I am a fan of comics/cartoon strips, but only really like a few. I know that the art style can be one of the attractions (think of the Asterix comics as an example), or the humor can be the attraction (Farside is my favorite example).
So what are your favorite comic/cartoon strips, and why do you like them.
Other than Asterix and Farside, I really like Calvin and Hobbes for the wonderful insights that it has about human nature. The old Prince Valiant was wonderful for its artwork, Tarzan for its fantasy adventure, and Lil Abner for its political satire and art. Clearly I’m including about 40 years of comics history here.
Oddly enough, I don’t care for Dennis the Menace or Peanuts…, and I only discovered Asterix as an adult, when Farside was well into its run of too few years.
i really like “non sequitur”, “dilbert” (l have gotton into a good bit of trouble for putting those on the workplace bulletin board when i thought they aptly described a situation we faced) and"speed bump"-we only get in our local news on sat., when the two papers combine.
i am strangly drawn to things like “mary worth’s family” and their ilk,even though they move at a snails pace-i was at one time a big soap opera junkie (before i joined the serious work world) and i guess that is the vestage of my old days.
For Better of For Worse since it deals with real life (although, lately there’s been more tragedy than normal) in a fairly realistic way. IIRC, the strip is supposed to come to an end in the next 2-3 years. True?
Pearls Before Swine: subtle shades of Bloom County
I’ll shecond the vote for Mutts. Along with the greats previously mentioned, I loved Bloom County and was sorry to see it go. Pickles is a pretty good strip, but nothing quite compares to the classic Pogo. Walt Kelly was a true genius of the genre.
“Oom, oom, I’m deranged…” and “Deck us all with Boston Charlie, Walla-walla wash and Kalamazoo” are forever memorable Pogoisms.
Wow, danceswithcats, I didn’t even mention Pogo because I didn’t realize that any one else remembered Walt Kelly’s great strip. You have excellent taste!
Yes, the strip will end when Lynn Johnston’s current contract expires (I think that there are about 4-5 years left, but I may be wrong.)
I enjoy this strip, too, for its realistic (and not extremely sappy) portrayal of family life. I also enjoy strips with continuous storylines.
FoxTrot is another one of my favorites. The interactions among the three siblings are often hilarious. I also like the “nerd humor”–jokes involving Lord of the Rings, computers, math equations, etc.–that this strip sometimes features.
Arlo and Janis is a good portrayal of marriage, I think. This strip even manages to touch on the sexual aspect once in a while ;).
I miss Calvin and Hobbes and Far Side a lot. Peanuts is another one of my favorites.
I used to like Boondocks, until the strip’s cast of characters shrank so much–all you ever see anymore is Huey spouting a bit of diatribe to his friend Caesar. It’s now a pulpit for the artist to spout off on how he doesn’t like the war in Iraq or Michael Jackson rather than a place to tell a story to entertain readers. I also used to like Luann until the title character got to be so unsympathetic. If the artist doesn’t seem to like his character anymore, why should I?
My fave strip is, Penny Arcade. It is the only strip, internet or printed, that gives me a consistant laugh. I can identify with the gaming and geek humor. To bad they only update it three times a week.
I also have to say MUTTS and I like it becouse every time I see it no mater what kind of day I’m having good or bad it always makes me smile.Calvin and Hobbes was the same way
I love Mutts for the same reason I loved the early Calvin & Hobbes. He perfectly captures the essense of the pets like Waterson once captured the essense of childhood. It helps that I have a cat and can relate to them very well.
I also really enjoy Dilbert although mostly because I’ve become comfortable with the humor. It’s funny because in the first book, which covers the first 7 months, I don’t believe he ever goes into the office. It wasn’t a work place comic but an Engineer’s life comic.
Those are the only two I read in my paper (Dilbert only comes on Sundays which is stupid. Mutts doesn’t come on Sundays which is also stupid. Stupid serperate distribution system. Vile stupid seperate distribution system)
Calvin and Hobbes is my favorite strip. We can all identify with Calvin at some point in our lives My favorite strips involved snowmen or morphing dinners. It is easy to love this strip!
Baby Blues. I started reading with the books when we first became pregnant and life with kids can indeed be like that.
For Better or Worse. I’ve followed the Pattersons since childhood. Sometimes my hubby and I discuss their story line over dinner as if they were our friends.
Get Fuzzy. This strip caught my attention when Satchel was a dirt devil for Halloween. Poor Sweet Satchel.
Zits. I still remember being a teenager and just love the strip. I actually emailed the authors when they left a particularly nasty cliffhanger for a couple weeks! They replied very nicely too
Mutts. I have a whole series of mutts strips printed and framed over our hamster tank. They are the series about adopting hamsters from the shelter. All our animals are shelter animals.
I read other comics but those are my must reads… I read them all on the internet and the King Features site recently added sundays Yay! So now mutts and baby blues and zits all have sunday funnies online!
As the old saying goes, “It’s funny, because it’s so true!”
I love comics that I can relate to, that resonate with situations in my life. As a pet owner, I get a huge kick out of “Get Fuzzy.” Other current favorites include “Fox Trot,” “Zits” and “Doonesbury,” each of which presents a slightly fractured view of the way I actually perceive my life.
Past favorites include Calvin and Hobbes (I named my orange tiger cat “Hobbes” in memory of that trip) and Bloom County for the same reasons mentioned above. I also loved The Far Side, just because it was so bizarre and goofily off the wall.
I like Foxtrot. It’s a lot of geek humor, stuff I can appreciate. Plus, theres the factor of Bill Amend being able to do a funny punchline, while doing a serious event such as Jason getting a girlfriend. It annoys me when they do stuff like that, they think it’s a excuse not to have humor or a punchline.
I like Asterix, it’s interesting to read, and I love the puns and wit that it employs alot. Too bad either goscinny or underzo died( can’t remember which).
My favorite strips involved snowmen or morphing dinners. It is easy to love this strip!