Gush / Comic Strips

Gush about Comic Strips here.

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• Calvin and Hobbes is funny and enjoyable for a kid. Coming back to it as an adult just makes it more impressive; it not only works on several levels; it works wonderfully on each of them.
  • Seconded- absolutely. This troper was a follower from the time she was about Calvin's age. In fact, it really spawned her interest in at least half a dozen other long-running strips.
  • This "elderly" troper, who discovered the series as an adult, recommends it heartily, enthusiastically, and repeatedly. Best. Comic. Ever.
  • The strip is timeless and universal. It has something for everyone.
  • I have to say that yes, this is probably one of the few newspaper comics that I seriously loved. It's a beautiful trip into a child's imagination, and it brings about a wonderful rush of nostalgia every single time I read it. I really do love this comic. It's beloved by many for a reason.
  • Calvin and Hobbes is one of the few comic strips of which I know that doesn't just use cheap gags, Author Tract, or child-unfriendly humour. Not only does it have well-thought-out humor that also inspires the reader to consider his or her life more deeply, but it's beautifully drawn, too.
  • Calvin and Hobbes is the perfect embodiment of childhood. There is not a single child or adult out there who can and will disagree. If one ever does, it's because they didn't have a childhood. Period.
  • I have to add myself to the praising choir for Calvin and Hobbes, and this troper has a particular reason, beyond all the ones previously mentioned. Simply this; there are a lot of comic strips that have managed to make this troper laugh, there are some who've made this troper think, but only one that made him cry. And that one is Calvin and Hobbes. More specifically this one.
• I don't care what anyone else says, For Better or for Worse always makes me smile. It's not perfect but that's not the point. It's just a little collection of all the moments in life that are funny and nostalgic.
• Get Fuzzy is Garfield, but actually good. It has the same hapless owner/stupid dog/sociopathic cat setup, but it packs so much humor in that any single panel is clever enough to elicit at least a chuckle. Plus, it's far too beautifully drawn to be truly appreciated on the comics page. Plus, it's indulged in◊ adult humour, which I always appreciate.
• On that note, Garfield is one of the most famous faces in newspaper comics for a reason. Something about that misanthropic cat is absolutely endearing.
  • Also, Jim Davis is the absolute master of the visual gag.
  • This troper genuinely likes Garfield, even WITH his general preference for satirical, off-beat comics (such as, well, Calvin and Hobbes). He's particularly fond of the strips around the late 80's/early 90's, but regardless, there's no real Garfield strip he honestly dislikes. Garfield strips are a big part of what taught him how to read (and made him love it), bolstered his vocabulary, sparked his interest in drawing, and actually, to a point, taught him to be happy with who he is— the troper may not be fat, but Garfield's pride taught him that it was okay to work around your faults, and be proud of them. I could gush for hours about the fat orange cat, because no matter what anyone says, I like him.
• Peanuts is definitely one of the greats - the reruns of old strips since 2000 just show how timeless it really is.
• Non Sequitur is one of the cleverest and funniest comics still running. Maybe it has something to do with this troper's personal bias on political and social issues, but its willingness to mock every fringe of society, even things like religion, contribute greatly to its appeal. And despite Danae being practically a female Calvin, her Deadpan Snarker personality meshes perfectly with the bleak but crazy world that is all too familiar.
  • You have to love the art style, too. It really catches your eye in the funny pages.
• The Far Side: Its zany humor is just awesome.
  • Seconded. Goes down in history. Some of those gags were so simple, too, but that's what honestly made it work.
  • Any cartoon that lovingly depicts the Pillsbury Doughboy getting squashed into oblivion is awesome in my book.
  • I learned to read because of this strip!
  • YES! I absolutely LOVE The Far Side, and it is my all-time favourite newspaper comic strip! Its bizarre humor never fails to make me laugh (or at least put a smile on my face) while its Genius Bonuses and underlying themes on western culture and society and the natural world are always a treat. I especially love how subversive it is by the standards of the Comic Strip medium; this was a strip that wasn't afraid of being weird, acting unorthodoxly, and NOT doing what every other strip then and now does. As far as I am concerned, no other comic to have graced the funny pages of a newspaper has ever matched or will ever match The Far Side's awesomeness.
• Frazz is a work that is far too good to have to compete for space with Cathy and The Born Loser.
• Ditto Lio, a bizarre, subversive delight in the tradition of the aforementioned Calvin and Hobbes and Far Side which packs more genuine wit into its wordless format that most comics can manage with Walls of Text.
• Dilbert is to frustrated office workers what Clerks is to kids with their first job.
  • Seconded. Amidst the sea of nauseatingly sunny and sugary stuff that get into the comics page nowadays, seeing a well-drawn and unfailingly funny comic that maintains a firm root in the realist end of the scale is a real treat.
  • This troper knew Dilbert thanks to the book (Dilbert's Principle), and instantly said "Wow, that's real". And as the author once said: "No matter the bizarre that this office gets, people keep saying me: "This is my office"." So you can imagine how I feel when I read that strip.
• Before it completely shifted focus after September 11th, The Boondocks was fucking brilliant, seamlessly blending spot on political humor with great character writing and sharp dialogue. Even if one didn't agree with its politics, there were so damn many laugh out loud moments and wonderfully crafted characterization to make this a gem. I like the cartoon ok, but the strip allowed for some truly hilarious moments like a strip where Riley muses to himself: "Hmm... mischief... danger...trouble... malevolence... discord...pandemonium... TOTAL CHAOS... MASS CONFUSION!" as a slow smile spreads across his face and his granddad demands him to stop whatever it is he's thinking about.
• FoxTrot was amazing throughout its run, from its earliest Sitcom-y days to its later Nerd Joke Renaissance.
  • This troper agrees wholly. The strip is an example of good geek humor in the funny pages. It also helps that it does running gags well, too (anything with Jason is gold).
  • Let's not forget the numerous self-plugging, ego-stroking bonuses Amend added to the newspapers they read: "Cartoonist dumps devastated Cyndi Lauper", "Cartoonist joins the Yankees ('We're guaranteed to win!!', says coach)", etc.
  • I have more fond childhood memories of Fox Trot than I do of most movies, and being the movie buff I am that's saying a lot. Remember the gag in which Roger tells Andy over the phone that he doesn't know when he'll be home because he has a sea of paperwork to wade through, and in the last panel you see him literally trying to wade through a room filled to the brim with paperwork? I actually printed out reams of paper and imitated that as a little kid. Boy was my mom pissed! But that's how good the gags are in that comic.
• Bloom County. This troper attributes his fascination with the Cold War and 80's politics to it. And Opus is awesome.
• Cul de Sac. A family-oriented comic that is genuinely funny. It doesn't angst about how haaaaaaarrrd it is to raise children, neither does it gush about how adorable children are.
  • You know that a strip is good when Bill Watterson praises everything about it. I mean, he gushes. As he should.
• Monty is Monty Python IN A NEWSPAPER! But better!
• Mafalda = best strip to ever be made in South America.
• I LOVE BABY BLUES. That is all.
• Pearls Before Swine. Wonderfully groanworthy wordplay and meta out the wazoo, outright misanthropic without ever seeming bitter or angry, and even manages to be seriously heartwarming at times (but not to often, lest people confuse it with For Better or for Worse.) Rat and Pig are one of the greatest comedic duos on the comics page today.
• Little Nemo is a masterpiece of imagination. Almost every page has a new, wacky, fascinating idea. The drawings are wonderful... You get the idea.
• You can't get any more obscure than Dogs of C-Kennel. Not many people have heard of it, and unjustly so. The jokes are absolutely hilarious and will often contain references to pop culture (for example, Angry Birds and Fifty Shades of Grey).
• Phoebe and Her Unicorn is what a good comic strip should be — well-drawn, well-written, with distinctive, multi-dimensional characters and a premise just wacky enough to consistently bring its readers a daily smile and grin. Being a Spiritual Successor to Ozy and Millie doesn't hurt, either.
• Sherman's Lagoon. Hilairious with quirky yet lovable characters. It totally Needs More Love.
  • Seconded! It's a hilarious strip and has always been one of my personal favorites. I would love to see an Animated Adaptation of it at some point.
• Rip Haywire is a wonderfully hilarious parody of old time adventure strips. Great artwork and humor right out of a Rocky and Bullwinkle cartoon. Definitely needs to be more popular.