Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for October 12, 2019

the boys have a good point with each other

Clap and clap back!

Les: Takedown = 2 points

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Gunther: Reversal = 2 points

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Looks like they are running even at this point.

In the last panel, if the kitten had longer ears, he would be a ringer for a gray Pikachu.

Just when I thought G&K couldn’t disappoint more in this arc,

they did.

What kind of friends are you two? The girl is struggling and your taking her money.

THE TWO DO EVIL, FOR CHARGING HALF OF HIS INCOME KNOWING THAT SHE NEEDS THAT MONEY, STOP DOING IT!

The guys are both aiding Tiffany….Les yielded his job at the Fuze..and Gunther’s helping market the eBay merchandise…but BOTH of them are profiting from that “generosity”. Maybe this accusation/counter-accusation will lead to a common concession that they should both return some of those funds.

Guys why don’t sell Tiff the Golden Gate Bridge !!

Dishwashing is no fun. And selling Tiff’s clothes on eBay is a lot of work. And the guys and Bets are probably not well off. Does Gunther have any other income? They were not taking advantage of Tiff – but now Tiff is in a world of hurt. Somebody will put her up.

Les has learned from his mother.

Differences: Tiff proposed the deal to get the server job from Les, who took the lower paid dishwasher job because she offered to split her tips.

Gunther and Bets i(actually Bets) mposed the 50% on the eBay sales.

And Tiff accepted that deal.

Gunther probably would have done it for free.

But I like that they seem to talk and maybe they can help her.

Hey les and gunther, if you boys are feeling so guilty about taking 50% of Tiff’s money, why not just give it back to her? I know Gunther would do it in a heartbeat because he’s a good boy with a heart of gold. But les, he doesn’t do anything unless he’s getting something back.

Boy kind of a Debbie Downer this arc, along with the implication that poor Tiffany is being taken advantage of She does not feel she is being taken advantage of, and maybe not, although many made a good argument that she was/is back when Gunther and Bets offered to sell her stuff, but that leaves me to believe that Tiffany will gut it up somehow. Or…?

Now we all see that Gunther is no better than Less ! Such friends of Tiff :)

Very poignant image of Tiffany in the shadow.

Who woulda thought the old Tiffany would morph into the new one – full figured and broke. But she’s much more interesting nowadays.

50% that’s stealing! 25% max is fair. I knew leslie would RIP her off, but I’m disappointed in Gunth

In many cultures, it’s unusual to let a young girl scrounge for money like that…

I really feel bad for Tiffany. She could really use a hug or something.

I wonder how Tiffany will manage to solve her problem. Will it be thanks to someone or thanks to some incredibly good idea that she will have suddenly? It would be great if she succeeded thanks to the help of her old “enemy” Luann.

Hmmm… I think I might see what the problem is.

I like that Les is actually somewhat aware of what Tif is going thru.

both have been working to Tiffany’s benefit as per her original wants; giving back now would help her but would be charity.

I would have much more money if nobody ever charged me for the things they did for me and/or I charged them for all I did…such as post these points of wisdom.

(Assuming any would pay.)

Pot—-meet Kettle.

50% of tips is BS. She does need Econ and life experience

GnK have really played the victim card here. G and/or K have made it overt (broken the fourth wall?) that they know they’ve been deliberately grinding on the Tiffany character for quite some time now.

It’s interesting to note that Tiffany isn’t the one acting the victim. She didn’t welch on the deals she made with the two or ask to renegotiate. The boys, on the other hand, appear to be feeling the pangs on conscience. Even (gasp) Les!

This is definitely a cliff hanger! Which means that next week we’ll be on a different arc.

As an aside; Gunther and Les seem to be interacting on level basis lately. Each giving as well as they get from one another.

Will they renegotiate both deals themselves or will someone else step in?

It takes a lot of work to sell on Ebay. You don’t work for free, do you?

Roxanne, you don’t have to put on the red light. Those days are over, you don’t have to sell your body to the night. Roxanne, you don’t have to wear that dress tonight, walk the streets for money, you don’t care if it’s wrong or if it’s right.

No Mordy, must be depressed with Les equaling Gunny. Ah well… do we pause this arc or continue… I suspect the wind will change. The interesting thing will be if the boys give some of the money back but then that only solves part of the problem. We still need Tiff to talk with Bets (this should happen before the money flows). As a reminder about eBay, shipping and handling is usually a separate charge. GnBs 50% is for their time posting on eBay.

Another thought, will GnBs 50% eBay price be the fly in their relationship? Ouch…

I think that when the deal was made between Tiffany and the boys she really didn’t understand what she was really doing. Tiff had no real concept of money and what things cost, which seems to be especially common among children of the wealthy. I do think Les, more than Gunther, took advantage of that. However, Gunther isn’t completely innocent here. I seem to recall that Betts is the one who negotiated the price and Gunther simply went along with it.

How does either guy know about the private arrangement TIffany made with the other? Les should not know about the Ebay money and Gunther should not know about splitting the tips with Les. Did Tiffany tell them both?

Revenue-sharing is common across a lot of industries and markets. Look at pro sports, for one. Those who decry capitalism have yet to come up with something that is more equitable and responsible. Socialism has failed wherever it has been attempted, and leaves environmental issues in its’ wake.

Tiff entered into her arrangements willingly; caveat emptor.

This is becoming a patently obvious setup for her to move into the Gulag, or perhaps live with Pru. I like the latter, since it lets Tiff be her vapid self for much longer. Remember, Pru likely still has a few theater world connections, so there’s that angle. A move into the Gulag could upset the delicate balance of relationships between her, Gunther and Bets. I like that situation to serve as a means of removing the most junior character of those three from the strip, a la Quill…but that could mean a G&T coupling, and I am not sure that we’re ready for that.

Real good friends.

Yay! Les keeps Punk. Tiffany cant afford a pet right now. Good decision.

Don’t forget the eBay fees, the PayPay cut, the shipping, the waiting for payment after purchase, and all of the time spent. She would have been better off selling them at a garage sale.

Shame on Gunther and Les! Both of them are taking advantage of Tiffany!

Note that Tiffany left Punk behind. She can’t afford to have a kitten right now, and she noticed how “attached” Les was to him. We shall see…

This just goes to prove Tiffany doesn’t know anything about business and cut her losses. Les made out like a bandit with that deal (going from a server wage where he wasn’t making much in tips, to a normal hourly wage would have been huge pay bump then add in 50% tips). With Gunther it would be dependant on who is covering all the sales costs (shipping, eBay fees, etc..). However Tiff could have changed after the startup their profits to 25%.

FIRST – Everybody should lay off Gunther and Les. What’s Happening to Tiffany is not THEIR “fault.” PERIOD.

And considering how TIFFANY has treated him (and just about everybody else) over the years, she’s lucky Gunther is helping her at all. By rights he SHOULD have told her to go jump in the lake the minute she latched on to him when he got back from Peru back in 2015. But still Gunther HELPED. And if it weren’t for Bets. He’s have done it for FREE. The same thing for Les. Tiff has also treated HIM with contempt in the past, however justified. And some would argue she’s “playing” him now. He should have never agreed to that “job swap” in the first place. And if Les truly “cared” he would have told her to keep all the tips and he would have just lived off his dishwashing job wages. And yet he still helps. The guys are under no obligation to help her. And don’t forget, “folks” are always saying that Tiffany can “take care of herself.” ;)

But I digress, and let’s get REAL here. The real “Blame” for Tiffany’s plight, is NOT these two lads. The “Blame” lies at Ann Eiffel’s Stilettoes. Just about everything was semi-fine in Tiffany’s life, until Ann Eiffel showed up. So let’s put the “BLAME,” where the “BLAME” is due.

The solution? Well, Tom Farrell offered it earlier this Summer. If all else fails (Meaning Lodging at the Gulag or staying with Bets) Tiff SHOULD move back home with her dad. She could live and eat at home for free. And give up that ‘stressful’ Fuse job and go back working at Kidz First. Plus she could keep a close eye on Evil Ann. Becoming Ann’s “shadow,” so to speak “Friends Close, but Enemies CLOSER” remember? Plus Tiffany still has Bets to help her with her studies and a pal to hang out with.I really think Tiff could “Stomach” Ann for 2 1/2 years until she graduates from college. Perhaps if she’d done that in the FIRST place, she wouldn’t have to sell most of her clothes.

A lot of good perspectives shared here so far, and although I’m not sure we will see it next week or after a Monday jump to one of our other friends (or enemies!); but Gunther has that last batch of eBay loot, and that means a visit with Bets. Gunther will share what Tiff has disclosed to Gunther…that she’s in trouble with both money and her studies. If Bets has room to share in her abode, what a great way to help Tiff with both problems.

touche

Oh what the heck…have Gunther move in with Bets, and Tiff move in with Les. That would make the fur fly!

ooo – brotherly love.

And, Les isn’t reporting the 50% of her Tips he gets to the IRS, so he’s making out yet again.

cousinly. Sort of.

perhaps next week will bring Gunny and Bets conferring on how to help Tiff; Tiff needs to have a room mate and to live in more modest digs.

Sunday: Frank has second thoughts about having Puddles “fixed”.

They are gouging her.

If Greg wants to finally give Tiffany a break, I think he should pay a little attention to Meghan Markle, an unknown “B” actress with a father who is worse than Tom Farrell. She hooks up with a wandering prince and is now more famous as a expatriot dutchess than she was in Hollywood. Princess Tiffany! Has a nice ring to it.

5

In some ways, the 50% the dynamic duo gets from Tiffany seems somewhat appropriate…. but in other ways it feels like “loan shark” territory a bit too.

It is hard to say which way it seems any given day, to me. Friends need to look beyond the “business” sometimes.

one small point: Gunther’s 50% pretty much ends with this latest sale of stuff.

Les’ 50% will be ongoing, as long as both are employed at the Kafe’ .

Both Bad Boys are exploiting the easily-manipulated Tiffany. It’s shameful.

Stop beating up on Tiffany!

Good comeback, Gunther..

And here comes the guilt trip. Good thing Gunther doesn’t fall for it.

My takeaway from this arc is Tiff’s slightly bitchy personality is unfortunately pritty well justified and grounded in some well earned trust issues. Both Gunth and Les tried to sleep with her, she turned them down, and now their taking advantage (profiting from her) financially. She isn’t cool with trusting females after high school and Luann drama, and I can’t blame her for that. But the guys she’s (VERY understandably) more comfortable with trusting, are not much better. Her only real option is get out and hope for somewhere less judgmental.

Gawd, what a den of thieves!

So, let’s break this down with a bit of redundancy. Everyone wants to point fingers at characters for “taking advantage” of Tiffany’s naivete. Let’s not forget that the equally naive Gunther would have helped Tiff for free, if not for Bets chiming in. If I didn’t know better, the whole thing smacks of a setup to bring Tiff and Gun back together in a deeper way. It’s still not the long-term ending that I have forecast for Gunther (becoming Mr. Luann), but it would be a key developmental thing for him, as well as Tiff. This would make Bets a disposable character, eventually. Tiff’s career could go in a number of ways. She has dropped some weight, and if she has to take on more work, that trend could continue. Some old Eye of Zye thing could resurface (remember what Bets is into; that kinda fits), reviving Tiff’s career, perhaps with her winding up as the weather girl on local TV news.

There’s been sufficient foreshadowing with our favorite young married couple, as well; the home-shopping, and the de facto parenting of Shannon. Methinks that we are about due for the demise of Jonah (another prior forecast of mine), or Toni becoming pregnant (which a lot of people here have been pointing to), as a means of furthering related arcs. Yesterday, I forecast that a pregnant Toni would have the older De Groots thinking nursery room, and Pru needing a new place to live. Remember, Pru has theater-world connections, and when those are coupled with Bets’ nerdy tastes and social savvy, it might mean a big break that Tiff sorely needs, right about now.

It’s getting to the point where my extended comments have become their own form of whiteboard, outlining the possible arcs ahead.

Good points, yes, but Gunther and Bess are actually doing something, the Maitre d’ usually just acts haughty to the customers and the wait staff has to deal with that, make the customer comfortable, take the order, keep checking back, deliver the order, take the crap if the kitchen messed up and then split the tip with the maitre d’ jerk (who gets 50% X however many servers).