Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson for January 04, 2023

Utilitarianism may not be pretty, but it is effective.

Hobbes wanted to get right to the good part. I totally understand how he feels.

yeah, yeah, yeah, Calvin, and all that jazz

I guess Hobbes crafted a better mixture.

Good for you Hobbes!!!!

Hobbes’ Artisanal Snowballs… get ‘em while they’re cold!

Calvin learns that we have nothing to fear but sphere itself.

Perfection is the enemy of good enough.

Quality over quantity, it depends on the situation…..

Art done been seduced! Upside of the haid!

Cheap imitations will rule the day, Calvin.

Today’s strip is one of the rare occasions where Hobbes speaks directly to us. It is usually Calvin who breaks the fourth wall by speaking to us rather than Hobbes although Hobbes often makes facial expressions to us.

On Monday, someone stated that Calvin would be happy if he was making Snow Goons. I agreed with that statement but added that Calvin didn’t actually make the Snow Goons but a snowman who turned himself into a Snow Goon and created an army of Snow Goons. RobertRomero claimed that that was ridiculous but I think it was a logical reading of the story arc.

On the first day of the first week, Calvin made an ordinary snowman which came to life and chased him. He and Hobbes threw snowballs at the snowman which – of course – made him bigger and stronger. At the end of the week, Calvin and Hobbes were building a snow fort at the back of the house and Dad made his first appearance in the story. “Calvin, that two-headed snowman you made is horrendous. Why couldn’t you make an ordinary snowman?” “I tried, Dad. I tried.” As I explained on Monday, this was true. Calvin really did start out making an ordinary snowman.

In the second week, things became more complicated as usual. We saw that Calvin and Hobbes were still making their snow fort but also saw that the Snow Goon was making other Snow Goons. On the second day of the second week, Susie made her only appearance in that story arc by coming and admiring the snow fort. Calvin warned her about the Snow Goon:

Susie: Oh, is that what all those weird-looking snowmen at the front of your house are?

Calvin: What do you mean all those?

Someone asked two years ago, “Does Calvin have amnesia?” but it wasn’t a matter of memory loss. The story arc made it clear that the Snow Goons were being made at the front of Calvin’s house while Calvin was making his snow fort at the back (with Hobbes’s help) so Calvin couldn’t know about the Snow Goons. When Dad spoke to Calvin at the start of the building of the snow fort, there was still only one Snow Goon. When Susie came and congratulated Calvin on his snow fort, there were several Snow Goons.

Perfectionism is trumped by good enough.

If you hadn’t spent so much time bragging about your snowball, you would have seen Hobbes’s snowball coming and dodged it, Calvin!

I’d put this one in my Top 10 C&H strips ever.

Calvin should know the secret of the lethal snowball….put them in the freezer….

All these comments and not one mention of The Good The Bad and The Ugly? “When you have to shoot, shoot, don’t talk” LOL

Mass production over hand crafted.

The most perfect weapon is the one that brings your opponent defeat. Beauty is in the eyes of the winner.

It was said that the Germans had the best engineered tanks in WW II. They were marvels. But they were also complex and expensive. The American and Russian approach was to build a LOT of much cheaper tanks, so many that the “superior” German tanks were no match for the superior firepower.

Pursue Excellence, not Perfection.

Sometimes “good enough” is good enough.

I would really be interested to see how Calvin beaned himself upside his head with a snowball!

WHAP!! Right in the back of the forehead.

…and too much talking

LOL… love Hobbes. Always bringing Calvin back to reality.

Calvin would be a good ad man. He’s got the hype language down.

Don’t worry about the snowball with your name on it. Worry about the ninety-nine snowballs labeled “To Whom It May Concern”.

Small batch, hand crafted, artisanal—Calvin has a future in the trendy designer snowball world.

I was hoping Susie had blasted Calvin.

Er, Calvin, your snowball wasn’t even close to a perfect sphere.

Form follows function, but don’t forget to utilize the function.

Darn monologuing again.

Hobbes!! I love you! What a self-satisfied smug look he has.

Indeed, it’s no coincidence the great military powers of history have mass-produced their weapons.

Calvin, art thou now well seduced???

Comet D/2023 A1 (Hobbes)?

Like a mayfly or a flower that blooms in the afternoon and wilts by dusk.

i like to make sand balls : )

Like when Indiana Jones shot the swordsman.

Hitting yourself with a snowball, most demented thing ever?