One could almost be sympathetic to Gail and Guyler, but as I pointed out yesterday, Gail tipped her hand a few weeks ago. Her attitude towards her unknowing donors was anything but grateful. So I’m not yet convinced that Guyler is genuine, either. Even his earlier comments paint a less than honorable portrait.

However, from a storyline angle, this is a plausible subplot with Guyler either confessing or gaslighting Mark, while Gail works on Happy, who doesn’t need much convincing at all. Mark has to figure out how much of this is a swindle versus the real deal. But I don’t buy Guyler’s “No place to live” line, as I’d think other gorilla sanctuaries in the States would take the animals.

Dig the pose of the gorilla in panel 4. I’m not sure what it is thinking as it “kind of” looks at Happy and Gail. And Jules Rivera’s narration box doesn’t logically follow the prior panels as far as I can tell.

I’m no zoo keeper and I don’t play one on TV, but those cages and barriers look awfully skimpy to me. They don’t line up with other gorilla sanctuaries I’ve seen (via photos). Those fences and gates don’t look strong enough to hold back a baby gorilla, much less a full-grown one. Well, if it isn’t an issue about gorillas escaping, I’d be concerned about humans (including children) climbing into the enclosures. Well, most people. I do have a list.

Guyler’s explanations seem to give Mark some cause to pause while he considers the situation in a different light. Still, it doesn’t add up, given what we have seen of Gail’s demeanor and behavior the week before (esp June 9^th and 10^th). Even Mark should have noticed the tells that Gail has been showing this week. Gail’s behavior didn’t sound like desperation back then, so much as connivance and chicanery. So I suspect that Guyler is just play-acting to what he perceives of Mark’s values and priorities. Just like any good swindler.

Once again, Jules Rivera seems to have type-cast Mark Trail into one “Catch the Swindler” plot after another. There’s got to be other kinds of adventures Mark would be interested in. In the Olde Days, Mark was at least interested in exposing poachers, cheaters, arsonists, and the occasional conspiracy nutjob. Hell, maybe Mark should join the FBI or the Secret Service if he wants to make catching swindlers and frauds his life’s work. At least, the FBI and Secret Service in his own parallel universe, that is.

Art Dept. Ew. Just plain “Ew!”

I might be wrong, but I think the gorilla wants to knock some sense into Happy.

As the story develops, Gail thinks “take some time” means “walk around the sanctuary for a while and when you return we can find a preacher!” So the focus from here on is how long it takes before Mark uncovers the scam and proves it to his dad. This reminds me of the recent story (“$ is for upcycling”) where Olive and Cherry tried to make Peach realize that she was being scammed by design influencer, Holly Folly.

Well, if this was the Mark Trail in Days of Olde, he would probably take Guyler out back and knock him around a bit to get him to confess. Instead, he is treating Guyler as if he was a neutral bystander (panel 4), rather than one of the criminal conspirators.

Art Dept. I like that Mark in panel 2 exhibits a strong emotional and physical presence, defined not only by the intense yellow background but also by Jules Rivera’s line work that, for once, isn’t just outlining shapes. And speaking of outlines, what is that busyness going on around the gorilla’s torso? Is he getting electrocuted? Otherwise, I’m a bit concerned that the only thing separating that gorilla from the people seems to be a 3 foot wall.

Gail is quick on the uptake, I’ll give her that. At the same time, Happy Trail seems to be getting more confused by Gail’s acceptance of his proposal. What was he expecting, anyway? Jules Rivera really didn’t need to waste time and ink on Gail’s vaudevillian leer (panel 3), as if we are as slow on the uptake as Happy. And it’s as if neither Mark nor Happy can see her face.

Making matters worse, Mark seems to have so far been sidelined by Gail’s domination of Happy. What will Mark do to regain control of the situation? At this point, Happy is not helping; but just hustling him away will not fix things, either.

Looks like it’s three-to-one against Mark. This is one time when I don’t think his Fists o’ justice™ are going to help him out. Unless Gail turns out to be some male grifter-in-drag, that is.

Yes, gorillas do have intelligence, and the one in panel 1 seems to hold the opinion that getting away from these human nut jobs is vital to its health and wellbeing. I can’t disagree.

Well, let’s try to be fair here. Jules Rivera has taken Mark Trail and his family out of its 1950s “Father Knows Best in Lost Forest” scene and put it into the modern world with its modern complexities and contradictions. And the characters have reshaped themselves, accordingly. So Mark finds himself now caught up in family matters (there were rarely “family matters” before), where he is sometimes out of his depth. Okay, that happens in his reporting assignments, too. (Warning: The rest of this post is just more philosophizing gobbledee gook. Feel free to ignore it!)

And we have Rivera’s “indie” comic style which  is more in tune with younger people who follow online comics and graphic novels. If you have looked at “indie” comics (ex. graphic novels or online independent comic strips), you’d see a great variety of styles. “Realistic” drawing is often opposed as being inauthentic, sterile, and non-emotional. You old farts like me may likely remember the Hippie comic books of the late 1960s (ex. Zap Comix and Furry Freak Brothers) which had a similar philosophical and artistic opposition to the “corporate” comic strips in newspapers.

Indie styles are to traditional (“corporate”) comic strips what the Abstract Expressionist painters were to naturalistic 20^th century American and European art. “Authenticity” of expression and emotion is more important than authenticity of illustration. Accidents in drawing are accepted as part of the creative act (just they were in 20^th century Surrealism).  

PS – I didn’t see any increase in viewers following my clickbait title from June 8 (“Isn’t anybody worried that a gorilla is on the loose? But I can see why…!”), meaning nobody fell for such an obvious ruse or nobody knows this blog site exists. That’s okay, I reckon.

Can’t anybody get their priorities straight around here? Did Mark drive Happy to the sanctuary so he could spend his time asking about gorilla enclosures or was it to find out where Happy’s money went (see May 30)!?  I could make a joke about the apparent disappearance of fencing in panel 2 as a point about Mark’s questioning, but we all know that this is simply how Jules Rivera shows animals and people behind cages, fences, and jail cells. Frankly, I don’t know why it matters to Rivera to draw it this way, but that’s how it is.

As a matter of form, if Mark is curious about the gorillas and the grounds, maybe he should have been asking how Gail got them, where all the paperwork is, and what professional staff she keep on site.

Anyway, I reckon my hair would also turn white like Mark’s (panel 3) if my dad blindsided me by going all Movie rom-com on a strange woman whose personality was faked (as was his). Even Guyler, whose slacks changed from white to blue (as of yesterday!), looks gobsmacked by Happy’s actions. Seems like bringing Happy along was a really bad idea!

It’s a heck of a cliffhanger, I’ll give Rivera that! I can imaging Gail thinking “This sucker couldn’t make it any easier than if he just showed up with handfuls of cash and handed it over. Hmmm, I wonder how much I can get for that ring…?” And Mark must be thinking “There goes my inheritance!”

Now we know why Cherry doesn’t mind when Mark goes away

Man, what a pill. How can somebody go on and on and on about things he knows little about? For example, gorillas are very social animals and hang out in groups known as troops (panel 2). It doesn’t mean they are crowded together from lack of space.

I suppose being annoying may just be a tactic of some sort, but Mark sure is annoying! It’s like dealing with a precocious ten-year old. I’m not sure what the real goal of such a tactic would be, other than getting thrown out of the sanctuary. But even I might confess to being Lizzie Borden if that would make him shut up. At least the tactic seems to be working on Gail.

Once again, the text doesn’t mesh with the picture. In panel 1, Mark can’t wait to see the sanctuary, even though he is standing directly in front of it.

Yeah, this is starting to look like a rehash of the Tiger Touch Petting Zoo (or whatever it was called) story, run by Tess Tigress. Of course, Tess didn’t have a kid assistant who looks like he works part-time at a 1940s soda fountain, or possibly as a stand-in for Randy, the smart-alecky marionette on Pee-Wee’s Playhouse (panel 4).

Jules Rivera isn’t much for subtle buildups in her stories, either. Mark and Happy jump right in with innuendo and interrogation. Well, maybe just Mark at this point. It’s not that they don’t have any justification, but from a story-building angle, it would be nice to have them lead up to the drama, to try and break down the defenses they must know Gail and Guyler have prepared.

Mark, especially, comes across as presumptive and arrogant,  as if he knows anything about keeping gorillas or what the “code” mandates. Of course, the sanctuary will not meet code! That’s a given. And Guyler probably wishes he actually was pouring malts about now. In fact, I’d love one, myself, with lots of malt.

I’m starting to get confused (a common occurrence, I’m afraid). Apparently, Guyler has done some online research and thinks that Mark is an investigative journalist. Okay, I reckon that is more or less accurate. But why does Gail state that they will get Happy’s cash (panel 2)? Didn’t Happy already send it to her? Else, where’s the problem?

By the way, I like the way Guyler peeks through the venetian blinds, like a mobster in an old film noir crime movie watching out for the cops. Was this an intended reference?

And why does Jules Rivera state that Happy and Li’l Abner, I mean Mark, are now approaching the sanctuary (panel 3) when they are already there? Well, perhaps she means “entering the building” or something like that. My wife says I sometimes get too nit-picky (but most of the time, just the opposite).

Nevertheless, this fake Dreama sounds like she means business, and I do mean bad business. Yeah! I hope this isn’t just hot air on Rivera’s part. Let’s get to some real action! At worst, I hope this parent-child grifting duo doesn’t turn out to be just another Cheddersons act.

Seems like animal sanctuaries in the world of Mark Trail have a habit of being run by female con artists. Now check out this Gail (aka Dreama) character! She certainly looks more like a conniving crook than she did when we first saw her on May 28^th (go check her out!). It’s like a real Jekyll-and-Hyde act. But I, for one, am glad to finally see a new crook in the Trailverse. Aren’t you!?

Note: If I had a gripe—and I do—it seems most of Mark’s opponents fall into a narrow band of swindlers and fraudsters. Where are the poachers, arsonists, kidnappers, and animal abusers? When are they going to get their fair share of Mark’s time?

So who names their son “Guyler”!? That’s the kind of name that gets a kid beat up in school on a regular basis. While the name is more common as a last name, I don’t see it used much for given names. However, I think Jules Rivera is actually being clever in an old-school way. The noun “guyler” derives from an old French noun (“guileor”) that means “cheat” or “fraudster.” And guyler is actually old British slang for a deceiver or con artist. And that, boys and girls, is the anthroponymy lesson for today! Well played, Rivera!