I'm dying over PvP's latest interlude, "Ombudsmen," which references the confluence of newspapers laying off syndicated cartoonists and the opening of the Watchmen movie to create a brilliant mash-up. Casting Popeye as Rorschach, Jon Arbuckle as the second Nite Owl, Dagwood Bumstead as Dr. Manhattan (the man who can never die), and Charlie Brown as the deceased Comedian, Scott Kurtz has, in just two installments, developed a funny and strangely poignant commentary on syndicated cartoons. I'm just waiting for Dogbert or Jason Fox to step in as Ozymandias, drop a giant squid on the offices of the Universal Press Syndicate, and make way for a new era of independent comics creators.

[Ombudsmen]