History Headscratchers / CalvinAndHobbes

*** Again, Hobbes is displayed bipedal, so it happened. Calvin knows that doing something different will change the past, so ForWantOfANail the future will suck.

** The ropes were covering Calvin's arms. No, really, [[http://comics.roderickmann.org/episodes/CalvinAndHobbes/2017/11/CalvinAndHobbes20171126.gif take a look at the first strip in the series]]. How exactly could Calvin have tied himself up if the ropes were covering his arms?

** One: As such a thing is never mentioned, he probably wasn't hired, and two: Its probably something like a [[Series/DoctorWho TARDIS]].

*** 'Xactly. Most of the examples of LostEpisode[=s=] are stuff that had to be taken away due to crossing the line. This alternate strip is just... Unfunny, at most?

*** Those kids also often went to a friend's house to play their friend's video games. Being much more of a loner, Calvin likely didn't have any friends to hang out with, and wasn't exposed to home console systems in the mid-to-late 198s enough to notice.

** Brad and Janet.
*** [[Film/TheRockyHorrorPictureShow ...Why does this work!?!]]

* How does Hobbes's status as an endangered species prevent him from meeting babes? I heard that [[Franchise/TheSimpsons the ladies dig you when you're the last of something]].

** Despite what ''Film/BackToTheFuture'' may tell you, offspring don't tend to have the same exact personalities as their parents. Also, Calvin is heavily implied to be a Gifted child stuck in an uncaring, unengaging public school system. Maybe if he was dumber, he'd act closer to them.

** Also, to fully understand this we need to look at this, at least partly, from the perspective of the characters interacting with Calvin rather than just Calvin or as a reader. And let's be totally honest here; from their perspective, Calvin is a ''lot'' to put up with. We interact with Calvin for the length of time it takes to read three to nine panels of a comic a day, which is what? Five to ten minutes? Sure, under those circumstances Calvin is endearing. However, in Calvin's world, Calvin's parents, teachers and classmates have to interact with him on a frequent basis, over which the personality quirks we find endearing can quickly become insufferable. As for his snowmen, he's definitely got talent, but they're also frequently grotesque, macabre, inconveniencing (at least one of them prevents his dad from being able to drive to work) and generally more of an annoyance they would be to the person seeing it in a comic strip who doesn't have to deal with it. Again, we can appreciate the talent and artistic qualities because we don't have to live with it; for Calvin's parents, it's just another headache their let's-face-it-a-bit-of-a-pain-in-the-ass kid has caused them.

** As with the immediately previous Headscratcher this is at least partly explained by remembering the perspective of the characters around Calvin, who have to put up with him for much longer than the reader does, in addition to / rather than just Calvin's personal perspective. The reader finds Calvin charming, his arguments erudite and compelling, his creative endeavours awe-inspiring and inspirational, and so forth, because they only have to put up with them for upwards of five-ten minutes a day at most. Furthermore, they're viewing Calvin's adventures through the distance and remove provided by a sheet of newspaper, the page of a book or the screen of a computer or phone. The other characters, meanwhile, have to deal with Calvin, in person, in their world, on a daily basis. They have to stand there and actually listen to Calvin constantly coming up with long-winded, self-serving and pompous arguments for why he's the centre of the universe and should be able to do whatever he wants without fear of repercussion. They are constantly inconvenienced by his works of "art" which are often impractically large, macabre and mildly-to-moderately destructive. They are forced to put up with him disrupting their jobs and lives because what's going on doesn't happen to interest him personally and therefore can't possibly be of any value to anyone else. They have to suffer the brunt of his insults and snowball / water balloon attacks, however cleverly worded or fiendishly schemed. They have to watch on every time he chucks a wobbly whenever the universe doesn't treat him fairly, or even if it ''is'' treating him fairly but he merely perceives it to be otherwise simply because it isn't showering him with endless rewards merely for existing. In short, they have to routinely put up with him almost constantly being a massive hyperactive self-centred pain-in-the-ass who frequently runs around leaving chaos in his wake, and unlike us they don't have the option of turning the page or closing the book if ever he starts to grate. It's fine for us to condemn them for not appreciating Calvin's genius at a distance; but frankly, if we had to put up with Calvin and his ways for even half the time that the characters who interact with him have to, there is a greater-than-zero chance that we the reader would come to regard him as a rather insufferable little shit as well.

* In all the years of reading Calvin and Hobbes, I never got over the fact that it seems not a ''single person in the world'' ever reacts to Calvin's antics with anything other than annoyance/anger. It's not just Calvin's parents or teacher, who would feel worn down over time -- not even his classmates, neighbours, or random strangers ever laugh ''once'' at what he does, even the funny harmless things. I even remember one strip where Calvin's mom remarks how they get less traffic on their street thanks to Calvin's snowmen. Now imagine that there was a kid who actually made snowmen like that. Do you really think that everyone would avoid that house or would they constantly drive past to take photos? It's just an extreme ValuesDissonance that while we find Calvin hysterical, everyone in his world in a humorless jackass.

** My younger brother and sister spent most of one winter making odd and rather monstrous snow creatures every time it snowed. (ages six and eight) Our grandmas reaction to finding, in her front yard, a tableau of snowmen fleeing in terror from a snowblower, was to say we all clearly needed more chores after school. The neighbors didn't appreciate it much either.

** As with the immediately above Headscratcher, this is at least partly explained by remembering the perspective of the characters around Calvin, who have to put up with him for much longer than the reader does. The reader finds Calvin charming, his arguments erudite and compelling, his creative endeavours awe-inspiring and inspirational, and so forth, because they only have to put up with them for upwards of five-ten minutes a day if so they choose through the distance and remove provided by viewing his adventures on a sheet of newspaper, the page of a book or the screen of a computer or phone. The other characters, meanwhile, have to deal with Calvin, in person, in their world, on a daily basis. They have to stand there and actually listen to Calvin constantly coming up with long-winded, self-serving and slightly pompous arguments for why he's the centre of the universe and should be able to do whatever he wants without fear of repercussion. They are constantly inconvenienced by his works of "art" which are often impractically large, macabre and mildly-to-moderately destructive. They are forced to put up with him disrupting their jobs and lives because what's going on doesn't happen to interest him personally and therefore can't possibly be of any value to anyone else. They have to watch on every time he chucks a wobbly whenever the universe doesn't treat him fairly, or even if it ''is'' treating him fairly but he merely perceives it to be otherwise simply because it isn't showering him with endless rewards merely for existing. In short, they have to routinely put up with him almost constantly being a massive hyperactive self-centred pain-in-the-ass who frequently runs around leaving chaos in his wake, and unlike us they don't have the option of turning the page or closing the book if ever he starts to grate. It's fine for us to condemn them for not appreciating Calvin's genius; but frankly, if we had to put up with Calvin and his ways for even half the time that the characters who interact with him have to, there is a greater-than-zero chance that we the reader would come to regard him as a rather insufferable little shit as well.

** Your child begins expressing creativity in macabre, disturbing ways, and your first thought is how you're going to monetize him? Parent of the fucking year.
*** It's a normal phase some kids go through, and no need for the attitude.
*** Certainly that would have been out of character for Calvin's father, who is the worst sort of cynic when it comes to such things.