ETA: What do you know? No new-run.
Panel 1: As Elly points out that his new assistant is intelligent, witty and very nice, he grins at her. If he'd paid attention, he'd notice she hesitated a bit at the end. After all, Elly was expecting the woman to have predatory intentions on John; he may be a sack of crap but her's HER sack of crap.
Panel 2: Breezily ignoring that he told her to her face that he selected his staff on looks alone, he tells her she was wrong to believe what he said he did.
Panel 3: He compounds his folly by pointing out that if looks were at that mattered, he'd never have married her.
Panel 4: His attempt to reassure her that she is good-looking comes too late. He's just outed himself as thinking that she's ugly as a mud fence.
Summary: John is an ungrateful ass, a theme that will be expounded tomorrow as Elly tells Connie that he doesn't respect her.