Pat Brady's Rose is Rose comic strip, distributed far and wide by United Feature Syndicate (formerly Unitedmedia), is about the magic of everyday life as experienced by an ideal family, the Gumbos: Rose, her husband Jimbo, their son Pasquale, and the kitten, Peekaboo. A bit about these and other characters featured in the strip:
Rose Gumbo, for whom the strip is named, is perhaps best described by her son Pasquale's statement, used as the title of a Rose is Rose anthology: She's a Momma, not a Movie Star! (but, as the strip on the back of that book reveals, sometimes she forgets). Mostly a quiet homebody, Rose occasionally feels the need to slip away from home and family, and in daydreams become her alter ego, Vicki the punky biker (who dresses all in black leather, including a miniskirt that reveals the rose tattoo on her thigh). Rose's inner child also appears in the strip from time to time.
Pasquale Gumbo is an elementary school student and loves it. He's an amazingly well-behaved and well-adjusted child, full of wonder about his world, which is reflected in that of his dreams (shown as rides in a magical spaceship). Pasquale has worries and fears, like any child, but his momma, daddy, and guardian angel help him achieve and maintain peace of mind (in fact, a frequent theme in the strip and the subject of a recent book of Rose is Rose drawings by Pat Brady, Peace of Mind is a Blanket that Purrs
Jimbo Gumbo is described as a "decent Neanderthal", though he is occasionally allowed to be a bad influence on his son in the manners department (they have dinner over the kitchen sink when Rose isn't looking). Besides being a loving daddy, Jimbo is devoted to Rose, leaving her little love notes to find (they sometimes contain grammatical errors, but she does her best to overlook them). It's unclear exactly what Jimbo does for a living, but it's some kind of skilled blue collar work that involves carrying a toolbox, which makes him a dad after my own heart.
Peekaboo the Kitten, a.k.a. the Maharishi Peekaboo during her stretching exercises, secretly rules the Gumbo house from underfoot. But really, what else did you expect from an adorable furball such as this?
Besides being generally charming, Rose and her family are rendered in beautiful drawing and colors (especially the fantasy/dream seqences). Contentwise, Pasquale has a guardian angel, and the Gumbos are Christian, but in more than five years of following their adventures, I've never seen their religion as anything other than mild, humorous, non-preachy and nondenominational, so it's all good. Plus all their love of nature and the outdoors really appeals to all my pagan tendencies, so there ya go.