# Doonesbury question: What am I missing?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [July 19, 2012, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730 "2012-07-19T15:51:07Z")
**Posts on this page:** 11
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730/1 "2012-07-19T15:51:07Z")
Okay, so we recently saw Alex get married to Leo. In the last couple of days (see for instance [http://doonesbury.slate.com/strip/archive/2012/7/18](http://doonesbury.slate.com/strip/archive/2012/7/18)) we’ve seen a couple of characters discussing this event…I believe one of them is Zonker’s nephew, whose name I’m blanking on (Zipper??) and the other, I think, is Jeff Redfern. Jeff, if it IS Jeff, is pretty clearly bummed about Alex marrying someone other than himself.
But if I’m remembering my Doonesbury family tree correctly, and I may not be,
–Jeff is the son of Rick Redfern and Joanie Caucus Sr.
–with Joanie also being the mother of Joan Jr.
–with Joan Jr. being the mother of Alex
So Joan Jr. and Jeff are half-siblings, and so Alex is Jeff’s half-niece.
And he’s wishing she’d married him??
I admit I don;t follow the strip all that closely, so my family tree may be wrong–heck, it may not even be Jeff. But if I’m right, anybody else finding this whole thing a little…peculiar?
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### Author:  [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730/2 "2012-07-19T15:59:53Z")
I don’t think we’re the ones confused. I’m wondering if the dialog is being said by the wrong characters. I know Zipper has been carrying a torch for Alex since she went out with him… once.
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### Author:  [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730/3 "2012-07-19T17:06:59Z")
Y’know, I was wondering about this myself. Trudeau may have finally lost it…
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### Author:  [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730/4 "2012-07-19T17:19:10Z")
They both have a thing for her and Jeff is clueless that he is her uncle unless someone reminds him. Jeff and Zipper are losers. Zeke is Alex’s stepfather, and he has a thing for her too. He’s just a creep.
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### Author:  [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730/5 "2012-07-19T17:22:39Z")
Yeah, I think his unrequited love is just an indication of the amount of air in his head.
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### Author:  [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730/6 "2012-07-19T17:37:02Z")
Let the sequence play out. Zipper giving Jeff a headsmack moment by reminding him of his relationship to Alex may turn out to be the punch line.
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### Author:  [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730/7 "2012-07-19T18:18:23Z")
In the “[Blowback](http://doonesbury.slate.com/strip/blowback)” section there are several comments from people who were creeped out by Jeff’s interest in his relative. There’s an Editor’s Note in response that says “GBT inadvertently mixed up the two boys during the course of the week. While Jeff is threatened by Leo’s warrior bone fides, it’s Zipper who’s had the crush on Alex. Apologies to the many horrified, genealogically astute readers who noticed.”
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### Author:  [@flodnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flodnak)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730/8 "2012-07-19T18:47:28Z")
Hey, it worked for the Habsburgs :eek:
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### Author:  [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730/9 "2012-07-19T20:27:53Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#):
>
> Y’know, I was wondering about this myself. Trudeau may have finally lost it…
Finally? He lost it years ago.
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### Author:  [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730/10 "2012-07-19T21:04:29Z")
> [@Clothahump](#):
>
> Finally? He lost it years ago.
When did you stop liking the strip?
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### Author:  [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2012, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doonesbury-question-what-am-i-missing/628730/11 "2012-07-19T22:57:42Z")
More crucially, when did he start? :eek: