It’s nice to get away from the chaos and tearful confessions down in Florida for a bit. I refer to Happy Trail’s chaos, not Florida’s. Also good to see what appears to be realistic, if not naturalistic, flora in the foreground. So, here we are, ready for a tough talk, are we? And during dinner!? That sounds like a bad idea to me, because it’s likely to cause indigestion in one or both parties. That’s not very healthy and doesn’t help the enjoyment of the food! A tough talk is often best handled afterwards. Just my opinion as a parent.

So I reckon it means that this week will consist of Cherry and Rusty hashing out his feelings about his being passed over for a nature photo merit badge; his feelings about friends not sticking up for him; and maybe also his feelings about letting himself be gulled by Cherry into not submitting his Las Vegas nature photos so he could get that badge he feels he deserved.

Art Dept. Panel 1 has several interesting points: First, the dialog balloon, with its tail terminating in a four-pointed shape. Normally, a dialog balloon’s tail simply points toward the house, which is enough. So, why the splotch? Perhaps it is meant to suggest a strong emotion in the statement? If so, that can be done by modifying the shape of the dialog balloon or the lettering.

Next, it’s interesting to see the greenhouse show up again. It was there at the beginning, in Jules Rivera’s first story, but disappeared and only reappeared a few times, since. I’m also wondering where the steep staircase is that was a feature of the cabin in the story “It’s the Pitts” back in late 2024-2025.

“George, you’re such a geek! You’re taking this way too seriously It’s just a cartoon.” Okay, but the cabin, itself, is drawn way too small to house a family of four people and two dogs. If we assume there are at least three bedrooms, a kitchen, dining area, and living room. This kind of “scale indifference” happens again and again, as if Rivera is drawing objects merely as symbols, not pretending they are meant to fit into a normal environment. Or, she is just not interested in these “small details.”

“What four people?” I hear some of you ask. Yes, this count includes the frequently-missing Doc Davis, Cherry’s dad, who still works as a veterinarian in this Neo-Trail reality. I’ve brought it up before and have no new hypotheses on the subject. Just still interested in his whereabouts.

This double-sided catfishing fraud unravels, but there are still questions that need answering, as Mark is well aware of. But Panel 1 clearly demonstrates why Mark wouldn’t let Happy make this phone call. He’s kind of going off the deep end, right? But, then why is Happy holding his own phone and also talking to Gail? Did Mark set up a group call in between the panels?

I’ll give extra Brownie Points (redeemable for a virtual pat on the back) for a good (or creative) explanation for whatever is happening to Happy’s epaulettes in panel 1.

Art Dept. I want to highlight some comments made by regular reader Downpuppy the other day for the May 26 strip. He focused in on some funny goings-on. Downpuppy suggested Jules Rivera was indulging in humorous “hidden” images buried in the drawing of the tip of Niecy’s nose. This is similar to what we used to call Easter Eggs in computer programs and games. You’ll need to go back and look at the actual strip to make sense of this. Here is what Downpuppy saw regarding the tip of Niecy’s nose:

I admit that I’m still confused about the apparent contradiction of Niecy and Mark claiming there is no information on the Glamor Gorilla web site about Dreama, followed up by Mark’s inspired idea to do more research on Dreama on the same site. I’m sure there is a logical point that I’m missing.

Were you confused by the illustration in panel 1 in relation to the content of the narration box? I mean, there is nothing in the illustration to show anybody talking on the phone. It seems like a disconnect to me. The scene, itself, would be fine except for Jules Rivera’s continued parodying of the tradition of including random animals in the daily strips. It is certainly a parody because Rivera did not have to make the toad so large that it crowds the composition.

Mark Trail often seems to have the weirdest way to hold a phone, as if he is a waiter delivering a somebody’s lunch plate. But why is Mark calling and not Happy? We might expect Happy to make the call and help unmask the false Dreama; but this is Mark’s comic strip, so he gets the glory. And just maybe, Mark doesn’t trust Happy to not flub the call.

Mark might have Gail already trapped, so I’m eagerly awaiting the expected cliff-hanger on Saturday!

Well, this little morality play is becoming more interesting. I totally overlooked a comment from the May 21 strip where Happy remarked that Dreama works for a gorilla sanctuary. Of course, I saw the comment, but laid it aside (i.e. I forgot it was mentioned), when Niecy said she would consult the Glamor Gorilla web site. I made the wrong conclusion that it was some kind of dating site. Hoo boy! You all should have reamed me on that slip-up! (And to think I’ve read all of the Sherlock Holmes stories many times over!)

But this does bring up the question of how these two hooked up in the first place? Did Happy just decide to call this gorilla sanctuary on his own? Niecy’s original concern was that Happy was taking the money he had pinned to a certain animal sanctuary to turn over to some online crook who had conned him. Well, we don’t know yet if that is still a valid concern. But it turns out Happy is donating his money to a gorilla sanctuary, instead.

Well, this is an interesting twist in the story. It turns out that animal welfare is a significant part of the story’s context, providing a better tie-in for Mark than the original online catfish plotline that Jules Rivera led off with. I reckon Rivera threw us a curve ball in this story, which I have to tip my head to.

Yes, there is still fraud on both sides.  We also don’t know yet whether Gail is a con artist like Tess Tigress was with her phony lion petting therapy zoo. We don’t know if Happy was targeted by this Gail character, or whether it was just an interesting coincidence. But frankly, a place named Glamor Gorilla Sanctuary sounds fishy, unless Gail’s last name happens to be Glamor.

As regular reader Daniel Pellissier pointed out, I forgot to upload today’s strip! I reckon I went to sleep last night a tad too early!

Happy Trail’s redemption from self-loathing, selfishness, and possible racism was the main subject of Jules Rivera’s first Mark Trail story. Since then, his character seems to have evolved into a gullible fool, an easy mark for every huckster that crosses his path. And now we can add the charge of lecher or sugar-daddy. Well, we don’t really know the age of this “Dreama” character, either. She could be as old as Happy. Makes no difference, because Happy seems to believe she really is 28, a point in favor of Rivera’s presentation of Happy as an old, gullible fool.

Next, I don’t follow Mark’s logic here. Yesterday, he and Niecy stated the web site has no profile on Dreama. Today, Mark wants to search the site for more information on Dreama. It can’t be both! Am I crazy? I feel like that android on an old Star Trek episode (“I, Mudd”) which self-destructs after failing to resolve Kirk’s logic puzzle.

And that photo Niecy references looks more like Little Orphan Annie with gray hair, which is probably Niecy’s point, right? She is apparently an older woman who had AI photos made of herself. This kind of lying is nothing new in dating (or getting jobs, college entrances, etc.). But AI makes the cheating and lying so much easier and more convincing.

There is no long-term value in such deceptions, so I try to avoid them. For example, I make no pretense about myself. I’m an old, retired, overeducated wastrel who finds writing blogs about Mark Trail a fruitful use of my time.

I do have to be careful in some regards; because of my extremely buff physique, I have to restrict my typing to two fingers. If I try to do standard “touch typing”, the combined muscles in my fingers literally crush keyboards, even mechanical models.

I also don’t like to waste time and effort on those awful, cheap “membrane” keyboards that have all of the tactile quality of overcooked broccoli. And that includes laptop keyboards, as well.

Glamor Gorilla!? Okay, this is obviously a parody of hooking up websites. But just searching Glamor Gorilla is hardly a thorough search of the web. Still, what is it Mark has seen that gives him pause? He didn’t say it was someone but something. Maybe he found Happy’s profile on the web site!!

Anyway, check out Mark’s head in panel 4. It is either an extremely bad case of sloppy drawing or Jules Rivera has attempted to show a head doing a fast double-take. I figure it is the latter, though I’ve never seen Rivera attempt this before. Have you?

Frankly, it needs a bit more visual reinforcement, such as a few of those semi-circular arc lines that indicate rotational movement. Mort Walker referred to these lines as agitrons (lines showing a reaction to something).

Isn’t this the point in time where Mark says “Okay, Dad. I don’t think the word ‘catfish’ means what you think it means”? Well, this Reverse-Catfish thing that Happy confessed to yesterday has been compounded by Happy discovering he is simultaneously being victimized by his girlfriend catfishing him! Harummph! It’s just the kind of world we live in these days, when you can’t even trust the mark you are trying to con.  Here’s some advice for Mark:  There comes a point in time when you simply have to take the computer away from Dad.

Should we expect Happy to suddenly get all self-righteous and vengeful at being scammed? Let’s not forget that Happy’s been scammed before and will likely get suckered again. At least his penchant for gullibility has helped earn him more face time in this strip than Cherry’s dad, Doc Davis.

Well, my self-parody bit yesterday certainly didn’t go as I had naively thought. But I thank you all for the encouragement!  I do appreciate your feedback, good or critical. So, let’s just move on to today’s installment.

And what a development we have today, people! That’s right. Happy Trail’s dining table went from a single pedestal to two posts! Amazing! And I’ve also learned from reader feedback that some real life kitchens actually are decorated like diners. I’m always learning!

Oh, yeah. And Happy confessed he is not the target but the scammer. Does that even make sense? If Happy is this catfish, why is he sending money to Dreama? Or does Happy not understand how it works? Is this a case of Stockholm Syndrome? Maybe it’s just me. At this point, I’m not sure; even my Italian has failed me. Unglaublich!

So I’m looking for any actual environmental angle here (“hmmm, catfish?”). I reckon that the escape clause of Mark’s contract allows nature topics to be strictly optional if he is engaged in personal, unpaid, adventures. And this one qualifies.

Art Dept. Panel 2 presents a well-posed and competently drawn figure (I’m overlooking the image bubble). Happy’s slightly angled torso, the position of his arm with its hand reaching behind the neck, and his thoughtful expression combine to present a believable example of somebody trying to figure something out, but still being frustrated. But then that same, reasonable person becomes an emotional wreck in a matter of moments (panel 4), as his anatomy starts to go haywire.

Answers to Questions You Didn’t Care to Ask #26: It’s tough meeting the hard demands I imagine my readers put upon me: Composing new commentary every day that is not simply the snark-infested zingers we see elsewhere; finding that just appropriate historical reference (“the Civil War ended on my birthday!”); pasting in that apt old Mark Trail strip; and injecting an au currant cultural reference (“67!”) or classical quotation (“Gallia est omnis divisa in tres partes!”) to try to jazz up my pedantic scribbles. No, I make this self-appointed commitment because I am retired and have nothing better to do with my time.

Why does the inside of Happy’s house look like a downtown café?  I think it is safe to state that the dialog here has all of the authenticity of a Jerry Springer episode. That is to say, this just doesn’t sound real (e.g. panel 3)!

It’s not that Happy is being hoodwinked by some Internet crook, but that he thinks it’s okay to hook up with a 28 year old woman! Yet, that doesn’t seem to be important. Instead, Niecy questions Mark about his plans to recover Happy’s money. In addition, she talks as if they are watching a taped interview and Happy is not in the same room.

Well, we’ve seen a few lame Mark Trail stories over the past several years, but this one is shaping up to be one of the lamest. I hope to be surprised. Perhaps Niecy didn’t know about the age difference and will react more properly in tomorrow’s strip.

One small step in the unfolding story of Happy’s online victimization, reinforced by Mark’s gratuitous smirk. Still, I wonder whatever happened to Happy’s earlier relationship with Rex Scorpius’ mother, Sally Scorpius. We never heard anything! Guess she had to be pushed aside, into the Mark Trail Phantom Zone, so Happy could get entangled with this fake online girlfriend. I’m sure Happy is excited to try and put on that little tee shirt Mark brought along. Is Mark hinting that Happy should lose a few pounds?

So, is Jules Rivera being ironic when she refers to Happy’s one-story Florida shack as an estate? It also doesn’t quite seem to fit the stereotypical Florida Cracker House type, either. It lacks the traditional wide porch, but it does have the low profile and wood-frame structure. Maybe we’ll call this Neo-Cracker? Anyway, Rivera’s current depiction of the house is not too far removed from her original version, seen in Mark’s first story (“Happy Trails”). Today’s strip is only mildly irritating, due to the ambiguous space, clumsy proportions, and typical “quick-draw” style.

On the other hand, I noticed that there was also a frog guarding the house back in 2021! Clearly, it’s a role that has passed down through the frog’s family.

Rusty skipped Scouts!? Omigosh! A catastrophe. Helicopter Parent Cherry is flipping out. Maybe she should have kept to her original routine of doing Violet Cheshire’s scutwork and generally ignoring Rusty. If Cherry can’t handle this, she should let Olive take over. Olive has a good handle on Rusty, and she certainly set Cherry and Peach straight on Holly Folly (https://thytrailbedone.com/category/is-for-upcycling/).

(Note to Jules: This is not how families react to trivial events. I have some experience in this area, having helped raise four boys. Okay, “helped” may be an exaggeration.)

Art Dept. There is some odd stuff in today’s panels. For example, who is in that raccoon costume in panel 2? Or did Rocky Raccoon eat too many PB&J sandwiches? There is little more to say about that, other than that it’s either just a ridiculous image or Cherry is having an hallucination. And speaking of images, what’s with that cabin? Did Honest Ernest install those windows? Was Rivera looking at Al Capp’s Li’l Abner comic strips as a guide?

Now, aside from Mark’s incredibly small and creepy hands in panel 3, I rather like Rivera’s solution to showing shrubs being passed at high speed. It’s a clever idea, though it could stand a bit of refinement.

I’m becoming more and more disappointed in how Cherry is portrayed. Her Rivera-Reboot Persona started out as a pretty independent, active woman with a definite personality and her own business. Over time, she became less aggressive, but still self-confident and pragmatic. Yet it seems that in the last year or so, Cherry has become more domesticated (if that is the right term) and less independent. And Jules Rivera simplified Cherry’s image a lot early on, ridding her of the independent business to become a “permanent” hired hand for the Sunny Soleil Society.

While maintaining an independent business would have opened up other opportunities for Cherry, simplifying her work life to a single client keeps it simple. I’m convinced that it’s all about the economics for Jules Rivera. And that is probably also the main rationale behind the stylistic simplification of the strip over time. This is reinforced by some of her social media posts where she talks about other drawing gigs she is involved in.

Anyway, back to the story: Why is Cherry worried about Rusty hanging out with imagined kids? She certainly doesn’t seem as concerned about him playing house with a wild raccoon! Well, if this was the pre-Rivera Rusty, I’d agree with her concerns. If pre-Rivera Rusty actually met up with any kids at all, it would be an issue. In fact, Rusty’s current crowd of friends doesn’t look very appealing. Cherry should already be concerned about them. And Ranger Shaw.

But poor Mark just can’t seem to get away from family troubles on both ends. Where is Bill Ellis when he really needs him? This is one of those times I’ve fantasized about, where Mark gets The Call while in the middle of some important activity. But Mark is made of sterner stuff than you or I. That’s why he gets to star in a comic strip named after him. The Mark Trail dude abides.

At the rate those pickups swallow fuel and its high price, I hope Cherry got a raise this year. But Happy Day! We learned Rusty’s middle name. It sounds a bit overthought, but suggestive that a family ancestor is being honored. Otherwise, this week is just a piffle of a subplot, as it turns out. I just can’t figure out why Jules Rivera is so hesitant to inject some actual drama or danger into this strip. The context of the strip certainly invites it; yet, Rivera turns away from it, leaving the stories with all of the variety and suspense of rolling plains. Here, I’m thinking of the wide open plains that the early settlers faced when they drove their ox-drawn wagons across the prairie stated, heading to California or something closer.  It was the kind of openness that sometimes literally drove settlers mad, because of the seemingly unending monotony and endless stretches.

Art Dept. When I looked at the two panels, I almost thought I saw an example of what art historians call “Continuous Narration”, a compositional device in Medieval and ancient art, where a single scene would show the principle character(s) multiple times, involved in different chronologically ordered actions. The mountains in the two panels initially looked like they continued directly from panel 1 to panel 2, and the clay road might led from one panel to the next, but that it is not the case.

Here is a wonderfully composed example of what I mean: It’s an excerpt from the August 24 1930 Sunday comic of Frank King’s Gasoline Alley. The overall composition is one beach, spread across multiple panels. Within each panel, Walt and Skeezix are shown engaging in different activities, representing different times of the day. Rivera’s panels look like they come close to a continuous narration, but don’t connect. I reckon Rivera was not trying to emulate this technique, after all. But it would be cool if she did!

Well now. Is this going to be a “Rusty gets rabies” story? Rusty doesn’t seem too knowledgeable about Nature’s wild creatures. I’m thinking that the Old School Rusty might have been wiser. It’s a tradeoff of character priorities, perhaps. But feeding human food to wild animals is rarely a good idea, either for the human or the animal. As many (or all) of you know, this can create a dependency that is bad for the animal.

The question now is “OK, what’s next?” Does Rusty get up and move on to his next forest encounter? Or does he hang out with the raccoon and continue his one-way conversation? This isn’t Winnie the Pooh, so the animal is not going to start talking back. Perhaps, as some readers suggest, some of Rusty’s friends or rivals may show up and something will happen.

Otherwise, the storyline is wide open for some kind of plot development. I’m just hoping it doesn’t involve a really stupid decision, like Rusty letting the wild animal jump into his backpack so he can sneak him home as a secret pet. Rusty can’t be that naïve, can he?

Rusty may be a modern-day pre-teen, but he grew up in Lost Forest; so animal sounds should not be mysterious or unsettling to him (as seen in panel 2 with that Pokémon inspired back design). He’s pretty jumpy, in fact! Was the sound really unusual or out of place in the forest?  The sound effect (“Krack”) is something normally associated with stepping on a small branch and breaking it. So, nothing too unusual. From what I’ve read, raccoons don’t seem to be too concerned with making noise as they move about or hunt. Still, I suppose it beats meeting up with a mamma bear and her cubs. I just hope this little incident will not break Rusty’s spirit and send him packing, back to the scout meeting.