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Introduction to Calvin and Hobbes: Sunday Pages 1985-1995 (2001)

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Re: Introduction to Calvin and Hobbes: Sunday Pages 1985-1995 (2001)

#61

Post by irrational »

I was a teenager in the 80s. I can remember going outside in the dark before school to get the paper so I could read C&H during breakfast. I didn’t know at the time that they would someday be reprinted in books, so I would cut each one out and tape it into a notebook.

The other main comic strip I enjoyed at that time was The Far Side. Recently I reread both Calvin and Hobbes and the Far Side. Calvin and Hobbes is still just as good as a 50s year old adult (though I find I now identify a lot more with the parents). But, I didn’t find the same thing to be true of The Far Side. Some of the Far Side strips are wonderful - like The School of the Gifted - but most just fell flat for me.

Re: Introduction to Calvin and Hobbes: Sunday Pages 1985-1995 (2001)

#62

Post by lkdfjlkdfjlg »

vinnyvichy wrote: post #55
bdjsiqoocwk wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ah!, speaking of merchandise. I once read an essay about the idea of, if you have a successful artistic creation, should you exploit it financially, for example by selling rights for someone else to find new income streams (Bill Waterson famously never did.) The essay argued that even if you are primarily motivated by art and not money, you should for the reason that money being the motivating factor for so many acti…

Sounds like this essay https://www.hbs.edu/ris/Publication%2520Files/09-128.pdf

Hey! Listen, the abstract exactly matches what I described.

However, I believe that the essay I read specifically mentioned C&H as an example, which CTRL-F indicates your pdf doesn't. (On the other hand, it's also possible that I originally did read your pdf and in my mind used C&H as an example, and am now mis-remembering it haven been presented as example).

Regardless, I'll read your pdf, thank you!

Re: Introduction to Calvin and Hobbes: Sunday Pages 1985-1995 (2001)

#63

Post by 7thaccount »

tomrod wrote: post #40

Calvin and Hobbes was a source of happiness during a mostly miserable adolescence. My world is better for Bill Watterson having been in it, even if he'll never know that himself.

Same. Calvin and Hobbes were always out having fun and I used to dream about having some kind of friend to hang out with where we could go on those kinds of adventures. I spent a lot of my time being lonely and bored and these comics were a great escape.

Having a daughter many years later in my adulthood has been awesome though and we go on all kinds of adventures and read stories together and play games and all kinds of stuff. In a way, it is kind of like getting a second crack at childhood and I want to make sure she isn't as lonely as I was. Of course you can't stifle your kids or live vicariously through them (I definitely draw some lines and give her as much freedom as you can in the modern day).

Re: Introduction to Calvin and Hobbes: Sunday Pages 1985-1995 (2001)

#65

Post by bombcar »

irrational wrote: post #61

I was a teenager in the 80s. I can remember going outside in the dark before school to get the paper so I could read C&H during breakfast. I didn’t know at the time that they would someday be reprinted in books, so I would cut each one out and tape it into a notebook. The other main comic strip I enjoyed at that time was The Far Side. Recently I reread both Calvin and Hobbes and the Far Side. Calvin and Hobbes is sti…

Far Side really works well on a “one a day” timeline - binging it doesn’t work as well as it does with C&H.

Re: Introduction to Calvin and Hobbes: Sunday Pages 1985-1995 (2001)

#66

Post by bombcar »

lkdfjlkdfjlg wrote: post #39
lupire wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Calvin and Hobbes was extremely mainstream. It only stopped being so because the creator stopped creating content for it. Spider-Man, for all its merchandising and marketing, doesn't have people chasing down old content in dying formats. It is supported by new content in modern formats.

Old spider-man content sells for a lot more than old calvin and hobbes content. > Calvin and Hobbes was extremely mainstream. It only stopped being so because the creator stopped creating content for it. I think that's exactly the point. It stopped being mainstream. Spiderman continues to be mainstream because the original author passed on the rights and now it will live for longer than the original author. Calvin an…

Which is exactly what Watterson wanted.

(He famously “came back” for a gag, but he hasn’t “sold out” and is apparently happy doing what he does, set for life.)

https://stephanpastis.wordpress.com/2014/06/07/ever-wished-t...

Re: Introduction to Calvin and Hobbes: Sunday Pages 1985-1995 (2001)

#68

Post by slater- »

darby_nine wrote: post #34
lostlogin wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> His work deserves that honor as much as, if not more than, Bob Dylan. Could you explain why? I love Calvin and Hobbes. However Dylan played a role in political and human rights movements at a key time. I don’t see this sort of influence in Calvin and Hobbes and Watterson was apparently fired from one job for his lack of political knowledge (assuming the wikipedia entry is correct).

Some of the best literature ever written isn't very "important" (although, I think you're greatly underestimating Calvin & Hobbes's influence) Secondly, I also question the influence of Bob Dylan. There's no indication that he was anything but a reflection of the political turmoil at the time. He was just a poet with some banger turns of phrase. I also found his emotional distance to the actual politics to be rather…

incorrect to compare Dylan to 2pac and Mitski (a “varied feminist artist?”)

I understand the impulse of trying to tear down the establishment guy, but your take is absurd.

Re: Introduction to Calvin and Hobbes: Sunday Pages 1985-1995 (2001)

#69

Post by hnlmorg »

rsynnott wrote: post #60
TeMPOraL wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The Nobel Prize in Literature is awarded for producing "the most outstanding work in an idealistic direction" with "the greatest benefit on mankind". They should award one posthumously to Gene Roddenberry then. After all, the Federation from Star Trek is pretty much the only well-known case of an utopia that actually works in fiction writing, and the show itself is one of few examples of aspirational and inspiratio…

> After all, the Federation from Star Trek is pretty much the only well-known case of an utopia that actually works in fiction writing Eh. I mean, by Voyager/DS9 it has secret police, and _literal mine slaves_ (old-model sentient holographic doctors). And it appears to be _basically_ a military dictatorship; the civil government in practice always seems to be subordinate to Starfleet. It also happily trades away inha…

All the negative sides you’ve described is portrayed after Gene Roddenberry died and he was famously against a lot of those concepts while he was alive. DS9 would never have been green-lit during Roddenberry’s lifetime.

> We also don’t see that much of how Federation _civilians_ live, and a lot of what we do see frankly isn’t that great.

That’s not true. The worlds that aren’t great are planets outside of federation jurisdiction. Those that are part of it are usually portrayed as utopias.

That all said, you’ve hit on a great premise for a Star Trek spin off.

Edit:

> And it appears to be _basically_ a military dictatorship; the civil government in practice always seems to be subordinate to Starfleet.

The partnership is explored in DS9 and was the exact opposite of that you’ve described.

In the DS9 episode I’m thinking of, shapeshifters (“changelings”) had taken over Star Fleet (the military) and were then trying to bypass the Federation to start a war. Basically a military coup lead by a small number of infiltrators. The remainder of the military were against the coup, which is why they were found out and the coup failed.

Re: Introduction to Calvin and Hobbes: Sunday Pages 1985-1995 (2001)

#70

Post by vunderba »

tomrandle wrote: post #8

I was introduced to Calvin and Hobbes (as well as Sam and Max) as a kid by a taxi driver when on holiday in Florida in the 90s. Loved both. It’s been a delight to re read them with my son recently. I somewhat lament it’s not possible to by any merchandise though! I’d love to have a big print of the pair in their radio flyer crashing down the hill!

If the distasteful proliferation of the "Calvin peeing" bumpersticker is anything to go by, thank spaceman spiff Watterson sealed the floodgates of merchandising and marketing garbage.
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