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Values Dissonance/Resonance Cleanup

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This is the official thread for Values Dissonance, Deliberate Values Dissonance, Fair for Its Day, and Values Resonance. A 20-year waiting period has been placed on the “values” tropes, due to various misuse and shoehorning.

Edited by GastonRabbit on Jan 5th 2023 at 9:07:15 AM

VampireBuddha Calendar enthusiast from Ireland (Wise, aged troper) Relationship Status: Complex: I'm real, they are imaginary
Calendar enthusiast
#1051: Sep 15th 2022 at 6:59:33 AM

Also, isn't Calvin like eight years old? He doesn't have a disorder, he's just a lively kid.

Ukrainian Red Cross
fragglelover Since: Jun, 2012
#1052: Sep 15th 2022 at 8:23:05 AM

He's actually 6, which admittedly makes it worse.

Like, I can get why some people think Calvin might be neurodivergent, but there's a difference between having a theory about a character and treating that theory as outright canon, which is what that entry does.

Also, the stuff the author of that entry brought up... Is, as stated, normal 6 year old behavior. Seriously, they think a six year old talking to his stuffed animal is concerning? Most kids that age (and sometimes older) do that.

DoktorvonEurotrash Lex et Veritas from Not a place of honour (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#1053: Sep 15th 2022 at 11:14:58 AM

Agree with what everybody else said: Calvin is a regular lively, emotional kid with a lot of imagination. The comic doesn't operate on the kind of level of realism where we can diagnose him with any kind of neurodivergence. (And I think in general, this wiki has had a bit of a problem with calling Ambiguous Disorder the moment any character behaves in any somewhat quirky way.)

fragglelover Since: Jun, 2012
#1054: Sep 15th 2022 at 12:23:12 PM

Well, I've removed the example in question. That said, since we're discussing it, I figure I'll start bringing up the rest of the examples on the page:

  • Moments such as when Calvin draws a squadron of B-1s nuking New York, jokes that he wants to become a "radical terrorist", imagines himself as a nuclear bomb, and thinks of a shoot-or bombing raid as a fun adventure. For all the most obvious reasons, there's no way they'd run those nowadays. not sure
  • The occasional spanking and the (non-literal, to be fair) threats of death Calvin's parents make towards Calvin is this in spades. Back then, making those kinds of threats weren't seen as a big deal. But nowadays with abusive parents and infanticide being more hot topic and front and center, Calvin's parents would definitely receive visits from social services if they physically harmed Calvin or threatened to hurt or kill him. The references to spanking might count- it's certainly more controversial than it was in the past
  • The "Calvin plays baseball at recess" arc:
    • When Calvin drops out, the coach tells him "OK, quitter! Goodbye." These days, the coach would be catching a lot of heat and would likely lose his job for talking to a six-year old that way (assuming Calvin told anyone, of course).
    • Were the arc written in an age where bullies have been caught on video via smartphone, one (or more) of the other kids playing baseball at recess would probably record the abuse Calvin receives (be it for sadistic amusement or to help him). Were it then posted online, the school would likely come under fire for negligence and, as a result, Principal Spittle would have fired Coach Lockjaw (for failure to stop bullying and insulting a six-year-old) and possibly even have the students who bullied Calvin suspended as well.note  Not sure about this one or the previous
    • Not one girl has the slightest interest in playing baseball, but all the boys except Calvin do. The combination of Moe making fun of his refusal to participate and having to share the playground with all of the girls forces Calvin to join the team, even though he really doesn't want to. Nowadays, it's not only far more probable that some girls would also play, since that has become much more common since, but with baseball losing it's prominence as "America's Pastime", it would be likely that at least a few of the other boys would not be interested in playing.This one seems like it might be valid
    • After Calvin gets his nose injured by a practice grounder his dad throws him, his mom offers him tissues while telling him to hold his head back. These days, it's more widely acknowledged that holding one's head back during nosebleeds actually isn't safe, due to the risk of blood flowing into the esophagus, and so she would have been more likely to encourage him to lean forward or at least stay sitting upright. This seems more like Science Marches On
  • The whole concept of Calvin being thrown out of the house on weekends/during the summer. This is something that kids growing up in the 80s and 90s were used to, often hearing things like "don't come back until dark/dinner." Modern kids simply aren't treated this way. Having a "playdate" is something an 80s kid assumes is something between two consenting adults. This might be valid, as I have heard of instances where parents have gotten in trouble because their kids were playing outside unsupervised. I'm not sure what that last sentence is even trying to say
  • In one early Sunday strip, Calvin's mom gets so frustrated by the mess he has made with his oatmeal that she angrily blames her husband's chromosome for making Calvin male instead of conceiving a "sweet little girl". A joke like that would more than likely be decried as sexist nowadays when gender stereotypes have been (and are still) challenged and defied by many. I can see grounds for keeping this one, but I'm not sure

Edited by fragglelover on Sep 15th 2022 at 12:23:56 PM

Libraryseraph uu~ from Canada (Handed A Sword) Relationship Status: Raising My Lily Rank With You
uu~
#1055: Sep 15th 2022 at 12:24:59 PM

I'm inclined to cut the bullying example— In general, a lot of VD examples about bullying presume that anti-bullying programs and "zero tolerance" policies actually did anything, or helped

HAPPY HALLOWEEN FOR MARIA
ElBuenCuate Since: Oct, 2010
#1056: Sep 15th 2022 at 12:44:45 PM

In my humble opinion:

  • The whole Calvin nuking New York could easily be Harsher in Hindsight. Values Dissonance seems like misuse since is not like anyone would see nuking New York as good before (maybe New Jersey).
  • I think this is actually an example, as spanking is not seen universally as good parenting anymore.
  • I'm a little divided on the bullying example. It is indeed seen as a lot worse today (especially bullying by a teacher), but there is also a lot of times it seems people cannot suspend their disbelief on the whole "this are just characters and their attitudes are supposed to be exagerated."
  • The whole, "Girls don't play sports" seems valid.
  • I agree that the whole "don't turn your head backwards when you nosebleed" seems more like Science Marches On.

I mostly agree with everything else said.

Edited by ElBuenCuate on Sep 15th 2022 at 1:45:38 AM

DoktorvonEurotrash Lex et Veritas from Not a place of honour (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#1057: Sep 15th 2022 at 12:47:12 PM

[up][up][up]Regarding the last example (the "it's your fault we didn't have a sweet little girl!" line), it's clearly meant to be a laughably irrational Non Sequitur. Yes, it's sexist, but that feels kind of moot, since the line is (intentionally) wrong on so many levels anyway.

Edited by DoktorvonEurotrash on Sep 15th 2022 at 12:47:27 PM

badtothebaritone (Life not ruined yet) Relationship Status: Snooping as usual
#1058: Sep 15th 2022 at 12:53:20 PM

[up][up] Back in the 70s, New Yorkers themselves probably wouldn't have minded seeing the Twin Towers blown up either.

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#1059: Sep 15th 2022 at 1:07:15 PM

For the record, as an autistic person who read C+H as a kid, I see evidence of Calvin being an outlier even for his age group and having some neurodivergent traits (he doesn't socialize with any other kids and tends to zone out very easily, for one, and he can get hyperfixated and study specific subjects well while not being able to focus on even the easiest homework). However, I think the entry is reading a bit too into things, and might better belong on maybe, like, Unintentionally Sympathetic for specific situations regarding Calvin's education, but I'm drawing a blank on specifics.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
Reymma RJ Savoy from Edinburgh Since: Feb, 2015 Relationship Status: Wanna dance with somebody
RJ Savoy
#1060: Sep 15th 2022 at 4:09:51 PM

Another thing that encourages reading him as atypical is that he combines being unusually lively, unruly, antagonistic towards everyone except Hobbes and being quite erudite, intelligent and creative for his age when needed, but still struggles with basic schoolwork. He is in short a character who changes somewhat to suit the week's gag, and it's tempting to read some kind of disorder into it. Bill Waterson had to tell his readers that these weren't his own memories of childhood, he was imagining the child that would suit the strip best.

Stories don't tell us monsters exist; we knew that already. They show us that monsters can be trademarked and milked for years.
WarJay77 It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (10,238/50,000) from My Writing Cave (Troper Knight) Relationship Status: Armed with the Power of Love
It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (10,238/50,000)
#1061: Sep 15th 2022 at 4:14:21 PM

Would it fit as Diagnosed by the Audience then? I can see why people would think Calvin fit the bill, but it's not VD nor is it an objective statement about the character.

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
ChloeJessica Since: Jun, 2020 Relationship Status: Awaiting my mail-order bride
#1062: Sep 15th 2022 at 4:18:26 PM

DBA seems like it would work. just please let's not mention child services... even regarding the spanking thing, not even today would someone call CPS because a mom swats her child on the rear now and then, and occurrences of physical discipline were few and far between in the strip iirc.

fragglelover Since: Jun, 2012
#1063: Sep 15th 2022 at 5:03:44 PM

I think it's already on YMMV.Calvin And Hobbes under Diagnosed by the Audience.

Anyway, I plan on bringing the rest of the Values Dissonance page up in a bit. My phone will only let me copy so far into the page, so I couldn't do it all in one go.

lalalei2001 Since: Oct, 2009
#1064: Sep 26th 2022 at 9:12:50 PM

Speaking of ValuesDissonance.Calvin And Hobbes, a lot of entries go off into speculative territory about potential reactions if it ran in the present day, like "In some strips, Hobbes is shown to remorselessly antagonize Calvin, even at little to no provocation (up to and including roughing him up, taking advantage of a bee on his friend's back to steal his comics and get him stung and even looking forward to Calvin's death from illness when the latter is clearly anxious about his condition etc.), and usually gets away scot-free yet is still portrayed as a friend and occasional voice of reason otherwise. Naturally, this is Played for Laughs but were the comic strip made in modern times when bullying, as well as toxic friendships and abusive relationships, have become hot-topic issues, Hobbes would likely receive intense hatred from some readers who'd demand he receive Laser-Guided Karma more often."

I think said example is pretty ridiculous by the way. XD;

Edited by lalalei2001 on Sep 26th 2022 at 12:13:41 PM

The Protomen enhanced my life.
fragglelover Since: Jun, 2012
#1065: Sep 27th 2022 at 9:08:34 AM

Here is the next section of the page (sorry if I'm not doing this right, this is my first time attempting to clean up a page)

  • The Double Standard that if Susie beats up Calvin for throwing snowballs and water balloons at her, he is made to suffer for it but she herself gets away with knocking him into next week, throwing a snowball at him, or spraying him with a hose. Back in the 80s/90s when it was published, this was amusingly cathartic and kids making violence/death threats wasn't that uncommon; but were the strip set nowadays, her extremely short temper and acts of violent retribution towards Calvin would likely get her sent to a child psychologist where she'd undergo anger management therapy.Not sure. While Double Standard: Abuse, Female on Male is criticized more often now, some of this seems to be upset that Susie is retaliating against Calvin's actions.
    • In one specific example, an early strip in the classroom setting has her openly threaten to take Calvin to the principal's office in a violent fashion fast enough to think he's been through a time warp for if he shoots a paper clip at her. Nowadays, with zero-tolerance policies at schools often targeting bullying victims attempting retaliation, Susie would likely be given detention or suspended. Might count
  • Rosalyn/babysitting-related content Not sure about this section in general:
    • The reason why Rosalyn becomes the default babysitter; before anyone would come to watch their son, Calvin's parents leave him alone while having a night out. After spending a whole strip laughing about the idea, they actually go through with it and tell Calvin to behave himself before leaving their six-year-old in the house with no adult to supervise him. They're pretty lucky that the worst thing Calvin did was watch a scary movie and booby trap his bedroom door. The 1980s could treat it as a joke, but parents in the 2010s would be freaking out about everything that could go wrong or a call from child services.This one might count
    • The way Rosalyn interacts with Calvin also counts. She makes a bad first impression on him by locking him in the garage, and threatens to make him sleep in the basement the next time she babysits. That wouldn't fly in the age of Nanny cams and babysitter horror stories. He never tells his parents, but they do know she sends him to bed ridiculously early. They never consider that his fear of her may be rational, to the point of asking them where they keep their guns (which they don't have). Instead, Calvin's parents always harp on him to behave, his dad once making the Throat-Slitting Gesture before closing the door. At several points, they don't even tell him that she's coming note .
    • Rosalyn threatens to kill Calvin in the arc where he steals her science notes, which Hobbes merely reacts to with "Boy, some babysitter!". Assuming Calvin's parents found out, Rosalyn would have trouble finding further babysitting jobs at best and receive anger management counseling at worst.
    • Rosalyn becomes Calvin's swimming instructor in her second appearance. When Calvin refuses to go in the water, Rosalyn threatens to whip him with a towel. Assuming Calvin told his parents or a pool employee, Rosalyn today could lose her job for even making such a threat (even if she didn’t mean it, which is likely the case).
  • In some strips, Hobbes is shown to remorselessly antagonize Calvin, even at little to no provocation (up to and including roughing him up, taking advantage of a bee on his friend's back to steal his comics and get him stung and even looking forward to Calvin's death from illness when the latter is clearly anxious about his condition etc.), and usually gets awayhese yet is still portrayed as a friend and occasional voice of reason otherwise. Naturally, this is Played for Laughs but were the comic strip made in modern times when bullying, as well as toxic friendships and abusive relationships, have become hot-topic issues, Hobbes would likely receive intense hatred from some readers who'd demand he receive Laser-Guided Karma more often. Discussed above, seems to be mostly complaining about Hobbes' behavior
  • During the Stupendous Man arc where Calvin dons this persona at school, Miss Wormwood drags him to the principal's office twice. After escaping the first time, the second is a lot more physical where (offscreen) Calvin practically begs for help in the ensuing scuffle. In the following day's strip, Calvin states that his mother confiscated his outfit. At the time, it would've been justified (and amusing) comeuppance for a disruptive student but years afterward, a teacher would get fired for what's essentially manhandling a student as young as six. Since many schoolkids have cellphones with cameras nowadays, at least one of Calvin's classmates or even a kid passing by in the hallways would record the evidence and take his side. His parents under the circumstances (assuming they found out) would more likely press charges against Miss Wormwood instead of getting mad at Not sure
  • In one strip, Calvin asks Hobbes if he'd like to go to the zoo with him and Mom, and he responds with "Can we tour a prison afterwards?", resulting in Calvin changing his mind about going. While the "zoos are prisons" mindset may have been partially true when the strip was first published, most mainstream zoos in recent years (at least in North America) have been putting a heavy focus on conservation and education over entertainment.Not sure. While zoos have improved, there are still people who consider them to be evil because they keep animals in captivity
  • Tangentially related, in another arc they do, in fact, go to the zoo. Calvin gets lost when he follows around an unknown woman for a while, thinking she's his mom. The woman reacts with concern when he discovers his mistake, but then in the next strip she's disappeared, having apparently left Calvin alone. This is necessary for the drama of the rest of the story, which is founded on Calvin's parents freaking out when they can't find him. However, to a modern reader, it seems bizarre that this woman – who is not obviously signalled as "thoughtless and negligent" – would just leave a six-year-old child to wander a zoo by himself. Ushering Calvin to a staff member and seeing to it that the word gets put out and his parents come retrieve him apparently didn't occur to her, which is unthinkable in the 21st century.Not sure

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#1066: Sep 27th 2022 at 9:11:11 AM

Can't comment on everything but the last example is definitely ridiculous. The woman immediately asks Calvin what his mom looks like to try and help him. It's most likely Calvin just wandered away from her on his own.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
NitroIndigo ♀ | Small ripples lead to big waves from West Midlands region, England Since: Jun, 2021 Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
♀ | Small ripples lead to big waves
#1067: Oct 2nd 2022 at 8:53:55 AM

ValuesDissonance.Harry Potter seems less like it's about the creator's values conflicting with people from other times and places, and more like Unfortunate Implications in disguise. It has a lot of overlap with the Broken Aesop subpage.

Edited by NitroIndigo on Oct 2nd 2022 at 4:54:26 PM

chasemaddigan I'm Sad Frogerson. Since: Oct, 2011
I'm Sad Frogerson.
#1068: Oct 2nd 2022 at 9:03:36 AM

[up] Well, Values Dissonance requires a 20 year waiting period before entries about the dissonance between different time periods can be added. So, if there's anything on that page that happened after The Goblet of Fire was released (since that came out in 2000), then it needs to be cut, since Order of the Phoenix came out in 2003.

NitroIndigo ♀ | Small ripples lead to big waves from West Midlands region, England Since: Jun, 2021 Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
♀ | Small ripples lead to big waves
#1069: Oct 2nd 2022 at 9:11:01 AM

To be more specific: the entry about the cover story for Sirius being that he's a shooter can stay because it's about dissonance between places, but here's some samples of the rest of the page:

The entire Worldbuilding about House-Elves having Happiness in Slavery and Hermione's attempts to help them being well-meaning but a little ignorant strikes many new readers as a Clueless Aesop at best, or a Golden Mean Fallacy at worst (i.e. advocating that it's wrong to outright oppose and abolish slavery but one must reform and treat them better, which needless to say flies in the face of history). The novels outwardly present Slave Liberation as something inorganic to House-Elves and something which Hermione has to impose by her outside ideology (i.e. S.P.E.W.) and her Character Development is gradually becoming more reformist and accepting that House-Elves value better treatment more than actual freedom. There's also the fact that Harry at the end of the books, by inheriting Kreacher from Sirius, ends up becoming a slaveowner himself, and the final lines of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows before the epilogue, about Harry musing asking Kreacher for a sandwich, suggests that he kept Kreacher in servitude even after Voldemort's downfall. According to Rowling, the S.P.E.W. subplot was meant to satirize "White Man's Burden" activism where people from a more privileged group attempt to "assist" those from a less privileged group to make themselves feel better without regard for what the latter group actually needs or wants (see the infamous "Kony 2012" campaign for a well-known real-world example), but many readers saw it as a mockery of genuine activism.

I'm pretty sure slavery wasn't socially acceptable in the UK around the Turn of the Millennium, so this isn't a result of Rowling being a product of her society. Also, the whole house elf situation is covered — in far fewer words — on the Broken Aesop subpage.

Likewise, many note that, while the series criticizes the wizarding community for being hypocritical and unfairly treating the other magical species i.e. (the humans and beasts classification), with the exception of House-Elves, none of the other beings are treated fairly in the stories. The grudges of the centaurs and the goblins are shown to be self-inflicted Blue-and-Orange Morality rather than of real political and social stigma, and the goblins (who more than a few noted appeared to be a fantasy take on anti-Semitic stereotypes) are generally shown to be two-faced, backstabbing and without honour.

I'm pretty sure anti-Semitism was socially unacceptable at the time, too, and this concept is also redundant with the Broken Aesop subpage.

The rather casual use of love potions and the Weasley twins making most of their money off selling them strikes some as tone deaf. Initially, it's introduced casually as a side-gag, playing it for "girls will be girls", with even Hermione, a moral authority in the series, mentioned to have stared at it and giggling at its effect. The problem is that the same books give it a Cerebus Retcon with Dumbledore straight-up acknowledging that Voldemort was conceived as a result of his mother forcing this on his father in an act of rape, while another Love Potion intended for Harry was drunk by Ron instead driving him to a violent rage in an addled drugged state.

Again, since the book contradicts itself on the nature of love potions, this is more like Broken Aesop.

The mainstream media provided by the Daily Prophet being fake news and Wizarding Pravda, while the real news is found in a Conspiracy Theorist rag like the Quibbler, feels very awkward in The New '10s, with websites like Info Wars and Breitbart trading in conspiracy theories, and decrying any mainstream media source, especially those that oppose their philosophy, as fake news.note 

This is a valid example of dissonance between times... except it's from a book that's 19 years old. Oops. (Also, I thought they changed the waiting period to 15 years a while ago; was this reverted?)

Edited by NitroIndigo on Oct 2nd 2022 at 5:11:55 PM

miraculous Goku Black (Apprentice)
Goku Black
#1070: Oct 2nd 2022 at 9:20:39 AM

Umh Slavery has been hated in Britain for centuries. It's what helped kick start the abolitionisit movement. Their where even communities (Manchester) during the US civil war who despite famine from the cotton blockade gave Lincoln a letter of support.

Edited by miraculous on Oct 2nd 2022 at 9:21:29 AM

"That's right mortal. By channeling my divine rage into power, I have forged a new instrument in which to destroy you."
chasemaddigan I'm Sad Frogerson. Since: Oct, 2011
I'm Sad Frogerson.
#1071: Oct 2nd 2022 at 9:23:25 AM

Also, I thought they changed the waiting period to 15 years a while ago; was this reverted?

It's always been 20 years. You might be thinking of Fair for Its Day, which was changed from 20 years to 15 years.

Edited by chasemaddigan on Oct 2nd 2022 at 12:24:24 PM

NitroIndigo ♀ | Small ripples lead to big waves from West Midlands region, England Since: Jun, 2021 Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
♀ | Small ripples lead to big waves
#1072: Oct 2nd 2022 at 10:22:57 AM

[up][up]I'm not sure if you're agreeing or disagreeing with me?

[up]Oh. Thanks for clearing that up.

miraculous Goku Black (Apprentice)
Goku Black
#1073: Oct 2nd 2022 at 10:28:43 AM

Oh I'm agreeing to remove that entry. Its pretty silly.

"That's right mortal. By channeling my divine rage into power, I have forged a new instrument in which to destroy you."
NitroIndigo ♀ | Small ripples lead to big waves from West Midlands region, England Since: Jun, 2021 Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
♀ | Small ripples lead to big waves
#1074: Oct 2nd 2022 at 11:10:07 AM

Removed the three bullets about house elves, citing this thread.

fragglelover Since: Jun, 2012
#1075: Oct 9th 2022 at 11:13:48 AM

Alright, going to try and finish my look-through of ValuesDissonance.Calvin And Hobbes.

  • Two different Sunday strips have Calvin give "reports" on overpopulation to the class Not sure:
    • The first one is telling the story of Bambi and a herd of deer wielding hunting rifles and shooting random office workers. They actually kill Frank, a Nice Guy minding his own business, and pose with his body for a picture. Calvin explains that humans needed thinning out, and the deer were complying with that mandate. All Miss Wormwood does is send a note home asking to schedule a parent-teacher conference. These days he'd be made to see a therapist in school about how he interprets current events, and the strip would likely never be run in the wake of a rise in actual mass shootings.
    • The second is a story about Susie getting Eaten Alive by a pack of carnivorous dinosaurs as well as explicitly advocating for this as natural selection, to which Miss Wormwood responds by matter-of-factly criticizing his report and telling him to see her after class. After numerous school shootings made headlines and psychological issues concerning children/teenagers have gained public attention, Calvin's teacher would interpret the "report" as a threat to Susie's well-being and he would likely be suspended or expelled (especially in a zero-tolerance school environment), if not also required to see a therapist.
  • Calvin asks Uncle Max if he has any kids, to which he replies "Nope, I'm not even married." Calvin asks what difference that makes, to shocked responses from Calvin's parents, and a comment from Uncle Max that Calvin must watch a lot of TV. Nowadays, the stigma against single parents and unmarried couples having children has gone down significantly, and it's entirely possible that Calvin would have met a child whose parents were unmarried or was raised by a single parent. Not to mention that Calvin could have asked that question out of natural curiosity, even if he didn't know of any unmarried parents/single parents (as a six year old, he might honestly not know what the connection is between them).Maybe, last part seems unnecessary
  • In one strip, Calvin fires an arrow at Susie while dressed in a very stereotypical Native American costume. Cute and charming when the strip was published, considered problematic cultural appropriation nowadays. This one might count
  • One of the Rosalyn babysitting arcs ends with Calvin calling the police to say that he and Hobbes are being held hostage (something that merely gets an eye-roll from Rosalyn). This would be much harder to play off as a comedic punchline nowadays, considering similar false 9-1-1 calls in real life have led to swatting incidents where innocent people have been killed. Also, police tend to respond to suspected hostage situations with extreme force, not a polite door knock as depicted in the comic. Calvin would also be in big trouble for his antics now, perhaps even punished for juvenile delinquency. Not sure about this one
  • One example of this was noted by Watterson himself in commentary. He got a lot of angry letters from readers for depicting Calvin's parents as flawed human beings who would often get enraged at Calvin's antics, want to spend time away from him, get into arguments, regret even having Calvin and even be happy at the thought of him disappearing. As Watterson notes, examples of dysfunctional families who didn't always get along appearing in fiction became much more common and exaggerated as the comic progressed, to the point where the complaints of Calvin's parents seem almost quaint in comparison. Pretty sure that this is actually "Seinfeld" Is Unfunny
  • Watterson also mentioned that a lot of people complained about a strip where Calvin fantasizes about using a jet fighter to blow up his school (and, presumably, all the people inside), though he defended it at the time, saying any kid Calvin's age has probably fantasized about destroying their school at least once. In the post-Columbine age of mass shootings and other violence at public schools, it's hard to imagine this strip being published. Not sure, I think these were discussed earlier
  • One 1992 Sunday strip had Calvin fantasizing about using a tank to shoot up his classroom with his classmates still inside, and attempting to destroy his teacher. This would be far more difficult to play off as a light-hearted joke nowadays (if even published at all), and Calvin would've definitely suffered a much greater punishment than just a stern talking to after class. See above
  • In some strips, Calvin sits with Hobbes in the car while his parents run errands. Watterson himself said this wasn't an issue when he was growing up. By the 21st century, the general public had become much more aware of how dangerous and potentially fatal it is to leave a six-year old alone in the car, especially during the summer when a locked car can heat up to lethal temperatures ridiculously fast (plus fear of them getting kidnapped by child predators, however unlikely, since the 80s since these were published).This one might count
  • One story arc in 1990 had Calvin (in the midst of yet another Spaceman Spiff fantasy) running away from school after threatening the class with a rubber band. While he gets in trouble for running away, nobody says anything more about the threat. In the post-Columbine world, American schools crack down more strongly on any child threatening classmates with a weapon, even a simple projectile like a rubber band. So Calvin could've been suspended for that today. Maybe
  • Calvin's calls to the library about books on making bombs or graffiti would have been dismissed as a joke in the 90s, but would result in a visit from the police or SWAT team nowadays. Same with his calls to the hardware store asking for demolition materials. note  not sure
  • In a few strips, Calvin and Susie write "Drop dead" to each other on notes or say the phrase whenever one makes the other upset. When Susie receives a Valentine with this message, she merely retaliates by throwing a snowball at Calvin. Assuming either Susie's or Calvin's parents find out, such behavior from both children would be taken much more seriously. not sure
  • The degree to which Moe gets away with bullying Calvin (even including things like embedding Calvin in a locker door). At the time it was portrayed as standard schoolkid behavior with a bit of embellishment. These days, Moe would quickly be suspended or eventually expelled if he kept treating Calvin this way if not outright sent for mental health treatment or juvie, since many of his acts are very violent assaults. I think this was brought up earlier, and it was decided that this doesn't count
  • When Calvin brings his Stupendous Man costume to school, Susie sarcastically asks Calvin if he brought a bomb with him. Given that bomb threats have been taken a lot more seriously since 1993, Susie and possibly Calvin would get suspended for causing a mass panic. not sure

A lot of these seem to just repeat what was said earlier, only given a specific example of it (Calvin's violent drawings and stories in particular seem to have come up multiple times).

Like I said, this was my first time attempting a full page cleanup, so I'm sorry if I didn't exactly do it right (that, and my phone will only let me highlight so much at once)


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