The Comics Curmudgeon

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Metapost: Broadening my horizons

First, there was the newspaper. It was and is my preferred method of reading the comics. Despite the fact that I am a big computer nerd and spend most of my day on the Internet, and the fact that on-screen comics are often larger and more legible, I really prefer reading the comics on newsprint for sentimental reasons.

Then, just over a year ago, came the Baltimore Sun’s great comics purge. In order to maintain my Mary Worth fix, I set up a custom comics page on the Houston Chronicle’s Web site with the purge victims and a few extra soap operas for spice.

Now, however, I’m feeling a little bored with my repertoire of daily strips. I mean, how many times can I make fun of the big-headed freaks in the Family Circus? Well, honestly, I could do it every day … and, in my head, I do do it every day … but surely you’d be bored with it eventually.

Thus, I’m taking suggestions on additions to my reading list. Here are the rules:

The comics listed under “Pick a Comic” in the left-hand nav bar are the ones I already read every day, so don’t bother naming one of them. The only exception is the Wizard of Id, which I read once when I was in New York City and felt the need to comment on. But please, don’t make me read the Wizard of Id every day. I’m begging you.
The strips you suggest should appear on the Houston Chronicle comics site. Since I already have a custom page set up there, it’d be easy enough to add any of these strips to the list. But the last thing I need is to feel obligated to zip back and forth between various comics Web sites.

Anyway, there are a lot of strips there, so do chime in with your suggestions, and please provide some rationale on why it’d be good for me. Maybe the strip would make good fodder for mockery; maybe I would actually enjoy it non-ironically; maybe those two categories are not mutually exclusive.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 18, 2006 at 10:33 pm and is filed under metaposts. |

234 responses to “Metapost: Broadening my horizons”

Amber
January 18th, 2006 at 10:40 pm [Reply]

“In my head”? No, actually that would be out loud. Not that I’m complaining…
left of the pyle
January 18th, 2006 at 10:45 pm [Reply]

What switching back and forth? Here’s what you do… you use a tabbed browser, bookmark individual comics at whatever site you want (preferably where ever they’re updated earliest in the evening).

Then you keep all the bookmarks in a single group so that when you click on it, your browser opens all your comics in various tabs like magic.

For me, FBOFW, A3G, Mark Trail, RMMD, Funky Winkerbean (my suggestion, btw), Get Fuzzy, Gil Thorp, and the Comics Curmudgeon.
selfee
January 18th, 2006 at 10:48 pm [Reply]

I nominate the ever-popular Jumble!

It fits the bill for being both mockable and non-ironic fun. The visual clues and puns in the comic part are goofy, and the puzzle can be a little bit challenging, if you try to solve it without looking at the clue first.
Jim C.
January 18th, 2006 at 10:49 pm [Reply]

The Dinette Set.

I can’t really explain it. It’s either the most self-loathing creation ever, or it’s a sledgehammer satire of self-absorbed Red State Americans.

I’ve been reading it for years, and I’m still not sure if I really like it.

But like a really gory car crash, or the movie “Grease 2,” I just can’t turn away.
conniption_fitz
January 18th, 2006 at 10:54 pm [Reply]

“flo & friends”…an old lady runs a radio show advising other old ladies while she raises her mohawked granddaughter and plays cards with her other old lady friends.

good for a mock-out every now and then.

“heart of the city”…not really great, not horrible…just bizarre. a week-long “little house on the prairie” christmas spoof that taught the main character the true meaning of christmas. this week, there was a storyline following an 8-year old boy in his quest to meet his idol, chris matthews, who was taping a show in philadelphia. you may actually enjoy this one at times.
karamazov
January 18th, 2006 at 10:55 pm [Reply]

WIZARD OF ID!
SUPERDUDE
January 18th, 2006 at 11:03 pm [Reply]

I would suggest Crankshaft, which reminds me a lot of FBOFW for some odd reason.
Robin in Ohio
January 18th, 2006 at 11:16 pm [Reply]

I usually enjoy reading “Adam @ Home”. It can be found at http://www.ucomics.com
Zorba's Little Brother
January 18th, 2006 at 11:20 pm [Reply]

Strips that I enjoy non-ironically on the Chron website (not already listed on your sidebar):

Mr. Boffo
Preteena
Tank McNamara
Bizarro
Mutts
Rhymes With Orange
Six Chix

Fodder for mockery:
Mallard Fillmore

–
Nick Theodorakis
L.G.
January 18th, 2006 at 11:30 pm [Reply]

Rhymes With Orange: When it’s good it’s very very good. Also lots of cat humor.
EricW
January 18th, 2006 at 11:30 pm [Reply]

Why not Popeye? I believe it’s in perpetual reruns of continuity era strips after the last new artist decided to go a little TOO contemporary (you should look it up; that’s almost as good a story as what made it to the page), but hey, it’s one of those strips that just doesn’t seem to go away.

For some reason, I almost thought of Heart of The City, because in his tenth anniversary collection, Bill Watterson was thinking about how different it would be to have a strip from a little girl point of view. To which I reply “Be careful what you wish for…”, because I doubt Bill W had the search for Hardball in mind…

Oh, The Better Half might be worth a peek if you want to see what the Lockhorns would look like if counselling worked for them.
Howard Roark
January 18th, 2006 at 11:40 pm [Reply]

I recommend a new comic called “Unfit.” It features an aptronymic chicken.
J.
January 19th, 2006 at 12:08 am [Reply]

Mostly, I’m looking at this list and saying “Good lord, (x) is still somehow lingering on?”
where (x) = Funky Winkerbean, Piranha Club, Heathcliff, Marvin, etc.

Preteena’s pretty good, Between Friends is really quite awful, and The Other Coast, written by my former local political cartoonist is patchily amusing if you live in BC (or, presumably, Seattle)
ikkt!
January 19th, 2006 at 12:13 am [Reply]

Not on the sidebar or mentioned above but worth considering –

9 Chickweed Lane – obviously has rather a following around here; also often graphically innovative. I also like the occasional random forays into surreality.

La Cucaracha – introduced in the print Chron at the same time as Boondocks; both better than initially expected. It’s got a lot of mediocre days but some good hits now and then.

Bookmarked set of tabs works great for Sundays – washingtonpost.com has links to most of the strips that for whatever reason chron doesn’t have online on Sundays.

(wow, on Firefox 1.0.7 the preview screen renders with absolutely no left margin)
AJ
January 19th, 2006 at 12:20 am [Reply]

Long time reader, first time poster.

Two comics that I really enjoy most of the time are Bizarro and Sherman’s Lagoon. On the times when I don’t enjoy them, they’ll provide some good fodder for mockery.

Another comic not available at Houston but which I really enjoy would be The Duplex. Take a look if you ever want to remember what life as a bachelor was like. And then be glad you’re married.
Uncle Lumpy
January 19th, 2006 at 12:20 am [Reply]

How about a classic from time to time? Li’l Abner, early Pogo, Nancy and Mr. Tweedy come to mind as daily material that was actually, y’know – GOOD ‘n’ stuff.

There’s also the “Classic Bad” genre: Our Boarding House (“Fap!”) The Jackson Twins! Winnie Winkle! Brenda Starr! Late, sad, paranoid Little Orphan Annie. Any Garfield ever.
Dactyl
January 19th, 2006 at 12:24 am [Reply]

Rhymes With Orange for non-ironic enjoyment. – I don’t think there’s another strip like it. It’s one of the few that makes me laugh out loud. Not every day, but pretty darn often.
Uncle Lumpy
January 19th, 2006 at 12:29 am [Reply]

Mandrake the Magician!
Brendan
January 19th, 2006 at 12:38 am [Reply]

My favorite comic is Monty – there are troughs occasionally but I think it is often genuinely hilarious.

I won’t offer a rationale except to say that my tastes run to things like Calvin and Hobbes, Get Fuzzy and (back when it was worth reading) Dilbert.

Anyway, recommended.
BassoGap
January 19th, 2006 at 12:39 am [Reply]

Frazz.

Of course, it’s funny, witty, and has a ton of inside jokes and references for cycling and triathlons. It’s also got one of the best child characters in the comics world, Caulfield.

True, not much to make fun of, but it’s well written and deserves the acclaim it gets.

Watch…tomorrow’s will suck. ;-)
kleenexwoman
January 19th, 2006 at 12:51 am [Reply]

I can’t believe there is actually an Archie comic.

“Heart of the City” is either written by a gay man or a very nerdy man, I find it hard to tell. Or maybe he’s just very, very good at portraying both super-flamboyant little girls and super-nerdy little boys, in which case he’s a frickin’ genius.

“Sylvia” disturbs me. DO THAT ONE PLZ.
Shem
January 19th, 2006 at 12:52 am [Reply]

Good strips: Ballard Street, Fast Track, Safe Havens, Heart of the City, Sherman’s Lagoon, Rhymes with Orange, Spot the Frog.

Stupid and mockable strips: Mallard Fillmore, Luann.

Not as stupid, but still mockable: Archie.

Just vaguely depressing: Six Chix.
VB
January 19th, 2006 at 1:01 am [Reply]

Please, please do Mallard Fillmore just because of how entertaining it would be to see you mercilessly rip into it.

And I strongly recommend La Cucaracha; like a latino Boondocks, but I think it’s more subversive and less cutesily child-focused.
Jedzz
January 19th, 2006 at 1:27 am [Reply]

I agree that 9 Chickweed Lane should be in your repertoire. And maybe even Pibgorn also, even though it’s not on the Chronicle site (it’s available on Comics.com)

I’d also suggest Slylock Fox, for no reason in particular.
dahlian
January 19th, 2006 at 1:32 am [Reply]

For the love of all that is holy I would like some assistance in trying to understand how it is that the Tumbleweeds still manages to be a syndicated comic strip. Is there something I’m not getting? Are the day-in day-out seemingly racist stereotypes of Native American some grand ironic joke that everyone gets but me? Every time I read it it leaves me completely and utterly dumbfounded.
Sharkbait
January 19th, 2006 at 1:42 am [Reply]

My guilty pleasure from the Houston Chronicle site is Archie. It’s one of the few strips that makes me chuckle more often than not, possibly because the humor is character based, and I have known these characters for decades. Jughead’s hat is the only jarring anachronism: I found out at my daughter’s last parent-teacher conference that Ms. Grundy is alive and well. In the strip they actually give her some good lines.

I appreciate having some other strips on the Chron page to look forward to the past few months, while my favorite soap strips have degenerated into comic purgatory, with lame plots involving totally unsympathetic secondary characters. Even seeing Mark Trail deck a hillbilly brought me no pleasure. I couldn’t help but think about the creeps in previous and far more interesting storylines that he should have slugged, but didn’t.
Kaliflower
January 19th, 2006 at 1:49 am [Reply]

Funky Winkerbean and Crankshaft seem like good bets. Occasionally amusing but quite rife for mockery, they’ll serve quite nicely.

I’m still unsure how I feel about 9 Chickweed Lane, especially the entire weeks where it’s simply some dance poses.

I would like to especially recommend Spot the Frog, non-ironically. I very much enjoy it, though, it may take some time to get into the rhythm of it.

What’s so unfortunate here is that chron.com doesn’t have the option of Arlo & Janis. Terribly drawn, occasionally amusing, but more often so endlessly opaque as to deserve some sort of mockery.
Jewish Guy
January 19th, 2006 at 2:48 am [Reply]

While it is terrific that you are looking to expand your horizons, I’d like to take this opportunity to implore you to consider spending more time with the existing list – do you realize it has been over two years since Doonsbury has been used? WoW! And Get Fuzzy – poor Bucky only gets in your blog on average once every two to six months – save a little blip last Febuary!
Ferd Berfel
January 19th, 2006 at 3:39 am [Reply]

‘Sylvia’ is a good bet for more mockery fodder. It’s a strip about a bitter, old, man-hating shrew who smokes in the bath tub while recycling kvetches about all and sundry. Think Sally Forth in 15 years after Ted has gender reassignment surgery and leaves her to pursue a more fufilling career in local dinner theatre.

I believe it’s written by a bitter, old, man-hating shrew who smokes in the bathtub too.

By the way, I believe I’ve finally solved the mystery of ‘Gil Thorp’…

… it’s inked by the Lighthouse for the Blind.
Kathy
January 19th, 2006 at 3:47 am [Reply]

Yay Rhymes w/ Orange and Bizarro (just another vote cast)!
Other than that, I don’t think there’s enough Prince Valiant in the blog; there’s so much fodder for mockery being missed.
dahlian
January 19th, 2006 at 4:33 am [Reply]

And since because of this I’ve been reading a lot of comics I’ve never even heard of before (every single Houston Chronicle one to be exact), I would just like to point out that today’s Red and Rover took an absolute cheap shot at Nancy of all comics. Unfortunately I have no idea if this is a one time dig or a recurring trend. But come on, I understand going after Cathy as we’ve all wanted to at one time or another. However, the day that you have to take pot shots at Nancy to fill a strip is the day you should put your pen down altogether.
Len
January 19th, 2006 at 5:32 am [Reply]

Humble Stumble has Dad growing a winter beard (cheaper than buying a scarf!). Of interest to me, Josh, and other readers with fuzzy faces.

http://www.comics.com/comics/humblestumble/archive/humblestumble-20060118.html

And today’s Dennis the Menace shows Margaret with a hairstyle that makes her mistakeable for Little Orphan Annie.
Len
January 19th, 2006 at 5:39 am [Reply]

Suggesting Ink Pen as a strip Josh should watch. Below they introduce the sidekick group, Kid Gloves. (Is this how Teen Titans got started?)

http://www.ucomics.com/inkpen/2006/01/18/
Len
January 19th, 2006 at 5:43 am [Reply]

And here, Ink Pen razzes on Cathy…

http://www.ucomics.com/inkpen/2006/01/16/
Natural Medicine (of Humor) Man
January 19th, 2006 at 6:08 am [Reply]

I always loved “Archie” comics…the teen sexual tension is always fun.

A quick poll reveals this: rather than add additional strips, more Gil Thorp, Hi and Lois, and For Better or Worse.
RichM
January 19th, 2006 at 6:35 am [Reply]

I am also a Dinette Set hater, but it is so self-mocking, what would Josh be able to do with it? I mean once you’ve ragged on how their eyeglasses make them look like snails?

Six Chix has its moments, rarely. It is clear that some of the artists responsible are not as strong as others. The thing I can’t figure out is how each one of the Chix can make a living producing a single panel once a week for syndication.

I loved Funky Winkerbean back when it was teasing us with the one character who might be blown up by an Afghan land mine, maybe… Now, not so much.
Uncle JC
January 19th, 2006 at 6:44 am [Reply]

The “Fusco Brothers” for the love of God! The “Fusco Brothers!’
blue indian
January 19th, 2006 at 6:59 am [Reply]

non sequitor would make for some high brow humorous discussion.. Damn Jack Daniels.. you drink enough and you do worry if the pizzeria is gonna close down in Funky Wink land… my .02 for new…
blue indian
January 19th, 2006 at 7:01 am [Reply]

sorry didnt read the list, didn’t realize non sequitor was already on there.. all right go Spot the Frog!!!
Firegoat
January 19th, 2006 at 7:36 am [Reply]

More votes for Sylvia, Bizarro and Fusco Brothers!
Ianscot
January 19th, 2006 at 7:37 am [Reply]

“Comictastic” is a handy Mac program that lets you aim its client at a given URL once, after which it will fetch you comics from any number of sites, automagically finding graphics with the correct aspect ratio and so on. Doesn’t work for absolutely everything, but it’s handy and breaks the umbilical to any particular site.

The software
http://www.spiny.com/comictastic/

Discussion forum:
http://spiny.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=1&sid=370841518a716b70131d1c19beaa388f
cisko
January 19th, 2006 at 8:09 am [Reply]

9 Chickweed Lane
Rose is Rose (like the art, anyway)
Funky Winkerbean
JB
January 19th, 2006 at 8:32 am [Reply]

Red meat is cool as is Diesel Sweeties, but I don’t know if they’re mainstream enough for the Curmudgeon…
micedwhale
January 19th, 2006 at 8:43 am [Reply]

I am trying not to get busted by my boss so I did not check the Chronicle or really the list on the right hand side. But my choices would be The Quigmans, Speed Bump, Monty, Strange Brew, Brewster Rocket, Clear Blue Water and the bizzare Ballard Street, as far as mockery Jane’s World,Prickly City in all its poorly drawn madness, and I am on the fence with Bob The Squirrel. Busted gotta go.
luluchappel
January 19th, 2006 at 8:48 am [Reply]

Funky Winkerbean for sure, although I wonder if commenting on its continuing un-funniness would grow very old after awhile. But I get tired of reading it so I’d be grateful if you’d start to read it! 9CL is also worthy, as is Rhymes With Orange. I’d love to see a daily ripping of Mallard Fillmore.
baguioboy
January 19th, 2006 at 8:50 am [Reply]

I don’t get to read it much, but Sherman’s Lagoon is well drawn and funny enough that I look forward to it, even if I don’t laugh out loud.
Sheila
January 19th, 2006 at 8:50 am [Reply]

I adore the Piranha Club and Sylvia… but since they’re GOOD, they’re no fun for your purposes — you need comics to MOCK! So I nominate Pluggers. Please, please, please do Pluggers!
Rifleman
January 19th, 2006 at 8:58 am [Reply]

You really should be reading 9CL, Pibgorn and Liberty medows, just for the perv factor. They are all on the Washington Post web site (oh, like its hard to click a few keys!)

Also, to backup BassoGap #20, you should check out Frazz, IMHO the best new comic out there.

http://www.comics.com/comics/frazz/
Bill
January 19th, 2006 at 8:58 am [Reply]

I second (at least) Jim C’s recommendation of The Dinette Set. I’m not sure about how the satire is necessarily aimed at “Red State” Americans, but certainly at middle-aged Americans. I checked that it is clickable on the Houston Chronicle’s web site. Too bad the legibility is just as poor there as in my newspaper.
Wendy
January 19th, 2006 at 9:04 am [Reply]

I nominate They’ll Get You Any Time, based on this truly horrifying 1/17 strip.

I also second Archie.

And I can’t believe you read Marmaduke and not Heathcliff. How else can you fully understand the nuances of the classic Unfunny Pets In A Single Panel genre?
JG
January 19th, 2006 at 9:07 am [Reply]

Cleats. It’s about soccer-playing kids.
Bigfoot
January 19th, 2006 at 9:10 am [Reply]

Baldo. Sometimes actually funny, but often stirs up the groans instead.

Thanks also to ikkt! for bringing my attention to La Cucaracha. Damn good stuff!
Wordmama
January 19th, 2006 at 9:31 am [Reply]

Non Sequitur has always irritated the crap out of me, mainly because of the unrelenting nasty-old-codger brand cynicism of the strip; his Christmas strips make the Grinch look like a pie-eyed optimist. And 9 Chickweed Lane (and its bizarre offspring Pibgorn) are worth the occasional head-scratching “huh?” when viewed first thing in the morning.

On the non-ironical side, Liberty Meadows (not on this list) has some of the best drawing I’ve seen in a very long time and makes me laugh out loud almost as often as Get Fuzzy. Worth a look.
jem
January 19th, 2006 at 9:35 am [Reply]

This doesn’t fit your requirement of being in the Chronicle but my choice is Clear Blue Water.

http://www.ucomics.com/clearbluewater/

It’s the life of an ethnically mixed family with five children including an autistic son and infant twins. It’s poorly drawn (look at their noses!), the parents are rude to one another and some sort of androgynous super hero lives with them or visits often.

It has never made me laugh and some days it just makes my head hurt. And yet I keep on reading it.
golfwidow
January 19th, 2006 at 9:40 am [Reply]

The bad news is that Kevin & Kell is online only. The good news is that they have more than one RSS feed, so you can subscribe to it. The better news is that it’s got a hedgehog in college.
Daphne
January 19th, 2006 at 9:40 am [Reply]

Two that are on my every day read list… voting for 9 Chickweed Lane (talk about awesome cat humor) and Rhymes with Orange (more cat humor and genuinely funny). Gee, think I’m a cat owner? :)
Grandpas Dead
January 19th, 2006 at 9:56 am [Reply]

I agree with many of the posts, especially in terms of 9 Chickweed Lane and Funky Winkerbean (now that it’s a soap strip, it deserves its place of riducule next to MW, JP and 3G).

For sheer anachronism, Fred Basset.

But please, please ignore things like the Fusco Brothers and Cleats. Especially Cleats, which is a cloying strip written in The Woodlands (a suburb north of Houston, where I live and actually read the comics in the Chronicle via hard copy) in which every character is so soccer-addled, they bake frickin’ soccer cookies!!!! It’s the stupidest concept since the Yugo! And I like soccer!

[While on the topic of sports, the third panel of today's (DT)GT: "KO VT" WTF?]
Grandpas Dead
January 19th, 2006 at 9:57 am [Reply]

As I read that now, it looks like I’m saying I live in The Woodlands. Not true. I’m an Inner-Loop Houstonian.
Dave the Attorney
January 19th, 2006 at 9:59 am [Reply]

Can I go off-topic for a moment and point out that today’s Arlo and Janis is just plain old dirty?

http://news.yahoo.com/comics/arloandjanis;_ylt=Ap2AiZnX_mnCu3Dw3ryGhtgVvTYC;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHNlYwMlJVRPUCUl
MotoMike
January 19th, 2006 at 10:01 am [Reply]

‘Nother vote for Bizarro.
Thelonious_Nick
January 19th, 2006 at 10:06 am [Reply]

Another vote for Rhymes With Orange.

Also check out Candorville (don’t know if it’s on the Chron Web site, but try the WaPo at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/artsandliving/comics/?nav=left). It’s a well-written and drawn strip about an African-American man and Latina who are best friends. It’s more observational, character-driven humor.
MotoMike
January 19th, 2006 at 10:08 am [Reply]

#45 luluchappel says:
“…Iâ€™d love to see a daily ripping of Mallard Fillmore.”
So glad to see I’m not alone in this. Because there is a God (or even two or three), our local paper only “carries” it (in the sense that a small, effeminate convict “carries” a larger and more vigorous cellmate) on Sundays. But I gather that it’s a daily event. Only trouble is … I’d have to read it occasionally. (How do you REALLY feel, Mike?)
eliz.
January 19th, 2006 at 10:09 am [Reply]

“Mutts”, absolutely. It’s cute without being sickening.

“Bizarro” – esp. yesterday’s comic. Yikes! Some days he’s spot on, but even when he’s not, his art is always great.

I can’t stand “Mallard Fillmore”, so it would be great to see that strip made fun of.
BigJoe
January 19th, 2006 at 10:12 am [Reply]

Sherman’s Lagoon, Ink Pen, Frazz and Brewster Rocket are all great.

For those who keep recommending Liberty Meadows, yes it is a great strip, funny with excellent art work, but it was retired years ago. It would be like doing current reviews on Peanuts.
beans
January 19th, 2006 at 10:26 am [Reply]

I would recommend Agnes. On the Chron website it is b&w, but we get it in color in my paper. I love the humor and laugh out loud at it often + it is drawn sooo bizarrely.
Irina
January 19th, 2006 at 10:28 am [Reply]

One more for Bizzaro, 9CL and Rhymes w/Orange.

Additions of Ballard Street, Close to Home and Rubes for reading amusement. All three are like watered down Far Sides, particularly Rubes. Watered down, yes, but even diluted Far Side is better than most of the rest of the dreck out there. Bizarro (above) is also like this, but is more cerebral/surreal.

Kudzu to lambast.

I like Baby Blues a lot, but I can see how the humor can run kinda flat for a non-parent.

Of the Six Chix, btw, I really like Ann Telanes. Two of the others are okay, and the other half really just don’t do it for me. Telanes is also a political cartoonist — if you like political cartoons and ever run across some of her work, take a look.

Oh. And yes, agreeing with Thelonious Nick — Candorville is excellent.
mooselet
January 19th, 2006 at 10:30 am [Reply]

I’ve got to go with Rhymes with Orange, Preteena and Sherman’s Lagoon on your list.

Is Dick Tracy still around? Damn…
sc
January 19th, 2006 at 10:32 am [Reply]

Mutts–definitely one of the best out there today, and a true descendant of the Krazy Kat era of cartoons

Rose Is Rose–because I need to know if anyone else finds this strip as maddening as I do: great art, but soooo indulgent/cloying in terms of story
BassoGap
January 19th, 2006 at 10:32 am [Reply]

#59 – Dave…yes, today’s Arlo & Janis is dirty. Well, a bit, anyway. Enough to make you wonder whether her answer will be “yes” or “no”. ;-)

After the mind-numbing blandness of most comics-page parents, it’s refreshing to see a couple having fun together. The strip recently had Janice tossing aside her bra and panties and jumping into bed and under the covers as quickly as possible on a cold night, and Arlo thinking something along the lines of, “I love this time of year” or “I love cold weather”.
libbba
January 19th, 2006 at 10:37 am [Reply]

It doesn’t appear to be on the Chronicle’s list, but…

I vote for Pickles.

You wouldn’t think a strip about an old retired couple would be worth reading, but it is. Earl and Opal have this genuine relationship you rarely see on the comics page. They are snarky. They make fun of each other and get on each other’s nerves. Kind of like Elly and John of FBOFW, before it got all schmaltzy and preachy.

I can also support the votes for Frazz. It is often clever, and a good addition to the daily read. But even if it weren’t, the artwork alone will provide you with plenty of blog fodder. It’s very expressive. People don’t just fall down in Frazz’s world – they tumble to the ground slowly in impossible contortions, with looks of utter panic on their faces. Plus, the characters’ mouths always remind me of Pac-Man when they laugh.
grumpy
January 19th, 2006 at 10:43 am [Reply]

9 chickweed Lane
dex
January 19th, 2006 at 10:46 am [Reply]

Bizarro! When it’s great, it’s great; when it’s not, it could be a lot of fun to mock.

Maybe Sherman’s Lagoon for non-ironic enjoyment.
Purple Rose
January 19th, 2006 at 10:48 am [Reply]

Marvin:

Gawd damn that strip is lame. How long has he been a baby? (30 years …?)

I don’t know another place where you can find such ripe comic material about obvious infantalism fetish lifestyles.
Lulu
January 19th, 2006 at 10:52 am [Reply]

I’ve been reading Funky online for years. When it is good it is quite enjoyable and when it is bad it is prime foder for mockery.
TheNewGuy
January 19th, 2006 at 10:55 am [Reply]

#12 – Unfit? I read it for about 2 or 3 months. but not in an I’m interested way, more in a “Dear lord I can’t believe someone would do that” way… kinda like a train wreck. eventually I just stopped reading because the comic genuinely pissed me off.

as far as what’s not on your sidebar:
Comics I enjoy –
Arlo & Janis (By the way, I don’t know wether to laugh or shudder at todays)
Frazz
Sherman’s Lagoon
Rose Is Rose
Mutts

tho the 1st 2 aren’t on the Chron’s site, another good place to get comics is Comics.com. but you probably already knew that. so yeah as far as the paper’s website goes – Sherman’s Lagoon, Rose is Rose & Mutts
dlauthor
January 19th, 2006 at 11:07 am [Reply]

I’m an Arlo & Janis fan, too. The writing still has a bit of edge to it at times (particularly when Arlo gets self-righteous about the minor injustices of the world), and while I hate both cats and comic strips focusing on cats, I find the strips that feature Ludwig to be actually funny most of the time.

As for it being badly drawn … feh. Yeah, it’s not a Watterstonian artistic extravaganza, but not every strip needs to be (see Josh’s comments about Dilbert). Heck, the artist even mocks his shortcomings (see the “why does Janis’s hairstyle look like she’s wearing a saucepan on her head?” series of strips from last year). And I’ll just add that I find the facial expressions to be among the best on the comics page, particularly when one of the characters gets slightly overcaffeinated or deranged.

I’d love to see an examination of Prickly City, too, and why it comes _so_ close to being a worthwhile strip, but still manages to fail most of the time. Oh, and mocking both the idiocy of Mallard Fillmore and the aggressive banality of Pluggers is always a worthwhile pursuit.
csr
January 19th, 2006 at 11:15 am [Reply]

Agnes, usually laugh-out-loud funny, or at least brings a smile. The artwork is… strange. Bad, but in a way that somehow makes it funny.

Echoing what others have already mentioned: Bizarro, Sherman’s Lagoon, Pickles

Mallard Fillmore would be an easy target for those days when you have “real” work to tend to.
Matt
January 19th, 2006 at 11:15 am [Reply]

There’s ‘The Piranha Club’ which is good, and unusual because it often uses sight gags. And there’s Mutts, which is beautifully drawn, and would be a great strip if it was ever even remotely amusing. Which it is not. Also Sherman’s Lagoon is generally pretty good, as long you don’t object to seeing the same joke over and over.
Jim
January 19th, 2006 at 11:22 am [Reply]

If you value your sanity and the intactness of your eyeballs, do not read “Pluggers.” Just don’t.

IIf you love Mary Worth’s platitudes but can’t handle all that fast paced action, then Pluggers is for you!
Dark Star
January 19th, 2006 at 11:29 am [Reply]

La Cucaracha is a must!

http://www.lacucaracha.com/

I’m not hispanic, I’m white. I love this strip because it pisses white people off. I live in San Diego and when the local paper first started to run this strip, it ran with Spanish captions on April Fools Day. You should have read the response on the editorial page. People cancelled subscriptions, the illegal alien bashers were coming out of the woodwork, and the English Only nuts were threating boycotts. “How dare you have Spanish captions on MY comic page!” I thought all the rednecks, religious right, and other assorted right wing whack jobs were going to grab their torches and burn down the newspaper!

BTW my favorite strip was their commentary on intelligent design/Darwinism debate. They ran the Aztec creation story, complete with ripping out of body organs, etc. It really made the point that all religion is a bunch of fairy tales.
gershwin
January 19th, 2006 at 11:34 am [Reply]

I particularly like “Agnes,” “Monty,” and “Frazz” as well (a one-word title kinda gal, I reckon).

On the ridicule list, someone mentioned “Mr. Boffo.” Haven’t seen that in a while, admittedly, but when the Wash Post began it, I tried for a while and found it painfully unfunny, consistently. I also find “Sherman’s Lagoon” a one-joke strip: sharks eat other fish (yawn). I’d like “Pearls” much better if it didn’t rely so much on the “cannibalism” humor, too.
Becca
January 19th, 2006 at 11:35 am [Reply]

The Dinette Set
satchmo
January 19th, 2006 at 11:49 am [Reply]

Comics I find consistently funny:
Monty
Out of the Gene Pool
Over the Hedge
Rhymes with Orange

Out of the Gene Pool is the only one of the above not on the Houston Chron site, but it’s definitely worth the trip to Comics.com. Besides the fact that it’s damn funny, it has a whole cast of interesting characters that are all drawn in a completely different style, but it works. I love how Jackie’s hairstyle is always changing (straight, natural, cornrows). Little details like that show that the writer isn’t just cranking out the same old strips to be drawn in a comics sweatshop in China. (“More stink lines, mule!”)
Marc
January 19th, 2006 at 11:50 am [Reply]

The dinette set is a must. I agree with Jim C. and Becca. It shows the mind set of the lower-middle class baby boomers somewhere in Illinois. “Crustwood” to be exact. Just read it….it’s funny.

La Cucaracha(sp?) is what my paper carried before Housebroken. Only for a week, because it upsetted the few Latino citizens in my Newspaper’s distribution area.

Six Chix is done by “Six Chicks” but Ann Telnaes dropped t hat comic to do politcal ones/ Her style is amazing and modern. Google her…..But yesterday’s Six Chix was very odd nontheless. “It’s Mindi with an i!” The cat’s dish said MindY. Hahah. Cat’s are finicky and snobby! Haha! I almost cracked my ribs from laughing.
yellojkt
January 19th, 2006 at 11:51 am [Reply]

9CL has been a staple over in the forum for eternity. I also second the following nominations:

Cleats
Rose is Rose
Preteena

I add (and I apologize if I missed someone else mentioning these):

Drabble
Edge City
rich
January 19th, 2006 at 11:51 am [Reply]

Worthy of mockery:

Archie
Dick Tracy
Redeye
Mallard Fillmore
Prickly City
Pluggers

Non-ironic strips worth reading:

Heart of the City
Monty
Preteena
Sassy_Rocks
January 19th, 2006 at 11:53 am [Reply]

Perhaps this is being overly cynical, but was lycra spandex really invented back in the days of Phantom I? The pirates are all attired in their typical 1700-ish swashbuckling finery while Phantom I, in his form fitting bikini brief and lycra spandex body suit, is shot unceremoniously in the back. The pirates have guns. Why is Phantom I using swords when he is obviously so far ahead of them in technology (at least clothes technology, anyway)?
Chester the Wolfe
January 19th, 2006 at 11:59 am [Reply]

Dude, 9 Chickweed Lane!!! A red-hot mother daughter team who let NERDS get all up in em! It’s every dweebs fantasy strip.
Irina
January 19th, 2006 at 12:06 pm [Reply]

Ann Telanes. Dang! It had been so long since I’d read SixChix that I didn’t know that she left (I only catch it online, and since I only liked 1/6 of the strips, I didn’t go out of my way to read it).

Ah, well. At least I can still read her ed. cartoons.
NaterXXX
January 19th, 2006 at 12:08 pm [Reply]

Fist timer here. Question…did anyone see that Zits strip a while back, where Momma Zits hung upside down to make her boobs lift? How could there have been no comments on this site about that!!! Oh well, perhaps I need to keep telling myself – she’s only a comic….
Phinneaus J. Whoopigoldberg
January 19th, 2006 at 12:08 pm [Reply]

INK PEN (best strip in ages)
Tom the Dancing Bug (super funny)
Monty (funny)
Flying McCoys (pretty funny)
Big Top (most excellent)
Tracey
January 19th, 2006 at 12:11 pm [Reply]

“Preteena” would be a cool one to you read just for the sake of reading, along with “Rhymes With Orange” – both are always interesting and consistently funny.

If you want two to skewer, I’d suggest “Agnes” and “Spot the Frog.” The first is about a weird girl with really big feet. She’s one of the most annoying characters ever – like a baby Margo. The second is about a frog with one big eye and one small eye who rooms with a professor (I think) and the professor’s daughter who has a fear of frogs because one winked at her when she was dissecting it back in high school. Bizarre and sacchrine at the same time.
Ron
January 19th, 2006 at 12:18 pm [Reply]

“A red-hot mother daughter team who let NERDS get all up in em!”

Now with the cleverest gays this side of Oscar Wilde!

Also, I’m just tossing the question out there: so is Lynn setting up Deanna’s mom for a descent into madness? Because she seems about a decade too old to be going through the change, as Archie Bunker would say…
Sassy_Rocks
January 19th, 2006 at 12:34 pm [Reply]

RE: 91

Ron, her behavior is unsaintly which doesn’t fit, but since there is a degree of separation from the saintly ones, it is allowed. It is not a wing flapping menopausal problem in her case, but rather that she is inherently bitchy by nature.

As a former cellar dweller and saintly Patterson hater, I really side with the Klepfroths in terms of the noise from above and the disrespecting expose written about them by the pretentious, holier than thou Michael. I kind of wish cigar slob had broken bad on Deana’s mom or one of the holy Pattersons but alas that never happens.
rich
January 19th, 2006 at 12:45 pm [Reply]

91 – Ron, we were all very disappointed in my household at the way this one petered out. “Lynn is setting up something big!” “I think Kelpfroth is gonna shoot Mike!” “No, the father-in-law is gonna have a heart attack, and everyone will learn a valuable lesson.”

And what happens? (Other than godawful Meredith morphing into the ugliest troll doll ever) Ooo boy, they scared Deanna’s little brat, and she got mad! …Woopdeedoo.

And “for my mom to fight with the neighbors like that was completely out of character” – since when? This woman has been a caricatured, over-the-top monster-in-law since the day she was introduced. I thought it was completely in character! I guess Lynn probably is prepping the character for a descent into madness, but this was a big disappointment – I thought for sure we’d see bloodshed this week. Damn.

(And to tie this back on-topic: More FBOW postings!)
Library Cat
January 19th, 2006 at 12:48 pm [Reply]

# 91

Yes I do believe Lynn is setting the Anti-Lynn up for Crazyville. Granted the woman has been asking for it for years, what with tormenting St. Mike by being the MIL from hell. Or maybe Lynn will just drop the whole storyline in a couple of days with no further reference………..what’s more likely? Oh, that Lynn’s Johnston is going crazy, yes of course that’s it.
fuzzmaster
January 19th, 2006 at 12:55 pm [Reply]

Well, to entertain yourself, 9CL, just because it’s astonishing he can get away with taking so many days off for the same lame light-and-shadow plays; Frazz, because it’s excellent, and Agnes, because it’s the punk rock of comics; and Boondocks — tho it’s already on your roll, it doesn’t seem to get much action.

But if we’re looking for the comix you should read so we don’t have to: yes, the Dinette Set, because much as I have enjoyed it, I got tired of trying to decipher it; Brenda Starr, because it’s fascinating how a good journalist (Mary Schmich) can work on such a weird strip; Dick Tracy, because it would be a break from Mary Worth et al. (Question: is “Mary Worth minute” the opposite of “New York minute”?)
Adouble
January 19th, 2006 at 1:00 pm [Reply]

I read 9 Chickwood Lane daily, but I’m dubious if it’s a good strip for Josh’s blog. It seems that some readers aren’t that into the soap-opera strips, which 9CL probably qualifies as. However, it would be the only soap-opera strip that most readers enjoy unironically.
Irina
January 19th, 2006 at 1:04 pm [Reply]

FBOFW: I’m still baffled as to whatever happened to Lovey serving the Kelpfroth’s an eviction notice?

Conveniently forgotten? Withdrawn? Did Melville take an axe to her? Did the Kelpfroths discover Lovey’s secret identity, and are blackmailing her to let them stay?

More consistency, mule!
Library Cat
January 19th, 2006 at 1:12 pm [Reply]

Sorry, last post regarded #93 not #91.

My vote is for Funky Winkerbean it has almost achieved FBOFW bathos perfection. Let us discuss and snark as the transformation completes itself fueled by alcohol, overambition and secret illegitimate children.
Aaron
January 19th, 2006 at 1:13 pm [Reply]

Please add Rose is Rose. I have been reading this strip since I was a kid, and I have hated it about as long. From Jimbo’s “family-friendly” fat fetish that involves fantasizing about his wife as an obese heiffer; to Rose’s lurid fantasies that involve consuming “rattlesnake chili” as she peruses the grocery store’s aisles in dykes-on-bikes-style leatherwear; to that pathetic mama’s boy Pasquale with his priggish and pretentious name, and his — I’m just going to say it — pussy-ish, precious, precocious demeanor; to say nothing of the strip’s cloyingly whimsical artwork with its overuse of shading and wacky angles…….. this strip demands the josh treatment. If you please.
Parasol Wench
January 19th, 2006 at 1:20 pm [Reply]

Mallard Fillmore is a political cartoon–why would you want this site to delve into tedious ideological flame wars when you can just read Fark for that? Definitely Funky Winkerbean. I, for one, was hoping that Wally would end the weeks of tension with the land mine plot by leaving whatzerface a one-armed widow, but doing it with a cheesy pun, because no one combines lame humor and overwrought drama better than “Tom Batiuk (rhymes with ‘attic’).”
BigJoe
January 19th, 2006 at 1:22 pm [Reply]

90: did anyone see that Zits strip a while back, where Momma Zits hung upside down to make her boobs lift? How could there have been no comments on this site about that!!!

NaterXXX – actually there was tons of discussion about that strip. Where were you that day?
Paul
January 19th, 2006 at 1:22 pm [Reply]

I’m kind of surprised you’re not doing Funky Winkerbean already. Other than that: Fred Basset, the thinking man’s Marmaduke, humour so gentle it ceases to be humorous… it just IS.
Zorba the Geek
January 19th, 2006 at 1:24 pm [Reply]

Tracey (#92), I agree that Agnes herself is usually so annoying that I want to slap the pretentious little brat, but I find the strip amusing and compelling in a strange way. I have to almost admire a trailer-trash kid with so much spunk and delusions of grandeur (plus, I like the juxtaposition of her down-to-earth, cynical little friend Trout. Gotta love a girl named “Trout”).
Jessica
January 19th, 2006 at 1:37 pm [Reply]

Rhymes with Orange
dasboot
January 19th, 2006 at 1:52 pm [Reply]

Why don’t you just subscribe to the washington post? It’s the greatest newspaper in the country, at least comics-wise, and generally otherwise. If you live in baltomore i know you can get it, and its 4 pages of comics goodness, plus dilbert in business and doonesbury exiled to the society page.
Tracey
January 19th, 2006 at 2:03 pm [Reply]

Re: #105

Glad you could hang in there, Zorb, and you have a good point about Trout. I tried reading it for about a month, until I got to the point where it was either my sanity or the strip.

Something about Agnes makes me think she could be Peppermint Patti’s friend Marcie in the Comic Strip Witness Protection Program because she witnessed unspeakable acts between Snoopy and Woodstock.

After re-reading that last sentence, I may have stopped reading “Agnes” too late to save my sanity. Damn.
dlauthor
January 19th, 2006 at 2:11 pm [Reply]

102: Mallard Fillmore is deserving of mockery for much, much more than just the angle of its political stance. Where do we start? The flatness of the characters, the lousiness of the art (particularly the caricatures), the tendency to misquote and misrepresent the articles it supposedly cites, the dull repetition of the same joke day after day to fill out a week. That’s all independent of the fact that someone gave a Freeper a pencil, I’d think.
James G
January 19th, 2006 at 2:18 pm [Reply]

I’m going to second both Dinette Set and Bizarro. I’d never heard of Dinette Set before I moved to Seattle a few years ago and picked up the P-I. Initially, I hated it, but it eventually became one of my favorites. And you have study all the details of the writing everywhere – on the list on the wall, on the shirts, whatever. It’s the extra details that make it amusing instead of just the word balloons.
rich
January 19th, 2006 at 2:19 pm [Reply]

101 – Great analysis, Aaron, that strip is so asking for mockery. I’d also point out the strip’s nutty fascination with that giant angel character (who for some reason looks like origami), and its weirdo attempts at gender stereotyping — Jimbo’s spiritual “taking out the garbage” moments; men at a department store ooing and ahhing over the latest snow shovel (see Sunday’s awful strip at http://www.comics.com) (I tried to make a link to that strip but it won’t let me).

The only redeeming characteristics of Rose is Rose are an art style that kind of evokes old Archie comics (except when it gets overly saccharine), and the fact that Rose is a chick with glasses, and “cwgs” are the best!
CHA5NCE
January 19th, 2006 at 2:42 pm [Reply]

I’m going to go along with so many and suggest 9CL.

I’m also happy to see a few votes for Agnes, which is a hard strip to describe. Somehow it manages to be poignant, subversive, sentimental and funny, though not always at the same time. A little delusional girl living with her grandmother in poverty and constantly longing for more is pretty rich material. A few years ago, Agnes crashed her church’s nativity play dressed as a magic Christmas bat-winged snow leopard. I guess you had to be there, but it was brilliant.
Sassy_Rocks
January 19th, 2006 at 2:53 pm [Reply]

107: Dasboot, where’s the 4th page in the Washington Post? Am I missing something? Aren’t there only 3 pages M-Sat besides a couple of pretentious ones like Doonesbury and Dilbert ? Those two are in different sections since their authors don’t want to inhabit the same space with “lesser” comics.

What is the logic of papers like the NY Times that have no comics? Is that supposed to make them appear more newsworthy somehow? Why read a paper with no comics? Nowadays you really need a little something to counteract the drumbeat of bad news on global warming, terrorism, corruption, etc, etc, ad nauseum. I read that depressing news crap first then the comics to try and end the pre-work routine on a more positive note.

Does anyone have a good explanation for Phantom I’s lycra spandex attire back in the 1700’s? There must be a logical explanation.
Irina
January 19th, 2006 at 2:56 pm [Reply]

Wasn’t Lycra spandex.

Purple and black body paint and a really good razor.
Miss Lamb
January 19th, 2006 at 3:02 pm [Reply]

I’ve gotta vote for Mallard Fillmore. I mean, it exists, and it persists, which means it must represent some portion of the comics reading public. Not to get too fake-pundit on you, but this strip says a lot about our country right now, where every opinion is considered equally valid as long as it is blustery enough. So this strip is considered as valid as Doonesbury just because it takes an extreme viewpoint.

So I think it’s worth following. I’d love your take on its “jokes”. Who knows, maybe it is funny sometimes? Maybe?

(Actually, the funniest thing about it that it references one of our least memorable presidents.)
chopper
January 19th, 2006 at 3:20 pm [Reply]

I’d like to third CANDORVILLE (think of it as a more political BOONDOCKS) and reply to the post way back up there that mentioned LIBERTY MEADOWS is in repeats so why bother?
Dude, two words:
1) Brandy
B) Jen

HEART OF THE CITY ain’t bad and the Philly references are pretty cool…
RHYMES WITH ORANGE, SIX CHIX are OK as is BOXJAM’S DOODLE.
DINETTE SET is a sorta luv/hate thing.
(DT) GIL THORP is in a world of its own (thank god)

And while we’re going oldschool, what ever happened to LOLLY????
micedwhale
January 19th, 2006 at 3:36 pm [Reply]

I can’t believe no one has seconded my reccomendations of The Quigmans. It is a one panel dealy. I read it on my Yahoo news comics section. It is delightfully bizarre and humorous. I don’t know squat about it but I enjoy it. We get the Pirahana Club in Savannah and I only find it funny about once every 3-4 months. So do yourself a favor and check out The Quigmans it is great, and different which is hard to be this day and age.
Wayne
January 19th, 2006 at 3:42 pm [Reply]

another Funky vote.
Chet McCord, Wildlife Defender
January 19th, 2006 at 3:49 pm [Reply]

No more ! No more new strips I’d have to read. I certainly don’t wanna read Mallard Fillmore. It’s beneath our contempt. Not gonna do it, nah gah doo.

Now then, would someone please explain today’s Get Fuzzy for me? I’m referring specifically to the dog’s comment in panel 3.
Phinneaus J. Whoopigoldberg
January 19th, 2006 at 3:53 pm [Reply]

Oh, Bad Reporter too. For laughter, not mockery.
rich
January 19th, 2006 at 3:54 pm [Reply]

Glad to see there are so many Preteena fans out there. It’s pretty funny and quite well drawn. Now go ahead and click on it, it’s not like Big Brother will get the wrong idea when they monitor your Internet use for “security” purposes…okay, they probably will, but check it out anyway.
Sassy_Rocks
January 19th, 2006 at 3:54 pm [Reply]

119: Chet, I think the “where’s the lady in this equation” refers to Bucky’s “Lady’s and gentlemen” announcement.
Sharon
January 19th, 2006 at 4:22 pm [Reply]

Arlo & Janis
Barkeater Lake
Through Thick and Thin
Funky Winkerbean
luluchappel
January 19th, 2006 at 4:27 pm [Reply]

107 & 113: The WaPo only has 3 daily comics pages. To the paper’s credit, there are 2 (count ‘em, 2) comics sections on Sundays. Unfortunately, one of those those sections contains “Garfield” and “Family Circus.”

And allow me to concur with those who requested “Pickles”. Reminds me so much of my parents.
beans
January 19th, 2006 at 4:42 pm [Reply]

Am I the only one that reads Pooch Cafe? I just love it, although the only place i can find it is msnbc.com It’s another dog-centric strip, with a couple who also own a cat AND a gold fish. You get a lot of dog interaction at the cafe which is often insightful.
Smitty Smedlap
January 19th, 2006 at 4:53 pm [Reply]

Drabble, Frank n’ Ernest, The Born Loser and Tiger all have that certain genessee beer that makes them eminently mockable.
Zorba the Geek
January 19th, 2006 at 5:01 pm [Reply]

beans, I like Pooch Cafe, too. Besides the aforementioned Agnes, I also like Candorville, Preteena, Get Fuzzy, Arlo &Janis, Mutts, and Rhymes With Orange. Sometimes I like Bizarro. I think that Prickly City is mockable (at least, I mock it on a regular basis). I used to like Doonesbury, but it’s gotten old, although, once in awhile, it rises to its former glory. I also used to like Bloom County, but Berk Breathed should not have returned. I liked Far Side and Calvin & Hobbes, but I respect their writers for retiring at the top of their form. I understand why some people like Curtis, it’s drawn well and I like the parents, but I can’t get beyond the fact that Curtis is basically a stalker, and Michelle needs to have a protection order issued against him, plus, his little brother, Barry (I think?) is execrable. I happen to think that Zippy the Pinhead is the most pretentious strip currently running. Every once in a blue moon, he’s amusing, but the writer obviously thinks he’s too clever by half, and that’s annoying. All that said, the best comic strip that ever existed was Pogo, and I miss it dearly (and, yes, I’m showing my age).
hacky
January 19th, 2006 at 5:08 pm [Reply]

I hate I hate I hate “Pardon My Planet”, especially the way the artist draws all men’s eyes as a dot-within-a-circle, underneath which is a little squiggle meant to suggest a cheekbone. The resulting effect is a gaunt and haunted look. Plus it’s not funny at all, just tries to be soooo hip. No pardon for you!
Sassy_Rocks
January 19th, 2006 at 5:32 pm [Reply]

128: Hacky, how do you feel about artists who draw cat whisker – like moustaches under men and women’s eyes to make them look like cheekbones? This same artist draws evergreens for the night scenery and hardwood trees for the same location during the day. The artist draws evil people chewing toothpicks and wearing mirrored sunglasses, sweating profusely. He has a lot of difficulty drawing breasts also.
Irina
January 19th, 2006 at 5:32 pm [Reply]

Okay. Shame on y’all who suggested Preteena. I just blew off the last 2 hours of work reading the archives back to November 2004. Now *I* have another one I gotta keep track of …
Jeff R.
January 19th, 2006 at 5:37 pm [Reply]

Rose is Rose for actual enjoyment, Dick Tracy for ceaseless mockery.
LMK
January 19th, 2006 at 5:58 pm [Reply]

If you’re looking for mockery…Drabble. If you’re a masochist, of course.
Painful, painful strip.
Ianscot
January 19th, 2006 at 6:15 pm [Reply]

Mallard Fillmore’s ridicule-worthy stretches are those in which he abandons the incredibly obvious, irony-impaired political screeds in favor of just plain bellyaching. He’ll spend an entire week kvetching against slightly older kids who go trick or treating, for example. Nice. (My kids are 12, and maybe went for the last time this year; having read Mallard they maybe enjoyed it less. Thanks, you utterly nasty ass of a cartoonist, for adding a note of rancorous asininity to their lives.)

There are some grey areas between the two states. Around Christmas this year, the strip laid into postal workers for several days — naturally toeing the “private entireprise does it better” line. The baseness of picking on beleaguered mail delivery folks at the height of the holidays, crossed with the slightly confused politics (given that the Post Office isn’t funded by taxes but rather by its revenues) could be worthy of some attention.

But I advise against it. Some strips are damaging to the soul. Mallard Fillmore is a bone thrown to the right by the papers who run it, and it degrades them.
Tullia
January 19th, 2006 at 6:42 pm [Reply]

I twenty-fifth it: Mallard Fillmore for mockery purposes. Seriously. I’m amazed you don’t do it already. Every few months, I make myself read it on the theory that I really have to understand my fellow Americans … and then I remember why I so very much dislike a good chunk of the US population. It’s educative.
ronniecat
January 19th, 2006 at 6:46 pm [Reply]

Count this as another vote for Pooch Cafe!!

Easily the most underappreciated comic currently in syndication.
Anthony
January 19th, 2006 at 7:10 pm [Reply]

I have to agree with all those who suggest you check out Dinette Set. The artist’s hatred of his characters and all the traditional suburban middle-class society they represent seeps into every stroke of his pen. I suggest you try it for a week. Then drop it. It’s too painful to bear any longer.

Along the same vein, Bizarro is rapidly becoming Dan Piraro’s daily attack against anyone who isn’t a hip, eco-sensitive, vegan liberal. (For proof see the recent Nascar aptitude test panel from a few weeks back.) When he’s not doing a hatchet job, it’s not that bad. And when he is, that’s more grist for the blog.

I’ll add my vote to the chorus suggesting Sherman’s Lagoon. What other strip regularly jokes about humans being eaten?

Buckles is a strip that’s should have been mentioned already. It’s nice, not perfect, not great, but a solid strip that gets no credit. I find it much funnier than Mutts. When Mutts goes for the heartstrings, Buckles will go for the funny bone. I’m not a pet person at all, but

I also agree with those who said Heart of the City. Light, but fun. Has a tendency to have really long storylines. Where most humor strips let plots run a week, two weeks tops, Tatulli will let his run months. Yet they stay entertaining. It might feed your soap-ish tendencies.

Finally, I’ll second those comments that Mallard Fillmore and Prickly City will give you tons of material to work with. And Sylvia is in the “how the heck did this get syndicated?” category.

But really, you need to start visiting Comics.com com so you can read Candorville. Unquestionably the best strip in papers today.
Zorba the Geek
January 19th, 2006 at 7:11 pm [Reply]

#130: Irina, sorry about the new Preteena addiction (although I certainly wasn’t the only one who suggested it, and my brother- Zorba’s Little Brother- is the one who got me started on it, but I’ll apologize for all of us). Have you considered the Evelyn Woods Speed Reading Course™? (God, I’m showing my age again- does this even still exist?)
Tim Jarrett
January 19th, 2006 at 7:22 pm [Reply]

Just a thought: how about using the blog to “break” strips that should be syndicated, but aren’t, to a wider audience? My first nomination would be Chris Baldwin’s funny and sweet Little Dee, which coincidentally today features a male vulture in a coconut shell bra. If that isn’t worthy of some kind of comment, I don’t know what is.

(And yes, I know it’s not on the Chronicle’s web page, but a. that’s kind of the point; b. strongly second the recommendation for bookmarked folders that open into tabs in Firefox.)
Lady Goodman
January 19th, 2006 at 7:33 pm [Reply]

Thank you, Uncle Lumpy. Now I know that someone else has been suffering through Brenda Starr. I cannot tear my eyes away from her cranky editor’s Giant-Smartie-Shaped beret and lil’ dutch boy hairdo.

Also, Ziggy in Spanish. So much funnier.
Zorba's Little Brother
January 19th, 2006 at 7:55 pm [Reply]

Irina, sorry about the new Preteena addiction (although I certainly wasnâ€™t the only one who suggested it, and my brother- Zorbaâ€™s Little Brother- is the one who got me started on it, but Iâ€™ll apologize for all of us)….

At least I have a couple of daughters about Preteena’s age, which makes it somewhat topical for me. What’s everyone else’s excuse?

And Ronniecat, I didn’t know you hung out here as well as racs.

–
Nick Theodorakis
Audient
January 19th, 2006 at 8:04 pm [Reply]

Funky Winkerbean

Crankshaft

The Born Loser
dahlian
January 19th, 2006 at 8:28 pm [Reply]

Am I the only person that’s had the misfortune of reading Tumbleweeds? I don’t see how anyone who has read two strips (the second to ensure that the first one wasn’t just some running they weren’t aware) can’t spend the rest of their days trying to figur out how this screed gets puplished.

And I fourty-second the 9 Chickweed Lane votes.
Sourbelly
January 19th, 2006 at 8:32 pm [Reply]

Did you know that they’re still cranking out that awful, awful Ferd’nand? Remember Ferd, that Germanish guy with the mustache and the conehead hat who never speaks? It’s been around since 1937, and I’d be willing to bet it hasn’t been funny once. No words and crappy artwork.

http://www.comics.com/comics/ferdnand/

Actually, it may be too horrible to mock.
Chet McCord, Wildlife Defender
January 19th, 2006 at 8:38 pm [Reply]

Thanks, Sassy. I had not read carefully enough. Now, what was funny about that? I’m not sure.

I used to wonder about the gender of Brenda Starr’s editor, Hank. But that was before there were lesbians. Now I just think she’s the original lesbian of the funny papers.
weiser
January 19th, 2006 at 8:45 pm [Reply]

I’m with Chet, I CAN’T read any new comics so I suggest Pooch Cafe. It’s already on my list
MrBird
January 19th, 2006 at 9:03 pm [Reply]

Try Triple Take
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/fun/tripletake.asp

It seriously the worst comic strip ever published. It ruins my whole day if I read it.
Alex
January 19th, 2006 at 9:26 pm [Reply]

I happen to like Sylvia very much. It’s very witty and smart, sometimes a little surreal. Not shrewish at all. and NOT MAN HATING! sheesh.
Anonymous
January 19th, 2006 at 9:31 pm [Reply]

Oh come on… 9 Chickweed, beyond question. I’ve been reading this blog forever and I have never ever never understood why the hottest, nastyest, er, I mean such a great flick, er, comic, as 9CL has been overlooked. Well, not by the readers – some of the posts make this place sem like a Lourdes to EddalustersÂ® so hey, seriously, 9 Chickweed Lane. It’s gotta be.

And by the way…. did NO ONE notice Lizardbreath explicitly asking to go roadside in the 22 Dec 05 strip? I mean… they are in a car, and LB says “Pull over” and there they go, next day, next strip, still there. Now, given that there is even a “Roadside” item selling on this fine webblog, I just can’t see how this was overlooked. It was gold, Jerry, gold!

Um, unless I missed that post…. anyway, do 9CL.
Chert the Chort
January 19th, 2006 at 9:37 pm [Reply]

Hey, I’m not anonymous… I’m Chert! But yeah, like I said, do 9CL. And say something, SOMETHING man, about Lizzy getting bizzy. I mean, take a look at the look in her eyes man, she’s GOT IT, whatever them Patterson girls get, got it indeed.

Ok, I’m done. Do 9CL, listen, the masses are crying out for it.
Fred P.
January 19th, 2006 at 9:55 pm [Reply]

Josh ol’ buddy ol’ pal, there have been those who have advised you to take up Funky Winkerbean. I must respectfully disagree, and tender my own advice for you to avoid it with all due diligence, the way lesser beings than ourselves are obliged to try to avoid, say, halitosis.

“Funky” oscillates betweeen unfunny non-jokes and mawkish sentimentality at a frequency only dogs can hear. The Good Lord in His wisdom only allotted you so many Hours in this World. Don’t spend them on Funky Winkerbean.

(Also the Winkerbean author is given to Gratuitous Use Of Exclamation Points. It’s not unusual for him to end every sentence with an exclamation point! Really! I can’t tell you how much that gets on my nerves! Especially when there is nothing remotely exclamatory being stated!)
Tim
January 19th, 2006 at 10:01 pm [Reply]

PC and Pixel. Computer “humor” that’s virtually never funny.
Logical Philosopher
January 19th, 2006 at 10:09 pm [Reply]

Ok, It’s not on the Huston Cronicle page BUT I would lobby for Randolph Itch at 2.AM. It used to be on comics.com, but got pulled for some reason. Was even better than Speed-bump that you have listed. Here’s some samples:
http://magnus.hoem.se/cgi-bin/magnus/showpics.cgi?namn=RandolphItch
romanetti
January 19th, 2006 at 10:16 pm [Reply]

Gotta vote for Brewster Rockit…sometimes funny, sometimes incredibly stupid but always interesting!
Chet McCord, Wildlife Defender
January 19th, 2006 at 10:49 pm [Reply]

One that deserves a lot more attention is Boxjam’s Doodle. Http://www.boxjamsdoodle.com . Be sure to scroll down. That’s the first change I’d make, Bup. We hates to scroll.
m
January 19th, 2006 at 11:04 pm [Reply]

i second, or twenty-third, or forty-fifth (who can read 154 damn comments) the vote for rhymes with orange… it is witty; sometimes incorporating humor from literatature ie. robert frost (if i could find the strip online i would link it back) and sometimes random bizarre cat humor and usually pretty funny…
dasboot
January 19th, 2006 at 11:25 pm [Reply]

Oh yeh, its just 3, but a big 3, and more and better selection than any paper i’ve seen. Others are usually two meager, laaame pages full of sitcoms and garfield. Props to the LA times for taking that one off the list, and the Post is similiarly critical, comicswise.
Mark Tatulli
January 20th, 2006 at 12:15 am [Reply]

As the cartoonist of HEART OF THE CITY, I feel obligated to answer some of the comments here…

First off, Iâ€™m not gay. Iâ€™ve been married for 20 years and have three children. Too long to have a fake marriage and only a sadomasochistic gay man would tolerate three teenagers. Flamboyant, perhaps, but not in a Nathan Lane way…more like the black guy from BARNEY MILLER…stylish and genetically svelte. I am prone to showtunes in public places (much to the chagrin of the aforementioned teenagers), but thatâ€™s where it ends. And definitely not nerdy. I shop at NORDSTROMS, for gosh sakes.

And for the record, my storylines have NEVER exceeded more than five or six weeks. It just feels like months!

Wait, that didnâ€™t come out right…
Rusty
January 20th, 2006 at 12:18 am [Reply]

Mockery: Funky Winkerbean, the strip borrows FBOFW’s sledgehammer to get across its lessons, and the artist loves to inflict misery on his characters.

Quality: Rhymes…Orange. A nice off-speed pitch of a comic. Although the art is just primitiive.
Actioneer
January 20th, 2006 at 12:58 am [Reply]

I can think of two comics not on your list that are pretty solid — not as consistently amazing as FBORFW (in its heyday) or Calvin and Hobbes or anything – but a lot better than most of what’s out there:

Fisher (Canadian!) – available at http://www.philipstreet.com/fisher/
Real-ish time with actual character development, and evokes the show ” friends” in some bizarre way that i can’t really explain.

Pooch Cafe – http://www.ucomics.com/poochcafe/
Like Garfield with dogs if Garfield was funny…
yarr
January 20th, 2006 at 1:15 am [Reply]

Read Mutts. Not to make fun of it (though you’re welcome), but for your own benefit. It’s genuinely good.

And read Ziggy to mock. How could you not? It’s a classic.
yarr
January 20th, 2006 at 1:16 am [Reply]

Ack, it’s on the list. You don’t post about it often enough.
Lor
January 20th, 2006 at 1:17 am [Reply]

Mark Tatulli! Sweet!

It’s great to have a Philly strip. I’m so glad our young pundit has met his idol – I’m enjoying the Chris Matthews storyline. Glad you came out of the closet here – er, so to speak.
Ubiq
January 20th, 2006 at 1:42 am [Reply]

I would suggest Mallard Fillmore, but I don’t think I hate anybody enough to suggest that they read it. Plus, you can only make fun of his unreasoning hatred of the Post Office and children’s fundraisers so many times before it became stale.

If you’re looking for a BCish “why in the hell is this supposed to be funny” comic, I suggest Brevity, which has a miss-to-hit ratio of roughly 9-1.
leathermessiah
January 20th, 2006 at 2:23 am [Reply]

Baby Blues, definitely. Rife with mocking-material. Like the father’s comical nose. And the fact that their youngest children are named Hammie and Wren.

Also, Redeye. Redeye, Redeye, Redeye. Never has a strip been in such need of mocking. If you need proof, look at the Jan. 11th strip.

Spot the Frog, too.
ApricotGargoyle
January 20th, 2006 at 3:40 am [Reply]

Preteena, though it’s not on the Houston Chronical’s website, unfortunately. My favorite comic ever since “The Big Picture” stopped running. Preteena is a diamond in the rough in today’s comic page.
DavidS
January 20th, 2006 at 3:58 am [Reply]

You’ve got to add Funky Winkerbean, simply the least funny “comic” strip in history. Supposedly a comedy which light-heartedly discusses alcoholism, land mines, and once spent almost a year with the main character (not Funky, but the old nerd who is now a teacher) researching a murder. ahhh, good times…
JB
January 20th, 2006 at 4:38 am [Reply]

Its more effort than a daily/weekly strip, but Kaz’ Underworld is the funniest and most twisted stuff in the world. Ever.

Keep by the Curmudgeoning, I look forward to your updates every ~~day~~ now and then.

JB
The People’s Republic of Limahl
Hank Kimble
January 20th, 2006 at 6:22 am [Reply]

Slylock Fox will provide you with plenty of material. Dinette Set is good too.
Pozzo
January 20th, 2006 at 8:22 am [Reply]

I’ll chime in with those advocating “Mutts”. The Sunday strips, especially. Some of the most imaginative use of space in what has become a moribund, “inside the (six to eight) box” medium. I’d also suggest “Frazz,” but the Chronicle doesn’t seem to carry it.
Jado
January 20th, 2006 at 9:17 am [Reply]

SHELDON!!!

Sheldon is consistently one of the best written comics available. The kid has a talking duck, for god’s sake.

You don’t get better than a talking duck.

DO IT NOW!!!

http://www.unitedmedia.com/comics/sheldon/index.html
dlauthor
January 20th, 2006 at 9:24 am [Reply]

All right, today’s comics bolster a couple of my arguments:

Arlo & Janis: look at Janis’s expression in the final panel (“we’re going to get SERIOUS!”). A little crudely drawn? Possibly. Extremely funny? Heck yeah.

Prickly City: ho frickety hum. A lazy, tired John Wayne joke about a movie that has both critical _and_ popular success. Like the little girl-shaped blot would even know who John Wayne was. I mean, cripes, even Mallard beat this thing to the punch. Lazy, lazy, lazy. And is that a movie marquee or some kind of sea anemone?

Josh, please please PLEASE start mocking this strip.
Zorba's Little Brother
January 20th, 2006 at 9:31 am [Reply]

ApricotGargoyle says:

Preteena, though itâ€™s not on the Houston Chronicalâ€™s website, unfortunately.

Look again. It’s on the left column of comics on the Chron Comics Page.

Or did you mean something else?

Nick Theodorakis
Wordmama
January 20th, 2006 at 9:54 am [Reply]

I retract Liberty Meadows; I didn’t realize it was repeats, my comics provider (mycomicspage.com) having cynically neglected to provide me with that information. Blast! Even comics.com slaps the “classic” label on a dead strip.

Another strip always good for a wince is Pluggers, which appears to be wholly written by people who write in with tiny-minded “ideas,” so why are we paying the guy whose name goes on top?
Tracey
January 20th, 2006 at 10:09 am [Reply]

I just thought of two other strips that are off the beaten path (for me, anyway): “Waylay,” by Carol Lay, and “The K Chronicles” by Keith Knight. They are topical, autobiographical (“K” more so than “Way”), insightful, offbeat, and always amusing, if not laugh out loud funny. “K” is more broadly drawn, and “Way” gets really detailed. Way cool. They can be found on the Buzzle webside, buzzle.com.

And while it’s cool that the “Heart” guy dropped in for a bit, PLEASE leave that strip out. That girl makes my teeth itch.
BigJoe
January 20th, 2006 at 11:01 am [Reply]

116 – Chopper said:
the post way back up there that mentioned LIBERTY MEADOWS is in repeats so why bother?
Dude, two words:
1) Brandy
B) Jen

Two points for Chopper! Actually, even though it’s in reruns the strip is worth reading (partly due to your points above), but just not worth reviewing regularly.
Anonymous
January 20th, 2006 at 11:04 am [Reply]

I like “Mutts.” It’s not always funny, or mockable, but something about it (the cat’s speech impedement, most likely) keeps me coming back.

I also like Sherman’s Lagoon now and then.

But I kinda feel like I’m announcing my favorite bands to music experts. It maks me nervous.
MLH
January 20th, 2006 at 11:06 am [Reply]

I, too, suggest you read “Mutts”, which is pretty funny (by prevailing standards).

There is a strong case to be made that my hometown paper, the Chicago Tribune, runs two of the worst comics currently out there. I refer, of course, to “Dick Tracy” and “Brenda Starr, Reporter.” Both are wretchedly drawn, and have plotlines that make “The Phantom” look absolutely plausible. Perhaps fortunately, the Trib does not put its comics on line.

While the Houston Chronicle does not publish either (doubtless out of concern that younger readers will incur brain damage), both strips can be found at comicspage.com.
Adouble
January 20th, 2006 at 11:16 am [Reply]

While it is a weekly strip and not in the Chronicle, I’ll mention “Tom the Dancing Bug”. It is one of those complete hit-or-miss strips, and it could be both a source of laughter and an object of scorn.
Monkeys Uncle
January 20th, 2006 at 11:34 am [Reply]

I’m a bit late on this one, but I have to put in my votes for:
Monty
Agnes
Spot the Frog

All of them fun reads, give them about a month and you will be hooked.
Don’t forget Dick Tracey if you need a serial strip for some hardcore mocking.
It is not on the Houston Chronicle page but you should read Sheldon everyday (if your not already).
Jocko
January 20th, 2006 at 11:57 am [Reply]

Preteena gets my vote
pengoons
January 20th, 2006 at 12:01 pm [Reply]

Some suggestions and a question:

Comics to add to the list -

Stone Soup (family strip and often very funny, although not on the Chron site)
Rose is Rose
Mutts

And the question: my local paper has been doing its frequent screwing with the comics line-up, and is now experimenting with Cleats, which is a strip with which I’m not familiar. It’s been running for several weeks now and has not risen above lame once, but do any of you know if it gets better? Thanks -
FFF
January 20th, 2006 at 12:01 pm [Reply]

9 Chickweed Lane
Preteena
Bizarro
Rhymes With Orange
Six Chix
katya
January 20th, 2006 at 12:21 pm [Reply]

Baby Blues and Pickles are actually very good comics.

Fred Basset is a good making fun of comic. It’s got a weird British sensibility at times. A friend of mine became obsessed with this three panel comic, and would cut out the third panel of every Fred Basset he could find, and then send me a bunch of cut-up comics to figure out what belonged to what. The third panel missing part was because he thought they were all interchangeable, and that any would work.
Mark Tatulli
January 20th, 2006 at 12:31 pm [Reply]

I agree with Tracey. Please leave “Heart of the City” out of the mix. Who needs somebody examining ever thought bubble and nervous sweat drip of the their comic characters?! Not me, that’s for sure! I have trouble sleeping as it is.

Plus, I would hate to further contribute to someone’s nasty itchy bicuspid problem.
CMT
January 20th, 2006 at 12:42 pm [Reply]

I agree with LMK on Drabble. It’s the kind of strip that embarasses me–like grammatical errors in advertising campaigns–because the badness is so avoidable and yet, unfortunately, not avoided.
SatchelFan
January 20th, 2006 at 12:44 pm [Reply]

Sorry, MT(#184), but my vote is definitely to add “HotC.” It’s good!

Also, Josh, if you expand your daily online comic check-in to include the WaPo, I strongly recommend “Overboard.”
DCBirdblaster
January 20th, 2006 at 12:50 pm [Reply]

It’s been said before, and I’ll say it too. 9 Chickweed Lane and Pibgorn are a must read.

The humor in 9CL is there in a Seinfeldian sort of way, i.e. it reminds me of a Thursday night sitcom. And Pibgorn is more of a fantasy drama type of thingy.

But, the best feature of both comics is the artists ability to draw hot women. (Sometimes nude in Pibgorn)
BigJoe
January 20th, 2006 at 12:58 pm [Reply]

#181 – pengoons, the short answer to the Cleats question is: “No”

The long answer is: “No, almost never, rarely, once in a blue moon, Cathy is funnier.”
gershwin
January 20th, 2006 at 1:16 pm [Reply]

Speaking of Doonesbury, show tunes, and music experts, can anyone tell me whether Trudeau hates the American popular songbook, or whether only his radiotalkshowhost character does? From time to time he brings on a guest who used to be a rock star and now does standards. Hey, I hate most of those albums, too–but I get the feeling that Trudeau even hates the original music (of which I’m very fond, if the moniker hasn’t given that away).
Tracey
January 20th, 2006 at 1:25 pm [Reply]

Re #184:

Thanks for the concern about my dental issues, Mark. I always knew cartoonists had a heart, no pun intended.

If it helps, I love the mom and the cat, but those sci-fi stories can roll on forever and my mind starts to drift.
Chet McCord, Wildlife Defender
January 20th, 2006 at 1:32 pm [Reply]

Josh…

I think it’s about time we returned to Wil-burrr’s anguish. How much longer can it go on before his daughter beats his head in?

I think this story will move to the next part of the story within a month.

Any bets?
MotoMike
January 20th, 2006 at 1:52 pm [Reply]

I don’t know exactly why, but I’m getting a vague sense – just the merest, most subtle of feelings – one could almost call it a tiny, “one-thin-mint” amount of intuition – that Mallard Fillmore doesn’t have a huge group of fans on this site.

Is it just me?

Couple other comments on some other picks – I think that Luann is always comment-worthy, but I kind of like it, in spite of the fact that some of the jokes and stories are lame, characters are a wee bit wooden, etc. I think I have a lot of sympathy because I have a teenage daughter at home that it resonates with. I really still like FW (and its sister (brother) strip Crankshaft). All of which means that I wish we saw more comments about these.

And I’m still trying to figure out JP. Could it be that it’s actually outsourced to the [Superman comics'] Bizarro planet because they accept blue money, so it actually makes sense on that planet, but only appears to here? Am I going to have to read it for a lot longer before it starts to make sense to me (and if it does, should I start to see if I’ve turned a funny color?).

By the way, Josh, nice site.
Joe
January 20th, 2006 at 2:16 pm [Reply]

I couldn’t agree more with whomever recommended adding the Jumble. That’s a wonderful idea.
Bil Keane
January 20th, 2006 at 2:34 pm [Reply]

#157: C’mon, you’re not really Mark Tatulli.
Ron
January 20th, 2006 at 2:40 pm [Reply]

9 Chickweed Lane: good art, often merely art, almost plausible story line, usually funny.

Crankshaft and Piranha Club: these are both edgy, the latter usually in bad but often amusing taste.

Sherman’s Lagoon is always good for a laugh.
Chet McCord, Wildlife Defender
January 20th, 2006 at 2:45 pm [Reply]

If you don’t mind my saying so, I’m an excellent Jumble player. When I was unemployed, I would do the Jumble every day, “Air Jumble” (i.e., no pencil) if possible, and then play out each hand of the Goren and Sharif play Bridge column. Then it was time to look at the want ads. Ah, the memories.

Boy, does the Jumble artwork ever suck, though. Sheesh Always has, too.
MLH
January 20th, 2006 at 3:04 pm [Reply]

Kudos to Wendy! I remember “They’ll Do it Every Time” from my youth. One of the great things about comics is that even a nine-year old can tell when they suck / aren’t the least bit funny / are aimed at a demographic of Readers Digest subscribing, slow-driving, mothball-smelling, 75-year olds.

In other words, “They’ll Do it Every Time” is one of the first things that I ever independently recognized as being crap (other than “Nancy” and the Chicago Cubs). I assume that somewhere in this great land today, a nine-year old is reading “Pluggers” and, as a light goes on in his head, saying “This really stinks!” It gives me hope.

I hadn’t thought about “They’ll Do it Every Time” in at least 25 years, and am astonished that it’s still being published – it’s worse than “Gasoline Alley”.
Mary Brandt
January 20th, 2006 at 3:11 pm [Reply]

Aww, rats. I was going to suggest Frazz, the lovable story of a SCHOOL JANITOR, but it’s not on there.

…

Bleh.

-MB
Sassy_Rocks
January 20th, 2006 at 3:14 pm [Reply]

Saint Mikie ‘n Dee in bed talking about parenting her parents. Quick, where’s the barf bag?
lah
January 20th, 2006 at 3:20 pm [Reply]

Sherman’s lagoon is the consistantly funniest funny printed these days.
Thores
January 20th, 2006 at 3:27 pm [Reply]

9 Chickweed Lane, definitely. There are the annoying pointless dancing strips that show up maybe a bit too often, but when the writer actually focuses on plot, he’s an amazing storyteller and I’ve laughed at it several times. Also, it’s the first mainstream newspaper comic I’m aware of that has openly gay main characters in it. Whenever I see a gay joke in there I’m like “Oh no he didn’t!” but yes. Obviously, yes he did.

Opus can be very cute sometimes, and although it tends to try too hard to get its political jokes through, at least it’s less boring than Mallard Fillmore.
Sheila
January 20th, 2006 at 3:35 pm [Reply]

Ron, are you insane? How can you mention Crankshaft in the same breath as the Piranha Club??????

Isn’t Crankshaft basically Funky Winkerbean with whiskers and morning breath?
Phinneaus J. Whoopigoldberg
January 20th, 2006 at 3:40 pm [Reply]

Pluggers had a stomach joke about a Pluggers six-pack being a keg in the last week or so.

Luckliy, I think if a joke reaches Pluggers it means it’s officially dead.

I’ve heard this “joke” 50+ times over the past 10 years. Each person saying it and revelling in how witty they are. Thank you Pluggers for putting and end to this.
Thores
January 20th, 2006 at 3:41 pm [Reply]

Uh never mind about Opus, it’s not even on that page.
fuzzmaster
January 20th, 2006 at 4:24 pm [Reply]

9 Chickweed Lane: good art, often merely art, almost plausible story line, usually funny.

Hey, I’m a 9CL fan, too, but … “almost plausible?” You have seen the alien who dips his feet in the chronosynclastic infundibulum, haven’t you?

Also: Mutts? Apparently an acquired taste. But then I’ve never figured out why people think Krazy Kat was a classic, either.

And I’m voting for Heart of the City now. Maybe we can get Ces and the new boy to compete for our favor with in-jokes in the strips.
e
January 20th, 2006 at 4:30 pm [Reply]

Funky W – continuous story (though once they did not age) featuring alcoholism, cancer, and lawsuits – yet it’s usually supposed to be a funny strip!

Heart of the City – so precocious and sweet, how could you turn it down?

Mutts – ah, a comic where cats act like cats and dogs act like dogs. Not as humorously as in Get Fuzzy, but c’mon, if you’re wasting time reading Garfield…

Popeye – great characters, on-going storylines, and c’mon, it’s Popeye!
kevin
January 20th, 2006 at 5:05 pm [Reply]

Fusco Brothers and Mutts- exchellent strips, bofe of dem

http://www.uclick.com/client/wpc/fu/
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/comics/king.htm?name=Mutts
Jaz
January 20th, 2006 at 5:06 pm [Reply]

I have never read it regularly and also not lately, but Robotman is pretty great and can be enjoyed without irony.
Malcolm
January 20th, 2006 at 5:31 pm [Reply]

It is definitely the real Tatulli. Only the real Tatulli would come on these boards, pleading and whining “oh please don’t take my lunch money, pleeeeease!”

I say we stick it to him DOUBLE, just for being a wussy wuss.

Talk about out of touch. Heart’s blurb goes:
“She’s a savvy city girl who loves dressing up, playing with her Karlie and Ben dolls and dreaming of the day she’s finally allowed to get her ears pierced,”

Dreaming of flashing her boobs for beads, you mean, dreaming of pulling off the male stripper at a hen’s night, Get with it, pal, girls aren’t dreaming of having their ears pierced, but some other part of their anatomy.

Then, after you respect them for being a strong independent person, they make fun of your pink sweater in front of everybody and dump you for some guy who treats them like crap. That’s what happened to a friend of mine.
Lor
January 20th, 2006 at 5:44 pm [Reply]

I too nominate 9CL and Pibgorn for your enjoyment – gorgeous artwork, interesting characters.

Monty is one that’s consistently funny. The artwork alone makes me laugh.

For mockability, The Born Loser … actually it’s too pathetic to mock. That guy’s been in that godawful deadend job since when, the seventies? I’m waiting for him to go postal.
Grandpas Dead
January 20th, 2006 at 5:48 pm [Reply]

Jaz, it really has been awhile since you read Robotman. It was renamed “Monty” a few years back.
John James Audubon
January 20th, 2006 at 6:02 pm [Reply]

The alternative to the Chronicle limitation and the desire to not have to view multiple sites is Comic Alert:

http://www.comicalert.com/

You can even get web-based comics in the feeds you set up.

211 comments and no one mentioned this? I thought I discovered it at Curmudgeon!
Marc
January 20th, 2006 at 6:18 pm [Reply]

WOW! 212 (now 213) replies! I can’t believe I missed all of this….

Pickles (ACK) is carried on Sunday’s in my paper. Gah, I can’t stand it. It’s two old people arguing EVERYday….

What’s with all the lawsuits in the comic pages?!

–SF (Maybe)
–MW(Taking for ever)

I like how a magical broccolli bush appeared in the window behind Wilber today.
jobert
January 20th, 2006 at 6:59 pm [Reply]

You better check out Nancy. It seems for awhile now, Aunti Fritz is becoming real sexy, and I mean overly with her poses and stuff.

Plus you get Nancy and SLuggo’s innuendos. It’s a real killer. Go check out the archives and you’ll see what I mean.
Sherman
January 20th, 2006 at 7:43 pm [Reply]

How about “Moose Miller” or “Mister Tweedy?” Of course, I haven’t read many comics since the Seventies. Whatever happened to the Fascist band director in FW?
Anthony
January 20th, 2006 at 7:55 pm [Reply]

Re “Randolph Itch 2 AM” (see comment 152):

Randolph Itch wasn’t so much “pulled” from Comics.com but ended by the author. A condition of Toles accepting the Washington Post offer to become their editorial cartoonist back in 2002 was that he drop the syndicated strip. (See this thread from rec.arts.comics.strips at the time.) It’s a shame, but Randolph Itch was never as good as his stellar his editorial work.
Anthony
January 20th, 2006 at 8:19 pm [Reply]

katya wrote in comment 183:

A friend of mine became obsessed with [Fred Basset], and would cut out the third panel of every Fred Basset he could find, and then send me a bunch of cut-up comics to figure out what belonged to what. The third panel missing part was because he thought they were all interchangeable, and that any would work.

Is that anything like 5-Card Nancy?
JL Rake
January 20th, 2006 at 9:23 pm [Reply]

Didn’t read all the replies, but Brevity usualy cracks me up aloud in caseno one’s suggested it already. As single-panel series go, even more warped than Bizarro, usually in a good way.
KarenK
January 20th, 2006 at 10:12 pm [Reply]

PIckles. That’s the only one I’d recommend.
Dub Not Dubya
January 20th, 2006 at 10:25 pm [Reply]

Anthony 217, thanks for giving me a new time waster (the link on that page to 5-Card Nancy Solitaire). Good thing I have no life!
Tracey
January 20th, 2006 at 11:36 pm [Reply]

Re #209: I’m guessing that “Heart” makes more than your teeth itch. Relax, release, renew.

To Josh: Thank you for this site and over 200 of the funniest comments I’ve read in a long time. This more than makes up for you getting me hooked on Apt. 2G.
Jay Nickola
January 21st, 2006 at 12:02 am [Reply]

Thought I’d get obscurity points for suggesting “Tumbleweeds,” surprised to find at least 2 mentions of it here already. I’m sure it’s been 20 years since it ran in my local fishwrap. It would be a good challenge for a curmudgeon — it’s not fish- (or mallards)in-a-barrel bad, it’s just . . . there, although I remember sometimes the characters have been so highly stylized as to be indecpherable (“What is that, that . . . BLOB? Some sort of ambulatory pile of melons?”)

Also, #189: Gershwin, today (1/20), Doonesbury turned its sights to other targets, as if to make the point that, when you come right down to it, LOTS of music is stupid.
John
January 21st, 2006 at 1:42 am [Reply]

I highly recommend Rose Is Rose as it is quite possibly the most sickeningly sweet (and bad) strip that I have ever seen. Seriously, it could kill Family Circus if it touched it.

Jimbo revels in his private “garbage moments” (i.e., taking small bags of trash outside to the big cans)

Rose performs for the neighborhood birds

Pasquale has a spaceship to take him on his dream flights

Pasquale cavorts with his Guardian Angel

Rose fantasizes about . . . gasp . . . having long hair

There is no worse strip, other than Moonlights and Pillowfights and its sordid tales of pre-teen lust.
Daniel.
January 21st, 2006 at 8:23 am [Reply]

Ones to try out, at least for a while to get the flavor:

Sylvia–sometimes very funny, often not. Vaguely Dilbertish i.e. surreal and punchline-free. Crude scratchy drawing style hasn’t changed in years. Undercurrents of feminism and left-wing politics.

Bizarro. Continuity-free and sometimes funny one-paneler.

Mallard Fillmore. Walking talking right-wing journalist duck. Relentlessly, hilariously unfunny.

Rose Is Rose. Sentimental and unfunny, but ambitious. I think Brady is trying to be Watterson only without offending anyone. Nuclear family with 100% sweet loving nurturing dynamics, occasional appearances by psychopathic neighbor kid Clem for spice, lots of playing with viewpoints and fantasy worlds, polished drawing style.

Slylock Fox–actually “Comics for Kids”; it looks like the Slylock Fox part appears on Mondays on the Chronicle’s page. You are supposed to exercise your police skills: given a crime scene with an obvious disreputable-looking villain in it, protesting his innocence, and often some anthropomorphic animal victims, you are expected to find evidence of the criminal’s guilt. However, it is much more entertaining to play defense attorney and try to poke holes in the evidence. This second game is easy enough for kids to play as well. The author comes across as entertainingly blinkered.
Colin
January 21st, 2006 at 4:24 pm [Reply]

Is there ANYONE who thinks Mallard Fillmore is funny? And dear lord, Tumbleweeds and Redeye are still running? Is it even possible to kill a strip anymore?

I don’t always “get” Six Chix, so would appreciate occasional explication.

For non-ironic fun, Sherman’s Lagoon and Piranha Club, obviously.
Don
January 21st, 2006 at 5:23 pm [Reply]

I agree with various posters above, Pooch Cafe is really good (and poised to be the next big Canadian comic strip after FOBOFW ends its run) you can read it free here

http://www.ucomics.com/poochcafe/
I also love Overboard . The art isn’t the best, but I find it very funny, and much fresher than a lot of other comics
http://www.ucomics.com/overboard/

Also to everyone dissing Drabble, you’re wrong. Drabble is amazing

I feel there should be more discussion of Marmaduke, a comic rich in deeper meaning. Consider for example Marmaduke’s ongoing crusade against child molesters driving tiny pickup trucks
Allen
January 21st, 2006 at 5:38 pm [Reply]

Close to Home is so bad that it makes me hurt inside.
Malcolm
January 22nd, 2006 at 7:46 am [Reply]

Malard Fillmore is supposed to be a right wing character poking fun at the vagaries of politics, but unfortunately, the right wing is responsible for 90% of all that is laughable or worth condemning in world politics.

From a comedy generation point of view, especially in Dubyuh’s administration, it would be far better to have a strip poking a stick AT right wing journalism, a veritable goldmine of material, instead of from its standpoint.

Basically, FOX News is a walking parody on its own, with CNN not far behind.
plankface
January 22nd, 2006 at 11:11 pm [Reply]

On the off chance that anyone (Josh) is still reading comments on this thread, I add yet another vote for 9 Chickweed Lane, just because I feel like I need some perspective, and definitely, definitely Sylvia. I used to read it back when I was a kid and my parents subscribed to “The Funny Times.” It’s a little nutso and cat-obsessed (and basically as bleeding-heart liberal as you can get — not that I have a problem with that) but sometime surprisingly funny.
Mountain Mama
January 23rd, 2006 at 1:23 pm [Reply]

I haven’t read all these comments, but if you’re looking to add I suggest “Stone Soup.”
Anonymous
January 25th, 2006 at 2:08 pm [Reply]

I’m late to the party and I haven’t read the comments, but please, please let me throw in a vote for Fred Basset, which I think is the stupidest, most annoying, most inexplicable comic out there today, and that includes Wizard of Id. It’s worse than BC. That’s how terrible it is. Your life is not complete without a daily dose of Fred Basset, the world’s most banal little English? Australian? Martian? dog.
jouster
March 3rd, 2006 at 8:21 am [Reply]

Rhymes with Orange sucks.

It’s thunderingly obvious, completely uninventive and a competent middle-schooler could draw better.
Bob Hannan
May 13th, 2007 at 6:49 am [Reply]

I’m not talking about “OnLine” publication here, but If you can get a hold of them,
the (out of print) Berkeley Breathed OUTLAND books
never disappoint. Old BLOOM COUNTY is still syndicated as
a “Classic” in some venues but (I feel) Breathed really hit a peak
with the insane cast of characters in OUTLAND.

MALLARD FILLMORE makes my skin crawl but if you’e going to
rip it apart, then have at it!!
Carly
November 18th, 2007 at 12:34 am [Reply]

I have no idea if you get comments on old posts, but Houston Chronicle now has F Minus. It’s like Far Side, only stranger and occasionally making less sense.

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Metapost: Broadening my horizons

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