Sunday Funnies: "Well, I'll Be a Kotter's Uncle!" by Edelman, Oksner, and Estrada

Welcome back, Groove-ophiles! One of Young Groove's fave TV shows was Welcome Back, Kotter. Those silly Sweathogs and their equally trippy teacher tickled the old funny bone most every Thursday night. Evidently, the folks at DC who produced the Welcome Back, Kotter comic mag watched the show, too, 'cause the characters sounded right--something that didn't happen a lot in the world of licensed comics. Writer Scott Edelman really "got" Kotter, and proved it with WB,K #9's (October 1977) "Well, I'll Be a Kotter's Uncle!" The main running gag of the show, which kicked off and ended nearly every episode, was Kotter telling a funny story about an uncle or aunt. Edelman decided to build an entire story around Kotter's kooky relatives--and wrote a story that even tops what we saw on the show itself. The art by Bob Oksner and Ric Estrada captured the look of the show's characters and took things a bit over-the-top--but in a good way. Kick back and enjoy, Groove-ophiles. Don't be surprised if you find yourself saying, "Very impressive, Mr. Edelman!"