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Feb. 16th, 2006 10:45 pmIn 1948, Al Capp did a storyline in Li'l Abner introducing the Shmoo. It was a legendary event in the history of comics. It captivated the nation. People would eagerly, eagerly anticipate each day's strip. They just had to know what happened next. They discussed it the way we discuss each episode of Lost (except the part about going on Internet message boards, but that's just common sense).
"How quaint," I used to think, "these primitive barbarians made the events of a comic strip the focus of ther lives for a time, and without even so much as the benefit of Internet message boards." I could not fathom this. They may as well have been getting excited over whether the little stick guy gets the mammoth in the Lascaux cave paintings or what happens to the Normans at the end of the Bayeux Tapestry.
Then Chris Onstad started the Great Outdoor Fight storyline. Suddenly, the Shmoo hysteria makes sense.
"How quaint," I used to think, "these primitive barbarians made the events of a comic strip the focus of ther lives for a time, and without even so much as the benefit of Internet message boards." I could not fathom this. They may as well have been getting excited over whether the little stick guy gets the mammoth in the Lascaux cave paintings or what happens to the Normans at the end of the Bayeux Tapestry.
Then Chris Onstad started the Great Outdoor Fight storyline. Suddenly, the Shmoo hysteria makes sense.
