Post Content

Mary Worth, 12/21/04

Boy, in this storyline, Mary Worth’s evil manipulating ways are finally out in the open. First, she openly urged Anna to pursue a married man; now she’s planting seeds of doubt in Anna’s mind to make sure that she can’t just have a pleasant romantic experience, but will rather be sabotaged by second-guessing. It’s not clear if Mary’s pulling this nonsense because she’s disappointed that Brian is single after all, or if she just likes screwing with people’s heads. Either way, it’s becoming clear that her need for drama is wreaking havoc on the lives of those around her. In three to five years, she’ll no doubt be waiting at the exit gate to the state pen, waiting for Tommy with a nice big brown bag of “stuff.”

Post Content

B.C., 12/20/04

Given his track record, this is kind of a strange thing to say, but do you think Johnny Hart is trying not to offend someone? That’s the only explanation I can come up with for about the last six months of his political cartoons, which are so convoluted as to be incomprehensible. If there’s more of a punchline to this one than “The guy on the left is a Democrat,” I don’t see it — but, really, there has to be more to it. Doesn’t there? I’m thinking it’s all some sort of B.C. insider code, which ignorant leftists like myself gloss over unknowingly, while those in the know chortle uproariously as our caveman heroes once again stick it to the secularists/liberals/Jews/whoevers.

Post Content

Dilbert, 12/19/04

Some commentators, less charitable than I, would argue that, whatever Scott Adams’ obvious talents in writing and marketing are, his artwork isn’t particularly good. I choose to believe that he’s realized how to make his extremely simplistic style fairly funny. There’s something about the expressions on the face of Dilbert’s interviewer in this strip that I find hilarious, particularly in the second panel from the left in the bottom row. I can’t tell you what the crossed arms, the protruding lips, and the one closed eye are supposed to signify, but it’s funny, by God.

Also funny: the fact that Dogbert has, in the time it took Dilbert to screw up a job interview, been able to not only win the lottery, but transform his winnings into burlap sacks of cash (with dollar signs on the sides, natch).