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You guys, I have something to confess. I’ve been slacking. Slacking about Mary Worth. She’s had a fab week and I’ve ignored it, which is violating the sacred bond between my readers and myself. It took a gently prodding letter from a faithful reader, who was concerned that I hadn’t been addressing Mary’s antics and expressed hope that I would maybe do a wrap-up post for the week, that forced me to confront my failure in this area and resolve to do better. As I prepare to leave for my annual tri-city Chrimukkwanzaa voyage, I leave you in Mary’s capable hands until I return in 2012.

What was the high point of Mary’s week? Was it Monday, when her determination to rescue an innocent girl caused her to violently assault a hapless waitress?

Mary Worth, 12/19/11

Was it Tuesday, when that girl learned that pretty girls get free ice cream?

Panel from Mary Worth, 12/20/11

Was it Thursday, when a wide-eyed Mary gesticulated so violently at the 911 operator that her cravat was knocked askew?

Mary Worth, 12/22/11

Or is it today, when our evil kidnapper subtly asserts his power by placing his body somehow next to and in front of the diner table, proving his ability to ignore the rules of Euclidian space-tieme?

Panel from Mary Worth, 12/23/11

I will see you all again January 3 or thereabouts! In the meantime, please enjoy your comment of the week:

“I’ve put up with art show happenings, Dalai Lama snubs, improbable musical careers, and more twists than a bag of pretzels from A3G but Lu Ann having a ‘sudden flash of insight’? You’ve gone too far this time, Shulock. Too far.” –Ed Dravecky

And the runners up, very funny:

“Uh, Lu Ann, I hate to be a nit-picker, but you acquiesced to his proposal after like one date and a visit to his family who all demanded you marry him. I don’t think knowing you was ever on the menu.” –commodorejohn

“Kelly puts her finger to her head and thinks, ‘Gave it to their native friends? Could it be some kind of tax-dodging money-laundering Bible-bird-band scheme? Jackpot! Quick, Honey, fetch my steno pad!'” –Nate

“I love that gleam in Mark’s eye and his broad smile as he sees the meal that Mother McQueen has prepared. ‘Damn, I wish Cherry could learn how to roast a bear turd like that!'” –seismic-2

“This new plane we developed has a special inability to fly that eludes radar detection.” –sporknpork

“I hope I’m not the only one whose first thought was that when Marvin thought he’d ‘go on Santa’s Facebook page,’ he meant he was planning to take a dump on the computer.” –spence-bob

“This has been Emily Smith’s lucky week. First, a stranger offered her candy if she would take a ride in his car, and now another stranger is offering her ice cream! Dare she press her luck, by asking about pie?” –seismic-2

“To: Walker-Browne Amalgamated Humor Industries LLC. From: Central Intelligence Agency. Classification Level: TOP SECRET. Mission: Produce as much secret military plane-related ‘humor’ as possible. Said strips will be leafleted upon Iran until they give up the captured spy drone in disgust.” –Dagger

“If Ghost Gary truly looks out for his girl Lu Ann, where was he when she almost died from ‘accidentally’ huffing paint fumes a while back? Apparently, he only cares about her life when it involves another guy. Well, at least she’s got a type.” –LogopolisMike

And if you want to learn more about advertising on the site you can go here but really I’m not going to update the site or even really check my email much until after the New Year, so you should really wait until then to do anything about it. See you in 2012 for the apocalypse, suckers!

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Mary Worth, 12/10/11

Just think about what a rabbit hole of meta this strip is. Yes, it features a comic strip character complaining that “life already feels like too much of a comic strip”; but, when you think about it, when most people think about comic strips, they think about ones that have jokes and punchlines and such — not Mary Worth, in other words. Who would be the sort of person who would be more likely to use “comic strip” as a shorthand for soap opera strips, in which pointless people slowly live through plots that are simultaneously bland and ridiculous? Mary Worth, that’s who! Wheels within wheels, people.

Herb and Jamaal, 12/10/11

When I read this comic, I snorted dismissively and said “Please, ‘that singer with the high-octave voice,’ why don’t they just say–” but then I realized that I don’t really know who in the current pop cultural landscape “that singer with the high-octave voice” would be. Apparently this is what it feels like to enter the Herb and Jamaal audience demographic. It doesn’t feel good, for the record.

Marmaduke, 12/10/11

Marmaduke’s owner manages to hand his last-ever paycheck over to his wife as Marmaduke starts to tear through his flesh and gnaw on his tasty bones.

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Side note: here is a thing I meant to pass on from faithful reader ChattyGenes: some comics collections about the aftermath of the tsunami and nuclear accidents in Japan. You should read them if you are interested in these subjects!

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Mark Trail, 12/8/11

Hi everyone! You’ve probably been wondering what’s happening in Mark Trail. WOLVES! WOLVES! is what’s happening. Panel two is one of the greatest things I’ve ever seen in this strip. Between Kelly’s huge eyes and flapping lapels and WOLVES!, I think I might even love it unironically. The fact that it’s heralding an epic bear vs. wolfpack fight is just icing on the cake.

Beetle Bailey, 12/8/11

Maybe Kelly Welly should have wandered into a gentler valley, like this one, full of animals that are the product of “scientists” doing “research,” as imagined by someone who isn’t really clear on what research entails or what scientists do or what animals look like. Ha ha, that one bird sure is boozing it up! That seems significant.

Mary Worth, 12/8/11

Meanwhile, in Mary Worth, this brutish ginger kidnapper-thug is going to perpetrate the most unspeakable crime anyone could imagine: he’s going to steal the sweater that Mary left at the diner. THE WOMAN ALREADY HAD HER PURSE STOLEN! HASN’T SHE SUFFERED ENOUGH???