I’m showing my age or knowledge of old trivia, but back in the 1950s there was a TV show called “The Life of Riley”, in which the main character, a beleaguered husband of course, gets into constant troubles and bemoans his fate with the catch-phrase I borrowed.

And I’m doing some moaning after seeing today’s effort. Frankly, I have almost given up trying to figure out what Jules Rivera is after. Is she deliberately making all of the women petrified numbskulls who hunt in a “hot zone” with their rifles slung, panic at first blush, and can’t even shoot!? Hogs are not that big, so how does an aimed shot go up in a tree? Did Tess trip on that same movie prop tree branch when she was firing?

Most long-term readers know that I always try to give Rivera the benefit of a doubt and play even-handed, even complimenting and promoting her innovations and creativity when I see it. But, hoo-boy, this is pretty sad stuff today, on virtually every front.

1. Timing. Is this all happening in some kind of slo-mo world where time is elastic and everybody has enough opportunity to have their say, get into position, and act, all the while the hog is chasing down Shania?!
2. Action. So Mark has time to jump in a tree to rescue Shania? Why not just yell to Shania “CLIMB THE TREE!” Perhaps Mark is right in thinking Shania is too clumsy and dim-witted to do that on her own, given what started this fiasco. And I reckon this is Rivera’s solution to make sure that Mark is, indeed, the “hero” saving the incompetent trio of females.
3. Art. Ah, the drawing. Well, we’ve seen worse, but that doesn’t say much. In Panel 1, why are the two standing splay-footed? That’s some rough drawing. I couldn’t figure out what the clunky gray object is between Reba and Mark, but finally realized it is the camera’s telephoto lens. Why is the hog in panel 3 just staring instead of charging? Perhaps staging the panels with a series of closeups helps inject a sense of panic and distress, including the panel 4 split-panel. I see that Rivera did, in fact, use a variation of the reverse arrangement I posited yesterday, of focusing on Shania’s expression facing the hog, which is placed in the foreground. More or less.
4. Sound. What the hell does B-KAM! mean?! The usual sound effect of a gun or rifle (or even shotgun) is BLAM! or KABLAM! or something like that. I even wasted a minute or two online, looking to see if the term might be some kind of cultural joke.

So, my overall reaction (suitable for print) can be summed up as “What a revoltin’ development this is!”