Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for February 26, 2017

“There is an eagle in me that wants to soar, and there is a hippopotamus in me that wants to wallow in the mud.” — Carl Sandburg

I wouldn’t worry too much. Brad and Luann will be mortified enough if you ever dare show anyone else those pics, especially since they’re both naked in them. Hmm — come to think of it, that would be the perfect parental revenge!

I wonder why Luann was scolded whereas Brad was praised.

Fully craptastic parents. Lil girls gotta be sugar spice and everything nice, and lil boys get away with murder. My own girls are made of courage, shine, and everything fine. (that’s courage, smarts, and other good things.) Hope yours are too. But honestly – what craptastic parenting skills those two dunces have.

Gender is a learned behavior, sexuality isn’t so much.

LOL, first it was Toni and Brad sans clothing, now Luann and Brad. Somehow, that does not follow the logical order of progression…

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I know, it was a “flash” back…

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(Tomatoes flying)

The parents only love Brad. They hate Luann.

Or maybe you could have opened up a spa…

They probably expected Luann to be “the sensible one”, after a couple of years of enjoying Brad’s “cyoote cluelessness” for so long……..

“Hole Hearted”

’Secret Mire-er"

“Playing Dirty Pool”

“Ooze Running This Place?”

“Mud Life Crisis”

“Naked Ambition”

“Got A Streak Goin’ "

“Well, Who Nude?”

“The Joy In Mudville”

“You’re In For A World Of Dirt!”

“Muddy Waters and Sister Sludge” (♪♫)

or

“For Posterior’s Sake”

Every time I asked why I got in trouble for stuff my brothers did and got away with, the answer was always the same: boys will be boys. God, I wanted to scream whenever my parents said that.

Or turn the mud puddle into a delightful koi pond.

Kudos to Nancy for realizing—albeit belatedly—that something was off about this. I’m sure both gender dynamics and second-child dynamics were in play. It’s sad when girls aren’t encouraged to explore the world. I love that there’s a movement afoot to stop telling little girls that they’re “pretty,” as if that should be their primary goal and skill.

@COMMENTERS What’s the beef? They both had fun in the mud.

I wouldn’t have expected this comic to comment on gender double standards. Subtle, and nice.

might have been funnier with Luann today suddenly expressing an interest in getting a mud-bath treatment at a spa.

Shouldn’t the real question be why the kids are playing outside with no clothes on?

Girls are just as capable of enjoying a good mud puddle as boys. My mom had to dump a few buckets of warm water over my head before I was clean enough to come into the house to strip down and put everything into the wash machine.Sugar and spice – and mud pies and tree forts – no reason they can’t all work together!

Uh Huh. It’s a Double Standard for Your OWN Kids, but when the ‘Grandkids’ come along, “They” WILL be Allowed to get away with MURDER. Right, You “Aren’t They CUTE,” DeGroots?

Umm… maybe not let your kids outside NAKED?

Maybe they were in the back yard?Also, this is the second time Luann has been seen naked, and the first time it was from the front, lol :D :D :D

When I and my siblings did this the one time, our parents didn’t go for the camera. They went for their 18-inch ruler and we got spanked. We didn’t do it a second time.

One last comment: we are grew up didn’t we? Unevenly, but we did. We had all kinds of parents, none absolutely perfect, but if they tried their best that is fantastic. We try with our kids, and kids try you as parents, as they should. Nancy and Frank really are drawn to be loving, supportive, worried to death, not perfect parents. Sounds normal to me. That is what makes them such an important foundation to this strip.

Sorry, I seem to be having trouble ‘replying’ to @TCAYER directly.

@TCAYER — That’s such a 2017’s comment… but sadly a valid point in this day and age.

I was a toddler in the 1950’s in a city where many properties had a driveway past the house, a large garden at the back, perhaps with sheds and outhouses and tall, dense hedges hiding sturdy fences or high walls between and at the back of properties.

“Round the back” in the summer, slides, sandpits, paddling pools and garden hoses with naked kiddies six and under of both sexes and more than one family rushing around making all kinds of noise chasing each other and the dog(s) was a totally normal situation and nobody batted an eyelid.

I’m pretty sure that really little ones four and under went naked in public baths as well and nobody gave it a second thought, either!

@TCAYER (your “replies” button isn’t working):

Umm… maybe not let your kids outside NAKED?

It’s a comic and not the real world, so I wouldn’t worry too much.

The sexism of today’s strip is damaging to both boys and girls.

^^ That’s Evans’ point.

Yes, there was a time when there were differences in perception about the roles of boys and girls. And it was ok.

Funny, here, but considering places like Albania, Pakistan, Iraq, etc. it is their culture. I can see it every day in my melting pot neighborhood. The girls stay inside, or shovel snow, or take out the trash while the boys play or do nothing. And, of course, the girls are expected to marry at a young age within their particular clan, after being "put on display for the benefit of the young studs. Even at the local schools, female teachers have difficulty telling the boys what to do. They don’t like being given orders by women.

Not sure why they wanted to take a picture of him, naked with mud on him. But I also miss how it would be funny compared to Luann doing it, both has to be cleaned up. But besides that you can´t expect to raise a boy and a girl the exact same way.

I think this points out why Brad is such a slob as an adult. But I think Luann’s room is messy too.

Yeah – Some overtones of archetypal gender bias in today’s strip. With respect to perfect parenting – I wouldn’t wish that on any kid. The best option is a balance between love and selfishness – which hopefully the kid will take into his or her life as an adult.

Monday it’s time for an arc with our star Luann. Nevertheless I hope the stolen TV and the Les/Pru threads creep back in somewhere. And maybe Tiff needs some help with her homework…

Definitely, you should have drained the mud puddle, Frank. But having that photo (photos?) in the album makes for some fun remembrances (not to mention a Sunday comic strip)….

I have a niece who loved nothing more to come over and play in the mud. I even joined here once in a while. I still have a depression in the garden area where she played. It doesn’t hurt a thing for a child to play in the mud. In face it’s been proven to be healthy for them.

Luann doesn’t feel “cute” at this age. Harder that Tiff bloomed first and she likes showing it off. Though not for carnal reasons or she would always have a boy friend.

Odd – I distinctly remember the whole family being more crudely drawn back in those days.

Wait, why are they little versions of themselves and no treal babies?