Rose is Rose is a Slice of Life comic strip (written by Pat Brady since 1984 and drawn by Don Wimmer since 2004) about the life of Rose Gumbo, her husband Jimbo, their son Pasquale, and their family and friends. It takes place in an eternally positive, saccharine setting, where the adult characters are constantly reverting to children (especially when confronted with something that reminds them of childhood, like butterflies or ice cream), and if the Gumbos fight, they're making up by the third frame of the strip. The strip often uses visual metaphors, Imagine Spots, and floating symbols representing someone's feelings (or skulls for smelliness).
Supporting characters include Peekaboo the cat, baby Mimi and her mom, Pasquale's cousin Clem, and various neighborhood animals who provide a fresh perspective on how we look at our "ordinary" lives.
This comic provides examples of:
- Badass Adorable: Pasquale's guardian angel is a cute imp that looks like Pasquale with wings... most of the time.
- Beware the Nice Ones: When protective, he transforms into a glowering, skyscraper-sized warrior with a flaming sword. The Mood Whiplash into Darker and Edgier is part of the humor.
- Carpe Diem: The Central Theme of the strip. The Aesop is "Enjoy now, because nothing will ever be better than the present."
- Chubby Chaser: It's been shown several times that Jimbo would prefer if Rose was fat.
- Clark Kenting: In one series of strips, Pasquale's guardian angel took this form, complete with a fedora. This allowed him to be seen by people other than Pasquale.
- Comic-Book Time: Slightly averted. Pasquale couldn't speak normally for the first seven years, but can now.
- Cool Car: Pasquale's "Dream Ship" isn't exactly a car, but it's very cool... sort of a gentler version of Spaceman Spiff's spaceship.
- Editorial Synaesthesia: The little skulls that surround anyone with garlic breath, and the flowers, rainbows, and smiling suns for peppermint breath.
- Everything's Better with Rainbows: Rainbows are one of the symbols used to indicate someone is happy (along with sunshine, flowers, and candy canes). Pasquale can actually "catch" rainbows.
- Exiled to the Couch: Jimbo gets this treatment, being sent to the basement when he teases Pasquale too much.
- Fluffy Dry Cat: Peekaboo, who occasionally becomes a huge fluffball when angry.
- A Form You Are Comfortable With: Pasquale's guardian angel usually looks like a black-and-white copy of Pasquale, with wings, halo, and robe. But his tendency to turn into a giant, sword-wielding heavenly warrior when stressed, and some of the things he's said, indicate that the latter is his real form, or closer to it.
- Funetik Aksent: Mimi.
- Pasquale in the strip's early years.
- Girlish Pigtails: Ms. Harris, Pasquale's teacher, has them.
- Guardian Angel: Pasquale's is a major character.
- Happily Married: Rose and Jimbo. While she sometimes gets angry with him, they quickly make up.
- Imagine Spot: Half the comics utilize this.
- Jerkass: Pasquale's cousin Clem.
- Magic Realism: Pasquale's guardian angel, and the fact that the animals and even plants are actually sentient, put it in this category. Also fairies showed up once.
- Mama Bear: Rose can be this, and was transformed into one at least once when Pasquale was threatened.
- Messy Hair: Clem has a tall head of curls.
- Ms. Fanservice: Vicki the biker, with her skirt, bared midriff and long legs for certain.
- Rose herself has a rather nice figure, usually drawn with a tiny waist, Hartman Hips, long legs and a nice, round butt.
- Nature Lover: Pasquale and his grandmother go on a nature walk.
- One-Winged Angel: A literal one! Pasquale's Guardian Angel usually shows up looking like him, but can turn into a 100 metre tall behemoth with a huge sword and spiked shield.
- Pint-Sized Kid: Pasquale, Clem and all the kids are around 2 feet tall, much shorter than a 6-8 year old should be, with the average height being twice that.
- Precious Puppy: Mimi stares at a window with a designer dress — and a puppy!
- Pretty Butterflies: As when Pasquale compares it to his guardian angel's wings
- Self-Inflicted Hell: Downplayed. Whenever Rose is angry with Jimbo, she imagines she has locked herself in a Dungeon of Resentment.
- Sleep-Mode Size: Pasquale's guardian angel, who looks like him, is usually small and innocuous... unless something threatens Pasqaule.
- Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism: At the very far end of the idealistic side.
- Snowball Fight: Usually involving Clem, who hogs all the snowballs.
- Soup Is Medicine: In one strip, Rose's mother comes over with homemade soup when Rose is sick.
- Sugar Bowl: While technically set in our world, nothing truly bad happens to anyone, and no dark subjects are ever broached.
- Swans A-Swimming: They think Jimbo and Rose aren't graceful, but are romantic.
- Uncanny Family Resemblance: Rose's mother looks like a fat version of Rose.
- Universal Remote Control: One comic strip has Jimbo teasing Pasquale by pretending to be affected by the TV remote.Jimbo [walking into the room]: Hey, Pasquale, what would happen if I pointed the remote control at myself and pressed "rewind"?[press]Jimbo [walking backwards out of the room]: "Rewind" pressed and myself at control remote the pointed I if happen would what, Pasquale, hey?Pasquale: MOMMM!!!
- Winged Humanoid: The usual form of Pasquale's guardian angel.
- Woodland Creatures: Accompany Pasquale and his grandmother on a nature walk once
