It’s Ross’s first day wearing the cowboy hat to school. He avoids the school bus and ignores Linda and Abby, who think he should show he doesn’t care how he looks. Ross receives stares and some silly comments from kids. Jimmy objects to Ross wearing a hat in school when he can’t. He impolitely asks Ross about his eye drops, and Ross reveals the surgeon had to remove his lacrimal gland, so his eye can’t produce tears; he must drop fake tears into the eye to avoid stinging. He adds that it also stings to open his eye, which is why he keeps it mostly shut. Jimmy tells Ross, “That sucks.” Ross thinks he hears him mutter “cowboy.”

There’s an interlude in which Batpig battles a giant personified cowboy hat. Batpig wins, but his victory is uncertain, as the Hat promises to return. The caption reads, “The town is joyful! (For now??)” (76). The final frame shows a woman sharing her low opinion of hats and a man proclaiming Batpig’s greatness.

Ross bumps into Isaac, who remains distant. However, the school day is not as humiliating as Ross expected, so he feels hopeful when his father picks him up. At the center, when Ross asks

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