Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for March 07, 2018

I gotta say it, Oh Sh**!

Oh, crud… Ann beat Tiffany to it!

So it is now established that daddy lives in Pittsville, an easy drive from the Fuse, and also Tiffany’s dorm, and yet sees his daughter only a few times a year?

Ann is not the only one that needs mental help.

~~~

We may go on and off arc, but we now have a problem that could last through next Christmas.

At first it looked like Tiffany easily triumphed and we readers were the beneficiary of a swift conclusion. Now I fear we are in for a long storyline that will match the nearly interminable storyline with TJ versus Ann Eiffel.

Tiffany needs to get the authorities involved ASAP!!!!!

Since Dad is texting Tiffany, it would be a good time for her to text him back with the truth about Ann.

Tom, the only thing Anne is gonna need you for is to pay for the lawyer when Simone sues her for fraud.

Third panel. Both faces. Priceless.

And we have a new contender for Best Actress.

If “Ann needs me” was typed live, it says the wrong thing.

If “Ann needs me” was set up as an automatic response when the phone is busy, it say the wrong thing.

Ann is driving without using a shoulder belt.

In her haste, she could drive into a truck full of frozen custard pies.

Really disappointing…

This might end as surgery without anaesthesia, severing Tiffany’s last tie to her father, who has always been a bad influence on her. She wasted her childhood and teens trying to be the kind of daughter that she thought he wanted—a snobby trophy who doubtless learned her snark from him. (It may well be that he never actually wanted a daughter at all.) Now she has lost her trophy-figure, and I suspect is about to lose her riches, because Ann is precisely the sort of gold-digger who pushes the heirs out of her way and can’t wait to twist Tiffany’s attack against her. She might also lose her college tuition. Her father she never had, just an expensive illusion. She’s going to have to completely reinvent herself. I suspect this thread will weave in and out of future stories, and there will be more battles with Ann Eiffel.

Item one: I think a lot of you guys saw this one coming. Item two: It has been obvious for at least a couple days now, and again, some of you called it weeks ago, that Tiffany did not have this well planned out. Item three: I think I’m ready for a Shannon or Faye arc about now!

I think both Tom and Tiffany Farrell will have a lot less money when Ann gets finished.

Would someone please summon TJ to help out here?

Now would be an excellent time for a fender bender.

It could be worse. Ann may be involved in a car accident because she was too busy ‘acting’. She is severely injured and daddy rushes to her side, shutting his daughter out completely as Ann will sob that Tiff is the cause of all this.

Daddy, who never wanted a daughter, and can play the lead role in “The Sun Also Rises,” could quickly drop Ann when he finds out she has a son.

Sons should not be treated the way Ann is treating her son.

A son is not a daughter.

~~~~

Tom Farrell can not be a normal stable (boring) personality.

To bad Ann the Academy Awards are over.

Does anyone know what Tom does for a living?

If Tiffany’s father chooses Ann over Tiffany he gets what he deserves.

Nicely played Ann.

So much of how this plays out is going to be based on what Tom and Ann’s relationship is like. We know they are serious enough that he proposed that he was taking Ann to Europe as opposed to Tiffany. I would like to think that a casual fling would not be enough to displace your daughter. If Tom and Ann are getting serious then I can see why he would choose Ann’s call over Tiffany’s, especially if Tiffany threw one hell of a tantrum when she learned her spot had been usurped.

I don’t think this is going to end well for Tiffany. There is little to no evidence at this time to support Tiffany’s claims that Ann is a criminal master mind set of fleecing the women of the town with pseudo souffle wear. He could easily believe that Ann is just as much a victim of fraud as her clients were. I think the one reason he will be VERY reluctant to believe Tiffany over Ann is that he will have to admit that Ann had fooled him from the beginning. No one wants to believe that.

Now Tiff and Les get to dads house before that lying two face Ann get’s to put her spin on things.

Anne has the ace card because of what she is to Tom. Don’t know how Tiff will break them up but I hope it happens soon, because Anne is playing him too.

AHA ! Since Tiffany’s motivations are far from magnanimous, I am enjoying the continuation of this plot. Tiffany is what – about 20? Time to create her own life and let Dad have his. Really interesting how Tiffany and Gunther both freaked when a parent acquired a romantic interest. Sure Ann is a user – but it looks like she found somebody that can afford her. She might not wreck the ship.

Well….guess the next best thing that could happen is…DAD gets to discover Ann’s true character ….over time…..and not immediately as they had hoped. Sometimes, it’s better if the truth comes out later, rather than sooner. Then, Dad will have to believe the truth. HE’ll wake up one day with his home stripped and his bank account stripped. I really admire Les for being on the side of truth and honesty for a change. KUdoes for him and Tiffany!

Anyone still think Tiffany’s big plan wasn’t a bust?

Ann is so evil she has never eaten a green M&M.

When she gets closer than five feet to a bag or bowl, the color magically changes to protect the company’s reputation.

The thing is, sometimes…sometimes…people can be sooooo fake….yet, at the same time, be so for real.  ….And because of their history, you’d be hard pressed to discern their rare moments of sincerity.

-

Through all of Ann’s “garnering for sympathy”, here, a few of the tears (from whatever pain she encountered, that she likely tried to force into hiding, away from her cold exterior) she’s leaking, could be from her real pains…the ones that led her to being like she is.  Never makes what they do right…no.  But…it does make what they do. We’ve seen Tiffany’s ‘raison d’etre’ and her Modus Operandi portrayed, recently- even Jonah’s (as explained by Toni)…could we ever see Ann’s?

“Oh, Daddy” (♬)

“And, If You Don’t Love Me, Now…”  (♪)

“You Can Go Your Own Way” (♪)

“The First Edition Of Second Hand News” (♩)

“I Think I’m In Trouble” (♬)

“So, I Go Insane, Like I Always Do…” (♪)

“Tougher Than Leather, Softer Than Lace” (♩)

“I Built You A Kingdom, In That House, On The Hill” (♪)

“I Wake Up, Alone, With It All…” (♪)

“I’m Not The One” (♬)

“Going Round And Round, Cos You Can’t Get On Your Feet” (♪)

“Who’s Gonna Drive You Home, Tonight?” (♪)

“It’s So Easy To Blow Up Your Problems” (♪)

“So Easy To Play Up Your Breakdown” (♪)

“It’s So Easy To Fool With The Sound” (♪)

“Mask Transit”

“See You Later, Instigator!  After While, Crocodile Tears”

“You Beat Me To The Punch” (♬)

or

“Cat’s Got Your Cradle” (♩)

Well. This strip has taken a turn for the suck. About time for me to bail out. It’s been “real”, y’all…

I’ve said (and replied) enough here. I am worn out!! It’s 12:49. WAY past my bedtime!

Disappointed and disgusted:

1 – Tiffany apparently did not record the proceedings with Ann

2 – Simone just vanishes (doubt she is still on the line, since Tiff is calling dad)

3 – No law enforcement is waiting outside the Fuse to detain/raid Ann

4 – Ann just drives away

Also, looks like time for Tiffany and Gunther both to emancipate from their parental fixations.

i bet somebody was standing close by, recording everything…

I didn’t think Tiffany’s Dad could be worst than my Dad but here we are. Man I wish we could swear on here, this is a swear moment.

Does this truly surprise? Dad has been an absentee land lord for a while. He spends more time with the GF than his daughter. Why would something like a little business scam make him dump her? Unless he plans on marrying her, why would he worry?

I don’t understand why the authorities weren’t called. And why Luann’s parents weren’t notified even before this “sting” took place. They have the right to know something illegal is going on in their facility!

I think Ann has Dad by the “You Know What”.

I’ll have to put my disbelief on hold, maybe for a long time, to keep believing what’s happening here. The very obvious route of reporting Ann to the authorities seems to have been forgotten completely! Guess it would have interfered with developing this part of the story line (Tiff vs. Ann vs. Dad and Les vs. Ann). Oh well…

And this is why Tiffany should have simply alerted the authorities and let them handle this. Her plan just blew up in her face and it’s going to be very hard to fix things with her father. At least she got the money back for Luann, Dez and Tara.

I thought Les was bad, but he’s nothing compared to Ann – she needs a few cops with handcuffs showing up at her door with a warrant for arrest for Fraud !! She needs to be written out of the series

He’s a gonner in her clutches. Forsaking all for her. Like the spiral of doom begin.

Should have warned dad first.

Maybe Ann’s car will crash seeing she is talking on the phone and driving. Yes, it’s on a headset, but she’s distracted.

I don’t know if I agree with the posters wishing Ann would have an accident, although anything is possible, but I will say this: all along this has really been about young adult children and their troubled relationship with their parents, in Les’s case a negligent, grifter, loveless mom, in Tiffany’s case, a distant, transactional (buying his daughter off rather than being a father to her), who is selfish, and in both cases they have an absent, possibly deceased, opposite parent. I still think a solution, provisional at best, will happen by Saturday for this arc, but how that will turn out is unknown, and it is what makes this strip so addictive.

I find Ann boring, actually. One-dimensional. A mean, conniving scammer. If she had a moustache, she’d twirl it.

Have we ever met Tiffany’s mom or is Tom a widow and not a divorced dad?

In life, there are set-backs.

On the other hand, people do not usually become rich and remain rich by being fools. It is reasonable that DAD will check out what’s going on.

Tiff takes Satan head-on. Satan wins.

Hmmmmm…. OK. We have to hope that Simone heard everything before Ann took the phone and can be the credible witness. I don’t think Les alone will help Tiff. Ann can easily counter any attack by Les and make him seem incredible, given their history.

Either Simone heard the conversation in “The Fuse” and calls Dad independently, or Tiff can rally at least Lu, Dez, etc. if not the others on the “guest list.” I think that’s going to be the only way she can resolve this in her favor.

C’Mon, folks, you didn’t think Greg was going to make it “easy” for her…. right??? ;-)

Another example of just how sleazy Ann really is. Not a good mother, doesn’t care about Tom’s daughter, and puts on an act to save herself. I hope this won’t end with Tom believing her before his daughter, and will hope Tiffany keeps her momentum going and talks to her Dad, revealing her story. Her Dad might be the one who takes the appropriate action with the law in the long run if it plays out that way.

Groan the groundhog has seen a shadow. Six more weeks of this too-dark arc! (I wonder what Nancy and Sluggo are doing?)

Ann reminds me a lot of Veronica Lodge.

You guys seem to have invested a lot of time into a silly comic. If this doesn’t resolve soon, I’m done.

I hate to say it, but he already chose Ann over Tiff when he sent her away to school. Tiffany knows it, which is why she ballooned up.

I’m going to be really disappointed if Tiff didn’t get SOME kind of recording.

I just realized. We went through a whole Valentines’ Day without Luann breaking up with someone.

If I’m Tom, my first question to Ann, when she arrives, is “Tell me about the scam that Tiffany has accused you of.”

OK! I’ve put it off as long as I can.

I TOLD YA SO!

I think Ann is getting dumped.

All you can do is roll your eyes…because this plays to pattern for the strip. It’s setting up Mr. Farrell as a clueless dork who will be taken in by Eiffel’s blatantly pathetic, insincere, and unconvincing acting.

C’mon. When Tiffany let Ann “steal” her phone, she had put it on “record”…

Hurry up, Tiffany! Go to your dad’s house right now! What are you waiting for?

Tom Farrell, of course you realize that this means war. Tiffany’s going to both win you back and prove to you that Ann’s a con artist, even if it means Les having to take action in order to get back at his estranged mother.

Have we ever seen what Tom looks like?

What kind of parent does not answer the phone when their child calls in the middle of the night? We know the lingerie shows do not start until after the Fuse closes and the shows must last over an hour, so it must be after midnight. Even a mediocre parent would worry about a daughter calling in the middle of the night.

Daddy’s more worried about Ann’s kitty ( and his use of it) than his own daughter

Didn’t think that one through, did you Tiffany? It’s one thing to ask, or make Anne stop her little scam, and that’s all it was really, a little piddling ass scam selling fake knockoffs , to avoid possible embarrassment for your father, ITS QUITE ANOTHER THING TO TRY AND BREAK UP HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH ANNE. Obviously, you don’t approve of your father’s taste in women, but so what? People often choose successive mates with the same qualities, so maybe Anne’s a lot like YOUR mother; ever think of that? And in some ways you and Anne are a lot alike; SO WHO’S SORRY NOW?

I’ve always suspected that Tiffany’s Dad is a narcissist as those traits tend to get passed along to children. Now that he disses his own kid in favor of a girlfriend, I’m convinced of it. Dad and Anne are peas in a pod.

Leslie’s thinking, “It’s not too late to switch sides”.

I believe Tom will find a way to “comfort” Ann.

But who will comfort Tiffany? There are a number of options that may play out.

And this is why the police should have been involved with this little scheme from the beginning.

VERY telling that Tom’s response it Tiff is, “Ann needs me.” Most parents (in the middle of the night, as someone pointed out earlier) would say to Ann, “Can’t talk now. My daughter needs me.”

Take the trust fund and run.

It ain’t over till the fat lady sings. Take it, Tiffany. Sing the lost my Sugar Daddy Blues.

Ah, one of the last-ditch efforts of the true scoundrel!! (It has been seen oh, so often)! Make sure, Ann, that your mascara and makeup is smeary and drippy-wet RIGHT WHEN you get to Tom’s, OK?! It’s more lying – er, I mean more convincing (yeah, convincing) when you do that!

But let’s remember some things:

1) Tiffany may still NOT be on Tom-Daddy’s ‘favorites list’. One thing was that she was needing to raise her grades, I believe, right? Plus, Ann’s charms, like fake jewelry to the untrained eye, are swaying Tom Farrell, most likely! BUT…

2) There’s all that counterfeit product still at The Fuse, PLUS…

3) There’s the ‘Simone Factor’ still in play here! Even if Tiff’s phone was cut off, Simone MAY know Tom anyway (he likely paid for Tiffany’s shopping or similar). Simone may call Tiffany, or maybe Tom directly, AND…

4) It’s ONLY Wednesday!!

OOOooo, this un’s gonna be GOOD!! :)

If this was my strip, Lee’s next move would be to take Tiffany to Pru. He likes her and would trust her. Pur is the one who gave Ann the contract to use the Fuse, and I think she would be very interested to learn about the scam. She’s an adult compared to the others, and she could bring it all to Mr Grey’s attention. And I think Mr Grey is the one person Ann will never be able to manipulate.

If this was my strip, Lee’s next move would be to take Tiffany to Pru. He likes her and would trust her. Pur is the one who gave Ann the contract to use the Fuse, and I think she would be very interested to learn about the scam. She’s an adult compared to the others, and she could bring it all to Mr Grey’s attention. And I think Mr Grey is the one person Ann will never be able to manipulate.

If this was my strip, Lee’s next move would be to take Tiffany to Pru. He likes her and would trust her. Pur is the one who gave Ann the contract to use the Fuse, and I think she would be very interested to learn about the scam. She’s an adult compared to the others, and she could bring it all to Mr Grey’s attention. And I think Mr Grey is the one person Ann will never be able to manipulate.

If this was my strip, Lee’s next move would be to take Tiffany to Pru. He likes her and would trust her. Pur is the one who gave Ann the contract to use the Fuse, and I think she would be very interested to learn about the scam. She’s an adult compared to the others, and she could bring it all to Mr Grey’s attention. And I think Mr Grey is the one person Ann will never be able to manipulate.

Ann: if you want to win over Tom Ferrell, try unbuttoning one more button on that top you’re wearing.

“Ann needs me” = “I’m getting sex out of this”

Tiffany’s face has a look shock. But I also sense that this is the ultimate blow for her, coming from her dad. In some respects I am glad. Tiffany has been doing well in growing up, redefining herself, making the friends that she needs and becoming less dependent on being ’daddy’s girl’. I know she was hoping for a return to that relationship. It is not that she should have no relationship with her father, just not the one she is mourning the loss of.

Gunther Berger. wherever you are right now? You should go to your mom, give her a great big hug and kiss and tell her how much you love her and thank her for all the sacrifices she’s made on your behalf. And THANK whatever Gods there are in the vast Luanniverse that you DON’T have a parent like Ann Eiffel or Tom Farrell.

PS: About Ann getting into an auto accident. There’s a flip side to that coin. What if its Les and Tiffany that get into an accident while tearing pell-mell down the road? I hate to say it, but Tom seeing his daughter’s broken disfigured body lying in a hospital bed, just might be the one thing that brings him around and lets him know how much his “little girl” truly means to him.

Be nice if, before Ann’s little display, Tiff of Les remembered that phones can RECORD!

LOL XD

4

While I share most folks disappointment at today’s comic…. I have to keep in mind that it is NOT THE STORY, NOT THE ARTWORK, NOT THE WRITING…. all of which are captivating and as high a quality as usual. I (and perhaps we) are disappointed in the character of Tiffany’s father. Here are some things I have been thinking about concerning this:

1) While Tom Farrell’s actions thus far are very disappointing…. they are (unfortuantely) in keeping with the scant knowledge we have about his character to this point.

2) From the lack of interaction between Tiffany and her Dad (as reported) over the years, this sort of response to Tiffany’s phone call is “rings” (pun intended) unfortunately as typical… for him.

3) At this point in the arc, I no longer really give a crap about what happens with Ann and the Souffle Lingerie scam…. I am much more interested in what way and how Tiffany responds to this behavior from her father.

4) Regardless of Ann going to prison, or getting off scot-free… and regardless of whether Tiffany pursues further getting Ann for the scam or if she drops it…. the (IMO) most important aspect is what Tiffany does in regards to her father.

5) She could “crumble” and become worse off than she was even during the “sweat pants” period. Or, perhaps she will find some sort of resolve in herself and accept her very much “less than stellar father” and move on to have the life she wants.

This is becoming as disappointing as the stolen tv. With that even having the authorities involved meant that we weren’t told who stole it.

Maybe Tiff’s father and Simone had a quick conversation. Simone might be related to Tiff’s family and her father will believe what she says she overheard on the phone. Who knows, he and Simone might have something set up to catch her in a lie and all this time he was only dating Ann to stop the counterfeit lingerie. I wonder what business he is in?

Word for word analysis:

“Oh, Tom!”

Ann practices saying this in front of a mirror. Often. She doesn’t want to make the mistake of yelling out another man’s name (or woman’s) while having sex.

“Your daughter showed up.”

Ann did not have to say where she showed up. So Tom knew Ann was running a lingerie party, though not necessarily a Soufle Lingerie party.

“Sob”

Again VERY well rehearsed.

“Accused me of running a scam!”

This is a statement and merely a statement. Ann is speaking the truth. Tiffany accused. Ann is not saying she is guilty or innocent.

“Threatened to (sob) break us up!!”

Ann is making (rehearsed sob) the relationship (sic) more meaningful to her than Tom thought it was.

“What should I do?”

What did I just force you to tell me I should do, since I just told you I’m nothing but a poor defenseless girl who needs a big string man to protect her.

“Yes.”

Sucker.

(Sniff)

Rehearsed.

“OK I’ll come right over.”

She could have said “I’ll be right over,” but we know why she said what she said even if we can’t explain it.

Cue the theme music: it is almost High Noon in Pittsville. The theme from “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly” would also work.

At least Tom Farrell is consistent. He was a bad dad before this arc, and he’s still a bad (and/or dumb) dad as we approach its climax. Will Annie Awful maintain her spell over Tommy-boy? Or will Tiffany and her new ally and friend Leslie find some way to bring the hammer down on Annie’s lingerie scheme? Is “daddy” a stakeholder in Souffle Lingerie Inc.?

I think now that Tiffany can just let the people in Paris know that someone is selling knock-offs and let them deal with her (and sue her). She has the list of people that she’s ripped off. If Daddy wants to help Ann then, well, he deserves her.

I think now that Tiffany can just let the people in Paris know that someone is selling knock-offs and let them deal with her (and sue her). She has the list of people that she’s ripped off. If Daddy wants to help Ann then, well, he deserves her.

So, all that was for nothing??

Hmm… more to this than we thought…

I wonder if they do “quickie weddings” in the town of Pitts in the wee hours of the morning? Because THAT might be Evil Ann’s next move……,

It’s like watching a heel turn in wrestling. The bad guy is gonna win this time and there’s NOTHING anyone can do but watch.