Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for February 18, 2014

That dress and a new hairdo plus get rid of the specs and she might turn out to be pretty decent looking.

So, it’s bigger than a breadbox… – She is used to feeling in the “superior” position… but now, in her perspective, the sands are running out… the books are no longer suitable companions, the aspirations no longer remain satisfiable, unless they are colored with more than scholastic achievement… more than intellectual fulfillment… more than just the ups and downs of passion and desire… she wants to be…

“To Be (And Not Just To Be)”“Ahead Of The Class”“Graded On Her Curves”“Class In Pocket (I’m Special)”“Sitting On Top Of The World Book Encyclopaedia”“Big Time”or“Miss All Of The Above”

Yep. I guessed it. Bernice is “coming out.”

Look what a new hairdo did for Luann. and ‘Bernie’ could use some contacts , or Lasix, or maybe new frames. Hey the Bernie on BBT is pretty Hot and she wears glasses.

Now we need to get Levi in there to be her date.

Nothing like having a fit over what will fit.

I guess dinner will either be on him, or on him ….either that, or he’ll have an empty stomach and a headache…

“Sponsored” by….The Dress Silo…. “Come pitch your money in here!”.. – Okay Mart… “Well, you’ve got a wallet… we’ve got lights…so, if you’re not doing anything else….” – Sneers…. “If you have to ask…” – and by… – Bored And Trailer… “It’s fun here… when you have money!…”

Well, Bernice has nothing to worry about because in this strip every one of the main characters gets someone ten times better looking then they are , lol

I was gonna go with a “Kill-it Skillet”… but “Skilletto” sounds much better….

So is Bernice shopping for a prom dress when she has no date?

And do we know whatever happened to Zane? I mean, she was distraught when she thought he was trapped in the fire, she called Brad, who saved his life, and then — nothing?

Did Zane become a monk? Run off to Tahiti? Shack up with Cutter John from Bloom County?

…which will go unnoticed once Greg writes Delta out of the strip.

…no, Luann has an Aaron HIll clone who will find some way to be exiled back to Australia somehow because Luann and any iteration of Aaron Hill are not to join in any sort of union.

No, that’s just Gunther’s beard.

With her work ethic she will pass everyone else in good enough time

Nothing says “prom” like “expensive”.

From past experience, I try to refrain from making predictions here, as they are usually wrong. Still, I am visualizing what may happen in days to come. Bernice has become obsessed with breaking out of her set patterns, so she will use the Prom as her opportunity. When she gets there, she will fall hopelessly in love with the first unattached boy who speaks to her, or even looks at her. Hopefully, she will be intelligent enough to invest in some birth control pills beforehand…

Rumor has it TJ is free, and he likes to cook, oh never mind, frying pan into the fire…

“Even Gunther’s in a relationship!” You called it, Bernice – “Even” Gunther. Maybe if you buy that dress, though, “even Gunther” may see you in a new light. Then, “even Gunther” and “even Bernice” might become an “evenly” matched couple!

Bernice looks pretty hot in that glittery strapless minidress! As was noted immediately by DaJellyBelly (and others), that, plus an improved hairdo and use of contact lens in place of her glasses could make Bernice the Most Wanted Girl at prom!So, does she have the determination to carry through, or will her resolve wilt into safe stodginess?

Maybe Reason Why Your “Life is BLAH” Is because You INSIST on MAKING It BLAH, Bernie.

And What’s with the “Even Gunther” Comments? Do You Consider Him BENEATH You, even though its been Established that the two of You are the Smartest Kids in School? Hmmmmmm, TELLING!

Look Kid. BUY the Dress and Go to the Prom. You probably won’t be the ONLY one there without a Date. Take Delta WITH You. Hel, er, I Mean HECK, Take Tiffany too, PROVIDED She Hasn’t FINALLY Succumbed to Ox’s Inevitable Charm.

And When PROM and Graduation is DONE, Be a little Less UPTIGHT and Look FORWARD to LIFE and LOVE In College.

The “HornDog” Has SPOKEN!

IMHO, there is no good reason she should 1.) have to change her look to attract a guy or 2.) feel that a relationship with someone in high school serves any purpose other than friendship. Delta of all people should’ve already said something to assure her that she is NOT “behind the curve”, and that emphasizing her curves is NOT a high priority.

A character whose whole existence is about complaining and snarky remarks is not really strong enough to carry a storyline.

Drewder: I quite agree. In fact, can you imagine the sort of guy (well, partner, anyway) who’d be attracted to someone whose whole existence is about complaining and snarky remarks? On their first date, they’d be amusing one another by taking shots at the waiter/waitress, the diners at the other tables, that usher with the weird hair and so forth, and would be talking trash about one another before breakfast the next morning!Melmarsh9v: I don’t think Zane was ever officially written out, he was just never written about. If I recall, Bernice visited him in the hospital where he was recovering after the fire (which started, let us recall, while they were making out). At that point she was delighted that he escaped and he was delighted that she’d called Brad who got there in time, and then — oh, look over there!

Delta and Bernice? First mixed race gay couple in comics? Works for me…

Hey i know exactly how u feel bernice. im single and im in 10th grade takin courses that r supposed to be for 12th graders. everybody else is actually having a life……..ughhh

I can’t recall how long I’ve been reading this strip but I think this is Bern’s 2nd hairdo. It is an improvement over the previous one. Where would Greg take it next?

Get yourself a makeover, Bernice. You’ll rock.

Yes.

“So is Bernice shopping for a prom dress when she has no date?”*Marvel -*Girls do NOT need a date to go to prom. We (my guy & women friends) all went as a group.

Dowdy girl looking to make her life “amazing”.

Disillusioned that her studious ways no longer feel superior to the other kids.

Equates “boyfriend” with “amazing”.

Recent reminder to the readers that there’s a ‘bad boy’ that needs a date for the prom.

Dowdy girl is looking to make her life’s work helping list and misguided teens find a path to the straight and narrow.

Mix well and pour into a well greased cliche storyline.

Opportunity Knox.

Poor Leslie sure will be grateful to whoever clues him into there not being cameras all over the place at school, probably even if that person was just shooting their mouth off just being a snotty know it all (again).

-LOL!!!

Come on, Bernie, call up your old boyfriend, Zane. You had a good thing going, and now that you are on the threshold of adulthood, he should be reentering your life.

Do you think you could handle marriage and college, too? An 18 year old college student marrying a man eight years older can handle a marriage, home and college, too. I did 41 years ago. I have a degree, a 41 year marriage, and no regrets. So can you.

-She should be talking about how she is a National Merit Finalist at this point, not lamenting over her lack of a boyfriend.-It must be a while since you were in high school if you think any kid is content. The ones who spent all their time having social lives are worrying about what to do next (should they try to go to college? If so, who would have them?) and the ones who spent their whole time earning grades are fearful that they’ve missed half of what life is about.-Whenever you reach the ending of a part of your life, you tend to look with a much more critical eye and a bunch of regrets. Especially true for teens, who are prone to very great leaps of emotion….

- Luann has been an anchor that has done nothing but hold her down-You seem to have forgotten that the name of this comic is not ‘Bernice’. If Bernice was unhappy with this before, she could have moved on. She didn’t, but became snarky. Snarkiness is not commenting. It is being sarcastic, which is something teens are famous for. However, it is rarely appreciated by any of those who are the targets of it. Commenting can be done without sarcasm and can be productive. Sarcasm only alienates.

Maybe you need to take this issue up with the cartoonist (s), since they have already done a shout out to you once. Maybe the post graduation ‘Luann’ comic should fragment into a bunch of comics, and one could be devoted to the character you like the most.

Nice look for Bern… I think we are about to see the return of Zane…. with his new wife

For those who asked, Zane went off to vet school, after rejecting Bern’s marriage proposal; at the time, Bern was planning to go into veterinary medicine also (And presumably intending to work with Zane); but, since then, her interest seems to have become psychology.

-because the strip is Luann doesn’t give the main character the right to talk about herself and problems 100% of the time.-You seem to have overlooked the time that Luann spent with kids at the library and then at the after school program, and the time she spent taking care of Shannon. She doesn’t talk about herself and her problems 100% of the time.-

I know you believe that the cartoonist is eagerly reading all our comments here (unlikely) and will benefit in particular from your critical comments. To be kind, all I can say is I believe you are mistaken.-And maybe you would have a happier time reading comics if you shifted away from one that seems only to annoy you….

- does the Lone Ranger spit on Tonto? Does Batman kick Robin?-Does the Lone Ranger snark at Tonto? Does Batman snark at Robin?-I have not seen Luann ‘crapping’ on Bernice as much as I have seen Bernice ‘snarking’ on Luann….but then, I’ve only been reading for about a year….

-But enough about this. I want to know what your reaction is to Brdshtt’s picture of the lady with the skillet, and his suggestion that Mrs. L might have an issue with you as Bernice’s prom date!!

@Sisyphos

She may be stuck with the glasses, not everybody can tolerate contacts, tho’ something more fashionable would not come amiss. A non-crinkly hairdo is definitely called for Et voilà!

“Bernice Halper, the 2nd most senior character in the strip. Her 1st appearance on 03-18-85 set the pattern she would fill, sitting at the foot of Luann’s bed while Luann talked about all her problems…..”^Personally, I agree with that, and the rest of the comment that follows…..

I love the brainy ones.

For those that think that she’ll “settle for a bad boy”, click on/remember this arc from 9/28/87, when she encountered Derek… and after he treated her like crap and used her to stash drugs, he moved on to Delta, claiming he was “over” Bernice… Delta wasn’t “having it”, and though he’s since been “Chuck Cunninghamed (erased from the strip)”. I’m sure that Bern would think twice, when it comes to wanting to date “the bad boy”…

Even if the strip defined Rosa as the “most beautiful” back then , readers are not tied down to “going with the flow”….some will find that others also qualify…. Lev’s point was defining Crystal as the most beautiful from his view, and that if others would take the time to examine her, they might be led to that conclusion, as well….

And beauty, like many other things, is subjective, according to the eyes of the beholder.. or the beer holder… or the bee holder… or…

– This one seemed to bear a striking resemblance to Bern (though admittedly a different nose from Bernice)… the hair in this one seems to be similar, and if so, there would seem to be plenty that can be done with just this hair without too much of a drastic change for her 2D counterpart….

Ooh! Bernice should SO but that dress, by hook or crook or whatever! Her glasses aren’t so bad, but maybe a formal ‘do would be nice. I have a feeling that Bernice will go to the senior soiree, totally ROCK the house, and have guys standing in line to dance with her! (I can’t seem to make an accented e here.)

I’m just saying they look similar in the hair and glasses, that’s all…

-I sent him that picture of the misses long ago. More than once she has gone upside my head. That explains a lot.-LOL!

-Oh, yeah,… Down, Lev, Down-OMG!! LOL squared…..

Seriously, Bernice. I, personally, have found out that once you’ve graduated, nobody else really cares what functions you attended, who you hung out with, what awards you may or may not have earned, etc. No, that all pretty much becomes yesterday’s news. In short, I wouldn’t worry about it.

The beauty pageant was a plot device , and not the “Official Coronation Ceremony of Foreverness”…. – What pageant is only done one time, and then that’s all?…Is there only one “Miss America”, “Miss Universe”, “Miss Talladega County Carburetor Queen”?… there isn’t one and then they’d say: "Uh… no need to do any more…. c’mon, now!… – There was a next pageant, but that was the one that for that particular story was the one that was featured, just for that particular plot….

Why are you making everyone go against their grain? Gunther, Bernice? Luann is much too young to glom onto Quill. I guess it is normal to worry at that age about the future because one has so little past.

The point is, there isn’t only one beauty contest… that was one year out of many, the one we were privileged to see, only because it was integral to that particular story… it wasn’t the “be all end all” by Greg as to who is the prettiest…. and whatever happens in a pageant doesn’t always translate into “real life” (in regards to the lives of these characters that transcends beyond that event)… someone who is picked by a small group is not the clear choice as to who was (or is) the best… the same way that college football is so skewered…

And that was one of the things that I was trying to say…

Oh…. – I was being all: “Here at “Jay Blue”, We crush more dreams and spirit than the leading competitor…. whether by Phone, Computer or Cable Television, or by any other means necessary…. so look to the “Death Star”… look to the future…."–

My sincere apologies….

Nothing wrong with glasses, all of you who say she needs to lose them. She could find a more flattering pair, I grant you, but she shouldn’t have to lose them entirely in a makeover (I myself would have strenuously objected to losing mine! Can’t do contacts, you know? And eye surgery freaks me out no end).

Please, please give Berniece a cute little makeover. Nothing drastic. New hair style, modern frames or contacts, a bit of make-up. Oh, and a boyfriend. Maybe TJ?

There are 12 comments on the ArcaMax site and most of them are urging Bernice to just be true to herself.

Wowser!! Bernice has a hot potential I never realized!!

I agree, the snarkiness has always been a problem for me…does she ever say anything nice to anyone? And the hair has to go, too ’80’s.

“I think Mrs Leviticus just might have something to say to him about that…”`For all intents and purposes, Brd, she would not yet have existed.

“If I could only be 2D.”`In this forum, we are all 2D.

Bernice, the time to do “something amazing” is quickly coming to a close. Be daring! Buy that dress (which you look good in BTW… but you need to do Something with your hair!) and go to the prom…you never know who might be “available” to dance with and discuss deep things with… :)

They have been showing the “updated” version of Mumbley on “Laff-A-Lympics”, on the Boomerang Network, to coincide with the Olympics..– My wife and I are tickled whenever we hear “Stop The Pigeon”, though we have a decade to go before sniffing 50…

“She (Bernice” should be talking about how she is a National Merit Finalist at this point, not lamenting over her lack of a boyfriend."

Perhaps Bernice is beyond being identified with being the Class Brain, and just wants to have some downtime (read fun). After all, we (or I should say “I”), don’t know too much about her extra-curricular activities other than her stint as a student counselor…she’ll need to include these on her college applications (which should have happened by now anyway). Since a lot of extra- curricular activities often have a bit of fun in them, she needs to experience some “fun” before she graduates on her way to become the sad know-it-all in very difficult college classes. I think she should have hooked-up to the school newspaper, or debate club, or scientific clubs, and there meet with like-minded guys. But it is too late now, so she’ll just have to go to the prom either with friends, or by herself (which I can’t imagine her doing…but who knows, Anything can happen in Luannverse). At any rate, she has an opportunity to meet the Class Brain of the male persuasion and have some Fun for a change… ;)

> These are not real people. She could sprout snakes out of her head and kill poeple with a glance. She could change into a toad. what ever GREG wants.>And certain people herein would proclaim that the most wonderful thing ever, simply because GREG did it.

Ah, Prom Night is coming— and I think it is a safe prediction to expect it to focus upon the exploits of Quill & Luann, Gunther & Rosa, (possibly) Knute & Crystal. But what I am waiting for the most is the adventure of Bernice!

> Weren’t these the same people who were castigating Luann for being selfish and “clingy” where Quill is concerned?>No, that was a whole different group of people [raises hand]. The Luann disciples herein were never describe her as “clingy”, even if she were covered in used bubblegum and epoxy cement.

I did it again! I forgot that Mumbley was supposed to be different from Muttley….

In the Dec. 23 strip, Nancy responded to Luann’s whining that Quill might have some interest in life other than her: “Don’t mope. Boys don’t like mopey, needy girls.” This is proof that Nancy doesn’t read this commentary, since so many people who post herein totally adore mopey, needy girls (or at least ones with an eponymous comic strip).

Most definitely! In order to develop a story involving so many characters and (hopefully) interconnected plots, it will take at least 2-3 weeks. I can hardly wait for Prom Night! Also, Graduation Day should have some good ideas floating around…

Re.: Bernice can do a lot better than Quill, “but it would get Luann all sorts of excited.”

Oh, ha, I can just see Luann simmering! ;)

@RonWowser!! Bernice has a hot potential I never realized!!

Bernice has not recieved an offical upgrade as Luann has gotten a few times, but she is being portrayed much more attaractive than she has been in the past..You know what? I think I can finally ask… I wonder what Bernice would look like wearing a black string bikini?

Dump the headband, put in some contacts, and put on a little makeup and you’ll be an instant hottie, Bernice.