Comic Reviews: My Sources of Good Humor

When I was a kid I had a routine of reading the newspaper comics every night after dinner. It used to drive my friends crazy.

Well now I no longer receive the newspaper, but I still enjoy a daily dose of humor. So I thought I'd share with you my four favorite web comics.

1. xkcd

This is a comic created by a super smart scientist who finds humor in everything. Sometimes his jokes go right over my head.

Like this one. WHAT is this?? Obviously it's aimed at computer programers, which I am not.

But then sometimes the joke is aimed at MY specific field...

...and I find it HILARIOUS.

And most of the time his jokes are basic real-world enough to be funny to readers of any scholarly field.

Assuming that you keep up with current real-world issues.

On top of his almost-daily comics, this guy also has a "What If?" page where he uses his vast physics and science skills (and funny drawings) to answer ridiculous theoretical questions posed by fans. 

This one on Radar Enforcement is my favorite so far, though I just barely discovered this page a few days ago.

So the jokes might go over your head sometimes, but give it a try. It's definitely enriched my life.

2. The Doghouse Diaries

This comic is very similar to xkcd in style of drawings (stick figures are popular, apparently) and style of humor, but I can't ever remember not understanding one of their jokes. So if you're looking for something simpler and consistently funny, this is the comic for you.

3. Cakewrecks 

This is actually a blog, not a comic, so I can't copy and paste any examples. Written by a wife-and-husband tag team, this blog receives photos from fans of absolutely terrible professional cakes, and puts them all together in some kind of hilarious narrative or parody. Seriously, check it out. It updates every day, and it never fails to be funny. 

And just when you think your faith in bakers is lost, on Sundays, they post "Sunday Sweets"--photos of absolutely amazing GORGEOUS cakes. 

4. Nimona

Finally, there's "Nimona". This is actually more of a graphic novel. It has a beginning, middle, and eventual end (though it's not finished yet and I can't wait to see how it all turns out). The art gets progressively better as time goes on (so don't judge the whole thing by the first few pages), and the characters are great. The eponymous Nimona is a snarky teenage shape-shifter and I love her.

It only updates on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and you will get super hooked into the story so if you binge-read the whole thing and catch up to the current pages, you will have many agonizing weekends ahead of you. Trust me. The waits are unbearable. Every single page seems to end with a hook or cliffhanger that makes you desperate for more.


Conclusion: I appreciate good, clean, smart humor, and these are my four main sources of it. I hope you come to enjoy them as much as I do!