Klaatu Barada Nikto

Although it's only November, here at Bizarro Studios North, where we work on a six-week deadline, the New Year has already begun.

For many of you, this weekend is the last chance to relax before the long siege of familial and professional holiday obligations. I hope you find opportunities to enjoy a little down time between now and the beginning of the New Year.

Speaking of down time, this couple has found a method of achieving domestic tranquility. Too bad it resets after 5 minutes.

Sharp-eyed readers may have noticed a nod to a classic movie robot in the strip version of today's comic.

Of course it's Gort, the interstellar peacekeeper from 1951 film, The Day the Earth Stood Still.

I'd considered making it an autographed photo on the wall, but the signature would have been unreadable at the size comics are printed in newspapers.

Air travel has lost any semblance of the glamorous image it once had, at least for most of us who don't book luxury class. With the industry continually shrinking the seats, this passenger might be onto something.

Flying would certainly be less horrible without the congestion and delays caused by carry-on bags (most of which won't fit in the compartments anyway). When Bizarro North Airlines gets started, we'll allow checked bags at no charge and assess a $40 fee for every carry-on.

I was on a cruise ship once, and immediately felt trapped and claustrophobic. Being in a giant hotel with no exit is bad enough. The addition of karaoke would certainly be valid grounds for jumping ship.

This one evolved from an old sketch that was a little too on the nose.

I'm much happier with the new version, in part because of the two different, but applicable, meanings of the word "pad."

Friday, we take another peek inside the Rho Phi Sigma frat house, where the bros run free. I've used these character types as fodder in the past, even before I started doing the daily Bizarro comic.

When reading this gag, it helps to imagine Siri's voice has been set to "gruff Brooklynite."

Well, that's it for week 46 of Bizarro 2018. 
 
Check Dan's blog for his commentary on these gags, plus his latest Sunday masterwork.

Bonus Track

The score for The Day the Earth Stood Still was written by the prolific composer Bernard Hermann (whose most recognizable work is probably his score for Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho.)



These selections from the soundtrack feature the otherworldly sound of the theremin, played by Dr. Samuel Hoffman. Dr. Hoffman (who was also a podiatrist) had a long career playing theremin, and one of his last sessions on Captain Beefheart's 1967 album Safe as Milk, which featured the good doctor's eerie sounds on two tracks.