Tag / B.C.

by zbicyclist

Fourth Wall Fun

By one definition, “4th wall comic refers to a comic book where characters become aware of their own fictional existence and address the audience directly. This concept, known as the Fourth Wall, separates the characters from the readers, allowing them to comment on the narrative and its limitations.” By that definition, not all of these fit. In some of these, it’s that the cartoonist lets us acknowledge the cartoonist’s existence, while the characters remain unaware. Is there a separate term that should be used for that?

by zbicyclist

Halloween CIDUs

… and some non-CIDUs

The joke is clear, if hackneyed by now, but what would the kids tip? A 20% trick?

This execution of the same joke is a bit clearer, since it’s the kid asking for money.

Not so much a CIDU as “way too much work”. Post individual clue solutions in the comments. FYI, complete solution is here.

This one tripped me up, because I assumed a Pumpkin Spice Latte only had the spices used in pumpkin pie. This used to be true: introduced in 2003, Starbucks’ Pumpkin Spice Latte contained only the spices, and no pumpkin. That made sense. Who thinks steak sauce has steak in it? or shrimp sauce has shrimp in it? Or awlspice has an awl in it? But, in response to complaints, in 2015 they reformulated to add some pumpkin puree. That was really unnecessary, because a bit of pumpkin puree adds little taste. But this does mean Blazek’s joke actually works.

Not a CIDU, but definitely an Ewww.

Not a CIDU, either, but cute.

And one last nod to Peanuts:

And, finally, an OY

There’s this synchronicity, sent in by Nebulous:

by zbicyclist

Still a CIDU

Pete writes: “This is a copy of a joke Johnny Hart used decades ago. I didn’t get it then either.”

Now your editor has to rant a bit. I didn’t sign onto GoComics on April 1, because I was busy that day. When I tried to sign in to the “new and improved site” on April 2, about 8:15 pm CDT, I couldn’t. I asked for a password reset, which requires sending a verification email (pretty standard). After 30 minutes and 3 resend tries, a verification email never arrived. The help screen is less than helpful:

Beta testing before releasing software is not a crime!

by multipleciduers

Sunday Funnies, LOLs – February 16, 2025

Boise Ed sends in this one:

Dan Sachs sends this in as a partial CIDU, wondering “Is that an asterisk? Where is the footnote?”

So, another upgrade on the GoComics website. It’s a bit mean to post this as an LOL, but it seems like every time GoComics “upgrades” there are problems. I remember after one “upgrade” Comic Sherpa (a showcase for new comic authors) was promised to return “soon”, but never did and was eventually abandoned. In recent weeks, some Barney and Clyde comics have been missing dialogue, even though they show up fine on Arcamax. But we can hope this “upgrade” will be less glitchy.

That email to subscribers mentions that the cost will be going up to $35/yr, although they are holding the price for 1 year for existing subscribers at $20.

UPDATE: As if on cue, GoComics does it again today (Feb 16):

At the same time, Arcamax has the entire comic:

by Kilby

Coffeeholic Cartoonists, Unite!

Coffee is consumed compulsively by many people all over the world, but cartoonists (who are notorious for keeping odd hours) seem to be especially susceptible to the allure of the drink’s stimulating properties. Given the excessive amount of publicity that many syndicated cartoonists produce for free, it’s remarkable that none of them has managed to land an advertising contract.

Garfield drank his first cup of coffee two weeks before he discovered lasagna.

Similarly, Horace (or perhaps Samson?) has a serious addiction:

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P.S. Stahler’s “Moderately Confused” panel was the original inspiration for this entire post; Shannon Wheeler’s Too Much Coffee Man is not just the title, but also the main character of his entire feature.

Here’s a B.C. strip that Brian in StL submitted and was posted two years ago. Brian commented back then that: “It’s not entirely clear to me what’s going on. In a way, the first panels look like the preliminary sketches a cartoonist does. So is the coffee affecting him? Or is Jane now able to ‘focus’ since she‘s had coffee?“

Opinions differ on optimum methods of preparation:

Scientists have been researching the heath effects of coffee for decades; this editorial cartoon by Pat Oliphant was published in 1981:

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P.S. I was amused by the similarity in viscosity.

Here’s another Dark Side of the Horse (it won’t be the last):

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P.S. Spoiler alert: Foreshadowing!

by Kilby

Bonus: Tenacious persistence

GiP submitted this B.C. strip, which doesn’t really fit into any category. It’s not funny enough for an LOL, and not puzzling enough for a CIDU: all the gag says is that Thor is hard-headed: he’s willing to endure any adversity to catch his fish, including unnecessarily repetitive waves in the first two panels, and ridiculously improbable starfish slapstick in the third panel. Even the destruction of his boat did not deter him.

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I wonder what Clumsy Carp would have thought about this.

P.S. Despite all its weaknesses, here’s a B.C. re-run from exactly two years ago:

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Why the re-run? Discovering this strip in the submissions archive reminded me of a comment that Bill Bickel wrote in May, 2020, and attached to “Dynamo” (01-Jan-2023): “So greetings from Month Three of the Coronavirus Lockdown. I hope everybody made it through okay to the other side.“

Alas: no.

by multipleciduers

Sunday Funnies – LOLs, November 24th, 2024

Boise Ed submitted this B.C. strip as a CIDU, but I think it qualifies as an LOL:

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Ed had questioned the illogical elements of the setup: “I had forgotten that there is a restaurant chain called ‘The Cheesecake Factory‘, but why would anyone only eat roadkill, and why would anyone drive his car through that restaurant?“, but I think that it’s not supposed to make sense, it’s just supposed to be funny. The latter is something that the current author(s) don’t always achieve, so it’s always nice to see an exception.

MarkTa submitted this Wizard of Id strip as a CIDU quite a while ago, asking “Please help – is it about flatulence? Completely baffled.“

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While “burrito” might indeed imply “flatulence“, the real explanation is simpler: the Wizard is tired of Blanche stealing the blankets, and is anchoring them on his side of the bed (with an ultra-modern medieval nail gun). Both Calvin and his dad would have appreciated the Wizard’s solution:

When a cat employs this blanketing strategy, the result is called a “purrito“: