Month: November 2018

Breaking Fat

Link To Today’s Strip

First of all, let’s all take a moment to salute everyone on the SoSF staff, especially those who endured that SEVEN WEEK Wally fiasco. May we never speak of or have to type “Adeela” again.

Yep, we all needed a break after THAT debacle. Normally a “Funky goes to the gym” arc would have me reaching for the cyanide gun but right now it’s like the first really nice day of spring, all full of hope and invigorating. That will wear off by tomorrow, mind you, but still. This is FW and you take your pleasures where you find them. So the eternally fat Funky is at the gym with Fitness Girl, complaining about something and etc. No tornado sirens, no PTSD, no stilted dialog…by God it’s almost downright PLEASANT. It’s all relative, as they say. Sure, it’s ridiculous how he keeps working with a trainer he hates and how he never loses any weight but who cares, anything is a welcome change after seven weeks of Wally’s nonsense.

How Les Got His Groove Back

Link To Today’s Strip

Today’s strip was not available for preview.  Rumor among industry insiders is it was pulled at the last minute when editors realized it was an extremely explicit and detailed portrayal of Les and Cayla engaging in their traditional “Les and Lisa” roleplaying.  Those in the know say that the original strip and all its printings have been burned, and the ashes dumped into the deepest part of the sea.  Those unfortunate enough to witness the strip are being given the best counseling and seeing eye dogs available.

 

So here’s today’s strip.  You know what is one of the best things about comics as a medium?  I’d say it’s how you can pair funny or engaging writing with exciting, dynamic visuals.  Or you can just have two unattractive people in a bland, boring house stare silently at a TV while you copy and paste in jokes from “Funniest Football Banter of All Time, Volume 3”.

Coming up tomorrow-the nightmare continues, only this time with the talented and witty Epicus Doomus in charge!

We Have A Diet of Terrible Strips

Link To Today’s Filler

Ugh.  It’s yet another obvious filler strip, made with even less effort than usual.

Panel 1-Funky: “I’m going on a diet!”

Panel 2-Funky-“I’m not going on a diet, I’m just going to stick to my current diet!”

And why is Holly asking for clarification here?  “Plant-based diet” is extremely self-explanatory.  Is there an auto plant nearby, and how does Funky know what they eat?  I have a feeling Batiuk just heard someone mention a plant based diet and in his pun-obsessed mind tried to come up with some punchline based on the multiple meanings of plant.

Rejected first drafts of this strip: (ha, like Batiuk rejects any idea that pops into his head)

“I’m going on a liquid diet!  I’m going to eat whatever I want, and wash it done with a liquid!”

“I’m going on a Happy Meal diet!  I’ll only eat “meals” that make me “happy”!”

“I’m going on the donkey diet!  If you try to tell me what to eat, I’ll tell you to kiss my ass!”

Maybe He Peed Himself, Like Les

Link To Today’s Strip

In case you were wondering if there was literally any point to the Adeela storyline beyond “hey, my characters are eating Thanksgiving dinner with MUSLIMS, look how progressive and bold my writing is”, today’s strip should prove to you that no, there really wasn’t.  This story was somehow dragged out for the past month (at least?  I forget) and yet Batiuk somehow still couldn’t finish off this week with anything relevant to it, and instead just has another “old people are idiots/hilarious” “gag”.  Batiuk couldn’t have a strip where Adeela thanks her hosts, and then maybe one where Wally cracks wise about how he’s glad he didn’t get a new partner?

I mean, why is Holly talking like this to her guest she just met?  “Yeah, my father-in-law’s mind might be going.  Or maybe he’s just trying to be funny, staring into space and looking extremely confused and disoriented.  Either way, we’re just going to talk about him like he’s not a real person as we leave the room.  The men are upstairs reading comics, and we’d better hurry if we’re going to provide them with enough cookies and chocolate milk”.

What is the “trick” even supposed to be here?  I really can’t stand this typical Batiuk “wordplay” humor where he just switches two words around, but I really hate it when it’s in the service of mocking senility, which he’s been doing a lot of lately.

Happy Smirksgiving

Link To Today’s Strip

That is one long, narrow table.  And I assume that’s Rachel’s kid sitting next to her, even though I’m pretty sure he should be in high school by now.  He’s definitely going to be in my nightmares for a while though, the way he’s staring right at the viewer for some reason. He looks like he should be in a horror movie, where none of the people can actually see him.

Wally’s expression is also pretty uncomfortable, although it’s more of the incredibly smug variety then creepy.  I guess his expression is supposed to be saying “hey reader, look how awesome I am, having MUSLIMS at my (uncle/cousin’s) THANKSGIVING!  Isn’t this mind-blowing, and award-worthy?!  Damn, Tom Batiuk sure is one HELL of a writer”.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.  🙂