WaynoBlog: November 2024

Saturday, November 02, 2024

What the Dickens?

This is the weekly dispatch from Bizarro Studios North, where I have been writing and drawing the Monday through Saturday Bizarro comics since 2018. My partner and friend Dan Piraro created Bizarro in the late twentieth century and continues to do the Sunday comic from Rancho Bizarro in Mexico.

Wayno

Evil has only the power that we give it.

Ray Bradbury

from Something Wicked This Way Comes

Every Halloween, as we hand out treats to the neighborhood kids (and some parents), we watch the 1983 film based on Ray Bradbury's famous novel. I've written about this household tradition before and was looking for a line from the novel as today's epigraph.

With the crucial presidential election coming up on Tuesday, this quote hit me in a way it hadn't before.

Plenty of people, some in black robes, are more than willing to give evil virtually unlimited power. I'm doing my tiny part to fight against it, and that's all we'll say on the subject here.

Bizarro reader Wally T. writes:

While on a recent trip to Scotland, I came upon this photograph while wondering through Dunvegan Castle, on the Isle of Skye.
Of course, my immediate thought was, a pipe pic!

I love this image, and I learned that a crofter is a term for a tenant farmer that is peculiar to Scotland and its isles.

We tip the Bizarro tam o' shanter to Wally for thinking of us while on vacation and teaching me a new word.

Deagh obair, laddie!

We're happy to share the latest comics as a brief escape from endless campaign ads.

Even a pebble would have an advantage over this last-minute replacement.

I was surprised that not one of my music-nerd friends noticed that the military man on the left is based on James Melvin Babington, whose photo was used by the Beatles to represent their fictional Sergeant Pepper.

Babington appeared in another Bizarro gag three years ago.

In this gag, he's fighting with Charles Alderton, the pharmacist who created the soft drink.

We also celebrated Witchy Wordplay Wednesday this week.

I'll never tire of drawing Frankenstein's monster.

For Dia de los Muertos, I reimagined a scene from Charles Dickens. I already did a non-Christmas Scrooge gag in September, and this is the second one for the year.

Readers of the strip version saw a reversed layout and missed out on Cratchit's extra tall hat.

The dialog references a line from A Christmas Carol.

We wrapped up the week with a theatre-going marine mammal and a small crowd of Secret Symbols.

"Rock on, IBöD!"

Our new t-shirt model, Bruce D., sent this note about his photo:

I had just received my IBöD tee (love it!) when I saw last week's comic about that poor, cute little bear wanting to learn a stringed instrument. It inspired me to take my own pics.

I thought I'd try and channel the hip look of the salesperson while rockin' my Traveler Guitar. Tried to get the tongue and teeth right (though the Irön Bunny's tongue is much more prodigious than mine).

Thanks to Bruce for sharing the photo!

If you’d like to be a Bizarro fashion model, send your picture, along with a comment, to WaynoCartoons(at)gmail(dot)com.

Fine print: By sending your photo, you permit us to share it online. Readers will be identified by first name only. Whether or not you send a picture, we truly appreciate your purchase of Bizarrowear!

Thank you for reading and supporting the cartoon arts.

We'll return with more stuff next Saturday, assuming we still live in a free democratic society.

I'm Wayno and I approved this blog post.

Bonus Track

Oscar "Papa" Celestin: Marie LaVeau

from the 10-inch LP Golden Wedding

Southland Records, 1955