well... it's been a little while... and i'm sure you're all wondering what i've been up to...
now i'm going to tell you: Off the List part 4...
now, i know what you're thinking. "Off the List part 4?!!? but we've seen it already.... TWICE!!!!" but you are incorrect!... although i suggested that the part 4 you saw after the dreaded monty python incident was the real one, i never actually said it was! (at least i don't think i did... i guess i'll have to go check that fact.... more on this later (i probably won't really get back to you on this))
no, there were just too many of you saying, "oh, sure... that mysterious assassin is SOOOOO mysterious... it's OBVIOUSLY crystal!!" well, i just had to throw you a red herring, because you all had guessed too closely... yes, it's a woman (you'll have to read the new strip to find out who), so i decided to mix things up a little at tom's expense and make you think i had copped out! BWAHAHAHAH....
It was never my original intention, tho, to make M.A. (mysterious assassin) a man... but you guys wore me down.... i still thought it was pretty funny... and it was even funnier when tom thought he would go down in history as a cartoon cross dresser... but the following is pretty much along the lines of how i had originally intended this mini-series to end...
i know i never actually came up with exactly how i wanted this ending to go, but i will tell you that as i was drawing it, there were several little things that changed along the way... in the end i think i finally nailed it to my satisfaction. but, you can be the judge... i mean, hey... it's been nearly a year... yeesh...

anyway... please enjoy this final strip in a series that has prevented me from creating comedy that would appeal to a mass audience but instead play to a small crowd: