Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for September 21, 2016

let’s just see how well of a “fashion designer” Gunther is

Here’s a revolutionary thought. What if Gunther Just Said ‘No’?!

Sigh. Well, I can dream, can’t I…

Gee, I wonder if he has any of those bolts of that “graph paper” cloth left?

Say, ‘Doormat’…, Uh, I MEAN’ Gunther, You DO Know that if You DO this thing for Lu, that You can present a ‘Bill’ for Your ‘Services,’ Right?

And NO, I’m NOT talking about ‘money’….,

Pictures of Gunther & Mom on the wall. The wall sure needs another one.

Note that Gunther said “we” … most, if not all, engineering design class projects, after one’s freshman year, involve a TEAM. At this point of your academic career in engineering, working with others becomes as an important learning experience as the producing actual results for the assignment.

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My point is that Gunther would have to get a buy-in from all the other members of the design team that their everyday item would be a bride’s maid dress. 100% guarantee that is not going to happen. Yes, as Argythree stated, an excellent opportunity for Gunther to say “no”.

The Ballad of Gunther.He was timid, wore a beard, and sewed with the best,With a backpack over his red plaid vest.He could be mean and surly right clear through,Which was kinda weird, ’cause he was yellow too..They called him Gunther.Big Gunther.Big, timid Gunther.Big, timid, sissy Gunther.The hundred and forty-second fastest sartorialist in the West..He came from the old Pitts High School spread,With 10-gallons of curl relaxer on his head.He always followed his mother’s wishes,Even on the range he used two sets of dishes..Gunther.Big, timid Gunther.Big timid, sissy Gunther.The hundred and forty-second fastest sartorialist in the West..There was a wedding ceremony that was about to convene,And the town said, “Gunther, we need your sewing machine!”When the ceremony started at the break of dawn,Gunther’s sewing machine was there, but Gunther was gone..Gunther.Big, timid Gunther.Big timid, sissy Gunther.Big timid, sissy, deserter Gunther.The hundred and forty-second fastest sartorialist in the West..Really…

Bad idea. Even if she offers to fan old flames in return for his help, it might make Tiffany jealous, and his engineering reputation would be shot. Yield to the wishes of the bride, Luann, the spotlight belongs to her.

Gunther can give her his Billy the Bookworm costume. .Where’s the Feather? Isn’t he living with Gunther anymore? Isn’t Miss Inner Beauty upset or worried at the idea of meeting him? Or, like Mini Elvis, has he forever disappeared into the Memory Hole where characters and plotlines Evans gives up on go?

Might work out good, so long as it’s not done in the plaid material that Gunther usually favored.

Great idea. Gunth used to love sewing. Gives him a chance to relax and do something he enjoys, and HEY, you guys do realize, that the greatest compliment you can give a friend, is to ask for help when you need it?

Sukie, I left a couple of responses in the TARDIS, next to the holographic cat…

Yeah…when you’re thinking engineering, you’re thinking of parts…. plans… drafting… structures… physics… “real world application of theories” and grueling test sessions. Not “Okay, I think we’ve got it, now… to the Singer!”. In other words, I’m sure Gunther’s mind is set on something “industrial-like”, and something without frills, ruffles, and lace….quite a humorous contrast Luann has inserted, to break his train of thought…

“She Blinded Me With Sequins” (♫)“It’s Hip To Be A T Square” (♫)“I’m Too Sexy For This Draft, Too Sexy For This Draft…” (♪)“Got That A, All Sewed Up!”“Don’t Use A Whiteboard, After Labor Day”“Blueprint Is The New Black”“Test Patterns”“The Captain And Tensile” (♪)

“Nuts.And Bolts… And Bolts…”“The Sultan Of Swath”“The Modal Model”“Trial And Wearer”“A Boa For A Plumber’s Snake”“Stuck A Feather In His Plans, And Called It Versace Worthy” (♪)“Structural Integrity….And Fashionable, To Boot”“The Pen Is Prettier Than The Sword”or….“Does This Can Opener Make Me Look Fat?”

I have a feeling the engineering does not cover dresses/

A bridesmaid dress is not an “everyday object”.

The start of the reboot of Gunther and Luann, perhaps? (They were always meant to be together)

Ok, so, how does Gunther improve on a way to make a dress… hold it together with paper clips, maybe?

Amazing, Gunther manages to shave between panels 1 and 2 , then, manages to regrow his beard, by panel 3!

If it’s an electrical engineering class, he can sew LEDs into the bodice to light up when Luan feels she’s not getting enough attention. If it’s a civil engineering class, he can build a suspension bridge between the tips of the darts.

Gunther is another example of the “forever teenagers” in this strip. He was supposed to come back from South America looking all manly and having experienced and adventure that gave him some spine, but he insists on staying home and living with his Mommy……How about a dorm full of nerds who are actually smarter than Gunther and who challenge him to learn some useful skills? (Also that Gunther isn’t ever seen coding or using any digital skills seems a missed opportunity…..but I digress…..) It’s really disappointing that the characters show practically no growth. Evans should start taking pages from the book of Lynn Johnston who knew how to create characters who developed over time. I miss FBorFW.

Let’s see, “engineering” support sections into the dress for jiggly [BLEEP] and [BLEEP]………. might involve fluid dynamics or whatnot…..All of a sudden, things could get more interesting……

“Oh, you mean that project the writers cooked up where the work already has been sub-contracted out to the readers and I only take the credit for it?”

I want some more Gunther-Tiffani teasing…

Sorry, Lu, a bridesmaid dress is not an everyday object.

Seems like a lot of us called this one.

When is Luann going to learn that her friends have grown up and become young adults. She on the other hand is still stuck in limbo between teen and adult. What she needs now is a dose of reality, i.e. Being told his engineering homework is more important.

Wow Gunther has some serious facial hair issues. Scruff in P1, shaved in P2, and whammo his scruff grew back already. Dude needs to get his hormones checked.

uhhh… I do not believe that Engineering school will accept a new look at a bridesmaid dress as a valid engineering project… unless you put lights on it or something… Hmmmmmmmmm…

Do you not remember years ago when Luann was reading for the library and Gunther made all those amazing costumes for her to wear while reading?

Sewing in engineering:With the increases in soft bag packaging, solutions from sewing are being used more and more in package design by engineers. It does not show here, but the backs of the new rectangular bags used by Kelloggs for the Morningstar burgers use a pleat. https://www.morningstarfarms.com/packaging.htmlThe original retangular bag design did not have a pleat and the failed package rate was very high. We know that because we used a sale and Steve picked up a very large number of the bags. A percentage in the low twenties failed. Later Kelloggs found its solution for the problem was one from sewing: use pleats. It makes sense. If you are going to deal with something which is soft then there are already thousands of years of solutions already engineered and handy to use thanks to generations of people who sewed. For that sort of engineering problem Gunther’s sewing gives him a head start.I am wondering, though, if requirements for their two classes might clash enough to result in something of a Frankenstein’s Bride’s Maid dress.

5As I suspected, Gunther is being asked to help in the sewing of the bridesmaid dress. There are a few things, however, that I still ponder about:1. With Gunther having his own design project to do in his engineering program, I sincerely suspect that a dress will NOT qualify for his project (as Luann seems to suggest). So, I am wondering if we will see much about Gunther’s project too, or if that will simply end up being a throw-away bit of information and the focus will be only on Luann’s dress? I am kind of hoping to see/learn more about what Gunther will work on to make for his engineering project. It would be interesting too, from a “how is Gunther growing as a person” perspective to see if his project leans more towards a traditional, minor improvement on a device, or if he takes a more radical, dreamer sort of approach to make something more “exotic”.2. In regards to Luann’s dress…. having her bridesmaid dress be her art project seems to set up a problematic conundrum for her in my opinion. At one side of the spectrum, I suspect Zebo wants her wearable art to be “edgy” artistically, but at the other end of the spectrum, it cannot be something too “out there” for use at the wedding. To me, it seems that Luann has quite a hard balance between the two goals to try to reach. 3. Luann’s current drawing seems pleasant, but rather “unartistic”. It could be a wonderful bridesmaid dress, but at least to me, it seems Zebo may feel it is just a dress, and not really the art he wants for the assignment. So, currently, I am worried if that dress becomes THE dress.Gunther appears to be at home. I presume Quill still lives there. I am hoping there is NOT a meeting of Luann and Quill at this time. To me, it seems too divergent of a topic to want to focus on now. I like Luann not being encumbered with a relationship at the moment.

Wow! Thanks, JB! I look forward to learning something new when i go to that website after finishing the comments section.You wrote

Or that NASA went to brassiere designers when trying to design the first spacesuits. http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/neil-armstrongs-spacesuit-was-made-by-a-bra-manufacturer-3652414/?no-ist

why is he clean shaven in the second panel….and not in the 1st or 3rd? hmmmm

Ye of little faith! Kudos to those who stubbornly and correctly felt that Gunther was going to get involved.Schrödinger’s Dog wondered how Gunther can work with Luann on a project she is solely responsible for. Still a good question. Evidently they both get credit in their respective classes. Before I retired I used to arrange for cross-disciplinary projects between math and engineering classes for credit. But, a smart bridesmaid’s dress? We now can make energy generating clothing that uses a combination of our body motion and solar power. The pictures I saw looked like ordinary cloth.

Wait, wait – a twenty year old woman gushed about an idea “on the phone”??? What is this, 1982? She would have texted the entire idea along with pics of her sketches and a link to the Pinterest board before she even left the house for Gunther’s dorm…

While I could go on about how Luann’s bridesmaid outfit may not qualify as an engineering project, etc, I think what was off-putting in today’s strip is her facial expression at seeing Gunther do his homework, and um, improve upon himself academically. She seems rather dismissive and unimpressed. Just my opinion guys!

Not only that but she’s as full of herself as Tiffany.

And Luann is sure that any old rag she designs is going to be OK with the bride…

Luann is just like her father and the Fuze: comes up with an idea, and then gets other people to volunteer their time and skills bringing that idea to fruition while they sit back and reap the rewards. I’m surprised Luann at least came up with the design, as Frank didn’t do much of anything for his grand plan.Where would these people be if they didn’t have others doing all the actual work for them?

Also, how many times are we going to see the “BRIDESMAID DRESS” punchline reused this week? Is Luann going to stick that paper into the face of everyone who talks to her? Hopefully Gunther grows a backbone and tells her to go pound sand, but we all know he won’t.

Nice to see Pru again though.

It’s funny, but the character “Gunther” on the comic series “Adventure Time” is actually the embodiment of the greatest evil in the universe. This Gunther seems nice and staid and predictable, but isn’t that just what Luann really needs? Silence, all you Gunther-haters. Sheesh.

God, I hope luann realizes that this day is about Brad and Toni and doesn’t do anything too stupid to outshine her….(wait, thats not gonna happen, to keep the comedic effect she will wear something absurd…)

I understand that Howard Hughes had engineers design a bra for one of his movie stars, but if Gunther tried that he’d have all the guys in the class wanting to help him.

I wish someone would design a better pop-open can that biscuits come in. Those things are very difficult to open and scary when they do burst open.

Got to be careful when a girl says I got this amazing fun idea, can I come over and we try it out? guys might get the wrong idea…

This may be a career-defining moment… How does “The House of Gunther” sound for a fashion design studio?

I still would like to see Luann and Gunther design and make a dress for Toni. I’m bothered that this wedding dress issue is now all about Luann.

Hmmmmm, if she were real i wonder if Luann woukd like this? I bet that Jenny would, that Kym would, ditto a number of others:http://boingboing.net/2016/09/20/grace-potter-rocks-out-with-na.html

Perhaps Toni has a second reason for asking Luann to be her maid of honor: standing next to Luann would make any bride look more beautiful.

I’ll just flat out put the quote from today’s Luann Facebook page, inviting ones to have a look at all the strips in Volume 3:

“Volume 3 of the Brad & Toni Saga has one of the most ominous scenes Greg ever created:” -You can find the link here or you can go to:

http://luannfan.com/collections/volume-3-dirk-the-jerk/

Gunther has talent but his fashion sense is whack to use the colloquialism. It should be interesting. Maybe Tiffany will consult. Which means she will expect to be in the wedding, Then there is Bernice. Dum, Da, Dum, Dum!! I just thought about that possible turn of events because Tiffany is Gunther’s friend and has a good fashion sense. Of course as Seismic points out where are the bridesmaids and particularly other groomsmen if there are to be more than the Maid of Honor, Luann, and Best Man, TJ?

Gunther has to submit his homework project to his engineering class. Would you like to go before the class in your exclusive designer dress by Gunther, Luann?

I remember people referring to Zebo as “Col. Zebo,” probably as a joke or misreading of the dialogue or something like that. Does anyone recall anything in the strip where Zebo had the word “Col.” before his name?

Spoiler Alert: Someone may get a dress that will not only serve as a dress, but will also open cans.

It’s nice Gunth’ shaved in panel #2.

Gunth lost his beard in box 2. :-)