One old-run = Two new-runs
I actually wrote a question to the website page Elly's Coffee Talk about this. Like my other Coffee Talk question asking for new adventures of Fred the fish, I am surprised to see an answer in the strip related to my question. The question was: Are you going to reprint the first year strips you leapt over to get to the Farley the dog reprints in the second year? In today’s For Better or For Worse new-run we see the answer is, “No. I am going to redo those strips into new-runs.”
In Deanna Sobinski’s very first appearance, she was seen pushing a toy around in a baby carriage. Mike greeted her by calling her “Wart-Head” and “Deanna, Deanna, fat as a pianna”. Then Deanna belted him and Mike thought-bubbled, “She touched me”. This punchline was duplicated to a certain degree back on 11/28/2008 with the punchline of Mike thinking, “She tsked me.” Today’s new-run uses the same rhyme as that appearance with a similar reaction from Deanna. There are a some important differences:
1. We know from Michael’s prior new-run-in with Deanna that he is obsessed with her, so unlike Deanna’s first appearance, there is no surprise when Michael goes from his insults (making you think he does not like her) to his punchline (when you find he does like her). That part of the joke is lost.
2. Michael’s insults are played not as the standard schoolboy attempt to get the attention of a girl he likes, but as a misguided attempt at poetry. With this, Lynn takes steps away from a realistic portrayal. How many little boys insult little girls they like vs. how many boys think about writing bad, impromptu poetry and saying it out loud to the girl they like? I can see Lynn Johnston looking at the original strip and thinking, “Why was Michael so mean to Deanna? I don’t get it; so let me fix it up a bit so it makes sense to me.”
3. Michael is no longer excited that Deanna touched him and instead is more concerned about his inability to write poetry. Sorry, Deanna. The second time around, Mike is just not that into you. Even at 6 years old, his writing is starting to take precedence.
In Deanna Sobinski’s very first appearance, she was seen pushing a toy around in a baby carriage. Mike greeted her by calling her “Wart-Head” and “Deanna, Deanna, fat as a pianna”. Then Deanna belted him and Mike thought-bubbled, “She touched me”. This punchline was duplicated to a certain degree back on 11/28/2008 with the punchline of Mike thinking, “She tsked me.” Today’s new-run uses the same rhyme as that appearance with a similar reaction from Deanna. There are a some important differences:
1. We know from Michael’s prior new-run-in with Deanna that he is obsessed with her, so unlike Deanna’s first appearance, there is no surprise when Michael goes from his insults (making you think he does not like her) to his punchline (when you find he does like her). That part of the joke is lost.
2. Michael’s insults are played not as the standard schoolboy attempt to get the attention of a girl he likes, but as a misguided attempt at poetry. With this, Lynn takes steps away from a realistic portrayal. How many little boys insult little girls they like vs. how many boys think about writing bad, impromptu poetry and saying it out loud to the girl they like? I can see Lynn Johnston looking at the original strip and thinking, “Why was Michael so mean to Deanna? I don’t get it; so let me fix it up a bit so it makes sense to me.”
3. Michael is no longer excited that Deanna touched him and instead is more concerned about his inability to write poetry. Sorry, Deanna. The second time around, Mike is just not that into you. Even at 6 years old, his writing is starting to take precedence.
posted by howard at 10:38 PM
6 Comments:
howard,
I can see Lynn Johnston looking at the original strip and thinking, “Why was Michael so mean to Deanna? I don’t get it; so let me fix it up a bit so it makes sense to me.”
That's the problem, right there. Lynn used to be able to record behavior she didn't understand and let it slide but now that she has the chance, she's given in to the urge to make things 'make sense' to her. Unfortunately, that means that the characters do what she would and they come out all wrong.
Yes, and why doesn't the original make sense to her? It makes some sense to me, and I'm not all that bright. She must have utterly lost her marbles.
In fact, it seems to me that some sort of organic damage cannot be ruled out.
DreadedCandiru2,
Lynn used to be able to record behavior she didn't understand and let it slide but now that she has the chance, she's given in to the urge to make things 'make sense' to her. Unfortunately, that means that the characters do what she would and they come out all wrong.
That has certainly been the way for the last few years. Every character is Lynn, so characters you used to count on to give the Pattersons a good kick in the pants when they needed it (Connie Poirier, Candace Halloran), act completely out-of-character (like Candace yelling "friends forever"). New-run Michael is definitely not the little hellion he was originally when he was imitating real-life little hellion Aaron. There was a new-run strip where Michael indicated that he and Lizzie would get into mischief if they were rooming together while uncle Phil was there. And what was that mischief? I think they pulled out the rhythm instruments and had an impromptu jam session. Those little scamps! It won’t be long before the Family Circus kids start looking rebellious in comparison to Mike and Lizzie.
josephusrex,
Yes, and why doesn't the original make sense to her? It makes some sense to me, and I'm not all that bright. She must have utterly lost her marbles.
Perhaps. If Lynn remembers her first marriage, then she would remember that girls are attracted to that “bad boy” type. At 6-years-old that’s going to be the boy who insults the girl and knocks her books out of her hand vs. the nice boy that helps the girl pick up her books. Maybe Lynn has decided that Michael is not going to be the “bad boy” type this time around. He won’t be Dennis the Menace that attracts the cute girl Gina. He’s going to be the misunderstood poet, who accidentally spills paint on himself that attracts the cute girl Deanna.
It's a shame. Another good beating by Deanna, and Michael might have given up on prose, too.
dlauthor,
It's a shame Deanna didn't give Michael a good beating after he abandoned his family to rescue his book.
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