Far Out There

Okay, if Sunday’s page was a misery to draw, THIS one was an absolute delight. Sometimes I wonder why I even bother trying to tell an actual “story” for these comics, my true love is just introducing a constant stream of new characters and unexpectedly bringing back old ones. And today’s a weird hybrid of both those things. Go back and look through the previous 25-day Christmas specials, you’ll find at least one of those kids on the couch lurking in the background of all of ’em. That’s because, for YEARS now, I’ve been hoping and praying that THIS year would be the year that I find an opportunity to introduce one or both of these characters. Well, 2017 might actually be the year when I pull it off, but I’ve made them wait long enough that I thought they deserved an actual bit of dialog. Oh, and speaking of which, wait until TOMORROW…

Also, it turns out Claire’s married. To an accountant. That’s a thing that’s established now. Huh.

(Historical Notes: Man, can you imagine having to sit through an entire set of comics just about a Nitpicker’s Guild Christmas party?  How lame would THAT be?  But yeah, it took a bit longer than 2017, but we finally DID get to see who May and Marshall actually are… RIGHT before the hiatus kicked in.)