Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for May 13, 2021

More off panel wall talk. I bet it wasn’t dreams of Nil however! 8^ )

It’s not Luann’s fault, Bernice, that the walls are so thin.

Hard to believe that they are best friends.

”Wall-E.” ✨

Says the one who was listening at the door with a glass. It’s like Bernice tries to be the biggest hypocrite imaginable.

Makes you wonder how many hot dreams about Jack Bernice has had.

And I would never call Bernice “artsy.”

Nil is a film maker – stop action. Jack and Nil started Junior College at the same time. BTW, did Luann drop out?

Yawn….

Bernice should probably throw out the … uh … toys, before Luann “accidentally” finds them.

Actually Nil and Bernice aren’t a good match. He’s not a Psychopath.

Lu – Since Quill, who did you give a chance for romance? (and Quill was a long time ago). It’s so easy to decide who everybody else should be with.

It is amazing how those two stay friends. I am sure they will stay friends, but I’m not sure where the Nil/Bernice pairing will end up. Maybe they will hit it off, but maybe the attraction will not be mutual. I guess we will have to wait and see. The sandwiches look good, but they probably not vegetarian.

Hey Bernice, you wonder why guys won’t talk to you?!? Maybe it’s because you panic easily and you yell at people.

This is starting to drag on like Mary Worth with just about as much passion as well

Strange stuff going on in the 2nd panel! The wall turns green and Luann’s sandwich turns a lighter color?!? Maybe time for new colorist? =-/

Oh, really? You were listening Luann through the wall, once.

Luann must be personality-literate, because she reads Bernice like a book!

Lu stop giving out romance to Bernice when you left Quill hanging.

Well, Bernice, you do talk in your sleep. Don’t like Luann eavesdropping? Just move back home. THEN Ben will tease you. AND your parents will ask who Jack is.

Pot meet kettle, Bernice.

Her comment in the last panel. Uh, who’s the one listening at LuAnn’s door and thinks it’s Jack in there? Pot calling the kettle black much?

Interesting.

Knowing full well that Bernice has the hots for Jack, Luann shoves Bernice in Nil’s direction.

One “consolation prize” coming right up.

Aldo, casual observer could almost present an argument that Luann is keeping Jack in reserve for herself, in case she ever develops deep “feelings” for him. Don’t scoff. She’s done that kind of thing before.

One more point.

Nil? “Artsy-smartsy like Bernice?”

Luann has unfortunately also fallen prey to “Two people MUST have something in common to be together” myth.

Being “smartsy” didn’t exactly help another guy in the Strip when it came to Ms. Halper. ;)

Uh, Bernice? Don’t moan so loudly.

Wait.

The characters are eating, drinking and talking.

Why are there no drops of spit flying from their mouths?

Hey Bernice haters, how come you don’t betrate Luann for inciting Bernice into yelling at her for teasing her for talking about Jack in her sleep which is a sensitive matter. She said something she didn’t want anyone to know about. Luann knows she is embarassed about it but she still feel the need to make fun of her. What kind of friend is she? I’d yell too. I’d yell, “How about you?? You hadn’t dated since Quill left. Why is that?”

Ohhhh luann you think you’re that pretty huh!!!???

Bernice really, really needs to get her ashes hauled. She’s like to snap if she doesn’t.

Don’t be pushy Luann. You may cause more problems than you solve. :/

Boaring…

A little WD – 40 on those bedsprings ought to fix that, Bern.

.

And quit buying sex toys that run on Briggs and Stratton gas engines. The Honda ones are much quieter…

Stop listening through the wall? Does Bernice even hear herself? Miss Glass to the Wall says…blegh. And is Bernice particularly artsy? I have no idea. That ascot is sorta creative, to be fair.

First with Ben and now with Nil/Jack. Seems the very safest way for discuss sensitive topics with Bernice (without made her run away) is offering her a meal ♡. Luann probably discovered this years ago and now she masters the technique. Once again, we see how Luann has become a wise girl♡. She can help her friends by giving her great advice and I love this ♡♡♡. And I agree, Bernice can give Nil a chance and see what happens.

Same thing I said just give him a chance. Don’t stand him up just because he’s not Jack.

That’s a laugh, Bern! Considering that’s what you did when Tara spent the night in Luann’s room.

the blind leading the blind here

No need to listen, Borenice. The writing is on the wall!

“Looks Good on Paper” is fun today!

That Nil is a pretty good guy… He’s the guy with that hat, right? And the shades? And the catchphrase, “Alright, outta sight!”? Yep, my favourite Luann character.

Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz……

I think Bernice and Nil would just drive each other nuts.

I think Bernice has anger problems lately.

You all do realize that the author of this strip is doing this so it gives them days and days of material to drag out the story. Most of us want this solved in a week. Not gonna happen.

I’m left wondering exactly WHAT Luann heard through the wall that leads her to think Bernice needs romance?

It seems Bernice, instead of analyzing everyone else, needs some therapy herself to help manage her own issues. She always seems to be portrayed as angry, unhappy, rude and judgemental. She is one sad character.

I will say Luann is spot on. And Nil seems like a nice guy. However Luann and Jack need to give dating a shot.

How could anyone turn Bernice down? She’s so sweet, caring and friendly.

They have Bernice smiling one minute and then enraged in the next. That side view of her when she is biting someone’s’ head off is really annoying and no one would go from calmly eating a sandwich to pure rage like that unless they are totally psycho. My advice is to tone that side view down, it’s not believable. At least they quit having food spitting out of Luann’s’ mouth when she eats, that’s an improvement.

Bernice may be a stick in the mud, but who is she really hurting Luann? Other than you and your need to live vicariously.

A bit defensive, are we, Bernice? Methinks she doth protest too much!! haha! I can’t wait to see how this goes.

In this case both, Luann and Bern, NEED some romance!

Can Bernice just move on?

So there’s been more to listen to? Wonder why Luann didn’t try to steer jack towards asking Bernice out.

Luann knows how to push Bern’s buttons. Bern is doing a fast burn. Be well y’all.

From an (albeit sarcastic) laugh in panel two, to an angry retort in panel three, Bernice is a bit of an emotional wreck these days.

Right now? I’m not sure of anything as far as relationships are concerned in this strip. Even Nancy is flirting with some lush at The Fuse. Brad better keep an eye on Toni at the station because there’s a lot of stuff that goes on off-strip.

It looks like this “date” with Nil is going to happen. There does seem to be a shortage of male characters where Luann and Bernice are concerned. Gunther is still not totally free of Bets in that arc. Jack is a “player” and free spirit as much as anything and not hookup material for anyone. So GnK have resurrected Nil for Bernice after two years in limbo! Several commenters have indicated that they’ve never even heard of him.

As far as outcome; Bernice and Nil are both “cerebral” types, but the similarity ends there. How is Nil supposed to woo Bernice away from her infatuation with Jack, you may ask (I do)? GnK will have to play mind-bender to pull this relationship off.

Some folks have expressed a desire for Knute and Crystal to reappear. Well they just might get there wish in Nil and Bernice.

Could there be a surprise cooking here? Like, we will see Nils’ other eye?

You have to love those who demand privacy while yelling out their every thought and deed.

“How dare you listen in on what I shouted from half way down the block!?!”

her heart belongs to Jack not Nil!

Hat’s off to Peter Pirate who, yesterday, speculated that this was Luann’s idea all along. While it is still not entirely clear whose idea this was, clearly, Luann and Jack worked on this together. And the more Luann talks, the more it sounds like she was the brains behind this caper – Jack was just an accomplice.

In the meantime, both Bernice and Luann are still in hot competition to see who can be the most unlikable character in this comic strip.

7

Words of wisdom from Luann today. It would behoove Bernice to accept what Luann is saying… because it is spot on.

It is quite humorous that Bernice thinks the only reason Luann may know of Bernice’s desire for romance…. is because Luann has heard Bernice’s “dreaming noises” through the walls. The humor is that Bernice does not recognize that her desire for romance…. and hell, most of her feelings….. are projected through her facial expressions and body language. Bernice believes (incorrectly) that she is able to mask her emotions with the “clinical” posture and “scholarly” demeanor she always tries to adopt.

That she is not able to see that her true emotions still shine forth even though she tries to mask them…. is a somewhat endearing aspect of the naivety of youth…. especially in a person who tries for a rather stoic demeanor like Bernice.

I think as Bernice continues to grow and mature, she will become more comfortable in her own skin and better realize that while she will of course want to and will be professional in her demeanor in her future career, she must also accept that her emotions are still a part of that…. and are a part of all facets of her life.

Hmmm maybe she’ll start dreaming about Nil after their date.

Today’s panels remind me again of how Bernice and Gunther seem to share quite a number of emotional traits:

1. They both tend to be rather reserved about their emotions.

2. They both have a tendency to try to mask many of their emotions (not always particularly successfully, of course).

3. With both of them being rather traditionally “nerdy”, both have had a tendency to feel like an “outlier” to some extent.

4. Both have exhibited greater than the average number of worries/fears/anxieties about dating and romance compared to other characters in the comic.

5. When pushed beyond their capacities… both can have a tendency to respond in a rather “biting” fashion.

Both Bernice and Gunther are great characters…. and in my opinion, they really do represent quite well, their archetype.

I find it interesting that the majority of men in Bernice’s life have come from the Community College rather than her (presumably much larger and more prestigious) own university. I know Luann’s her friend but wouldn’t she have met a larger group of people in her own school by now?

To be fair, Bern also listens (or hears) through the wall. her listening resulted in suspicions over Jack followed by confrontation at the Fuse. Pipe makes a good point that both Bern and Gunther tend to “bite” when they feel emotionally cornered. So they would not make a good pair. We don’t know much about Nil but it appears he could be the more reserved of the two, i.e. in the event that they end up dating.

I suppose next week we are going to see “The Date”.

Bernice is smartsy but not artsy. But good on Luann for giving Bernice the implied option of not going.

whos Nil?

“You know I know about your damp bodypillow you named ‘Jack,’ right? You KNOW I can hear your bed rocking, right? Our walls are paper-thin, Bernie.”

Great facial expressions in the second frame.

They switched seats from yesterday.

I agree with SD’s comment—and others of the same ilk—that this date with Nil was at least discussed and possibly planned between Lu and Jack. Nil is shy, which leaves room for lot of interesting personality traits on his part, brain wise, while Bernice is very defensively repressed. Together they might be a good fit (cool it you drooling old codgers).

Bern is it the buzzing or the moans and groans you don’t don’t want her to hear?

Oxford (Ox), Tiffany, Gunther, Bets, Bernice and Dez attends Moony Uni. While Nil, Jack, Luann, Tara?, Crystal and Knute attends Pitts Community College. Our professional dishwasher, Leslie Knox works at the Fuse. Did I miss anyone?

Bernice as a psychologist could successfully teach her patients how to do a cleansing rant. She could develop a whole new psychological treatment theory based on verbally attacking anyone who crosses your imaginary “line”. She could call it the “That’s Enough Of That Theory”, write a book and go on lecture tours. All the while enabling her followers to shout down anyone who has an opinion they don’t agree with. I like it!

What DOES Bernice want? I don’t think she even knows. I miss wheelchair boy.

All that thrashing around is tough to ignore.

UppppppTightttttttt!!!!!!!

I’m willing to cut Bernice some slack here. She’s been overly sensitive ever since Luann asked her about that blister on her thumb.

If Nil is a snob then he and Bernice are an excellent match.

“All artsy smartsy, like you?” Luann is the one who keeps taking art classes.

One woman I dated when I was in college usualy had one or two XXX rated dreams every night. I knew this because she was also rather Loud when she was dreaming.

And, even Louder when Awake.

Lights out by 10; candles out by 10:30.

I can’t even imagine why Nil is interested in Bern. She is grumpy and snarky pretty much all of the time.

They both could use some…

Gonna be very careful with this one. Luann knows more than Bernie is saying, is all I’m saying.

Romance is in play, however….

That last panel could be taken so many ways…

Anyone else miss Delta? I’d love to see her come back. Whatever happened to her anyway? Surely she’d come to visit from time to time.