Luann is a syndicated newspaper comic strip written and drawn by Greg Evans. It was launched by North America Syndicate on March 17, 1985. The strip is currently syndicated by Andrews McMeel Syndication. In 2012, Greg Evans' daughter Karen Evans began co-authoring the strip.
Luann takes place in an unnamed suburban setting, and primarily focuses on young adult Luann DeGroot dealing with school, her love interests, family, and friends. Some storylines center on other characters, including her older brother Brad. The strip is particularly notable in that the characters age over time, albeit not in real time.
In 2003, Evans won the Reuben Award for Cartoonist of the Year for his work on Luann. On March 17, 2013, GoComics began republishing old strips under the title Luann Againn, starting with the first strip, dated March 17, 1985.
Characters Main Luann C. DeGroot The comic strip's protagonist, Luann often struggles with her self-image and is particularly self-conscious about her large feet. She can be shallow, self-centered, and immature. Luann graduated from Pitts Junior–Senior High School in 2014 and has dreams of becoming an entertainer after starring in West Side Story and being a beauty pageant runner-up. She is left-handed, which is a common trait among comic strip characters.Luann at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. from the original on September 3, 2015. Currently, Luann is attending a local junior college and taking introductory art and chemistry classes. She is working in early education alongside Tiffany during the summer. In a writing class, Luann shows an aptitude for writing comedy and humor, and as such, has started to show more wit in her conversations. First appearance: March 17, 1985 Bernice Halper Luann and Bernice have been close friends since third grade. Bernice is laid-back and observant, but tends to have a negative outlook on life. In 2007, she discovered she had an older brother, Sgt. Ben York, who was serving in Iraq. Bernice had initially planned to become a veterinarian, but ended up interning as a guidance counselor during her senior year. She started college at Moony University in 2014 and became friends with her roommate Dez. In 2015, she became a dorm R.A., but in 2020 her position was eliminated, forcing her to move in with the DeGroot family. First appearance: March 18, 1985 Delta James Luann's friend Delta started off as a slacker but became more ambitious as she got older. She joined many clubs and activities in school and volunteered. While Bernice is intellectually wise, Delta is politically intelligent and wants a career in politics. In 1998, Delta was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma but went into remission the following year. In 2009, she almost couldn't go on a class trip to Washington, D.C., due to lack of funds, but was able to go with the help of donations raised by Luann, Bernice, Tiffany, and Elwood. During the trip, Delta met President Barack Obama in the White House. Delta is now attending Howard University in Washington and hasn't been mentioned much since 2014. First appearance: April 1, 1985 Nancy and Frank DeGroot Luann's parents. Nancy is portrayed as the heart of the family, while Frank provides for it, though he's usually portrayed as criminally cheap. Frank often seems clueless about what goes on, while Nancy is more aware. She constantly hounds Luann to clean her room, without success. Using their savings and money from T.J.'s insurance settlement, Frank and Nancy have purchased a rundown warehouse, and turned it into a restaurant and performance space. Frank's first appearance: March 21, 1985 (voice), May 22, 1985 (drawn). Nancy's first appearance: May 3, 1985 (voice), August 12, 1986 (drawn). Brad DeGroot Luann's older brother, Brad, used to have a snarky relationship with her. Brad spent his free time fixing his car. He worked at Weenie World but after 9/11, he became a firefighter. Brad had to get in shape for the job and now looks more fit. He and his friend T.J. moved into Brad's parents' rental home, which was damaged by T.J. Brad's firefighter storyline gets as much, if not more, attention than Luann's. In June 2011 Brad was laid off but he was rehired in November after another firefighter left. On March 31, 2012, Brad proposed to Toni Daytona, with some persuasion from T.J., but they agreed to postpone the topic. On April 2, 2013, Toni proposed to Brad, and he accepted. Originally, they planned to have their wedding on September 11, but due to controversy, it was postponed to December 11, 2016. After the wedding, Toni moved into the house shared by T.J. and Brad. In September 2024, after taking care of Toni's niece Shannon for a month and finding they liked it, Brad and Toni decide to try and have a family of their own.Greg Evans (w, a). Luann. September 7, 2024, Universal Uclick. On September 20th, 2026, Brad and Toni announced Toni's pregnancy to their family.Greg Evans (w, a). Luann. September 20, 2026, Universal Uclick. Brad's first appearance: March 25, 1985 (voice), March 26, 1985 (drawn). Brad got a firefighter's tattoo matching Toni's on August 27, 2008 (first seen August 28, 2008).
Love interests Aaron Hill Aaron is a boy who is desired by both Luann and Tiffany. He is sometimes vain, which makes him a good match for Tiffany. However, he also shows consideration for others' feelings. Luann finds him cute and lovable, but he has been mixed up in the past, having been in love with an older girl named Diane. He currently lives in Hawaii. Luann won a free trip to Hawaii in August 2005 and visited Aaron, but discovered he had a new girlfriend named Lian. Aaron later contacted Luann through MySpace in October 2006, sharing his experiences in Hawaii and revealing that he had broken up with Lian. This reignited Luann's feelings for Aaron. Although there was speculation about his return, Aaron has not been seen since Luann's trip to Hawaii. First mentioned: March 23, 1985 First appearance March 24, 1985 Last appearance: August 15, 2005, with a flashback cameo on April 1, 2020 Gunther Berger Gunther, a smart student at Pitts High School, lacks fashion sense and gentlemanly qualities. He has feelings for Luann but is jealous of her crushes on other guys. Although Luann is not interested in him, she becomes jealous when Gunther shows interest in other girls. Gunther also has a romantic interest in Bernice, with whom he has more in common. He wears contact lenses despite being allergic to them. Gunther volunteers at the local library and is skilled at sewing. He lives with his mother and has insecurities about his father leaving the family. Luann helps Gunther when his mother breaks her leg. Gunther and Rosa Aragones have mutual feelings for each other, but Gunther is nervous around her. Luann supports Gunther and gives him advice on winning Rosa's heart. Gunther goes to Peru with Rosa but eventually returns home to attend college. He becomes study buddies with Tiffany, which complicates their relationship. Gunther's bully from high school, Leslie Knox, becomes an acquaintance when Leslie's uncle starts dating Gunther's mother. Gunther is upset when Leslie's uncle proposes to his mother. In college, Gunther has a new girlfriend in Bets, a cosplay enthusiast & influencer. Though their personalities clash at times (Bets being more adventurous while Gunther is more cautious), the two try to make their relationship work, such as buying a van to tour the country with. On numerous occasions through the years, Gunther and Luann have had interactions that seemed to imply they share a mutual attraction, yet both insist that they're not interested in each other romantically, but are rather just dear, mutual friends. First mentioned: March 23, 1985 First appearance: November 29, 1987 Quill A Pitts High School senior from Australia, Quill moved to the US with his family. His arrival caused tension between Luann and Tiffany, as Tiffany was attracted to Quill but he showed more interest in Luann due to their shared interests and her intelligence. They shared their first kiss at a New Year's Eve Party in 2011. Luann and Quill admitted their attraction but decided not to pursue a relationship because Quill would have to return to Australia. However, they couldn't resist and kissed again in Luann's room, but Quill received a call from his father informing him that they were moving back to Australia. They maintained a long-distance relationship until 2014 when Quill returned to the US and graduated with Luann's class. He became roommates with Gunther and prioritized his acting career over Luann, causing her to break up with him in 2016. After a follow-up appearance a few months later, confirming he had moved on with his life, he disappeared from the strip entirely. Like Luann, Quill is left-handed. First appearance: June 22, 2009 Last appearance: September 28, 2016, with a flashback cameo on April 1, 2020 Toni Louise Daytona Brad's wife and fellow firefighter, Toni, joined him in all of the pre-fire academy courses. However, when Brad failed the physical exam, Toni continued on her own. Toni's boyfriend, Dirk, became jealous and abusive towards her and physically violent towards Brad. Toni eventually ended the relationship with Dirk. After Dirk was released from jail, Toni and Brad started socializing again, but their friendship was strained when Brad had Dirk arrested for violating a restraining order. They stopped speaking for months but eventually reconnected when Brad moved into his rental home. Their relationship progressed slowly, including dates, and they shared their first kiss on April 2, 2008. In a mid-2009 incident, Toni fell from a ladder while fighting a fire and Brad caught her, injuring himself in the process. Toni offered to take care of Brad during his recovery and confessed her love for him. On a 2010 holiday strip, Toni and Brad went shopping. Toni had Brad hold her purse while she bought lingerie, showing their relationship was progressing. In June 2010, Toni revealed that her parents died in a car crash when she was a child, and she and her brother were raised by their aunt and uncle. Toni, her brother Jonah, and his daughter Shannon moved to Pitts about 4 years ago. On March 31, 2012, Brad proposed to Toni. On April 2, 2013, Toni proposed to Brad, which seemed to be a serious proposal unlike Brad's previous one. Brad accepted the next day. Their wedding was on December 11, 2016. Toni also has a strong knowledge of automobiles and uses this to help Gunter and Bets buy a used van for cross-country traveling, buying it at $3,000 lower than what the seller was originally asking for. In the spring and summer of 2024, Brad and Toni have serious discussions about having children, and while they initially balk at the prospect, due to the hectic schedules of their jobs, this changes when they have to watch Shannon for a short time while Jonah's away, and after a rocky start, the two realize they could be able to raise a child together, and after Shannon leaves, Brad and Toni decide to start trying to have a family. On September 20th, 2026, Brad and Toni announced Toni's pregnancy to their family. She has a firefighter tattoo on her right shoulder (FD on crossed axes), first seen August 26, 2008, still healing after she got it. First appearance: January 18, 2002 Diane Brad's first love interest was a source of confusion for him. He constantly tried to impress her but failed. A recurring joke was that she would startle him while he worked on his car, causing him to hit his head. She briefly dated Aaron Hill but they realized they were too different. Brad and Luann were outraged when they saw Diane kiss Aaron. Before leaving town, Diane realized she and Brad had little in common, particularly his love for cars. First mentioned: July 10, 1989 First appearance: July 30, 1989 Last appearance: February 13, 1999, although she appeared in the background at Brad and Toni's wedding: December 11, 2016