So, Mark finally comes around to thinking about actually investigating, as opposed to merely accusing!? As for “Pappy Happy”, there’s nothing new there: It seems like he’s always apologizing for being an easy mark. I have to say that he’s come a long way from the hard case he started out as back in 2020.
If you scan this strip from when Jules Rivera took over in October 2020, you’ll likely notice that most of the leading characters (Mark, Cherry, Happy) originally had an edge to them. They were focused and determined. Maybe not always right, but on track. Nowadays, they seem soft, or at least, unfocused.
I’m not talking about sensitivity or thoughtfulness. But Rivera has turned them into a bunch of sitcom goofballs, blundering their way through panel after panel. Sometimes (more often, if you like) Mark’s adventures have little point to them (like the recent AI Panel gig in New York). And when there is a point, it gets lost in distractions and silliness (like the current story). Was the point of this story about sticking pins in a couple of rich, self-important developers too dense or uncaring to worry about the environment? Was it about how Mark works to uncover the source of water pollution and obtain evidence needed to bring the perpetrators to justice? Or maybe it is about another attempt by Happy Trail to bond with Mark and his family.
Sure, it could be about all three, if deftly handled, but I can’t tell. Maybe it’s just me. Certainly, the story has focused more on sticking pins and managing family affairs. So maybe that’s it: No investigating. I’m frustrated that Rivera seems to have set Mark up as compulsive and pre-judgmental. The closing panel today shows Mark mouthing a platitude about his belief in the importance of investigative journalism. It comes with a knowing wink to his readers, as if it is an admission that we are all in on the joke. Well, let’s take Mark at his word for now. This was just the prolog, and now Mark (and Happy) will get down to the serious job of verifying the source of the water pollution.
