Son of Stuck Funky

Hey KID!!

I gotta tread carefully here. I was born at a good time (on the same day Alaska became the 49th state, if you must know). I was too young for Nam-era military service, and was neither compelled or desirous to serve (unlike my late Dad and my two older brothers). So I can’t even suppose what it’s like to be a soldier, but I have the utmost respect and gratitude for everyone who has worn a uniform in our nation’s armed forces.

With that said: here we go again with Wally’s issues. Incredibly, that one visit with the shrink wasn’t enough to straighten him out. Wally’s having flashbacks because he “almost killed a kid”? All his flashbacks seem to involve engagement; does he have no trauma related to being held captive for years? None of this adds up for me, as in typical fashion, TB tries to spin drama from sketchy characters and their poorly imagined backstories.

So Far No Good

No sooner do they arrive at the County Fair then the flashbacks ensue (what, no photo-album corners?) Wally starts looking around for Charlie, or Ahmed or Osama or whatever enemy haunts his nightmares. Enjoy the rides and the games of chance, kids; but as Epicus Doomus pointed out yesterday: I strongly advise you to avoid the clown-head water balloon race.

Fair Shot

Rachel has apparently made it her mission to “cure” Wally’s anxieties by applying some tough love.

A friend of mine once commented, “With red hair, you’re either really good-looking…or really ugly.” Harsh, I know, but it was funny at the time. The thing is, Rachel manages to be both, at least the way Batiuk draws her. She’s actually one of the more attractively-drawn females in this strip. In today’s panel two, though, she looks like Ronald McDonald with no makeup.

Drive carefully, Wally. That looks like the same road where Uncle Cousin Funky totaled the Cruiser.

Date Night

We go from snowbirds to lovebirds…after a day of slacking in Montoni’s kitchen, Wally trades his olive drab tee shirt and schmatte for a dentist’s smock, and Rachel dons a puke-green maternity frock, and they wait until they are about to get in the car before making plans for the evening.

Tom Batiuk interview at CancerConnect.com

For those who are looking for a little extra insight into the guy behind the comic we all love to snark on… I’d like to share some video: an interview with Tom Batiuk: Prostate Cancer Survivor.

The full transcript of the interview is below the video, for those who don’t feel like watching, but it is worth watching, especially for glimpses of some art we haven’t seen before. TB actually comes across as a likeable guy. We see him doing what he does best, and I don’t mean cartooning: I mean justifying being such a self-important downer…here’s the interview, and Tom Batiuk, in a nutshell:

“I didn’t get the memo, you know, that you’re only supposed to be funny, but what I really owe my readers is to sort of challenge my expectations of myself, and challenge theirs as well.”