Crankshaft by Tom Batiuk and Dan Davis for October 23, 2023

Oh, for the love of…you SHUT DOWN Montoni’s in the other strip last October, Batiuk! Did you FORGET that already? You devoted several days to talking about it closing and FW auctioning off all the memorabilia! Lillian even got her Tiffany lamp back!

And incidentally…you had Mopey Pete ALREADY PROPOSE to Min-dull several YEARS ago! Did you forget the carinval engagement tiger. Tom? Did you forget how they went over to Bedside Manor to share the news with a wheelchair-bound Ed and…

Oh, is that it? Harley the Time-Traveling Janitor absorbed all that with his Chrono-Mop and now you want to start fresh with the old “She heard proposal, but he was talking about something else altogether” misunderstanding trope? Oh, boy, can’t wait!

Also, a boyfriend’s saving pizza for his “big moves” is a detail no woman should share with her mother.

She’s so excited to know such a tiger of a man!

1) Montoni’s officially closed down in the last month of the Funky Winkerbean strip, and these two timelines are supposed to be concurrent now.

2) According to the Funky Winkerbean strip, Pete Reynolds-Roberts is the highest paid comic book writer in the country, so he should be able to afford to do whatever he wants.

Reopen the Valentine Theater? Move to California? Could either be the proposal?

Mr. Writer must be given a pass because it’s difficult to come up with a new idea every year or so.

HIS Eagle Will Soon Soar Again! One Nation Under GOD! GOD Bless America!

Proposal, buys Montoni’s Brand and recipes and merges with the Valentine theater, so people can enjoy a Movie and Pizza

Wait, are we sure that the generic blonde is Mindy? She might be the one who married Mopey Pete’s buddy Durwin or Dullard or whatever his name was. Or she might be the one who was once married to Funky, and then hooked up with Masone Jarre. She might even be one of the Doublenut Twins, giving us a Halloween scare.

Wait a minute, Montoni’s is closed. Unless it reopened or something? But they sold all the furniture and fixtures.

I thought Montoni’s closed down?

Back in the burned out house? Smoke, fire and water damage have made it unlivable…

Probably a job or business proposal.

Expectations lead to heart break!

I can’t believe nobody has mentioned this yet, but Montoni’s closed. It’s gone! They sold everything! Ed even referenced it being gone a few days ago! Is Batty not even going to attempt to be at all consistent anymore?

(FYI – “nobody has mentioned this” was being facetious, as I know that about 6 people have already made the comment.)

Hey!

It’s a comic strip.

No one is forcing you to read it (in case you didn’t know that).

Besides, comic strips are well know for time travel ability (called the Archives) and ‘funky’ changes that occur in the present.

So, just go along for the ride, but keep your hands and feet inside at all times, please.

People in Centerville have to drive to Westview to eat greasy pizza with stale crusts? Doesn’t Westview have its own places for lousy pizza?

Just the other day, they talked about Montoni’s in the past tense. Batty has completely given up on caring about this strip.

this will be worse then bookclub week

Uh oh

Mopey Pete is going to Montoni’s to pop the question. Pepperoni or sausage?

Funky will soon step out of the shower and we’ll learn that the whole Montoni’s closing down thing was just a dream. In fact, this is all just a dream…or a nightmare.

“Pete always saves pizza for his big moves!”

When it comes to Montoni’s, the “big moves” are/were usually in the bathroom an hour or two later.

Wants to buy it and get it reopened

Haha! (＾▽＾)