For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for March 04, 2022

the truth hurts, does it not? Candace is just getting a “flesh wound” after getting her friends’ statement

I never understood why you had to “dress to impress”, even during my schooling years. If it fit and was comfortable I wore it come what may.

Dolly Parton called and wants her punchline back.

But have you EVER known a “designer” with good taste?

What does “designer outfit” and “expensive” have to do with school-wear acceptable?

Why, she looks roadside.

Even a Canadian comic strip can do the occasional “fan service”!

She resembles one of those pricey hookers. :P

Maybe she’ll bump into the school counselor who might be able to set her straight and send her home to change.

All she can think of is the cost, so she is “showing” off.

Yep.

Lady you overused the word maybe, when you wear that kind of clothes, you ask for trouble, and also your friend is right, when you wear that you look cheap!

It’s clearly Lynn talking through the characters here, but there’s something to it- especially for 1993, this outfit was pretty scandalous, and looks like Candace was trying to show off as much skin as was allowed. That pretty much always looks “cheap”, particularly in a setting like this. Granted, nowadays it’s much more likely to be treated as a woman “owning her sexuality”, but those are, y’know, WOMEN, not teenagers who are desperately trying to be seen as adults, like Candace is.

But like a lot of people like that, Candace had to “grow up” fast.

Perfect Lynn!

Where did Candace get the money to buy those rags?

Turning tricks??

Give it up, girls.

Your so-called “friend” is nothing but a cheap slut—just like her egg-donor!!

Dolly Parton’s line “It costs a lot of money to look this cheap”

Just ask Dolly — she’s an expert at spending $$ to look cheap. And she’ll tell you that, herself!

“It costs an awful lot to look this cheap.” – Dolly Parton

“She was asking for trouble, dressed like that”… this argument may have worked in the 70s-80’s, but today it’s considered “victim blaming”.

To quote the amazing Dolly Parton: “It takes a lot of time and money to look this cheap, honey.”

Well, I suppose the less you wear the more you have to spend to make it look good.

Problem is, the boys that are ogling her don’t care about the expensive clothing, just how they’re going to get her out of them. smh

Doing the math here. Does that mean that her bra cost over $100?

Lynn’s Comments:

This series of cartoons received a heated response. Some readers took issue with me for suggesting Candace was dressing inappropriately, others were supportive and thought she should be told to change.

Dolly Parton made this joke about herself.

Clothes are a sales tool. Salesmen overdress so that what they are selling looks important and expensive. Walk into a store with expensive clothes and knockabout clothes and see the difference in response.

That’s what Dolly Parton says.

In this story arc about school we have seen:Five strips about Elizabeth’s locker.

Four strips about Candace’s attire.

Two strips about a boy’s spiked hairdo.

One strip that dealt with actual academics.

Last panel truer words ever spoken

Once again proof that money can’t buy taste.

I don’t think designer clothes are as popular now as they were then

“I guess” Man what a snotty answer. I hope the school admin bust her before the end of the day.

I went back to the original 1993 strip to see if the prices had been updated, but the dialogue has remained unaltered.

The $350 Candace spent in 1993 would equal $598 today.

https://www.bankofcanada.ca/rates/related/inflation-calculator/

It all depends on the eyes of the beholder….

Being a man I’m not familiar with women’s clothes, but I submit that you don’t need to spend a lot of money to look good and feel comfortable. One big reason why so many people find business or school dress uncomfortable is that they don’t get the proper sizes. Men in particular try to suck in their guts when they should just “let it all hang out” and let the clothiers conceal it (that’s their job). And it doesn’t require a gold card or some such, just a sense of dress and a sense of good taste. You don’t have to shop at Brooks Brothers, either (check out their website https://www.brooksbrothers.com to see out-of-this-world prices). You can get good clothing anywhere from J.C. Penney’s to your local thrift store. It can be done.

Zoom! Right over her head

School uniforms stopped all of this many years ago…..

I have always felt like the phrase “you’re asking for trouble when you wear something like that” was completely offensive. While I agree that we should teach our daughters to have self-respect, I do NOT believe that we should be teaching our boys that when a girl dresses a certain way, that must mean “she’s asking for it”, or that it somehow means “yes”. Because it doesn’t. Why not teach our boys to have some self-discipline and be decent human beings instead? Also, for the record, self-respect has nothing to do with clothing…just saying. Since I’m sure this will elicit some sort of hate replies…have at it…

SPOILER:When Candace finally “grew up”,the guy she settled down with wasn’t exactly Clark Gable.

Only one person wondered where she got the money for her outfit. I’ll make that two.

This is the last strip in this story arc. I am very disappointed in the ending. Lynn set up a “cheap” joke (sorry) and did not deal with any consequences for Candice’s choices. She should have been shown being sent home to change.

Looking cheap knows no monetary bounds.

“Designer outfit”, huh?!? Yesterday’s arc shows that Candace, whilst not a “slut”, is surely a hypocrite. Respect her- PUL-LLEASSE!

Real beauty shines through any outfit that someone wears.

The double edged sword of fashion. Damocles sword hangs over the choices.

Dawn just nearly quoted Dolly Parton(a.k.a. Smoky Mountain Barbie)’s famous line:

“It costs a lot of money to look this cheap!”

I’m so old that in HS we wore circle skirts with a bazillion yards of nylon net underneath.

“I never knew how expensive it was to look cheap!!” Obviously she isn’t a Dolly parton fan who has admitted something similar “It costs a lot of money to look this cheap.”

As they say at Starkist, “Sorry, Charlie.”

That’s exactly what Dolly Parton says.

Haha, that was a great comment!

Relax, this is only school. This will be one of Candace’s fondest memories when she is pumping gas for a living.

This is a comic strip, and they are supposed to be funny. So here is a better idea: the two other girls get their hair changed, one shaves it off and the other gets a curly tonsure. Then they would be:

Dawn En-“Moe”

“Curly”-dence

E-“Larry”-beth

The Three Stoogettes!

Quite a bit of overlap in the Venn Diagram of FBOFW fans and Dolly Parton fans.

I would rather get some clothes from Old Navy by comparison. (Practical, yet fashionable.)

Slut wear is expensive.

The Benefits of a Catholic High School…Uniforms for the Girls…Shirt and Tie for the Boys….At least you didn’t have to think about what you were going to wear……..k

Ironic that some of these expensive looking “preppy” outfits can be bought for a good deal if you look hard enough, while some of these “casual clothes” that “normal kids” wear can cost a bundle.

If what you’re wearing is important to other people, you need to cut off those people, because they are shallow and toxic.

A see-through piece of fabric was over $100? I’m shocked.