The Complete Calvin and Hobbes
100TH REVIEW!!!
Writer and Artist: Bill Watterson
CALVIN AND HOBBES is the definite example of a timeless treasure that is creative, intelligent, humorous, and imaginative!
Ranking: 5 stars
If someone were to ask, “What does it mean for something to be called timeless?” there would be no one definite answer. To one person, something timeless could mean that it’s something that they hold dear. To another, it could mean something that is accessible to everyone no matter what period of time or generation. And finally, another person may consider an item that is timeless to be something that holds enough value to the point that they can look back at it and discover new things about it that they did not see before. If someone were to ask me that question, I would answer with the third choice, as I consider a timeless piece of fictional media to be one that I can continuously look at while discovering new aspects of it that I did not see before. I’m not the only one who thinks that, as there are people who reread classic novels such as the works of William Shakespeare and Charles Dickens, as well as people who watch STAR WARS or Disney movies over and over again. The reason these people continuously go back the same books or movies is because it not only holds the original value that hooked them in the first place, but also because through continuous exposure, they are able to discover new elements that help provide additional value what they already considered a masterpiece. That in my opinion is what makes a piece of fictional media timeless. Something that is not only able to spark intrigue but has additional elements beneath its surface that causes people to want to continuously come back and uncover them. If there were piece of fictional media that I consider to be timeless above all others, it would be the comic strip CALVIN AND HOBBES…
When I first started writing comic book reviews for amazon.com, never would I have imagined that it would not only become a regular hobby for me, but that I would have written 100 reviews. What originally began as a means for me to express simple love or anger towards comics has now become a series of in-depth reviews that provide critical analysis on a form of fictional media that I hold a deep passion for. Because I’ve gotten this far, I put deep thought and consideration on what I could possibly review for such an occasion. Seeing as my 50th review was over the NARUTO manga, a series that helped expand my outlook towards both comics and life as a whole, I knew that my 100th review should cover something that I held great importance in. That’s where CALVIN AND HOBBES comes in!
While Spider-Man was the character that helped introduce me to comics as a whole, the CALVIN AND HOBBES newspaper strips were quite easily the major source of entertainment for me when I was a child. Written and illustrated by the cartoonist Bill Watterson, the CALVIN AND HOBBES strip ran from 1985 to 1995. The main characters are Calvin, a bratty six-year old who often engages in mischievous activities, and Hobbes, a tiger that everyone else perceives as a stuffed animal, but is both a real tiger and best friend in the eyes of Calvin. The strip centers around the humorous exploits of these two friends, along with Calvin’s mischievous interactions with his parents, friends, and teachers, the bizarre flights of fantasy that Calvin engages in, as well as conversations with Hobbes that cover various ideas and topics. Because of my love for CALVIN AND HOBBES while growing up, I bought nearly all the books that collected the strip, and have read their contents over and over again. It was when I began looking back on the comic strips when I was in High School however; I discovered that there was more depth behind CALVIN AND HOBBES than humorous adventures about a six-year old boy and a tiger. While I mainly focused on the humorous and bizarre aspects of the strip when I was a child, as an adult I discovered that the comic strip also explored a variety of intelligent themes, mature subject matters, as well as deep philosophical ideas about humanity as a whole. While other comic strips such as PEANUTS or GARFIELD offered more than just simple gags, I felt that CALVIN AND HOBBES was the one that truly pushed the boundaries of what a simple comic strip published for newspapers could be capable of. As a result CALVIN AND HOBBES is a comic strip that is not only humorous and imaginative, but also intelligent, innovative, creative, and nostalgic. It is the definition of a timeless masterpiece in my opinion.
Like with any comic strip, the entire foundation of it being successful is within its characters, and CALVIN AND HOBBES has some of the most unique characters I have encountered. While the characters do possess the standard tropes found in comic strips, I feel that Bill Watterson provides unique and original traits to his cast that makes them easily distinguishable. While the majority of the cast is fleshed out with original qualities in my opinion, it is most particularly evident in the strip’s titular characters, which Watterson modeled after both famous historical figures and his own personality. According to Watterson, Calvin was named after the 16th-century theologian John Calvin, who was famous for his beliefs in predestination, which I feel perfectly, suits Calvin’s personality. What’s fascinates me the most about this character is while he acts just like how a self-centered brat would, he simultaneously expresses and ponders about ideas and concepts beyond that of a six-year old. This means that while in some strips we’ll see Calvin disobey his parents and teacher, or engage in childish behavior such as playing with a cardboard box or harassing Susie, other strips will depict him questioning issues about ethics, human nature, science, and religion. Other conflicting traits of Calvin’s childlike and adult mannerisms is he receives notably bad grades in school, yet his vocabulary is fairly eloquent and more extensive than what is expected of a six-year old. This sharp contrast in Calvin behaving childish and mature is not only absolutely hilarious, but I feel that it fleshes out Calvin to be more than just a stereotypical bratty kid. Bill Watterson’s own statements reflect this idea, as he has stated that Calvin is both an “outlet for [his] immaturity,” as well as a “[reflection of his] adulthood more than [his] childhood.” Essentially, while Watterson utilizes Calvin as a means of satirizing his own childish feelings and obsessions, while also expressing his own viewpoints and questions towards certain issues surrounding life and humanity. As a result Calvin’s character serves to provide an intricate balance of childish behavior and adult outlooks, making him a character that children can easily relate to as well as one that can still resonate into adulthood.
The other star of the strip, Hobbes, is another character that I feel rises above the standards previously established in newspaper comic strips. Just like Calvin, Hobbes is named after Thomas Hobbes, who was a philosopher from the 17th-century that had a poor outlook on humanity. I feel that the inspiration of Thomas Hobbes reflects Hobbes’ characterization even more than John Calvin does for Calvin. This is primarily because while Hobbes is an anthropomorphic tiger, he is very different from most cartoon animals. Whereas characters like Snoopy or Garfield convey human mannerisms over animal ones, Hobbes goes against this cliché by acting more animal-like than human. He not only expresses great pride in being a tiger, but he is also not afraid to brag to Calvin about the all the ways in which tigers are superior to humans. This often leads to humorous exchanges such as Hobbes replying to Calvin that man’s purpose on Earth is to be “tiger food,” or retorting Calvin’s questions about the Devil’s existence with the idea that man is already corrupt without the Devil’s assistance. What also fascinates me about the animalistic nature of Hobbes character is how Watterson molded his appearance and behavior after a gray tabby he owned named Sprite. This not only served as a perfect model for Hobbes’ intelligence and calm demeanor, but also for humorous elements like Hobbes’ habit of pouncing on Calvin like a torpedo whenever he comes in through the front door. The emphasis on animal over human behavior for Hobbes not only makes him unique over other cartoon animals, but also incorporates well into both Watterson and Calvin’s idea that animals can be better role models than other people. I also find Watterson’s own views on Hobbes dualistic nature from being a real tiger to a stuffed animal to be fascinating. While Hobbes is conveyed as a real tiger when he’s around Calvin, whenever another character enters the scene he spontaneously becomes a stuffed toy. While fans have debated that he’s either a doll that magically comes to life when Calvin’s around or just a figment of Calvin’s imagination, Watterson has openly expressed disinterest in the exact nature of Hobbes’ reality. In his own words, “Calvin sees Hobbes one way, and everyone else sees Hobbes another way,” which
Watterson feels serves to the idea that reality is subjective rather than absolutely literal. Overall, Hobbes’ preference to animal over human behavior not only provides an original take on the standard cartoon animal character clichés, but also conveys the idea that sometimes animals can serve as better role models than other people.
But what truly makes CALVIN AND HOBBES a timeless masterpiece in my opinion however is its perfect balance between child-like and fantastical imagination, and intelligent, mature concepts. As I’ve stated throughout the past 99 reviews, one of my favorite aspects in comics is an intricate balance between realistic themes and a fantasy setting that one would not encounter in real-life. This is why I’m such a big fan of superhero comics, as while they’re all about individuals with superpowers fighting criminals, the majority of them are able to express realistic situations and dilemmas through well-thought out plots and complex characters. While CALVIN AND HOBBES lacks an ongoing story or narrative, I feel that it provides such a perfect balance between its realism and fantasy that has motivated me reread the strips countless times. This is because in my eyes, while CALVIN AND HOBBES is ultimately about the exploration of the outlook of a child’s imagination, it is while transcending to adulthood through elaborating on themes around life, human nature, society, science, and religion, all of which is held together by Calvin himself. The aspect of childlike imagination was particularly evident to me in not just Calvin’s disobedient behavior or perceptions of Hobbes as a real tiger, but also through the bizarre flights of fantasy that he would engage in. Throughout the strip, Calvin is shown pretending to be different characters or creatures that would not exist in real-life. The most prominent examples include the interplanetary explorer Spaceman Spiff, dinosaurs, the detective Tracer Bullet, and the superhero Stupendous Man. Calvin’s imagination was not just limited to his own mind, and could be projected onto real-life objects as well. The most important example of this in my opinion is the cardboard box he would make several inventions out of (including a transmogrifier, duplicator, and time machine). I feel that fantastical and strange creations of Calvin’s imagination served as a perfect portrayal of just how vast and expansive a child’s imagination could be. It was a mindset that I could relate to, as I too had a wild imagination as a child that still carries on to this day. But what helps transcend the strip into more than just an exploration of the childlike mindset is the wide range of themes and ideas that it explores, and does so from a child’s perspective with the mentality of an adult. Some of the most important strips of CALVIN AND HOBBES are the ones that have the two main characters simply walking in the woods and talk to each other. This setting allows Calvin and Hobbes to escape the endeavors of life and fully express their views on life, and question certain aspects of human nature. The subjects Calvin and Hobbes discuss would range from abstract ideas (including science, ethics, and religion), their reactions towards outside events in their lives (often trouble caused by Calvin), or the flaws within rules established by society (or by his parents and teachers). Another aspect I love about the strip’s handling of realistic issues is how it conveys them from a child’s perspective, such as Watterson satirizing the ridiculousness of political polls by having Calvin provide ratings for his Dad, or the problems with organized sports by having Calvin create his own sport, “Calvinball,” in response to his own dissatisfaction with his school’s baseball team. While seeing these issues satirized from a child’s perspective is undoubtedly hilarious, the strip is also capable of handling serious topics such as life and death in an intelligent and mature manner. The two examples that stand out the most to me are a storyline where Calvin is distraught over the death of an injured little raccoon he found (which Watterson stated was the official turning point of the range of subjects that the strip was capable of covering), and a Sunday strip where Calvin and Hobbes find a dead bird and comment on the beauty and fragility of life. It’s the strip’s ability to convey such issues in a clever and humorous, yet intelligent and mature manner that has allowed CALVIN AND HOBBES resonate with me as an adult, while also retaining the imagination I could relate to as a child.
Overall, Bill Watterson’s CALVIN AND HOBBES comic strips are the definition of a timeless treasure in my opinion. The strip is able to stand strong among others with the unique and original qualities found in its two main characters, while also resonating with children with it’s bizarre and fantastical imagination, as well as with adults through the range of subjects it covers and the clever, intelligent, and mature manner in which it approaches them. While newspaper comic strips like THE PEANUTS or GARFIELD manage to provide me substantial amounts of entertainment, none of them have managed to reach the levels of creativity and nostalgia that CALVIN AND HOBBES has. If a timeless piece of fictional media is something that one holds dear to, can be enjoyed by all generations, and be continuously viewed upon while discovering new aspects that were not previously seen, then CALVIN AND HOBBES would meet those qualifications more than any other comic I’ve ever read. It is truly timeless treasure that resonated with me when I was a child and today as an adult, and is one that I will continue to cherish for the rest of my life…
“A good [treasure] must have this permanent quality about it; it must draw its curtain round us, but it must be a curtain that shuts us in not out.”
-Virginia Woolf
