Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson for June 05, 2022

Flies have short lifespans.

Calvin being a pest as usual.

what a pest indeed

It’s you mr. Kafka?

Mom a.k.a. the Swat Team.

help im a bug

With those big bug eyes, he should have seen that coming.

I am sure we can all remember, that as children we drove our parents spare.

If we are honest with ourselves that is.

Calvin’s parents did the right thing, kick Calvin out of the house until he burns through the crazy.

Brilliant use of “camera angles”. Watterson’s artistic talents strike again.

Oh dear, Calvin – that is an absolute bummer… feel ya!

Precious artwork!!

He must be glad, Hobbes is his friend!!

Great artwork!!

BTW, was that cookie an Oreo or a Hydrox??

The last panel reminds me of many of the comic strips that I read as a boy in the 1970s. They often ended with kids holding their sore butts as Calvin does here, bathing their sore butts in pails of water or resting their sore butts on cushions.

Calvin is fortunate that his strip came from an age when corporal punishment was already dying out whereas kids in earlier strips were often spanked every week.

I’ve just been reading the replies to the comments that I made yesterday. One commentator objects to my reminding people that Watterson says he didn’t see Hobbes as part of Calvin’s imagination. This commentator says that I cannot quote any examples of someone other than Calvin interacting with Hobbes that is true but Watterson has a good answer in The Calvin And Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book:

“I do not see Hobbes as a stuffed doll who miraculously comes to life when alone with Calvin. Nor do I see Hobbes as a product of Calvin’s imagination…Hobbes has less to do with dolls coming to life and more to do with the subjective nature of reality. Calvin sees Hobbes one way; everyone else sees him another way.”

Therefore Hobbes is not restricted to Calvin’s imagination and does things that Calvin doesn’t know about but Calvin is the only human character in the strip who can see that Hobbes is alive at all.

More of today’s kids could use a good swat now and then.

The attention to detail is fantastic……..

Serves him right, the little twit.

This one seems to reflect his parents thoughts more so than what Calvin would be thinking.

Red letter day! Calvin admitting he is a pest!

Some people say we should just “act naturally”. I’m pretty sure that sort of thing is what keeps getting us in trouble. Nature is not very nice.

He finally got what was coming to him, I hope in spades!

Susan10010(sic) can’t you read? OREO!

A little product placement there, Mr. Watterson?

Compare with today’s For Better or Worse—two classics apparently on the same “recycle cycle”.

Mmmmm. Oreos…

Calvin the Fly buzzes off.

Swatted? Social Justice warriors would be all over any parent who attempted that today! But the kids are so much better behaved now so it makes sense to ban physical punishment.

Ha, Ha. Help Meee, Help Meee.

Time flies when you are young and restless, until you get swatted. Then, it drags for a while.

Calvin’s imagination knows no limits. He should be a Sci-Fi writer.

I see why for some children, medication is necessary. For the parents.

Poor Calvin!!

Now you can tell this was really 30 years ago

Love how hyper-realistic the fly is drawn, and the parents’ reactions are hilarious!

You better stay away from me, Calvin!

That what happens to little brats!

Product placement? That seems so unlike this strip.

Sometime you need to get their attention first.

Seeing the fly, you can imagine the humming!

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