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View Full Version : An ending to Calvin and Hobbes made by a fan.

Converge
11-12-2005, 01:22 PM
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c296/sotink/CH.jpg
Archyduke
11-12-2005, 01:28 PM
Agh. That's... depressing.
Justin D.
11-12-2005, 03:22 PM
"The pills must be working"?

Yikes. I'm willing to bet whoever made that was commenting on our desire to overmedicate many kids today so they that lose their individuality and more.

I remember hearing rumors about what the last strip was going to be before the real one came out. From what I remember, the rumored strip would have had Calvin and Hobbes walking along a path in the woods discussing the difference between reality and fiction and what it means to grow up. As they walk, Hobbes is moving farther and farther back in the panels until in the fourth panel where he's just not there. Calvin says, "Hobbes?" and looks around. The next panel has him looking around and saying, "Now, what was I doing? Oh, well." and he shrugs his shoulders. Finally, there's a large panel of Calvin walking away with Hobbes lying on the ground. I practically made a friend tear up when I told him that for the first time before the strip came out.

The final strip that came out is almost the complete opposite.

http://archieboy.netfirms.com/Images/calvin/final_calvin.gif
SoulOnIce
11-12-2005, 03:32 PM
Also The Last Garfield:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v380/SoulOnIce/lastgarfield.jpg
Venoman
11-12-2005, 03:36 PM
thats so sad....
stealthwise
11-12-2005, 05:20 PM
The Calvin and Hobbes is depressing and untrue to the strip (if Hobbes isn't real then HOW did Calvin get tied up all those times?), but the Garfield one is hilarious.
PatrickG
11-12-2005, 05:33 PM
I think it's untrue to the strip to prove a point about how we treat childhood imagination today.

And, really, I hate to see endings at all for Garfield or Calvin and Hobbes.

On the other hand, I would be fine and dandy with twisted endings to Beetle Bailey and Family Circus along these lines.

There was a parody magazine by Marvel back in the 90s and they had a Family Circus spoof with Kingpin where they showed Wilson Fisk's footsteps all around the city, surrounded by the debris of death, crime and mayhem.
Spike-X
11-12-2005, 05:38 PM
Agh. That's... depressing.
Ain't it, though? Very "Puff The Magic Dragon".

Damn...I think I have something in my eye...
PatrickG
11-12-2005, 05:46 PM
I was shocked to find people who grew up without knowing that song earlier this week.

I think that was my favorite song from ages 3-13.
Justin D.
11-12-2005, 05:49 PM
The Calvin and Hobbes is depressing and untrue to the strip (if Hobbes isn't real then HOW did Calvin get tied up all those times?), but the Garfield one is hilarious.

Hobbes isn't real. He's a stuffed tiger Calvin uses as his imaginary friend. Also, it ended years ago. Garfield is still around even if Jim Davis isn't doing it any more.
Cam63
11-12-2005, 05:50 PM
I thought Garfield would've met his end being crushed by the frige' landing on him during an earthquake.
Converge
11-12-2005, 06:02 PM
The Calvin and Hobbes is depressing and untrue to the strip (if Hobbes isn't real then HOW did Calvin get tied up all those times?), but the Garfield one is hilarious.

Hobbes is Calvin's imaginary friend.

That's the comic's whole premise.
Deathstroke
11-12-2005, 06:03 PM
I know the one final strip that will leave me depressed is if For Better Or For Worse ends.

I'd feel like someone died.

I've been with the strip since Elizabeth couldn't speak proper English. The Pattersons are like my next door neighbors....
Spike-X
11-12-2005, 06:03 PM
Hobbes isn't real. He's a stuffed tiger Calvin uses as his imaginary friend.

I hate you.
Evan Waters
11-12-2005, 06:06 PM
When CALVIN & HOBBES was nearing its end, a lot of readers were suggesting a "final strip" much like this- Calvin grows up and leaves Hobbes behind.

I think Watterson had the right idea. Leave Calvin the eternal child and Hobbes his eternal playmate.
Spike-X
11-12-2005, 06:10 PM
Does anyone have a scan of the actual last strip?
Converge
11-12-2005, 06:12 PM
http://archieboy.netfirms.com/Images/calvin/final_calvin.gif

edit: copy and paste the url.
Crowley
11-12-2005, 06:23 PM
Calvin and Hobbes had a sequel:
http://metaphilm.com/philm.php?id=29_0_2_0
Tommy
11-12-2005, 06:44 PM
Hobbes is Calvin's imaginary friend.

That's the comic's whole premise.
Actualy the author of the comic expressly stated he never wanted to resolve if Hobbes was real or not. And as far as the comic is conserned it never was.
Spike-X
11-12-2005, 07:05 PM
Calvin and Hobbes had a sequel:
http://metaphilm.com/philm.php?id=29_0_2_0
How bizarre. Yet somehow, it kinda makes sense.
steeler80
11-12-2005, 08:59 PM
That is depressing.

I stopped reading the comics page after Calvin and Hobbes and The Far Side ended.

I've been meaning to check out the new Bloom County sequel (I forget the name). Has anyone read it?
bert
11-12-2005, 09:05 PM
I know the one final strip that will leave me depressed is if For Better Or For Worse ends.

I'd feel like someone died.

I've been with the strip since Elizabeth couldn't speak proper English. The Pattersons are like my next door neighbors....


yeah. .

I agree.

and I'm tempted to write Lynn, since I HATE this cop that showed up.

I want Anthony to end up happy w/ Elizabeth! She needs to be there for him when his marriage breaks up :(
CitC
11-12-2005, 09:58 PM
I saw the new C + H collection at my local big-box book store tonight. Three hardcover volumes for over 200$ (can). Its really nice. Christmas is coming!

Check out my new all ages comic site for parents/teachers/librarians http://comicsintheclassroom.net/
SoulOnIce
11-12-2005, 10:03 PM
I saw the new C + H collection at my local big-box book store tonight. Three hardcover volumes for over 200$ (can). Its really nice. Christmas is coming!

Check out my new all ages comic site for parents/teachers/librarians http://comicsintheclassroom.net/

Buy it online for a good discount. Chapters.ca if you are in Canada. I got mines for 133 CDN.
Crowley
11-12-2005, 10:13 PM
Actualy the author of the comic expressly stated he never wanted to resolve if Hobbes was real or not. And as far as the comic is conserned it never was.

there was a story I heard a few years back that Dreamworks wanted to make a movie of Calvin and Hobbes. I'm heavily paraphrasing:

So Watterson and Spielberg met. Spielberg offers a blank check to Watterson to make the movie.

Watterson refuses.

Spielberg asks "why?"

"Because then everyone's own idea of the comic would permanently change and what their voices sounded like."



it's also apparently the same reason no toys were ever made, because the question became which Hobbes do you make as a stuffed toy???
Justin D.
11-13-2005, 12:29 AM
Does anyone have a scan of the actual last strip?

Since you hate me, you probably didn't see that I have the actual last strip in the first post of mine above.
kingdom2000
11-13-2005, 04:16 AM
The Complete Calvin and Hobbes is out in stores.

I bought it on day one and can't recommend it enough. 23lbs of C&H hilarity.
the4thpip
11-13-2005, 04:59 AM
When CALVIN & HOBBES was nearing its end, a lot of readers were suggesting a "final strip" much like this- Calvin grows up and leaves Hobbes behind.

I think Watterson had the right idea. Leave Calvin the eternal child and Hobbes his eternal playmate.
I agree.
And so does my giant hound, Latimore.
Cam63
11-13-2005, 05:27 AM
That is depressing.

I stopped reading the comics page after Calvin and Hobbes and The Far Side ended.

I've been meaning to check out the new Bloom County sequel (I forget the name). Has anyone read it?

We still have Fred Basset and Cathy....

....Oh.
Charles RB
11-13-2005, 10:20 AM
I want Anthony to end up happy w/ Elizabeth! She needs to be there for him when his marriage breaks up :(

Yeah, I heard about that plot and had a look at some of the strips. And MY GOD, Anthony is one big whiny prat.
Tommy
11-13-2005, 10:42 AM
there was a story I heard a few years back that Dreamworks wanted to make a movie of Calvin and Hobbes. I'm heavily paraphrasing:

So Watterson and Spielberg met. Spielberg offers a blank check to Watterson to make the movie.

Watterson refuses.

Spielberg asks "why?"

"Because then everyone's own idea of the comic would permanently change and what their voices sounded like."



it's also apparently the same reason no toys were ever made, because the question became which Hobbes do you make as a stuffed toy???
Yeah. He abhorred the idea of licensing the characters. It took years for him to finally allow them on tee-shirts and that was only because he wanted to put a stop to the underground, inappropriate tee-shirts that had been circulating.
Red Berens
11-13-2005, 12:17 PM
It's like when Peanuts stopped. Everybody wanted an ending like Charlie finally talking to the little red haired girl, but I think it's better when they don't have an ending.
Venoman
11-13-2005, 12:37 PM
depressing endings are great... happy endings are boring an typical
Tadhg
11-13-2005, 12:42 PM
depressing endings are great... happy endings are boring an typical


Spoken like a typical teenager. Both endings have their place.
Tadhg
11-13-2005, 12:59 PM
I know the one final strip that will leave me depressed is if For Better Or For Worse ends.

Johnston plans to end the strip in 2007
JeffreyWKramer
11-13-2005, 01:03 PM
The Complete Calvin and Hobbes is out in stores.

I bought it on day one and can't recommend it enough. 23lbs of C&H hilarity.

I think I'll be receiving this for Xmas this year. I used to have all the strips in paperback, but I gave those to my son awhile back. Definite goodness!
Venoman
11-13-2005, 01:28 PM
Spoken like a typical teenager. Both endings have their place.
Spoken by a typical balding middle aged man... seriously, GO TO HELL.. just because i find depressing endings more entertaining dosnt mean you can generalise me as some typical depressing teenager who whines about how shit is life is all the time and thinks life is pointless...
JeffreyWKramer
11-13-2005, 01:45 PM
Spoken by a typical balding middle aged man... seriously, GO TO HELL.. just because i find depressing endings more entertaining dosnt mean you can generalise me as some typical depressing teenager who whines about how shit is life is all the time and thinks life is pointless...

Yeah, and just because you use a picture of an over-exposed, really dorky character as an avatar, and base your screen name on said character, that doesn't mean you're a complete tool, either.

It just strongly suggests that conclusion.
Michael P
11-13-2005, 01:50 PM
Yeah, and just because you use a picture of an over-exposed, really dorky character as an avatar, and bases your screen name on said character, that doesn't mean you're a complete tool, either.

It just strongly suggests that conclusion.
Oh, now you've done it...

Oh, and Venom: Tadgh is like a week younger than me, and I just turned 24.
Deathstroke
11-13-2005, 06:27 PM
yeah. .

I agree.

and I'm tempted to write Lynn, since I HATE this cop that showed up.

I want Anthony to end up happy w/ Elizabeth! She needs to be there for him when his marriage breaks up :(

I'm hoping for that as well.
Deathstroke
11-13-2005, 06:28 PM
Yeah, I heard about that plot and had a look at some of the strips. And MY GOD, Anthony is one big whiny prat.

Hey cut the guy some slack, he's in a loveless marriage to a real bitch.
Deathstroke
11-13-2005, 06:29 PM
Johnston plans to end the strip in 2007

Dear gawd, now that's just great. Way to depress the hell out of me.
Charles RB
11-13-2005, 06:31 PM
Hey cut the guy some slack, he's in a loveless marriage to a real bitch.

But he's the one who married her! And stays married! And then starts making moves on his former girlfriend whilst still married! What's she even done that was so bitchy anyway?

Plus I hate him because he wailed "I HAVE NO HOME!!!!1", and it's impossible to take that bit seriously.
Gingold
11-13-2005, 06:45 PM
Johnston plans to end the strip in 2007

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOO!

Source?
Noah Johnson
11-13-2005, 07:06 PM
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOO!

Source?
http://www.toonopedia.com/forbettr.htm

Down at the bottom of that article. I've actually heard it a bunch of places.
Deathstroke
11-13-2005, 07:32 PM
http://www.toonopedia.com/forbettr.htm

Down at the bottom of that article. I've actually heard it a bunch of places.

That's just horrible confirmation.

Man, I even go to the website and read the monthly letters from each member of the family!
Spike-X
11-14-2005, 12:56 AM
Since you hate me, you probably didn't see that I have the actual last strip in the first post of mine above.
Shut up! I'm not talking to you!





I'll try to get that package out to you by the end of the week, before you get hit by a frickin' tornado or something.

Also, the strip didn't show up the first time I read the thread for some reason.
MacQuarrie
11-14-2005, 01:53 AM
(if Hobbes isn't real then HOW did Calvin get tied up all those times?)
And here we find the murder weapon that killed comics. Analyzing the internal logic of a comic strip kills the fun. You might as well ask why Paige is starting her freshman year for the 17th time in "Foxtrot".

Calvin got tied up all those times because he is a CARTOON CHARACTER and the author decided he should be tied up as part of the gag. Hobbes is as real or unreal as he needs to be for a given page.

If I could work my will, anybody who asks questions like this about CARTOON CHARACTERS would be permanently barred from ever reading comics again. This kind of literalist thinking is what inflicted the CRISIS on us. How can Wonder Woman be new to Man's World in 1987 and a founding member of the WWII JSA? Because she's a comic book character, that's how.
Venoman
11-14-2005, 03:35 AM
Yeah, and just because you use a picture of an over-exposed, really dorky character as an avatar, and base your screen name on said character, that doesn't mean you're a complete tool, either.

It just strongly suggests that conclusion.
i am so hurt and offended that you of all people in the world would think me a tool... what am i goin to do? Grow up you dick...your just like all the other stuck up comic book fans "look at me im so sophisticated i only read titles that no ones ever heard of..." listen buddy, i dont care if you dont like venom... i read comics for entertainment and venom entertains me as a character...
And Pullmann... i really dont care how old he is your all flaming idiots, all i wanted to do on this forum was talk about one of the few things i enjoy in life.. instead i get criticised my aload of old stuck up arrogant nerds, nothing wrong with nerds.. just your sort, the sort that prevents anyone else from enjoying comics, no wonder theyre so unpopular...
the4thpip
11-14-2005, 03:55 AM
http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Photos/040319/040319_tammy_faye_hmed_8a.hmedium.jpg
Can you feel the love in this room?
WhiteRose
11-14-2005, 07:32 AM
AAAAAAAAAAAAAH! It's My Highschool Japanese Teacher!

Killitkillitkillitkillitkillitkillitkillit!
Spackling Compound
11-14-2005, 07:36 AM
And here we find the murder weapon that killed comics. Analyzing the internal logic of a comic strip kills the fun. You might as well ask why Paige is starting her freshman year for the 17th time in "Foxtrot".

Calvin got tied up all those times because he is a CARTOON CHARACTER and the author decided he should be tied up as part of the gag. Hobbes is as real or unreal as he needs to be for a given page.

If I could work my will, anybody who asks questions like this about CARTOON CHARACTERS would be permanently barred from ever reading comics again. This kind of literalist thinking is what inflicted the CRISIS on us. How can Wonder Woman be new to Man's World in 1987 and a founding member of the WWII JSA? Because she's a comic book character, that's how.
Oh man...I hate to go to the slippery slope but you are "dead on".
I can imagine there being a "wrap up" of loose ends revealing Calvin's dad being a torturer and molester and he'd drug Calvin and while Calvin was being abused his mind would turn to fantasy and whimsy.
Cam63
11-14-2005, 07:48 AM
http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Photos/040319/040319_tammy_faye_hmed_8a.hmedium.jpg

Man, that is one offensive creature.
Tadhg
11-14-2005, 07:53 AM
Spoken by a typical balding middle aged man... seriously, GO TO HELL.. just because i find depressing endings more entertaining dosnt mean you can generalise me as some typical depressing teenager who whines about how shit is life is all the time and thinks life is pointless...

I used the word typical, to mirror your usage of it. The fact that you took such offense to it, means there's likely more than a smidgen of truth to it. I did not generalize you as "some typical depressing teenager who whines about how shit is life is all the time and thinks life is pointless." I said, that your response was typical of teenagers and it is. Teenagers generally are obsessed with angst, and you certainly seem to be.

Oh, and Venom: Tadgh is like a week younger than me, and I just turned 24.

Yeah, but I am balding.
Lubichev
11-14-2005, 08:21 AM
i am so hurt and offended that you of all people in the world would think me a tool... what am i goin to do? Grow up you dick...your just like all the other stuck up comic book fans "look at me im so sophisticated i only read titles that no ones ever heard of..." listen buddy, i dont care if you dont like venom... i read comics for entertainment and venom entertains me as a character...
And Pullmann... i really dont care how old he is your all flaming idiots, all i wanted to do on this forum was talk about one of the few things i enjoy in life.. instead i get criticised my aload of old stuck up arrogant nerds, nothing wrong with nerds.. just your sort, the sort that prevents anyone else from enjoying comics, no wonder theyre so unpopular...
Ouch. That hurts.
Lubichev
11-14-2005, 08:36 AM
And I was expecting a nice discussion about Calvin and Hobbes.
the4thpip
11-14-2005, 08:54 AM
And I was expecting a nice discussion about Calvin and Hobbes.
Maybe we should have a chat with out imaginary friends instead.
Converge
11-14-2005, 09:04 AM
i am so hurt and offended that you of all people in the world would think me a tool... what am i goin to do? Grow up you dick...your just like all the other stuck up comic book fans "look at me im so sophisticated i only read titles that no ones ever heard of..." listen buddy, i dont care if you dont like venom... i read comics for entertainment and venom entertains me as a character...
And Pullmann... i really dont care how old he is your all flaming idiots, all i wanted to do on this forum was talk about one of the few things i enjoy in life.. instead i get criticised my aload of old stuck up arrogant nerds, nothing wrong with nerds.. just your sort, the sort that prevents anyone else from enjoying comics, no wonder theyre so unpopular...

Isn't "sophisticated comic book enthusiast" an oxymoron?

They're funnybooks. They're pulp fiction. They're the literary equivalent of a made-for-TV B-movie. I mean some books like American Splendor, Maus, and Watchmen are great and can actually be treated like literature. But I those are by-far the exceptions.

When people like Kramer try to swing their "sophisticated comics enthusiast" dick it's almost sad. It's like a Legend od Zelda fan looking down their nose at a Mortal Kombat fan. Who really cares?
Charles RB
11-14-2005, 09:10 AM
I mean some books like American Splendor, Maus, and Watchmen are great and can actually be treated like literature. But I those are by-far the exceptions.

And Persopolis, In The Shadow Of No Towers, Alec, V For Vendetta, The Birthday Riots, Strangehaven, Jimmy Corrigan, The Tale Of One Bad Rat, Cerebus: High Society, Cerebus: Church & State, Cerebus: The Last Day, Palomar, The Adventures Of Luther Arkwright, Buddha, Phoenix, Adolf, Sandman, Berlin, Yossel, et al, et al, et al.
Converge
11-14-2005, 09:19 AM
And Persopolis, In The Shadow Of No Towers, Alec, V For Vendetta, The Birthday Riots, Strangehaven, Jimmy Corrigan, The Tale Of One Bad Rat, Cerebus: High Society, Cerebus: Church & State, Cerebus: The Last Day, Palomar, The Adventures Of Luther Arkwright, Buddha, Phoenix, Adolf, Sandman, Berlin, Yossel, et al, et al, et al.

Like I said... some obscure books that no-one has ever heard of. The exception to the rule and a mostly recent trend.
the4thpip
11-14-2005, 09:46 AM
Like I said... some obscure books that no-one has ever heard of. The exception to the rule and a mostly recent trend.
Have you ever been to a French comic book store?
Charles RB
11-14-2005, 09:51 AM
Like I said... some obscure books that no-one has ever heard of.

Obscure books nobody's ever heard off. Pbbt. Sure they are.

Dude, you just said frigging Persopolis is obscure and unheard of.
Spackling Compound
11-14-2005, 10:09 AM
Obscure books nobody's ever heard off. Pbbt. Sure they are.

Dude, you just said frigging Persopolis is obscure and unheard of.
Phht..."V for Vendetta"? Helloooo? Who's heard of that? It's not like someone will be like all "oooh V for Vendetta let's make a movie". Geez.
Charles RB
11-14-2005, 10:18 AM
I'm trying to pretend they haven't made a movie.
Dreadstar
11-14-2005, 10:27 AM
I'm trying to pretend they haven't made a movie.
I'm hoping the movie will be less boring.
Adam Crocker
11-14-2005, 10:52 AM
Like I said... some obscure books that no-one has ever heard of. The exception to the rule and a mostly recent trend.

So Jimmy Corrigan is an obscure and unheard of book, with all the mainstream press attention it got when the collected edition hit bookstores? (Which is probably some of the most any comic had seen in years.) Or Sandman, which won a World Fantasy Award in 1991 and earned a fairly strong readership outside of the existent comic-book readership?

Anyways your statement is off the mark. Even if superheroes sell the lion's share in the comic market there are people who take a serious enough interest in comics that they appreciate their history as well the elements that go into it as an artform itself. And this applies not just to artier indie books, but classic superhero work such as Will Eisner's old Spirit strips, Jack Kirby's 60s Marvel work and Lee & Ditko Spiderman...or anything Alex Toth did, which was all pulp. Yet fans will pour over and analyze their work endlessly for the crucial roles they played in the development of American comicbook art. Another example, Warren Ellis' BAD SIGNAL e-mails from time to time have him commenting on scripting comics and panel layouts like he's broken down and worked out the mechanics that go into a comics page. (Granted it's his job and as a writer necessary to be better at his job, but still...he'd have to a genuine interest in the medium itself to do this sort of thing.)

This applies for music geeks and film buffs too. Most people who buy CDs or go to see movies are just there for the entertainment, and then there's this smaller contingent that take that appreciation to a different level because of their enthusiasm for these media.
Converge
11-14-2005, 12:16 PM
All I'm saying is insulting someone because they like Venom is beyond retarded. Liking indy comics doesn't make you any better than someone who likes Venom. Self-righteous comic book fans are the worst.
JeffreyWKramer
11-14-2005, 02:29 PM
All I'm saying is insulting someone because they like Venom is beyond retarded. Liking indy comics doesn't make you any better than someone who likes Venom. Self-righteous comic book fans are the worst.

A) I'm not a huge indy comic fan. I like plenty of indy books, but if you bother looking at my sig, you would notice that I also recommend Marvel and DC books. Maybe you're mistaking me for Brandon or someone like that?

B) Venom is a stupid character that signifies much of what was worst in comics during a particularly crappy period in comics history. Deal with it.

C) I responded to venomfanboy or whatever his name is only when he was being a dick to other people. Were he not doing so, I would have probably just ignored him, rather than commenting on the likely correlation between his tastes and his general cluelessness.
Spackling Compound
11-14-2005, 02:31 PM
All I'm saying is insulting someone because they like Venom is beyond retarded. Liking indy comics doesn't make you any better than someone who likes Venom. Self-righteous comic book fans are the worst.
Actually, I think the ruling is "condescending asses" are worse.
Adam Crocker
11-14-2005, 02:36 PM
All I'm saying is insulting someone because they like Venom is beyond retarded. Liking indy comics doesn't make you any better than someone who likes Venom. Self-righteous comic book fans are the worst.

Your point went beyond merely objecting to other people's behaviour to claiming that sophistication in the appreciation of comics is contradictory. And I disagreed with your arguments.
Azrael52
11-14-2005, 02:50 PM
Also The Last Garfield:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v380/SoulOnIce/lastgarfield.jpg

I think that's the best Garfield I've ever seen. I was laughing so hard that I was crying and the UPS driver showed up and I had to explain myself.
JeffreyWKramer
11-14-2005, 02:52 PM
I think that's the best Garfield I've ever seen. I was laughing so hard that I was crying and the UPS driver showed up and I had to explain myself.

It's definitely the funniest Garfield strip I can remember ever having seen.
hangmanjury
11-14-2005, 08:16 PM
A) I'm not a huge indy comic fan. I like plenty of indy books, but if you bother looking at my sig, you would notice that I also recommend Marvel and DC books. Maybe you're mistaking me for Brandon or someone like that?

B) Venom is a stupid character that signifies much of what was worst in comics during a particularly crappy period in comics history. Deal with it.

C) I responded to venomfanboy or whatever his name is only when he was being a dick to other people. Were he not doing so, I would have probably just ignored him, rather than commenting on the likely correlation between his tastes and his general cluelessness.
Hey Jeff, I usually enjoy your comments on these boards, especially when we're talking about Alan Moore stuff, but you've seemed angry lately and quicker to snap - I didn't really think the guy who called Venomfanboy a teenager meant to insult him. Anything wrong?
stealthwise
11-15-2005, 07:05 PM
And here we find the murder weapon that killed comics. Analyzing the internal logic of a comic strip kills the fun. You might as well ask why Paige is starting her freshman year for the 17th time in "Foxtrot".

Calvin got tied up all those times because he is a CARTOON CHARACTER and the author decided he should be tied up as part of the gag. Hobbes is as real or unreal as he needs to be for a given page.

If I could work my will, anybody who asks questions like this about CARTOON CHARACTERS would be permanently barred from ever reading comics again. This kind of literalist thinking is what inflicted the CRISIS on us. How can Wonder Woman be new to Man's World in 1987 and a founding member of the WWII JSA? Because she's a comic book character, that's how.

I'm an English major, it's what I do. :)

I like your statement about Hobbes being as real and unreal as he needs to be, but I wanted to point out that Hobbes can't be read as PURELY a figment of Calvin's imagination. The "last strip" that started this thread was far worse than what I said, given the implicit suggestion it makes about the nature of the two characters' relationship.

I think that analyzing cartoon characters and taking "funny books" seriously, from time to time... in moderation... can be done without completely ruining everything.
titanfan
11-15-2005, 07:52 PM
I just stopped laughing after 5 minutes of reading the "last Garfield". OMG totally hilarious, and totally how the strip should have ended!
PatrickG
11-15-2005, 08:16 PM
Wait.

Garfield REALLY ended?
the4thpip
11-16-2005, 03:28 AM
Wait.

Garfield REALLY ended?
Like the original Volkswagen Beetle, it is now being produced in Mexico:

http://images.ucomics.com/comics/gh/2005/gh051112.gif

Disproving David Letterman's claim that everything is funnier in Spanish. :rolleyes:
Charles RB
11-16-2005, 06:42 AM
Wait.

Garfield REALLY ended?

Yep. In, it ended years ago and the papers have just been rerunning the same strips over and over. Luckily, no-one's noticed yet.
west3man
11-16-2005, 09:27 AM
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c296/sotink/CH.jpg
Awww...

I actually like it, in a Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon kind of way.
west3man
11-16-2005, 09:30 AM
Hobbes is Calvin's imaginary friend.

That's the comic's whole premise.
Dunno how much this debate has gone on, but I think Waterson has deliberately created situations that PROVE and situations that DISprove Hobbes's 'existence.'

I think it's meant to be unsolvable.
west3man
11-16-2005, 09:37 AM
Hmm. Good thread, except for the condescending parts that resulted in the usual.
MacQuarrie
11-16-2005, 02:16 PM
Dunno how much this debate has gone on, but I think Waterson has deliberately created situations that PROVE and situations that DISprove Hobbes's 'existence.'

I think it's meant to be unsolvable.
There was an interesting interview with Watterson in a magazine called HONK! back in the late '80s, where he said he really didn't want people to think about how real Hobbes was or wasn't. I'll have to see if I can scare it up.

Ah. Here it is. (http://ignatz.brinkster.net/chonk.html)

Christie: You manage a lot of complex shifts between fantasy and reality; between Hobbes as a stuffed tiger and a real-life playmate. He's frequently involved in what is apparently the real world, doing real things together with Calvin that he couldn't possibly be doing. Do you think that kind of thing out in advance or does it just come to you when the gag calls for it?

Watterson: Could you name something specifically? I'm not sure I follow.

Christie: Well, when they're driving down the mountain in their wagon and flying all over the place. You think, after reading the first few strips, that you've got the idea; that this is a stuffed tiger and when he and Calvin are alone he becomes real--to Calvin--but then, obviously, when they're doing things like that in the real world, he has to be more than fantasy.

Watterson: Yeah, it's a strange metamorphosis. I hate to subject it to too much analysis, but one thing I have fun with is the rarity of things being shown from an adult's perspective. When Hobbes is a stuffed toy in one panel and alive in the next, I'm juxtaposing the "grown-up" version of reality with Calvin's version, and inviting the reader to decide which is truer. Most of the time, the strip is drawn simply from Calvin's perspective, and Hobbes is as real as anyone. So when Calvin is careening down the hillside, I don't feel compelled to insert reminders that Hobbes is a stuffed toy. I try to get the reader completely swept up into Calvin's world by ignoring adult perspective. Hobbes, therefore, isn't just a cute gimmick. I'm not making the strip revolve around the transformation. The viewpoint of the strip fluctuates, and this allows Hobbes to be a "real" character.

Christie: It has a lunatic internal consistency.

Watterson: Yeah, I guess that's the best way of putting it.
west3man
11-16-2005, 02:18 PM
There was an interesting interview with Watterson in a magazine called HONK! back in the late '80s, where he said he really didn't want people to think about how real Hobbes was or wasn't. I'll have to see if I can scare it up.

Ah. Here it is. (http://ignatz.brinkster.net/chonk.html)
Ooh. I haven't read many of his words, if any. Thanks!
west3man
11-16-2005, 02:20 PM
"lunatic internal consistency"?! That's hilarious!! (and ballsy)
Joe no Sleep
11-16-2005, 02:51 PM
There was an interesting interview with Watterson in a magazine called HONK! back in the late '80s, where he said he really didn't want people to think about how real Hobbes was or wasn't. I'll have to see if I can scare it up.

Ah. Here it is. (http://ignatz.brinkster.net/chonk.html)

I like when he called U.S. Acres an "abomination" and "insult to intelligence". This is ironic, because I've read some of it and found it funnier than a lot of other strips. Especially the C&H strips published in "There's Treasure Everywhere" which I found really boring - just Calvin talking and talking.
Gail Simone
11-16-2005, 03:18 PM
Wow, this thread got unnecessarily nasty!

Gail
Paul McEnery
11-16-2005, 03:25 PM
It's definitely the funniest Garfield strip I can remember ever having seen.
Nah.

There's one Garfield line from way back, when it was still readable.

"Don't play with your food until you've eaten all your other toys."

Words to live by.

Especially for you! :D
onizuka
11-17-2005, 03:16 AM
hehe, this was an interesting thread. a couple of times i had to look up and remind myself what the heck everyone was meant to be talking about.

anyhoo, calvin and hobbes are cool. i've also been thinking of picking up that complete collection, and after a little searching i'd recommend definately buying over the net. there are plenty of places that are much cheaper than just buying it retail.