Call me crazy, but I think Tess’s selective amnesia act seems to be slipping. And once again, Jules Rivera has been kind enough to remind us readers all about what happened in yesterday’s strip. And a heck of a lot did happen, all in a matter of seconds! Anyway, it’s just as well that we stick with today’s recap and just move forward.
And this would be as good a point as any to jump back to Lost Forest and see how the gals are getting along, but this is only Week 1 of the usual two-week segment for Mark’s adventure, so prepare yourselves for a second week of hog huntin’ hijinks! You know, maybe Mark should have brought his hunting rifle along for self-defense … from Tess!
I’m showing my age or knowledge of old trivia, but back in the 1950s there was a TV show called “The Life of Riley”, in which the main character, a beleaguered husband of course, gets into constant troubles and bemoans his fate with the catch-phrase I borrowed.
And I’m doing some moaning after seeing today’s effort. Frankly, I have almost given up trying to figure out what Jules Rivera is after. Is she deliberately making all of the women petrified numbskulls who hunt in a “hot zone” with their rifles slung, panic at first blush, and can’t even shoot!? Hogs are not that big, so how does an aimed shot go up in a tree? Did Tess trip on that same movie prop tree branch when she was firing?
Most long-term readers know that I always try to give Rivera the benefit of a doubt and play even-handed, even complimenting and promoting her innovations and creativity when I see it. But, hoo-boy, this is pretty sad stuff today, on virtually every front.
Timing. Is this all happening in some kind of slo-mo world where time is elastic and everybody has enough opportunity to have their say, get into position, and act, all the while the hog is chasing down Shania?!
Action. So Mark has time to jump in a tree to rescue Shania? Why not just yell to Shania “CLIMB THE TREE!” Perhaps Mark is right in thinking Shania is too clumsy and dim-witted to do that on her own, given what started this fiasco. And I reckon this is Rivera’s solution to make sure that Mark is, indeed, the “hero” saving the incompetent trio of females.
Art. Ah, the drawing. Well, we’ve seen worse, but that doesn’t say much. In Panel 1, why are the two standing splay-footed? That’s some rough drawing. I couldn’t figure out what the clunky gray object is between Reba and Mark, but finally realized it is the camera’s telephoto lens. Why is the hog in panel 3 just staring instead of charging? Perhaps staging the panels with a series of closeups helps inject a sense of panic and distress, including the panel 4 split-panel. I see that Rivera did, in fact, use a variation of the reverse arrangement I posited yesterday, of focusing on Shania’s expression facing the hog, which is placed in the foreground. More or less.
Sound. What the hell does B-KAM! mean?! The usual sound effect of a gun or rifle (or even shotgun) is BLAM! or KABLAM! or something like that. I even wasted a minute or two online, looking to see if the term might be some kind of cultural joke.
So, my overall reaction (suitable for print) can be summed up as “What a revoltin’ development this is!”
So, what is Mark’s secret of youth? I gather it’s shaving.
I wonder how disappointed or even angry Cherry will be when she learns that she didn’t really have to shoot any animals, after all. Except maybe with a camera. Anyway, here we go with another round of disconnected dialogs. I also think Jules Rivera really needs to practice more with her narration boxes: “Hog-Hunting Hootenanny”!? Talk about an alliterative non-sequitur…. Rivera could at least have brought the phrase into the 1960s with “Hog-Hunting Hullaballoo!” Or, if she is looking at cute alliterative phrases that more sense, how about “It’s Hog-Hunting Harvest!”, “It’s Hog-Hunting Heaven!”, or even “It’s a Hog-Hunting Halidom!”
Being Saturday, we once again come to the issue of whether we get back to a week of Cherry and Holly Folly, or continue following Mark and the Three Fates. On the other hand, does it matter?
The Daily Trail 