100% size final panel: 
This comic gave me cataracts. I think that's the most regulars I've gotten into one panel so far. It only gets worse from here. XD
UPDATE: Still working on the next few comics. We have had some kind of sickness circulating our house that I need gone. I don't know what it is but it's the worst cold I've ever had and I have been struggling for weeks to get over it. The fatigue, aches, wet lung and hacking has been unrelenting. I've never fought to breathe so hard in my life. I did the rapid test for COVID and it came back negative. Either it's a false-negative or this is one hell of a flu. I've had every symptom of COVID, except the most common, which is fever. I even lost my taste and smell. So yeah, I dunno. I'm stumped. I've felt a bit better over the last few days, so I have been working more on art. Just please bear with me until I can get these finished. Really fighting to have some stuff up next week. Thanks, guys. Love you.
82 thoughts on “I think I had a dream like this once”
Oh wow that final panel really pops, I loved looking around to find everyone like some kind of wheres Waldo!! Thank you for all the effort you put into this page!!
Would that be a Shotgun Shuffle microphone?
Also, does Abeille Femelle get credit for First when the comment only mentions Final?
First to rise and first to bed makes a man healthy but socially dead, I relinquish right to first on the basis that I genuinely expected another comment to come in first ?
If they’ve got a boom mike, there should be a Presidential-style teleprompter for Pumpkin! Start off with a dry, “Greetings, my fellow Lakelanders…” Speaking of, I love that shirt! *29th annual* (which implies they’ve done this 28 times before, and will likely continue forever!) Lakeland Hobo chili cookoff! (Insert jokes about “What’s in it?” and “You don’t want to know!”) Now I wonder if the judges bring their own hobo/picnic pocketknife, with the fold-out fork and spoon, to sample the entries.
Homelessness must be an ongoing problem in Lakeland.
Well, Florida does have a issue with homelessness, yes.
Not that it makes a difference, but it’s 25th annual. I thought my eyes were going too and had to check again after reading your post
You’re right, it’s 25th, my mistake. Still, that would mean sometime in the mid ’90s (assuning that shirt isn’t *vintage*), someone thought a hobo-themed chili cookoff would be a fun and popular event. I recall a lot of local themed festivals when I grew up, and it seems like the mid 90s is when interest in them waned severely.
I feel the same. Probably had more to do with rise of internet and post 9-11 changes more than anything else.
Considering it’s a borrowed shirt, it means that the girl’s dad is the participant/attendant. Makes sense, from a PR perspective, to have the Chief at a local event like that.
Seeing Ellie and Cinnamon side-by-side it is hard to believe they are twins, considering Ellie has her own set of twins
Ginger is looking at us. I feel like she’s judging us. Why is she judging us? You’re not my mother, Ginger!
Awww, embarassed Pumpkin looks absolutely adorable in the last panel…
Little Atlas has found her calling.
Gotta say that’s my favorite part of the whole thing. She’s committed to it, too.
I like how subtle-ly you got that nice little blue triangle of ITD in panel 1… :)
I know ITG (inner-thigh-gap), but what is ITD?
lol, the D is for “Distance”
Up until the final panel I swear her boobs were getting bigger in every appearance! I’m sure it’s all a matter of perspective. Or a wide angle lens in a small room. :-)
Wait… where did the boom mic come from? O.o
…course, here’s a fun point. Kyle is likely here because of Tarra, who damn near killed him a storyline or two back. Yet Kyle is on the other side of the room from Tarra. Why, dare I ask, is this thus?
It’s only their second date and she’s in the middle of her sisters. You gotta give a girl her space.
Plus I’m sure trying to squeeze between the Buckingham girls would go super well.
Ah, a fair point. Respecting the sisterly connection; perfectly reasonable. Of course, he also arrived here by himself and hasn’t been seen in her company since.
Not on panel sure, but people at least know that he’s there with her. Ellie tried to throw Tarra under the bus to get out of getting pregnancy tested.
Glad to see a Pea Shooter over the fireplace and I lost it over the boom mic! Also, going to go out on a limb here and assume Herb went to get those guns?
Of course it’s the outsiders calling for a speech.
Not outsiders, potential future brother-in-laws. Gotta try an get on the mom’s good side.
was mom and dad involved in an American lebensborn program but for boobs?
yes i can see the complete lack of pressure
it’s so absent, it’s practically non-palpable.
The center of attention, as promised.
How come GG was not staring at the camera?
It’s been established that Pumpkin’s new outfit is capable of drawing her focus.
If I were Pumpkin I’d run for it. What kind of psychopaths expect a speech at birthday party?!
Additionally, I seem to have forgotten who Speech Guy is. Not Kyle, of course, him I recognize. But I’m unsure as to who our boy in the Hobo Chili shirt is.
Cinn’s previously shirtless date.
Calls himself the Dodger.
…wow. I did not recognize him shirted and cleaned up. Or maybe it’s just been a while. Thanks for the assist, folks.
Huh. Sparkle Boy and Bubbles are…missing from this group shot? Hmmm….
Bubbles is just above Cousin’s hair.
This would give me so much anxiety
I wonder at times about gingers husband. Like, he’s got to know more about all this crazy family and their antics than anyone, he’s part of it. And he’s always just so chill. Wasn’t it also said somewhere ginger was scarier than the rest when she wanted to be? I haven’t read through the archives in years though
Ginger is a mother of three, and spent years being pseudo-mom to the Buckingham girls. She’s used to authority.
She’s also supposed to be the element of wrath, from our discussions of which Buckingham is which deadly sin several years back. The run-in between Ginger and Juniper at the toy store in the Black Friday arc will show that point off well.
I just started reading this thing, and I have 8 years worth of catch-up to do. All I can say is, Holy Shit, you get a LOT of comments.
It’s how we keep ourselves occupied between strips!
Uh-oh…you’re a new reader. Hang on.
Since you made the terrible mistake of admitting that you’re a new reader, that entitles you to one of our lovely Shotgun Shuffle Comments Section Welcome Baskets! I haven’t had to hand out one of these in a long time, but I’m sure we still have plenty of stuff to fill these with!
…anyway….
…um…
*blows a layer of dust off the welcome baskets*
Oh boy. This is worse than usual. But maybe if I pull a few switches here, and fluff a ribbon…wow. That’s not much better. But we go with what we have!
Anyway! Your basket! I really think you’ll like this; we’ve got half a rhinestoned yo-yo–I think you call that a “yo”–along with an autographed Tarra Buckingham tank top and a coupon for $5 off when you spend at least $300 at Sammy’s Deli, home of the greasiest pastrami in town!
So enjoy, and welcome to the Shotgun Shuffle comments section! If you can find nicer commenters, you should probably be commenting there.
I have this autographed photo of Steve Buscemi taken from a still in the movie where he’s complaining about being Mr. Pink.
…why are you always finding stuff AFTER I load the basket??
Be aware of the rules of first. That, and don’t be an asshole, are the two rules governing the comments. Enjoy the… surrealism here.
And to be honest, we’re reasonably fast-and-loose about the “asshole” part.
Who’s turn is it for volunteer of the month proctologist? I had April.
*sigh* I guess if no one else is, I’ll get my rubber gloves.
“It’s just your rep on the line, so no pressure. Don’t worry, you will totally not make an ass of yourself in front of everyone important in your life. Now go get ’em, Tiger!”
Blitzø, “Helluva Boss” Episode 5
Sparkle Boy and Bubbles are… missing in this group scene? This is not ok!!!
If it quacks like a duck . . . You have all the evidence you need; you have COVID-19. In mid-February, 2020, I fought my way through about 7 weeks of what you’re experiencing. My PCP was insistent that I didn’t have the Virus. Back then the tests were scarce and very iffy. It was only in May that my oncologist identified severe disruptions to my lungs and blood supply. I’m an exercise freak. I kept up my exercise no matter what I felt like. In about mid-June he saw improvements in my production of normal blood caplets. By August, I was feeling like I would return to normal health. It hasn’t happened. I contend with long-haul symptoms, but I do function. I’ve had both Pfizer shots. That helps somewhat. Get vaccinated. But understand. You have the virus.
Thanks for the updates. The tests are not to be trusted. They’ve been gamed so hard with cycle rates since this all started that they’re worthless.
The symptoms are a poor gauge at best, since so many of them coincide with flu symptoms. But when you have the smell / taste loss, that’s really all the indication you need.
Updates are always worth the wait, Chris, no matter how long the wait might be.
Your update is appreciated, I hope y’all get better quickly. You and your family always come first, we can wait and we are very grateful for the update.
That’s COVID. It’s obvious, naysayers notwithstanding. If you frequent MD’s, be sure to have them run tests on your blood. COVID disrupts your lungs. So the body reacts by scrambling to over-produce blood platelets, to get your oxygenation up to acceptable levels. The platelets can come out misshapen, and they can overload your venous and arterial capillaries. Great fatigue results. In recuperation, they take weeks to work their way out of your system. You REALLY need to be under an MD’s care. There are medicines now that can accelerate your recuperation. Going it alone risks tearing hell out of your whole family’s health.
Why are the B girls lined up out of age sequence? Or has the Sisters Council made a motion moving Anise from senior ranks due to child-like behaviors?
What about this. Ginger and Anise may have found their forever man.
So, that would make them the…. outliers.
The rapid tests are very unreliable for confirming you have covid. They will give a false negative roughly 30% of the time for those showing symptoms (even more if you’re asymptomatic). The loss of taste/smell alongside lung issues / coughing means you almost certainly have covid. This is why we so desperately need everyone getting vaccinated. Hope you get better, good luck with it.
no rouche, never change d00d
I just want an update, even with stick figures, just so I know all of you are okay. COVID is no joke.
Post anything, say anything, just so we know you’re still with us and getting better.
Mic. Boom!
Well, looks like the Patrons got some love today, so good news there, sort of.
Nice that they’re getting something for their completely supporting Chris financially, too bad it’s not even close to the stated goals for that level of support.
Hence the use of the phrase “Good news there, sort of.”
I’m glad to see that the wheels are turning.
How many next weeks has it been?
Five, plus five days.
And some stuff did go up! …over on the Patreon side. Which is better than nothing, at least for the people who chip in to keep the place running and were probably getting tired of the fat lot of bupkes they got for their contribution.
*bupkiss
I’ve checked on this; I’m reasonably confident the original Yiddish is “bupkes.”
Though some also use “Bubkes”. The term means “beans.”
Is there a way to hide the porny sidebar?
The porny sidebar is all the new content we’ve seen since May, and probably all that’s keeping the site going. I suggest you take Paul Anka’s classic advice from “The Simpsons” and just don’t look.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlKao_Pox5A
Wait, is that Ashlii without a phone I spy?
Probably in her unseen hand. Perhaps she’s finally mastered the art of texting without looking so she doesn’t run into walls anymore
Man, you look at that last panel and think you could hear a pin drop.
Actually when someone doesn’t understand then its up to other viewers that they will assist, so here it takes place.