At times I wonder if Rivera is actually drawing this strip or whether there is a “ghost artist” behind the scenes. Sure, we have criticized Rivera many times for her artwork and storylines. Frankly, her stories are not much sillier than James Allen’s were, when it comes down to comparisons.
And I must wonder whether Rivera is just seeing how far she can go in this strip as far as absurd drawing is concerned. In today’s strip, every panel is an exhibit.
Panel 1: In addition to the slap-dash drawing, the composition of two children in profile framing the central figure as if this were some Renaissance painting of the Virgin Mary adored by the painting’s donors is corny.
Panel 2: The speaker appears to have aged about 10 years. The background composition is poorly thought out. Half-length figures would have worked more effectively. The children look like stiff, badly made puppets or dolls. Without the color, Mark and Miss Mavis seem to be missing their lower torsos.
Panel 3: The most successful of the four panels today, insofar as drawing goes. Drawing a foreshortened arm can be tricky for any artist, and I’ve seen worse. Rivera has done this better in the past (sorry, I don’t have the time to find an example. Maybe you can!), but it is enough for us to understand. As for the dialog and behavior, it is egregious, making Mark act as if he is an impulsive jerk. This is not new; Rivera often has Mark react impulsively and foolishly. It is one thing to show Mark over his head in new environments (which is fine, because it shows Mark is not the heroic archetype he has traditionally been portrayed as); but it is another thing to show him lording it over school children as if he has no control.
Panel 4: As Mark is properly chastised by the docent, we face yet more perplexing and frustrating artwork. We have seen many times before that Rivera cannot draw human figures in the background with any degree of authenticity. Deliberate or not, I cannot say. I noticed that Teacher Mavis has suddenly shrunk, whereas she has been drawn as nearly the same height as Mark. This is careless and insulting to Rivera’s readers as if she draws these figures with so little regard.
Any reactions from you? Please leave a comment!
The Daily Trail 
The kids are slightly taller than Mark’s waist. How old is Rusty supposed to be? I thought he was supposed to be about 12 or 13 years old. At that age, I was about as tall as my mother.
You’re right. With heads that are proportionally too small, the kids do have the appearance of marionettes in panel #2. With a pencil neck that thin, how does the kid in the purple shirt keep his head upright?
I like pastel colors as much as the next gal, but why is the background color changing between panels? To be whimsical?
The strip resembles something hastily done. Like Rivera remembered at the last minute, she hadn’t done the strip. A contractual obligation. Does Jules have a job that pays better than creating this strip?
LikeLike
If she did have a better paying job, it would have to be a much better paying, regular, ongoing gig like this one before she would consider dropping this. Even then, I’m not sure, since there is a certain cachet a cartoonist gets with a syndicated strip that can excuse relatively low pay.
You are right about the stunted heights of the kids! They look like first graders, not middle schoolers! I noticed that their heights do not seem to be a problem in panel 1. Today’s strip is like the old puzzle “Find the mistakes in this picture!”
LikeLike
I’m not sure how much money a syndicated cartoonist earns. I’ve seen a few quit their strips for the greener pastures of children’s books or greeting cards. I’ve read articles on the Daily Cartoonist where a cartoonist says they’re discontinuing a strip because it’s no longer “economically feasible.” A GoComics cartoonist told me in the comment section of his strip that most cartoonists have more than one job. The cartoonists who have it made are the ones in the Gannett 34 newspaper deal.
LikeLike
Yep, that is all true, Be Ware. I probably overstated the point. I only meat to posit that having a strip syndicated is a trophy of accomplishment for a cartoonist. But rarely is it a gold mine. No doubt, there is luck, lots of good marketing, and being in the right place, etc. One rare example is Jim Davis (“Garfield”). I do believe that, if Rivera did get a good enough paycheck, she would be able to devote the proper time to this strip to make it a much more visually enjoyable product to read. “Mark Trail” apparently paid well enough in the day for Jack Elrod to support a staff. And with our greater concern for conservation, the environment, and climate, I’m surprised that there are not more nature-adventure strips. And I’m surprised that the syndicate did not treat “Mark Trail” with more seriousness and with a stronger sense of commercial potential.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re right. “Nationally Syndicated Cartoonist” would be an impressive thing to list on one’s résumé, regardless of pay.
Newspapers seem to be dropping the adventure/soap opera strips from their print comics pages. I examined the comics page of our local paper the other day. The comics page had no adventure/soap opera strips whatsoever. The number of active adventure comics on the Comics Kingdom is dwindling as well.
I guess we’ll never see “Mark Trail: The Movie.”
A friend, on another blog I frequent, suggested/joked Jules Rivera would have been a good replacement artist for Funky Winkerbean. Tom Batiuk said he had to retire FW because he couldn’t find an illustrator after Chuck Ayers retired. I’ll always wonder how hard Tom looked.
LikeLike