Yesterday’s Zippy had a nutjob in a diner ranting:
Are you trying to lure me into a lexicographical, self-contradicting black hole of word play so heinous it defies logic?
And today, embedded within a thick matrix of allusions pointing in many directions:
a lexicographical, self-contradicting vortex so heinous, it defies Robert Mueller
(#1)
Some allusions:
to syrup for pop: in the title, “Syrupy moment”, an allusion to soda pop / pop / sodas and flavored syrups (commercial preparations or home-made) for making these carbonated drinks. For example:
(#2) Soda Stream syrups to make pop
to Alexander Pope (Pope / pop, get it?) in “I go where Power Rangers fear to tread”, a riff on “For fools rush in where angels fear to tread”. From Wikipedia:
The line For fools rush in where angels fear to treadwas first written by Alexander Pope in his 1711 poem An Essay on Criticism. The phrase alludes to inexperienced or rash people attempting things that more experienced people avoid. It has since entered the general English lexicon as an idiom.
in panels 2 and 3, a burlesque of Psalm 23:4-6. The KJV text:
23:4: Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; [thy rod and thy staff they comfort me].
[23:5: Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.]
23:6: Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
in this burlesque, allusions to pop culture, Zippy characters, and people in the news:
Power Rangers, Robert Mueller, Pacific Ocean Park, Noam Chomsky (the linguist and political activist), Mr. The Toad (the Zippy character), International House of Pancakes
specifically to Pacific Ocean Park. From Wikipedia:
(#3) A POP postcard
Pacific Ocean Park was a twenty-eight acre (110,000 m²), nautical-themed amusement park built on a pier at Pier Avenue in the Ocean Park section of Santa Monica, California, which was intended to compete with Disneyland. After it closed and fell into disrepair, the park and pier anchored the Dogtown area of Santa Monica.
“POP” (pronounced “pee-oh-pee”), as it was soon nicknamed, was a joint venture between CBS and Santa Anita Park. It opened on Saturday, July 28, 1958 with an attendance of 20,000. The next day, the park drew 37,262 which outperformed Disneyland’s attendance that day. Admission was ninety cents for adults which included access to the park and certain exhibits. The term “POP” was also used as a clever acronym for “Pay One Price”, though other rides and attractions were on a pay-as-you-go basis.
… Pacific Ocean Park closed on October 6, 1967.
and possibly, an allusion to fireworks called pop pop. From Wikipedia:
(#4)
Bang snaps (also known as “Lil’ Splodeys”, Throwdowns, snap-its, poppers, poppies, pop-its, snappers, whip’n pops, Pop Pop Snappers, whipper snappers, fun snaps, party snaps, pop pops , whiz-bangers, snap’n pops or “‘bangers”‘) are a type of small novelty firework sold as a trick noisemaker.
Bang snaps consist of a small amount of gravel or coarse sand impregnated with a minute quantity (~0.2 milligrams) of silver fulminate high explosive and twisted in a cigarette paper to produce a shape resembling a cherry. The friction-sensitive silver fulminate detonates when stepped on, ignited, or thrown on a hard surface, producing a sharp salute similar to a cap gun’s.
and from the fireworks, to an album of — oh yes — pop music by Rickie Lee Jones. From Wikipedia:
(#5)
Pop Pop is an album by Rickie Lee Jones, released in September 1991. It was produced by David Was from Was (Not Was).
The album contains cover versions, ranging from jazz and blues standards to Tin Pan Alley to Jimi Hendrix’s “Up from the Skies”… The cover artwork resembles a package of bang snaps.
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