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Doonesbury is another comic strip that I wouldn't say is a favorite, but that I've always had respect for. I never really read it, because I find the dialogue to be overly wordy and often uninteresting. Still, it's an important comic strip that's worth paying attention to and going back and reading.

This particular strip, however, is pretty frivolous, but it brought up some interesting thoughts for me. I really don't remember when I found out Santa wasn't real. I don't have a particular story of anyone telling me, my parents never had a "talk" with me about it (that I recall), I guess I just kind of organically grew out of it. Unless, of course, the experience was so traumatic that I've blocked it from my mind, but I doubt it.

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I couldn't find anything indicating whether or not Lee Stanley's The Old Home Town is a rip-off of Out Our Way, but it sure seems like it, given the similarity in style and the fact that it began a year afterwards. Still, while Stanley's art isn't as good as J.R. Williams', and his panel didn't last nearly as long in newspapers, it has its own enjoyable qualities.

I like this particular one a lot, because in a single panel, and a single sentence caption, it establishes so much about the fire chief and the people in town. I love the irony in the caption as well, that sure, he knew exactly what to do, but it may not have been the best idea.

Also, is that a talking horse?

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We all have our Christmas traditions, most of which we continue doing because we did them as kids, and we couldn't think of a Christmas without them, no matter how silly. Even the king has his, though he has to keep up appearances while outdoors. The Duke, on the other hand, looks like he'd rather be participating in some of those festivities than reading a story. Maybe he'll sneak away later.

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Here we have Bung, the drunken jester, leaving a present for Blanch, the Wizard's wife. I'd guess that the snowball was meant to be used on her husband, but the king is a good enough target. I also noticed that his subjects must all believe his Christmas wishes to be insincere, as none of them wish him a merry Christmas back. Either that, or it's some kind of royal rule not to speak back to the king (though throwing a giant snowball at him is perfectly legal).

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The Wizard of Id is a legacy comic strip that, like most of them, was much better in its early years. Originally by Johnny Hart and Brant Parker, it's now written and drawn by Mason Mastroianni, Hart's grandson. Mason does an admirable job, especially since he also writes and draws B.C., the other strip Hart created. However, these earlier strips just feel more fresh and fun, at least from an artistic perspective (I think that joke was old and tired even in the 60s).

It's difficult in a written medium to convey if singing is good or bad, but I think Troob's unimpressed expression in the penultimate panel says enough. The drunkards don't seem to happy about it either, but I don't think they can be trusted to know a good performance when they hear it.

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Out Our Way was a long running single panel comic strip, created by J. R. Williams. It was a slice of life, Americana nostalgia strip, kind of like if Norman Rockwell had been a newspaper cartoonist. While it was always meant to bring a smile to your face, sometimes it was because it was a funny joke, but sometimes it was because it brought back good memories. The best part for me, however, is the artwork, which is phenomenal. The line work is amazing, and I love just staring at his hatching and crosshatching. In fact, I think I'd actually hang one of these on my wall.

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I wonder about Michael's question in the first panel. Does he think that his grandpa is so old that he's actually older than Santa? How old does he think Santa is? Does he suspect that his grandpa might be Santa? Has he already figured out that Santa is a myth, and is trying to find out about its origins?

Or has he just not thought about it at all (which is far more likely)?

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I never went to see Santa Claus at the mall when I was a kid. It wasn't because my parents wouldn't take me, or because the lines were too long, but because I didn't really want to. My parents offered to take me, but I always declined. I don't really remember why. I think maybe I was just shy and didn't want to talk to a strange man in a red suit, or maybe it was because I didn't think meeting him in person to tell him what I wanted would really make much difference in what I got. Plus, who wants to wait in that kind of line?

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Is it December already? That must mean it's time for some Christmas related comic strips on the blog (or anything on the blog, really).

We begin this year with For Better or For Worse, a strip that, as of this writing, is still running in newspapers. These days it's only in reruns, and has been since 2008 when the story started back from the very beginning, though many of the rerun strips do have alterations and updates. It's one that I never thought of as a favorite, but that I always admired, for following the lives of so many characters as they grow and change in almost real-time. The strip is equal parts funny, dramatic, and poignant, and certainly never boring.

This particular strip is definitely relatable. Going to get a Christmas tree is always an adventure, at least as far as real ones go. Fake trees are, I imagine, much less exciting when you first get them, but they can get more and more exciting over time as they degrade and fall apart. The excitement is always worth the trouble, though, and makes for some wonderful stories, to say the least.