Frantic catch-up

Today's strip strikes as kind of completely bizarre. Garbage cans? The kid who's clutching his mother in fear totally makes the strip. Clearly Dad has rage issues. You'd think he'd plan ahead when taking the garbage out, but apparently not. I kind of want the passer-by to lecture him on raccoons. Or, have a raccoon attack him! That would be awesome.

Yesterday's strip delves into a side of the medical world we rarely see--how doctors relate to their spouses. I'm kind of disappointed it's not more like Grey's Anatomy. Epsom is no McDreamy. The issue is Mrs. Epsom's expression in the top panel. I'd imagine that she's been sick before and dealt with his treatment (or lack thereof); her expression in the top panel should be more ironic; at least a smirk. I guess she doesn't want to know what a crap husband Epsom is.

In Tuesday's strip, we delve into the fascinating world of mommy issues. Love how Ragmop says "Ohh yeah" not once, but twice. Excellent. I'm also fascinated that he actually knows how his mother made this mystery concoction--honestly, the men in this strip don't seem that perceptive. And again, it's like Al can't say "divorce," but has to keep saying "Grounds for you-know-what." Unless by that he means "murder." Hmm. And again with all the dishes! Geez.

Newsflash in Monday's strip: Boys will do things for the girls they like that they complain about when their mother wants them to do it. (Man, what an awkward construction. My bad.) Although, honestly, it looks like Yorkie and his girl are planning to hike the Appalachian Trail, given the size of those packs.

And I do recommend that everyone check out Sunday's strip. As reader Cedar pointed out, it contains so many TDIET highlights--squid, yoyoitis, an odd highlighting of technology (i.e., CDs), "Oh, Daddy, what you said!" We also get a glimpse of how Al draws cats. It's...neither pretty nor realistic.

Return of the killer squid (casserole)!

What's bizarre about today's strip is Al's need to point out that Dragbutt is recently retired. It really has no bearing on the strip, which is more about a married couple and a division of labor. Maybe he needed to say this, because otherwise his readers would get up in arms at the thought of a working husband having to clean up a kitchen. (Of course, this is patently untrue, as it appears that the readership of They'll Do It Every Time consists of Comics Curmudgeon readers.)

So why did Catastra have to use all those dishes to make a casserole? Honestly, if she did dirty all those making the casserole, then it's not "simple" and she and Dragbutt are about even on the labor division, I'd say.

Seriously--where did all those pots come from? The more I look, the more I wonder. And if they've been left there for ages as part of a nefarious plot to get Dragbutt to wash them...well, good for Catastra. Dragbutt deserves it if he hasn't been in the kitchen for that long.

Squid you to the moon!

Today's strip almost makes me think Al reads this blog and is just throwing things in there to make us happy. Squid? Pan-fry his butt? Though, clearly, if he were reading, he'd know that he should've written "The urge to pan-fry his butt to the moon" to make us really happy. And throw in my favorite car. But even though the content, not surprisingly, is dumb, I'm still smiling.

I find it amusing two days ago we had Waitress Wendy, and now we have Waitress Winnie. And the two look suspiciously alike. (Twins? Or is just required that all waitresses have large blond curly hair?) And, psst, Al, it's not required that people's names start with the same first letter as their profession. Did you notice that the woman who sent this in was a waitress named Tessie?

Looking at this closer, I'm now kind of confused by the whole strip. Theoretically these are two different meals--steak and soup vs. pan-fried squid rigoletto--which would probably happen on different days. Yet the diner is wearing the same outfit, and the waitress is upset with him. I guess she remembers him complaining at a previous meal? Bizarre.

And honestly, the diner isn't complaining about the service in the top panel, he's complaining about the food. And he's not blaming the waitress, other than wondering how she can serve it. Nothing there is against her.

This strip just totally came apart for me. So sad.

Movie and a dinner

I didn't even think about TDIET yesterday, but I got bored watching the Golden Globes, so thought I'd check it out. And I just need to make a quick comment on yesterday's strip. I was impressed with it, not because of any genius in the strip itself, but more because it didn't go the way I expected it to. After the top panel, I was convinced that they would get there and then have to sit through previews and commercials. Of course, that might be a bit too logical, because God knows enough people complain about them. (I don't. I love previews. I could live without the commercials, though.) I do enjoy all the people around Arfo who clearing aren't enjoying his snoring. Hey people, you could always just wake him up!

On to today's strip. I hate it when Al sets up strips like this--"Find the couple blah blah blah." It just brings out my sarcastic side. Well, gee, Al, I don't know! Who could it be? I'm thinking it's that guy in the right side of the strip who is glaring at the couple in the middle, possibly because the waitress, instead of saying, "I'll be back in a minute" and going to help him, is just wasting her time standing at the couple's table. Waitress Wendy, they're not going to leave much of a tip anyway, so you're just inconveniencing everyone by standing there.

Naturally, though, I'm in love with the food options not found on the menu--goulash, squid (yes!!! I get to use the squid tag again), knockwurst, scrod. Excellent. What kind of restaurant do they think they're in?

Arrival of the squid tag

Sorry for the delay...Blogger was being a bitca when I tried to post during lunch today.

For today's strip, at the suggestion of an anonymous poster, I'm giving in and starting a squid tag. It's necessary. At least here Scaduto is making squid appear as some totally gross food. (Calamari, mmm.) Really, I'm not a huge seafood fan, but add butter, garlic, and oregano to anything, and I start drooling. Mmm, garlic. Where was I?

While the waiter is kind of scary in the top panel (it's the eyebrows!), the diner really is out of line. But from what I've gathered, chefs don't necessarily agree to everything the diner requests. I can't really get too worked up about this, though. Maybe it's because I just ate (Chinese, mmmm) or maybe it's because I'm a bit sleepier. Or maybe because I'm at home, so am less easily annoyed than when I'm at work.

I will point out, though, that the chef brandishing that knife doesn't imply "broil." It implies "fillet." Hee! I slay me.