Saturday, April 01, 2006

Quick update

Real quick here. I only have fifteen minutes of internet time here at the Starry Net Cafe of Santa Rosa. Today, my newspaper is the Press Democrat. Only one silent penultimate panel here, and that honor goes to:

Sally Forth

An image will be added tomorrow. Thanks for bearing with me during my little vacation.

Update 4/4: Better late than never

Friday, March 31, 2006

On the road



I'm spending a couple nights up here in Northern California, so I'll have to make do with the San Francisco Chronicle and its anemic one page of comics. So just one silent penultimate panel found today: Non Sequitur by Wiley Miller.

We visited the Charles Schulz Museum today. The museum not only pays dignified tribute to Schulz's work, but to the history of comic strips as well. It creates such a great feeling of respect and awe for the art form, I almost feel guilty for criticizing comics daily. But that will wear off. It will take just one lame Garfield or Cathy or Mallard Fillmore to restore my critical eye.

Thursday, March 30, 2006

Blondie, Meaning of Lila



Three today:
The Meaning of Lila by John Forgetta & L.A. Rose (official debut)
Non Sequitur by Wiley Miller
Blondie by "Dean Young" (debut!)

Lila has flirted with the watch before. We've seen silent second panels, silent-but-essential panels, and every other way to get mentioned, but now we have Lila's first true appearance. And here's my observation for the day: Lila and her friend have the exact same face and figure, only their hair is different.

Blondie is my favorite of the staff-written, still-there-by-inertia, classic comic strips. Unlike most, it manages to remain fairly relevant each day. Sort of.

I'll be traveling the next couple of days and visiting the Charles Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa, CA. I'll do my best to update while I'm away, but we'll see how the internet situation in "Norcal." It's possible that the next full post won't be until Sunday evening. Take care.

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Shut out

It's rare, but it happens--a day with no silent penultimate panels.

Zits comes close with a "galoomp," but this panel has action, not a silent re-action.



Reader Uglinessman points out this one from Tuesday:

Betty by Delainey and Rasmussen


Thanks, Uglinessman. That is not only a silent penultimate panel, it is a stunningly unfunny joke. Maybe I'm coming to this out of context, and this is actually a very touching moment (maybe he's secretly making this mural for his retarded brother or something,) but, wow, is that not funny.

But, in the end, there are no SPPs in the L.A. Times today. So, as I did the last time this happened, I bring you Ziggy en Espanol. If you have noticed a silent penultimate panel out there today, please let me know.

Tuesday, March 28, 2006

Brewster Rockit debuts



Three silent penultimate panels today--and two of them are cats.
Get Fuzzy by Darby Conley
Mutts by Patrick McDonnell
Brewster Rockit: Space Guy! by Tim Rickard (debut!)

I've made a conscious decision not to "work blue" with this blog, but damn if that silent panel from Brewster Rockit isn't the dirtiest thing I've put up here. I've got so many things I could say, but, no, my mother-in-law might be reading this.

Oh, and I'd like to give an off-topic, day-late shout out to my George Mason basketball team. I am GMU class of '97, but they're representing suburban commuter school students everywhere. Stand up and be proud. Go Mason!

Monday, March 27, 2006

Jump Start debuts





First, our daily inventory of silent penultimate panels from the L.A. Times:
Jump Start by Robb Armstrong
9 Chickweed Lane by Brooke McEldowney (the master of the silent-double)
Sally Forth by Francesco Marciulano
Mutts by Patrick McDonnell

And, thanks again to CM, from elsewhere:
Big Top by Rob Harrel


The L.A. Times has indeed replaced Boondocks during its hiatus. And they have done so with yet another wacky single panel comic. It's called The Flying McCoys by Gary and Glenn McCoy. It's always hard to get to use to a new comic. The daily comics become such a part of your routine that any change is viewed with cautious suspicion. It's like having a new temp at the office sit at the table with you in the breakroom. Is he someone interesting who might be good for new conversation, or is he some nut-job who will talk about nothing but his twenty pet turtles and the vaguely disturbing things he does with them? I just don't know what to make of you, Flying McCoys.

Sunday, March 26, 2006

Boondocks leaves for vacation



Just two today in print:
Boondocks
Candorville

Before taking six months off, Aaron McGruder and company say farewell with a silent double. We at the watch will certainly miss their contributions to this blog. And Darin Bell gives us almost the exact same silent panel as last Sunday.

CM comes through with a couple from other papers:
Sally Forth by Steve Alaniz, Francesco Marciuliano, and Craig MacIntosh (There's no Sunday Sally in the L.A. Times. And I never noticed its absence until today.)
Sherman's Lagoon by Jim Tooney



Thanks again, CM.

The L.A. Times has not announced what their plans are for the Boondocks sabbatical. (Unless I missed the announcement.) I certainly hope we get a new strip and not Boondocks reprints from the past. I just don't think jokes about the 2000 primaries will really matter right now.