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'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

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Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#31

Post by danaris »

My wife and I will actually be going to an exhibition of Watterson's work this weekend—we're lucky enough to live not too far from Cooperstown, NY, where the Fenimore House Art Museum has the exhibition running all this fall.

As an '80s kid, Calvin and Hobbes ran for almost my entire childhood, and we have a number of the collections. I never fail to be impressed either by Watterson's talent, both in the art and in choosing the right words to say, nor by his integrity and restraint, both in refusing to allow his work to be merchandised and in choosing to stop when he did—when he felt he had said all he came to say.

Many more artists of all types could take so many lessons from him. Even some that are already great. He is a very humble man, but he stands among the legends of our time.

Edit: realized it would be good to add a link to the exhibition: https://fenimoreartmuseum.org/future-exhibitions/calvin-and-...

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#32

Post by complianceowl »

NiloCK wrote: post #26

That is just two years after I burst onto the page. Calvin and Hobbes was a major part of my childhood - I loved it. For something casually consumed on the daily at the breakfast table, it was so earnestly, so obviously, smarter than the median cultural offering. Smarter also then the local nightly news broadcasts. Smarter also than the median educational intervention I experienced through elementary and middle schoo…

You know, your comment reminds me of something my wife and I were talking about. We have been starting to let our child have a little more screen time and choose what he wants to watch (within the parameters we set).

Some shows and movies seem harmless, initially, but then we noticed in so many kids movies (e.g., Zootopia, Sing), they're always yelling at each other, expressing anger, frustration, and hostility towards one another.

Then we wonder why kids adopt those attitudes. It's simply because mimic what they see. And worse yet, when they see it in movie/show form, they think those attitudes are cool and relatable.

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#33

Post by elicash »

danaris wrote: post #31

My wife and I will actually be going to an exhibition of Watterson's work this weekend—we're lucky enough to live not too far from Cooperstown, NY, where the Fenimore House Art Museum has the exhibition running all this fall. As an '80s kid, Calvin and Hobbes ran for almost my entire childhood, and we have a number of the collections. I never fail to be impressed either by Watterson's talent, both in the art and in c…

A painting of a comic strip panel. Sophisticated irony. Philosophically challenging... "high" art.

https://featureassets.gocomics.com/assets/318702d0df96013172...

(I am genuinely considering a trip to Cooperstown now.)

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#34

Post by alsetmusic »

What a profound and beautiful comic. The art. The storytelling. The expanse of Calvin's vivid imagination.

Every day, I have a reminder to think of three things for which I'm grateful. I was just trying to find the third for today when I saw this headline.

I am grateful that I love my tattoos (and have no regret, which is the risk of tattoos), one of which is Stupendous Man. He was the first and it's because CnH holds such a special place in my heart. The comic largely shaped my childhood.

Bill Waterson had the integrity not to license his work, preferring that the reader not have the characters spoiled. He opted not to make boatloads of money in making this decision (cough, garfield, snoopy). He also declared that Sunday papers could print his comic unbroken or they could drop him and this allowed for truly magnificent art pieces where stories could be told in new ways. His integrity is legendary in the field.

Check out his recent work, The Mysteries.

https://www.comicsbeat.com/graphic-novel-review-bill-watters...

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#35

Post by andrepd »

dhosek wrote: post #21
fruitplants wrote: post #18

Calvin's dad was quite a character, wasn't he?

My role model as a parent. I had the why are old pictures in black and white conversation with my kids almost word for word. It wasn’t until they were in fourth grade that they learned that the world didn’t used to be black and white. I think they still believe what I told them about how they determine weight limits for bridges though.

You should show then the linear velocity vs angular velocity thing, to keep them awake until 3am

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#36

Post by robertlagrant »

complianceowl wrote: post #32
NiloCK wrote: post #26

That is just two years after I burst onto the page. Calvin and Hobbes was a major part of my childhood - I loved it. For something casually consumed on the daily at the breakfast table, it was so earnestly, so obviously, smarter than the median cultural offering. Smarter also then the local nightly news broadcasts. Smarter also than the median educational intervention I experienced through elementary and middle schoo…

You know, your comment reminds me of something my wife and I were talking about. We have been starting to let our child have a little more screen time and choose what he wants to watch (within the parameters we set). Some shows and movies seem harmless, initially, but then we noticed in so many kids movies (e.g., Zootopia, Sing), they're always yelling at each other, expressing anger, frustration, and hostility towar…

> Some shows and movies seem harmless, initially, but then we noticed in so many kids movies (e.g., Zootopia, Sing), they're always yelling at each other, expressing anger, frustration, and hostility towards one another.

My kids are similar. Years ago I actually just unplugged the TV and put it behind some furniture for 3 months because I was so fed up. It calmed them down a lot (this was after Covid lockdowns, when we'd just given them too much TV) but still - it flares up.

I do think a lot of kids tv is either straight addictive (e.g. Cocomelon) or depicts how kids would like to behave, e.g. in how they talk to adults rudely (e.g. how they talk to the dad in Peppa Pig), or they're always right and the adults are wrong (too may examples to name). Bluey is the saving grace there, as it depicts healthy and respectful relationships, but it's very unusual.

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#37

Post by buildbot »

lylejohnson wrote: post #29
h2zizzle wrote: post #11

Growing up, we had collected volumes of Calvin and Hobbes, Garfield, and The Boondocks. Surprisingly good bedfellows. Covered the bases, so to speak.

I also tend to associate "Bloom County" with "Calvin and Hobbes". I think I was reading both of them around the same time.

Same here, though I started bloom county a lot later. Almost all of my 80s cultural knowledge stems from that comic haha…

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#38

Post by rkomorn »

complianceowl wrote: post #32
NiloCK wrote: post #26

That is just two years after I burst onto the page. Calvin and Hobbes was a major part of my childhood - I loved it. For something casually consumed on the daily at the breakfast table, it was so earnestly, so obviously, smarter than the median cultural offering. Smarter also then the local nightly news broadcasts. Smarter also than the median educational intervention I experienced through elementary and middle schoo…

You know, your comment reminds me of something my wife and I were talking about. We have been starting to let our child have a little more screen time and choose what he wants to watch (within the parameters we set). Some shows and movies seem harmless, initially, but then we noticed in so many kids movies (e.g., Zootopia, Sing), they're always yelling at each other, expressing anger, frustration, and hostility towar…

I don't have kids so I never thought about it from that angle, but I really dislike how yell-y so many modern animated shows are. Couldn't make it through a single episode of Rick and Morty.

I'd never thought how it might impact kids, but now that you mention it, I can only dislike the trend more.

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#39

Post by keepamovin »

NiloCK wrote: post #26

That is just two years after I burst onto the page. Calvin and Hobbes was a major part of my childhood - I loved it. For something casually consumed on the daily at the breakfast table, it was so earnestly, so obviously, smarter than the median cultural offering. Smarter also then the local nightly news broadcasts. Smarter also than the median educational intervention I experienced through elementary and middle schoo…

The first C&H comic strip compared to the last one:

https://imgur.com/a/semJX

:.)

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#40

Post by megaloblasto »

dhosek wrote: post #21
fruitplants wrote: post #18

Calvin's dad was quite a character, wasn't he?

My role model as a parent. I had the why are old pictures in black and white conversation with my kids almost word for word. It wasn’t until they were in fourth grade that they learned that the world didn’t used to be black and white. I think they still believe what I told them about how they determine weight limits for bridges though.

I hope this is a joke. Calvin's dad lying to him wasn't supposed to be idealized.
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