Judge — December 24, 1898 — page 22: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This eight-panel comic strip from Judge (1898) depicts a revenge narrative involving children. The story appears to show a jealous rivalry between two boys over a girl, centered on a golf ball. The sequence progresses from initial conflict through escalating retaliation: the boy in the striped shirt appears to provoke the boy in black, who responds by throwing the golf ball at him. The final panels show the antagonist's comeuppance when he receives a "bad egg" (likely thrown or placed) as payback. The humor relies on the slapstick punishment and the title's play on words—"bad egg" serving as both a literal object and slang for a disreputable person. The comic satirizes contemporary childhood games and the petty disputes of the era, presented with the exaggerated physical comedy typical of Judge's satirical style.