More Like Zeta...Maybe Theta

June 15, 1967

Did Brutus rock a little too hard? Does the open window mean anything? Did someone yell at Brutus from outside? "Ha! That's Uncle Brutus, he's moving kind of slow at the junction!" I'd be humiliated by a sick Petticoat Junction burn, too.

I get what Brutus is saying but I don't think anyone should call themself a "beta" anything. Calling yourself a "beta" just brings up a connotation that I just don't want to see in my newspaper comic strips.

Favorite Chair

July 5, 1987

I am always fascinated by weird things falling out of the sky. Weird jellyfish like things. Frogs. Golf balls. Blood (really just oxidized rain). Most have explanations and I think I can explain what is happening here. There is a nearby popcorn factory that has some malfunctioning vents causing the popped popcorn to escape and blanket the area. It kind of happened to coffee creamer back in 1969. Of course, my theory only works if there's a popcorn factory within a four-block radius.

The big question is: Would you eat some of this popcorn?

You better not be in my ass groove!

The chair is molded to Brutus' body shape. It also smells like Brutus' farts and a little bit like his pee. There are just some pieces of furniture you don't sit in when you're at someone's house.

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Next Window Please

August 19, 1966

Do you pull that out from under the table every time someone comes over? Seems like an inconvenience to do that all the time. I would just have everyone gather around the dining room table. "Brutus made it with the $700 power tools I bought him for his birthday!" "Wow! Brutus made the entire table?!" "No, the little block under this leg that keeps it from being wobbly."

$700 sounds like a lot for 1966.

Well, why didn't you read the signs? This would never happen where I live because driver's licenses are handled by the state while license plates are handled by the county so they wouldn't even be in the same building.

Two-Recliner Family

December 7, 1965

Yeah, sure, it's disturbing that the plane is flying upside down, but 500 feet is not very high up. The Washington Monument is 555 feet. This flight is definitely getting on the news tonight.

I'm too tired to look it up, but I don't think I've ever seen the Thornapple house with recliners. They are a feet up on the ottoman family.

Sit Back and Relax

October 28, 1965

Please don't do this. There are plenty of other ways to murder your husband that don't involve endangering other people and first responders. Don't want to burn half the state down.

It's nice that the assisted living facility let Uncle Ted keep his recliner. They're gonna have to shut that singing down though.

The Good Sofa?

September 21, 1965

Just based on his hair and jawline, I don't think this guy will be any better for Nancy than her current fiancée. Lateral move, honestly.

Isn't that watercooler just a water fountain?

We keep our dogs off the furniture as well. Our boy dog is fine with it, but our girl dog will sneak onto the couch when no one is looking. She also begrudginly gets off when we tell her but she definitely doesn't look like she's going to burn the house down while we sleep.

Not a Very Menacing Growl

In Kewpie's defense, the Thornapple home does only have, like, one chair. Two if you count the one they bring out only when the strip calls for it.

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The New Tea Cozy Project?

I just noticed that Veeblefester's chair doesn't have wheels on it. Good Lord that seems like such an inconvenience. You either have to sit far enough back to allow yourself to swivel out, which is what Veebs is doing, push the chair in and out and risk tearing the carpet, or stand up slightly and carry the chair in and out. No, thank you.

I Know Where She Can Stick That Candle

I love the border of the two throwaway panels. Shows that Chip really cares about his work. Brutus backed down way too easily but we only have a few short panels to discuss where this mysterious lamp came from so someone had to give and God forbid that it be the woman for once.


I'm sensing that Chip started hating his job sometime in late 2007. Prior to that, the strips were actually good and were detailed enough to make the strip look less boring. It didn't look like a huge cut-and-paste job it does now. Also, the subtle humor really makes the strip work.


Wilberforce then tackles Hattie and starts beating her. "Make fun of me, will you?" Wilberforce will scream. It will take both Brutus and Gladys to pull Wilberforce off of Hattie. Hattie's nose will never be the same and her neck will only be able to move slightly in each direction.

Fonzie's Rolling Over In His Grave

It took awhile for me to get the "joke" in today's strip. See, the clock was only going 'tock' when it's supposed to go 'tick-tock'. Hattie fixed it by hitting it really hard. Lousy strip.