Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for February 07, 2014

G-man, you just won the Blooper Bowl!…Where are you going, now?…“To sleep!”… – Gunther’s so tough, Chuck Norris watches his movies!… – Does Gunther know that Rosa knows that he doesn’t know if he knows that his "no"s are as good as coming out of his nose? Does she know that he knows what…. You know… he doesn- wait…. Let me start over….

Wait till he gets outdoors where the cameras ain’t

Well, at least Gunther is being honest.

The power of Crystal – UNLEASHED!!!

Lessee….“♪…I Know But I Don’t Know…♪” (Blondie)“Point Of Know Return” (Kansas)“Dr. Know”“That’s A No-Know!”“No Knows Is Good Knows”“Know-poleon Dynamite”hmmm….. I don’t know ….

Well “KNOW” You THIS: When Needle-Nose Finds Out He’s Been DUPED, He’s Gonna POUND Gunther’s Head Until it RINGS Like a Gong!

“Chain Reaction”“Unintended Consequences”“What They Don’t Know Didn’t Hurt Them”“Gunther Fife For Sheriff”“G-man, Texas Ranger”“It’s Not What You Know But Who You No”or “A Pebble In The Hand Is Worth Two Grasshoppers”

BTW, I rarely read past the 30th post. Because after that, it is usually the usual suspects bickering with each other!!!

Rosa:Gosh darnit, I signed on to this relationship for a hero! You just kicked a bully’s ass, enjoy it already!

Gunther will have to think about it, Rosa.

Is anyone else kind of hoping that Gunther will suddenly gain confidence and do a perfect rendition of “You and I” by Santana and Chad Kroeger?

Or maybe borrow some Taylor Swift lyrics? Come on Gunther, tell her “you are the best thing that has ever been mine” before she says “I knew you were trouble when you walked in, so shame on me.”

I just want Gunther to do something besides protect Rosa from bullies! He doesn’t have a confident bone in his body unless someone is trying to physically harm his girlfriend. Greg Evans, your fictional character better use this incident to grow bigger juevos! Or I’ll… not do anything but be slightly annoyed for five seconds.

I certainly did not see today’s strip coming! Now, Gunther, don’t get too carried away with yourself! Once Leslie finds out there aren’t any real cameras he’s going to be seriously ponked off… But, the way the action has shifted to Gunther and Rosa means to me that Leslie’s actions have shifted out of the strip…at least for today. And Gunther, you Can fluff yourself up without getting all tongue-tied and putting yourself down! ;)

Gunther’s confidence (and his wardrobe) supplied by:=Guntherade….. “The careful athlete’s energy drink!”… “Energy boost, one sip at a time!…” – Mr. T’s frozen dinners… “All meat, no fillers.” …"I pity the Tofu!“….. – Cheaties™…. Official breakfast of the Know-lympics!”… – and by…Plotz’ convenience stores…

“I’ll let everyone know when I figure out who Gomer reminds me of there”^Now you’re just Pyle-ing it on….

“Once Gunther finds out why Les is backing off…” I can see him making a costume that will fool everyone into thinking this Gunther is not really our Gunther at all… Hey, Gunth! I have a motorcycle helmet if you want! Put down the visor and voila! No more Gunther…or so he thinks… ;)

LOL! You guys make me smile! ;)

Ha ha!!!….

Reminds me of a “Dennis the Menace” where they all were flying (IIRC, it was all a dream in Mr. Wilson’s head)… once Mr. Wilson finally got into it and everybody was enjoying their newfound “wings”, Mr. Wilson said: “We’re flying! I don’t believe it!!!!” That’s when he stopped…..and woke up….

Sadly, you are right.

For those who were knocking Gunther’s “false” heroism the day before….

He did not know about Crystals story to Leslie about cameras. So when he told Leslie of to “Pick those up” he was reacting to defend Rosa in all honesty, not because he knew it was a sham.

Did it without thinking.Now that he has time to reflect is when the case of nerves sets in.

But his original reaction was NOT a false one.

“Unless this moment translates into Gunther getting the confidence… Three panels into having a conversation with Rosa, you can see him losing his confidence.” And I so wanted Gunther to continue to hold himself up! But IJB is right…once Gunther starts to Think, all is lost…at least for today’s strip, anyway… ;)

"… It showed Dennis holding a skull up for his rather aghast looking mom to see. The caption was, “Mom! Look what I found in Mr. Wilson’s head!”^Yeah, that’s classic “Malice Mitchell” for ya… . can go to war against the vermin that lives in the pillowcases…. but yet always afraid of the “head-bugs”….

“As a character, Gunther’s comedic potential is rooted in his being an eccentric, timid nerd.” You’re right…but sometimes he isn’t funny when, for example, he puts himself down too much…it is almost painful to watch…but then, I used to be a sort of eccentric nerd myself in my teen years, so I guess Gunther’s loss of confidence in himself comes awfully close to home… ;)

And, on that note I’d better close up shop for the night! Snoozeeeeeeeeeeeee… ;)

he better be spontaneously be kissing her Saturday

Enough of Gunther not responding to sexy Rosa. This is getting to be torture.

He’s already stood up to Leslie Knox in the past….for her.

Give him a passionate smooch, Rosa, and damn the cameras[if any]!

“I’m too confused to feel confident.”

> New confident Gunther? Hardly! He’s already proven he can defend Rosa against Leslie Knox.>What he’s “proven” is that he can be the one to initiate physical violence (using a backpack as a bludgeon), provided he repeatedly denies that this is what he’s doing, and it’s only an accident. Then when it comes time actually to stand up to Leslie, he defers to Ox. What a man!

Since yesterday, the school’s walls have changed color four times. What’s with that?

From the Principal’s reaction to Leslie’s confession, I take that there are no cameras. Leslie may try to take it out on Gunther (which could lead to more issues) but he should be more upset with Crystal.

Kiss her Gunther. Come on. Don’t blow it. We are rooting for you!

Rosa’s leanin in for a big ole “latina lip lock”

just grow a set already Gunther!

A single pebble thrown into a still pool….

“Oh, so now Gunther is re-cast as a bully???!!!”-——————————Where do you see Gunther recast as a Bully?Cut and paste the quote, it’s not that hard.

“Gunth is going to run into Les somewhere where Les knows there are no cameras…”-——Gunther is smart enough to pull one of these on Les:

Wimpy wimpy wimpy

What part of that do you interpret as making Gunther “the bully”?Be specific.

Gunther is not a hero, he is not overly confident, but he speaks up when someone is being a jerk. It is a personality trait some people have, and it shocks others when it appears because it isn’t what they expect from that person. The behavior is like a parent protecting his/her children or a bull protecting his heifers.

-Leslie was only intimidated because he thinks there are security cameras around. Once he finds out there aren’t, it’ll be back to business as usual-Sadly, you are right…

-Personally I’m not really sure what Rosa wants-You are not sure what Rosa wants because, just like the character Gunther, you are not paying attention to what Rosa is saying.-She has repeatedly mourned the fact that she has to be the one to invite him on dates. Did you ever hear of the movie ’He’s Not Into You’, where guys would tell girls “I’ll call you” when they really meant "Ok, we went out on a date and you’re not really what I want, but I don’t want to just come right out and say so.’-So the girl waits for the phone call that never comes, or keeps inviting the guy to go out and he might accept or might not. BUT he never invites her anywhere.-What Rosa wants isn’t for Gunther to give up college just because she might go to the Peace Corps first. She wants him to show that he’s interested by inviting her on a date or to a dance, or starting a kiss. Otherwise, she figures he’s not really interested.

-WHY does she like Gunther?-Why does any girl like a guy or vice versa? There’s an attraction that happens, or else it doesn’t.-Go back and look at November 12, 2012 thruogh November 17, 2012 where Rosa is talking to Luann about how she feels physically attracted to Gunther but he isn’t showing the same thing. Look at December 7 and 8, 2012 and December 10 through 15, 2012 for a bowling party where Gunther is showing Rosa how to bowl and where she is celebrating his own strike (or trying to help him celebrate.)- And Rosa then takes everyone (except Luann, who celebrates by skyping with Quill)to a New Year’s Eve bowling party December 31 2012 and Jan 1, 2013, where Rosa is kissing Gunther.-None of that is about good grades. She’s attracted to him. A zillion poets have written about attraction; this isn’t something that can be explained in a little post on a comics board….

Leave the poor guy alone.

Helmet-cam?.Not that bad an idea..I keep hoping for 360° cameras for police cruisers set up so they can’t be tampered with.That way there can be no doubt regarding what happened. Nobody would be able to accuse the police of brutality, manufacturing crimes or perjury unless they really WERE guilty. ( and few would be guilty knowing they were being watched)Plus crimes they didn’t notice but were reported could be verified or discounted.

He did defend her against Leslie Knox many moons ago. Gunther’s also smart, an excellent seamster, and an overall good person. Other than that, maybe the other guys at Pitts are just really horrible?

DavidHuieGreen is right. Having a boyfriend who can tailor your jeans or make a unique prom dress would be awesome. Gunther doing that for Rosa might be the reason that she is hanging onto him until she is deployed to a third world country.

Trolls only eat if they say idiotic things to elicit a response from those who are outraged by the statement, so naturally they accuse Gunther of evil..On the other hand, Gunther has blazed trail for the martial art of Backpack Bully Beating.

Possibly the uncle and bro-in-law never dated or married because laws forbade them marrying the object of their desire — whatever or whoever that might be..It beats marrying just to conform with social pressure despite having no desire for grown human women.

Have you ever known Gunther to mouth off at ANYONE?

“Wrongo! It won’t be G-Man he goes after. It will be Crystal.”_____________________________________

No DOUBT. After which He’ll Next take His ANGER out on EVERYBODY too Weak to Fight Back.STARTING Unfortunately, with the G-Man….,

Facing a bully is cowardice????FASCINATING

- the reason he behaves the way he does is because it is not Luann.With Luann he is bolder. For verification, look at 06-16-96.-Unfortunately, for some reason, the calendar blanked out that date. but I did get to see a double date between Brad and a previous girl friend Diane, and Luann and Gunther from August 13, 1996 through August 17th. -Hilarious. Diane and Luann talk to each other while Brad tells Gunther that the two of them are acting as if they (the boys) aren’t even there. He tells Gunther that he’s going to kiss Diane in a way that would curl her grandmother’s toes; Gunther says he’ll do the same with Luann.-But when they all get into the car, the guys put the girls in the back seat together. (Why do that if you’re looking for some passion?)-So the girls continue talking to each other. Brad loudly objects. When the girls are quiet, waiting for something from the guys, the only thing that happens is Brad asks if anyone knew the score the game that day-Finally, when they get to Luann and Brad’s home, Lu tells Gunther she had a great time and he is stammering. At the same time, Diane is talking to Brad, and HE is stammering.-Once they are finally in the house, there’s a knock on the door (this is August 17, 1996). When Luann answers, it’s Gunther and he kisses her.-Not so very different from the way he’s acting with Rosa right now….

Poor Gunther; this story line reminds me of the tale of the tailor who “slew seven with one blow”. Boy did that come back to haunt him.

- It baffles me why he is still with him -Well, there’s no accounting for love. Even if unreturned, you can still feel it for someone and keep hoping…. I don’t think that makes Rosa pathetic. But, just as I hope Luann meets someone at Community College who is able to have both a career and a personal life, I hope Rosa meets someone in the Peace Corps who isn’t afraid to show love for a woman….

> This is why some people including myself have complained about this relationship, it feels incredibly forced, as if the only reason it exists is to try and help Gunther develop a tiny bit and/or not be so much of a loser when Evans forcefully hooks up Gunther and Luann in the future (it’ll happen).>Quite likely you’re right. Since Greg Evans obviously identifies strongly with Gunther, one of the premises of the strip seems to be that the Gunthers of the world are the guys that the girls ought to fall in love with, because they’re such wonderful people in every respect, once you overlook their loser-dom._> I believe Evans has already been disappointed with how many people liked Aaron Hill over Gunther>And since the girls ought to go for Gunther, he’s distraught that a significant portion of the readership, like the female characters in the strip, fail to recognize Gunther’s “inner beauty”. The guys that the girls actually do fall for, and that the audience prefers, have to be written out of the strip. Quill already met that fate once, and probably he will do so again. Once Rosa makes a man of Gunther, she will be off to Ecuador, and the inevitably pairing of Luann and Gunther can finally happen.

I’m gonna say yes.

-That’s one of the dates I listed showing the difference in the way Gunth behaves between Luann and Rosa-But everything that happened before that date showed him as tongue-tied and unable to speak (let alone do anything else). He is at least able to carry on a conversation with Rosa, which he couldn’t do with Luann in Brad’s car. When he’s bowling with Rosa, he’s even showing her how to do that.-I think his improved ability to at least talk to Rosa is a big step forward

Facing what you fear is NOT cowardice.

-Even back in 96 , 06-03-96 to be exact, Luann describes Gunther as an awesome kisser-Taken out of context, it might have been meaningful. But the full context includes several days before. On May 31, Luann is explaining to Gunther that she was grateful to him for helping her study and that was why she kissed him. He, of course, is not hearing what she is actually saying.-On June 2, Luann is talking to Delta and telling her that during her talk with Gunther, she told him she appreciated him as a friend, and he gave her a ’let’s be pals’ kiss. In the next panel, Gunther is, of course, saying something very different to Knute…-

I think Dave53 is right. Luann sees Gunther as a good friend. He doesn’t attract her the way he attracts Rosa….

I know that Greg doesn’t have to depend on this, but maybe there is a precedent in TV shows where “nerd chases girl”, “girl repeatedly says ‘not on your life’ to boy”, then come crazy relationships for either one or both, then somewhere down the line, “girl all of a sudden has a realization that he was the one, all along” (has also been used in reverse)….

He stood up for her without knowing that Leslie thought there were cameras. That is a big step in my opinion.

“Leslie forgot about Gunther 2 seconds after he left them ..he’s got other things on his little mind.” Like devious thoughts as he seeks out his next victim? (I know, I know to all of you out there, Leslie was a victim himself… Knute was not and ad infinitum (sp.?) and then Leslie was the bully and Knute was just protecting Crystal…). What a devious web we weave when once we set out to deceive… You’re right on Dave 53… ;)

But Why would Luann resort to violence on behalf of Gunther? ;)

“(((GASP))) Are you asking Gunther to become…”thoughtless’? ;-)" LOL Only when he starts to backpedal on Rosa…or any girl (including Luann, who BTW, I don’t think is really all that crazy about him anymore…). ;)

“I can just see Rosa singing this version of a famous oldie: “Gunther, get angry, Gunther, get mad…” ROTFLM*O! ;)

Rosa, Gunther is not going to change. He will defend you verbally to anyone who tries to harm you. He will defend you physically with his backpack or whatever he has when he is caught in the moment. Gunther lives in the moment, and at this moment you want him to be like he was a moment ago, but always and forever. It’s not going to happen. He is who he is, and he will likely be a devoted, faithful husband to someone someday. Unfortunately that someone will obviously not be you.

“As nice a guy Gunther is, he just doesn’t make her clock tick…” I agree with you…I too, think they aren’t a romantic item…it just doesn’t compute with me… ;)

My husband of nearly 52 years is like that. People thought we would not last. Nice guys do win!

Leviticus : Gunth is going to run into Les somewhere where Les knows there are no cameras in the area. If he mouths off to Les then, Gunther is going to be in a world of hurt..DavidHuieGreen Have you ever known Gunther to mouth off at ANYONE?.JPuzzleWhiz :Well, we know him now….Yes, we do. And the question remains:Have you ever known Gunther to mouth off at ANYONE?If he has done it, Leviticus will know because he has read the entire tale several times. (He’s my hero!).Some might use different definitions but the ones I noticed for “mouth off” include:..to express your opinions too loudly and publicly: ..to speak out of turn; to backtalk...to give your opinions about something in a very annoying way, especially when you are complaining or criticizing something.So the question could be pinned down to one of whether or not Gunther was annoyingly too loud in his unreasonable complaints and criticisms or out of line in speaking. Oh, sure, it annoyed Leslie Knox when Gunther demanded he pick up the books he had knocked out of the girl’s hands, but it seemed like a reasonable response unless someone believes the Gunthers of the world should stifle themselves and let the bullies walk all over others..Further, other than this demand for justice, I just can’t remember Gunther being loud, unreasonable, disrespectful of others

“If you’re going to respond like you’re so much better than someone, then I’ll start doing it too. Responding like this is a bully thing to do, but if you’re going to be a bully then I’ll have to stand up for myself.”-Good for you.STAND UP FOR YOURSELF.I don’t see myself as a bully for disagreeing with one who is calling a person a coward for speaking back to a known beater, but then I’m prejudiced: I like me. And, yes, there are people I consider myself better than. People like those who always favor the bullies of the world and mock those who fear them even when they stand before them, defenseless, fully expecting to be beaten but hoping to fight the injustice with their own blood..Interestingly, I don’t consider myself to be using bully-type tactics, but it is funny when one who does think so does use those tactics. That means that one considers him/her/itself a bully..If I’m not better than those people, then I am a low-life indeed and deserve to be stood up to.

Nancy,I think your husband won with you because you appreciate him. Good for you both.

Rosa is actually singing this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7f_HsjpSVaI

Bonnie Tyler:Holding out for a hero…

JPuzzleWhiz, trust me I know and agree our beloved milania meets all the criteria as do a few others. Have a little pity for those with such personalities, we can get away from them but they are stuck with themselves. Some may actually mean well.

If you ask me, the word “troll” has jumped the shark. And a couple of piranha, as well… it is rather subjective, and even the Wikipedia definition which is based on sources contributed is a bit off… any time anyone introduces a thought or style that others are not “accustomed to” , it is automatically branded “trollish”…. – That is not to say that such ones who are purposely trying to be negative or contradictory isn’t acting in a “trollish” manner… it’s just that there seems to be a need to “fine tune” the term, to have a term that won’t be a “buzz word” as many are quick to blurt the word out, at the slightest… something that means such, but not just someone who we may disagree with….

We all have compulsions of some kind (or many). Some have a need to criticize. I have a compulsion to talk about my own life (even if it bores others). De gustibus….

ReallyBad,You say many things, some of which seem contradictory.You say you want people to “just stay away from him” while saying he won’t change unless people befriend him or some such. It is hard to do both. It is especially hard to stay from people who intentionally run into you and knock your books out of your hand..You don’t want people involving teachers or other people to stop the bully from terrorizing them, but you want them to form some sort of gang to stand up to him..You continue to think the bully has a personal vendetta against the people he had a toilet mishap with because you are certain he is suspended for three days as he asked. We haven’t even been told yet that he has been suspended, nor do we know he will waste his time on a vendetta..You say the bully won’t back down from a confrontation while acknowledging the threat of equal and opposite reaction made him back down..I did not say “teachers won’t help you.” I said some principals are too tied up with other duties to do what SHOULD be their prime duty, furthering the education of those wanting to be educated..You keep insisting there is no solution to bullies or that there are solutions but that they won’t work unless done a certain way. There is a solution which does not depend on size or others and I am glad nobody is considering it..You called Gunther a coward but now acknowledge he was brave even if stupid..Oh well, the new strip is probably up by now so let me post this and go read it.

Gunther- while you’re confidence is at an all time high, plant one on her!