It certainly doesn’t seem like Curley-Horse is secretive in the slightest about the fact he’s living without parents (I suppose at age 32, why would you be?)…so it’s ultimately pretty sad that this is the first time that anyone has bothered to stop by his house and ask him what was going on. (”We all just assumed he was a malnourished, sleep-deprived zombie freak with some variety of skeletons in his closet. It was a lot easier to assume the worst than to check on him once.”) Yep, Milford is a town full of uncaring assholes.
As for Andrew, apparently after smelling the horrid concoction he just pulled from the oven, he now finds it necessary to find the number for PIZZA DELIVERY on his cork board o’ mystery. <Start Art Rant>Hmmm, wait, hold it! It took me a while, but I finally realized panel two is supposed to be some sort of flashback relating to Andrew and Big Ray’s direct deposit, possibly at an ATM, or maybe at the local cork-board o’ mystery? What the f*ck is that supposed to be? Frank 2.0 needs to come up with a better method of differentiating narration boxes from normal dialogue balloons. Say what you will about Frank 1.0 (Go ahead, say it already!), but at least his narration boxes weren’t rounded like word balloons and he even used a different italicized font for them…But with this comic, I had to contemplate way too long why there was no arrow from the second panel word balloon, in addition to still being utterly baffled by the location.<End Art Rant>
Meanwhile back to the present, where Maureen seems comfortable enough to just grab a carton of MILK out of the fridge and start waving it around while she talks. (Or I guess Curley-Horse might have been keeping it in a cool, wet, sack?) So what’s her plan next, after barging in and going straight for the man’s milk? I’m gonna guess pouring it all over the floor and screaming “Don’t cry over this, bitch!” Yep…uncaring assholes, every one of ‘em.
I, too, didn’t recognize Big Ray without his ear tumor.
Comment by Scott de B. — February 28, 2008 @ 9:45 am
He’s certainly being open and friendly for someone who was built up as secretive, jerky, and completely unsympathetic. Did they switch writers, too?
Comment by Matt Ramone — February 28, 2008 @ 9:55 am
Count me among the uncaring assholes, because, boy oh boy, I drastically don’t care about this story arc.
END ALREADY!!!
Comment by sourbelly — February 28, 2008 @ 9:55 am
Crap, Big Ray really WAS a hitman? So when Curlyhorse was talking about meeting his expectations … was it because he hadn’t offed anyone yet? If this ends up with Big Ray being the one who set off the arsons … well, I wasn’t sure where I was going with this, but that’s a pretty screwed up scenario.
Comment by El Santo — February 28, 2008 @ 10:22 am
So Curleyhorse thinks his old man’s a “mercenary”? I don’t think it’s that dramatic. He just probably a consultant for Halaburton…okay, if that’s the case, maybe he is a mercenary. And what’s the big frickin’ deal about getting checks direct deposited? I have direct deposit for my paycheck, like maybe 200,000,000 million other people. Does Rubin even think about what he writes or is he writing this story in PUB?
I’m still trying to fathom what the hell’s going on in panel 2.
It’s nice to see that Maureen Magee had her nose reattached.
Comment by Regina — February 28, 2008 @ 10:30 am
And why hasn’t anyone called ACS…Junior Miss Swan is a chatty little kid, I’m sure half of her kindergarten class knows that she and the whole CurleyHorse clan have been abandoned.
Comment by Regina — February 28, 2008 @ 10:34 am
Obscure Simpsons reference FTW! Loved that episode.
Comment by Cash — February 28, 2008 @ 10:45 am
Still no sign of Maureen’s left arm since 2/25…
Comment by thorpnotized — February 28, 2008 @ 10:48 am
So… Saint Andrew of Curly-Horse is caring for two small children, but he feels perfectly free to gallivant off into the night anytime there’s a fire or other disaster for him to catch on video? And he feels free to play basketball, which involves plenty of after-school practice and frequent travel to away games? And nobody in the school system knows about it? Does he forge his father’s signature on his report cards? (And again, as I said yesterday, how did Maureen manage to go out with this guy for a significant period of time without knowing any of this?)
Sorry, I don’t mean to throw cold water on this heartwarming tale, but it just doesn’t add up.
Comment by johnw — February 28, 2008 @ 10:49 am
Also, did Gil never once ask Andrew about his parents, call home to ask for his parents, or even wonder why they never came to games? Andrew seems pretty straight-forward about the fact that they’re gone, so if someone had just asked about them he would have told. Gil Thorp is a total bastard. You never even see a thought bubble where he wonders why he never sees Andrew’s mom or dad. Don’t you think he’d be curious?
Comment by Howabominable — February 28, 2008 @ 10:56 am
So “mercenary” = hitman? I was picturing Big Ray occupying Philadelphia with the rest of the Hessians. I didn’t know you could direct deposit grog.
Comment by laura — February 28, 2008 @ 11:06 am
The big problem for Andrew is the rugrats. Without them he could explain away the missing parents for a long time: they travel for work, they’re invalids, visiting sick relatives, don’t have any use for sports, are agorophobic.
Having a checking account would help. If he doesn’t have checking privileges on his father’s account, use the ATM card to get cash and open and feed his own account.
Setting up new utility accounts is a pain, but since they’ve been established the utility companies don’t care who writes the checks or transfers the funds.
Comment by dale — February 28, 2008 @ 12:36 pm
A-Train’s spit-curl is getting larger and, dare I say it, poofier. Hopefully this trend will continue and we’ll end up with what appears to be a Pomeranian attached to his forehead.
Also, it’s “contractor” that’s code for “mercenary,” not “consultant.” I think Neil’s trying to make some kind of comment about Blackwater, but, of course, being Neil, something got lost on the transition from reality to Milford.
Comment by Zaq — February 28, 2008 @ 12:44 pm
Like John W, I briefly wondered about the logistics of leaving the rugrats alone while he does the basketball thing and chases firetrucks. Then, Jason pointed out that they’re Asian midget sweatshop slaves, so churning out pirate DVDs and designer handbags in the basement keeps them occupied.
Glad to see that the inner man in Maureen is coming back out in panel 3. She’s gonna take a big swig out of that milk carton and let out a huge belch any minute. Hey Maureen, the whiskey is right there on the kitchen counter.
Curlyhorse is looking more attractive and closer to my age every day, which deepens my shame. I really miss the skeletal freak who was trying to tell Gil, “Coach, I really don’t care. Fuck off.”
I can hardly wait for the next appearance by Gil when he figures out what a huge prick he’s been.
Comment by julienne — February 28, 2008 @ 1:04 pm
I may have to fight you for CurleyHorse’s affections, Julienne.
That being said, it’s time for me to go shower and scrub with the wire brush once again.
Comment by Regina — February 28, 2008 @ 1:20 pm
Like you Julienne, I also miss the scrawny, ugly horsey-face CurleyHorse. It was much easier to hate him when he was busy making Glen Quagmire-like faces at Gil and acting like a total douche. Allllll-Riiiight!
Comment by Regina — February 28, 2008 @ 1:23 pm
I think CurleyPants is a Mexican.
Comment by Sgt Saunders — February 28, 2008 @ 1:32 pm
Sgt Saunders – What? A flamenco dancer? Tight black pants and brooding looks? Oh, I’m just hosed now.
Comment by julienne — February 28, 2008 @ 1:37 pm
re #8 thorpnotized–
Funny you mention that — in today’s 3G, there’s a background character that is either a bust-style statuette or a woman with no arms. Clearly, the last thing Frank saw before he stopped appropriating current cultural references was Boxing Helena. Maybe he thinks this is what piercings have led to: voluntary amputations; way cool.
Comment by O'Darwin — February 28, 2008 @ 3:43 pm
Just regular Mexican. He knows how to handle money and take care of his family such that no one knows whats going on. Do Mexicans do that? I know they wire money back to Mexico to take care of their families. Now if you want to dress him up, well….that’s not my bidness.
Comment by Sgt Saunders — February 28, 2008 @ 3:57 pm
“How does he pay the bills?” Ever see Midnight Cowboy? I think there are some wealthy dowagers in Milford riding the A-Train.
Comment by Sed — February 28, 2008 @ 5:44 pm
Friday (up at http://www.gilthorp.com) … Milford’s oldest teenagers discuss Milford’s shortest nine-year-old and see Milford’s largest police scanner.
Comment by Dave — February 28, 2008 @ 8:17 pm
Still no sign of Maureen’s left arm since 2/25…
Heeeee. I would love to see the local news get involved with that: “Day 27 and still no sign of the missing left arm. The community here has rallied around Maureen and search teams have been tirelessly combing the area. Also a 24-hour hotline has been set up. Anyone with any information about the limb on the lam can call 1-800-LEFTARM.”
Still, I am heartened to see her faithful black-and-white stripe purse strap remains on her right shoulder.
Comment by Laura Jane — February 29, 2008 @ 8:05 am