, I don’t expect much from a Marvel character, but after his pastiche on “Elephant Man”, he is paying homage to “T2″ with his ability to morph face up.

This is kewl.
BigTed
February 11th, 2008 at 2:51 pm [Reply]

Josh — as you may recall, this isn’t the first time Ziggy has dealt with intelligent answering machines (or store departments whose sole function is to handle them).

http://joshreads.com/?p=1153
Perky Bird
February 11th, 2008 at 2:51 pm [Reply]

Dick Tracy– I prefer to think the guard was simply smacked upside the head with a metal pipe, which made a satisfying “SPLANNG!” sound and rendered him unconscious.
mere cog in the machine
February 11th, 2008 at 2:52 pm [Reply]

26 Dimestore Lipstick: Since I despise the eighties and all that they stand for, I prefer to think that Drew was actually singing the Badfinger song called, appropriately enough one would have to say, ‘Get Away’.

Well, I may be wrong leaving it up to you
But my love is strong, and that’s what I’ll do
Well, you might be right working all night and day
And I know, sometimes, I’ve got to get away
Get away, oo-oo-way…..
Poteet
February 11th, 2008 at 2:52 pm [Reply]

In real life, I cannot imagine ever urging anyone, for any reason, to commit suicide. Since coming to this site and getting reacquainted with certain (you should pardon the expression) “action” strips, I mentally urge various inhabitants thereof to kill themselves almost every single day. Go, Doctor Drew, go! Smash through that guardrail and go flying! We all want to see it! You want to do it! It was meant to be!
Orange Doorhinge
February 11th, 2008 at 2:52 pm [Reply]

MW: Now it’s the middle of the night? Were Dr. Drew & Vera at the amazing-floating-donut coffee cafe all day?
ltrftp Hedly
February 11th, 2008 at 2:52 pm [Reply]

Please insert “after falling face down in penultimate sentence of post number 32.

Thanks.
doug rogers
February 11th, 2008 at 2:54 pm [Reply]

DT: Something happened in Dick Tracy to advance the story, finally, after a week of threats that something might happen, and damned if it didn’t happen off screen.
Violet
February 11th, 2008 at 2:56 pm [Reply]

In reading today’s Gil Thorp, I found the phrase, “Tyler Jay checks in at guard and sparks a rally” somewhat cryptic until I consulted the helpful illustration and determined its meaning to be, “At the time of the Rapture, wistful-eyed basketballers will float awkwardly up to Heaven to have their spitty forelocks caressed by mystical hand-sprouting volleyballs with recently sprained index fingers.”
Ray Cornwall
February 11th, 2008 at 2:59 pm [Reply]

Since when did Dan Clowes start drawing Mary Worth?
Nekrotzar
February 11th, 2008 at 2:59 pm [Reply]

I think the “foreign” substance in question is Belgian dark chocolate. Or a piece of Viennese Apfeltorte. Or borscht.
buschap
February 11th, 2008 at 3:00 pm [Reply]

While “splanng” will never outdo “qlonq” as the best sound effect ever, I’m wondering is Spider-Man’s letterer got some kind of deal on doubled letters. We’ve also had “splassh” and a recurrence of “smassh” lately.
Michael
February 11th, 2008 at 3:01 pm [Reply]

Regarding Gil Thorp’s center panel: When did Sulu grow a goatee?
gh
February 11th, 2008 at 3:02 pm [Reply]

#3 Uncle Lumpy –

Yes, that guardrail caught my attention as well. But can we assume that a chastened community [Charterstone – this one actually has a name] erected it to prevent another tragedy? Could we not as easily presume it is a breakaway guardrail designed to lure the unsuspecting to take the curve at a high rate of speed? Who’s to say it was actually designed by a licensed Structural Engineer and not, say, Fencepost Frank? I do not give up hope that Drew will meet the end we all long for: death by plot device.
aleksmakk
February 11th, 2008 at 3:03 pm [Reply]

At first glance, I thought I was witnessing the aftermath of Dick getting punched in the face.

Hey Dick! Why ya hittin’ yourself? Why ya hittin’ yourself? You smacked?
Strangely Brown
February 11th, 2008 at 3:05 pm [Reply]

I read Ziggy altogether differently (just now, on this site): I don’t think he’s looking for companionship, I think he’s actually searching for a machine that will take over all of his higher-reasoning functions for him. With all his choices and dilemmas resolved as they come up by his new “answering machine”, Ziggy will finally be able to settle into the blissful waking coma that he’s been yearning for lo these many decades. At least until the Butlerian Jihad comes, anyway.
bats, Aviation Division of the Jungle Patrol :[
February 11th, 2008 at 3:06 pm [Reply]

Here’s your elephant:
http://www.gocomics.com/mythtickle/2008/01/30/
Well, it’s actually a god, not an elephant, but a damn sight closer than Spiderman…
mere cog in the machine
February 11th, 2008 at 3:08 pm [Reply]

26 Dimestore Lipstick: One of my co-workers just asked me, “Is that ‘Tainted Love’ you’re incessantly humming? ‘Cause it’s really annoying.”
A pox on you!
jvwalt
February 11th, 2008 at 3:09 pm [Reply]

If the comics were real life, and their characters were perpetually trapped in a Groundhog Day cycle of the same situations over and over and over again, whose despair would be the profoundest?

I think it’s a race between Ziggy and the collective entry from “Shoe.” Every damn day, Ziggy has his ugly little bald heart stomped upon by everyone around him; by now, he should be hallucinating a friendship (or a slave/master relationship) with his answering machine. As for the Shoe bunch, their perpetually weary expressions bely the hopeless reality of middle-aged spread, workplace ineptitude, the soul-prison that is school, and the impossibility of forming a positive relationship with a member of the opposite — or even same — sex. Push comes to shove, I vote Ziggy, a tiny ball of despair that’s meant to be endearing.

“Beetle Bailey” runs a strong third.

Then there’s the separate competition for “Comics Character Most Likely to Go Postal.” I can’t think of anyone in the same league as Mr. Wilson, but I’m sure there are others.
Poteet
February 11th, 2008 at 3:09 pm [Reply]

(DT)GT — Since first seeing the “new” version of this strip on CC a couple of years ago (after not having seen it for years), I have been haunted by a faint sense of recognition. And today it finally came to me — the artist has been trying to perfect modern versions of the triptych. Years ago I spent six months going cross-eyed in European art museums staring at old triptyches, and GT today brings it all back. The strange angles, the sublime disregard for the laws of physics, the lines of radiance, the solemn expressions, the overarching sense of high importance — yes, triptych. I’m in awe.
Mac
February 11th, 2008 at 3:10 pm [Reply]

I’d like to think that the Ghost of Aldo is going to eliminate the entire MW cast, one by one, leading to a finale where Mary jumps off the curve to her sweet, long-awaited death. I’d like to think that.
Violet
February 11th, 2008 at 3:10 pm [Reply]

# 37 Orange Doorhinge: I was thinking the same thing. While I feel that a calendar-page-turning montage would more accurately represent the weeks or even months that seem to have passed while they were in the café, I’m glad they’re acknowledging that it’s been at least a good eight to ten hours.
MrP
February 11th, 2008 at 3:11 pm [Reply]

NEXT! Brain-damaged Spidey realizes that he IS actually an elephant!
Michael
February 11th, 2008 at 3:14 pm [Reply]

Perhaps this crowd is too genteel to say such a thing, but it also occured to me that the “foreign substance” is the result of consensual sex.
bats, Aviation Division of the Jungle Patrol :[
February 11th, 2008 at 3:16 pm [Reply]

And on the FOOB homepage, there’s a picture of Lizardbreath laying a big wet one on Asshathony in honor of Valentine’s day.
The best part of it is a writer on Coffee Stalk (”sam” from “memphis”) mentioning that the picture is making him a little ill. Go, Sam, go!
Darkefang
February 11th, 2008 at 3:20 pm [Reply]

A3G: My word! An artist? At an art show?! Hrrumph!

Baby Blues: Just be glad that they’re using it for it’s intended purpose, and not to play “doctor” with each other.

Blondie: Bookstores sell food now. Welcome to 1995.

Crock: I guess the previous five months wasn’t quite enough time to squeeze in the multitudes of football jokes that Crock is so famous for.

For now, I’ll just ignore the fact that I can’t figure out what the punchline is supposed to be.

GT: Well, in panel 1, #12 manages two motion lines on his shot, which can only mean it’s infinitely more accurate than Tony Casey’s one-motion-line throws. Unfortunately for him, Valley Tech hired roadside carnies to install their rims, so they’re an inch smaller in circumference than the ball.

In panel three, Tyler Jay re-enacts Bruce Banner heroic rescue of Rick Jones.

JP: That was a lot of talking! In fact, you two talked so much it turned your blouse inside out!

MW: I know they’re just toying with my emotions, but I can tell you one thing: If they started tossing every unlikeable character off a cliff, Mary Worth would become the most popular comic strip in history.

RMMD: I think we all knew this storyline would somehow involve Rex inside a mudhole.

S-M: Oh, c’mon. Hasn’t Stan Lee’s ghost writer ever actually read the comic? You can’t sneak up on Spidey and whack him with a pipe.
M-life
February 11th, 2008 at 3:22 pm [Reply]

DT: At first I didn’t notice the footnote and I think I liked it better that way… it explains a lot of the characters’ incompetence if the chief’s guard can be taken down by a vicious bitch-slap.
jules
February 11th, 2008 at 3:23 pm [Reply]

Drew does not look NEARLY enough like Captain Kangaroo to take the plunge over that cliff. But I confess, that was my first thought too.
Little Guy
February 11th, 2008 at 3:28 pm [Reply]

FIRE THORP!

FIRE THORP!

FIRE THORP!

FIRE THORP!

(sorry, just wishing GT had a real rabid fanbase)
Matt Algren
February 11th, 2008 at 3:28 pm [Reply]

I’m a little worried about the clerk lady at the ANSWERING MACHINES kiosk at Ziggy’s local mall. She knows it’s a dead technology, but doggone it she’s spent ten years working her way up through the ranks at ANSWERING MACHINES and she isn’t going to quit now. Not when her supervisor is so close to retirement!

I don’t want to be there when she shows up and it’s a big Verizon kiosk, that’s all.
commodorejohn
February 11th, 2008 at 3:29 pm [Reply]

#57 Darkefang re: Crock – Just figured it out: this is supposed to be a reference to the Janet Jackson nip-slip what, three years ago already. Although in fairness, that’s cutting-edge for Crock.
Bootsy
February 11th, 2008 at 3:29 pm [Reply]

Josh, yes, it’s a metaphysical pickle all right. The answers to your questions are No, No and Yes.

Drew Corey looks like he stopped by for Ash Wednesday ashes on his way home from Donut Cafe, and encountered a priest with a heavy hand. Now if he just remembers the whole “You’re dust, you’ll die soon ,and it was all a pointless void where in the search for meaning, human beings make up some crazy shit, like God and heaven. Now get lost and wash your face.”

What, your priest didn’t tell you that last week? Just mine? Oh, OK.
Calico
February 11th, 2008 at 3:31 pm [Reply]

DT – Ol’ Dick looks like he has a bone-jarring toothache in panel two. Eeeeeeck.

SM – Spidey got Smacked.* By the TV.
mingosthename
February 11th, 2008 at 3:33 pm [Reply]

Dialogue in Judge Parker:
Sam: That was a lot of talking.
Gloria: We did talk a lot.
Sam: So I guess he has a lot to talk about?
Gloria: He does talk quite a lot.

They continue in a never-ending circle.
Freezair
February 11th, 2008 at 3:34 pm [Reply]

The first thing I notice in that GT strip is not the self-slap, but what appears to be finger-quotin’ action.

“The perfect shot.”
Kitty
February 11th, 2008 at 3:35 pm [Reply]

What is with that car? At first glance I thought it was facing the other way. If Drew’s car is as weirdly hideous as his face, then death would indeed be preferable for the both of them.
fluffy
February 11th, 2008 at 3:36 pm [Reply]

“SPLANNG” is my new favorite onomatopoeia.
Bobdog, Jungle Patrol - SVU (not an Elephant)
February 11th, 2008 at 3:36 pm [Reply]

SM – Perhaps the people at Marvel are just confused. It’s Superman who’s powers (specifically X-ray vision) are rendered non-functional by lead. However, if this is the case — why always a lead pipe and not something else lead filled such as a toy made in China or a snowshoe?
AhClem
February 11th, 2008 at 3:41 pm [Reply]

SM – A recent scientific analysis of Peter’s spider-sense revealed that it is somewhat selective. Here are the test results:

Falling brick: negative
Bad guy with lead pipe: negative
Bad guy with tranquilizer gun: negative
Tonight’s “Reno 911″ is going to be a rerun: positive, off the charts
teenchy
February 11th, 2008 at 3:43 pm [Reply]

No need for Drew to turn the wheel. The road, guardrail and cliff are all curving to his right while the car and its front wheels are pointed straight ahead. Only a matter of moments before he goes roadside Aldo style.

Oh, and “Godero” is an anagram of “der Goo.” Just sayin’.
Islamorada Girl
February 11th, 2008 at 3:53 pm [Reply]

Luc-ee, you’ve gotta lotta splanng to do!
mojo
February 11th, 2008 at 3:55 pm [Reply]

So if you bash someone upside the head with a lead pipe, and then stand over their lifeless body gloating, “Hah! I haven’t lost the touch!” … is that meant to imply there is some sort of subtle, intricate art involved in bashing someone upside the head with a lead pipe? I shudder to think I’ve been doing it WRONG all these years….
ralph
February 11th, 2008 at 4:01 pm [Reply]

I think Dick Tracy should worry more about the missing half of his face.
FreshHell
February 11th, 2008 at 4:04 pm [Reply]

Just stop and think, all of you who are prepared (eager?) for Drew to plunge Aldoesquely off the highway to his bloody, half-heartedly mourned death. In the universe Mary created and rules, could any other woman inspire a man to take his own life in a swamp of elder-sexual despair? Anyone but Mary? Think about it.
Deborah
February 11th, 2008 at 4:09 pm [Reply]

Dick Tracy has a giant head and a very tiny hand. I have nothing funny to say about that, I just couldn’t let it go unremarked. Giant head. Tiny hand.

I will have nightmares.
Orange Doorhinge
February 11th, 2008 at 4:24 pm [Reply]

Michael @44: Maybe it’s Sulu from the evil universe?
Bunnë, Official Comic Execrator
February 11th, 2008 at 4:31 pm [Reply]

Certain things about the game “Clue” bothered me, as a child.

1) Why a lead pipe? Who has a lead pipe sitting around? Why not copper or steel?
2) Why is the gun called a “revolver”? Why not simply “gun”, or “handgun”? Am I being prepped to read Agatha Christie?
3) Colonel Mustard is a stupid name. (However, I insisted on always playing Col. Mustard. Don’t know why.)

I have to think today’s Spiderman nonsense is some sort of reference to Clue. This may explain the green suit! And the mustard-colored suit.
kubiak
February 11th, 2008 at 4:31 pm [Reply]

You know how Superman’s x-ray vision doesn’t work on lead? Maybe Spidey’s spider-sense doesn’t work on lead pipes.

Or maybe he just sucks at dodging.
JPool
February 11th, 2008 at 4:42 pm [Reply]

Drew’s face is not just longer. His eyes are now of two different colors. Vera is indeed lucky that they did not kiss — he could be a carrier for the rage virus. On the other hand, in the slow motion carnage that would have followed, Mary could have offerred pithy little reflections on the value of life and how you never really know anyone do you.
veganbrewer
February 11th, 2008 at 4:46 pm [Reply]

Heya folks-

So, I mentioned a few days ago that Debbie (Scaduto) White got in touch with me regarding her father. Well, she was thrilled about people being out there reading her father’s work, and she sent me an original Sunday strip hand drawn by Al to remember him and his work by. What a bunch of great people they are! I bet you the Chief Plugger would never be so generous to the general masses. I’ll get a picture of the strip up as soon as I can so that everyone can see it. On another subject, why does Dick Tracy keep punching himself in the face in today’s strip? I can almost imagine his older brother off panel saying, “Stop hitting yourself, Dick! Stop hitting yourself!”

-Vegan Brewer
Ranger
February 11th, 2008 at 4:51 pm [Reply]

About todays Mark Trail. That cliff where the cave is looks strangely feminine. Looks like Mark is trying to return to the womb.
whir
February 11th, 2008 at 4:57 pm [Reply]

Ok, so I’m pretty new to this site and maybe people point this out every few posts. But surely I’m not the only reader who thinks that the announcer in Gil Thorp bears a suspicious resemblance to mirror-world Spock?
Mibbitmaker
February 11th, 2008 at 4:58 pm [Reply]

#63: Bootsy, that wasn’t your priest — that was Thorax!
Niall
February 11th, 2008 at 5:04 pm [Reply]

83. Whir: Oh yes, we’ve made the mirror-spock/Marty Moon a running gag by now. It’s not made at every Marty appearance, only when it’s warranted by a Moonesque quip. :)
Sans Sense
February 11th, 2008 at 5:11 pm [Reply]

In a spiral of shame and self-pity Drew steers his Hyundai through the guardrail and down the cliff. Distracted trying to negotiate a truce with Lee via text message, Niki takes the full brunt of the careening sedan throwing him 80′ to his untimely starfish-headed death. Lee is able to pop a couple caps in Drew before the car nicks his left ankle, draining him of his last drop of precious blood. A dislodged guardrail sandbag catches Faith in the head ending her life in an orgy of irony…killed by a bag of rocks.

The car continues downslope, splattering the sleeping Rex in to a fine mist resulting in Rex Morgan, Muddy Debris. Drew’s self-indulgent blood spree ends with the car wedging itself into a cave entrance sealing the fate of it’s sole inhabitants, Mark Trail and 300 hungry wood mice. Please let this happen! Please let the strips morph into 1) June Morgan, Nurse Practioner, 2) The Further Adventures of Widow Malone and 3) Mary Worth.
Sans Sense
February 11th, 2008 at 5:15 pm [Reply]

86. Me -

June Morgan, Nurse Practitioner (dang it all)
kingklash
February 11th, 2008 at 5:17 pm [Reply]

He was smacked*, eh?

At least somebody loves him.

*probably by some gob.
Jnoble
February 11th, 2008 at 5:19 pm [Reply]

Drew, you’re a good man. One that society and women need, but can’t possibly understand or respect. There’s only one way to show them. To show them all.
If you can’t have her, why, no-one should.

Do it Drew.

Do it.

Let the killing begin…
Baka Gaijin
February 11th, 2008 at 5:24 pm [Reply]

#81 veganbrewer: Great! I’m sure we’re all waiting anxiously to see that strip. I’m heading to the floating orange donut shop to wait.
Joe Blevins
February 11th, 2008 at 5:26 pm [Reply]

You’d think that, considering his crippling shyness, Ziggy would do all his shopping online and avoid department stores like this one, where the merchandise is apparently kept behind the counter and you have to ask the salesperson to help you. This place is so snooty, they actually have an “Answering Machines” counter just for answering machines!

Also, considering Ziggy’s well-known shame and inferiority issues, you’d think he’d wear pants. But, nope, he’s still lettin’ it dangle in the breeze. Maybe Ziggy gets his kicks by leaving the house pantsless and asking arcane questions to customer service representatives.
Niall
February 11th, 2008 at 5:33 pm [Reply]

Catching up… on the chocolate sub-thread:

True Fable, yester-yesterthread, about milk chocolate: Loving it while being lactose intolerant is really sad, though I wonder if there’s any traces of lactose left in Hershey’s. Or if there was any to begin with. As such, it may be safe for you, though still icky. I do not disdain milk chocolate, but I do search for good quality of it. As in dark, those with a square to be enjoyed a day are definitely worth the investment – if you can find any. (Trader Joes, Whole Foods and other import-friendly places)

And while dark chocolate does go well with wine (especially port), it can still be enjoyed on its own. But it has to be high enough quality (well above Lindt). As for white chocolate, well, what is sold as “white chocolate” is indeed a sham and sould be destroyed on sight; true white chocolate is strictly pure cocoa butter – more cream than white, and without any taste whatsoever yet similar to the consistency of pure butter – which is rather icky and not meant to be eaten on its own, but added to cocoa powder (the precise ratio being the % indicated on the cover or the ingredient list).

(Some manufacturers keep the butter in the cocoa while processing, which is the only way to make a palatable 100% bar – but extremely few manufacturers manage that.)

Mere cog: I cannot in good conscience fault that almond bar with peanut butter on top. And yes, oranges definitely add to dark chocolate.

commodorejohn: you have more Maureen today, even! Meanwhile, I have to wait a little longer, I guess, to have a whole week of Ashley. (ahem.)

mollificent: I have seen the infamous Vosges bacon bar when visiting a San Jose-area Whole Foods. I will never try it. However, their almond, sea salt in 41% milk chocolate is really, really, really good. I regret taking only the small bar instead of the big one. (The chipotle bar is nice, having only a brief kick.) And congratulations in advance of having Your Own Apartment. Hallelujah indeed. :) (But.. leaning back to eat spicy.. ouuuuuch…)

Helena: wasabi, and many other spices, do work well with chocolate. There are two green tea bars that I know of, though the sencha japanese tea one is much too strong.

Poteet: That was a funny story on M&Ms and near-accidents. But don’t do it again! I wonder what you would think of a taste-test between M&Ms and Smarties – the British kind (of which M&Ms are an imitation), not the sour candy kind (which is known up here as Rockets).

Oh, and Bizarrely Delicious True Fable: I always type my snark in a notepad window and cut-paste; if it doesn’t work, then it’s not lost. :)

Ed Power: Nice to hear My Cage is doing nicely. Since you acknowledged yestherthread that you have done some drawing, I’m starting to think that if someone in the MC universe displays some similar ability, would the results shown ‘on screen’ be drawn by you? It’d make an amusing true change of style…

(Also, I recently saw a few more examples of, um, non-syndicate-friendly fan renditions of Ashley teasing Norm. It was done out of some respect at least, pretty much on model, keeping her biting sense of humour, but not exactly keeping true to character. They did get bonus points for including the brain trust in a funny way.)
gh
February 11th, 2008 at 5:37 pm [Reply]

#81 veganbrewer –

That is truly awesome. I bow.
Hasty Penguin
February 11th, 2008 at 5:43 pm [Reply]

“Vera said we could still be friends, but I knew better. Dames don’t mess around with other, richer and more corrupt men when they’re your friends. Vera wasn’t an old town dame and she certainly wasn’t innocent. There was only one way to turn now. I knew Ryan had dirt underneath his suede coat and unusual punctuality. Eyes everywhere. Skeletons in his closet. Hey, we all have a few – but I knew he added to his collection every day. Extortion goes unchecked around here. I needed to get away. And I needed to come back carrying a big stick.”

Mary Worth meets Sin City.
bats, Aviation Division of the Jungle Patrol :[
February 11th, 2008 at 5:46 pm [Reply]

While we’re waiting for the judges’ final tally (well, the judge), and since I’ll be away from my computer for a few days, let’s have a little meaningless banter:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9545446@N07/2258373225/
Patchy
February 11th, 2008 at 5:55 pm [Reply]

Do the villains plan on hitting Spiderman in the back of the head and choose lead pipe as their weapon, or is there pretty much just tons of lead pipe laying around in this comic?
odinthor
February 11th, 2008 at 6:03 pm [Reply]

Spidey — “And that’s not all I’m gonna do!” I put to you the question What else was Spidey going to do?

1. Borrow The Persuader’s tie.

2. Give him a haircut.

3. Ask him what’s on TV tonight.

4. Make mad monkey love with him.

5. Ask him for the favor of the next dance.

6. Discuss the rise of the merchant class in the context of the Reformation.

7. Bum a ciggie.

8. Ask him if he thought loose-fitting garb might be a better choice for the Spider-Man persona than spandex creations.

9. Ask him if he knows how to spell “splanng.”

10. See if he maybe has June Morgan’s phone number, as she’s probably getting lonely while Rex is playing with Niki.
Jamus The Bartender
February 11th, 2008 at 6:11 pm [Reply]

My Cage: Yeah. Ed was right. I SO called that one. Ah, Maureen, we hardly knew ye…
Jamus The Bartender
February 11th, 2008 at 6:13 pm [Reply]

Judge Parker. Whoa. Panel Two. Jamus got wood.
Jamus The Bartender
February 11th, 2008 at 6:23 pm [Reply]

A3G: Okay….we think…we sort of know Alan is drunk because he’s A. Got a drink in his hand, 2. His tie is loose, and thirdly, he’s handing a card to a prospective buyer. Damn, where’s Stuart Smalley and the twelve step people when you need them? I think Mr. Conner looks shaken up in panel two because Alan’s speaking out of turn and not asking Mistress Margo for permission. Which means Alan’s gonna have to wear some painful leather things later. Mr. Conner KNOWS.
Poteet
February 11th, 2008 at 6:29 pm [Reply]

# 92 Niall — I shall make it a point to check out Smarties if/when I have an opportunity. Thank you!
Benjamin Baxter
February 11th, 2008 at 6:30 pm [Reply]

MW:

I’ve never been to Clear His Head. Is it one of those quaint frontier towns, like Truth or Consequences in New Mexico, or Knockemstiff in Ohio?

Just sayin’.

http://awaitingtenure.wordpress.com/
ohyes, it\'s jungle patrol
February 11th, 2008 at 6:31 pm [Reply]

A Mafia family in New York was ruled for some years, fairly recently, by a psychopath known as “Gaspipe.” And he was called that in honor of his father, who used said implement to resolve various disputes during his prime earning years. So, it does happen that a heavy pipe is employed, but with such rarity as to occasion a nickname, unlike, say, how no one would be called, “Gun.” Except Andrei Kirilenko, who’s called “AK47,” despite the common use of that particular weapon. Yeah, I’m smacked.
Brick Bradford of the Space Jungle Patrol
February 11th, 2008 at 6:38 pm [Reply]

MW I’m looking for the eerie specter of Aldo to appear in front of Drew’s car a Jan and Dean sing “Dead Man’s Curve” softly in the background.
Drew’s given a message for Mary, about Aldo’s curse on her and all of Charterstone–and the retribution starts tonight. Chester is going down.
Dunkelxblau
February 11th, 2008 at 6:38 pm [Reply]

Long before Dr. Drew Cory can throw himself off the cliff of despair he has to develop an alcohol problem and relentlessly stalk Vera in the creepiest way possible

I like to believe that out of the scene, at the bottom of the sheer drop, there is a giant pile of once smoldering wreckage all due to the handiwork of one, Mary Worth.
softdog
February 11th, 2008 at 6:41 pm [Reply]

#28 Nightingale – To answer your question about the repeating joke: its a protest by a group of cartoonists.

From a Washington Post article about it:

this Sunday — 11 cartoonists of color will be drawing essentially the same comic strip, using irony to literally illustrate that point.

Plans for the protest began with Cory Thomas, a Howard University grad whose strip, “Watch Your Head,” deals with college life at a predominantly African American university. Thomas, Trinidad-born and D.C.-bred, says he was frustrated by the number of times his strip was turned down by newspapers that didn’t feel the need to sign him up, because, well, they already had a black comic strip. Most editors, he says, only allow for one or two minority strips, viewing them all as interchangeable. Never mind that his strip is a world away in sensibility from the scathing sociopolitical musings of Darrin Bell’s “Candorville” or the family-focused fun of Stephen Bentley’s “Herb and Jamaal.”

Lalo Alcaraz (”La Cucaracha”) who says he found out too late to meet his deadline, will be chiming in on Feb. 11.
Poteet
February 11th, 2008 at 6:41 pm [Reply]

A3G — Is this business-cards-in-hand wandering supposed to be the upshot of Alan announcing in a determined and vaguely sinister fashion that “if that’s how the game is played, count me in”? What frightening and intimidating tactic will he try next, putting on a nametag? Opening a door for someone?
commodorejohn
February 11th, 2008 at 6:49 pm [Reply]

#92 Niall – Oh, I’m looking forward to Ashley’s eventually week-long appearance as well, but you gotta stop and smell the roses you never know you’re gonna get, right? Lord, I just mixed more metaphor/aphorisms than Mary Worth…I don’t suppose you could point me towards those “fan renditions?”
Mary Worthless
February 11th, 2008 at 6:52 pm [Reply]

Dick Tracy is incapable of unclenching his fists. I think it’s because of the rage of justice that courses through his veins. And he’s just done that much punching. Mark Trail better do some wrist exercises, otherwise he’s headed down the same road.
Anonymous
February 11th, 2008 at 6:52 pm [Reply]

I’m probably the only one who feels sort of sorry for Drew in this panel. He looks like he’s in a dark, dark place. I will only accept his deadly plummet off the cliff if it is followed by Vera’s guilty suicide. I don’t think I could bear Very running to Mary and having Mary tell her, “It is not your fault, platitude platitude, blah blah blah.” It is your fault, Vera. You are such a bitch.
Lindsey ^_^
February 11th, 2008 at 6:53 pm [Reply]

Oh, and #110 was me.
Orange Doorhinge
February 11th, 2008 at 6:53 pm [Reply]

A3G: It’s funny Alan wasn’t so bothered at being made to mop the floor, but gets angry when he isn’t mentioned in a news article about someone else. You never know what’s gonna send someone over the edge.
SecretMargo
February 11th, 2008 at 6:56 pm [Reply]

101: Poteet — Smarties Ice Cream* is great too, if you can find it.

* This is a film of someone dishing up some of it….and that’s it. I watched it in mortal fear that it was, like, SmartieSnuffPorn or something (internet videos that have no narrative or apparent reason for existing always fill me with this kind of fear), but happily it is simply a very prosaic view of the joy and wonder of Smarties Ice Cream, without any horrifying footage of people eating (which also makes me supremely uncomfortable to watch). Enjoy.
Poteet
February 11th, 2008 at 7:22 pm [Reply]

# 113 SecretMargo — Alas, YouTube is beyond my system for the time being, but I thank you and am happily adding Smarties Ice Cream to my research list. Now I have to try both the candy and the ice cream…for science!
Poteet
February 11th, 2008 at 7:26 pm [Reply]

# 111 Lindsey — I can’t feel sorry for Doctor Drew, but if Vera follows him into suicide, that will be fine with me. Then I won’t have to see that ghastly ponytail anymore. It look likes something that would attach itself to one’s head as the result of a gypsy curse.
Sally Villarreal
February 11th, 2008 at 7:26 pm [Reply]

I think you’re reading too much into the Ziggy cartoon. I think he’s having trouble deciding on an answering machine, which inspires him to find one that makes decisions.
Islamorada Girl
February 11th, 2008 at 7:27 pm [Reply]

Apparently, Dick Tracy doesn’t know that smack is a slightly dated term for heroin. Maybe he still calls it junk.

Loved the joke exchange among cartoonists of color. I thought it was witty and loved seeing everyone’s take on it. We’ve been complaining about the same stuff here since Josh started this blog.
Uncle Lumpy
February 11th, 2008 at 7:41 pm [Reply]

#116 Sally –

We exist to read too much into Ziggy!

(sob)
Eloise at the Plaza
February 11th, 2008 at 8:00 pm [Reply]

SF – Maybe someone else commented and I missed it, but did anyone catch the Sally Forth shout-out to Apt 3G in the Sunday strip with the candy hearts in the first panel? http://www.chron.com/apps/comics/showComick.mpl?date=20080210&name=Sally_Forth
Bunnë, Official Comic Execrator
February 11th, 2008 at 8:01 pm [Reply]

Today’s Mary Worth uses very clear foreshadowing to indicate that our Drew will plummet over the side of that embankment.

If there’s anything I’ve learned from years of reading Mary Worth, it’s that foreshadowing never leads to anything unless it’s really painfully, painfully obvious. Tomorrow, Drew will just be driving somewhere else, complaining about his love life to himself in a never ending soliloquy, maybe stopping to get gas or eat some pie.

If we were meant to remember that Aldo died here, we’d first have seen Mary or Tobey or someone standing right there, pointing and saying, “this place here is where Aldo Kelrast died, driving off this here embankment here.” And this would have taken three weeks.
Bunnë, Official Comic Execrator
February 11th, 2008 at 8:05 pm [Reply]

116, 118, Sally V and Uncle Lumpy
I have to admit, I was thinking, who is this Sally who thinks we are reading too much into Ziggy?

So I followed the link.

Anyone who knits Fibonacci sequences is a-ok in MY book. That is 9 kinds of awesome.
Mrs Buck Tuddrussell (Not Pirates!)
February 11th, 2008 at 8:06 pm [Reply]

#81 veganbrewer, that’s terrific, I can’t wait to see the strip. The Scadutos were very nice, everything they posted here was much appreciated.
Foobar
February 11th, 2008 at 8:07 pm [Reply]

Time to pack it in, Spiderman.
Weaselboy
February 11th, 2008 at 8:26 pm [Reply]

Drew, if you’re confused, just ask yourself: What Would Aldo Do?
Fred P.
February 11th, 2008 at 8:52 pm [Reply]

In the wild, of course, spiders are seldom set upon by pipe-wielding miscreants. So I really can’t say I’m surprised that Parker’s Spider-sense failed to alert him to the imminent danger of being splannged- there’s no reason, evolutionarily speaking, why it should have.

Now, if our orange-suited neer-do-well had been creeping up behind Peter with a rolled-up newspaper….
And The
February 11th, 2008 at 9:04 pm [Reply]

Phantom: You know, it never really hit me until now, but Officer Hawa just up and quit the police force? Tossing your nametag away at your waitressing job on a whim is a bit nutty. But just to up and quit the police force because you’re bored and looking for excitement? Ah well, it’s clear that this is going to be a wacky romp of a storyline, so no point in over analyzing it.
man behind the curtain
February 11th, 2008 at 9:15 pm [Reply]

MW — Dr. Drewfuss drives off of Aldo’s curve and is critically injured. An emergency page is sent to the one man who can save his life –Dr. Jeff. However, after an evening of fine dining at the Bum Boat, Dr. Jeff and Mary are in the throes of passionate lovemaking and since Dr. Jeff took Viagra instead of longer-lasting Cialis he chose not to interrupt his night of passion while Dr. Drewfuss left this earthly bond to join the much missed Aldo.
commodorejohn
February 11th, 2008 at 9:16 pm [Reply]

Man, I am eagerly awaiting the comments of the week…there’ve been some good lines tossed out this week.
Joshua
February 11th, 2008 at 9:29 pm [Reply]

#28: Several of the minority comic strip creators are having a protest against the fact that many newspapers are unwilling to carry more than one “minority strip.” They decided to all do variations of the same joke for one day, although apparently “La Cucaracha” joined in one day later. Other participants included “Candorville,” “Watch Your Head,” “Cafe Con Leche,” “Momma’s Boyz,” and “Housebroken.”

http://dailycartoonist.com/index.php/2008/02/10/cartoonists-of-color-sit-in-appears-today/
James Schend
February 11th, 2008 at 9:41 pm [Reply]

I like to think that someday Stan Lee will actually read the newspaper strip and pull a piece of Ron Paul-ish PR, like claiming he had no idea something with his name attached to it for dozens of years was so godawful.
AhClem
February 11th, 2008 at 9:49 pm [Reply]

SM – With this latest whack on the head, Spider-Man will develop amnesia and think he really IS an elephant.
Hank
February 11th, 2008 at 9:51 pm [Reply]

RE: Dick Tracy. Ever since the “Gretchen” storyline, the artist has started drawing Dick with these wild looks of shock and terror instead of the using that same determined expression that never deviated from the days of Chester Gould. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work and Tracy just looks goofier than ever.
Fred
February 11th, 2008 at 10:06 pm [Reply]

Just how does one pronounce “HNNNHH”?
Niall
February 11th, 2008 at 10:11 pm [Reply]

108. Commodorejohn: I wouldn’t willfully send someone towards the website hosting the renditions. I would feel responsible for the brain breakage and cries of agony such as “I can’t un-see that!”. But I’ve linked to my youtube account in my name, and I believe you can leave a message there (if you have an account, or a comment on an old video I can delete afterwards) with a contact info, and I can send them to you.

113. Secretmargo: damnit! Now I’m hungry for ice cream after my dance class!!

126. And The: This storyline has already vastly exceeded the boring graffiti story by leaps and bounds. They can coast for the rest and it’d still be okay, because… well, I mean… Jungle Patrol, for goodness’ sakes! What more do we need?
Starrynight
February 11th, 2008 at 10:19 pm [Reply]

MW- I think Drew needs to get smacked. Then he will think he’s an elephant and go charging over the side of that cliff…
Sans Sense
February 11th, 2008 at 10:20 pm [Reply]

112. Orange Doorhinge -

So true about not knowing what sets someone off. But Alan was right in that he should have gotten his props for renting her the carbon monoxide death trap in the first place. Perhaps something like this, “Negligent Slumlord (and Artist in His Own Right) Pleads Guilty to Reckless Endangerment in Near Death of Real Local Artist”.
Sans Sense
February 11th, 2008 at 10:21 pm [Reply]

133. Fred-

Why, just like it’s spelled of course.
commodorejohn
February 11th, 2008 at 10:29 pm [Reply]

#134 Niall – You could just email me the link at my username plus @gmail.com.
Francis
February 11th, 2008 at 10:38 pm [Reply]

My guess is that Frank McLaughlin had a vacation coming up and needed to draw a bunch of Gil Thorp strips real quickly, and we have now reached the point where the strips were drawn before the script was written. Expect to see a lot of random could-be-Andrew-Gregory, could-be-somebody-else spitcurled basketball players in the week to come.
Francis
February 11th, 2008 at 10:39 pm [Reply]

Also, please note and appreciate Dick Tracy’s girlish little hands. Why so upset, Dick? Manicure not to your liking?
Brick Bradford of the Space Jungle Patrol
February 11th, 2008 at 10:51 pm [Reply]

Dick Tracy: Liz is missing? Wow! Who saw that coming?
kippetje2000
February 11th, 2008 at 11:27 pm [Reply]

Drew’s bit of dialogue should end with three ha! ha! ha!’s and maybe a bwah! That panel would make a nice t-shirt.
I am excited, though, about seeing Aldo’s ghost to appear, maybe like the ‘Vanishing Hitchhiker’, but better yet, in the passenger seat tomorow. Drew and Aldo (the ghost who drank) could begin a great road trip that would exact justice and carnage throughout the Mary Worth universe before ending in a fiery crash that produces (suprise!) only one cadaver.
A New Day
February 12th, 2008 at 1:38 am [Reply]

I have a confession to make. I can’t read Gil Thorp. I don’t just mean that I can’t read it in the paper – I’ve never tried to do that, and don’t even get print strips in my current newspaper. I mean that when it appears in this blog, I can’t focus on it long enough to make the words, or the pictures, take on any sense or meaning. A predictable pattern has emerged: I stare at the strip for about 10 seconds. I read Josh’s comment. I think “o.k., now I’ve spent this long on it, I should really read the strip so I can get the joke.” I stare at the strip for a few more seconds, and then I give up. I’ve concluded that the creators of this strip have put some kind of hex on it that prevents me from reading it. Sort of like a muggle-repelling charm, but stronger. It’s very strip specific, since I’m able to make myself read any other strip out there when the occasion calls for it – even Luann.
Manos
February 12th, 2008 at 2:23 am [Reply]

Blondie: Am I the only one who noticed that the bookstore, while not carrying scones, DID carry “The Bumstead Family History”? wtf is that?
dale
February 12th, 2008 at 2:47 am [Reply]

144 Manos
Every once in a while, Dagwood sits on the couch with the kids, the dog and the book (picture album) and tells stories about ancestors who just happened to have clever names related to the funny stories about their lives.
Unless I got some or all of that wrong.
Ginger Yellow
February 12th, 2008 at 5:04 am [Reply]

Drew’s not going to kill himself. He’s going to kill her.
gleeb
February 12th, 2008 at 6:37 am [Reply]

Candorville: I love it when a young cartoonist gets a shot at the big time, then blows it on endless whining that young cartoonists aren’t given shots at the big time.

‘bean: No doubt Creepy Les wants Summer to come down and put on a skirt, so he can look up it as she climbs.

Mary: Santa Royale was the first city in California to have a special scenic overlook just for desperate loners.
Sully
February 12th, 2008 at 9:47 am [Reply]

#44

That’s not Sulu. That’s treacherous, evil Spock from the ‘parallel universe’ episode.
Little A. of The Bronx Jungle Partrol
February 12th, 2008 at 11:34 am [Reply]

MW: Listen, Drew, in times like this, when you think that things can’t get any worse, just think to yourself, what would Sluggo Smith do? Why, he would take a BATH in his chipped bath tub with the broken side that only holds about 6 inches of water in his bathroom with the plaster falling down from the ceiling, with one leg missing from the bath tub, in the bathroom with the broken window, and he would say to himself, I STILL HAVE MY HEALTH! That’s what Sluggo Smith would do. And that’s what you should do.
Sandy
February 12th, 2008 at 12:25 pm [Reply]

S-M: If you hit Spiderman in the head with a pipe, it will make the sound “Splanng”? He is not Wolverine (or an elephant) so why would his skull make such a metallic noise? I think “Thuud” or “Thummp” would be more accurate.

MW: Drew has that creepy face-shadow-in-direct-light thing again. It must be some horrible affliction he has that whenever he feels an ounce of humility, his face darkens to hide his emotions.

And one can only hope he’ll make that left turn off of Kelrast Curve.
Kajillion
February 12th, 2008 at 3:01 pm [Reply]

I guess Spider-Man doesn’t have the proportional resistance to lead pipes that spiders have instead he has the actual resistance of a spider.
Edgy DC
February 12th, 2008 at 4:55 pm [Reply]

Adventures in art:

Dick Tracy appears to be punching himself in panel one.
Tyler still has the motion lines from his self-clubbing radiating from the back of his head.
PTrig
February 12th, 2008 at 5:58 pm [Reply]

Please let there be a bottle of Johnnie Walker in that open mail box sitting in the passenger seat of Drew’s car. Keep walking.
Katie
February 16th, 2008 at 6:52 pm [Reply]

Hey – isn’t that bridge that Drew’s driving on the same one where Aldo met his untimely death? Oh Aldo…how I miss you.
John
December 7th, 2008 at 2:36 pm [Reply]

Find the exclusive free bet offer from BettingChoice

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Anonymous
March 18th, 2009 at 7:02 pm [Reply]

what the crap

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Do answering machines dream of … anything at all, really?

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