Rather than show Ranger Shaw approaching the boys and telling them what has to be done, Jules Rivera focuses on the boys, as they figure out what is going on and what they need to do. So the week ends with a call to action and contrition.

The boys are acting true to form as we suspected. Are Ian and Ernie really just now realizing that everything that has happened was because they did not stick up for Rusty in the first place? Robbie looks like he is turning out to be a real false friend, not just a sarcastic jerk. Sure, Robbie has always been jealous of Rusty, maybe because he doesn’t think his dad measures up to Rusty’s dad. Or maybe he’s just becoming a bigger jerk and even more jealous.

I’m also a bit surprised that Ian and Ernie didn’t bother to call Robbie out on his declaration of innocence. They got the same photo on their phones as Robbie did. So it will be interesting to see how Robbie’s dad handles the situation.

You know, I can almost see Robbie trying to push his own version of the situation: “Dad, I was secretly following Rusty on his nature hike, to practice my scout tracking skills, you know! While Rusty was taking photos of the bald eagle, I took photos of the eagle, too! So I didn’t steal his stupid picture. Mine was better, anyway!”

But I reckon we’ll have to wait a few weeks to find out, as this week’s chapter has come to a close. We’ll almost certainly cut back to Florida on Monday for Mark’s ongoing troubles with Happy and Gail, the catfishing owner of the  Glamor Gorilla sanctuary.

This is all very nice, I’m sure. Cherry rose above the occasion to give Ranger Shaw an out and save face. Well, I admit that I was expecting—even hoping for—a bit of fire and brimstone from Cherry. She certainly looked like she was ready to dish it out a few days ago. Too bad Rusty wasn’t here to provide his own opinion on this arrangement, but Cherry is his mom, after all, and he can always say “No way!”

Otherwise, it looks like this story is headed for the finish line, as soon as the apology letter is delivered, read, and reacted to; and Rusty’s relationship with Rocky is finally resolved (with a bite?). Speaking of Rusty, are we going to cut back to him while on his current hike? Will he suddenly show up behind the guys with Rocky on his shoulder, foaming at the mouth?

Question: Who is that woman in panel 3? She’s dressed like Cherry and has an identical hairstyle. Other than that, I have no idea.

Okay, Cherry isn’t wielding the Hammer of Thor, but isn’t mincing words, either. And now that Cherry has supported Rusty’s accusation, will Ranger Shaw counter her claim? Or will Ranger Shaw bring the boys over and make them come clean? After all, it is quite easy for Rusty to show his picture with the earlier timestamp. The question I have is whether this gets cleared up on Saturday. That would be fast work and out of tempo with the pace of this storyline. Actually, I think that Rivera will instead cut to Rusty, hiking along a trail with his new companion, Rocky Raccoon.

As for the boys playing in the front yard, they are actually doing what I’d expect all curious boys to do: Stand around and try to eavesdrop on the adults!

Art Dept. As reader Daniel P. commented yesterday, that darned fence disappears and reappears. Frankly, I’m not sure where it even came from. I don’t recall ever seeing a fence around the property before. Has anybody else seen it, outside of this story?

I like the tight pacing and changing viewpoints of the panels today:  A two-panel panorama opens to include the boys in the background looking across, back to Cherry and Shaw in the foreground; then a tighter focus on just Shaw and Cherry as she makes the accusation; and finally a close-up of Cherry in panel 3 as she piles onto the accusation.

Finally, I should have said something, yesterday, about Wednesday’s panels. The second and third panels feature individual shots of Cherry and Ranger Shaw facing each other, like double portraits from the Renaissance. Even Cherry’s mental image of Rusty is sneering in Shaw’s direction! It’s another example of good pacing in the action, as the separate panels infer a slight time distinction to dramatize Ranger Shaw’s reaction and response to Cherry.

I’m not sure I disagree with Ranger/Scoutmaster Shaw’s request in panel 3, so hear me out. It seems normal enough to want to know what’s going on with Rusty, especially if the troop is genuinely concerned for him. However, his request in panel 1 seems a bit high-handed and monopolistic. Excluding Rusty’s mother from their talking to Rusty is a no-win position, which makes Cherry’s comment in panel 2 an unusually polite way to say “Not in this universe, Bubba!”

So, while I accept the validity of Shaw’s request in panel 3, he cut off his own legs in panel 1. I do not know why Jules Rivera chose to make him look antagonistic, when he should have looked humble or apologetic. I suppose it’s to play to the plot. Shaw has to look arrogant. It certainly undercuts his expressed motive, surprised that he could not assert a non-existent authority over Cherry. It’s little wonder that Cherry told the kids to go play somewhere else so she can have a “Come-to-Jesus” talk with their scoutmaster!

What do you think about today’s strip?

Well, we don’t know what day of the week this is supposed to be, but I’m guessing that school is out for the year. So, where is Rusty? Has Rusty finally crossed that special hormonal point in time where he is interested in hanging out with girls!? LOL! Who am I kidding?! Rusty’s on a hike, and I think it is even money he is with his adopted wild animal friend, Rocky Raccoon (not to be confused with the Beatles song on the White Album). But poor Robbie may have to be satisfied with picking on one of the other boys.

I’m curious how Scoutmaster Shaw and his scouts got to the Trail’s cabin. Did they walk all the way from their meeting place that Cherry had to drive to when she dropped Rusty off a few week ago? If so, good on them. Physical Fitness badges for everybody!

I’m also curious who the tall kid is in panel 1. Is he supposed to be Ian?  He must have had a sudden growth spurt. Or maybe not, as he seems to have shrunk back down in panel 4. Maybe this is an optical illusion of some kind, or maybe he’s standing on a log.

It’s nice to get away for a while from the sturm und drang of Happy’s romantic escapades and financial chaos and return to the more pastoral and peaceful activity of weeding the yard. Or “garden” as Jules Rivera calls it? Perhaps she is using the British definition of “yard.” Otherwise, it looks like a pretty small garden. But who am I to criticize? I don’t garden, but I have listened to “Gardener’s Question Time” on BBC4 radio.

Anyway, here we find Cherry, happily working alongside a rabbit decoy or cutout in the foreground, probably installed there to scare away … uh … well, maybe “scare away” is a bit optimistic. Perhaps it is just another parody by Rivera of the long-standing tradition of inserting animals into scenes. If so, this joke went stale over five years ago … Wait. Somebody just told me it’s supposed to be a real rabbit.

Rivera used the peacefulness of the first two panels to set the stage for the dramatic, voiceless stranger in panel 3, though perhaps that silhouetted figure is not quite as tall as today’s blog title suggests. This person sports a wide-brimmed hat as he stands arms akimbo, at some kind of entrance gate that we have never seen before. I tell you, Cherry is one busy gal!

Rivera refers to this mystery person as “another kind of species”, which makes no sense. First off, “kind” is not a scientific term within biological taxonomy (Yeah, I know she was just making a pun!) Second, the figure certainly doesn’t look like a different species of human, unless it is just a cardboard figure propped up at the entrance. Snarky comments aside, I think we can all figure out who this is, right!? And no, it is not The Shadow. Too bad Rusty isn’t around.