Cinco de mayo pizza special overshadowed by band box’s día de muertos

In today’s strip, we learn that Funky’s inept efforts to maintain the band box at Montoni’s have killed it. That’ll put a damper on the Cinco de Mayo festivities surrounding the pizza special advertised in Montoni’s window. You know, Cinco de Mayo, the world’s most pizza-oriented holiday.

My research into the band box a couple years ago revealed that the real band box at Akron’s Luigi’s has similarly deteriorated.

Bonus: See Tom Batiuk’s sole second IMDb role (complete episode): Cardinal Adventures #6: Terror in the Pines. Things to look for:

  • Early on: one of the characters name-drops Les, Cayla, Summer, and Keisha.
  • Mr. Batiuk is one of the better actors in the production
  • Everyone—I mean everyone—including the 19-year-old protagonist, gets their news from newspapers. Printed ones, on actual paper.
  • Whenever you see a newspaper, you see the comics page.
  • Astonishing video-editing.

We need Owen & Cody like a fish needs a bicycle

In today’s strip, 27-year-old high-school juniors Owen and Cody complain about the—fish? Is that wedge-shaped thing fish? Owen says it’s fish, but—I’ve got nothing. Les Jr. Cody disgorges a Bermuda Triangle joke from the 1970s. Heigh-ho.

The good news is, this is a throwaway strip. Tomorrow, things get—oh—never mind that “good news” bit—tomorrow, things get worse, as we embark on a Les/Funky road trip.

People are strange, when you’re on Facebook

We’re in for another day of Les whining about his class reunion, so here’s today’s strip, or, “In which Facebook flummoxes the English teacher, tending towards his untimely demise,” because Les never met a responsibility that he didn’t flinch from.

Cayla magnanimously offers to “friend” Les. What this says about their relationship, I don’t even want to explore. I mean, what wife puts her husband in the friend zone? Let’s just say it’s been a long time since we saw that exterior view of the Moore residence in the rain, and leave it at that.

They’re not having sex, is what I’m saying.

The good news is that this storyline is being abruptly dropped, as is BanTom’s wont. At press time, I don’t know what Sunday will bring, but Monday will be a flash-cut to 25-year-old high-school juniors Owen & Cody. They will discuss the provenance of lunch.

Then there will be a Les/Funky road trip.

So, you know, abandon all hope, ye who enter here.

Who did a number on you?

Today’s strip wasn’t available for preview, so I got to thinking about what I really like about Les Moore. I mean, given yesterday’s strip, would I have gone to his high school party? Actually, probably I would have. We’d have tuned the radio to whatever Ohio station had Dr. Demento on, then I would have left by 9. I didn’t drink in high school, because I was a foolish young boy.

Oh yeah, my topic sentence. Nothing. That’s what I like about Les Moore. I am flummoxed as to why TB chose Les as his author avatar. By all accounts, TB is kind and charming in person. What does he see in Les Moore? What is the origin of his self-loathing? His mother who “really did a number on” him?

Your mother really did a number on you, says Le Chat Bleu to Les