A blip in the Milford Matrix causes Steve Rosen to chase himself as he catches the ball in the void of nothingness. Meanwhile, the shadowy architect of the Milford Matrix (or possibly Cully Vale, finally at the game after a week of binge eating and going through drawers with the Bad News Taurus gang…) looks on.
Then back to Marty Moon’s ever-changing booth! (Sadly, the most interesting aspect of football games this year.) It seems the fellow from yesterday was really just a technician there to install Moon-Bot*, the automatic Milford sports-broadcasting robot. Today, Moon-Bot has rolled ever closer to Marty, who is so glazed over with boredom, he hasn’t even noticed this will be his last day on the job. Tomorrow Moon-Bot, with the smooth charm and voice of Von Haney and the stunning good looks of Brent Raptor, will take America by storm! Considering the latest plot twist is that a guy even less memorable than LG Howard Gourwitz is now injured, we better hope that Moon-Bot does something interesting.
I think this comic would more successfully hold our collective interest if they just gave up on the whole “playing sports” thing. After all, do any of you even remember what the record of the football team was the last three seasons? Neither do I, and frankly, I don’t care. What I do remember are the fist fights, self-clubbings, car explosions and chainsaw amputations. Don’t you think it would be awesome if they changed the format of Gil Thorp to Kaz and Gil driving around in a van and solving mysteries? Moon-Bot could be their wacky sidekick! This really needs to happen. Let’s get a letter-writing campaign started!
*And yes, Moon-Bot is a distant relative of the currently incarcerated Kaz-Bot.
I sense an emerging sci-fi theme from Berrill, what with Moon-Bot replacing Marty and Bionic Bill Ritter likely coming in for the fragile bag-of-mostly-water Rosen.
Can Gil and Kaz defeat the machines and save humanity?
Comment by killebrew — November 6, 2007 @ 11:28 am
Who’s that dapper dude helping Steve Rosen off the field? Wait, who’s Steve Rosen again? Oh right, he’s a wideout who had nothing to do until they tried “the soph” out at QB and started getting something going in the passing game. Anyway, back to Asst. Coach Whatshisname, he seems to be giving Gil a look as if to say, “hey, ya wanna help me lug this stiff off the field? Your rigid profile isn’t really helping out right now.”
I think I finally figured out what’s up with Marty’s microphone situation. The big, rounded object at the bottom of Panel 2 is the actual microphone that picks up the audio for broadcast. The smaller device connected to the headphones is actually a robotically controlled electric razor/Roomba that maintains Marty’s impeccable goatee, kinda like one of those sucker/skimmer things that scoots around the sides and bottom of a swimming pool. This is how Marty keeps his beard neatly trimmed and free of crumbs and stale Old Milwaukee at all times.
Comment by Ned Ryerson — November 6, 2007 @ 11:39 am
Recently (as in the last 6 weeks), I wrote a fan letter e-mail to Neal Rubin obliquely thanking him for all the joy Gil Thorp has brought into my life.
He replied and said that Kaz was one of his favorites, too, and that he was looking to use him more. I’m sad to see that this has yet to pass. Good old punchy Kaz is way more interesting that teenagers using Google and failing to score any points in a game played by high school students.
Neal also said of Kaz, and this is a direct quote, “this summer, when he was the focal point of the story line, I ran short of time to tell the story … I’d have liked to see some sparks fly between Kaz and Gail Martin, to the point where he had to make some decisions about himself, his character and good ol’ Kelly Krystek back home in Milford.”
I swear on my copy of Funhouse that this is all completely true.
Comment by Matt Ramone — November 6, 2007 @ 11:40 am
Also, for those who are interested in communicating with Mr. Rubin can write him at nrubin@detnews.com.
Comment by Matt Ramone — November 6, 2007 @ 11:42 am
OMG, Matt, how I wish that he had used that storyline…it’s more interesting than what’s going on now. The Rock and Roll Carol King and Kaz, P.I. as a love match…well, there’s always next summer.
Ned, I think that dapper dude helping Steve Rosen is the late Malcolm X.
I beat LG Gouwitz to the punch. I googled Steve Rosen and this is what I got…
http://nailthatcatfish.tripod.com/
Comment by Regina — November 6, 2007 @ 11:47 am
I’m more inclined to think that Steve Rosen may be this guy:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satyaraja_Dasa
Comment by Regina — November 6, 2007 @ 11:50 am
Regina, both options are horrifying and entirely plausible in the fractured reality of the Thorpverse.
I didn’t notice this until just now, but am I the only one who picked up on the fact that Steve Rosen needed help walking after being drilled hard in the middle (which resulted in ball loosening)?
Comment by Matt Ramone — November 6, 2007 @ 11:56 am
I, too, am intrigued by the notion of sparks flying between Kaz and Gail Martin, but three problems arise:
– Kaz is way prettier than Gail.
– I infer that Kaz is much younger than Gail. She certainly looked like she’d been around the track quite a few times… and her one hit song was, what, 25 years ago? She must be pushing 50 at best.
– Frank McLaughlin would be called upon to depict “sparks flying,” and I don’t even want to think about Frank THINKING about sex, let alone trying to draw it.
As for today’s “action,” why is Steve Rosen such a traumatic loss? This is a team, after all, that has no passing game whatsoever. For the Mudlarks, losing a wideout is kind of like having your appendix removed, no?
Comment by johnw — November 6, 2007 @ 12:00 pm
Now that you mention it, Matt, Steve does look a little, shall we say, blissed out in Panel 3.
Comment by Ned Ryerson — November 6, 2007 @ 12:01 pm
p.s. the Google wave is sweeping the comics! Today, Spider-Man uses the Google to find info on his latest villain. It’s a sad day when Peter Parker takes crimefighting tips from LG Howard Gourwitz… but it’s a step up from Peter’s usual method of finding out stuff: watching TV constantly.
Comment by johnw — November 6, 2007 @ 12:06 pm
I love Gil’s souless stare as Malcom X is struggling to take Steve Rosen to a Nation of Islam meeting.
Comment by Regina — November 6, 2007 @ 12:29 pm
My God… there’s a thin glimmer of hope that Rubin is not finished with the rock-n-roll Carol King storyline? As weird as a Kaz-Gail Martin hook up might be, I’ll always be haunted by the notion that time limitations may have truncated the greatest Gil Thorp storyline OF ALL TIME.
Comment by El Santo — November 6, 2007 @ 1:27 pm
Why is there a tether on the football? Have they invented a new game out of boredom?
Comment by Ivan — November 6, 2007 @ 1:51 pm
Steve Rosen needs help walking off the field because his shoe fell apart in panel one.
Comment by sourbelly — November 6, 2007 @ 2:24 pm
“I’m Doctor Rosen……Rosen…Doctor…Rosenpenis”. Ha, Fletch never gets old. Maybe Gil can put in Max McGee now.
Comment by PRiverside — November 6, 2007 @ 3:04 pm
Anybody else think that the “Driller” might be a lady? She has lovely hands and what appears to be a pretty substantial bosom.
I like the idea of a beard roomba, but I wish Marty would stop drinking– he is making the room tilt from side to side and I am getting queasy.
Comment by Laura Jane — November 6, 2007 @ 6:35 pm
“What I do remember are the fist fights, self-clubbings, car explosions and chainsaw amputations.”
You make this strip sound way more exciting than it actually is. :-) Wouldn’t everybody read a strip like that? Also, you forgot exploding mailboxes.
My theory on Marty Moon’s double microphones is that Frank McLaughlin is recycling art so old, it features Marty with an old RCA microphone. He then adds the headset to Marty’s head in an attempt to update the art, but he keeps forgetting to white out the original microphone.
Comment by AirForbes — November 6, 2007 @ 10:54 pm
Wednesday – Marty’s play-by-play again emanates from somebody’s kitchen. Hey, put that ice cube tray away !!
Comment by Dave — November 7, 2007 @ 7:56 am