A lot can change in 10 years, from a couple’s social calendar to a man’s tolerance for alcohol. The guy in panel one may very well be pounding down glasses of grain alcohol whereas his older counterpart in panel two is obviously sipping something akin to Miller Lite. He’s also donned a sweater vest, as has his wife; an obvious sign of aging if ever there was one.
At first glance, I thought this was one of those singing fish that collect dust on drug strore shelves. The clues are all there in panel one: the motion lines, the plaque-shaped platter, the slightly turned head. Imagine my surprise when I learned that this wasn’t a plastic fish singing “Take Me to the River,” but rather a dead fish being offered to an enormous cat by his terrified mouse servants. I’m still not sure which scenario is more bizarre.
Now this is more like it. Most years end with a cartoon showing an old man exiting the stage as a newborn infant takes his place. But 2008, of all years, has some explaining to do. What happened to the $700 billion in bailout money that was supposed to save the economy? What makes the governor of Illinois think he can sell the senate seat vacated by the president-elect? How can one individual be in a position to steal $50 billion from investors? If I were 2008, I’d lay low on my way out the door, too.
Is this the beginning of the end of Get Fuzzy? Satchel Pooch strikes an awfully existential tone in this strip, talking about Bucky Katt (and the whole Get Fuzzy universe) as if it were on its way out the door. To my ears at least, the dialogue reflects a genuine uncertainly and not the comically exaggerated uncertainty that typifies the generic comic strip bull session. This is either an extremely well-written strip or a warning sign that one of the best strips in syndication could be leaving us before too long.
At first glance, I was sure that Wendy had inflicted pain in an entirely different area. Below the waist, yes, but not as far down as the feet. Also above the thigh. Wendy’s expression in the third panel certainly suggests a knee to the groin, although on second glance she probably would have placed her hands on the guy’s shoulders in order to put her full force behind such a maneuver. And if she had scored a successful hit, we can rest assured that the guy in this strip would no longer have one hand in the air as he would be using both hands to grasp the affected area.
This is a classic riff on the old complaint about satellite TV: there are 500 channels to watch and no programming that’s worth watching. I suppose the same can be said of cell phones. What is the benefit of having access to your entire address book (not to mention IM, e-mail, text, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and a million other networks) if you have nothing to say?
I’m always up for an Airplane reference. When I was kid, I thought that Jim Abrahams and David Zucker classic was the funniest movie ever made. These days, I’ve noticed the Airplane DVD sitting in the bargain bin for $7.99 and have been reluctant to buy it lest it seem dated or unfunny in 2008. I feel the same way about the Wayne’s World DVD that sits on my shelf unwatched. Maybe one day I’ll watch them both as a double feature. Until then, strips like this will suffice to bring back happy memories.
