Calvin and Hobbes: Always My Favorite

Growing up, I found I liked a lot of things that were a bit behind my generation. I would have been very happy being born 5-10 years earlier than I was, in all reality, or farther. I watched Starsky and Hutch reruns (the original tv show, not the crappy movie) on tv with my mom – though while she had a crush on Starsky, I liked Hutch – should have been indicative of my choices later in life, as I married a blond, blue-eyed boy. 🙂 But I digress. I still love sketch comedy, like Red Skelton.

Another thing I loved was Calvin and Hobbes. So when Jonathan Gunson tweeted about Calvin and Hobbes being the best comic strip ever and linked to this site, I was so happy. Back home, my parents have all of the book collections of the comic strip, and my brothers and I love just sitting down and chuckling over them.

For those who don’t know (which, when you hit my generation and younger, you don’t get that many people who know, I don’t think) Calvin and Hobbes was a comic strip that ran from November 18, 1985, to December 31, 1995. Calvin was this 6 year old who was way too smart for his age and had a very adventurous imagination. Hobbes was his stuffed tiger, who in his mind was his best friend and is a real tiger (but everyone else in the comic strip just saw him as a stuffed animal).

I won’t go into why I loved the comic strip; that would be a very long post.  I will, however, share some of the “Sixteen Things Calvin and Hobbes Said Better Than Anyone Else” from the bookriot.com link Jonathan Gunson shared and from other Calvin and Hobbes sites I find.

On life’s constant little limitations – Calvin: “You know, Hobbes, some days even my lucky rocket ship underpants don’t help.”

On the unspoken truth behind the education system – Calvin: “As you can see, I have memorized this utterly useless piece of information long enough to pass a test question. I now intend to forget it forever. You’ve taught me nothing except how to cynically manipulate the system. Congratulations.”

On realising God is more Woody Allen than Michael Bay – Calvin: “They say the world is a stage. But obviously the play is unrehearsed and everybody is ad-libbing his lines.”

Hobbes: “Maybe that’s why it’s hard to tell if we’re living in a tragedy or a farce.”

Calvin: “We need more special effects and dance numbers.”

From other sites:

Calvin: “Dad, are you vicariously living through me in the hope that my accomplishments will validate your mediocre life and in some way compensate for all of the opportunities you botched?”
Dad: “If I were, you can bet I’d be re-evaluating my strategy.”
Calvin to his mom, later: “Mom, Dad keeps insulting me.”

Calvin: “You can’t just turn on creativity like a faucet. You have to be in the right mood.
Hobbes: “What mood is that?
Calvin: “Last-minute panic.”

Calvin: “Girls are like slugs. They serve some purpose, but it’s hard to imagine what.”

Calvin: “I’ve been thinking Hobbes –”
Hobbes: “On a weekend?”
Calvin: “Well, it wasn’t on purpose…”

Enjoy looking up more Calvin and Hobbes comics, and have a good weekend.

Thanks to Josh Smith (http://www.flickr.com/photos/joshsmith/) for the top Calvin and Hobbes graphic.

Thanks to yugenro (http://www.flickr.com/photos/yugen/) for the Calvin and Hobbes comic strip.

About Brittany Westerberg

I'm a lover of writing and books. I graduated from South Dakota State with a master's degree in communications in 2011, the same year I was first published. I'm a wife and mom, and I work in marketing in Sioux Falls.