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@Shaleen—I could definitely see an Investigative Journalism twist where Bella accidentally discovers something ridiculously unpredictable, like… Ms. Landkammer is actually Keith Darrowick in disguise, pulling off the ultimate prank.
Or maybe… Mrs. Finnerty’s teaching certification really had expired, but when the state education secretary came to deliver the news, he got hit in the face by a pie that Stuart was trying to throw at Sarah, and it tasted so amazing he recertified her on the spot in exchange for one of her pies every week for the next year.
But I didn’t expect that. I kind of saw the investigative journalism as a way to force the misfits together beyond P-E-E. That’s where they really learned more about what made each other tick, and started to cover for each other and be protective of their fellow slugs. And of course the threat of an unqualified teacher put all the slugs’ middle school graduation in doubt, giving them all a little more skin in the game.

While you @Shaleen and @Jade were watching for a big surprise resulting from Landkammer’s course, I got caught up with some weirdness I thought I was seeing in Finnerty when she seemed to be mentally sidetracked and offered oddly off-topic comments. I guess it was meant to build her character that she wasn’t fully following along on the sports stuff and was oblivious to the investigation into her credentials.

@Jade—“I really like how he got his act together (haha I’m so funny)”—I laughed at your comment for a solid 90 seconds, so yes you ARE so funny.  J

I have a really hard time comparing Slugfest with most of the more recent GRK stories. I feel like the vibe is mid-1990s Korman: The Twinkie Squad, The Toilet Paper Tigers, The Chicken Doesn’t Skate, The Sixth Grade Nickname Game, No More Dead Dogs. @Asher did a good job of pointing this out along the way. I saw a little more focus on humor than in other stories from the past 10 or 20 years (other than maybe the Swindle series), without being the over-the-top humor and single-attribute characters found in the 1980s classics. Before reading the first page, I had predicted Slugfest would recall I Want to Go Home, but those ’90s titles are better analogues.

My final verdict: This one is going to be popular with the target audience as well as with their teachers and librarians and parents. I’m planning to reread Slugfest this summer (without limiting myself to a chapter per day). It’s easier to pick up on joke setups when you already know the story, so I expect to find some fun stuff I missed during the first read.

It’s been so neat seeing Slugfest through everyone’s eyes. Thanks for a fun 29 days. And especially thanks to @Jade for making it happen. I definitely hope I don’t get the last word here—I’m going to keep watching for any late insights and fun thoughts!