Mark finally does have a chance to work for a different magazine in F.E. & Cook’s bullpen of 17 magazines, “True Tech”. Hooray, at least. I wasn’t aware that Mark had any “Davy Crockett” in him, however. Ah, perhaps Bill indulges in some sarcasm, recalling Mark’s recent petting zoo investigation that involved a meeting between Rex Scorpius and a loose bear?
Well, this assignment does sound like something more in the line of a traditional Mark Trail story. I don’t know how the logistics are going to work out if this is some kind of mountain retreat, but I’m sure we’ll find out pretty soon. Home every night? I doubt it.
Editor’s Note: After reading this, please scroll down to read the post for last Sunday (February 12th, 2023) that I wrote but forgot to post. Sorry about that!
Mark (again) misses the unintended hint from Bill Ellis about how to further his career while staying close to home. But I suppose keeping up with modern times has never been very important in Mark’s work ethic. He’s been getting slapped in the face by characters monetizing themselves on the Internet for a few years now. Still, no awareness in Mark. It’s as if he believes that he still exists in a comic strip universe drawn with a Winsor & Newton #7 sable brush and Higgins Black Magic India ink. Okay, so a lot of Trailheads would like that, too.
Contrary to some opinions, I don’t think going back to Teen Girl Sparkle is a great idea. As there are many magazines owned by one parent company that hires Mark, how about having Mark work for magazine #6 or #9, for example? I thought one of the interesting notions of this multi-magazine concept was that Mark would get a variety of assignments from a variety of chief editors and trying to fit his work into different magazine formats. Lots of opportunities for variety and drama in that concept. Only, most assignments have come from Amy Lee at Teen Girl Sparkle, with one from Rafael Suave of Hot Catch magazine (the zebra mussels affair).
Editor’s Note: OOPS! Sorry, gang. This past was supposed to get posted last Sunday (February 12, 2023), but for some reason, it remained in the draft queue. Now, it’s totally out of synch. “How come you didn’t notice and chide me for it!?”
Another action-filled week (Feb 6-11), readers. Boy, if you missed it you, er, missed . . . that is to say, I don’t see how this made it into a family newspaper! So risqué! Even my wife blushed.
Wait a minute . . .
Oh, sorry. I was reading Luan by mistake. Let’s see now…this past week found Mark and Duke taking the De Bait Team’s powerboat back to Gator Alley so Mark could snap photos and instruct Duke on the connection between Global Climate Change, Pack Ice in the Atlantic, and Turtle Migration. Well, two out of three made it to the Global Finish Line. So, what is the joy in Mark’s heart for these alligators? He didn’t seem to be sharing the love when he was trying to push the grounded boat back into the water!
Mark sees the gators’ northerly migration and proximity to Lost Forest as a new way to sell articles while working from home. Mark seems to think this is a catchy, new idea. Reckon he’s been too busy the past few years to notice the once popular Work-From-Home trend in America, as well as the more recent “Get-Your-Ass-Back-To-The Office-Or-You’re Fired!” ultimatum now making the rounds. But Mark still has time to do his pro-bono Sunday nature mini-lectures, so here is his latest:
Frozen (not refrozen) food—especially seafood—will often be fresher than that found unfrozen behind a counter. I’m not sure why anybody would bother with animal control for an iguana. I’m sure they have their hands full, rescuing albatrosses or wolf spiders. Instead, let the iguana alone and maybe it will wind up as another animal’s tasty snack for the day.
I try to keep my snarky tendencies to a minimum, so I’m not going to go on a rant about how Bill Ellis always seems to look like some kind of puppet. Still, why does Mark take this guff from Bill Ellis?
Maybe Mark should start marketing himself to a wider range of nature magazines (such as National Geographic) that don’t depend on a tabloid luridness scale to evaluate worthiness. On the other hand, while gator migration is an issue, it is not a new one; so Mark’s story idea will go nowhere, unless he takes a hint from Ellis and finds an interesting hook.
I have a few slants to gin up some excitement, should Mark be interested:
Gators: It’s what’s for dinner
Another way global climate change can hurt your pets
As Mark sits at his All-in-One (I wonder if that’s a visual pun?), Bill Ellis delivers the bad news we pretty much expected. I’m surprised that Rivera didn’t draw Mark in panel 4 with a big fried egg on his face. That would have been great, and a welcome return to Rivera’s earlier, more creative panel designs.
To twist the Comeuppance Knife, for example, Bill could follow-up this letdown by proposing Mark assist Kelly Welly on her climate change assignment. That would be the proper sitcom solution that puts the dad/husband in his place and forces him to confront his arrogance. A soft-pedaled arrogance used to be a Mark Trail virtue, but Rivera has been body-slamming that punching bag ever since she started. It’s pretty beat up by now (cue Simon & Garfunkel), so I’m hoping for a more creative and empowering—to borrow a term—adventure to come out of this.
Well, on the plus side, Cherry is keeping busy, now that her gardening and landscape business seems to be in a slump after that she spilled the beans on that ugly Ernest-Violet love affair. Also, the artwork has remained at a consistently good level. So, I hope that Rivera moves quickly past this “hallmark” period.
As far as help around the house goes, what about Rusty and Doc? They’re around a lot more than Mark.
Anyway, if Rivera is going to emphasize their luvy-duvy ways, it might be even more interesting to see how it progresses. After all, Rivera did once show them both in bed down in Florida—exhausted and sweaty—in Mark’s very first adventure. Perhaps the syndicate came down on that. This is a family comic strip, right?
I wonder if the bald eagle might be saying “Enough, Mark! You’re not 10 years old!” But that’s not enough to stop Mark from blathering on, repeatedly, about something he wants but doesn’t yet have. This looks like an update to the old maxim, “Don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched.”
Meanwhile, Cherry must keep pretty busy, constantly landscaping the property; perhaps getting some cabin remodeling along the way, as well. Of course, we do have to keep scale and distance in mind. Anyway, here are some lookbacks over the past 2 ½ years:
October 2020
August 2021
February 2022
The earliest shows a good-sized cabin with greenhouse in the back and prominent steps in the front. The middle example shows the greenhouse gone, with some kind of pavement sidewalk. The next example has no steps at all, and a dirt path-cum-driveway. Today’s representation has embedded flagstones. Yeah, I’m being pretty nerdy. So, what’s the point? I don’t know: Is Rivera making changes simply to suit the story? Does she just not worry about it? Or do I need another hobby?
Editor’s Note:Apologies for initially uploading yesterday’s strip. That’s what happens when you look at the original strip and forget to double-check what you are loading, yourself. I’ll blame it on my mind, distracted by an Italian conversation with a person in Italy that I was preparing for earlier today. Okay, on with the show:
Golly, gee! This is just like the “Mr. Wizard” show: “Mr. Wizard, so you are saying that if I hold my finger on a hot stove, I’ll burn my finger?” “That’s right, Kathy. We’ll do an experiment. Grab a snail from that terrarium and place in on that hot plate. Let’s watch what happens…”
I’m not sure about Duke’s assessment in panel 4. Seems to me that many people have been looking for a “ticket” to work from home and have done so. Only now, the pendulum is swinging the other way, and companies want them back. If Mark wants to work around home more often, perhaps he should quit his job of being the errant nature journalist and get a job at a local nature preserve. Otherwise, he can try and become a money-making Youtuber.
Frankly, I’m surprised Rivera has not made Mark think about this money-making possibility, especially after learning that some of his antagonists have been making dough that way. Anyway, I bet he gets his idea turned down; it sounds like that kind of setup.
Rivera’s style has been heavily criticized both for not upholding the traditional storybook style pioneered by Ed Dodd, and for its inconsistent quality. But it’s clear to me that she is taking more time in her compositions and execution. I think we’re seeing better quality and consistency, at least since the Texas roadside zoo massacre story ended back in December. And this a good direction to be moving in.
And as I (or we) suspected, gig-worker Mark took this boat trip to gather data for a story he will shop to his editor(s). His angle will likely be the effects of climate change, while hopefully excluding the erroneous notion of Arctic pack ice and rising water. Regular reader and commenter Downpuppy has provided knowledgeable comments on this point. But another reason for northern migration of alligators is loss of habitat due to human development.
You know, if this was a pre-Rivera story, it would almost certainly center on illegal gator poaching. That’s still a significant problem and it would be great to see Rivera combine the two.
Okay, Mark. get what: Climate Change creates rapids (as in panel 4)? I don’t see an obvious connection. More water just makes deeper rivers. As far as I am aware, rapids are due to changes in the inclination of the riverbed, along with the narrowness of a river section and the state of the riverbed (i.e., rocky). More water could lead to rapids, I presume, if there was not enough water to begin with. Have to agree with Mark about the gator migrations.
Still, I’m surprised Duke didn’t push Mark into the river after going into “Professor Trail” mode. Too pedantic and patronizing. I know, because my wife feels the same way about me.
Of course, Duke gave Mark his opening, as if he was one of those kids that used to show up on the Mr. Wizard television shows of the 1950s. This passage should have been presented in a more conversational or story-telling manner, rather than as an abbreviated version of the Sunday lectures.
Coming out of left field!? I’m pretty sure we all saw that coming. This sounds like the beginning of Mark’s next adventure; or maybe just a concern he’ll bring up with Cherry while he waits for his next assignment. Don’t know what he could do about, anyway. Alligators moving north is already old news in Wikipedia, but maybe Mark could find an angle for an article that he could sell to one of the magazines.
I don’t know about you, but every time I see Duke, I think he must be a wanted man in hiding, because his beard looks like a paste-on job. It doesn’t seem to sit right; it looks more like wool or yarn to me; anything but beard hair. Well, maybe it’s just that Rivera has a funny way of depicting beards. Or is it something else? Here is the beard on Cherry’s brother, Dirk, the survivalist. These beards remind me of those fake beards you see on the guys in the movie, “O Brother, Where Are Thou?”, hiding out from The Law after skipping out from a chain gang.
[edited down] Okay, the cryptid hunt was all downriver, not up. I reckon that, living along a river, you’d be more inclined to want to know what’s coming toward you (i.e., from upriver), so you might be less knowledgeable about what’s going on downriver. That might explain Mark’s lack of awareness regarding the croc cove, but I’m being kind. Many rivers flow north-south (more or less), so “downriver” matches what we inherently consider “down”. Maybe that’s from our reliance on maps? However, there are many rivers around the world that actually flow south-north. So, “upriver” is then moving south.
The most striking example is the Nile River in Africa, which flows over 4200 miles from the Sudan and Ethiopia, emptying out into the Mediterranean Sea after passing through Egypt. Reinforcing how geography influences our thinking, in pharaonic times, “Upper Egypt” meant the south, and “Lower Egypt” the north.
Otherwise, today’s strip is just a traditional Mark TrailNothingburger: superficial filler stuffed between two adventures, with cheese.
Yes, looks like “Cryptid II: Foiled Again” is over and the kids are safely back home. I’m still waiting to read about the post-adventure lawsuits. Seems like Rivera wants to milk the “Exploding Boat” trope for all its worth. And as far as worth goes, I think she’s moved into the red. So, I hope she’ll move on and let that boat cliché float away on its own.
Panel 1 uses a flamboyant technique for linking dialog balloons to the speaker. The design, itself, is interesting, though I wondered if it was done purely for that reason. My thinking is that Rivera uses the close-up circle of Mark as a visual transition to the panel 2 flashback. That is, we have the scenic view of Mark and Duke in the boat, then the focus on Mark, then his flashback. And recall that Rivera often uses visual cues in her panels, such as this:
As John and Paul sang “We’re on our way home” on the Let It Be album, so did we find Mark and the boys successfully escape the elderly crocodiles upset over getting interrupted in their retirement cove. Mark and the lads landed ashore where they found Duke, Jeannette, and Cherry. Cherry was surprised to find out that Mark had bugged her truck, supposedly so he could find his way back along the river that happens to run by Lost Forest. Yet Mark claims to be a woodsman. As expected, the boys were none the worse for wear and really enjoyed the adventure. De-bait team member Duke expressed surprise his boat was still intact, even as it looked to be drifting off on its own.
Is this the end of Rusty’s second (failed) cryptid hunt adventure? I’m guessing it is, except for maybe a few more days to wrap up loose ends. But wait! Mark Trail stories rarely wrap up loose ends. In fact, loose ends form a standard part of almost every Mark Trail story, going back for years. I think most Trailheads are still wondering whatever became of Tricky Dicky, I mean Dirty Harry, er, Dirty Dyer. Will Rivera resurrect him some day? Probably not, since Dirty was a more serious bad guy than the goofball villains that inhabit Jules Rivera’s version of The Trailverse. And speaking of loose ends, I’m surprised we don’t see more of Kelly Welly. I really thought Rivera would latch on to Kelly and give her a more prominent role where she could hold her own instead of always winding up as Mark’s foil.
We’ve been here before. Rivera did a Sunday strip back on June 6, 2021 about mountain lines (aka pumas) in general, but did highlight P-22. Well, today’s nature talk focuses exclusively on the now-deceased mountain lion. But referring to the animal as “Hollywood’s Best Leading Man” is misplaced, owing to the biological impossibility, even if the comment was meant as an innocent pun. “Hollywood’s Coolest Cat” might have been a better moniker.
So, why P-22 again? Turns out that P-22 was struck by a vehicle last November as it tried to cross a highway in search of food. He was later captured by authorities and examined. Veterinarians noted that, in addition to damage from the collision, his advanced age, infirmities, and debilitating ailments (e.g., kidney disease) led to the decision to euthanize him this past December. Comic strips are written several weeks, if not months, in advance, so Rivera wrote this shortly after P-22’s death.
As Duke’s boat seems to be floating away on its own, I’m struck by the portray of Ernie in panel 4, as I’m sure most of you are. I’ll agree ahead of time that his appearance more resembles some kind of Hallowe’en mask than anything else. That is, it doesn’t look “normal”, but very flattened for no apparent reason, whereas the kids behind him look very conventionally drawn, even the smirking face of Robbie. So what’s the deal? Is Ernie’s father Mr. Potato Head?
I think we might also agree that the caption box in panel 4 actually useful and provides new information, without being too obtrusive. Stylistically, I’d like to see Rivera use a different font for the narration boxes.
Anyway, this sure looks like the wrap-up for this adventure. Even Rusty looks like he had a nice time, in spite of not finding his Bassigator (frankly, that always sounded like a fishing lure sold by Ron Popeil).
I’ve come around to the popular opinion that Rivera is getting a little too dependent on caption boxes to restate what is already being said or illustrated. Not saying she shouldn’t use them, but it would be nice to keep them to a minimum and use them when they add something new. Owing to the small size of the panels, caption (text) boxes too often crowd the scene, making it all look cluttered and jumpy. If a comment box is stating the obvious, it doesn’t need to be there.
Now, how the heck did Mark follow Cherry’s tracker from a boat? Was she moving away from Mark, as opposed to approaching Mark? By the way, Cherry drives a pickup, Mark, not a car! As I indicated before, it has not been well established that Mark was actually lost in the first place; certainly not by simply bumping a few alligators. Since Mark has a smart phone, wouldn’t it have been simpler to just call Cherry (or vice-versa)? Or maybe call up Google Maps to find his position on the river. Too bad the otherwise tech-savvy middle school kids were too busy to think of that.
Finally, why would Mark plant a tracker in Cherry’s truck? Doesn’t he trust her? Talk about a paranoid family …!
Rivera has an interesting way of drawing water that seems to be animated enough to qualify as a living thing. Kind of. Still interesting, though I think it will lose a lot of its exuberance when it is printed in b&w in the paper. But, what’s this “lost” business? They’re on a river! Unless there are lots of channels coming through, the river goes one way or the other. Unfortunately, it looks as if Rusty is once again going to come up empty in his cryptid searches. But there is still a bit of time for something to happen.
Again, how can they be lost or have this part of the river not known? It’s part of the waterway that runs by Lost Forest. Mark was plowing through these waters in the Zebra Mussels adventure. Mark should at least know which direction he was going. So why isn’t there a search light or running lights? Somebody might think that the de-bait team wants dark boats to make special pickups or drop-offs.
Well, this is interesting. No, not the discussion of climate change; that’s a given for this strip. I should not be too surprised that Rivera has mostly kept direct discussions to the Sunday panels, from a practical point of view. That is, I could see the influence of the comic syndicate advising Rivera to ease into the subject, given ongoing political opposition and possible negative feedback on the strip, itself.
The interesting part is the suggestion that this location—and that of Lost Forest—is not as far south as has always been surmised. I’ve read that gators are found as far north as North Carolina. But Lost Forest could also be some place up the Mississippi River, given that cargo ships ply these waters. Well, perhaps I make too much of this geographic clue, which is really only here to give Mark a que to discuss climate change. But I think Mark is a little wrong. Alligators thrive in heat, which is why they are found in the south. If they are moving north, I would think it has as much to do with the decrease in original native habitat, due to the expansion of human land use.
No, this is not a reenactment of General MacArthur fleeing Corregidor in the early days of WWII. But I imagine the sentiment of the title is in Mark’s mind.
But I know what you’re thinking: Why does the boat have to “take off”? It’s not grounded on the beach any longer and the gators can’t jump into the boat. So, what’s the big deal, other than the need for Mark to climb in?
There is a casual familiarity these days where adults and parents no longer get to be called “Mr. Trail” or “Ms. Trail”. We’re all on the same level, regardless of age, education, or number of TikTok (or BikBok) followers. In any event, seems like this rescue is more for effect than reality; in spite of the sun ray effect in panel 3 that apparently symbolizes a significant action. I reckon the kids think so. If Mark is worried, he’s probably worried that Rusty will actually panic and gun the boat, leaving him behind. So, the kids have an adventure to tell their parents and friends. And most likely, those parents will wonder whether to bring a lawsuit against Mark for child endangerment. But that wouldn’t happen to Mark Trail, would it?
Okay, they are alligators, to be sure. But the Little Orphan Annie exclamation in the title has some basis in fact. According to the source of all knowledge, Wikipedia (but backed up by the Online Etymology Dictionary) the origin of the term “alligator” likely derives from the phrase el lagarto (“the lizard”), a term used by the Spanish conquistadors to refer to the reptiles because they were too busy taking over the New World to bother with taxonomy. Of course, they were not biologists and taxonomy had not yet been developed, anyway. So it is a clever comic strip pun.
As expected, Mark has to make a run for it before the gators wake up and attack him. Looks like one did in panel 3, “chomping” at Mark. Ah, but the term “chomp” means to bite, and it’s clear the gator missed Mark. Perhaps “Snap!” would have been more apt. Oh my, this is what happens when you get diverted into word origins. It’s like an addiction! I’ll give Rivera a pass for “triathlon“.
The Daily Trail 