Lots of narration lately. Wait. If it is the crack of dawn for Mark, it has to be about 3 AM for Rob. But if it is dawn for Rob (the dawn patrol, yes?) it has to be at least 8 AM for Mark. That should be a bit late for a woodsman like Mark to still be sleeping.

Anyway, while Rob talks on his humanoid telephone, Mark obligingly continues to listen. Why?

Rob appears to believe if hardcase Diana Daggers could get suckered into the NFT scam, so can Mark. Scamming seems to be Cricket Bro’s go-to technique.

Mark must have one heck of a hangover to look as bad as he does. Well, one thing I think is pretty interesting: and that is that Rivera does not seem to be content with limiting herself to a strictly linear storytelling technique. Instead, she seems to be interested in weaving various and ongoing storylines all together, kind of like how things work in real life. Or soap operas.

So once again, Cricket Bro gets involved in Mark’s life. Both he and professor Sharp have already made brief appearances during the current zebra muscle story, but they we’re linked more to Diana then to Mark. We don’t know if they are connected in some way with the zebra mussels, but there seems to be no connection so far. So, yes what is this great idea? And given their past relationship, why would Cricket Bro want to pass on anything positive to Mark and why would Mark believe anything Cricket Bro has to say?

Oh, do we really wanna go there? I’m sure Jules had fun with today’s strip. By the way, some of you will rejoice, because writing on a smartphone really sucks! So there won’t be much here.

Considering how Mark and Rob parted in Palm Springs, I suppose we should be surprised at Rob’s animated greeting. Well, I am as unsure as Mark must be. The obvious answer would be he is laying some kind of elaborate trap for Mark.

On the other hand, Professor Sharp walked off with Mark’s phone the first time they met.

I’m surprised Mark didn’t change his number! This is what Mark gets for listening to Rusty and submitting the video that started this whole thing.

Nice snark, Diana! Okay, maybe Mark has been smoking a little too much nature. What is his plan? Does he get everybody to dress up like poinsettia sharks and swim around to scare off the cargo ships? Do they dress up like old-school pirates and threaten to hijack the next ship that comes through? Cargo ships do not ply rivers for fun, but for business with inland ports that are not usually approachable from other waterways. Thus, does Mark want to kill off the zebra mussels or the shipping company?

Still, I’m intrigued. Remember, the earlier actions of the Duck Duck Goose company suggest that they have something else (likely illegal) they are more concerned about than zebra mussels. Yet, Mark and Diana are not aware of that fact. In reality, the shipping company would have already filed injunctions against Mark and the magazine to stop this investigation. So, any ideas what Mark has in mind? Submit your thoughts in the comments section and we’ll see who is closest.

Now, now, Mark. It’s late. Just have a glass of warm milk and go to sleep. If you start getting too cranky at this time of night, you might accidentally activate Big Mouth Bill-E Bass on the wall, behind Cliff. You know what that means:  The fish will swing its head back-and-forth as if it had a real neck and sing terrible novelty songs for 30 minutes. Then everybody in the lodge will wake up and get pissed at you. You’ll wind up outside, preaching to that young buck.

Really, Mark, use some imagination. Until the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453, the Byzantine capital city kept a large chain across the Golden Horn to prevent foreign ships from sailing up-river to attack the city. This could give the De-Bait Team something useful to do again:  not to protect America so much as to protect Lost Forest! You might even charge tolls for big ships to enter the waterways.

So, Mark, what if that ship did not intend to be there in the first place? What if it was just a navigational error? Did you even bother to ask them?

Well, I reckon Cliff’s team has a purpose after all:  customer service and security. But poor, poor Mark. He seems to believe that the scope of the zebra mussel problem is one ship’s hull, or maybe zebra mussels around Lost Forest. Whatever. Rivera is not ignorant, so this might be another setup of Mark.

I like the artwork today. The back view of Mark looking over his shoulder in panel 3 is a well-drawn complex pose. The buddy+buddy compo in panel 1 is a bit of something else.

Diana might be onto something. I think I can safely state that Rivera is clearly tweaking the nose of Trailheads with this sexually ambiguous camp, reminiscent of the 1960s Batman TV show or the later SNL animated parody. I wonder if this is just a one-off, so to speak.

Of course, we used to poke fun at Mark’s real or assumed disdain at every babe who threw herself at him (and there were plenty), other than Cherry. And even that sometimes seemed reserved. Rivera has jettisoned most of that male fantasy baggage, and that’s okay. But we never really questioned Mark’s male bona fides, just his testosterone level. Until now.

[edited] Of course they are safe. That insurance company deer out front protects them. Well, at last the Trails acknowledged their son! That’s some progress, at least. Did everybody really contribute to the zebra mussel article? In what capacity? I don’t recall any marine biologists in this group, but I bet the details of whatever took place inside the lodge wind up recorded on sheets of foolscap stored away in a locked dispatch box in Charring Cross Station.

The prose and pacing in today’s strip remind me of a typical epilogue segment in old-school TV adventure programs, wrapping up with small talk, warnings, and farewells.  So, I’m wondering if Mark’s storyline is also going to be another rush-to-the-finish line conclusion. Yet there are still several balls in the air. How will Rivera juggle them?

1. The status of the company “goons.”
2. The secret business of Duck Duck Goose that its boss is desperate to protect.
3. The ongoing scams of the comedy team, Cricket Bro and Professor Bee Sharp.
4. The actual findings of Diana and Mark’s investigation.
5. The fate of Diana Daggers, whose profile seems to be diminishing.

Okay, Mark had a day to get back to the hideout with Diana and Cliff after helping wrap up Cherry’s bee caper, for which we are still hoping to see more details. Let’s check in with the action…

How cozy! It seems Mark has brought Cherry into his adventure, presumably under the umbrella of collateral safety. But what about Cherry’s dad and what’s-his-face, their kid? Well, if Mark and Cherry can’t bother to worry, presumably the bad guys will ignore them, as well.

I have to say that Rivera drew a nice welcoming view of the fishing lodge. Ah, I see Diana poking her head above Cliff’s dialog balloon in the last panel. I wonder if she is miffed that Cliff referred to the investigation as “Mark’s”, rather than “Mark’s and Diana’s”. But Cliff thinks they’re ready to finish the article? They only took a few photos! Where is the research? The interviews? Alas, it isn’t just newspapers cutting out investigative reporting. You know things are bad when even comic strip characters have cutbacks. No wonder we didn’t get to see the bee rescue: Too expensive to stage!

That’s one high-jumping frog we see there. “Boing!” indeed. As the crew escape in Mark’s car, what we don’t see here is the conclusion to the B&B invasion. I had to flip back to see if I missed a day…Nope! I suppose that’s one way to keep the story moving along. Just omit the interesting bits.

We are forced to presume the two heavies were knocked cold. But then why the hasty exit? They should have had sufficient time to tie them up, grab their IDs, or even call the cops. Instead, it’s “Brave Sir Robin” time, as they run away. Sorry Diana, but running away won’t get you any answers. And speaking of cars, where is the vehicle those two dudes had to have arrived in?  Mark and crew hopefully slashed their tires to prevent a car chase. I’m guessing there are not too many parking lots in Lost Forest where they can hide out.

On the artistic front, the first panel vaguely reminds me of Allen’s work. Even the car has that “clip-art” feel to it that was common with the vehicles Allen included.

After three days of watching Boffo hit Mark, it’s nice to finally see the favor returned. Well, we take our FOJs where we find them. If we can believe our eyes and Rivera’s drawing, a reversal of fortune should result in these two corporate yokels being the ones tied to chairs and getting interrogated. Best leave that to Diana.

But Diana was a bit late getting out the warning and employing her defensive move. She should have had “Heavy-Duty” on her radar the moment he and Boffo barged in. At least the shovel hit doesn’t display a “HIT!” sound effect as it impacts the parietal (or maybe occipital) bone. A good thunk on the back of the noggin should put that dude on the floor for a while.

Now, is Cliff hunting up some rope or hiding and hoping that these two dudes don’t recognize him? I’m still skeptical about his involvement and motivation.

(edited) You know, if somebody talks about doing something, chances are that the something won’t get done. I’ve got a hunch that this pointless interlude—which includes explaining the origin of the nickname “BOFFO” which has little or nothing to do with hitting somebody—is a preamble to Diana taking charge while Mark swings his fists in mock anger. The last time Mark exercised his hands it was an exercise in futility. Well, let’s hope that I’m wrong about this, but with that stereotypical guy-brag in panel 4, it is hard not to believe Jules Rivera is setting up Mark to take a dive once again.

And this place is supposed to be Diana’s room? I’m sorry, but they are in the front room of a “bed & breakfast” house, which I presume includes multiple private rooms for boarders, including the owner. Of course, all those people are conveniently someplace else for the day. It simplifies the logistics of the story, of course, so that’s okay. Now, why did Mark open that door?

While I like the way Rivera uses the door to define the two spaces in panel 1, and though I wonder if Rivera is being ironic or just hyperbolic in that first message box, I do have to laugh at the silliness of panel 4. Still, faced with this exciting exchange (and you can decide if I’m being ironic or hyperbolic), the only thing I really want to know is “Are we finally going to see Mark’s Fists of Justice live up to their name?”

So, what is this sense of mortal fear our brave trio seems to be experiencing?  Mark thinks going up against a cargo ship’s defenses designed to repel a gang of armed pirates is somehow easier than dealing with two middle-aged dudes who like to knock loudly and yell.  Does he think these guys came armed with heavy weapons? Perhaps Mark had nightmares of the now-missing “Mommy Trail” knocking on his bedroom door in the middle of the night, only to find nobody there.

Okay, I’m with those who think it’s time for Mark to quit acting like the too-sensitive lead character in a Hollywood Rom-Com and start taking charge of the situation. The Monty Python song “Brave Sir Robin” comes to mind. Diana never explained why she stole Cherry’s shovel, so she clearly cannot be trusted. Wait… Isn’t anybody over there capturing this drama on video for their big article, or at least for a potential lawsuit? WHERE IS A TEENAGER WITH A PHONE WHEN YOU NEED ONE?

Gosh, Mark. Maybe you guys should climb out of a window and just sneak away. I suppose some heavy door knocking can be quite disturbing and intimidating . . . if it was going on at 2 AM while you were sleeping, that is! Instead, Mark and his cohorts seem unsure of how to respond. Well, Diana does at least have some kind of an idea, which Mark is keen to squelch with yet another lame pun. Cliff’s silence and doubtful expressions suggests that his military experience did not include any time in special forces.

And when did Mark figure out who these cats were, anyway? They didn’t exactly identify themselves or why they are there. As far as Mark knows, they could have been new reporters sent by the magazine to replace him and Diane for their lack of progress and dubious conduct. However, I suppose one must grant Mark some degree of intelligence—even if he rarely shows it—and allow him to deduce the intentions of people who hammer on doors and say they only want to “talk”.  We’ve all seen plenty of crime shows and know how that kind of talk usually plays out. Those guys haven’t even bothered to identify themselves. But this is what we should expect after schools quit teaching social etiquette.

Okay, there should be no need to point out the obvious, but why pass up an easy lob? Consider silly details, such as “farmer” enforcers; the shovel that Diana just admitted to conveniently stealing (for no apparent reason); Mark’s punch-drunk expression in panel 1, and “gasping”, as if he was a villain surprised by a police raid; and there is that lame-o pun in panel 4. As I noted from the start, I think some of this over-the-top madness comes from Rivera’s appreciation for the bizarre stories and characters of Florida crime and humor writers.

But if you want to ignore the literary references, just, ignore all of that goofiness and focus instead on story development.

Like, why should they even bother letting these people in, especially as there seems to be only two of them. Not bad odds, if it came to a fight. Mark has his alleged “fists of justice” (it’s been a year and we still have not really seen them). Diana has her purloined shovel. And Cliff has his…uh…well, since he is a fisherman, he can lure the two heavies in the wrong direction to help Mark and Diana gain more advantage.

Or they can just call the police and wait. Still, I imagine how surprised these intrepid investigators will be if and when they find out the actual reason why Duck Duck Goose is taking such drastic measures.

No, this isn’t about misspelling the name of the Rubbles’ son on The Flintstones. But my goodness, does Diana think they’re exposing Iran-Contra or the Pentagon Papers? All they did was take pictures of zebra mussels on a ship’s hull. As a regular critic on CK noted yesterday, shouldn’t these “journalists” be interviewing the Duck Duck Goose owners to get their side of the story? Isn’t that part of what any good, objective journalist would do? Of course!

Instead, we see partisan “advocacy journalism” in progress. I would expect more from Mark. Then again, we’ve never seen any of Mark Trail’s articles, so this could be his standard M.O.

Finally, the hired thugs from Duck Duck Goose arrived, huffing and puffing and banging down the door, ready to do…what? And how did they locate Mark, Diana, and Cliff in the first place?  Usually, this requires help from an informer. Hmmmm . . . .

But at least, a good drawing of Mark in panel 3!

I’m not sure if observing only one ship is enough to make a general statement about an entire fleet. Anyway, at least one turkey is going to be able to look back on this Thanksgiving Day. But then, we have been brought up over the decades to eat domesticated, factory-enhanced turkeys; not the wild bunch. I suppose that is necessary to meet demand. Eating a couple hundred million wild turkeys every year would soon see them only on labels of cheap booze.

So, what else do we see here? Mark is primping his hair as he relishes his anonymity. As Rivera implies in her second message box, she is deliberately making Mark once again a victim of his own pride. I don’t know if that means a military-style assault on the house or a subpoena from a federal court to cease and desist. Yet, I still think the jury is out on Cliff’s true role.

As I wrote before, based on some comments, I’m trying to write more concisely. I’ve edited out about 30% of my post, which means my text just might c

As we return to the main story, we find that Mark has left Cherry to her duties and gone back to his own work. Looks like they have set up shop in Diana’s B&B. Given this is Thanksgiving week, I wonder how many Turkeys Rivera will manage to stuff into the strips this week.

Diana’s assessment of Mark’s underwater photography brings up a fair point:  Have we, in fact, ever seen Mark engaged in underwater photography?  As far as I can recollect, we have rarely seen Mark take photos of anything, much less underwater subjects. Correct me if I am wrong, folks!

But is Diana upset about the quality of the photography or the fact that Mark shot photos of barnacles, not zebra mussels? Remember, Diana:  Mark was working under water, under duress, and with a good amount of stress; hardly the conditions for excellent photography. Anyway, we’ll probably find out what she means tomorrow.