Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for September 10, 2019

Well that was unexpected !!! Hope its a sister

Gunther’s going to be a brother and Leslie’s going to have another cousin! (Not much to the boys’ joy.)

”Brady Bunch” Redux. ✨

It looks like Gunther may need the Heimlich maneuver. Hopefully he will survive long enough to realize his mother is too old for children, so she is talking about some fur baby. However, if it ends up that Gunther’s mom and Al are going into the foster parent program, then kudos to Evans for doing something different.

:O! Wow! I didn’t see that coming! Neither did Gunther or Les! Yikes! ROFLaughing over here…..

I love panel 3. :D

As good ol’ Gomer Pyle used to say, “Surprise, Surprise, Surprise!”

Believe eladee almost called this…not Al and Irma, but who woulda guessed that? Indeed, something in the ink in the 2019 comics page.

Host parents for an exchange student? Foster parents? Adoptive parents? I wonder how many days we’ll have to wait until the reveal…

Hope it’s sister.

if she’s knocked up i wonder how old she i suppose to be? i mean Gunny is what 20 now?

Les said it best – YERK. Irma and Al? Please – it ain’t funny and won’t be easy to raise a child at your age. I am really hoping you are talking about adopting an older child. I am assuming Al is in his 40s. Maybe 50s. Irma could still be in her 30s if she had Gunther very young. I have a friend who became a grandmother at age of 35. She is now 45 with a ten-year-old granddaughter along with a bunch of younger ones. She herself was a 19 year old mother when she had her oldest and that oldest had hers at 16. Anyway, Irma could be as young as 35-39 which is not alarming as I know many women who wait until that old to start family. But Al? Will he be an active dad?

If this is what it appears to be (and not a G&K head fake), before you go on about the age difference between Gunth and the Mini-Gray, just let me point out that my mom started to go into labor with me at my oldest sister’s 18th birthday party.

Don’t worry boys, you just misheard Irma. What she really said was that Al was going to start wearing polo shirts!

(Inside Gunth’s head….) “Oh, let it be adopted, oh let it be adopted, oh let it be adopted, oh let it be adopted, oh let it be adopted, oh let it b…….”

I looked it up. The average age of menopause is between 45 and 55, with outliers in either direction. This is possible, especially if Irma had Gunther at a young age.

Some might say the deGroot’s wishes landed where they didn’t expect!

This should silence all those posters who keep nattering about Toni getting pregnant…

It’d be nice if they’d formally adopt Les.

I thought what happened in Vegas stayed in Vegas. I guess mr gray stayed away from the gaming floor and opted to play with his wife’s “slots.” ;-)

Oh no! Irma’s preggers! And Gunther’s going to be seeing evidence of his mother’s sexuality for the next 7-8 months, or to mention meeting it face to face not long after that. Will the boy be able to handle that, or will it cause his poor brain to explode?

Just kidding. And while it is certainly possible that Irma is pregnant, I suspect Gunther’s about to get a sibling of the four-legged variety.

I don’t know about Gray, but Irma is already a parent.

Anyway, nobody named Irma is in her thirties.

Better question. Does Mister Grey ever smile?

I think we have yet to find out what “parents” is. A pet? Support an overseas kid? Stay tuned…

Yesterday it looked like Les begged off of going to the family dinner. However Gunther looked at Les with disapproval. I was surprised (and disappointed) to see that Les wound up going to the #@%*ing family dinner.

Going way out on a limb here: those who are saying adoption are on the mark, and the child they’re adopting is Shannon.

Maybe Tiffany decided college was going to be too hard – and she asked Irma & Al to adopt her.

Why do I have a feeling that Gunther’s mom and Leslie’s uncle are just going to adopt? I mean aren’t those two are kinda old? Is Gunther’s mom is at the age for menopause?Don’t get me wrong! I really do hope Gunther’s mom is pregnant! That will be REALLY SUPER surprising for me!!!! Also even more surprisingly this married couple are able to have a new baby BEFORE Brad and Toni!!!!

Yeeee katz!

Actually, Mr Gray looks happy to me.

My mother was 41 when I was born. She was 45 when my younger brother was born. That’s not frequent enough to be called common or scarce enough to be called rare.

As far as fatherhood? Age is almost irrelevant. Julio Iglesias’ little brother was born after his father’s 90th birthday.

Surprise caboose babies are always spoiled by everyone.

Parents to a dog, cat, or adopted child?

Congratulations!

It seems Greg likes to stay in top of current topics. I mean, he has a gay character; is a transgender one somewhere down the pipeline?

My guess would be an animal.

Adoption, maybe? I’d think Ms. “B” has already undergone “that change.” But I could be wrong.

An interesting twist if it was Shannon!!! But I hope not. If anyone is to adopt Shannon, I hope it’s Brad/Toni.

What??

Probably either a foster child or a pet. If they were going to do a pregnancy storyline I can’t think they’d do it with Irma instead of Toni.

And her husband had a stroke the following day. (True story)

When I was in college the neighbors who had kids my age wound up expecting. She must have been close to 50. Everyone was shocked.

Pfffffft!!! Aaah! I was having a drink while reading the comic! I spilled it all over! I did not see it coming!

Oh BOOOOOY! Now unless that means that Al and Irma are about to adopt a 16 year old girl, it means that Irma is in the “Family Way.” And everybody KNOWS what that MEANS for these two lads, RIGHT? BABYSITTING AKA Shannon!

I wager that whatever the case, be it toddler or adopted child, five bucks see that the kid will be a handful and will happily DUMPED right on lads laps, just like Shannon.

Wow. Funny isn’t it? Brad and Toni can’t have kids one way or the other, but these two CAN. The old folks definitely have MORE fun in this Strip than the young ones do.

Of course if the kid is an adopted teen from a broken home, then perhaps Les can redeem himself by doing a bit of mentoring, since he’d have something in common. On the other hand, if the kid is male and a “problem child,” that would also mean that the kid would probably be living in the Gulag AND following Les’ example.

Gee Bus, That’s just what Gunny “needs.” Les with a new ally!

Gunther, get the H3LL OUT NOW!!!

PS: It’s being suggested that Al and Irma are actually getting a dog. Do “folks” really make this much “fanfare” over getting a dog??

A dog. They’re getting a dog.

I’m betting they are adopting a cat.

I hope they have 911 on speed dial.

My best friend growing up had a family like this. He was 18 and his next brother in age was 41. His parents were not good parents. They were too old and they couldn’t realize that Mark was growing up in the 70’s and his brothers grew up in the 50’s.

$5 says it’s one or more dogs.

APRIL FOOL!

HOORAY!!! CONGRATULATIONS IRMA AND AL! And congratulations even if Irma is not pregnant but they have decided to adopt. Even if they want to take a pet. But to be honest, I hope that Irma is pregnant because the story would be very fun to read.

I’m thinking pet here.

But how?

i hope they’er adopting a pet.

Open season for guesses. Mine would be a cat.

Yup, Once again, the cake is a lie.. .

And here I thought we were looking in on a meeting of Dull Dressers Anonymous.

She’s probably still young enough to have another child. It happens and while there is a risk, oftentimes the baby is perfectly healthy. Lots of families in Appalachia, where I am from, used to have children that spanned a wide age arc and no problems at all. But it is more than likely that they are talking fur baby or fostering. Can’t wait to find out. Any of these scenarios will add some spice to this dysfunctional family.

Mid life oops….

Why is Gunther’s mother so clueless?

“Yerk Kidding, Right?”

“And Now, The News”

“It’s Apparent That They’ll Each Be A Parent”

“News You Can Lose…Your Dinner Over”

“Put A Shock In It”

“The Pullet…Surprise!”

“I Heard The News Today, Oh Oy! (♪♫)”

Both of my parents were aunts and uncles when they were born.

I hope they’re adopting.

I’m 36. My Dad’s father was born in 1867. Yes Eighteen Sixty-Seven. My dad is not the youngest. When My grandfather died, he had 6 children under 8 years old (including my 2-month-old uncle) , and 8 children over 50. My grandma was 46.

They’re getting a dog.

Hmmm, was wondering if this could be happening and dismissed it a little. Glad to see the surprise! Given it’s Tuesday G&K have lots of room to twist this one again if they want (i.e.; Wednesday the boys sying you mean a dog/cat/fish and then Irma say no a child and then Friday saying really it’s twins).For the doubters out there, while Irma may look/act like a 1950-70’s mom she’s probably 45 +/- 5 years and healthy. Mr. Gray is probably about the same so both could be very funcitonal. Besides, you always hear about the new empty nester suddenly not having an empty nest;-)

They are probably talking an animal adoption but I really really hope they are pregnant and having a little brother or sis for Gunther. I can see all kinds of wacky fun coming out of this!

And I don’t think they are too old to be parents!!! They are drawn to look old fashioned but they are not OLD.

5

Les came to dinner, so that is a bit sad.

As far as the “parents” comment…. will it be

a) an actual biological kid (likelihood estimate 2 out of 10)

b) an actual adopted kid (likelihood estimate 4 out of 10)

c) a puppy/kitten (likelihood estimate 7 out of 10)

d) an exchange student (likelihood estimate 5 out of 10)

They’re getting a dog!

Guess he doesn’t wear the suit all the time.

I hope that the baby has more personality or, at least, facial expression than Al! ;o[

uh, aren’t they parents already?

G&Khave worked very, very, very, very hard, and they’ve finally done it: Gotten me to agree with Les.

Please tell me they’re getting a dog.

They’re sitting in a weirdly close proximity to each other.

With all the possible story lines GnK have already set up, why would they possibly introduce this, except as an episodic one-off? In other words, something other that Irma being preggers.

The pet idea seems to have some backup as Greg has a partiality to veterinarians. He introduced a real one when Puddles had a tumor and more recently he had Jack opting for a veterinary education.

Well first of all I don’t think it will be a dog, but given this silliness about dog mommies that is possible (don’t get me wrong, I like dogs, and am thinking of getting one, but it will be my buddy, not my kid)! It is possible for older women to conceive, someone on ArcaMax site mentioned menopause, a guy, so how in hades would he know, or how he would know. With all the in vitro methods and medical work on fertility anything is becoming possible. I think though that it might more like be an adoption or foster child. But we see. I love the reactions of the boys, and I love Gun(thers) reluctance to talk to his mom about Bets in mixed company. She apparently knows about Bets. I predict they will get along famously. Also MD let me correct something he said: Brad and Toni and not having kids yet. That will be up to them, and really up to when GnK decide that they will have kids. Nothing about their fertility has been stated or implied, so the assumption should be they could conceive at any time. No question they are a very active young couple.

Gunther’s mom could be pregnant. I am older than Gunther’s mom and I have a newborn. Gunther is only 19! Plus I know many siblings who are 19 and more years apart in age!

If Julia Roberts can do it, why can’t Irma?! Wait…

Congratulations to those who predicted this. My question is, how long until this kid becomes older than Shannon (who seems to be eternally stuck at six years old)? And yes, that kind of thing has happened in storytelling before: in Peanuts, Linus used to be Lucy’s baby brother, until he grew up to match Charlie Brown’s age. (Sally was a baby too, but at least she still acknowledged that her brother was still older.) And on The Simpsons, Apu went from single to dating to married and expecting kids all while Maggie was a year old. His kids have since grown from infants to toddlers, while Maggie still remains frozen in time.

Who would wear a coat and tie at home? Must be an East Coast thing.

Methinks it’s a fur baby, i.e., dog or cat.

You old dog, you!!

So, Gunther was adopted?

This has all of the makings of a multi-part study on the Focus On The Family radio program.

One more thing. Why in the H3LL couldn’t it be Ann and Tom announcing that “THEY” are about to become “parents??” Why is it that Gunther is ALWAYS the one that has to “deal with” something??

Double DRAT, You Greg and Karen!!! ;)

“Gulp” my fat foot! That’s an excuse for a spit take if there ever was one!

I’m guessing a dog.

Speaking as a sociologist …..I have read studies of women in their 40’s getting pregnant. They think of themselves as being too old…..surprise, surprise. One study had the story of a mid-twenty daughter coming over with her husband to tell the parents the happy news. Her Mother, mid 40’s, was delighted and the said….”speaking of pregnancy….”. The daughter’s child beat her new brother by a couple of weeks.

One more argument against Irma being pregnant…. With the numerous storylines in play here, if she really is pregnant, it is likely that we get the announcement, see her again in 4-5 months, (just “showing”), and then again around the time for the baby to appear. Pregnancy is too big of an event for a minor character’s story, unless she was suddenly to become a major character.

I think probably a pet of some sort.

I still think the skin tones are a bit gray-ish. And does Al’s “gray” suit have some brownish-tint to it??

First Toni and now Irma, I wonder who is getting nudged? Thinking it’s Karen.

Uh oh. Momther might be forced to finally tell Gunther where babies come from.

Well… Never saw that coming. On the other hand, better Irma than Ann.

Al Gray [in his best Vito (Don Corleone) voice]:

“Boys!! There will be an addition to the ‘family’! By which, I mean – a new arrival shall become the true heir to the ‘Family Empire’! … SO! Whaddaya think a’ DAT??!! … Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh!!” :)

Irma is the mothering type. She’s not able to do that as much with Gunther so she needs something else. I hope it’s a puppy.

This could be a REALLY good thing for Gunther’s relationship with his mom. As we’ve seen in the past, Irma has had “issues” about letting go of Gunther’s baby furniture, saving all his childhood crap, as well as constantly calling him by his baby name, “Gunthie”, and she still treats him like a child, “Milk and cookies, Gunthie?” When Gunther was going through his post-Peru surly “I’m a Man” period, he’d occasionally explode at her. And, even in today’s strip, she’s still calling him “Gunthie”. She has a hard time letting go, and thinking of him as an actual adult.

If she’s preggers, then the new baby would provide her the much-needed outlet for her (s)mothering tendencies, and she’d be able to appropriately talk baby-talk and coo over her new offspring. And this time, she has a stable household (a hubby), and a sizeable income and all the time she needs to raise her newborn. That would finally allow her to emotionally accept Gunther’s growing up, and perhaps they can enter a new phase and communicate adult-to-adult, and with love.

You already are parents

Please, please, please…let it be a dog, or a cat, or a hamster, or an aardvark, but please, NOT a child!

I got curious about the popularity of the name Irma for babies born in the USA.

Turns out there has been only one year in the last 89 years when there were more than 1000 babies given that name, and that was in 1957. I wondered why the uptick that year, so I poked around in popular culture sites for instances of the name… because I recall the influence that daytime soap operas used to have on the frequency of baby names.

Turns out that from 1952 through 1954 there was a well known TV sitcom called “My Friend Irma,” based on a 1949 Martin/Lewis movie of the same name. So the name was out there, floating in the Zeitgeist.

The 1963 Jack Lemmon / Shirley MacLaine movie “Irma la Douce” didn’t produce an uptick, probably because the character named Irma in that one was a prostitute.

In any event, the name has been in a more or less steady decline, with a small blip or two here and there. There were only 52 babies named Irma born in 2018, the last year for which we have figures. I imagine the decline might hold on for just a few more years to make a full century.

If Gunther’s mom was born in the five year period from 1974 to 1978, she would have been one of about 1800 American girls named Irma in those years.

Irma has been even less popular as a boy’s name in the same time period with only two years in which 10 baby boys were given that name, in 1938 and again in 1940. I got no guesses why the cluster of those namings happened at that time.

I’ve seen a few comments saying she’s too old. Buy a clue, people! Guntther is 19-20 which means his mom could easily be young as 35 or so, perhaps even a bit less. Not even a tiny bit crazy t ha t she could get pregnant.

I wonder if she had the IVF procedure, and it took.

who says She’s too old? My oldest Brother was 20 when my youngest Sister was Born!

She really ought to wait until after they Swallow to deliver that sort of news.

cue the ominous music

Okay that is either a spitting or choking moment.

Hah! Actually…. I just realized that this might be a VERY funny way for Greg to poke gentle fun at all the folks who always comment thinking Toni and Brad are going to announce a pregnancy. If an Irma and Al pregnancy is “conceived” by Greg for that reason…… damn, that is really clever and fun!!!!

Wait, what???

Today: Irma asks, “Ready?”

Tomorrow: They weren’t.

Dun dun dunn!

The dramatic music makes the soap opera. Will the “child” turn out to be a pet (dog, cat, etc.), as many suspect? Or is this announcement literal, so that Gunther will have a much younger sibling?

This was not a storyline I expected! I love the expressions on Gunther and Les!

Exchange kid?

https://www.gocomics.com/9chickweedlane/2019/08/24

Prepare to breathe a collective sigh of relief, people! ;)