Okay, this dialog is not moving the story along; it is merely two kids bickering. I don’t know why Rivera believes Rusty should score a point (“touché”) in his response, since Robbie already admitted he didn’t have any idea of what an axolotl is. So why should Robbie also know its taxonomic classification? Seen in this light, the conversation could be interpreted as “Rusty tries to ridicule Robbie.” In panel 4, Robbie’s body language indicates that it doesn’t seem to be working. Touché, Robbie!

Art Dept. There is a fundamental difference between the drawing of Rusty and that of Robbie. Where Rusty’s head (for example) appears quite naturalistic and animated, Robbie’s smooth head looks like it came from a stylized marionette or a china doll. At least it is a bit more defined than the yellow smiley face. The differences in style and facial definition are off-putting. I could be reading too much into this. What do you think?