The outside view in Friday’s strip certainly didn’t look like the kind of rainfall that would produce today’s flash flood. But I suppose the geography of the immediate area could be something like a western arroyo that quickly accumulates and focuses water, sending it along its path like a runaway train. Anybody remember that pre-Rivera story involving Mark and Doc Davis that featured a near drowning in an arroyo from a flash flood?

This would have been the perfect time for Range Shaw’s rescue team to be on hand to help, but they seem to have disappeared. It begs the question of why they were depicted in the first place if they could not be around for their moment of glory. Did Jules Rivera forget about them or did she suddenly decide they were an unnecessary detail? Perhaps they are the mysterious force holding the recue lines that simply disappear out of the mouth of the cave. In any case, the pathetic Cricket Bro seems to have bungled his own rescue and now barely hangs on to what is apparently a stalagmite or cave column. What will happen next? It is certainly a mystery, though I’m pretty sure what the opinion would be for the majority of readers.

Art Dept. Even artists have good days and bad days. When I look at yesterday’s and today’s panels and compare them to the panels earlier this week, I wonder if this is the same person doing the drawing. Say what you will about Rivera, she usually has a basic understanding of human anatomy. I can’t—I won’t—claim that for the person who drew today’s panels. And it’s also a shame, as the two-panel spread provided enough room to build a dramatic scene of danger and resistance. But while panel 2 certainly suggests drama and danger, the visual execution undermines it.

I reckon that Jules Rivera has decided that Diana Daggers’ role in this story is to be the Group Nag. However, it would be nice if Diana conjugated her verbs more accurately: “The rains are coming!” Coming!? Maybe it’s the dark shades she constantly wears.

However, it has come to pass that rain is, indeed, falling, and water is moving into the cave; where it can now flow. But chronological issues still complicate the storyline.

Yesterday, the rescuers supposedly freed Cricket Bro, just in time! But today, Mark is still hammering and chiseling away as Cricket Bro still looks to be trapped! On the other hand, it appears that the rest of the crowd decided that exiting the cave is the better part of survival, as they are not to be seen.

Maybe “I told you so!” (panel 4) is the moral of this story, a consequence of disregarding warnings and expertise in favor of self-adulation and greed. In that sense, this story is like the old medieval morality plays in Europe that popped up around town to instruct and warn people.

But when I did start to play, they ran for the exits! And that’s another reason why I’m writing this blog instead of making albums and going on tour. It’s a big change, of course. But that’s the story of my life: drastic changes of direction instead of a well-planned continuity of purpose.

Thus we arrive at a definition of Continuity (excerpted from the online Collins Dictionary)

• A continuous flow, series, or succession; unbroken, coherent whole
• The practice of creating and maintaining a smooth and continuous plan or record of the physical details of a film, TV program, etc.
• The script or story of a comic strip

Based on these definitions, Mark Trail’s current story merits a basic “C”. Sure, the bare bones of the story remain intact. But details wander or get mangled. Yesterday, Mark was trying to push tools into Cricket Bro’s hands to extricate himself. Today, it is Mark that is doing the work. And who knows where Ranger Shaw schlepped off to? Looks like Jules Rivera found something for Diane Daggers to do:  She is now the team’s meteorologist!

On the other hand, I’m afraid that panel 3 reduces the story’s intrinsic value to a solid, if embarrassing D. It’s one thing to create a pun based on actual conditions or a situation in the current strip. But producing a bear ex machina, simply to fashion a terrible pun is lazy and might incur some kind of Comic Strip Code of PUNishment. Also, I can’t say much for the bear’s depiction. I really first thought it was some kind of woodchuck!

If these strips were not produced weeks in advance, I’d almost swear Jules Rivera read my post yesterday and decided she had to give Diana Daggers a bit more panel time. Or, you can call me prescient.

How can anybody look at the obsequiousness of Mark “Spiderman” Trail on his knees, practically begging Cricket Bro to cut himself out of the hole, and not be embarrassed!? Remember, it wasn’t long ago that Mark was adamant that Cricket Bro not try to extricate himself because of the instability of the limestone base! Hoo boy, I can’t fault Cricket Bro’s ranting at this point. Is Rivera implying that all “experts” are frauds and fools? Or just Mark?

The logical flaws in this sequence are more fragile than the cave floor. Where are the restraints to hold Cricket Bro from falling through? Why isn’t Mark doing the work, now that he has the tools? Why did Ranger Shaw stop working? Where are the other helpers who came with Ranger Shaw?

Well, finally, Diana Daggers shows up (once again) to exclaim “I told you so!” This is a wasted use of the character, which seems to almost always be the case. Daggers may as well go find work in another adventure strip that appreciates her potential. On the other hand, since her role has mostly been limited to being “assistant of X”, why not milk it for all it’s worth and make Diana an employee of Bill Ellis’ corporation, where she works alongside Mark on his assignments? Kind of like the 1960s The Avengers. She could be the “muscle” and data research specialist of the team.

So much for continuity with yesterday’s strip. We’re not going to really discover what Ranger Shaw (in disguise as a “professional” cave rescue team member) meant yesterday when he berated Mark with his “No, not like that!” admonition. Perhaps Jules Rivera felt inspired by a comedy bit she heard and was so taken by it that she couldn’t help from inserting today’s joke strip into the storyline. Or maybe she just needed to pad out the week.

The somewhat hard edge Rivera initially gave to this adventure strip when she took over some six years ago morphed into the parodic dramedy format that it currently still presents. It is a waste of time to ponder such dialog as Mark asking Jadsen to help, while getting a hammer and chisel, apparently for Cricket Bro to help cut himself free. But I still wasted time typing that statement. I mean, if a hammer and chisel is needed, why isn’t Mark going to do it? He’s supposed to be qualified, right?! And what about Ranger Shaw’s two assistants? They are less helpful than Jadsen, who at least has been recording this sorry affair.

And still, I ask: Where the hell did Diana Daggers go?

There seem to be some people missing in action; Diana Daggers being one. We can see Jadsen in the background in panel 1 recording video, along with the purple people who are supposedly there to help Range Shaw rescue Cricket Bro. Behind Jadsen and the purple people appears to be a lake; something that has not been depicted in this location previously. Perhaps the angle was wrong or something.

Why is Ranger Shaw taking such a long time to carve out the rock around the stuck Cricket Bro? Limestone is not a hard rock to cut. Maybe it has to do with the fact that the limestone is in multiple layers and liable to fracture and make things worse. On the other hand, I’ll repeat that a block and tackle or plain everyday rescue rope could have been used to pull Cricket Bro out, towards the entrance. I’m also surprised that Jules Rivera didn’t have Ranger Shaw and his helpers putting ropes around Cricket Bro to ensure that he doesn’t accidentally fall through if the floor opens up on him. I’m even surprised Mark didn’t come up with that idea.

For some reason, Ranger Shaw is hot to contradict Mark (panel 3), or maybe just stop his line of discussion for some reason that I expect we’ll learn about tomorrow. Mark may as well go home, since the cave rescue team is on the job and his weight only adds to the danger of another floor collapse. At the very least, he and Jadsen should be told to move up to the entrance, along with the others.

I wonder where Diana Daggers has gotten to? All I see are more purple people showing up. Once again, she is stuck playing a bit role. That’s a shame, as the character had lots of potential.

Jadsen’s excuse of linguistic ignorance is not surprising, but lacks veracity, since Diana did warn the two brothers about the danger. Meanwhile, intrepid cartoonist Jules Rivera continues to make this cave rescue into another farce instead of a serious misadventure.

Then again, anything involving Ranger Shaw is, itself, a bad sign. I’m not sure if Rivera sees Shaw that way, but all of his dealings in this strip seem to have been underhanded, corrupt, or just incompetent. Thus, it is possible that Ranger Shaw’s efforts may actually make things worse! That could add another few weeks to the story.

As for Rivera’s comment in panel 2, score another put-down of her bread-and-butter.

And there we are: the sometimes arrogant, overconfident Mark Trail who thought watching YouTube videos of cave disasters would help prepare him for his secondary job of “Cave Rescue Man” at least has enough integrity to realize he is in over his head. Instead of bluffing through it, he decided maybe the professionals would be the better call. I’m guessing this retreat by Mark won’t improve Diana Daggers’s reputation with Cricket Bro. Perhaps Mark should spend more time watching videos on how to be a better nature journalist and photographer.

Still, aren’t there enough tools on hand? They have ropes to tie around Cricket Bro to prevent him from falling farther down. Then it would be a matter of chipping around his torso a bit to pull him out. But did Mark bring a shovel or pickaxe as I had earlier hoped? No? Oh, Mark, you didn’t watch enough videos, I reckon.

I think today’s installment is something of a disconnect: The dialog that Mark delivers is even-toned and mostly unemotional. But it is in direct contrast to the panicked expressions I see on his face. In fact, panel 4 shows us a Mark Trail that is on the verge of flipping out, which is not the kind of reaction you want to present to people expecting you to help them.

This contrast just seems strange to me. One theory may be that Mark noticed the cave crisis is being recorded, so he’s hamming it up, just like the people he sees on Reality TV shows. Or maybe the comics syndicate didn’t like the dialog that Jules Rivera had originally added, so they toned it down for family consumption.

Well, it looks like Jadsen (Crypto Bro) is still recording the incident, after all (panel 3). Perhaps Jules Rivera doesn’t want to make him to appear as too much of a doofus.

But in a holdover from the prior Trailverse, Captain Obvious informs everybody what everybody already knows, unless Mark is simply verbally expressing his own realization of what happened: That Cricket Bro’s butt-cheeks are too big to pull him out of the hole he has gotten himself stuck into.

This doesn’t seem like the kind of cave rescue Mark has been watching and pining for. It’s really more of a plumbing problem. Hopefully, Mark has a hammer, shovel, or small pickaxe on hand to enlarge and unclog the hole Cricket Bro is stuck in. But will this lead to a bigger problem, such as Cricket Bro falling through, or maybe an unseen water source suddenly filling the cave? Otherwise, this could be a really short story.  I’m guessing something is going to happen to complicate the situation.

What a drag! Not only did Mark not pass through that wonderful oculus we saw yesterday, but Jules Rivera simply returned to using her standard “portrait tondo” for indirectly displaying the person speaking.

Shockingly, Mark is being especially reckless with his equipment, like an ignorant parent who puts a young child in the front seat. Not only is the backpack unzipped to expose its contents, but it is not even secured to the seat by a seat belt. It belongs in the trunk. Any hard turn, emergency stop, or even a big bump can send that equipment falling or bouncing around the front seat area. Some of that stuff could even interfere with Mark’s ability to safely operate his car. What an amateur!

And just look at this dude!(panel 3) Is he on Speed or Meth!? Egads! Reckless with equipment and sporting a maniacal expression that would scare a drunk driver off the road. All the while, he dispenses contradictory puns, to boot. All bad news. I wouldn’t let Mark come within a hundred yards of me. “Just keep driving, Mark. Maybe the State Police will pull you over, take one look, and lock you up.” So I question why Rivera chooses to make Mark act and look like this. If it isn’t drugs, is he channeling Jim Carey!?

Still, I wonder if Mark took the trouble to call on Ranger Shaw for backup or even just to update him on the situation?

Art Dept. Speaking of the interactive oculus portal, I think this strip would increase in popularity with a bit more of that weirdness. In the early days of animation, the early cartoons of Felix the Cat were inventive journeys into surrealistic fantasy, where any element on the screen, including exclamation points, could be grabbed by Felix and turned into whatever object was needed at the time. It was a dux ex machina strategy that made the animations more fun to watch. A bit of that could certainly improve this strip.

So the circle of cause and effect is complete, including the unusual oculus in panel 3, which is actually intriguing from a science-fiction angle. More on that, later.

But before all that, it’s good that this story is moving along at a rapid pace, since there isn’t really much depth or content at stake here. It’s a simple morality tale of what happens when somebody believes their actions don’t have the possibility of bad consequences. In this case, it is not simply disregarding posted safety warnings, but believing nature hold no dangers to those who choose to disregard them.

In the “old days”, natural disasters were usually credited to the capriciousness of deities by people who were trying to make sense of chaos. Or, in the case of this cave incident, Cricket Bro’s entrapment might have been seen as actions by trolls or demons pulling Cricket Bro down to the Underworld because he must have trespassed or transgressed some sacred or mystical law. Regardless of our scientific advances, people still do stupid things, and people still have unlucky accidents.

Art Dept. That oculus in panel 3 linking Mark and Cherry to what’s going on in the cave is something of a new element in this strip. Typically, we would see a kind of dialog balloon leading to the phone of the person talking:

But what we see in today’s strip is something more, something different. Something rather cool and provocative. First, the oculus (as I am calling it) is free-standing, without a visible connection to the phone. Second, Diana Daggers is holding onto the rim of the oculus, with her glove extending into Mark and Cherry’s space! Third, not only is Mark looking at the oculus instead of his phone, so is Cherry! It’s like a physical portal connecting one location with the other. One could imagine characters actually crossing between the two locations (I’m thinking Stargate SG-1).

I don’t know; I wonder if Jules Rivera has spent enough time and effort ensuring that this setup is as obvious and predictable as it can get. Well, as parody, I reckon this passes muster, if parody is the point.

But there must be other things Rivera could add … For example, Mark could go on “cave patrol” to be a visible resource and a “just in case” rescue resource as he moves around. Mark could also check in with Ranger Shaw and ask him if he’s noticed any special activity around the local caves. That might even give Shaw the motivation to do his job. I’m surprised that Mark hasn’t taken the trouble to install video cameras at local cave sights that he could monitor for any instances of trouble. Any of these could work to make him aware of what’s going on in Peligroso Cave. But as we know, Diana is going to call Mark, anyway. Now, wouldn’t it be interesting if Mark didn’t catch the call, because somebody was using a noisy vacuum cleaner!?

I may have to take Mark’s word about him being struck by lightning four times and surviving. I found nothing in my archives, nor in Mark Trail Confidential. Google AI has no information. If you know of any specific occurrences, post a comment.

Points to Diana for having enough sense to bring along some basic safety equipment. While the drawing in panel 2 doesn’t suggest a very long length of rope, I’ll give Jules Rivera a bit of artistic license in this case; within reason. But I’m surprised Diana expected to find places to attach a rope. So, how fragile are those stalagmites, anyway?

I do like the cutaway view of the cave in panel 3; it’s like watching an ant farm. But it is also a convenient technique for giving a panoramic view of the group’s progress.

Did anybody catch my literary pun in the today’s title? I don’t claim to be clever, but the phrase just popped out of my head, like Athena from the forehead of Zeus (ignore that allusion; it’s just my academic-era PTSD showing up again).