books Favorite Comic Strips

[AegisReflector 886]

Do you have any comic strips that you particularly enjoy? It can be anything, from syndicated newspaper strips to superhero comics and even manga.

 

Two that ultimately come to mine whenever I list American comic strips is Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz and Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson. They actually influenced me into pursuing a career in cartooning/animation.

 

Schulz and his gang of Peanuts basically can relate to anybody, especially the character of Charlie Brown. Someone who feels lonely and wants to be liked, but for some reason just can't. Others belittle him for his shortcomings, and he is the manager of the worst baseball team the world has ever known. However, he still kicks on through in life, trying everyday to try to find the meaning of life. You then have such character traits like Lucy, the power hungry tyrant and, ironically, a psychiatrist; Snoopy, whose just an enigma, who you can never tell what sort of antics he's gonna pull off next, a true American dog; And Linus, the philosopher who seems to have the answers to everything, except he has his own major insecurities (like that whole "blanket/sucking his thumb" deal) and can actually be gullible enough to pass on false information. The way Schulz portrays his characters to have these conflicting personalities is simply pure genius, and it makes everybody seem human when you compare the characters.

 

Watterson and his creation Calvin and Hobbes does things a bit differently. Instead of having a wide variety of characters to choose from, Calvin and Hobbes really only has 4 main characters: Calvin, Hobbes, and Calvin's Parents. Of course, some recurring characters like Susie, Calvin's "squeeze", appear, but are not a central focus on the strip. Instead of Calvin talking to kids his age, he has a stuffed tiger that comes to life whenever he wants to indulge in some conversation or entertainment. The way Watterson portrays Hobbes the tiger is something that I'll always cherish. Hobbes believes himself to be a real animal, an animated entity. Everytime Calvin's Parents enter the picture, Hobbes goes from his "lifelike" model to the stuffed animal version of himself, hinting that Calvin is surely imagining everything. The hint of reality that Watterson gives to the comic, along with Calvin's amazing imagination and free-flowing expressionist art and painting, makes it a pure classic. If you haven't seen the comic yet, you should. It's an enjoyable read.

 

That's all I can think of now in the strip department, what about you?

Edited November 21, 2012 by AegisReflector

[null1 606]

Scouts in Action from the magazine Boys Life always got my attention. The Pedro comics too were also fun to read. That's about all I can say.

[Champion RD92 8,658]

I used to love reading Calvin and Hobbes when I was a kid. Those are probably my favorite comic strips ever. I also really like Pearls Before Swine, those are pretty funny most of the time.

[SrFrog 927]

Monty and a funny story, I actually got kicked out of class one time after reading one of those Monty strips. It took me five minutes to regain my composure. Actually, most manga are also cool in my book.

[AegisReflector 886]

I also really like Pearls Before Swine, those are pretty funny most of the time.

 

I was a really early Pearls fan because of Scott Adams, who draws Dilbert, basically advertising the strip for weeks on his Blog back nearly a decade ago. I instantly loved it as a middle schooler (didn't get all the jokes, but still ) and once it came out as a book, I immediately grabbed it. Sure, I sometimes think it literally tries to be the Family Guy of the comics page, but nonetheless, it's still a funny feature.

 

@SrFrog: I've only read Monty when it was actually called "The Adventures of Robotman". It was a neat little strip with a lot of gimmicks.

Edited November 21, 2012 by AegisReflector

[Party Cannon 876]

I always thought this kind of stuff was cool. I am not a comic book guy but rather into 2D animation, yet I was given a few old eclectic issues of these when I was little and loved looking at them. I guess the appeal is that they will never (at least for kids) make cartoons like this, so it is the next best thing.

 

[Night Shine 767]

Anypony here a Garfield fan?

 

In elementary school/primary school/whatever I read all of the Garfield comics in the school library, although I bet I didn't even get half the pop culture reference jokes because I was too young. XD

[WildCard 1,037]

Anypony here a Garfield fan?

 

In elementary school/primary school/whatever I read all of the Garfield comics in the school library, although I bet I didn't even get half the pop culture reference jokes because I was too young. XD

 

I have a little Garfield collection at home and still read through them now and then and expanding my collection. I love that grumpy cat

[Thundershock 310]

Anypony here a Garfield fan?

In elementary school/primary school/whatever I read all of the Garfield comics in the school library, although I bet I didn't even get half the pop culture reference jokes because I was too young. XD

 

i read garfield comics alot. i have a book that contains 3 garfield books in 1. i also have a big poster that has garfield comics glued on it from the sunday comics.

[Evilshy 5,090]

I used to like Garfield, but it just hasn't been funny in recent years

 

Calvin and Hobbes will probably always be my favorite printed comic. The thing I like most about it is how it can be enjoyed by all ages (provided you have an intelligent, weird, and somewhat dark sense of humor). I remember when I started reading it age ~7. I was introduced to it by my friends dad; I saw him reading a comic, and being naturally interested in such things, read over his shoulder. I loved it

 

Now I can go back and read through my old Calving and Hobbes collections and laugh even harder, because now I can understand all jokes aimed at adults, as well

 

Another great one is Dilbert. I've never worked in an office like that, but it's still funny. It's one of the few comics my dad reads, and he'll often comment on them.

 

Get Fuzzy is pretty funny at times. I think it tries to be a bit too political sometimes, but there's still plenty of humor.

 

I enjoy reading Zits, mainly because it reminds me of my freshman and sophomore years of high school (and late middle school as well). He does a very good job of capturing high school and the behavior of a lot of teenagers and the situations they find themselves in. Another thing is, it's timeless, it can be applied to teenagers now or 60 years ago. Don't believe me? Just ask my grandmother, she's the one who got me into the comic

 

But still, nothing beats Calvin and Hobbes

Edited November 21, 2012 by Evilshy

[duckishponyish 8]

oh i have some!pearls before swine is a one read frequently and cyanide and happiness is good to when there is actually something to laugh at...

[AegisReflector 886]

Anypony here a Garfield fan?

 

In elementary school/primary school/whatever I read all of the Garfield comics in the school library, although I bet I didn't even get half the pop culture reference jokes because I was too young. XD

 

I used to be huge on Garfield books, but Jim Davis really sold out sometime in the mid-90's and therefore the quality of the strip has just gone to be progressively worse. Jon Arbuckle, the king of nerds and the lonely bachelor, is now dating Liz, the veterinarian who has always turned him down in some funny, quirky way. Why did he decide to go this route? It just makes the strip less of what it originally meant to be. I generally hate cartoonists who change the whole atmosphere on their strips just to get more viewership, because it really loses the charm the strip once had.

 

Get Fuzzy is pretty funny at times. I think it tries to be a bit too political sometimes, but there's still plenty of humor.

Darby Conley I think is a major liberal and he really showed that during the early years of the strips (making Bucky a "heartless" Republican/fascist, anti-Whaling statements, endorsing PETA, complaining about taxing the poor and not the rich, etc.). I personally love Get Fuzzy due to the chemistry between Rob, Bucky, and Satchel. Like Peanuts, they all have conflicting personalities and when they clash together, it makes for one funny outcome.

[Dusty Soul 2,611]

 

Calvin and Hobbes Is my favorite, then ZITS is awesome, as I can relate to it. The other comic Frazz is pretty awesome. I like to think they are connected. As like Calvin is a teen in Zits, then an adult in Frazz. The only thing is that the kid in Zits is named Jeremy so, Head canon it will stay.

[Guest]

Does webcomics count? Because I read them a lot more than I read "real" comics. Some of my favourite webcomics:

 

xkcd

A funny and occasionally deep and interesting webcomic using sarcasm and subtle or complicated humour with a simple drawing style. It's often about science and occasionally romantic. It's the most popular webcomic on the internet as far as I know so if you haven't checked it out, I would recommend it!

 

Zen Pencils

A webcomic that makes famous quotes from interesting people into comics. I like the quotes and the drawings fit nicely

 

Sandra and Woo

This webcomic kinda reminds me of Calvin and Hobbes. The story is different but the characters are kind of alike except there are a bit more characters in this one. It's funny, so yea

 

Scandinavia and The World

Stereotyping on the various countries of the world though with a focus on Scandinavian countries. I like how it portrays each country as a funny character.

 

 

If we take some IRL ones I like, it's Garfield and Calvin and Hobbes. I also used to read some Disney comics with Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse and that whole gang.

[Ivory Moth 19]

I have two favorites that come to mind immediatly.

 

http://www.tundracomics.com/

I just find these to be hilarious, that's it.

 

 

And two, the Far Side, by Gary Larson. That man is a genius.

 

 

An example of the Far Side.

 

 

[khaine21x3 789]

I've always been a fan of propaganda material and I particularly find the comic strips made by the American Nazi Party to be amusing but I don't think that I should post them here due to the racist content.

[Silverhoof 2,844]

I've always been a fan of propaganda material and I particularly find the comic strips made by the American Nazi Party to be amusing but I don't think that I should post them here due to the racist content.

 

Dude. what is wrong with you?

You are hijacking thread after thread promoting fascism and dictatorship in preference to democracy. Now this comes out.

Are you here because you are an MLP fan, or are you promoting an agenda?

[khaine21x3 789]

Dude. what is wrong with you?

You are hijacking thread after thread promoting fascism and dictatorship in preference to democracy. Now this comes out.

Are you here because you are an MLP fan, or are you promoting an agenda?

 

I guess it's kinda hard to understand someone with peculiar interest such as me but I grew up in the era of soviet style propaganda and I've always been a big fan of propaganda no matter what the content might be as long as they seem effective and powerful.

 

I'm not a neo nazi nor do I support any kind of racist system but I genuinely prefer my old life under a US backed fascist dictator compared to now where I'm living under a democratically elected theocracy that promotes violence and apartheid.

 

It's probably hard for someone in the west to understand the living condition and irrational violence of the third world.

[DashingRainbow36 264]

I was never a big comic fan. I loved Rage Comics but they got old lelelelelellelelelelelelellelelelelelelelele

 

 

I also enjoy the Happiness and Cyanide comics. And any other funny "internet" type comics.

[Silver Bells 78]

do webcomic strips count?? because sometimes i read some xkcd but that's about it for me, i don't really read comic strips all that much.

[AegisReflector 886]

Yeah, webcomics can count. I too love Cyanide and Happiness, in fact I got 2 of their books a couple of months at Barnes and Nobles. They may have some wicked dark humor but it's always hilarious in the end. Besides I like the distinctive art style between the 4 authors that produce the strips.