Beetle Bailey: Nobody listens anymore.

In response to my query about Lt. Fuzz's past characterization, frequent commenter Will writes:

I used to read the BB trade paperback collections in the 80s, and I don't remember Fuzz being particularly stupid. He was a sycophantic little worm, and often over-interpreted Halftrack's orders, but he wasn't, as I recall, portrayed as especially clueless.

This more or less fits with my understanding of the character, and today we see another aspect of Fuzz that fits with the character: ineffectualness. The recent gags about his newfound gross stupidity continue to strike me as out of place.