Well, it looks like Mark really is going with Option #3 as I laid out on Sunday (a choice also recommended by commenter Doghouse Reilly). Really, though, this is like those second rate action movies that show up all too often in our streaming feeds, where everybody is suddenly a martial arts fighter. Mark isn’t bothered by any  of that, of course. He’s probably also never eaten anything more “Asian” than chow mein.

The point here is not whether Mark is playing fast-and-loose with the Woodsman Olympics by going after its host; it’s that Jules Rivera seems to be offering up this lazy plot twist as if it is some kind of cultural satire. Well, maybe it is. Or maybe it’s a double-twist surprise:  In spite of Mark’s eye-staring battle in panel 4, the two security goons could suddenly start laughing and admit they were just play-acting for effect. Now, that would be a good joke.

Nevertheless, Mark hasn’t had much opportunity to exercise his two friends, so perhaps we’ll get to see a fight after all. And this could help Mark warm up for today’s Woodsman Olympic events. I wonder if Cliff will sit this fight out, like he did when Mark faced down the Grungey Boys on his own.

Art Dept. Sure, we know that Rivera is not trying to be “naturalistic” in the manner of Ed Dodd; and that her work is deliberately stylized and sometimes outrageous, like her stories. So, in panel 1 Cliff and Mark display indifferent, putty-like faces with ink drops for eyes. Is this to express shock or fear? Or just Rivera’s haste? OTOH, Mark’s face in panel 2 displays an attention to detail and personality, kind of like a young Bruce Campbell. But it is marred by an awkward beard design. You all know how much I dislike the technique Rivera uses to indicate Mark’s permanent 5 o’clock shadow. I much preferred her original stippling technique. But time is money, and I don’t think she gets enough moolah from her syndicate to warrant the extra time. So, let’s just get rid of the beard, Jules!!