Tag: Owen

Cock and Bull

Link to today’s strip.

I guess all the bird-themed dialogue is telling us that Chullo and Glasses are bird-brains.  Got it.  Although Glasses’ riposte makes no sense whatsoever. Is this his version of “Whatever”?  Because he looks more anxious than dismissive.

Also, since Glasses is wearing a Marvel-themed t-shirt, and Tom Batiuk has gone out of his way to tell us he’s a DC guy, I think that means he’s supposed to be evil.  Or maybe it’s more payback to Stan Lee for writing the forward for the new Funky Winkerbean collection.  Those boots won’t lick themselves!

The only interesting thing here is that kid’s hair in panel two.  Is she wearing a hat, or a plastic bag, or has she dyed part of her hair blue, or what?  Does she have a chullo?  Wedgeman could probably tell us, but since he was a senior last year, he has gone into the abyss…or at least, he should have.  What do you want to bet that he shows up anyway, because continuity is for losers.

Pitching A Snit

Hey, have you ever wondered what goes on with band kids in the summers, before Lefty gets ahold of the big-and-brassy, loud-and-flashy, Westview High School Scapegoat marching band? Well then, today’s strip is for you! Turns out there is no “before”, as Lefty asserts year-round control of the extracurricular lives of several dozen high school students.

Looks like Owen is still a member of the band, entering what I think is his fourth senior year at WHS. To the surprise of no one, he still has not gotten any better at playing or maintaining his trumpet.

But, unfortunately, it is Dinkle who is the focus of this strip. I do not like these characters in the least, but I do think the punchline is a step above terrible. What is not, however, is the entire set up, which is utterly destroyed by a small piece of artwork.

It makes next to no sense for Dinkle to be so upset that Lefty’s multifunction battery-operated device (smartphone) can perform the function of his single-function battery-operated device (pitch tuner). That small box he is holding, with its clearly discernible button and speaker grate, is a fairly accurate depiction of an electronic pitch tuner. This is “old-fashioned”? No. No it is not. NOT. AT. ALL.

What would be “old-fashioned” would be a tuning fork, or one of those little round harmonica things that telegram messengers in movies from the 1940s blow into before they sing. Had TB drawn either one of those, this strip would have been a far less infuriating read.

Anyways, thanks for putting up with me for a fortnight. BC, I believe, takes over tomorrow. No, not that one, the funny one.

Formula Pun

Always looking for new ways to show his total disdain for his students, Jim Kablichnick takes a different approach in today’s strip. The resulting pun is not totally terrible, but, given the students’ reactions, appears to have had the desired effect.

So does this mean that students watch Cosmos in every class at Westview High except for Kablichnick’s science class? And how does Cody have the context to compare Kablichnick to an Australian magician and entertainer?