Crankshaft by Tom Batiuk and Dan Davis for September 30, 2024

Is that another puddle of gasoline by the stairs? It’s the right color for water so it can’t be that.

“BAN THE BOOKSMITH!” they scream, while one holds a sign that says “YEAH, I AGREE!” A Ped Xing thing holds a sign that says “NO fahrvergnügen VWs!” (Oh, look it up) Tom—er, LILLIAN—is glad she wore her best martyr suit, because brother, this is going on until Halloween. TOM LOVES HIM SOME TOM

Hey, how did Ed get down the stairs and change the color of his ballcap so quickly?

Speaking of color, why are the paint brush and can dripping red but the “NO” symbol on the sign is black?

The water from fire brigade dousing the bottom stairs ain’t dry yet and it clearly still the same middle of the night. Who on earth protests with signboards and all in the middle of the night?

Obveeously you can’t gets a crowd like that all prepared with signboards and anytheengs without prior planning. It just not sometheeng that will gathers outta nowhere in the middle of a night. And what is point of middle of a night protest when everyone else is sleeping? The point of placard protests is to gets attention. And great attention they will gets in the middle of the night.

This so overly preposteridiculudicrous that me is outta new words to describe it. This has gots to be some sortsa twisted parody. Otherwise it’s called writing.

Meanwhile, Lester Moore is home snoring in his soft, warm bed.

Isn’t that destruction of private property?! Throw his keister in jail!

Where are the Police ? ( Officer I have a unruly Mob of undesirables raising Hell in front of my House, could you please move them along , Thank you. ,

This is absolutely stupid. Batiuk should be ashamed of himself.

The Return of Wally Winkerbean.

He’s upset because there’s no wheelchair ramp in front of the store for disabled customers like the one he had installed in front of Monotoni’s.

There’s no parking spot reserved for veterans like the one he had installed in front of Monotoni’s.

Lillian refused to hire him to be the night manager or let him bring Buddy into the store.

Jff Murdoch? Is that you? That’s not very neighborly.

Jff: “I can’t stand this sign. It’s stupid. The store’s name doesn’t even work as a pun. It’s not even facing the right way. You can’t even read it until you’re in the driveway."

Just wondering, is this situated in a legal carry state? Man standing on private property vandalizing property. Angry mob nearby. Looks like a threat to her safety. She would be within her legal rights to protect herself.

Can we move on? It is not like we are dealing with this today.

Quick, Lil. Now’s your chance to sell all those copies of Glen Beck’s memoirs that have been collecting dust.

So… Literally… Within hours of someone trying to commit felony arson by burning the building down… A protest against the business shows up… Complete with people vandalizing the sign.… Seriously, Batty?

This is such a stupid turn of events. Fahrenheit 451 is in literally every bookstore and library in America. This dumb story assumes her stocking a book is somehow heroic?

1933 Redux — with acolytes of their wicked demigod.

FYI! No one is forcing you to read the books! STOP RUINING IT FOR EVERYBODY!!

oh boy, here we go…

I’ll bet this arc has sold more copies of Fahrenheit 451 than in all of its’ previous history.

Ah yes, typical of society, the ignorant are the first to call for a ban on what they don’t understand.

Fun fact: the mob bought their signs, paint and brushes from Amazon, which sells books… including… nah, not gonna spoil it for ya…

Bunch of boors and morons!

Some folks just do not have enough to do!!!!

She needs a pressure washer.

Ok, I’m gone. Thanks for the memories and laughs.

Get over the shock of seeing that mob, Lil. Call the cops and, let them “reason” with them.

I am soooooooo tired of this storyline. There is so little connection to the real world first amendment issues. Oh wait, it’s a comic strip. I’ll be back when you’re done.

“Mr. Batiuk, what you have written is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever read. At no point in your rambling, incoherent story were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this chatroom is now dumber for having read it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.”

If from what I saw was not an act of vandalism, I don’t know what the heck is.

burn the witch in the window or drown her

do they have rotten tomato awards for comic strips this one is in the lead even the luann cult would agree if they read anything else

Holy schnikes! Where do I start?

There’s no police tape indicating there’s an ongoing investigation into the fire at the base of the stairs. Lillian and company can just go about their merry way and tromp all over what should be an active crime scene? Did the Centerville authorities just blame the fire on Ed Crankshaft and call it a night? Did they say we’ll pick up the investigation in the morning? Have the investigators simply thrown in the towel?

Fire investigator: (shrugs) Ha, ha. Arsonists will be arsonists. What can ya do?

Where did this unruly mob come from? Did they spontaneously pop up out of the ground after the firemen left? There’s an excellent bumper crop of faceless straw men in Centerville this time of year.

As @Gent wrote, the unruly mob seems to be awfully well organized. Were they waiting patiently across the street for the firemen to leave? Did they spend time making those signs at home, or did they create them on the spot while the firetruck was there?

Fireman: Hunh. I wonder what those people with the protest signs are up to? Oh, well. You folks have a nice night!

Lillian’s bookstore is in Centerville. Best Actress Award Winner Les Moore’s teaches his class in Westview. Did the protesters organize a caravan of volunteer drivers in Westview, or did they charter a bus?

A sign posted in Westview: There will be an arson at The Village Booksmith in Centerville tomorrow night to protest their possession of the book ‘Fahrenheit 451.’ There will be a protest to follow. Don’t forget to bring your signs and a foul attitude.

Perhaps I’m wrong assuming these people are from Westview. Do the people of Centerville hate Fahrenheit 451 as much as the people of Westview? Just what is written in the Batiukverse version of Fahrenheit 451 to make it so universally reviled?

Does Ray Bradbury have the same reputation as Adolph Hitler in the Batiukverse?

Dear God, save us from the crusader.

This is so contrived. The books is decades old. No way would a group that big get upset at the mere possibility of a high school kid reading that.

Boo!

Notice nobody in The Mob is carrying a torch. That’s because straw men burn too easily.

Tha isn’t Ed painting on the sign. Not sure about the red pint though.

This is the first time the book banners have shown up in the strip and they’re literally a faceless mob. Who are they? What’s motivating them other than a nonspecific hatred of one particular book? Better not ask, because that might offend the right-wing Christians who are behind most book banning efforts these days.

THANK YOU MR. BATUK FOR A TIMELY AND ENLIGHTENING STORY ARC! The responses you see here just emphasize WHY THIS STORY NEEDS TO BE TOLD! Don’t be pressured into silence. It is YOUR art and I for one am thrilled with it.

A mistake? Yesterday the paint was red.

The commenters appear to have devolved into a mob of Karens….,

The last notable book burners were Nazi. What dos that imply?

You know this whole story line is BS

Anybody remember an old “best seller” called NAKED CAME T HE STRANGER?

The idiots aren’t even wearing masks. Get a camera and start taking evidence photos

You’d think that “caring” neighbors would take turns camping out in the yard to keep those boogers away.

If you’re afraid that reading a book might change someone’s way of thinking, then you’re not afraid of books, you’re afraid of thinking

I’m tired of the storyline…can we move on? I support all reading material for adults, but anything pornographic in nature should be banned from kids. I’ve read F451 in school, didn’t have a problem with it, same with a lot of other books. But this is getting stupid. I stopped hitting the like button on this storyline, but I will keep reading the comic in hopes of something more upbeat instead of this rhetoric.

If you don’t like books being eliminated from school libraries and segregated in public libraries because of age appropriateness then it should be okay if Playboy was stocked in all of the above libraries.

I think the painter is just starting to use “red” that’s why it’s dripping. Hasn’t used the brush yet to wipe some of the red paint off. Just an opinion.

This is so weird.

The idiot brigade arrived…..

I’m beginning to think there are no police in this forlorn little burg.

Why is this comic strip still preaching about book banning?

Be afraid, Lil.

The “No Fahrenheit 451!” sign cracks me up.It’s like Dan saw the “script” for this and was like “I bet I can make it even clumsier.”

Magas!