Comic sans: love it or hate it?

[tolworthy]

I see that comic sans is in the news again. Given its role in comics (or fonts like it), it seems an appropriate topic for a thread.

I love comic sans. Yet most people distrust things written in that font. Why? Presumably it's circular hatred: the popular anger against comic sans is so strong that using the font may indicate you are not well informed.

However, using it may also indicate that:
1. you are very young
or 2. you have more important things to do than follow the crowd
or 3. you respect classic comics as high art
and 4. you value legibility and are neither verbose nor pompous
Those are the kind of people I admire.

For me the classic example of comic sans is the announcement of the Higgs Bosun. The author is saying "I do stuff that matters. REALLY matters. You think I care about your font wars? You sad people."

OK, having insulted 9/10 of people on the board, here's your chance to outvote me.

[Romero]

My old boss used Comic Sans all the time. I don't think I knew what it was before I worked for her. Now I have been promoted to her job after she retired. I am thinking of using it, just to mess with the other people here...

Admittedly, it does leave a bad taste in my mouth due to her.

[DebkoX]

Love it, don't even understand the immature hating ;P

[Cei-U!]

Where's the "Who gives a fuck?" option?

Cei-U!
I summon the oversight!

[Dizzy D]

Where's the "Who gives a fuck?" option?

Cei-U!
I summon the oversight!

There is the "generally neutral". Though it should be more a "I'm not able to describe how much I don't care"-option.

[Slam_Bradley]

I'm generally in the "Who gives a shit" camp. On the other hand I can certainly see the poll that indicates that people would be less trusting of stuff in Comic Sans. It makes document look like it was put together by a seven year old girl doing a prospectus for her lemonade stand.

[DebkoX]

Where's the "Who gives a fuck?" option?

Cei-U!
I summon the oversight!

Agreed! I think its a silly debate.

[Cei-U!]

Just to be clear, the snark in my earlier post was aimed at the debate, not at tolworthy.

Cei-U!
I summon the disclaimer!

[dan bailey]

Personally, I'm waiting for Crisis in Infinite Fonts: Verdana vs. Arial, preferably featuring a guest appearance by Calibri.

[MWGallaher]

Comic Sans is, to me, like articles about comics that use "Biff! Pow! Bam!" in the headline--the brainchild of someone only marginally informed about the field of comics. Despite its name, the font (at least in its basic installation--maybe there are extensions available out there) doesn't have a sans serif capital I, making it unsuitable for adhering to one of the most fundamental American comics lettering conventions (that is, using I-with-a serif only for the word "I", using capital-I-without-a-serif everywhere else).
I'm not a great designer myself, but I've seen many a naive user with absolutely zero design sense gravitate instinctively toward this font, so it's been associated with lots of very poorly-designed graphics, further tarnishing its reputation. It's still not as bad as Old English font used in all-caps, of course, but it definitely makes me cringe a little.

[Jolly Mon]

I couldn't think what the font looked like, so I took a look. Here it is. After that intensive study, I've decided I couldn't possibly care less either.

But just to be clear, we're talking about it at all because it's called "comic" and might look kinda like comic book lettering? It sure is a slow day around here....

Why don't we start another banana/food debate just to liven things up? C'mon Dan, you know you have more banana pictures to post.

[dr chimp]

"Sadly, Comic Sans — notable for its appearance in the Higgs Boson announcement — seems to be the weakest font."

the god font?

[dan bailey]

Why don't we start another banana/food debate just to liven things up? C'mon Dan, you know you have more banana pictures to post.

You rang?

[Aaron King]

3. you respect classic comics as high art

This is the only part of your argument I disagree with. I think that most people that use Comic Sans don't really know anything about comics, and I don't think the font really looks like comic book lettering at all. I would never read a use of Comic Sans as a way to exclaim a love for classic comics as art or entertainment.

[Gumdrop Man]

I like it. People should use it more often.