Um, Les, that doesn’t really address her question at all. She didn’t ask if you wanted sparkling water, she asked if you wanted a drink. There are many, many other drinks than sparkling water. It really wouldn’t surprise if Batiuk constructed the past two weeks just so he could use “sparking water-boarded” as a punchline.
I do like how even though she says it’s nice to meet Les, Cassidy Kerr is not actually touching him. Her face in the third panel seriously disturbs me, though.
I am scared by what “Pink Entertainment” could possibly be. In the real world it would undoubtedly be an adult film studio, but there’s no way this strip would ever be that interesting. Among the many things I dislike about Batiuk’s writing, his tendency to name drop Hollywood restaurants and hotels is pretty high up there. I’m pretty sure he’s mentioned Chateau Marmont before. I’m sure he thinks it’s adding realism to his comic, and maybe fifty years ago that would’ve worked, but now anybody can search for a Hollywood restaurant name in ten seconds, so it’s not really impressive anymore.
Who do you think Les is so excited to see? My money is the guy who reads the obituaries on the nightly news, because of course in the Batiukverse that would be a thing, and it would be the highlight of Les’s day.
today’s strip
Man, that Les face in the first panel is priceless. Poor, poor Les. Being forced to have a movie made of Lisa’s Story. If only he could say no. Which he could, of course, but won’t, because he’s a whiny child. A whiny child who called his wife up to whine about the travesty being done to the memory of his dead wife. Which, if it’s not the world’s story, then why did he publish it in a book as “Lisa’s Story”, exactly?
This really is Les at his most insufferable. I have an extremely hard time believing that even Batiuk thinks Les is sympathetic or at all likeable, but apparently he does.
Yay, more of one of the proudest Batiuk traditions. Being a passive-aggressive jackass about something without speaking your mind or doing anything to improve your situation.
Is Alan Silver even an actual executive, or just some guy with an office? For all I know he’s Mason’s insurance agent. He sure doesn’t seem to have any Hollywood wisdom, since I’m pretty sure people always like watching chemistry between actors, especially in a romance. I’m pretty sure it’s the one essential for a romance movie.
It’s also helpful of Alan to explain exactly who Marianne Winters is, for those people in the room who don’t already know. Oh wait.
Son of Stuck Funky 