Crankshaft by Tom Batiuk and Dan Davis for December 29, 2023

Don’t worry, Mindy. In ten months, Tom will decide that Montoni’s is unprofitable again and we can do this all anew.

Hi, Crankshaft! Welcome back buddy!

If all these people have been wanting Montoni’s to re-open, then why did it go out of business in the first place?

Lemon pizza sauce? How could such a place ever have failed?

“Gosh, remember how crazy is was when [RE-OPENING SEQUENCE REDACTED]” Tom: But make sure the SMIRKS are there!

Well, at least Min-dull’s comment seemed to amuse the old guy in the baseball cap and red jacket. He looks familiar; anyone seen him before?

Meanwhile, Mopey Pete is upstairs at the Komix Korner, engaged in an intense debate with DSH John over whether Silver Age Flash Barry Allen gained his superspeed through a freak accident as in Showcase #4, with the help of magical imp Mopee as in Flash #167, or by merging with the Speed Force and becoming the lightning bolt in struck him as in Secret Origins Annual #2.

Who’s this…red hat old man? Is he Les?

Crankshaft will start delivering Pizza with the school bus

Crankshaft looks very pleased. He’s proud of his granddaughter

Crankshaft has been out of the public eye so long he forgot to put in his false teeth.

who actually does the work in the kitchen, the real pizzas, cooking, etc.? We’ve only seen one other character.

Also nonstop is the flow of people into the emergency room at the hospital.

Crank must have stopped his bus in front of Montoni and won’t let traffic pass.

Whose Tom? Besides the Pizza Maniac will make sure they do a bustling pick-up business.

Drop a quarter in the jukebox and hit the button for Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi.”

♬Don’t it always seem to go, you don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone.♬

Well gee, Mindy, maybe if Pete had remembered to HIRE SOME EMPLOYEES you wouldn’t have to run the register, wait the tables, wash the dishes, cook the pizzas, and man the telephone. Now hurry up and bus Table 5 and make it snappy!

They must be really good pizzas.

when did they open?? we weren’t invited to the grand re-opening?? and who’s that stranger in the red jacket?

Bring Funky back from Florida and get the band back together!

“Post-Christmas letdown?” That makes no sense considering they were not open before Christmas.

I called it! They’d be overwhelmed with customers when they opened. I mean, that was like predicting the sun rising, or there being nonstop snow in December in this strip, but still.

New Year’s is on the way!!!!!

Cranky has no dialog? OK I’ll give him some.

“Hey Mindy would you like me to clean the leaves out of your gutters.”

Is that a self portrait of Batty in the foreground?

Sure, it’s busy, but they aren’t making any money, because all these people have coupons from the Theater!

Where’s Lillian Ralph? Keesterman? Don’t they want to support the business?

Is Ed’s breakfast club going to come here now?

Okay,Crankshaft is here. But he’s smiling,so it must be an imposter.

Looks like the town missed Montoni’s

There’s Crankshaft. What’s he doing in this strip?

Also…Crankshaft makes a smiling guest appearance!

Where’s Crankshaft?

crankshaft has been dating sally forths mother so thats where hes been

i see one guy eating pizza everyone else waiting for free appitizers

Just wait until the novelty wears off, lady…

“…post-Christmas letdown!”

It’s been delayed in the post.

The old grey-haired guy in the lower-left-hand corner…. is he eating a slice of pizza, or barfing it up?

What would be funny is if somebody from the town showed up to shut them down because Mopey forgot to get a business license! Cue Mindy eye-roll, Mopey’s clueless shock, and Cranky’s smirk.

But Tom would never do that to one of his beloved characters (meaning Mopey, who works in comics and so is treat as a flawless god).

When Minty says “Business has been non-stop since we opened,” she means “People have been doing their business non-stop since we opened… and the plumbing’s about to explode!”

So, just when did someone teach them to make the Bread for the Pizza Crusts?

The rest of it, you can toss it on by the handful, but Bread takes actual skill.

Haha! (＾▽＾)