Writer: Holly G! (Holly Golightly)*
Pencils: Holly G!*
Inking: Rudy Lapick*
Lettering: Bill Yoshida*
Coloring: Barry Grossman*
Original Publication: Cheryl Blossom, No. 21
Cover Date: April, 1999
Length: 6 pages
*Only the lead story in the issue is credited. I assume the credits apply to all of the stories.
Although I have the original issue, I’m reviewing this story from the digital edition.
A 6-page story? Wow, we haven’t seen that in a while.
Cheryl is reading a music magazine while sitting at her drawing table in her bedroom.
At least, I think it’s her bedroom. I don’t see a bed, but there’s another desk with a computer. The door consists mostly of glass windows, and the wall is decorated with posters of women. Maybe this is meant to be her home office for when she’s working on her fashion designs for Fresh.
Penelope knocks on the door and asks Cheryl if she’s working on her “little fashion magazine”. That’s condescending. She wants to take a peek, but then Cheryl starts crying loudly, startling her. Cheryl has blue eyes in this story.
Penelope is concerned that Cheryl is sick, but Cheryl is upset, because she read the Sugar Girls found a new replacement for her, so now she has no chance of regaining her “rock star status”. She then literally exclaims “Wah!” Penelope tries to comfort Cheryl and says she and Clifford both agree she’s much too young for a serious musical career. Cheryl says the Sugar Girls picked her and tries to convince her mother that her money had nothing to do with it – but isn’t at all convincing. Oh, Penelope wears reading glasses.
Cheryl says the Sugar Girls saw her talent, and now her “star is dimmed by the mere reason of youth”. Penelope tries to assure her daughter that there’ll be many other opportunities knocking on her door. She suggests work as a distraction for her disappointment. Cheryl says fashion seems meaningless to her now and adds “It’s just clothes!” A worried Penelope has never seen Cheryl this distraught before. She suggests relaxing with a nice soak in the tub. Penelope goes out, telling Cheryl that she’ll check in on her when she gets back.
Penelope goes out and buys a dress and jewelry for Cheryl in hopes of cheering her up. Jamie is her chauffeur, so I guess she’s the Blossom family’s chauffeur, not just specifically Cheryl’s. Jamie suggests Penelope get Cheryl something that she can care for, so she’ll have something other than her own self to think about.
Back at the Blossom mansion, a maid points out that Cheryl has been in the bath for over 2 hours and suggests drying off. Cheryl doesn’t see the point. Penelope arrives with a box with holes in the lid. She opens the box, and something jumps into the bathtub, splashing Cheryl.
Cheryl’s scared, but then a cute Pomeranian puppy pokes its head out of the water and lets out a “Yip!” of delight, smiling at Cheryl. Cheryl grins and picks up the puppy. Penelope is happy that her “baby” is smiling again and thinks the puppy made Cheryl forget “that whole Sugar fiasco”. An overjoyed Cheryl hugs the puppy and, of course, names it Sugar Blossom. The two of them instantly bond.
This story was lovely. It’s interesting to see Cheryl (realistically) be so depressed regarding the implosion of her singing career, and it’s adorable to see Cheryl being genuinely delighted to have a pet. It’s also worth noting this is the first short story of any real consequence in this series, since it introduces a new member of the Blossom family. All of the previous short stories have basically been filler in between the “important”, longer stories. This story deals with the aftermath of the lead story. I like that.
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