Mark sure seems like a needy dad trying to make up for not being around. I’ll cut him a lot of slack here. Most of us fathers know how it feels! But the pre-Rivera Mark Trail never seemed too concerned about his fatherly duties. At the same time, pre-Rivera Rusty rarely seemed to go anywhere, much less have friends.

Anyway, I sure hope that tiny log structure in the background of panel 1 is just one of the out-buildings on the Trail estate and not meant to be the actual family home. That would be ridiculous.

Finally, Mark must have touched a nerve with Rusty, because his façade of calm quickly evaporated when Mark pressed him for details. I sure hope it is something really interesting. But will Mark stay out of it?