The DCR: Funday Sunnies - 9/8/2013

by Hal Bent

Happy Sunday! Extra panels, color in print, and a big honking section in the Sunday (physical) paper. With the death of print news, I'm finally back in the game buying the Sunday paper again after oh so long letting it go. It's kind of odd seeing the comics in print after reading them online for so long. Just an observation. So without further ado, the Daily Comics Review:

9 Chickweed Lane by Brooke McEldowney:

This is entertaining in a "all politicians are scum" kind of way that McEldowney gets fired up about every once in a while. I approve. 

Adam@Home by Brian Basset:

Somedays you need to just throwaway the throwaway panels. Like the world needs a thorough close-up of Adam's giant nose snoring away? You know he's snoring. God, do we get a close-up of his back hair next week? Yuck!

Ziggy by Tom Wilson & Tom II & The Other Coast by Adrian Raeside:

Wait, if Zigs here were fly-fishing, he'd be depicted in hip waders in a river or stream and replicating the flies landing on or near the water, not a dead bug sitting at the bottom of the pond which was the situation is drawn as above.  He has the stereotypical hat with the flies attached, but is he so dumb he doesn't understand fly fishing?

See "The Other Coast", Tom & Tom? That's the way you do it. Ziggy gets shown up by other comics today! Yeehah!
And his boat is named "Rosebud"? Are we getting "Citizen Kane" references in Ziggy? Does Ziggy secretly love old movies? Is he a big Orson Wells fan (more than likely).
Forget it, what's important to remember is that even the animals detest Ziggy and find fault in everything he does.
Rose is Rose by Don Wimmer / Created by Pat Brady:

This comic is only entertaining when the husband checks out his mother-in-law and wished his wife was tubby like her. Seriously. Leaning against trees, taking out the trash and turning it into a spiritual experience, pretending to be a biker chick, talking in gibberish, that crap goes on all the time here in Rose is Rose, but when they get into the husband's deviant sexual side and inappropriate fantasies, then it gets interesting. Just saying. Sure, it is not going on here and is just boring as usual. I mean, this one is strip 8,452 about the cat sniffing that I can remember. Yup, big theme in this comic. Boo, get the comics back to deviant sexual thoughts already!


The Norm by Michael Jantze:
Funny, I didn't see anything that said "Joke recycled and NOT updated from 1996" anywhere on this comic. When was the last time anyone ever heard or used the exact phrase "CD-Rom" anyway? I mean, I know digital music was big only 15 years ago, but a nice generic office setup is ruined here. 

Boy, two straight days with the Norm...I'm watching you, Jantze!

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The DCR: Saturday Specials - 09/07/2013

by Hal Bent

So much for "daily". This week got away from me in a hurry. Anyhow, no excuse for Saturday (only a half day at work, hooray!).  So without further ado, the Daily Comics Review (ooh, snappy. I might keep that!)

9 Chickweed Lane by Brooke McEldowney:

Umm, where the hell is her nose in panel three? I mean, its just gone. I feel like I should use the Futurama term and say that her "human horn" is missing.  Hmmm, maybe it is being used as an aphrodisiac on Omicron Persei Eight. 

Adam@Home by Brian Basset:

I've got to say, as much as I despise Adam, I have the utmost respect for his wife: Sure, she made a horrible decision to marry the balding, potato-nosed, annoying, cloying, non-funny, hairy slob, but she has conviction: she has far too much belief in the sanctity of marriage; she believes her children need a two-parent dynamic; and she gets plenty of "you-know-what" on the side. 
That said, are they drinking coffee at bedtime. I initially assumed it was tea, but I see no teabag label. Sure, it could be a situation where some nice tea was brewed and not just hot water with a bag, but who knows.  It could be decaf, sure. But why are they both drinking coffee (always spoken in reverent terms by the hideous title character) at this time of night?
Ahh, Adam's wife is off for a little "you-know-what" on the side until 5 am and Adam is going to roll up in a ball in the bedroom, watch some late night Cinemax, and cry all night long.  

Ziggy by Tom Wilson & Tom II:

A great plan by "IHZ Airlines": create an airline to fly one flight. Market said flight to the pantsless, big schnozz loser that goes by Ziggy, have three parachutes for the captain, co-pilot and one flight attendant. Fly with the only passenger the airline ever marketed to: Ziggy. Take off and crash the plane into a mountain, but first scare the bejesus out of Ziggy. Perfect. 

The Norm by Michael Jantze:

Nahh, this guy is just stupid.

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The Daily Comics Review: Ziggy, Soon to be a Slave to the U.S. Government

by Hal Bent

Late getting to it today, but we're getting to it.  Let me start off with my usual hatred of all things Ziggy to get the ball rolling and make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside: 

Ziggy by Tom Wilson & Tom II:

Hah, hah, Ziggy, you pant-less freak!  Not all indentured servitude in the past was voluntary and Ziggy is going to be hauled to the document shredding department of the IRS for the next few years.  Of course, the US Government is going to provide food, accommodation, clothing and training as part of the servitude so at least he has to wear pants.  Also, I can hold onto the hope that tax-dodge Ziggy here, like most indentured servants in history, don't live out their term due to the oppressive working conditions.  No more Ziggy, ahhh, what a lovely world that would be...


The Norm by Michael Jantze:

Now that's a snarky comic!  Well done, Michael Jantze, a tip of the cap to you for calling out the coffee baristas with their uppity poor service. That said, short of McDonalds, where do you find a cup of joe for a buck?


Lucky Cow by Mark Pett:

Today brings us the rebuttal to the Norm and their poor service in Lucky Cow (Home of the $1 coffee?).  Neil shows that poor customer service is derived from lack of intuition, ignorance, and inability to care about some poor shaded out patron's hatred of all things mayonnaise.  The Mayonnaise Murderer struck immediately after leaving the Lucky Cow restaurant, enraged at being denied his mustard and committed crimes of hideous nature that the mind cannot comprehend (short of having ever watched NCIS, CSI, Law & Order, etc...OK, so easy to imagine carnage).


The Middletons by Ralph Dunagin and Dana Summers:

I've never casually compared cable bills with my neighbor at the fence.  Not something I'd think of doing, I guess.  That said, I'd pay $10 a month to keep that Honey Boo Boo crap of my telly. So what else do these two compare at the fence each day?  Tomorrow on the Middletons, Moustache Guy whips it out to compare size with the neighbor?

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Cow belts and smashed thumbs

Happy Wednesday, everyone! Time for some more comics review. Also, after several weeks of laziness, I've updated my webcomic. Check it out if you like hedgehogs, are unemployed, or are just bored and aimlessly surfing the web.

Adam@Home

I always find it jarring when I see jokes about comics or cartoonists in the funny pages. The author is being a bit too self-referencial for my tastes. If you want to have an autobiographical strip, just go all out and do it. Adam doesn't appear to be in the comics business, so it's a bit weird for him to revere Calvin and Hobbes this much.

The Argyle Sweater

The gag is mildly amusing. But leather is made from actual cow skin. I don't think a belt made from shaved cow hair would work very well.

Boomerangs

The mom here may be right, but shoving a book in your daughter's face and saying, "See? This is what's wrong with you!" doesn't seem very respectful. Generally, it's a bad idea to bring up transference during an argument. I tried with my girlfriend one time and... well, let's just say a smashed thumb would have been a better outcome.

The Norm, 8/30/11

Ug. This strip is the equivalent of one those annoying television recap episodes. If a storyline needs this much infographics then perhaps it's a bit too complicated for a daily comic.

The Other Coast

This gag is a rip-off of Monty Python.

Ziggy

Look who's talking, barkeep! Though this being the Ziggy universe, that guy probably just doesn't like Ziggy and quickly made up some crap to keep him out.

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Balloon-Human Hybrids Are Here! Get Yours Now!

So last week I got called a "fuckrag" which is actually pretty tame considering what I have been called at work. I work for the Federal government so I've been called a lot worse than fuckrag. What is a fuckrag anyway?

Blondie 4/25/10

Wow. Herb has just royally screwed Dagwood. Not to mention possibly hurting his life-long friendship. Oh well, Dagwood will still have Daisy.

Slylock Fox and Comics for Kids 4/25/10

I realize Slylock is the end all be all of justice in this woodland hamlet but even Slylock has to admit that if there is no evidence of Shady Shrew having stolen the acorns then there is no case.

The Lockhorns 4/25/10

I, for one, am pleased that Leroy has finally manned up and bought himself that stripper he was always going on about. And what's even better is that Loretta doesn't look the least bit like she's going to make him return it.

The Norm 4/25/10

Michael Jantze has read a Superman comic since the 1970s right? Lois really hasn't needed Superman since 1986 and these days of course Superman is going to rescue her, she is his wife after all.

Dick Tracy 4/25/10

Sadly that cell phone didn't help that guy in the bed. He's already dead!

Amazing Spider-Man 4/25/10

Sabretooth got to Miami pretty quickly. I love how Sabretooth isn't even hurting anyone, he's just causing property damage. If this were a comic book he'd be slashing chests and snapping necks.

Girls & Sports 4/25/10

I like Girls & Sports unlike fellow DCRer (DCRist? DCRite?) MikeP. Anyway, I hope Mike likes the fact that every woman Marshall has ever been near responds to his actions with disgust.

Also, the Girls & Sports Wikipedia page is in need of some re-writing.

Shoe 4/25/10

Just a week after I complain about how we never see the character the strip is named after, he's here! However, I stand by the opinion that Shoe is still a terrible comic.

Beetle Bailey 4/25/10

What in the hell is going on here? Is General Halftrack some sort of weird balloon-human hybrid? I am so confused by Halftrack's odd affliction and by Mrs. Halftrack apparently wearing her bathrobe while they are...what? Were they going to church or something or were they going to the doctor anyway?

How much does Mort Walker drink these days?

Brevity 4/25/10

And just because it's funny.


And yes I called a stripper "it". Even if it walks like a person, talks like a person and looks like a person, strippers are dead inside.

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October is Here With Comics and Cheer!

What is this traveling on the wind? It can't be October already! Fall produces some of the best and worst comic strips all year. The holidays and crazy weather provide ample fodder for cartoonist the world over. I don't usually get sick up it until about December 26th.

Loose Parts 10/1/08

This is the biggest doctors office in the whole world.


The Norm 10/1/08

A few quibbles with this comic strip today. 1:Bronte isn't a real name, even for a girl. 2:Nobody carries around a picture of somebody who isn't even their girlfriend. 3:Norm's friend is absolutely right.


We The Robots 10/1/08

Have I mentioned recently that I am looking for more people to join me in blogging for the Daily Comics Review so I can have some free time and it can be updated in a timely manner?


Sally Forth 10/1/08

Ted is forgetting one of the seminal rules of marriage. Any time you talk about another woman, you must cite something atrocious about her so that your wife doesn't get suspicious. We'll be seeing the repercussions of the lack of his foresight for the rest of the week!


Gasoline Alley 10/1/08

It has NOT been long enough since this war in Iraq started to be making jokes about it, I mean did they forget that it's still going? This strip is like watching a car crash day after day after day...

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Sundays Comics Done Differently 6/22/08

I know we usually just bring you the best of the comic strips here on Sundays but I wanted to mix it up a little and talk about what I see as the biggest problems with the Sunday funnies. But first I wanted to point out a great strip that is running for its last day today:

Single and Looking 6/22/08

If you ever enjoyed this strip, as I did often, visit the website and drop Matt Janz a line and some appreciation for his hard work over the years. I personally hope he continues publishing the strip in different format like a web comic so that I can continue to follow the adventures of his great characters. Now on to our other Sunday feature.

As formulaic as most daily comic strips are, Sunday comics offer more space and less restraint of creativity than the other 6 days a week. Unfortunately, many comic artists either too lazy or just don't know what to do with the space.

Adam @ Home 6/22/08

Adam@Home is a classic example of a strip that poorly uses it's space. The giant throw-away name panel and then four dialog-free panels that could have been minimized in to one good perspective shot, but instead we have a lot of filler with a lazy punchline about gas prices. Haven't heard that one before.


For Better or For Worse 6/22/08

Another strip that recycles the same thing almost every weekend is FBOFW. Tons of short action panels with the joke in the last frame. When you have an identity crisis like this strip does with never knowing if it's a humor strip or a soap opera, having the same old formula for big old scary Sundays must give some comfort. At least you can go back and read the strip again and it's almost funny if you think he's getting a blow job instead of sitting in a massage chair in the mall.


Alley Oop 6/22/08

Alley Oop is another example of how many ancient strips slack off on the weekend. All this week we have already been reading this story, and now on Sunday we get the entire previous weeks-worth of panels in one condensed form. Maybe the artist does this because the strip is run in lots of papers as a Sunday only strip, but do you really need to give continuity to people who only read your strip once a week? It's not like they're going to remember what happened last week. You should either continue pushing your storyline ahead or do a Sunday comic totally unrelated to the on-going story and be creative with it. I guess your strip still has to have some life left in it to do that though.


The Norm 6/22/08

Here is what the Sunday comics should be about: mixing up the style and making lots of jokes. Yes you've got a large name panel, but there is a great utilization of the rest of the space and it's not done in a cookie-cutter frame style either. The jokes are many and spread throughout the strip. The Norm really shows that if you delve deeply in to a subject, in this case the ridiculousness of flying right now, that you can get a lot of humor spread all through your comic and it actually makes for a good read, unlike the short, trite coverage of gas prices seen in the Adam@home example above.


Maintaining 6/22/08

Comics don't have to be that hard! Take a silly/absurd idea and build a well illustrated conceptualization of that idea, then color. Maintaining has only been running in syndication since spring 2007, but Nate Creekmore has shown immense talent and I look forward to his comic every day of the week. If Maintaining isn't running in your local paper, contact them and urge them to add this great strip.

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May 7th comics for the year 2008

Oh the dentist! Just so you all know my teeth are in good health but I need to floss more often. Today was an exercise in why web comics are superior to the serials. When dinosaur comics, which is always the same except for the dialog, beats out EVERY SINGLE SERIAL COMIC in making me laugh you know it's a bad day to be stuck reading the paper.


Overcompensating 5/7/08














I work in a city full of these people and every time I see one walking down the street I also puke a little bit. OC is my favorite comic that is still being printed/updated regularly and with good reason. Hipster douche bags go to hell!


Dinosaur Comics 5/7/08
















Honestly it is hard to write about comics that I like, because it is so much easier to belittle trash that to talk up something hilarious. Thanks to my weird sense of humor I am one of the few who love DC and I'm regularly amazed that Ryan North can keep coming up with this stuff day after day for years on end.


Adam@Home 5/7/08








There is nothing inherently horrifying about Adam today. But when you really think about it, who runs for city council? Who are your Mayor, Police Chief and Assistant Police Chief? Old nasty men. Feel free to reread the comic now and take special notice of the eager look on Adam's face.


Marvin 5/7/08








Marvin is quickly climbing the ranks as my most hated comics, to the point where if this current trend continues I will have to stop reading it in order to preserve my own sanity. The abject absurdity of a baby writing an email to another baby asking a question about learning how to talk almost makes my brain explode.


The Norm 5/7/08








Personally my favorite adjective to use beyond "awesome" or "incredible" is "tits". Norms choice of "church" has to be called in to question, because even those of us who may attend church would almost never describe church as awesome or great or even "tits". Although that addition might make church "incredible".

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