Research. It’s a dirty job but someone’s got to do it 7/12/19

We at the New 60 realize viewers have come to expect a certain level of professionalism from this comic strip. We go the extra mile to bring you high-quality laughs- no short cuts taken here, nosiree. It is with this attention to detail in mind that we bring you this week’s two comics and tell you about a recent field trip we went on, all in the name of research. While strolling the aisles of our local supermarket, we noticed how many different versions of popular products there are- line extensions are what we used to call it when we wore our marketing hats. That inspired our first comic. But it’s not just packaged goods that tempt consumers with a wealth of choices. And that leads us to our second comic which we “researched” at an entirely different kind of supermarket.

Al is, shall we say, perturbed at the over 20 varieties of Triscuit crackers he encounters. In the old days if we wanted cheese on a Triscuit, we’d put cheese on for a savory taste. You didn’t need Gouda flavored Triscuits. And if we craved a sweeter taste, we’d put jelly on a triscuit. Or suppose you wanted a thinner cracker? Well then you’d buy Wheat Thins. Not Thin Wheat Triscuits. Really it’s okay to have a little competition. One company doesn’t have to own every variety of every cracker. It’s enough to turn us back into, gasp, bread eaters (but only the gluten free kind). And when’s the last time you checked the cereal aisle? Let me decide what I want to put on my Cheerios. Don’t let some “marketing genius” artificially flavor them for me. And Special K? Fuhgeddaboutit. Just don’t get Al (or either of us) started on this vitally important topic.

Next, we conducted extensive research at one of the new, and very popular, legal marijuana dispensaries. Like we said… no stone unturned (or is it no turn unstoned?) Who knew a simple thing like pot could become as complicated as Triscuits? There’s old fashioned weed, now called flower, vape pens, chocolate candies, grape flavored gummies, something called tinctures, which you take with a dropper and then wax, shatter, pre rolled…you get the idea. And when they start talking about hybrid blends of indica and sativa and ratio of cbd to thc, you need a PhD to understand what’s going on. It makes us long for a simpler time.

Enough ranting for this week. Enjoy the blog, the comics and we will be back at you next week, with two fresh ones. And no, we won’t be offering a Gouda flavored alternative to either comic.

The New 60