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'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

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Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#51

Post by chaostheory »

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…

They’re not supposed to be pro-social. The characters are supposed to represent the philosophers, John Calvin (predestination) and Thomas Hobbes (man is an animal). Watterson is probably making fun of them.

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#52

Post by jpadkins »

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…

there is a reason why they call TV programming.

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#53

Post by amanaplanacanal »

robertlagrant wrote: post #36
complianceowl wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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…

Dr Angela Collier just did a video on children's tv. She has some good recommendations. Evidently before she became an astrophysicist she got a degree in education. Who knew?

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#54

Post by chanakya »

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…

What are these contradictions and hypocrisies? Maybe I'm just old, but I've never understood the angst younger people seem to have these days.

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#55

Post by rkomorn »

amanaplanacanal wrote: post #49
rkomorn wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

Rick and Morty is absolutely not a kids show.

Yes, sorry, I had a non-sequitur between my two sentences. The first was about modern animated shows. The second was about how dialog in shows (not necessarily Rick and Morty) could affect kids.

Regardless, I also highly doubt that Rick and Morty is only consumed by people who are no longer susceptible to getting cues on how to interact with others from media.

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#56

Post by matthiaswh »

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…

We were there a few weekends ago. The C&H exhibit had quite the crowd!

It is largely a collection of original strips. You won't see anything new or original, that is not in one or more of the books. But it is interesting to see his process, to note where he made mistakes, to listen to everyone chuckle at one strip or another, and to see the progression of the characters and artist as you walk through the lifetime of the comic.

Well worth the trip!

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#57

Post by next_xibalba »

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…

I think Calvin was of a common archetype of that era. The sarcastic, mildly anti-heroic protagonist. And I think that archetype did all of us who grew up in that era and imbibed the culture were done a disservice. I, too, have found my way to respecting and admiring the pragmatic, the persistent, and even the earnest among us over the smart alecs and the sarcastic wits.

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#58

Post by aidenn0 »

robertlagrant wrote: post #36
complianceowl wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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…

Don't forget that in most shows where kids are the main-characters, adults in general (and particularly parents) are either absent or less mature than the kids. This is the easiest way to make the kids shine, but certainly communicates a particular message. I really respected Netflix's The Baby Sitters Club for not falling into that trap.

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#59

Post by andix »

dmoy wrote: post #45
andix wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I had to look up what curmudgeonliness means, Wiktionary was extremely helpful: curmudgeonliness: The state or condition of being curmudgeonly. okay, let's look up curmudgeonly: curmudgeonly: Characteristic of a curmudgeon; churlish nearly there: curmudgeon: An ill-tempered person full of stubborn ideas or opinions, often an older man.

Yea English be like that sometimes Look up some crazy sounding 20+ character word, takes three steps, and then you get a definition of the sub-sub-sub word and it says ".... blah blah, derived from the Greek base - and then also the Latin base - ", and you realize you had no chance at getting it from any kind of first principles or anything.

I meant the remarks about wiktionary in a sarcastic way. Explaining the word’s meaning twice by itself was a bit funny.

Especially as it’s not a very common word a lot of non-native speakers need to look up. Probably also a few native speakers.

Re: 'Calvin and Hobbes' at 40

#60

Post by takinola »

HeinzStuckeIt wrote: post #7

IMO, Watterson stopped at just the right time to preserve his legacy and keep the strip associated with childlike wonder and innocence. In the last years of C&H there was a certain curmudgeonliness creeping in, as Waterson started to mock modern commerce and art. I think the cartoonist was naturally growing older and more disillusioned, and his strip faintly started to sound like Calvin’s dad instead of Calvin.

If memory serves, Waterson said the later years were colored by his feelings from dealing with publishers. One of the most memorable comics for me is one where Calvin ends up in bed after resisting his parents' bedtime commands. In the final panel he bitterly declares that clearly his desires have no impact on his outcomes.
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