The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
- Dr. Medulla
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Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
It's hard not to interpret from these initial strips that Rivera kinda hated the entire concept of Mark Trail. She may well be very talented, but I question why she would take over something with some 70 years of history and radically overhaul it this way. Maybe readership for MT was dying (perhaps literally) and the owners figured it needed to roll the dice like this, but it seems a weird gamble to potentially alienate its audience like this while hoping to attract new readers.
"Grab some wood, bub.'" - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft
Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
Yeah not a teen.WestwayKid wrote: ↑20 Oct 2020, 8:10amThe Teen Sparkle cover girl looks like she's in her mid-40's.revbob wrote: ↑20 Oct 2020, 7:54amHe's looking like a serial killer in panel 2Dr. Medulla wrote: ↑20 Oct 2020, 7:43am
What makes more sense than a middle-aged guy writing for teenage girls?
- Dr. Medulla
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Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
An IMCT thought: Bernie's producing the new Mark Trail.
"Grab some wood, bub.'" - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft
Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
That would explain a lot.
- WestwayKid
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Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
Did he farm out the work to some budget rate German artists?
"They don't think it be like it is, but it do." - Oscar Gamble
- WestwayKid
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Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
Looking at the character bios on the Comics Kingdom page, Andy gets 2nd billing over Cherry. Surprise, surprise.
The bios are kind of entertaining, however:
Mark: "...And what he can’t solve with a well-placed investigative report, he can solve with a well-placed right hook. Or maybe an exploding boat."
Cherry: "...We also hear she makes the best pancakes in the Lost Forest!"
Doc Davis: "...And, as the man who taught Cherry to cook, he’d like to take some credit for those pancakes."
Bill Ellis: "...Mark Trail’s “boss,” the Editor-in-Chief at Woods & Wildlife, is the last holdover from the era of the three-martini lunch and still wears a suit to the office while his coworkers are in jeans."
We're also teased with a new character named Amy Lee, who is the "bubbly and boisterous editor of Teen Girl Sparkle Magazine, and the newest addition to Mark’s life."
The bios are kind of entertaining, however:
Mark: "...And what he can’t solve with a well-placed investigative report, he can solve with a well-placed right hook. Or maybe an exploding boat."
Cherry: "...We also hear she makes the best pancakes in the Lost Forest!"
Doc Davis: "...And, as the man who taught Cherry to cook, he’d like to take some credit for those pancakes."
Bill Ellis: "...Mark Trail’s “boss,” the Editor-in-Chief at Woods & Wildlife, is the last holdover from the era of the three-martini lunch and still wears a suit to the office while his coworkers are in jeans."
We're also teased with a new character named Amy Lee, who is the "bubbly and boisterous editor of Teen Girl Sparkle Magazine, and the newest addition to Mark’s life."
"They don't think it be like it is, but it do." - Oscar Gamble
Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
I'll believe the punching when I see it. Also Doc, with a cowboy hat? I guess he doesn't shoot smack anymore either. And Mark should ditch Cherry for Amy, she's way hotter even with vermin in her hair.WestwayKid wrote: ↑20 Oct 2020, 9:14amLooking at the character bios on the Comics Kingdom page, Andy gets 2nd billing over Cherry. Surprise, surprise.
The bios are kind of entertaining, however:
Mark: "...And what he can’t solve with a well-placed investigative report, he can solve with a well-placed right hook. Or maybe an exploding boat."
Cherry: "...We also hear she makes the best pancakes in the Lost Forest!"
Doc Davis: "...And, as the man who taught Cherry to cook, he’d like to take some credit for those pancakes."
Bill Ellis: "...Mark Trail’s “boss,” the Editor-in-Chief at Woods & Wildlife, is the last holdover from the era of the three-martini lunch and still wears a suit to the office while his coworkers are in jeans."
We're also teased with a new character named Amy Lee, who is the "bubbly and boisterous editor of Teen Girl Sparkle Magazine, and the newest addition to Mark’s life."
Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
Clearly, Teen Girl Sparkle is meant to be a stand in to the newly political Teen Vogue.
Last edited by Spiff on 20 Oct 2020, 6:11pm, edited 1 time in total.
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D'you know that you can use it?
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D'you know that you can use it?
-- There's no fairytale ending with cocaine.
Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
I know it's where I get the latest up-to-date information on anal sex.Spiff wrote: ↑20 Oct 2020, 5:57pmClearly, Teen Girl Sparkle is meant to be a stand in to the newly political Teen Vogue.
Last edited by Spiff on 20 Oct 2020, 6:12pm, edited 1 time in total.
Let fury have the hour, anger can be power
D'you know that you can use it?
-- There's no fairytale ending with cocaine.
D'you know that you can use it?
-- There's no fairytale ending with cocaine.
- Dr. Medulla
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Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
Mark really doesn't know what he's in for:
https://www.magazineline.com/sparkle-ma ... er%20month.Sparkle Magazine is filled with fun games, puzzles, crafts, stories, and poems that are fresh and help girls discover who God is and how He works in His world and their lives. For girls ages 6 to 8.
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- Wolter
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Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
Here’s where I admit I just caught up and i...like it so far.
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"But the gorilla thinks otherwise!"
"But the gorilla thinks otherwise!"
- Dr. Medulla
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Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
No snark here, but genuine curiosity: why?
"Grab some wood, bub.'" - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft
Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
Yes Mark should write an article on anal sex.
"Cherry I need your help with some research on this article I'm writing... "
Returning to Doc's points from before. No doubt most of the old timer audience is gone and I have to believe the core audience at this point was people like ourselves finding various ways to poke fun at it. So what is her game here besides wooing Wolter?Yes, there might be some poop
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Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
It’s light and goofy. It’s playing with the idea of the stodgy old strip no one read except to dunk on it. It’s WKRP in the woods - a format change long overdue in the non-ironic newspaper strip world, and I guess I didn’t have enough ironic love for the old version to care.
”INDER LOCK THE THE KISS THREAD IVE REALISED IM A PRZE IDOOT” - Thomas Jefferson
"But the gorilla thinks otherwise!"
"But the gorilla thinks otherwise!"
- Dr. Medulla
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Re: The Mark Trail Thread of Punching Justice and Smug Life Lessons
Okay, fair enough, and I can, in the abstract, appreciate that kind of creative assault. But as an approach I'm not sure it isn't something that will kill it. Which seems an odd thing for a creator to do, to radically reimagine things in a way that sheds the original audience. I'm just skeptical that she can build an entirely new audience.Wolter wrote: ↑20 Oct 2020, 6:43pmIt’s light and goofy. It’s playing with the idea of the stodgy old strip no one read except to dunk on it. It’s WKRP in the woods - a format change long overdue in the non-ironic newspaper strip world, and I guess I didn’t have enough ironic love for the old version to care.
"Grab some wood, bub.'" - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft