Okay, two birds with one stone, and all that. The boys get to play on a Slip ‘n Slide (not recommended for adults!), and Mark does some preliminary data gathering about the contaminated lake.

Rivera’s habit of showing animals squawking, gaping, and staring in our direction continues, unabated. As noted previously, it’s overdone, even if it is meant as parody of the pre-Rivera tradition for depicting wildlife trapesing through the panels.

Finally, I wonder why the sky is a pale orange. You, too, right? Or maybe not. Was it just a choice of the colorist or does it actually play into the story? An orange sky can signify different things:  A sunset, a nearby forest fire, the prelude of an oncoming storm, or even a sky filled with dust and pollutants. However, nobody in the strip seems worried by it, so it’s more than likely just a curious color choice.