Hoo-boy, is that “bats and trafficking” topic the only article for which Mark is known? Props to the professor for actually knowing about Trail and having read the article. With that backhanded compliment from the professor in panel two, Mark silently intones Rodney Dangerfield’s “I get no respect!”

Otherwise, we have more over-the-top characters acting up, such as the very proactive “bodyguard” in the last panel. And there is more to wonder at:

– Does our current Mark Trail have the old-fashioned ethics of the original Mark Trail when it comes to hitting females?
– How does Mark know Hollywood women might be tough? Does he watch reruns of “Charlie’s Angels” or “The Real Wives of Orange County”?
– And isn’t this bodyguard the same woman we saw in the background from Wednesday’s strip, holding both a camera and smart phone?

Instead of worrying about his phone disappearing, maybe Mark should be more concerned about the disappearance of the plot in this story!

And where the heck is Reptilianairre?