When I was a kid I loved Garfield. I can not emphasize this enough. In the early 80s, I thought Garfield was the most colossally hi-larious thing on earth. Okay, I was like, eight. Maybe nine. But still. Every time a new Garfield book would come out, mom (knowing full well of my deep affinity) would try to ensure I'd have a copy. At school, my friends and I would swap Garfield books at recess. I'd trade my copy of Garfield Takes the Cake for Aimee's copy of Garfield Weighs In, and so on. The only one that never left the safety of my bookshelf was Garfield Eats His Heart Out, because it was my favorite, and because I knew that little bitch Holly would probably take it and never give it back. These Garfield book swaps were serious business.
As I've gotten older, my sense of humor has darkened and twisted significantly. Things that amused me as a kid seem so pedestrian now. The antics of a cynical, lasagna-obsessed house cat had all but escaped my memory... until today. Bridget sent me a link that has joined the ranks of my favorite web comics: Garfield Minus Garfield.
Y'all, this is brilliant. From the Garfield Minus Garfield website:
Who would have guessed that when you remove Garfield from the Garfield comic strips, the result is an even better comic about schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and the empty desperation of modern life? Friends, meet Jon Arbuckle. Let’s laugh and learn with him on a journey deep into the tortured mind of an isolated young everyman as he fights a losing battle against loneliness in a quiet American suburb.
Like I said, brilliant. As a child I never picked up on how, um, quirky the Jon Arbuckle character is. I sure as heck didn't think I'd grow up to often feel like the female equivalent of him, but that's another post. Take Garfield out of the equation, and ol' Jon is (pardon my French) completely batshit crazy.
See for yourself: Garfield Minus Garfield
Dan Walsh, Garfield Minus Garfield's creator, is my new favorite Irishman for this genius creation. Even cooler, Garfield's creator Jim Davis is totally hip to it. Aaaand... Garfield Minus Garfield the webcomic is becoming Garfield Minus Garfield the book.
So, it looks like I'll be buying myself another Garfield book. And that, my friends, is something I never thought I'd be saying at 34 years old... but it cracks me up that I am.
I won't be swapping this one, though. You gotta get your own.
4 comments:
So I thought this was the stupidest thing I have ever seen. That is until I realized I had read 11 pages of the stuff and was laughing. Not so stupid after all, laughing at a man with bipolar schizophrenia.
He's a cartoon, so it's okay. ;)
Oh man, kinda depressing! Oh the humanity. Jon just seems *so* lonely.
He truly does. I can't help but wonder if Jim Davis was projecting a little... if he was, the subtlety is genius.
Post a Comment