Gotta give some credit to Rivera for weaving current social and political issues into the strip. Anyway, this is an interesting turn of events. Bee Sharp claims he has been “deep faked”! This ironic excuse comes from a person already exposed as a phony professor giving out phony information.
However, based on his past history, I have doubts about Sharp’s admission of being victimized. In fact, his statement in panel 2 contradicts his conversation with Chet Chedderson back on May 25. Is Rivera being contradictory here or is she laying the groundwork for Sharp to be found out and then publicly exposed (again)?
By the way, does anybody know if “Wildebeest” is some sort of slang? I thought it might be a term for money, but I’ve not found any reference. Otherwise, who in hell would want a gnu?
I really have to wonder what the motivation for this whole story arc is. Okay, Mark plays the “renegade reporter” on the run from agents trying to stop him from getting The Truth out to the American Public. Fine, we get the symbolism. But it isn’t exactly “The Pentagon Papers.”
This sort of conspiratorial humbuggery is not new and is still popular in political and social circles. Yet, it just doesn’t seem to fit Mark’s profile. So why is he putting himself out in the Public Eye like this?
If Mark wanted to impress lots of people that what he has to say is worth breaking the law for, he probably should have spent a few minutes up front letting people know who he is (other than his name), what is background is, and how he came to these conclusions.
Instead, through the miracle of comic strip technology, out of all the people viewing Mark, only one person has managed to somehow inject himself into Mark’s live stream. This should work out well.
I don’t know: Do you think Rivera is deliberately trying to make Mark look like a bona fide clown? We all know that Mark is talking out of his ass here, since he has done virtually no research or investigation, other than take photos of dead fish.
Now, if Rivera wanted to parody self-declared “online journalists” posting their nonsense and misinformation on the Internet, she could have created a character to do that while having Mark criticize that person’s lack of professionalism. This would also reinforce Mark’s own standing. Instead, Rivera has made Mark the online half-baked potato.
So, is this what Mark’s vaunted journalism really amounts to? Who knows, maybe in this story the accident really was caused by careless railroad workers not doing their best. But Mark didn’t take the time to actually do an investigation, did he?!
Art Dept: Since when does the back seat of a muscle car (panel 2) suddenly have the space of a Mercedes Maybach? It’s usually just the opposite. I reckon it’s just another case of “artistic license” so Rivera could fit in Mark, the phone, and the text balloons. I think it could have been resolved in a more realistic manner, such as showing Mark a lot closer, like Happy in panel 3.
An adult with a dumb idea? Now, this is what I call journalism! By “journalism”, I mean something a kid would write for a high school paper, such as a gossip column or a profile of the basketball coach.
And why the need to drive? What kind of video can Mark produce sitting inside a car? Does Mark want to broadcast a minute-by-minute report on their flight to avoid arrest by the highway patrol? Maybe he thinks they’ll spot the Senator’s car on the road and pull alongside him to ask those “tough questions” reporters and politicians always like to brag about. And avoid.
Huh? A pun in the first panel? Rivera is shaking things up!
Seems Happy is going “all conspiracy”, while Rex helps goad Mark on. Clearly, logical thinking does not have the seat of honor around this campfire. They just fled from the Senator’s press conference after blasting him with lots of leading questions and blasting the police with leading jabs. The Senator ordered their arrest, but they evaded a police chase. None of this bodes well for their plan to trap the senator. Yet, Mark has his own idea. That’s even scarier….
Looking back, Happy Trail has been a major instigator in this entire disaster, starting with his requirement to ride the train. Then there was his overriding need to investigate the explosion at the station, while coercing Mark to help. Who knows, maybe Happy is just frustrated with things and wants his old comic strip back, even if he has to first railroad Mark.
This is an adventure strip, not a documentary, so I’m always willing to extend some degree of latitude in such mundane things as logic, judgement, and actions. But really, now. Are the railroad and the senator running a smear campaign against Mark and Happy? Hard to say. Do they even know their names? Does anybody else?
Clearly, Rivera portrays the state senator as a stereotypical reactive, “say nothing” politician. In his defense, he couldn’t know very much, anyway, given that the accident occurred the day before. Meanwhile, the Duck Duck Goose shipping company is publicly spouting the usual misinformation that companies do when trying to position themselves as an innocent party. But I think Mark and Happy have yet to talk to any railroad managers or government inspectors.
So it didn’t help that Mark and Happy barged into a dog-and-pony press conference to try and get answers from a politician, rather than an expert. And it didn’t help that Mark and Happy became belligerent, physical, and need I state it, unprofessional? Mark and Happy sound more like characters on TheX Files or Hannity. “Got too close”, huh? Will “the deep state” send out assassins to shut them up, like in the Bourne Legacy?
C’mon, guys! Why haven’t you started working social media and news sites, instead of standing around a campfire in the country, affirming each other’s grievances? Why haven’t you been conducting online research? Why haven’t you bothered to talk with other journalists? In short, why haven’t you two been acting like professional journalists?
The week started out so peaceful and self-congratulatory, as the four scofflaws (Happy, Mark, Sally, and Rex) stood around a campfire (where did they get those tents, anyway?) and shared happy thoughts. But all too soon, after scanning his social media sites, Happy reported that they were being sought by the police for inciting a riot (and eluding, I presume), which surprised the always self-contained Mark. “We have to tell the world the truth!” Happy exhorted, as if they were the only journalists in a world of reporters and investigators too lazy or corrupt to figure out what transpired.
We also learned that the Duck Duck Goose shipping company owns the derailed train carrying the chemicals. On top of that, the company hired “Professor” Bee Sharp to be their public spokesperson and pass around the corporate baloney. Mark is really pissed. But he’s pretty much blown whatever credibility he had. As is typical for Rivera, she mockingly refers to their situation as “Dilemmas for the ages.” I wrote briefly about Jules Rivera and her ongoing campaign (from my point of view) to convert Mark from his traditional nature reporter/adventurer persona into a more reaction-oriented environmental activist not above crossing legal lines. Kind of a male Greta Thunberg, perhaps.
Flash! I just read (on Saturday) that Isaiah Wartman, former campaign manager for an infamous Republican politician, was one of several people found guilty in an Ohio court of running a fraudulent charity for victims of the East Palestine train derailment. I wonder if Rivera has enough lead time to work that into her story.
Rivera continues to produce customized title panels as well as Sunday topics that are linked to the location that is the focus of the current story. At least the Ohio River (and its supported states) is not going through the problems that the Colorado River is. So, this is an obvious cautionary discussion.
Poor, deluded Marky. How can they get out THE TRUTH when they are wanted by THE LAW? The obvious response is “By acting responsibly and professionally in the first place, Mr. Trail.” If they hadn’t been acting like street protesters yelling down a speaker, then taking on local police, they might now have some standing.
The other, perhaps larger, question is why Rivera chooses to push Mark into this role of a reactive, sometimes-out-of-control figure, ignoring normal journalistic standards (and the law), and then acting shocked to find out authorities take that kind of behavior seriously. It’s one thing to show Mark out of his depth, even clueless from time to time (which seems to be a lot of the time). Is Rivera leaning towards turning Mark into a modern-day Edward Abbey persona, or perhaps one of his Monkey Wrench Gang members? In any event, Rivera can’t have Mark (and Happy) breaking the law left and right, then pretend nobody cares.
I’m just riffing here, of course. It would be a most dramatic reboot of her reboot to go down the Abbey Path. It could get pretty exciting, in fact. Frankly, I don’t see that happening, in part, because newspaper comic strips are still largely bound by socially conservative family values from the days of Ozzie and Harriet. What do you think? Should Rivera turn Mark Trail into a Dark Knight of activist journalism?
You all remember Duck Duck Goose Shipping, that capitalism-is-all company introduced in the illegal zebra mussels adventure (category Zeeba Mussels) two years ago, yes? Back then, CEO Chet Chedderson and his female assistant were forced by Mark and his allies to clean up his company’s cargo ships. Chedderson then made a brief cameo appearance in the more recent Bear Necessity adventure.
I think we have to give Jules Rivera credit for planning ahead with her storylines. During the epilogue of this story (25 May, 2023), Chedderson got in touch with the convalescing faux professorBee Sharp and hired him to be the company Point Man on train safety. Little did we know back then! We now see Chedderson’s investment paying off.
I mentioned a few years ago that a big corporation like this (with lots of resources) could become a new and really significant adversary for Mark, in addition to the usual small-fry lunatics he deals with. (Parenthetically, these second-stringers are not much different in scale from the poachers, kidnappers, and arsonists the old Mark Trail often tangled with.) Now we have a big, national corporation that won’t take kindly to the interference of a relatively obscure wildlife journalist.
I just hope that Rivera makes this story a real test of wits and courage for once, and not the usual rapid descent into farce. However, I do have one complaint: Once again Rivera relies too heavily on her limited stable of clown-car bad guys. I’m looking at you, Sharp! I would have hoped Rivera could move forward with Chedderson and his own posse of thugs. Well, maybe Sharp’s appearance in this story will be happily brief.
What a shock. Online parties seem to think that throwing abrasive questions at a state senator during a press conference, followed by slugging guards and evading pursuing police are somehow not proper forms of behavior for reporters. They must be old Trailheads, I’m thinking. Perhaps it’s time that Mark admits that times have changed, and he has become less of a reporter and more of an in-your-face environmental activist. Speaking of change, I noticed that Rivera’s original of conception of mother, Sally, quickly changed from an insignificant, dowdy blonde-haired matron when introduced back in early July to the silver foxy lady she currently portrays.
I reckon Mark and Happy must have re-awakened Sally’s earlier passions and energy.
Props to Rex for his spot-on reply to Mark in panel 3. Now, some people never move past their glory days, be it high school football fame or a babe who put the “hot” in hot wheels. Thus, Sally repeats the days of her glorious youth. Either she thinks Happy has a short memory or maybe she does. Or maybe she just likes to talk about it.
But I’m really confused over Sally’s glasses. Aside from their goofy alignment, they look more like a bikini top lifted from a Barbie doll. Still, I am left wondering why Sally wears sunglasses at night. Could it be blindness?
SPECIAL FEATURE!
Blog creator, Dennis Williams, sent me a Zippy the Pinhead strip that is a funny take on rebooting old comic strips, with a mention of Mark Trail. So, here it is. Enjoy!
Rex: “Ah, nice fire, eh Mark?” Mark: “Yep. And a quiet evening, too.” Rex: “For sure. . .No sirens or squealing tires.” Mark: “. . . .” Rex: “Twenty bucks says my mom makes the first move.” Mark: “I’ll cover that and see you another twenty.” Rex: “You’re on, Nature Boy.”
Jules, you don’t get to mock your own strip! Mark can mock himself (and sometimes does), but you have to remain neutral. It’s the privilege of your readers to decide who or what to mock, and when.
Now, where the heck are these people hiding, and where did those tents come from? Perhaps this is some kind of base camp for Rex’s work. Anyway, Mark’s gratitude that he and Happy can finally sleep easy sounds hollow, considering he’s responsible for his own situation. I bet some jail beds are at least halfway comfortable because jailers don’t want to be sued for torturing prisoners. Mark probably should be apologizing for helping to make Rex and his mother, Sally, possible fugitives from the law.
Let’s see, what happened this past week…? Nothing, really. Cherry spent the week quizzing Georgia about “colony collapse” as she was outside tending to the depleted beehives. Never mind that Georgia already informed Cherry about this some time ago and Mark just delivered his Sunday nature lesson about ravioli mites. Er, the Varroa mites, that is. I reckon all of that wasn’t enough for Rivera, so we spent another six days on it! And the week ended with an ominous phone call about Mark being “wanted by the police”, thus ending Cherry’s superhero fantasy of fighting the mites to save beehives and bees.
——————————————————————————————————————– “And that concludes the week, folks. Okay Dizzy, what are the stats (1-10) for this week?”
“Well, Pee Wee, after considering the content and the management’s overall decision-making, I give it the following:”
Story Development: 2 (the phone call) Action: 0 Character Development: 2 (Georgia’s look of despair for bees or Cherry’s interrogation) Ho-Hum Factor: 9
“Those are troubling numbers, Dizzy, but I hope that they can pull themselves up and salvage this storyline.”
“Well, we won’t begin to see the results for another two to three weeks, Pee Wee, as the strip will be returning to its main storyline, ‘On the lam with Mark Trail.'”
“Good grief!”
“Hey, you can’t say that, Pee Wee. It’s a slogan for a different cartoon character.”
“D’oh!”
“And that’s another one! Sorry, folks. And now a few words from our sponsor….”
Today’s Sunday Supplement should ruffle a few feathers, but in a good way. Rivera does not force the jokes (or puns) this time and the information is actually interesting. The title panel is cleverly designed (as is common). I think Rivera must have enjoyed doing this one. Coincidentally, my wife was telling me today about a murder of very large crows she saw across the street, but I missed them. And that’s about usual, as well.
Georgia does all of the work and Cherry, enthralled by the information Georgia has spoon-fed her, is already starting to act as if she is actively involved, herself. That is, until she got notified on her phone about the newest episode of “America’s Wildest Police Chases.” Okay, this is not the cliffhanger I was hoping for, but it gets us out of this rambling interlude.
Yeah, you tell her, Cherry! Be the master organic gardener. What’s wrong with a few weevils, aphids, and Japanese beetles, anyway? Is that why you seem to have so much free time and so few customers for your lawn and landscaping business? But I wonder where Georgia is getting her “Dyno-Mite” chemical application from? Could it come from one of Cherry’s main nemeses? Maybe we’ll find out on Saturday. That will make for a dramatic cliffhanger.
Anyway, my wife and I were talking today (we actually do that once in a while) and she asked me “What kind of music would Mark Trail listen to?” I was stumped. Just what kind of music would Mark listen to? Would Cherry like the same or different music? I think the pre-Rivera Markand Cherry, being the old-school rural citizens they were, would like bluegrass. Maybe even some “Great American Songbook” music or “classic country.” You know, nostalgic comfort songs. But for our newer, millennial Mark and Cherry, I don’t think Bill Monroe or Vic Damone would cut it. Perhaps musicians such as Hootie & the Blowfish, Foo Fighters, Tupac, Metallica, Prince, or Beyoncé? I dunno. What do you think? think? (I think I forgot to do a second proofread!)
Note: I saw that a reader over on Comics Kingdom commented on the apparent “smiley face” seen in the thought bubble in panel 2 of yesterday’s strip. In fact, it looks like a ghost or cloud face, which is either winking or has a black eye. Anyway, go ahead and look if you don’t recall. I’ll wait. I saw that face yesterday, as well, but didn’t think it worth saying anything about it at the time. But today, there is another possible smiley face in panel 2, kind of a clown face with a short screw-lid hat. Or so it seems. We humans are pattern finders by nature, so it is possible these “faces” are coincidental arrangements by Rivera. What do you think?
Anyway, getting back to the story: Is this even a story? Is it going anywhere? “For my next demonstration, Cherry, pull my finger!” This is looking more like a female version of “Mr. Wizard.” I mean, just where can you go with this plot? There’s no villain to foil, except nature.
I suggested some time ago that Rivera should have Cherry host the Sunday nature chat one in a while, maybe even with guests such as Georgia. I think she could have given a much more informative presentation on Varroa Mites than Mark. Better that than trying to add some meat to this very lean bone of a story.
Wow, completely new information?! Who knew Varroa mites hit these beehives? Who knows anything about these creatures? Well, just about anybody who has been reading the strip since at least June would. Cherry Trail must be having a memory loss, since Georgia informed her about the mites in mid-June. And Mark gave us an exposition on Varroa mites last Sunday. I reckon Cherry does not read the Sunday comics pages, either.
So, is Rivera just padding out the story with rehashed information and sketchy art in order to meet her deadlines? Is she still trying to figure out where to take this story? It is a shame to reduce Cherry’s involvement here to that of some clueless child.
If Cherry takes the trouble to write Georgia’s explanation down, she can go home and tell Rusty and Dad all about the mites, which I am sure would make interesting reading in a comic strip.
Well, I guess today’s panels function as a “For those of you who came in late…” recap, as this information was originally shared between Georgia and Cherry over breakfast in Planet Pancake back in June. Of course, that story seemed to have arbitrarily stopped, once the cause of the bee failure was diagnosed. Now, it resumes.
At least nobody here is being chased by law enforcement after punching out some cops.
Oh, Cherry. The very last thing you need to worry about is Mark in a chemical spill zone. Even while you are talking like a young gal answering a question in a beauty pageant (panel 4), Mark is even now evading the law with his father in a car driven by his friend, Rex Scorpius. They could be in Kentucky by now. In any event, I don’t think you’ll be eating any freshly caught steelhead trout or walleye for a while.
The Daily Trail 