TFHackett

Gee Quiz

September’s a good time for Batiuk to revisit the place where the Funkiverse began: the high school classroom. We’ve seen the original Westview students grow into middle age, and some of them become teachers to the students who succeeded them. Now that Cody and Owen have finally graduated (and seemingly vanished), TB must come up with “fresh” teen characters to serve as foils for the insufferable Mr. Moore. So far all he’s come up with is the blonde mannequin Logan Church, seen in the last panel giving side-eye to Bernie Silver, who seems to be an amalgam of Owen’s clueless slacker and Cody’s dark hair and glasses.

It’s been a privilege bringing you the snark for the last couple weeks, folks. Billytheskink steps in for the next fortnight. Stay Funky, y’all!

Hollywood Calling

Are we being led to believe that the events of this week’s FW– John’s posting the plot synopsis to the web, Pete’s discovery of same, alerting the studio and identifying and tracking down the skunk-headed culprit – have all transpired in one day of strip time? “Hard to tell” indeed! John (like fellow comics nerd Pete Rudomanski) always, always is seen wearing the same shirt. But Crazy Harry’s still rockin’ that blue shortsleeve we saw him in on Monday…and we know it ain’t a postal uniform.

♩♫♪♩♩

Paul Jones
September 15, 2016 at 3:12 am
Well, there is a remedy: calling in legal to sue John into the Stone Age.

Batiuk’ll go ya one better: how about “back to a ball of dirt“? That’s one for the Batiukionary! Something that’s even nearer and dearer to TB’s heart than old comic books and weird turns of phrase is protection of intellectual property. And while siccing one’s lawyers on, say, a blogger for “unauthorized use of the Funky Winkerbean name, trademark or comic strips” might be valid, query what standing has the studio to go after Dead Skunk Head? And if that’s the lawyers calling John, how the hell did they get his number?

Flop Secret

Naturally Pete Rafalowski frequents whichever fanboy gossip site John’s posted to, even while he’s on the set of The Upcoming Starbucks Jones Movie. My favorite thing about today’s strip is how Mason “Jarre”, so blasé in the first two panels, appears completely taken aback in panel three. Even the little Superman curl on his forehead is sticking out, like a miniature version of Cindy’s high school hairdo.

Rest Assured That I Was on the Internet within Minutes

It’s developing rather slowly, natch, but we see his week’s plot begin to take shape: “dyed-in-the-wool fan” John, not content with merely possessing advance knowledge of the Starbuck Jones plot, is compelled to disseminate it online. It’s the only way this overgrown adolescent, alienated from the affection of his busy wife and running an unprofitable comic book shop to support two children who are not his own can be made to feel alive.