February 19, 2012: Sunday Showdown!

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Clockwise from the bottom left:

• The obvious joke is that Loretta is over preparing for a "role-playing" exercise at the marriage counselor's, but I am perplexed as to what "role" she is actually preparing for. Based on the outfit and make up Loretta seems to be under the impression that the role playing will be done in mime. Is this really the default instinct that comes to mind for Loretta when she hears she will be involved in role playing? Also, from a logistical standpoint, shouldn't she have done all the preparations at home rather than inconvenience herself by getting ready in the waiting area? Leroy gets the point.
• Poor Leroy looks so helpless and feeble in the face of Loretta's relentless demands for the contents of his wallet. We are essentially witnessing a mugging. I imagine that this desperate confrontation is literally over the modest number of one dollar bills in his wallet; which would make this situation all the more sadder. He'll certainly need a better excuse than his pathetic claim of protecting his lucky dollar bills if he wants any chance of holding onto at least some of his money the next time Loretta comes calling. Loretta ties things up 1-1.
• Loretta has a real sweet deal when it comes to Leroy's constant snoozing. He becomes completely passive and defenseless. It's basically a wide open shot for her as long as she can quickly rustle up a friend to listen to her insults. It is debatable as to whether insults given under these circumstances count since Leroy may not be aware of his humiliation, but my stance has always been to allow the mere presence of the other party in the room to be enough for a point. Loretta goes up 2-1.
• It's another installment of modern TV criticism: Lockhorn-style! This time, the Lockhorns are calling out "The Real Housewives..." reality series. I don't really find the idea of a Real Housewives of Poughkeepsie to be all that absurd. It may not be as high end or as glamorous as New York or Beverly Hills, but I'm sure you can find plenty of spoiled, awful, status obsessed women desperate to exploited on TV. I think Poughkeepsie was selected as a parody city mostly on the strength of its funny sounding name (Albuquerque, Walla Walla, and Sheboygan would have also been fine alternates). It's a push, Loretta still leads 2-1.
• Leroy pulls off a fine spiteful maneuver here by opting to get the worst table in the restaurant just to annoy Loretta and to mockingly grant her request for a table near a window. This may not have even been intentional. Given the Lockhorns' long history of being victims of sub par to downright hostile service by dinning establishments, Leroy might have just been making the best of an already lousy situation, turning a potentially worthless push into a point for himself. This rare clutch effort by Leroy gives him the point and helps him salvage an overall 2-2 push.

Official Count:

Leroy - 17

Loretta - 25

Push - 8