Scott Kurtz appears to be true to his word when he said that he was planning to shake things up in the PvP universe, and that things might not be the same when all was said and done. This must be how it begins.

The way I figure it is that Skull must be some sort of manifestation of Brent’s childhood that he has carried with him all these years. For a while (presumably through his high school and college years) Skull took a backseat and remained generally ignored, but came back (for some reason) when Brent joined PvP.

The truly interesting aspect of this is the impending doom we feel as Brent’s mother confides in Skull the idea that once Brent gets married and “grows up”, he won’t need Skull (or, more appropriately, his childhood) anymore. The implication here is that Skull will potentially disappear.

What is really even more interesting (if at all possible) is that Skull appears to understand this. In the last panel, he’s helping himself to a speedy exit. Presumably it’s because he knows that Brent’s mother is right, and that he will eventually–for all intents and purposes–cease to exist, and he wants to get out before he has to deal with that reality. Either that, or Brent’s mom is just freaking him out, and he wants to bid a hasty retreat from the insanity.

In any case, Scott’s definitely got my attention. I love the dynamic that Skull brings to every situation at the PvP offices. Could Scott really do away with that? What would the strip become without Skull? I’m hoping that I’m way off base, and there’s an extremely large chance that I am. However, the signs are pointing towards the huge shake up Scott promised us. I have to say, whatever the outcome, I’m interested.