April 15, 2012: Sunday Showdown!

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Clockwise from the bottom left:

• I find Leroy's love of "rock" (as the comically generic poster emphatically states) to be somewhat incongruous with his dated persona. He seems more like a Perry Como fan to me. Even if he was into rock music, I would assume it would be along the lines of early classic 50s rock like Bill Haley or Buddy Holly rather than, what looks to be according to the poster, 80s arena rock (the rocker on the poster sort of looks like a slightly harder edged Steve Perry). Fortunately Loretta won't have any of this character inconsistency. She pulls the plug on Leroy's rock poster ambitions and earns herself a point.
• It would appear that "The Lockhorns" are running one continuous series among the multiple Sunday Showdown panels today. This is the first time I've ever seen this happen and I am sort of excited for this novel experiment. As for the panel itself, Leroy manages to pull out a quick point as they enter a silent auction room. Loretta will most likely end up further plunging the household into debt with a reckless display of bidding, but Leroy can take some solace in securing himself a point beforehand. The day is tied 1-1.
• The Lockhorns end up switching roles from the first panel, with Leroy this time vetoing an auction item Loretta has her heart set on. While Leroy was a big fan of large posters of rock n roll artists featuring generic slogans, Loretta appears to have a fondness for kitschy, tabled sized classic sculptures. I suppose Loretta's item is relatively more tasteful than Leroy's but that really isn't saying much. In theory, this entire showdown could just be alternating scenes of the Lockhorns disapproving of one another's desired auction items. It wouldn't be the most creative of directions but I'd still probably enjoy it. Leroy scores a point and goes up 2-1.
• Instead of switching back to Loretta ridiculing Leroy for an item he fancies, Leroy manages to get in an unexpected second consecutive panel where he objects to a selection by Loretta. With that, Leroy actually clinches a rare Sunday Showdown victory. Loretta really should have known better than to open herself up to Leroy's criticisms by constantly pointing out items she wanted. I guess the allure of a large public auction was too much for a degenerate shopping addict like her to refuse. The "later model" joke is pretty lame, but in the end it's still worth a point. Leroy leads 3-1.
• "The Lockhorns" close out this surprisingly unique Sunday Showdown with a surprisingly unique final panel. In the four years or so I've covered "The Lockhorns", I cannot recall another panel that did not feature either Lockhorn. As unusual a sight it was, I actually liked novel way the scene was set up. Even though both Lockhorns are just off screen, based on the smiling auctioneer's humorous description of the auction winning couple, I am going to give Loretta her well deserved point for making Leroy cry. However, while Loretta gets the unorthodox point, Leroy still takes the day 3-2.

Official Count:

Leroy - 36

Loretta - 47

Push - 23