It is the year 2013. I am in my ninth grade. At 5:30 in the morning, my mom nags me to wake up and study for some time before going to school. I dilly-dally until 6:15 am, still groggy, and hear a loud thump. The newspaper guy had delivered the day’s newspaper. I rush to the gate of my house and pick it up. I toss the main Hindu paper aside and unfold the Metroplus paper. I quickly flip to the third page, where the comic section is. I am eager to meet my six-year-old hero Calvin.
The comic Calvin and Hobbes, by cartoonist Bill Watterson, was syndicated from 1985 to 1995. This daily comic strip deals with the (mis)adventures of six year old Calvin, as he deals with everyday life through mischief and imagination, much to the dismay of his parents.
My teen angst and Calvin’s hatred for order and authority seemed to go hand-in-hand. I was hooked to the comic and sat in awe looking at the kind of questions and retorts he came up with. Thankfully, I did not behave the same way with my parents and teachers, saving myself quite a number of slaps.
In case you haven’t read these comics before, let me introduce the characters seen predominantly in the comic –
Hobbes
Hobbes is Calvin’s sidekick and best friend. He is a stuffed toy that comes to life only when Calvin is around.
Susie Derkins
Susie is Calvin’s neighbour and classmate at school. They are often at loggerheads as Calvin tries to irritate her all the time. But they kind of secretly like each other.
Calvin
The main character of the comic, he is a six year old kid who lives in a suburb of an American city. He hates school and loves sledging in the woods near his home.
Calvin’s Parents
Calvin’s parents are not named in the comic, they are addressed as “Mom” and “Dad.” These two bear the brunt of Calvin’s antics the most, but love him equally as much as he annoys them.
The love for the comic never faded as I grew out of the angst though. I would browse through daily archives of the comic put up on various websites and on Instagram too. There was something special that kept me interested in these characters and their rich lives. Calvin’s imaginary worlds that he conjures everytime he’s at school and at the dining table still resonated with my boring classes and disgustingly-tasting vegetables I’d eat at home.
Here are some of my favourite ones
Absolute savage
The brilliance with how the comic explained hunting is unparalleled
My view of the subject of history had been changed forever after reading this panel
Every Sunday, my joy is magnified when I read the comic. The larger format shows the creativity and imagination scaled up exponentially.
The history bashing continues…..
Calvin’s dad messing around with him with misinformation
I can relate to Calvin here
The cute relationship that Calvin and Susie have
I do not own the copyrights for any of these images. All of these pictures are the property of the respective owners.
Why does Calvin and Hobbes stand out?
Visuals – Apart from the Sunday strips, the other strips were illustrated in black and white. That constraint proved immensely effective as it paved way for interesting compositions, removed unnecessary visual elements and enabled the essence of the narrative to stand out.
Narration – Despite having a small space in daily newspapers, the comic packed a well-structured story in 3/4 panels. There aren’t too many characters to remember when one reads the comic. One can start the comic from any date and still sport the same smile at the end of that strip.
Heart – This is the most important of them all. These comics were filled with wholesomeness and pure love for narrating stories through comics. These comics served as an extension of Bill’s heart and mind. It is an intangible feeling and I admit that I lack the skills to articulate what these comics make me feel.
Dear Bill Watterson, thank you for brightening up my mornings every day through school.
To those who haven’t read the comic before, I hope this post piques your curiousity to read them today. And to those who have read them, I hope I helped re-kindle some good memories. What were your favourite comics from Calvin and Hobbes?
Skandha
Comments