Happy Trails

As 'MG69 blazes nostalgic in the Sub-Continent, I sit
in a windowless, climate-controlled room, alone save
for the bewildering prattle of my co-worker and the
thought-provoking musings of the PSin'A. Here's where it's brought me:
I've really come to love Peanuts, though I think that when it's
over, it's over. As my cosmic colleague has pointed
out, the departure of the strip is a momentous
occasion, and I think it should be respected. I'll
never forget the end of Bloom County, and Opus, my
beloved friend of many years, walking off into the
sunset. I still break out my dusty, dogeared Bloom
County collections every now and again, and I still
shed a tear every time I finish Happy Trails, the final book.

But what would it mean if Bloom County was printed again
in my newspaper as a Classic 'Mic? When we invest
ourselves in the emotional effort to come to terms
with death, loss, and the end of a beloved comic, it
seems to me that it cheapens that emotion if that's
not really the end. Of course there was Outland, and
now Opus, but I think Mr. Breathed went the correct
route by making Outland so unlike Bloom County.
Nonetheless, I rarely read it because of what it
represented to me. Another consideration with a comic
like Bloom County, as opposed to the timeless
innocence of Peanuts, is that the topical humor
wouldn't make any sense reprinted 20 years later.
Classic Doonesbury? I hope we never see it. I really
do enjoy Peanuts (particularly Snoopy's brothers; who
the hell knew?), but I feel like nothing would make
Charles Schulz happier than a bright-faced young 'Mix
hopeful getting his shot in the slot now occupied by
C.P. Who knows, maybe it could even be the PSin'A himself...?
Maybe the world is finally ready for Greenbeard.

Happy Trails to you, comics buddies. Especially you, 'MG69.