Yes, Really!
Garfield is underrated.
Can Jim Davis’ creation be cringe from time to time? Absolutely.
Over-exposed? Hell yeah (at least when I grew up.)
Respected for how ubiquitous and successful it has become? Very rarely.
My History with Garfield
If I were a classier person, I’d tell you that I was inspired to get into comics by Alan Moore or Neil Gaiman. Works that transcended the medium and forever changed the course of my life.
But I’m not. I got into comics reading the Sunday Funnies. Those were the only comics I’d read for a long while. The world of superheroes were a blind-spot for me until the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers became my obsessions - at which point my cousin introduced me to floppies.
I’ve always been doing some kind of work since I was 10 years old. My first job was delivering the Toronto Sun around the Flowertown neighbourhood of Brampton, Ontario.
After the early Sunday morning deliveries were done, I would get to the part I’ve been waiting for: the Comics pull-out headlined by Garfield.
I enjoyed all the comic strips included (most of them, at least. I was too young to appreciate Doonesbury), but Garfield has always been forefront in my mind as it would kick off my Sunday reading.
When I would think of Sunday Comics, I would think of Garfield. It probably says a lot about good placement - being the first strip everyone was reading every week. Or did the success come then the good placement? Who knows, but I’ve been a fan ever since.
Garfield, to me, is a baseline comic. It’s so consistently…fine. Some strips are better than others, but they’re always firmly in the range of good. Never bad and never amazing. It’s frankly impressive.
Forget Dennis! Garfield was the Bad Boy of the Funnies Page
When I was a kid there was nothing funnier than a Garfield comic.
You have to understand that I grew up in a time where Bart Simpson saying “eat my shorts” was considered edgy and uncalled for.
Having sweet family strips like Marmaduke and Family Circus being headlined by a lazy, burping, ungrateful cat was as edgy as it got for me at ten.
I loved it. He’s the only one that could get away with treating everyone around him like an utter annoyance and still come out somewhat likable. Garfield knows what he likes and what he doesn’t. He tolerates the rest - like Jon.
It shaped my sensibility for comedy way more than it had any right to. I think this led me to appreciate the more sarcastic comedy out there - like It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia or Seinfeld before it.
More importantly…
Understanding Sequential Storytelling
Garfield was simple enough for my young brain to digest. The scenery, if you could even call it that, rarely changed panel to panel. Even the actions were minimal. There’s just enough there to understand that passage of time without getting lost.
It seems silly to anyone who reads comics regularly, but it’s a real barrier for new readers to understand how to properly read a comic. (If you really want to break their brains, throw them a manga.) Comic strips are the medium boiled down their essentials. Garfield is the prime version of that.
Calvin & Hobbes, Peanuts and other strips, will get all the praise for really defining the medium, but to me Garfield is the most distilled version of this.
Why Are You Telling Me This?
I love my more traditional comics. DC, indies on Kickstarter and the other big publishers, get my money on a weekly basis.
But I also love comic strips. I read them every day on GoComics. Peanuts, Pooch Cafe, Lio, my beloved Garfield and about a dozen more. It’s a highlight of my mornings. I also read a bunch of web-comics like BlueChair, Safely Endangered, Mr. Lovenstein and Berkeley Mews.
It’s always been a dream of mine to have my own ongoing comic strip - along with writing traditional comics.
This year, I’m taking the first step by dipping my toe in with a weekly comic strip: Working (After) Life.
(Last post, you may have seen it as “Working Stiff”, but I didn’t do enough of my SEO homework.)
I’m starting small on purpose. I have two more strips written: one 3x weekly and another daily, but I want to iron out the process before I dive in head-first.
Working (After) Life will be a free strip that you’ll be able to find on Webtoon, Tapas and GlobalComix when it launches. You’ll definitely hear more about that as we get closer to ready.
The (Newest) Garfield Movie
Garfield has…not had a great time in theatres.
Much like the comics, the movies have never been more than just fine. Bill Murray was pretty good at the voice and at least Chris Pratt isn’t required to do an accent this time out.
I’ll probably watch it, but in the meantime I’ll be sticking to the funny pages.
In Other News: I’m on the Hotseat!
I was recently on the ComixLaunch Podcast with a MasterMind Hotseat talking about strategies to promote upcoming projects in between campaigns. (You’ve seen a little bit of that here already.)
If you’re at all interested in crowdfunding your own comics, I highly recommend checking Tyler’s podcast out. It’s a classic at this point and very informative.
Until next time - when we talk more traditional comics!
What’s Next?
February 1
Digital is the Future
It has to be, right?
February 15
Long Live the Floppy
The joy of a good comic book shop & the thrill of the chase
Enjoying what you’re reading? Get a bunch of free stuff from me by referring a friend.
Thank you for helping get the word out about Pesto Comics!
The Comics That Inspired Me: Garfield