So, Sid likes to shine his flashlight up into the sky like Mark? What’s with that, anyway? If Sid was going to sucker-punch Mark, why wouldn’t he shine the light in Mark’s face to blind him?

Of course, the real star of today’s strip is the much missed and lamented Fist o’ Justice. While the best Stump can do was hit Mark in the arm with his flashlight (oh, owie?), Mark’s good right cross soundly connected, with the apparent result that Sid may have to go in for dental implant surgery.

So, what do you think about the composition of panel 4? It’s kind of interesting and strange. On one hand, it’s like looking at a pair of blue wings, or a purplish, jagged mandala around Mark. Or maybe, with the curvy kind of flora long the sides, it would be how we see this through a fisheye lens of a camera. How ever we see it, it’s an intriguing composition. I wonder if it will lose its impact in B&W.

ADDENDUM:

Okay, here is the B&W newspaper image. Try to overlook the lack of professional lighting and photography. Well, this is just newsprint. But the overall effect is certainly different. That “jagged mandala” now looks unconvincing and out of place. The graduated shading in the panel, along with the scenery, still gives the layout something of a wraparound effect. It’s kind of like comic book art of the 1940s.