Disgusting Digressions

Hey everyone. Hope you had a good Thanksgiving, if you are into that sort of thing.

I have mentioned before how much I enjoy Mutt and Jeff.

Mutt and Jeff 11/29/2010

Mutt and Jeff 11/30/2010


The strip has some great range: word play, slapstick, farce, the whole good comic strip enchilada.

The Quigmans, 11/30/2010

I know this strip is famously bad, but creepy and bad deserves a little shout out. I'm used to just being disgusted by the recycled gags and the artwork.

The Fatiguing Spider-Man, 11/30/2010

Speaking of disgusted, Mary Jane is a terribly rude and ungracious guest.

Vintage Beetle Bailey, 11/30/2010

Let's wrap up with one last ewwwww!

Have a nice week.

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Hope you all had a good Thanksgiving or at least time off. I had to work Wednesday and Friday so I just had a normal weekend which really sucked. Anyway, comics.

The Amazing Spider-Man 11/28/10

I'm intrigued by this storyline mainly because I'm anxious to see how Spider-Man (but more than likely The Thing) beats up Mole Man when Aunt May is standing between them crying about the genuine affection in his eyes. I'm just a little disturbed that we are coming very close to Aunt May revealing how much she longs for another man's touch.

Zack Hill 11/28/10

I find Facebook boring too. It'd probably be better if I had more friends.

Reality Check 11/28/10

Look at the ecstatic look on Ernie's face. He's been waiting years to eat Big Bird.

Born Loser 11/28/10

We've been getting a lot of evidence lately that Wilberforce is dumber than a sack of doorknobs. Is Chip planning on a storyline where Wilberforce's idiocy saves the world? I mean, it worked on "Futurama"

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Thanksgiving... barbecue??

Having been sufficiently stuffed the pst couple days, Arkholt returns with some comic blurbs to start your weekend out with.

Brewster Rockit:

While Captain Brewster is being his normal dim self here, it is true that Vulcans such as Mr. Spock do not eat meat.  Too barbaric, I guess.  It does seem to defy logic to pass up something so delicious, though.

Retail:

While I must praise the strip for its obscure Pink Floyd The Wall film reference, I don't think the song is apropos for the Black Friday aftermath.  It could be, but only if someone's father was killed because of the mad shoppers.

Reynolds Unwrapped:

"WHAT!? You're far too young to play that game!"


Finally, a strange synchronicity:

I don't know about anyone else, but I've never had anything barbecued at the end of November.  It's too cold and I can't imagine someone cooking a turkey that way.  It would be okay if just one of these strips had something about barbecuing or grilling, but two in one day?  It really makes me wonder about people.

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Turkeys Are Meat!?!?!?!

Hey everyone! Zachary the Stupid Inventor here with today's comic review!

Before I begin I just wanted to point out that a lot of strips have a character (usually a kid) deciding to not eat meat because they feel bad for the turkey.... I totally don't get that. Listen, if you're a vegetarian or a carnivore it doesn't make a difference to me, but why single out the turkey? I realize from a writers perspective it's an easy way to come up with a Thanksgiving related storyline, but in reality it just seems silly no? If the thought of eating animals is gross to a person, they would have stopped eating meat long before Thanksgiving... Anyways, I'm really looking forward to eating turkey tomorrow!

Every comic I'm reviewing today could fit in at least two of my usual Good, Bad, Weird, Nitpicks categories so I'm just going to present and comment on them as is... to the strips!

Wizard of Id: I just found it weird that they would run a "eating bird" strip today that has nothing to do with thanksgiving... and isn't this strip taking place in the middle ages? I would think a freshly killed bird we be fine back then? Weird...

Rhymes With Orange: I was just curious why there isn't an "Easter Peep" at the round table...

The Amazing Spiderman: Other DailyComicsReviewers have already commented about how stupid it is that Spiderman always needs help, and I totally agree. That being said, The Thing is my favorite superhero of all time so I'm glad to see him on the comics page! He should really have his own syndicated comic strip! it would have tons of action and he has a great sense of humor... oh well, a nerd can dream!

Pickles: A funny strip, but I can't help but think it would have been funnier the 3rd panel had no dialogue and the 4th panel was the burp.... just my humble opinion.
Brevity: This would have made a lot more sense and been a lot funnier if the guys clothes were more tattered and there was more destruction in the background... All there is to show it's some sort of apocalypse is an overturned car, stubble and a ripped shirt.

Ok, that's it for me, have an amazing Thanksgiving everyone and keep reading the Daily Comics Review!

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Proof that Ben Grimm Reads Daily Comics Review

When Brian said that Comic Strip Spider-Man is the laziest superhero in the world I agreed. It was a great point.

The Stultifying Spider-Man, 11/23/2010

So does Ben Grimm. I think it's evidence that he's a reader. Although based on his use of "quit the superhero biz" he implies that comic strip Spidey did something in the past other than whine, lie, and live off of his wife's acting and modeling career.

Speaking of sponging off of others....

Mallard LaughNoMore 11/21/2010

Looks who's sitting around collecting welfare, eating bonbons, and watching Oprah! It's that beacon of self-reliance himself, Mallard Fillmore. Although if I recall my Fillmore timeline correctly, if he gets a job it'll take three weeks for the strip to pick it up.

The Phantom, 11/23/2010

Waitasecond! Isn't the only reason they want "Cole" to lure the Phantom there? Why the hell wouldn't they shoot them both? Granted, I've only been reading the strip regularly for a decade or so, so why she's in the prison and why they even call her "Cole" may have happened before then.

Crankshaft, 11/22/2010

You know, I hate to agree with a curmudgeon like Crankshaft (somewhere my friends are laughing), but he's right. Last time I was at a Home Depot there were 3 people minding the 2 self service lanes. Although I guess that means that these checkouts are great for the economy. Job creation!

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Tony Murphy, creator of the comic strip It's All About You has announced that he is ending his comic strip after only being in syndication for three years.  It looks like Murphy chose to end it on his own citing "lack of client papers" so the syndicate may have been looking at ending it sooner or later anyway.

It's All About You 11/21/10


Also, Stone Soup celebrated its 15th anniversary on November 20th.  Also, Stone Soup is the top-selling Cathy replacement so double good news for creator Jan Eliot.

Stone Soup 11/21/10


And speaking of comics that have ended:
Argyle Sweater 11/21/10

Calvin's head does not look proportionate to his body.

Also, Calvin and Hobbes turned 25 on November 18th.

Herb & Jamaal 11/21/10

Laugh or cry all you want, Herb.  You've been pulled over for driving while black, just like in that episode of "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air".

Pickles and Barney & Clyde 11/21/10


These two just made me laugh.

Slylock Fox 11/21/10

It's good to know that even though there is no crime within miles of him, Slylock is accusing people of wrong-doings that he created in his own mind.

Amazing Spider-Man 11/21/10

Can Spider-Man not handle anything himself?  He's always having to ask for help in this strip.  And he's always getting help from heroes who don't exactly need Spider-Man around.  Wolverine, Iron Man, Thing.  I know the comic strip version of Spider-Man is the laziest superhero in the world but does he have to be so blatant about it?

Born Loser 11/21/10

What a waste of steak.  I don't care how long that steak was in the refrigerator apparently just lying on the shelf, unwrapped, you do not give it to the dog.

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Shoddy

Sorry for missing yesterday. Today's not much better, honestly. Check out the Meekrat Entertainment Group, though.

Spider-Man (Thursday and Friday)


I really think Aunt May should go for it. If anything, to shake up Mary Jane's worldview. She's surprisingly square for an actress-model-whatever.

Sally Forth (Thursday and Friday)


Likewise, Ted Forth is shaking up the status quo my sticking it to his mother-in-law. I was just going to put Thursday's comic up here, because my god, but that's brutal, but Friday's comic deserves to be up here too. I can't help but feel that, short-term, this can't go well for poor Ted, though.

Thursday
F Minus

Depending on how far that guy is going, and how fast the basket can go, he might want to put up with the show tunes. Around here, the bus is something like $3 for a one-way ride.

Soup to Nutz

I'm just baffled by the framed pictures of Davey and Goliath, honestly.

Friday
Andy Capp

This seems way too romantic and industrious for Andy Capp. I guess he was younger then, though.

Girls and Sports

Let's check in with this old favorite. Is it? Yes, it's still stupid and terrible!

Love Is

You can add this to the "Passive-Aggressive Love Is" strips.

Pajama Diaries

On most days, Pajama Diaries is a pretty good comic strip, with fairly strong characterization giving way to character-based humor and other well-done gag-a-day type jokes. This new guy just seems way too one-note for this strip, really.

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Morbid Goldfish, Uncle Moleman, and Weird Wallpaper

Hey everyone, Zachary the Stupid Inventor here with this Wednesday's comic review!

The Bad:
Loose Parts: This was just going to go into the "weird" section, because an elephant with a human nose is probably the weirdest thing i've seen in a while, but the fact that it's supposed to be Dumbo but isn't drawn to look like the Disney character, plus the fact that the tusks look so weird because of the whole nose situation, I just had to put this in the bad section, not that the Weird section is much better...

The Weird:
Spider Man: This has got to be one of the weirdest and creepiest storylines not only in spiderman, but in all of newspaper comics.... wow.


Heathcliff: The fact that both characters are fully aware that Heathcliff is going to cook and eat the fish make the expressions they have in this strip pretty darn eerie. Way too morbid for me.

The Good:
Lio: Lio is a constant favorite, but I just wanted to point out how awesome it is that Lio is wearing the kids hat in the last panel, that really is an awesome touch!

The Doozies: I like a strip that can poke fun of itself, and the flying hat reaction is a regular sight in The Doozies.

Moderately Confused: I don't think I've ever featured this comic before, but I really liked the gag, something that could only make sense in a comic book world.

Pearls Before Swine: Yeah but Stephan Pastis is a regular when it comes to pointing out the things we take for granted in comic books... also, I would love wallpaper with "Boom, Ka-Pow, Zap" sound effects on it, someone please get on that!

Alrighty, that's it for me, I'll be here again for next Wednesday's review, but be sure to check out the Comic Review every day here at the Daily Comics Review!
Zachary
Stupid Inventor

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Unbelievable

DailyInk.com outdoes themselves. Twice.

The Golden Rule says "Those who have the gold make the rules." This rule apparently applies to the syndicates. This is part of the e-mail I received from our good friends at DailyInk.com yesterday:

We pride ourselves on offering the best comics you will find anywhere. Starting on December 15, 2010 the annual subscription rate will change from $15 to $19.99. To thank you for being a loyal subscriber to DailyINK, we would like to invite you to renew your subscription for an additional year before the new price goes into effect. If you renew now, your additional year will start when your current subscription expires. You will also receive a 10% discount on a DailyInk comic print! (sic)

Yeah, the last site to charge for comics, also the site with the most downtime and the fewest sharing features, is raising it's annual price by almost 20%.

But wait — there's more!

Watch for the new and improved DailyINK to be unveiled in 2011, providing you with an enhanced user experience, better functionality and exciting new ways to enjoy your favorite comics. Look out for email announcements or click here to become a fan of DailyINK on Facebook for updates.

They're raising it before they even have a solid date on when their site might join us in the post iPhone and Facebook world. (Remember - the last update was in 2002.)

This is a comics site though, and I need to deliver a laugh. Here it is. This arrived a few hours later:

You should have received a letter earlier with news from DailyINK and an early renewal offer. Some users have experienced difficulty with the subscription form. Please note that upon clicking to the renewal page, you must first log in with your username and password to avoid any error messages.

You see, if you followed the link in the original mail it would have guided you through paying for a new account, instead of extending your current one. Genius.

I don't have a problem paying for comics. As a matter of fact, $20 or so dollars a year might be a fair price for access to King Feature's new and archived content. It's the downtime, the horrendously designed and neglected site, and the fear of someone actually seeing their content that sticks in my craw.

Let's get to some comics.

How To Be Happy

I've been a fan of Shannon Wheeler and Too Much Coffee Man since before he showed up in comic strips was still in comics and magazines. The strip has been updated pretty sporadically lately. Nice to see the strip, and it's titular character, back.

Little Iodine

Little Iodine is one of the strips that DailyInk has added to their vintage section lately. I love the pencils — especially the poses and character designs. (Click through to see the full size image.) The Wikipedia article on Little Iodine refers to her as a female precursor to Hank Ketcham's Dennis the Menace, but I think the situations she creates are funnier than anything I've seen in Menace, and I'm old enough to remember when it was supposed to be good.

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