I’m not positive. The space adventure that brought Alley Oop and company to the center of the Milky Way featured aliens shooting at Our Heroes. Our Heroes fell into another universe, where the counterpart aliens blew up. But then back in our universe again the aliens weren’t upset at all. The writing suggested this was a changed timeline, but Our Heroes didn’t do anything to change the timeline. Unless this was some alternate-universe shenanigans that went over my head I think the writers just lost track of what had been done. Sorry.

Qqqc: 'You may be wondering how we know the aliens we escaped from are evil. Well, clearly they created the black hole. And obviously, they were ther eto destroy us when we came to fix it. They must have destroyed the cork so our galaxy would be obliterated, leading to their dominance in the galactic supercluster.' Doc Wonmug: 'That's a lot of conjecture.' Qqqc: 'We find that the most convoluted answer is usually the correct one. We call it Astro Occam's Space Razor.' — Jonathan Lemon and Joey Alison Sayers’s **Alley Oop** for the 5th of July, 2023. Oh, well, maybe this explains it all.

So this should catch you up to mid-September 2023 in Jonathan Lemon and Joey Alison Sayers’s Alley Oop. If you’re reading from the distant future of, oh, mid-December 2023, there’s likely a more up-to-date plot recap at this link. I’ll also store any news about the comic strip that I come across there.

Alley Oop.

26 June – 16 September 2023.

The USS Gomblex, carrying Our Heroes plus a crew from Warth, was under attack. Their best plan to escape destruction was doing some tech stuff to the Time Cube and project the whole ship two hundred years back in time. It’s a brilliant success. They see the center of the Milky Way and, as should be, a giant cork plugging up the black hole that’s otherwise going to drain the galaxy.

Qqqc, the Warth captain, deploys a fleet of probes to reduce the pressure on the cork so it won’t be dislodged. What do you know, but this is exactly the thing that pulled the cork two hundred years ago, creating the crisis that the USS Gomblex picked up Alley Oop, Ooola, and Doc Wonmug to fix. It’s a nice bit of time-loop logic.

Eric the Andromedan, over the TV: 'Qqqc, we have reviewed the timeline files. 200 years ago, your ship opened the Milky Way black hole.' Qqqc: 'Well, yes, but that was an *accident*! We were trying to *fix* the Black Hole!' Eric: 'As per intergalactic spacetime integrity law, you will face trial for your crime!' Alley Oop: 'Oh, man, I don't have the patience for a whole long trial.' Eric: 'You have been found guilty and will be punished!' Alley Oop: 'Oh, man, that trial was too short.' — Jonathan Lemon and Joey Alison Sayers’s **Alley Oop** for the 21st of July, 2023. I like Qqqc, and would like to see more of them. But they occupy the same character niche as Doc Wonmug does, so it’s hard to have reasons to have the both together.

Unfortunately, the USS Gomblex falls into the black hole. It emits them into the Opposite Universe. The aliens are in the opposite universe too, and attack. When the Gomblex’s shields go down, the alien ship can’t help but explode with a !GNAB. It’s a bit of a confusing universe but it’s all dealt with soon enough. Another trip through the black hole and they get back to where they were … except there’s no black hole sucking the galaxy down. And the alien ship isn’t attacking. They want to talk.

Eric, from the Andromeda Galaxy, explains things. The USS Gomblex is on trial for trying to destroy the universe by opening the Milky Way Black Hole. They’re guilty, even if it was well-intended, and get fined two kilograms of gold. Still, it’s a reasonably happy end, and Qqqc makes kind noises about maybe working together again. I’d be up for it.

And with the 31st of July the current story starts. Doc Wonmug, following a lead from Myc, thinks he’s figured the secret to immortality: moss. Particularly, the moss found on a secret tropical island which they helicopter to. After landing on Eternal Island, the helicopter explodes, threatening Our Heroes with a lifetime of living on a beautiful tranquil island.

On the deserted Eternal Island. Alley Oop: 'Ooola, I have to talk to you about something.' Ooola: 'Not now. I couldn't find any food, and I'm *so* hungry. All I want is one small piece of fruit, *please*.' She sits with her eyes closed, as a tree lowers a fruit into her hand. Ooola: 'Thanks, Alley.' Alley Oop: 'But I didn't have anything to do with ... ' Ooola: 'Just say 'you're welcome'.' Tree: 'Yrrr wlllcccm.' Ooola: 'And go see a doctor. It sounds like your mouth is full of leaves.' — Jonathan Lemon and Joey Alison Sayers’s **Alley Oop** for the 21st of August, 2023. I am curious how the mobile, talking plants and the talking boar are going to figure into all this.

There’s strange things about the island, though. Alley Oop gets what seem to be responses from the plants, everything from playing tic-tac-toe with him to dropping fruits in Ooola’s hands. Plus there’s a boar trying to point out how the animals talk too.

This doesn’t stop Doc Wonmug from finding the immortality moss. He bites it and disappears, to Alley Oop’s and Ooola’s perspective. To his perspective, everyone else stops. Or moves impossibly slowly, at least. He lives in this incredibly accelerated speed for five years, his time; for five minutes, Alley Oop and Ooola’s time. In that time he has a lot of wild adventures, albeit without any human interaction.

Ooola decides to give it a try. When she eats the moss, though, she experiences a strange alternate space. It seems to be an infinite expanse occupied by nothing but the occasional polyhedron. She can’t feel anything — even touching herself — and there doesn’t seem to be anyone else there.

Next Week!

The Ghost Who Walks has managed not to get himself killed breaking out of Gravelines prison! But are there sinister forces trying to drag him back to a lost grave and the end of the Walkers? And how is this going to set up the storyline going in the Sunday installments of The Phantom? Tony DePaul and Mike Manley’s The Phantom gets some attention from me next week, according to prophecy.