Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for June 24, 2024

Cool! A guest artist. Not bad.. but Toni should be drawn way hotter. ;)

It would be nice if Shannon acted like that and was more well behaved.

So how long do we have the guest artist? 1 week? 2 weeks?

Up with this I will not put.

Has kind of a Disney feel to it

Dream on, Toni and Brad.

Bodie Troll Jay Fosgitt?

Well done Jay. To answer Brad question, I think Shannon be more happy and looking over her shoulder, because she has a foundation.

I think Shannon will love to make meals. But they need to decide when she’s old enough to train.

see you all in a week…. I´m outta here.

Not liking the ‘new’ Brad…

Dream on

Why she would be a perfect little angel. Of course Toni doesn’t really believe that, but she loves Shannon. Is this foreshadowing? Will Brad and Toni raise Shannon? Will they have a child of their own? Shannon would be better off if she did see her father as often as possible so she doesn’t have abandonment issues. At least he does stay in her life, which some fathers do not.

Gee, I don’t know, but she’s under your supervision right now…so why are you allowing her to make such a mess. To start with, feet do not belong in the kitchen sink!

Nice work letting Jay draw one, guys! Now maybe more people will know about him.

The last time I saw this much improvement in a comic strip it was Bill Watterson drawing Pearls Before Swine instead of Pastis.

Please stay permanently.

Seeing what they allow Shannon to do, I don’t think she’d turn out all that much different.

That’s sorta creepy.

So the wusses are giving in.

Interesting idea. Is every strip going to be like this right now, or just Luann? Cool scene.

Who knew. Well mannered Shannon is even MORE annoying.

Looks like Shannon is a brat again! Hasn’t Brad and Toni ever punished her? Or are they too afraid of her sperm-donor?

Maybe aim for something in the middle?

Uh, are you just gonna let her do that?

Toni looks too old and frail. Brad looks too slick, and Shannon looks like a gawky long necked goose.

Now that’s funny.

Shannon would never act like that. Nice artwork though.

Why is Shannon in the kitchen sink, as they are relaxing with coffee. lol. Maybe Brad has a point about parent practice.

Oh man, it’s like my comment from a few weeks ago has come to life about people who aren’t parents thinking they’d be the best parents ever. Enjoy your fever dream while it lasts, Toni.

I find guest artist’s style less than appealing.

Awww… Yeah, over exaggerated, but good conveying what Toni would think, and cute. Unexpected guest artist makes it. I wonder if there’s more. Brad imagines (in Foxtrot type art) Shannon helping him work on a car, handing him tools. Luann imagines (in Calvin and Hobbes type art) playing frisbee w/Shannon. Nancy and Frank imagine (in For Better or Worse type art) hand in hand w/Shannon at Disneyland. Nah… Too silly.

Guess what. You are raising her.

Great one Jay. Those who don’t know him, check out his fabulous Bodie Troll!

They are going to adopt her

No, Toni, it does not work like that. And they’re just going to let them sit there and let this brat trash their house?

This week should be a knockdown drag-out fight between Toni and Jonah about what an irresponsible, stinking bum he is… that would at least be interesting.

Riiiiiiiggggghhhhhtttt.

What is Shannon doing back today? She just went home Friday!

I wonder why they aren’t doing a thing to stop her behavior?

Ah, the dream of parents.

With the first comes a lot of attentiveness, cloth diapers, cute clothes, socks and little tiny shoes, special formula.

At number three it’s Pampers, t-shirts and hand-me-downs, and whatever formula is best for less.

And God help you if they are all boys or all girls.

I’m not familiar with the work of Jay Fosgitt.

She’d be the most well behaved and happy little girl ever.

Not likely, Toni. But dream on. Your child probably won’t be like that either. Though chances are it’d be better than Shannon.

Spinach omelet? No, thank you.

Possible. Quite rare, but possible.

Why are they not trying to discipline her or even set ground rules?

Narrative on child abandonment…

What would they do? Drug the kid?

She’s hyperactive and mischievous, not bad.

Brad looks creepy in the second panel.

What the hell happened to Toni and Brad? They look awful! Esp. Toni!I seriously doubt any child is going to wake up and fix Eggs Benedict!

I didn’t expect that the arc drawn by Jay Fosfitt would be on Toni’s fantasies about how calm and obedient Shannon would be if she was her daughter. I’m curious to see how this will evolve in two weeks, especially because I know the author of the adorable comic “Bodie Troll” (which I recommend to everyone; especially now that it’s been reprinted) and I love the way he draws scenes with cute little characters causing disaster. I hope he draws Shannon be a trouble-magnet to Brad, Toni and TJ!

Don’t hold your breath, Brad and Toni…

Boy, Brad and Toni are trip’n, but Shannon would definitely be better behaved if they had raised her from the start and meted out discipline as needed.

I don’t like these drawings. Toni looks old and Brad looks odd. The new Shannon has too long a neck, is missing a hand and NO ONE would ever let a child hook up a hose to the kitchen faucet so they could sit in the sink and spray water all over the house. It’s stupid and not relatable. I vote NO.

Uh oh, are we gonna have a Bodie the Troll cameo?

Nice fantasy. But in reality, while Shannon would probably be in more control, she’d still be the Shannon we know and love?

Brad’s smile in the last panel reminds me of Ralph Phillips.

The Shannon that Brad would raise wouldn’t grow into a kid who would write a graphic story entitled Fish Friend Dog Friend. Not sure about Toni.. I remember the time when she and Shannon created a maze on the wall from cardboard tubes for a gerbil Shannon was keeping for her class.

Put me down for a NO vote.

Suuuuuuurrrrrrrre!

Looks like Jay took his inspiration from Chuck Jones.

You know, Brad?

Neither YOU nor Luann were “perfect kids” growing up. So do you really think you’re going to raise a “maid?” Excuse Me. “Perfect Kid?”

But, You and Luann turned out just fine.

Interesting take on Shannon in the last panel.

Hello, Jay. ;-)

I almost dread the day the guest artist tries to do Tiffany

Dream On. (Of course, I assume that MY kid (who is a perfectly normal adult with a productive job and who is happy as a clam) would be a world class neuro-surgeon with a Nobel prize and many Tri-athlete victories if I had successfully raised him/her.)

Don’t worry about the dishes

Putting aside Shannon for the moment (as she is something of an extreme case), there is a tendency for some followers of strips featuring a child or teenager as a central character (think this strip, Zits and Curtis for starters) to heavily criticize/trash the young characters via the comments sections. Usually it’s because they are simply behaving like normal kids, with some comic exaggeration. More than once I’ve seen the complainers get asked “what would be more acceptable behavior in your opinion?” What’s happening here seems to be a parody version of what the commentators/trollers apparently wanted.

It is baffling why they think they can’t ever say No to Shannon. Today they are telling Shannon that her behavior is perfectly acceptable because they don’t do a single thing to stop this behavior.

The story of every human in history. Born of expectations and fighting to free oneself from them to find their own identity for a lifetime.

I am surprised there aren’t more Menendez Brothers cases in the news daily.

You know, you don’t HAVE to let her misbehave when she’s at you place.

It’s weird that when parents fantasize about the “perfect kid”, that fantasy always includes the child waiting on the parent like a servant.

To Bad it’s only a dream.

At the same time Nancy has fill in artists, Luann gets a fill in artist for the second panel of this strip.

There’s no pleasing some people.

In Toni’s imagination, she and Brad hold their coffee with different hands.

Not a chance in $&##

I have NO idea why anyone here would ask an artist to have a guest artist permanently. IF you don’t LIKE THE COMIC, DON’T READ IT! Love you, Greg and Karen! See you at Comic Con!

She’s not done being raised

Has anyone every told this child “no?”

Keep dreaming, Toni. Kids who grow up regimented like that have a tendency to become mass murderers.

Parents are mostly delusional, that’s how we survive!

Wow, this arc is really taking a wrecking ball to Brad and Toni’s likability.

Toni can’t be that dilutional? Is she fantasizing?

Dream on ….

So…. It’s fantasy time??

I call no way. She’d be exactly the same. Otherwise, you’d have taught her how to behave while in your house by now.

Gotta love everyone’s reaction to her behavior. Lots of shrugs and watta-ya-gonna-dos, but never any corrections. Children are more malleable than that. She can be taught to behave and you may need fewer spankings than you think.

As eladee AKA Wally said, if Jay will continue for a week or so, as the Sheriff hinted, perhaps this is a fantasy/daydream arc. I like it! Welcome, Jay!

yeah, right

I’m child-free by choice, but even I know that’s a dream…lol

Look at that particular opening scene. That 8yo(?) is sitting on the counter, feet in the soapy tub water that’s nearly overflowing, holding the sprayer upwards just to turn a spinner toy, all the while holding an open umbrella that does little to contain the spraying, splashing water. Brad and Toni stand there all calm and in deep thought. I do love the fantasy sequence about to start (please tell me there’s more). Still, how bad is this child that they don’t even step in anymore to stop her destructive activities?

Did we ever learn what happened with Shannon’s mother? Also, what if Brad and Toni adopted Shannon?

Someone already mentioned the use of exaggeration for comic effect. I think that’s what is going on here in both panels: exaggerated destructive behavior and exaggerated perfection. Greg does that sometimes with Shannon’s more extreme behavior, like painting the couch. Is the guest artist writing the strip, or just the drawing to go with a storyline G&K give him?

This is a great opportunity to be creative and take Shannon’s story in a fun and positive direction. Though she hasn’t had overall good parental guidance, she is not “just a brat” who needs discipline. I encourage you have one of the characters – perhaps someone like Bernice in her course of study or someone unexpected (perhaps TJ?) to have a light go on that Shannon has ADHD. Do NOT think Dennis nor Bart. Girls are often never or misdiagnosed until they are much older (sometimes adults). Perhaps a no-meds version. Give this one a happy story that incorporates your creativity and humor – and a bit of education to the public. Shannon learning the word “neurodiversity” can be fun! I’m sure Jessica McClure would be more than happy to consult. >

The fantasy of every parent. Never the reality.

Who would want that brat for a whole month!?

To be honest, there are instances where Shannon would be different if they raised her. But I think a lot of her current personality would still be there. I could see her being a wee bit better about her overall behavior but still bit of a fire cracker and kind of demanding. The imagined version is more like oh if we raised this kid, she would be thoughtful enough to take care of us at her age. No she wouldn’t she’d still be 10, and if she was making breakfast it’d be eggs and toast or cereal or messy pancakes and there is nothing wrong with any of that. I think the imagined version is nothing more than pure fantasy and anyone who is a parent knows that. It’s okay to have a fantasy version as long as you remember it’s fantasy. Again, I think if she’d been with them since they got married she’d still be roughly the same maybe a little more well-behaved because she’d have Ma and Pa DeGroot to provide support more but don’t think she’d be that much different. She’s bratty and obnoxious and can be a real pain in the butt, but deep down she’s a genuinely good kid with deep feelings and a pretty inquisitive mind.

Jay Fosgitt designed the art for my 2009 Honda Rebel gas tank.

My bike is small and blue, so I figured my “pinup model” ought to be as well.

I met Jay at a Comic-Con and hired him to draw me a sexy little Smurfette….. and I transferred the image to my gas tank. (I spent three years building my bike… and it’s awesome).

Thanks, Jay……….. you rock.

Yeah right! First of all, you can’t teach a kid what you don’t know, and neither one of them really knows how to cook. Second, they go along with Shannon’s shenanigans and have never uttered a “no” to her – that doesn’t bode well for their own children.

Yeah, I don’t think so Toni. Besides, in spite of many of the readers, I don’t believe Shannon is as bad as many make her out to be.

Won’t ever happen. They need to trade her to “Family Circus” for Barfy.

I don’t care how sorry they feel for her. They CAN discipline the little brat.

Too funny!

Probably something in between.

Yes, no.

Shannon is not making a big mess and she’s having fun. For a kid, that’s well behaved.

It’s going to be a long summer of Shannon.

See you in September.

How about that? Shannon has been transformed into Coraline.

The ideal world versus the real world. If we could only live in those dreams, long as they’re not nightmares….

I enjoy Shannon the way she is! She’s smart, spunky and honest. She just needs some channeling.

I’ll take a guest artist or new artist as long as it rids the comic world of the horrors that are the current Shannon.

shes just a little Dalue lue.