I like how John sorta tilts Rachel’s mouth in panel 1, in a way only cartoon physics will allow, to show that she’s ever so briefly hiding her smile from E-Merl. Sure can’t blame this on the sillibus: Rachel’s playfulness has walked hand in hand with her devotion almost since she joined the cast.

The last tier of panels here is very Phil.

Phil’s responsible for most of this twelve-page block, in fact (I didn’t give him many notes this time), but E-Merl’s stumble could easily have been based on certain exchanges early in my own dating history (if you’d even call those “dates”). He’s doing a lot of things right, but the self-confidence he needs to create a relaxed vibe with Rachel is still escaping him.