The Comics Curmudgeon

Norwegian! Would?

$ · November 22, 2025

Judge Parker, 11/22/25 A few months ago Sophie and Reena experienced a certain amount of panic and anxiety in the wake of witnessing an April-involved spy...

Metapost: COTW ASAP

$ · November 21, 2025

Real quick: it's comment of the week time! "Steve, I accidentally ordered too many birdcages. Try to upsell any customer who comes in to buy bird food....

He's already named "Ozob," how many clown aliases does one guy need

$ · November 21, 2025

Dick Tracy, 11/21/25 Look, I don't like to speak ill of the dead, and I'm not going to say I'm glad that Sheriff Somners plummeted to his death off that...

Ceci n'est pas une course automobile

$ · November 20, 2025

Gearhead Gertie, 11/20/25 Gearhead Gertie's loved ones are trying to break through her epistemological bubble that only allows her to think about NASCAR...

Mmm ... quality pellet food

$ · November 19, 2025

Intelligent Life, 11/19/25 For my sins, I have come to be able to recognize the various recurring characters in Intelligent Life, even if I often forget...

There was a 6-7 meme joke in "Pluggers" today, go look it up if you dare, I refuse to deal with it

$ · November 18, 2025

Hi and Lois, 11/18/25 Sorry, Lois. The latest Gen Alpha trend is eldermaxxing. Kids are putting on their grandpa's clothes, and they're so young they don't...

Don't even think we need to get into why this bird-lady did it, we can all guess

$ · November 17, 2025

Shoe, 11/17/25 I was about to get really mad and go on a diatribe about how graves are famously clearly labelled with both the occupant's name and date of...

It's not the clam's fault it's very quiet

$ · November 16, 2025

Panel from Slylock Fox, 11/16/25 Poor Slick Smitty. He thought he had found a way to beat Slylock at his own game by not technically lying as part of his...

Being cool is not a SIN, Dennis

$ · November 15, 2025

Pardon My Planet, 11/15/25 Truly, this is a dark vision of an alternate timeline where the British won the American War of Independence and brought Patrick...

Metapost: Gonna comment all up in your week, baby

$ · November 14, 2025

Yeah, man! It's the COTW! And it goes a little something ... like this! "It's been obvious for a while that these two aren't humans exactly, but today...

Yes, Crock's middle initial is "P", I don't care for it but there it is

$ · November 14, 2025

Pluggers, 11/14/25 I have to admit that I'm intrigued by the "come out here" formulation. This isn't a plugger who has walked into the living room and...

You can fly, man. Why even bother running. Makes no sense

$ · November 13, 2025

Shoe, 11/13/25 "Plus I forgot we live in a tree! Like where am I even supposed to go? The end of that branch is maybe fifteen feet away, tops!" Garfield,...

Streaming doesn't count, people on streaming shows don't have souls

$ · November 12, 2025

Dick Tracy, 11/12/25 New Dick Tracy storyline, everybody! This one involves (a) a guy named "Rojo Ozob," and (b) a sheriff who accidentally drove over a...

Josh has some second thoughts

$ · November 11, 2025

Family Circus, 11/11/25 One of my favorite unintentional running Family Circus bits is when panels drawn decades ago that depict the Keane Kids in a car have...

I think coffee tastes great, that's why I put so much cream and sugar in it

$ · November 10, 2025

Shoe, 11/10/25 "48 years" is relevant here because that's how long Shoe has been syndicated. Shoe, dimly aware of the contours of his universe, knows that...

Please do not peck my eyes out, bird lovers, you are valid

$ · November 9, 2025

Crock, 11/9/25 Now, obviously part of the whole deal of Crock is that it takes what's objectively a pretty grim situation -- a remote outpost of an army...

The spices go ON the pumpkin, they're not IN the pumpkin

$ · November 8, 2025

Hi and Lois, 11/8/25 In addition to being a coastal elitist who knows about academia, I contain multitudes and am also a Rust Belt native who was in a...

Metapost: The week that was, and the comments of it

$ · November 7, 2025

Ready or not, Friday has arrived, and with it this week's funniest comment, chosen by me: "Kudos to Lou for being thematically consistent by mounting the TV...

I guess if you learn things about him in conversation, he becomes less unknown and it kills the vibe

$ · November 7, 2025

The Phantom, 11/7/25 The Jungle Patrol, like most military and paramilitary outfits, is mostly composed of young people, but the nature of those young people...

Nothing worse than finding trust fund kids in your canal

$ · November 6, 2025

Andy Capp, 11/6/25 I know increasing globalization means that cities around the world are becoming more and more similar to one another in their interlocked...

The hills have eyes, and lolling tongues

$ · November 5, 2025

Rex Morgan, M.D., 11/5/25 Oh, wow, it turns out that this Rex Morgan, M.D., plot is going to involve -- brace yourself -- interpersonal conflict???...

Whose luggage is that and why did they bring it on their date

$ · November 4, 2025

Mary Worth, 11/4/25 Sorry to be a "liberal coastal elitist" who "has a basic understanding of how academia works," but a "teachers conference” isn't really a...

Toby has journeyed far from Charterstone, so nobody can see her shameful between-meals nosh

$ · November 3, 2025

Alice, 11/3/25 Today's Alice will I think be particularly inscrutable to non-Alice regulars, but in my late blog era I have myself become an Alice regular...

Bad romances

$ · November 2, 2025

Rex Morgan, M.D., 11/2/25 So the big news that Augie delivered over pad thai is that not one but two publishers are interested in his manuscript and are...

Just getting her husband's feeble mind palace revved up then going back to her sudoku

$ · November 1, 2025

Blondie, 11/1/25 The thing about Dagwood is that he's a dullard. He's not stupid, though he's also clearly not a genius, but mostly he just lacks any kind of...

Metapost: COMMENTS ... OF THE *FREAK!*

$ · October 31, 2025

Look, guys. I really did plan to do a bunch of Cryptkeeper-style creepy puns for this post, but it's actually been a long and stressful week for me, and it's...

Mostly spooky one-panels

$ · October 31, 2025

Pluggers, 10/31/25 Sorry, I don't think you should be exclaiming "What have you done?" to a guy in a toga unless he just banded together with other patriots...

Melancholy Thursday

$ · October 30, 2025

Shoe, 10/30/25 I love how genuinely sad the Perfesser looks in the second panel. He's there by himself because he had planned to treat himself to something...

I declare victory in my long war against "Crock"

$ · October 29, 2025

Herb and Jamaal, 10/29/25 One of my personal crosses to bear is that I cannot just go along with it when comics deliberately, and for "humorous" effect,...

"The Bum Boat never disappoints" is a phrase that will haunt my nightmares

$ · October 28, 2025

Mary Worth, 10/28/25 Wow, did you know that Dr. Jeff doesn't even like seafood? Did you know he's just been choking it down every other week for years, just...

Quotable Monday

$ · October 27, 2025

Crankshaft, 10/27/25 "I mean, I get it! We're all thinking it. We're all thinking about the guy who dresses up in pizza boxes and how he's mortal, and how...

I can't imagine Ed Crankshaft watching a movie made in the last ten years. Seems very wrong

$ · October 26, 2025

Crankshaft, 10/26/25 Mr. Crankshaft, I know Dagwood Bumstead. Dagwood Bumstead is a friend of mine. He puts together comically large foodstuffs that no...

Forgetful Saturday

$ · October 25, 2025

Pluggers, 10/25/25 Pluggers are exhibiting signs of senile dementia, and it's beginning to have a negative impact on their day-to-day life. Look at this guy,...

Metapost: Your comments are here. Are you ready for them?

$ · October 24, 2025

Many comments were posted on joshreads dot com, the Comics Curmudgeon, this week. Of the ones I saw, this was my favorite: "These are hate handles, so I'd...

Friday is for failure and indignity

$ · October 24, 2025

The Lockhorns, 10/24/25 Loretta has, presumably, been jogging for some time with her friend acquaintance who we are definitely never going to see again, and...

Soapy Thursday

$ · October 23, 2025

Judge Parker, 10/22/25 I don't know if I've actually spelled out the current Judge Parker situation, but it goes like this: April vanished after her...

Wednesday quickies

$ · October 22, 2025

Mary Worth, 10/22/25 "Sure, she can predict the future and bend animals to her will, but not in a big showy way that would attract attention! Sort of like...

Hi still looks super depressed, at least

$ · October 21, 2025

Andy Capp, 10/21/25 I, a guy who has run a blog about comic strips for the better part of two decades now, am, as you might imagine, a huge nerd....

One-panel Monday (ok that Family Circus is kind of two half panels, fine)

$ · October 20, 2025

Mother Goose and Grimm, 10/20/25 Look, I know what I'm about to say is gonna make me sound like a humorless nitpicker, but I promise that I do in fact know...

The past, the future, etc.

$ · October 19, 2025

Beetle Bailey, 10/19/25 When Yuri Gagarin made the first human spaceflight, there were concerns that the experimental capsule he rode into space in would...

You're five times more likely to encounter a bone-in ham in the comics than you are in real life

$ · October 18, 2025

Blondie, 10/18/25 God, I love how genuinely sad Dagwood looks in panel two. Sure, he loves his wife more than anything, but he also made some big promises...

Metapost: Your COTW is hot 'n' ready for you

$ · October 17, 2025

Mmm, it's a delicious comment of the week! "Boy, did I score today, Mary! This extra sandwich was going to be Stanley's until they hauled him away for...

There's big profits to be had in zappin'

$ · October 17, 2025

Dick Tracy, 10/17/25 So Dick Tracy wrapped up the case of the lady scientist with the glowing green zap gun by merely arresting her, not shooting her in the...

Thursday fast takes

$ · October 16, 2025

Marvin, 10/16/25 Lately, when I bring up Marvin as an example of a strip that loves talking about peeing and pooping, some people in the comments will try to...

I think I have the genders of these things pegged correctly, but who knows, really

$ · October 15, 2025

Six Chix, 10/15/25 I genuinely love the open, slightly quizzical expression on the face of the bucket in this panel. He's just a simple bucket! He doesn't...

"Dogs are great ... receivers of my thoughts" is a little unnerving, not gonna lie

$ · October 14, 2025

Rex Morgan, M.D., 10/14/25 Back in the days when Woody Wilson was writing Judge Parker and Rex Morgan, M.D., one of the running bits was that the characters...

Uncanny Monday

$ · October 13, 2025

Mary Worth, 10/13/25 OK, sorry, Mary, I know you don't want to think too hard about the strange logic of Olive's powers and the implications for free will...

10/12, uh, blaze it? Do I have that right?

$ · October 12, 2025

Panel from Slylock Fox, 10/12/25 Look, by anthropomorphic animal logic, it's fine to have an anthropomorphic animal wearing a shirt but no pants or...

Absolutely not necessary to use Muffy's name in dialogue BTW. Adds nothing

$ · October 11, 2025

Shoe, 10/11/25 OK, the fact that this person she dated is named "Lance" pushes this over the edge and makes me genuinely wonder if he's supposed to be an...

Metapost: KAPOW! It's the COTW

$ · October 10, 2025

Wham, bam, thank you faithful commenters for your service! Here's this week's comment of the week: "Saul is over in panel one, pursuing his passion:...