Of course, Cartoon Hero-Man shows up at the nick of time. At least, that’s how I think Rivera imagines this particular aspect of Mark Trail. Mark makes a melodramatic, tough-guy “Arnold” appearance, wearing the same hunting vest as Connor, both items left over from Mark’s misrun fishing survival school (“For Men Only”).

Pre-Rivera Mark Trail felt a moral obligation to duke it out now and then, but without announcing it to the victim, or bragging about it. Now, Mark (again) spouts this macho cliché that was already trite when only the strip’s critics were saying it. That is the point, I think. Rivera can only treat this as parody. In so doing, Rivera robs the story of virtually any actual suspense and drama. As most readers probably agree, she is not really interested in genuine drama, anyway. But maybe this is what passes for drama in an age of “reality” TV shows such as “Big Brother”, “Survivor”, and “Race to Survive.”

Art Dept. A visual aspect of Rivera minimizing (or avoiding) “drama” can be seen in panel3. Up to this point, the difference in height between Honest Ernest and Rusty has supported Ernest’s dominating personality. But in panel 3, Rusty is nearly at eye level with Ernest. If there was a time when the height difference could have been used to really amplify Ernest’s threat, this was it. One obvious compositional solution would have been to show Rusty’s head just poking up from the lower corner, looking up at Ernest, just as Ernest would then be looking down. Another solution could be to show Ernest in full-face, looking down at “us”, as if we were Rusty. A variation of that scenario would have Rusty’s back to us, standing in silhouette, facing a taller Honest Ernest (not in silhouette) looking down at Rusty as he makes his threat.

Another day, another daily. Rivera continues to recycle the same story elements all week, as if one need only catch a single day to stay on top of the story. I suppose Rivera is stretching this out to accommodate her usual two-week Saturday switch-over.

But why not fill out the week with some variety? For example, the Grungey Boys could have asked Rusty if he’d like to take a swat at the fax. What kid can resist destroying things with a bat?

But then Rusty would become implicated in this illicit activity, making it very difficult for him to rat these guys out to Mark.  Ooh! I think that is the kind of blackmail that Honest Ernest could get behind. It’s both a kind of revenge on Mark and Cherry, as well as protection for his group.

Well, this was worth sticking around for, right!?! I mean, so much progress was made in the story today that . . ., uh, I mean that it is possible to offer a post-structural analysis of an underlying, Marxist duality that leads us to surmise a progress of hierarchical society based on hexametric poetry and deterministic opposition to logic. Right!?!

Hmm, well, can we intellectually appreciate the triangular arrangement of figures in panel 1 reflecting a simple, if popular, compositional device in painting that goes back to at least 15^th century Europe? Hey, some of you must have taken an art history course in the past.

Well, can we at least recognize the repetitions and overlaps in the strip over the past several days as echoes of the chant-like repetitions found in the music of Philip Glass?

Perhaps in the end, all I can really state is “Long Live the Three Stooges!”

(News Update: The NTSB just released a report on the cause of the East Palestine, Ohio toxic train crash that Jules Rivera fictionalized in one of her prior stories (“Something Fishy”) last year: https://abcnews.go.com/US/ntsb-reveals-cause-2023-toxic-train-crash-east/story?id=111398249)

But now, let’s catch up with Mark and Friends!

(Tuesday) Hmm, wouldn’t Honest Ernest refer to Rusty more naturally as “Cherry Trail’s kid”? Well, I reckon he’s just an old-school sexist. But speaking of old-school, I’ve made references to Harold Gray’s Little Orphan Annie in the past with regard to writing and to Gray’s inking to create atmosphere. Maybe Rivera noticed, as Andy has taken to imitating the bark of Annie’s dog, Sandy. Why? Maybe it’s because Mark Trail is a vintage, old-school strip and Rivera is riffing on that status.

(Wednesday) Honest Ernest seems to actually be “honest” about his group’s intentions and tells Rusty just what’s going on. Then he turns the tables on Rusty. Will Rusty also be as forthright in his response?

This is fine. Rivera returns Rusty’s story to the foreground in order to move it along. In spite of the appearance of these three dudes, there is nothing actually dangerous here, except as it seems in Rusty’s mind. So it is “age appropriate” in its content. The fact that the story has wandered a bit from Rusty’s original intention to seek revenge on Robbie is also a normal plot device. Stories often evolve from what they originally seem to be about. One problem here is that Mark’s own stories too often seem to have a similar level of danger and drama as Rusty’s. And we expect more.

Well, patient readers, my two-week family visit is ending, and I fly home on Tuesday. Therefore, Tuesday’s post will be late. 

The potential for danger might be more acceptable if we didn’t already know that Honest Ernest is a blowhard and Connor is a coward. As for the third guy, he doesn’t look especially threatening. Of course, to a twelve-year-old, three guys waving blunt instruments has to be scary. Andy’s a big help.

Art Dept. Yeah, I also noticed a change in the color scheme. Perhaps they used a different colorist at the syndicate. We’ll see if this is an anomaly or a change of direction.  

Andy certainly has that “fashion runway walk” mastered in panel 3, though it’s unusual for a Saint Bernard to have such long, slim limbs. Perhaps the Trails had Andy’s legs shaved for the summer. Or maybe Rivera was looking at Marmaduke’s character reference sheet by mistake. 

You know, my mindful readers, I have a notion that Rivera’s stories could be better if she didn’t go out of her way to telegraph upcoming events in such obvious ways, as in panel 3. Now, Rivera could be throwing us a curve, where Robbie does not suddenly pop into the picture, but Mark and Ranger Shaw do.  

But what would be the outcome if Robbie does show up? I mean, Rusty does have a shovel. And Andy.