Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for February 29, 2016

Oh no, ’tis Leslie… I mean Les!

OK, who saw that coming?

LOL even his Uncle calls him by his hated full first name.

Wasn’t someone just saying the other day how we needed a villain and suggested him?

Other than Gunther getting beat up, I’m not sure how any good will come of this ….

In this case Les isnt more …

Cue the dramatic theme music:Dum dum DUMMMMMMMMM….

Yipes. This Les is not more.

Okay, Team Evans’ I’m waiting for a good “story” as to why Les reappearance had to be specifically in February? There are those here and other boards who will come up with how many years have passed since Gunther “defeated” Les with his backpack – along with an assist from Ox … so where has the boy been?

-Yup. The presence of this disruptive force IS less. Less of a chance that The Fuse will succeed. Less of a chance that Brad and Toni will have a wedding reception there. Less of a possibility that TJ or the DeGroots will see a return on their investment.

And maybe less involvement of Prudence and Quill in the theater there…

Nice one — I’m still waiting for Toni’s ex-boyfriend Dirk to reappear. But I gotta hand it to Greg; he does excellent plot twists. Good work, Mr. Evans!

Evans dropped a bomb on us. Luann & Berneice, get on that plane to New York!

“Houston……we have a problem.”

Just make sure Ox works the same shift!

Perhaps Unc shoukd supervise the mooringless Les till he finds something constructive that he enjoys and will pursue?

Hmmm, I think, being my eternally optimistic self, that somehow this opportunity with the DeGroots, and with uncle looking over, that Les might convert into not a bully, and someone who is a decent person, as opposed to being a chip on his shoulder bully. Will Gunther be dealing with him? Or not.

Maybe this would be a good time for Crystal to show up and convince Les there are security cameras at The Fuse too:

I’m with 1212 on this…maybe this will be his crucible into changing who he is.. Remember Tiffany was the one dimensional antagonist for so long and now she’s growing on us as a complex person. maybe now it’s his turn. Or he’ll make it the week, flame out, and the favor is done.

Luann’s rebound boyfriend.

Les & Piro fight over Bernice, until they realize Les just likes to fight & Piro is fighting for a place to sleep.

“More Or Les”

“Camera Obscura”“Lens Me A Hand”“California Del Sur-veillance”“360 Degrees Of Separation”“The Full Circle Of Life”“Coming Round, Again” (♫)“Reclamation Project”“21 Blackjack Questions”“Giving Them The 183rd Degree”“Re-habitat For Humanity”“One Word’ll Bring You Round…Changes” (♪)“Everything New Is Old, Again” (♫)“Changes” (♫)“We’ll Find Out, In The Long Run” (♪)“Haircut One Hundred-Eighty” (♪)“….I’ll Be Watching You…” (♪)“An Offer Nobody Can Re-Fuse”“Flux Capacity”“Look What The Wind Of Change Blew In”or“Difficult Help Is Good To Find”

What if Les and Piro turn out to be brothers?

Don Corleone Grey

Alright. Any Luannophiles care to fill me in about this guy?

Les is the nephew of Gunther’s mother’s boyfriend. What are the odds?

A boy named Sue

There’s always the possibility that instead of being a sexual predator, his heart magically melts under the love light that is the DeGroot family. Because Luanniverse. ..In other words, Frank and Nancy’s discipline mixed with love ‘save’ him from himself, and Les becomes part of the family..Again, remember that this is a comic strip universe, not real life.

he will try to make a move on Pru, and she puts him in his place? and as I said like 2 weeks ago, Mr. Gray shows up at the leap day, and February, as promised

I’m also liking this Les-Piro-brothers talk. Half-brothers would make more sense, though.

Great, the most hated character is back.

how about having Shannon’s biological mom being Les’s cousin and mr. Gray’s daughter? that would be a double whammy, Degroots helping rehabilitate the drug user, party girl of Shannon’s mom(who is supposed to be worse than Jonathan Daytona)

We need a cast of characers list here!!!!!!!!!!!!

TJ vs. Leslie – this should be interesting. My money’s on TJ.

Les! I meant TJ vs. Les, of course!

Gunther had that feeling about Mr. Gray that he didn’t like.

New poll up: Have you been to New York?

What’s the best kind of drama?1) 30 votes – Other2) 16 votes – Imagined3) 15 votes – Self-Inflicted4) 4 votes – ManufacturedOther: Shakespearean; yo mama’s drama; I don’t want drama, I want stability; someone else’s; Inflicted on others; One which actually leads to a resolution,unlike this strip.; “What is drama but life with the dull bits cut out.”; The kind I can turn off when I get tired of it; the kind I’m not watching; None!; on-stage; Yellow – Mellow-Drama; Greek; Crime Drama; Luann’s Drama; Unexpected; Forget drama. I want comedy!; JERRY!!!!!; What would Aristotle say?; Gunther-and-the-llama drama; Queen

“And have you met my niece, Anne Eiffel?”

Can you spot the mayhem about to walk in through the dorr ??

Oh dear me….this is not going to go well….

Time to teach Brad forgivness

That’s all Mr.Gray wanted? Boy am I disappointed. I was hoping for something far more nefarious!

And why couldn’t Mr Grey, who can make things happen with a phone call, not find Les(lie) employment earlier and elsewhere..The Fuse does look awfully busy in the strip, doesn’t it? All those crowds, totally igniting it! .Oh, wait.

Les see wha happens!

Definitely a " relatively" surprise plot twist here. Good thing Les isn’t Mr . Gray’s son b/c if Mr Gray did marry Mrs B, then Les and G would be half brothers and possibly living in the same house.

Yosogai desu!

Uh-oh

Did not see that one coming..Maybe he’s ready to grow up.Here’s his chance.

Gomer: “Sur-prahz Sur-prahz Sur-prahz!!”

Didn’t Leslie have to repeat the twelve grade because I don’t remember him at graduation.

Hmmmm, pleasant looking fellow. :-p

He’s 98 percent “Les” brains too! (oh, man!)

I guess Mr. Gray is related to “Hitch” after all.because we are about to get a little “suspense!” watch the cash register, please!and wait til Hitch’s Girlfriend’s son sees him.(biting nails sound…….)

I’m a little bummed that apparently we are losing a character I liked (Quill) for one I most decidedly don’t. Just saying.

Please don’t tell me Less is going to have a major character change by working at the fuse and become Luann’s new boyfriend. I could not handle that.

Dirk D. Jerk… – Heh, heh, but seriously, he was a character that didn’t get a last name.

O.K., first thing; staff review of sexual harassment policy…

Another interesting point is that GE has stated that Leslie is patterned after a young nemesis he suffered while young. I’m curious to see what he will do with the character given that innate residual animosity.

Wow, the comments surprise me. My fellow posters have dragged out every unsavory character from the strip’s archives.

Single mother automatically equals bad upbringing. I thought you were better than that, Mr. Evans.

Quite the unexpected twistThat, I must confessA disturbance in our midstAnd his name is Les!

I am the only one who feels a Gilmore Girls Deja Vu?

For those who keep tediously reminding us to remember that this is a comic book universe, it is called “suspension of disbelief” and is necessary in healthy folks who have the capacity for play. Also, in the “real” universe, a psychopath like Trump might end up our president. How realistic is that?

May I suggest he never works the front & he has minimal contact with those who work the back? Some sort of off-hours janitor position might keep The Fuse from losing all of its customers or all of its staff.

How long has Mrs. B. known this story?

8Very unexpected…. and rather morbidly creepy! Les returns. Could it be that Gunther WAS correct in his initial distrust/dislike/rancor/anger/etc about Mr. Gray? Often times there are some similarities of disposition that run in families. I could easily imagine that Les’ parents may not be particularly nice folks…. if Les’ own behavior is any indication. And, because one of Les’ parents is a sibling to Mr. Gray… there is potential that Mr. Gray is nefarious and has been “pulling the wool” over Ms. Berger’s eyes all this time. It will be interesting to see how this further unfolds in the days ahead.

And they’re off! Let the games begin!

Gunth… better stack that back pack full of math/physics books!

Oh good grief!

Just proves Mr. Gray is no good if he’s related to disgruntle bully Leslie. I wonder how Leslie will react when he sees Ox as one on his co-workers?

Now the Degroots will appreciate what good kids they have after getting a load of this guy.

LOL… Time to pay the piper. Mom and dad will not likely care, but ohh boy.

Why February? Because that is when Les got out of prison. He looks madder than ever.

“A Hard Knox Life”^Another classic, from the “Waybac” file! – “The Man From Uncle”^Good one! Another variation could be “S.a.y. U.N.C.L.E.”!

theres Luanns next big hot catch…or lets get with him to make Quill jealous. can’t wait!

They say “It Takes a Village” to raise a child.I believe in Les’ case that village is Midwich.

And we re-meet Luann’s new boy friend.

Darn! No easy payback like getting Mr Gray married to Ms. Berger!*But what a beautiful opportunity to show how a sullen young man with no work ethic can be transformed to a model employee! I, too, want to see how it’s done. Go, Team Evans!

ruh roh

Les does not look happy to be there. He would be a terrible server, the customers would complain. Surely Mr. Gray can get him a more suitable job with all his many connections. He knows lots of people in construction, that would be a good fit for Les.

Implausible…. I guess at one level it would not matter if Gray was evil, at least as far as the DeGroots are concerned in regards to their “The Fuse”. However, in a more global sense, it could matter to the DeGroots or others…. depending upon their philosophy of life. Les being rehabilitated? Like Dirk? Hmm. A possibility. But, I sort of hope not. Les is more interesting as a villain IMO.

No good deed goes unpunished.

Mr. Gray said there were TWO ways the De Groots could repay him for his work on The Fuse. Now waiting for the second way…

Code red! Code! Run!

I had said we lacked a villain, and Les could come back. Others may also speculated on that..Of course I speculated on a lot of other possibilities, so I can’t claim much credit that Les was among them...Given his expression, I guess he will be a villain again.Ox will have to control him.

TJ both runs and owns the Kafe, does he not? If so, does he not have some say as to whom he hires? If not, is there anyone who could get Les’s goat better than TJ? Enquiring minds want to know.

kauri44 said,YESTERDAYThis is a surprising statement from Crystal who not so long ago gave a 1950’s era blame-the-victim speech to Tiffany, telling her essentially that wearing an outfit that showed (I think) her midriff meant she was “asking for it” when Leslie Knox sexually harassed/intimidated her. (Apparently Rosa, who wore more “modest” clothes, was not to blame for being attacked by him in a similar manner.) BTW, I wonder whether Pitts High ever disciplined Leslie in any manner?=I RESPONDED:Les could surface again at Moody U.’We have not had a villain recently.

So he surfaces at The Fuse, not Moody..This is in a way worse for the ladies. Yet Ox is there..Will Quill still be around at The Fuse?

Hmm, this could get very interesting. I wonder what the second favor will be?

Les could be in a position above Ox.

As Mr. trump says, “you’re fired”, that is if he acts like a jerk. Or maybe he is just a poor down trodden gay person with an attitude. Seems like each comic strip, movie and tv show has to have one now days.

Love the Ballad!

Maybe Lu’s new love interest?

So much conflict lately in Luann’s world. Got to lighten up.

I could see the Fuse becoming a “hangout” for Les’ gang, having them trash the place, set it on fire then pee on the burning embers… fortunately, Les seems to be too much of a loner, to ever be in a gang, so, that probably won’t happen. :p

Wow, that was totally out of left field.

Let’s find good male Leslies for this one to use as inspiration!

Leslie Davis, diplomate who saved many:https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_Davis

Leslie Nielsen, comedianhttps://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_Nielsen

Who else?

OMG!!!! Leslie Knox… he looks mean as ever.. I guess the only thing Nancy and Frank would care about is his work ethic.. Can he take direction from someone? I’m guessing his immediate boss will be TJ or maybe Ox who might be the head waiter at this point.

If Les grabs at Pru there is going to be extra kablooey in the Cafe as well as a new dish: knuckle sandwich!

You got that right…

Whatever happened to Elwood, the teenage millionaire?

TORAD wrote:

One of the most famous of our time being Leslie Townes Hope

Yes! Bob Hope!

Wait ’til Gunther finds out…

Luann will tame him and they become something… you’ll see

Hopefully he won’t be working with Knute the toilet tyrant.

One will need Visio to chart the coming interrelationships, real and imagined.

This puts the comic into comics. We need a few doors and some police officers to start a chase.

It is listed as one of the reasons because statistically, children from single parent homes do have a harder time making anything of themselves. Sure, it’s not a guarantee of failure, but it does make success much, much harder.

Maybe “Leslie” should go to court and have his name legally changed to, say, “Lester” ?

Leslie is a perfectly fine name for a guy.

Mr Grey adds, “Oh, by the way, Leslie’s Probation Officer will be checking up on him, from time to time.”

Most of these “Leslies” seem to be concurrent with my own name, which NOBODY is named any longer. We’re just fading sadly into the night. sniff. Except for one comic strip.

Loving this lol definitely not expecting this!

“The Man From Uncle” also deserves a Dragoncat Award!Good one!

Okay… So Les has returned. And his uncle had secured a job for him at Kafe Kablooie.Doesn’t Ox work there, too? Perhaps he’ll be the one who keeps Les in line.

I see a bad-boy in Luan’s future. Anyone remember Jess from the Gilmore Girls?

Looks like someone needs an attitude adjustment

I think that Luann and Les are as unlikely as these:http://xkcd.com/1648/

Suddenly, all the potential mystery surrounding Mr. Gray has dissipated. He’s just a portly fellow whose career probably derailed and now he is trying to salvage it by starting over. Early on, I suspected he was Gunther’s real father which now would make Les Gunther’s cousin. It is frustrating that all these story lines dead end. I want Rosa to come back and set Gunther on fire, or let Tiffany and Gunther have a real romance. Pru, Luann, and Bernice were ready for a wild road trip, but the road ended up in quicksand.

Leslie Knox is Mr. Gray’s nephew, ehh? Well, that’s a pretty kettle of fish!I wonder whom he will harass and who will ultimately defeat Les “don’t call me Leslie” this time?

“Bullies are made, not born”.Then blow up the factory.Wait !There IS no factory.There is no sequence of events which always produces a bully.Contention thereby disproved.

“Bullies are made, not born”.Then blow up the factory.Wait !There IS no factory.There is no sequence of events which always produces a bully.Contention thereby disproved.

You write:

Please…I haven’t finished digesting dinner yet…mentioning Humpty-Trumpty won’t help that happen

If only i coukd successfully use such an effect to help me diet!

Airman, it looks like most Spring Breaks are in March, with a very few in Feb. and a few in April.http://blog.studentcity.com/when-is-my-spring-break

@Implausible" what does Team Evans have against single parents?".They are often associated with bsturdz, obnoxious self-centered conscienceless well, you well get the picture.. They are the product of people who didn’t think highly enough of each other to give their union legal standing and responsibility, didn’t care enough to care for their own offspring..(Assuming single status wasn’t caused by death and sometimes even then.).They are more likely to be bad people.

My guess for the second favor Mr. Gray wants— Les needs a place to live, can he move in with Frank and Nancy

Gunther was raised by a single mom.

Happy Leap Day everyone!!!

The two servers at the Café have both had interactions with Les. He sucker punched Knute and Ox threated him. Gonna be tense.

If there is s redemption arc, I fear it will be interminable.

I remember tracing it back a ways, and found that the first strips to show that she was actually a lefty was in 1990, so it took about five years…

You know some have brought this point up: if Mr. Gray and Gunther’s mom become serious enough to marry, or even be in a long-term relationship, then Les will be an in-law, or otherwise very close to his bully victim. And there is still the possibility of Rosa coming back. This sets up so much possibility.

You are correct about Spring break. There’s hope.

Brd, she might be naturally ( or 2D naturally) ambidextrous.

“That ain’t all that is right on cue. Quilly left on his own accord. Greg says that sometimes these characters surprise him and take him in directions that he had not initially planned.”^And countless interviews (both via newspaper and live cast) have seen him make that very point…

Spoiler Alert, the Reboot:

Seems Quill won’t be attending the Academy Awards, this year…

I agree! – I keep a chart for the same purpose in my writing. And I’ve found that I thought one way about names, situations, even a character’s fictional residence…and days, weeks, months later, go: "Just what was I thinking , doing it that way? – Sometimes, when I write lines for song lyrics, at the time I go: “Okay, this sounds great!”, only to give it some time, and think: Okay, maybe it’s still okay, but it just doesn’t "pop’, anymore. Sometimes, it takes a change, or sometimes it just takes a new pairing of lyrics, but you just never know! Things like that (the creative) don’t follow a “schedule”. Heh, heh, guess that’s why they call it “creativity”…

SPOILER 2.3

Maybe he got a hold of Dez’ destiny deck…

-But in this case, Quill may only leave one venue in the city, and remain in the city. We shall see.

-Spoiler 2.5.3

Right on cue only if the cue is a certain hairless guy explaining why Prudence the bartender (bartender?!) should be hired.

And leaving one venue doesn’t mean leaving a city…

Hitler-Mussolini anyone?

@DavidHuieGreen“No one said there was a factory for producing those who become bullies and later tyrants.”.Someone said bullies are made.You aren’t big on metaphors, are you?What makes a bully is not set in stone.Oops, another metaphor.People decide what to be, no matter what.

“And right on cue, Quill is officially kicked out of the strip for ending it with Luann. Hilarious”.Just because he quit doesn’t mean he stays quit or is forever gone.

Possible but not certain.

And the other shoe drops.

On the plus side, at least it’s not Dirk.

LOL, Les.

Wait til he pairs up with TJ…..