Wow, how hilarious. This arc is like a trope within a trope within a trope. He actually managed to drop the ol’ “Les gets stuck on the rope in gym class” gag, which was a recurring gag back in the pre-Lisa Act I days. I’m just wondering how the school photographer got that shot, did he or she climb the rope next to Les or did they use some sort of special lens? That’s one hell of a yearbook staff photographer though, no debate there.
The most interesting thing about this one is how Summer grins knowingly as she shows Cayla how feeble and weak her dad was in high school. It’s that special bond they have, the former collegiate sports hero and the current one, sharing their common interest in mocking nerds and geeks.
But yep, it’s come to this all right. Resorting to Les hanging off the gym rope to round out the week, pretty much as lazy as it gets. It really reinforces how solid the Cayla/Les relationship is too, as we begin to get a clearer picture of why one of Westview’s most desirable single women (small pond) ended up settling on the most annoying and obnoxious person who ever lived. She’s either insane or she just likes knowing that she could theoretically beat the living hell out of him any time she wanted to without even really having to try too hard.
There’s also this, which is something that sounds like a lot of fun. A discussion that’s long overdue if you ask me.
Son of Stuck Funky 
This seems to be headed toward some sort of humiliation porn, which is awful. Battic needs to peddle his filth elsewheGAAHH MY EYES!! OMG JUST STOP IT RIGHT NOW JUST STOP IT! !!.
I’m astonished that the yearbook photo doesn’t have those photo-album tabs around it.
Also, since Les is the author avatar, is this TB trying self-deprecating humor? Ugh.
I don’t think anybody depicted in panel 2 is allowed to talk about strange faces ever again.
Les is constantly presented as having been a total dweeb in school, but for some reason they included a color candid photo of him. Okay then.
I really hate these kinds of strips. Where the only thing close to a punch line is just “hey, remember how the strip used to be?”. Which is really NOT a road Batiuk should be going down.
It still works with “Westview” as the title of the book.
So the entire week was just Summer and Cayla talking about Les. There was literally nothing else except, of course, the useless setup Monday strip which revealed no pertinent information whatsoever.
They had nothing else to talk about. Les is the only thing in their lives they could be discussing.
spacemanspiff85: Summer knows those yearbooks by heart, she knows exactly where to find each and every one of Les’ humiliating high school memories. She not only has her mother’s adorableness and virtue, but she’s the anti-Les too: the confident, swaggering jock to Les’ simpering feeble dweeb. I know, it’s so funny, right?
Gah! Dat panel 2 face!
Caveat: only 983 people ‘like’ Funky Winkerbean. Can that really be called ‘popular’ culture?
We end the week with not much to show for things. Passive-aggressive bitchery that doesn’t go anywhere and a reminder that Summer thinks that her dad was the sort of spindly dweeb she was forced to save despite being unfit to live because he wasn’t an athletic type. Meanwhile, out in the real, outside world, sports just aren’t that important.
Also, re the ‘Cancer in Popular Culture’ arc, wanna bet the subtle condemnation of the strip for being disease porn is going to sail over Batiuk’s stupid head?
This week in 9 words – School is killing us – Les – Les – Les – Les – Les
Les ignores Cayla, Cayla ignores Les, and everybody ignores Keisha. The Moore family dynamic in a nutshell.
“Say, let’s talk about Les even more!”
So, I think it’s safe to say that Less’ marriage to Not Lisa is built upon a rock solid foundation of indifference, narcissism, and disdain.
I’ve sent an e-mail to Wright University, asking whether there will be a podcast of the upcoming panel discussion, “Lisa’s Story: Cancer in Popular Culture”. Hope someone from here can attend & report back — it’s free & open to the public.
(*Sigh*) If The Bat would have let them STAY THE WAY THEY WERE, he wouldn’t even HAVE to draw so many flashbacks! I mean, don’t try to fix it if it’s not even broken. Jeez.