Crankiness ... intensifying

Dennis the Menace, 6/8/24

"Dennis shit-talks his mother's cooking" isn't my favorite trope in this strip, but I feel you at least have to respect the form: he should either be poking sullenly at his food, glowering at everyone, absolutely ruining the energy of the family meal, or he should be making some witty quip that emotionally devastates Alice while Henry barely conceals a smirk. But while the dialogue here works, the art is all off: Dennis looks extremely pleased by the high-nutrition meal that's been prepared for him, and his parents are all smiles. This frankly is so un-menacing that it loops all the way around to menacing again because it's so deeply uncanny.

Judge Parker, 6/8/24