Through a series of improbable connections (i.e. a horse head mask and some “pink crystals” found by chance at an abandoned campsite) Rusty Holmes … er, … Rusty Trail concludes they were left behind by a former TV star-turned-new-age-survivalist. Rusty may not have the right of it, but he knows how to uncover obscure information.
Still, Mark’s unfounded suspicion of a person in distress seems to be getting more unintended support from Rusty’s research. Will Mark go hunting the next day, only to find a lost, emaciated camper reduced to drinking his own urine because he couldn’t follow a path that Mark and the boys had clearly used?
Art Dept: While we suffer more puns, it’s been clear for some time that depictions of Mark and other people seen from a distance (e.g., panel 3) do not come across well, as if a digital image has been pixilated through reduction.
I would hope that even a youngster like Rusty would know that a mask left in the woods for about 20 years would not be in very good condition. Okay, so it must have been recently left. The pink crystals seem to tie in to Rusty’s Tadd Crass hypothesis, aided by Cherry’s good memory of commercials.
But I have to admit that I have not figured out how Mark connects all of this to the notion of an injured camper. Would the suspicious light then have been some kind of rescue signal? Or maybe some aliens actually did come down during the night (as they always seem to do), kidnapped the camping Tadd Crass (as they always seem to do), and are now probing him and dissecting him for evil reasons (as they also seem to want to do). The alien ship could also have made that curious incision around the campfire.
Or maybe it was just Doc Davis, apparently a fan of that old show, who put all this together to prank his own family for leaving him out of all of the get-togethers.
Rivera does at least try to create a sense of domesticity for Mark, something that we would see to an extent in pre-Rivera Mark Trail, as well. James Allen devoted at least three weeks of strips of Mark being at home and chatting with Cherry about online comics, reader comments, and his dangerous job, before jetting off to Katmandu to help look for the yeti (August-September 2019). With Rivera, Mark’s stays at home tend to be innocuous, self-conscious, and banal (like much of our own lives). Yet . . .
I don’t wish to flog a dead horse head, but do we take it literally that Rusty believes the mask he found is the actual 20-year-old mask from a TV show? I could not recall any “prank” show involving a horse-headed host that used to be on TV. But this sounds like a specific reference. Any ideas, people?
Finally, was Rusty’s alien invasion adventure designed solely to set up today’s pointless 3-panel “joke”? I sure hope not. As storylines go, this is pretty thin soup.
You’d think Mark and Rusty had been away for two weeks, the way they carry on. For goodness sakes, they only spent the day walking through Lost Forest! Now, they’re home. Calling it a “reunion” seems a might inflated. As for the ongoing status of Cherry’s dad, Doc Davis: Maybe he is still at his clinic, working on Sassy’s rash (since she isn’t around here, either).
But tomorrow we might see if Mark is too full of himself (as is usual) to ask Cherry how her day was! That would be a nice segue to combine the stories, since today’s submission doesn’t add much to what we already know.
Looks like everybody got safely home from their respective hunts. The bat in the foreground, on the other hand, is probably looking for that bat house Mark hammered together in Sunday’s installment.
Pushing past the standard panel 3 pun, where do we go from here? This could be the end of Rusty’s mini-adventure and a possible segue into an actual paying assignment for Mark. He has been between jobs for some time, but as a freelance reporter it’s to be expected. I wonder if he wrote up his fishing trip/train corruption adventure to sell to one of his regular magazines. This week could also be a good opportunity for Rivera to keep Cherry’s story fresh in our minds by having her tell Mark and Rusty what’s been going on.
After an exciting two weeks devoted to Rusty’s alien invasion hunt, we got to catch up on Cherry’s Kudzu Crusaderhunt this past week. For those who don’t recall, Violet Cheshire found a bag of kudzu on her front step with an insulting note chiding her for not weeding it from her garden. It was signed “The Kudzu Crusader.” Violet, being suspicious and vindictive, accused Cherry of being the culprit. Cherry convinced her otherwise and the two of them began their search for the real perpetrator.
As they investigated more, Cherry and Violet discovered that the Kudzu Crusader had repeated the insulting-note-and-bag-of-kudzu action at every house in town where the noxious weed was growing. NoxiousHonest Ernest—who happened to be in town—directed Cherry and Violet to talk with Squirrelly Sandy, a new citizen in town and owner of the local bakery. Turns out that more people in town have bought into the rumor that Cherry was behind this prank, but she convinced Sandy she was not the perp. The hunt has only just begun. But for now, it’s time once again for another nature chat.
So I make it a point to avoid most caves, closed or open. I’d make an exception for caves containing Paleolithic wall paintings, but I don’t live in France or Spain. Cheap jokes aside, I was not aware of this bat problem, so I am now better informed and educated. And that’s what can make Mark Trail Sunday pages valuable. Speaking of cheap jokes, I wish Rivera would ditch the final “joke” panel on Sundays and use it to provide additional information. By the way, I discovered that there are lots of YouTube videos devoted to building bat houses. Really! Who knew? I think there is a bat house in my yard’s future, because while I hate mosquitoes, they sure love me.
I was properly brought up short for some pronominal misinterpretations of Cherry’s dialog in prior strips. You can read about it in yesterday’s comments. And now, on with the show!
Hmmm …
One moment Squirrely Sandy accuses Cherry of being the Kudzu Commander. The next moment, she is Cherry’s new friend and willing assistant. Should we call that “squirrelly” behavior? If so, then Rivera’s comment in panel 4 makes sense.
Up until now, Cherry’s main goal was clearing her name and discovering the identity of the “prankster” (or “finding out who they are,” if you prefer). Now, she is upset about this unknown person “messing with Lost Forest.” Huh? Call me slow, but it seems to me that pulling up kudzu improves Lost Forest, right?
Otherwise, the Kudzu Commander does have a point, boorish language notwithstanding.
It seems that Cherry must have some inkling as to the identity of the Kudzu Crusader (KC) in spite of her actions, as she keeps using what seems to be gender fluid terminology to refer to an otherwise unknown person. A few days ago, she spoke of KC’s actions, claiming “…and they framed me!” Today, talking about KC, Cherry wants to “find them so they’ll stop terrorizing everyone.” Perhaps Cherry just never bothered going to grammar class in school. Or maybe Jules Rivera is editorializing.
As for Squirrely Sandy, things are off to a rough start. I’m guessing that whoever started the rumor is almost certainly the Kudzu Crusader. If not Honest Ernest (who is still the most likely suspect), who else could it be? It wouldn’t be Ernest’s wife, who became Cherry’s friend after the last time those two met up. There haven’t been any other antagonists in Cherry’s World that I know of. So are we going to have yet another new character in this story?
Per Downpuppy’s wish, Mr. N. Box has at least taken a break today. We can also be thankful that Rivera saved us from the 2 or 3 panels that would have been dedicated to getting Squirrelly Sandy’s name from Honest Ernest. So we happily move on.
Or we don’t. Instead, we have some meaningless gabbing about weirdo this and that, with Cherry getting defensive. That is to say, some relatively trivial dialog takes place, while Cherry harkens back to the bear she used to play with when Mark first met her and Doc in the original strip. She has certainly had better luck with bears than Mark, who doesn’t get much respect from them. But at least I get my wish as Rivera introduces us to a new character in Cherry’s Lost Forest community.
I must watch myself from acting too much like a Grammar Czar. I am no grammarian and certainly no pedagogue. There is only so much space in a comic strip and brevity is a necessity. What I mean to say is that from here on I will not comment on grammar except in cases that seem to me too significant to ignore. Ugh. That still sounds smug. But be my guest and speak up, if you have your own peeves. At least Rivera does not terminate every sentence with an exclamation point, as was standard in the pre-Rivera Mark Trail days.
Why does Violet speak to Ernest in the way somebody would butter up a person you would otherwise ignore? Well, it was a year ago that Ernest professed his love for Violet, leading to scandal and the apparent breakup of Ernest’s marriage. This past March, Violet professed her continued love for Ernest when she hired him to pave the grounds for a parking lot. Later she got really upset when she discovered the concrete pavement caused flooding problems. Their affair seems to have run its course, at least from Violet’s perspective.
Cherry is a “lawn guy”, like Honest Ernest? Oh, that’s right. She has a landscaping business (aside from her now-forgotten jewelry business). I reckon not many people need landscaping in such a small community. Good thing then, that she is a regular contractor for the Sunny Soleil Society.
I would lose a bet if anybody is surprised that Honest Ernest has showed up again. Honestly, weren’t Violet and Ernest having an affair a short time ago? Perhaps the past tense is appropriate here, though Ernest’s demeanor in panel 2 says “No way!” I suppose Cherry’s list of antagonists is pretty small, even when compared to Mark’s. In fact, I think, with Violet, we may be looking at the entire list, in person. Lost Forest may be a small community, but there has to be other characters Cherry can interact with outside of the Sunny Soleil Society, that is.
In spite of her questionable grammar in panel 3, I’m still perplexed why Cherry has bought into Violet’s unsupported conspiracy that she is being framed. But it’s the hook for the storyline. Is Honest Ernest too obvious a choice to be the Kudzu Crusader?
Well, alright! We’re on another hunt. Like husband like wife, Cherry seems to have taken control of Violet’s hunt to discover the identity of the anonymous activist. On a “significance” scale, this rates a little higher than an alien crash.
But how did they discover that kudzu vines had also been distributed throughout their village center? Cherry only learned about this a short while ago (in Trailverse Time). And Violet doesn’t seem like the kind of social creature that would deign to mix with the hoi poloi.
At least one thing I have been pleased about in this strip is Rivera’s more expansive view of Lost Forest and her aim to show it to us. Who knew the locals favored what appears to be a cross between old English and traditional German buildings? Perhaps it points to some “old world” origins of their ancestors.
Did you miss last week’s strips but don’t want to spend time scrolling down to read them (and my commentary)? Then here is a summary: It was a curious week with little action, more ambiguity, and several incredibly bad puns. Okay, maybe that was a bit too summary. Let me try again:
Mark and the boys continued their examination (from the previous week) of a clearing in the woods during their hike to find an alleged alien crash site. An obscure diagram scratched on the ground led one of this blog’s followers to suggest it might be a pagan pentagram, which would have been an interesting plot development. It turned out to be a diamond-shaped perimeter with an extinguished campfire. Still, why draw any diagram on the ground? With only an abandoned rubber horsehead (which Rusty claimed) and some “pink crystals” discovered by Ernie, the boys were undecided about the alien incursion. Mark was more concerned about the alleged fate of the mysterious campers who had abandoned this “failed campsite.” Instead of moving on to search some more, Mark decided the adventure was over (since he naturally assumed command of the hunt) and took the boys to eat pizza at Planet Pancake. There was pizza to be eaten, but Mark spent his time contemplating the fate of the campers. You’ll have to scroll down and read the actual dailies if you wish to experience Rivera’s puns.
As I noted yesterday, I’m drawn to conclude that Rivera presented this Rusty Adventure mainly for the purpose of launching another story for Mark, so it’s likely that Rusty and his friends will now disappear from the strip until needed in the future. We’ll have to wait and see; it’s possible that Rivera will first turn her attention back to Cherry this week, as she and Violet Cheshire prepare to search for the mysterious Kudzu Crusader. Anyway, since you’re here let’s see what Mark has for us today:
For the longest time I’ve encouraged people to not sweep away spiders because they tend to only hang out where there are other creatures you’ll like even less. And spiders consume them, as Mark describes.
So Jeanette has expanded her pancake menu to include pizza. Well, both foods are round. Perhaps we’ll even get to see injera on the menu before too long. Like pizza, this round Ethiopian bread can function as both a plate and an eating utensil. But I digress.
Mark is still hung up about that abandoned campsite. Why? I mean, isn’t that what you do when you leave: You abandon it, unless you are one of those who thinks humans are not really a part of nature and should leave no trace of their presence. Unlike other animals. I’m digressing again.
I have the feeling that Rivera has set us (and Rusty) up once again. It might be that Rusty’s failed alien search adventure was simply a plot device to initiate Mark’s upcoming project: The search for the missing camper.
Instead of investing in a longer and more involved storyline, as well as the chance to reveal some more personality in the boys, Rivera appears to be making Mark the hatchet man to kill off the search (and this story) at the first likely opportunity: “Oh, an abandoned campsite, boys? Well, fake alien crash. Time to go. This story is over!”
Did Mark even use his vaunted compass? Did they get waylaid, lost, or confused in their hiking? Who knows? But Mark acts as if he was in charge all along, arrogantly trying to control the situation with his patronizing “father knows best” judgement in panel 4 with Rusty filling in the punch line. And didn’t Rusty and Mark already have pancakes that very morning!? Well, I could be wrong about all this. Today’s strip could just be a setup for a surprise plot twist that shows itself on Saturday. This is the right place and time for one!
The first place the kids find some trash and it automatically becomes the alien crash site? Well, the clearing is shaped like a circle (think flying saucer or alien crop circle)!
While the boys enjoy their alien adventure, Mark finds it very suspicious that a person or persons unknown might have built a campsite and campfire in a clearing. Wow! Who could imagine such a thing!?
Isn’t this the same thing Mark, Happy, Rex Scorpius, and his mother all did when they were on the run from the police? If these mystery campers were anything like them, they’d have to be long gone by now!
Commenter Daniel P proffered an intriguing hypothesis that the design scratched into the ground in yesterday’s strip (panel 4) was a pentagram, suggesting that some kind of pagan ritual (that would include the horse head) could have taken place. But today, it looks more like a diamond to me, with the remains of a campfire in the middle. Not terribly interesting, but the pagan pentagram idea sure sounds a lot more intriguing for this story. Tip: If you click on any part of the strip, it will automatically zoom in. Click the back button to exit the zoom.
Hmmm, nothing much said about that ground diagram, and that Eastern Mole in panel 1 sure seems to want to get somewhere else (it could wind up as our Sunday subject). But instead of an intriguing or even dangerous adventure, all we’re getting so far is a bunch of juvenile jokes, and not just from the juveniles. I think panel 4 is a record low for Rivera.
Maybe the comics syndicate would have been better off letting Rivera start a “Young Mark Trail” strip where he is just a teen and already getting involved in journalistic investigations and the environment. The type of storytelling and humor Rivera likes to use would more appropriately fit that format. She would probably attract a larger, younger audience, as well. Then somebody else could take this over. Win-Win. Hear that, King Features Syndicate?
So, they must have actually traversed more of Lost Forest than I figured. This might have been one case where a narration box in one of the earlier dailies stating something like “And some hours later…” would have been informative for once, rather than hosting another pointless pun.
Mark’s internal cogitations about the source and point of the mask are helpful, but inconsistent. A prank? Possible! Someone lost? A non sequitur. Better to ask “Was it left behind after a costume party in the woods?”
But a more dramatic hypothesis would be “Perhaps the mask was used in a bank heist and the robbers are nearby!” Yikes! Now that would be a fundamentally more significant and dangerous proposition. We might expect that to be the case in a pre-Rivera Mark Trail adventure. In any event, Mark, better safe than sorry, so turn the kids around and head to the pizza parlor, while you can!
“In [Mark’s] search for an alien crash site…” Uh, just whose search is this? Last I saw, Mark invited himself into this adventure. Jules Rivera seems to once again be taking the boys for granted, as if they are only grist for the mill of Mark’s unending search for glory. To put it even more cynically, Rivera seems bent on trying to trivialize Mark Trail’s purpose and existence. It is both unbecoming and sad.
Okay, then. Taking Rivera’s question literally (panel 1), what else did Mark find that was strange? By my own armchair reckoning, Mark hasn’t found anything, strange or common, because the horsehead mask was found by Robbie! Robbie might be a pain in the ass, but he has the right idea (panel 3): Keep searching!
Last week Mark remarked (like that pun, Jules!?) that he thought something was going on at this location. Are they going to look around for clues of the alleged mask dropper? And what will they find?
The age-old conspiracy theory of visitors from a distant planet surfaces in Rusty’s latest adventure. Online sources claimed that an extraterrestrial incursion and crash occurred somewhere in Lost Forest, though the specific crash location was not mentioned. Certainly, an unfortunate oversight by the excited poster, I’m sure. Yet, this omission didn’t matter to Rusty and his friends who still insisted on initiating an expedition to locate the wreckage. And really, who would not be tempted? This could be a fun mystery, even if it isn’t about the environment.
Mark bribed Rusty into letting him come along with the gang. Rusty’s main rival, Robbie, objected, but the other boys overruled him. So off they went, guided by Mark and his trustworthy pocket compass. But here, Mark failed to teach the kids that a compass—on its own—is not a “finder” but merely a “direction locator”, thereby spreading misinformation that could lead to possible problems for the boys in the future. A negative mark for woodsman Mark Trail!
By Wednesday’s strip, the actual hiking began with an abandoned horsehead mask found on the trail in Friday’s strip. It didn’t appear that the gang had hiked very far or very long. In any event, the Saturday strip had Rusty thinking that the alien crash story was fake and he was ready to go home. Yet Mark was not so easily defeated and thought that something funny was going on, which required more investigation. I think Mark has an idea this was a prank and who the prankster might be. Do you? While you ponder this, let’s get in some nature education:
Sharks can be social animals and have BFFs. Okay, that’s nice to know. They’re not always lone killers, lurking just under the surface for female surfers trying to catch a wave.
Do sharks behave like us? Apparently so, but we sometimes use the term “shark” to refer to seedy characters (e.g., loan sharks) who take advantage of people, usually in dire straits. Or the term can refer to a member of a New York street gang that has a tendency to dance and sing in poor neighborhoods.
But I don’t get Mark’s final comment, other than as a bad pun.
The Daily Trail 