Before the dawn of the internet age, people read comic books and newspapers. Something every child of that era would look forward to Saturday morning cartoons on TV and Sunday morning comic strips on the newspaper. Here are the best Sunday comic strips of all time.
• Calvin And Hobbes (1985-1995)
Calvin and Hobbes is one of the most iconic comic strips of all time and is the brainchild of Bill Watterson. It had everything from joy, pain, humour and philosophy. Watterson was very particular about his work and fought everything that came into direct conflict with his uncompromising vision. He fought to have the chance to tell his story, how he wanted to. The fruit of his labour was something of beauty and the 3000 strip journey of a boy and his stuffed tiger is a tremendous piece of art.
• Peanuts (1950-2000)
It is kind of absurd to be talking about how popular peanuts is because it is evident everywhere you look from t-shirts, blimps and tattoos. The creator Charles Schulz has left his mark on pop culture in a way that will be endured for years to come. The comic strip has a feel of melancholy throughout its humour and is thoroughly rooted in a child’s loneliness and miscommunication. But nevertheless, it has become one of the biggest comic strips to ever hit the printing press.
• Garfield (1978-present)
Garfield is not what it used to be. Jim Davis when he started out with his comic strips, there used to be a lot more heart in Garfield, it used to be funny. Today, the comic strip is drawn by other artists as Davis controls the media empire that he created with Garfield. Garfield has the biggest pop culture influence out of all the comics mentioned in this list. Spawning multiple feature-length movies, TV shows Garfield has left a lasting impression on our pop culture scene even if the Monday-hating, lasagna-eating orange cat is way past his prime.
• Far Side (1980-1995)
Gary Larson used single panel comics as a way to tell some hilarious human truths. His wife who was an anthropologist heavily influenced his work. He would commonly use animals, Hell, cavemen and people who were trapped on deserted islands to tell his stories. There would be a simple sentence below his artwork which accentuated the whole piece resulting in some hilarious moments. This is a great read and if you haven’t read it yet- it is highly recommended.
• Life in Hell (1977-2012)
Life in Hell was a comic strip by Matt Groening, the creator of one of the biggest animated shows ever- The Simpsons. He started the strip before the success of the show when he was a struggling animator living in Los Angeles. It was an outlet for him to channel his frustrations in life involving his work, love and life in general. But as The Simpson came around, the strip took the back burner on his priority list until it was finally retired in 2012. Even though it wasn’t as important as his piece de resistance it stood as a testament to his creativity as it was a better product than most of the comedy you find today.