Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson for June 29, 2014

so stubborn just over wings.

Tyrannosaur soon discovers what it is like to go to bed without supper.

Reply from Friday:bluskies wrote: Hobbes, I’m surprised at your analysis. Look again at all 4 panels. The spatial relationship between Mom, the tree branch, and Calvin is unchanged throughout. The change you see in panel 2 is merely the artist changing HIS point of view from ground level more or less in front of the tree to behind (and above) Calvin. Watterson was nothing but consistent in his drawing.

Hi bluskies.Well, I certainly don’t want you to lose all of your faith in my analysis, so I’ve reproduced Friday’s Calvin and Hobbes below, and here is some further clarification:In the first panel, the tree is on Calvin’s left, and Calvin’s right arm is in front of the tree, toward Mom.In the second panel, the tree is on Calvin’s right, and Calvin’s left arm is in front of the tree, toward Mom.In the third and fourth panels, the tree is once again on Calvin’s left, and Calvin’s right arm is once again in front of the tree, toward Mom.Click here: Calvin and Hobbes (June 9, 1989)Bill Watterson sometimes switches things around like this to make the panels look better. He is always aware of wanting things to be arranged in a particular way within the frames, especially depending on who is doing the speaking. For example, sometimes Mom and Dad switch sides of the bed, or a watch switches from a left wrist to a right wrist. He is also aware of the left-to-right flow of the strip and often arranges the characters accordingly.Here is a strip in which Calvin is writing with his right hand, because he is on the left side of the panel, facing away from us, so that only his right hand is visible. Bill Watterson wanted the reader to be able to see him writing:Click here: Right-handed CalvinOn the other hand (literally), here is a strip that we read two weeks ago, in which Calvin is writing with his left hand. In this case he is facing at an angle toward us, so that both hands are visible. At this angle, it looks better for Calvin to be writing with his left hand, so that’s how Bill Watterson drew him. Because the pencil is in Calvin’s left hand, we can clearly see him writing and we can also clearly see him leaning on his right hand, emphasizing his boredom with the homework. If the pencil had been in Calvin’s right hand, we would not have been able to see him leaning on his left hand, because his left hand would have been blocked by his head. Also, Calvin is facing left-to-right, in the direction of the flow of the strip.Click here: Left-handed Calvin

Meh, wings aren’t worth the trouble.

“Bill Watterson sometimes switches things around like this to make the panels look better. He is always aware of wanting things to be arranged in a particular way within the frames, especially depending on who is doing the speaking. For example, sometimes Mom and Dad switch sides of the bed, or a watch switches from a left wrist to a right wrist. He is also aware of the left-to-right flow of the strip and often arranges the characters accordingly.”

Now that makes sense. I wondered why Calvin was on the wrong side of the tree in that second panel, but if he had been on the correct side, with the view down over his head toward Mom, he would have to be on our left side, but she’s talking first, so the speech bubbles would be crossed. Switching Calvin to the other side allows the characters and speech to line up from left to right.

Quetzalcoatlus? I think Calvin is getting his Aztec gods and dinosaurs mixed up.

Give your mother some, it’s too much for you allone! Shareing makes happy!

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The quetzalcoatlus wasn’t too careful. His friends should note how high T-Rexs can leap.

Maybe she should have left him in the tree a little longer!Maybe, until dark!!!

There are many of us who prefer our understanding of the world to be more than superficial, even regarding a “mere” cartoon.

@Hobbes, thank you again for another fascinating and interesting post. Please keep them up. I always look forward to reading your comments along with C&H every day. You taught me something new about comic strip art today, and I love to learn new things. :)

Typical Selfish Calvin…

Hhmmm….if you’d been paying attention, you would have noticed that part of the fun for some of us is taking note of all the expertise, talent, detail and work that goes into these cartoons (and I’m not sure “cartoon” is the right word here.)

I guess Calvin didn’t bring Hobbes on the picnic?

Anytime I see a strip of this quality I makes me miss Calvin & Hobbes all the more

Even when Bill Watterson draws ugly creatures like aliens, fierce dinosaurs…etc. The artwork always looks beautiful.xxx

Hey, I like it! Plus, this is one I actually remember when it originally appeared in the Sunday paper.

Political rudeness wasn’t the only reason why I quit reading the comments section here on C&H [with the exception of anything Hobbes has to say, of course]. Looks like inconsiderate rudeness in general towards others is still alive and well here so obviously it doesn’t appear as though I’ve missed much of anything over the last year. Think I’ll just go back to the way I’ve been doing it . . . it’s a lot less stressful that way [which is why I read the comics on a daily basis to start with].

 

Hobbes: As always, I enjoy reading anything you have to post but on the one day I thought I’d come here and read the rest . . . well, looks like I was right to stay away. Please keep posting your interesting facts regarding anything on Bill Watterson, C&H, Charles Schulz and Peanuts because I enjoy reading them very much and learning something new every day outside my own little world as I know it. Please come by my little “corner” anytime. I’m always happy to see your happy, smiling “face” whenever you do!!!!! ;-)

One person’s boredom can be another person’s fascination, or even passion.

Hi GretchensMom – good to hear from you. I don’t try to please everyone with my postings, and I don’t worry about anyone who isn’t interested in them. One can’t avoid differing opinions unless one posts only that which is totally predictable. And in that case, one runs the risk of putting some of the readers to sleep.

Watterson’s Prehistoric/Space scenes recalls John Coleman Burroughs, the son of Edgar Rice, illustration style.. brilliant.

John Coleman’s wife Jane was no slouch, either., she did the backgrounds and lettering for JCB’s work.