Remembering Calvin and Hobbes

The Unicorn Club For the Love of Fairy Tales

Remembering Calvin and Hobbes

I own seven Calvin and Hobbes collections written by Bill Waterson. I bought several from the Walden books in Woodfield Mall when I was in grade school. It’s my favorite comic series followed by Baby Blues. I used to cut the strips out of the Sunday comic pages and try to collect them, but the paper was so flimsy that they were soon ruined or lost. I knew the day would come when my son would want to read them. I was a little apprehensive at first because I didn’t want him to mess them up. But I’ve also learned that since I have a growing children’s library, who else to share my books with than my kids. I watched him pick out Revenge of the Babysat and remembered wryly why I bought that particular one. I’d never had a babysitter growing up so automatically this particular collection of Calvin and Hobbes stood out to me. I loved Calvin’s antics with the babysitter, Rosalyn, and how he tried to get the best of her but only got to stay up thirty minutes later. The dynamic between her and the parents was hilarious. They knew she was in for a rough night and she did too, sometimes holding out her hand for more money.

Another aspect of Calvin and Hobbes that I adored was Calvin’s intellect. He was so freaking articulate for a six-year-old, but in juxtaposition that didn’t help him stay out of trouble or get good grades in school. It was baffling, but the contrast worked so well because it’s what made me root for Calvin. I never wanted Spaceman Spiff or Stupendous Man to get caught. I used to think Calvin spoke so eloquently because he’s named after a 16th century theologian John Calvin while Hobbes is named after 17th century philosopher Thomas Hobbes, but it was actually Bill Waterson’s ideals and commentaries spilling through Calvin’s mouth. Either way, it made Calvin’s blunders and hypocritical actions funny. The only time I wanted Calvin to go down was where Susie Derkins was involved. She is by far an epitome of myself when I was younger, and I would have loved a short spin off comic involving her. She was also smart, but studious, and seemingly well behaved. She had a mean streak constantly putting Calvin in his place by clobbering him or making him play make believe games where he was not in control. She stood up for herself and wasn’t a push over, yet she also had an incredible imagination. In fact, they both do. Calvin and Susie’s imagination is what I think some kids lack today. Not because they don’tread, but simply because they aren’t challenged. Challenges cause us to get creative and creativity spurs from an active imagination. My imagination has always been a little out of control and like most children, I was impressionable.

Here’s a dark secret: a tale told late at night. I acquired a little stuffed tiger from a happy meal, I think, but never the less, I decided he would be my friend. When I finally got a K’nex building system, I put a tire around his neck and deemed him Petey the Keeper of K’nex. His job was to stand watch over my building systems so that my younger brother wouldn’t mess with it. Soon, I began taking him everywhere with me, which meant he would eventually get lost. It was a weekend over my cousin’s house that I lost Petey. Of course, back then I’d claimed he must have run away because everyone was so horrible and mean and always yelled. Yes, as my cousin would say, “I have issues.” The lost of Petey took a toll on me. I realized that he’d never actually talked to me and our relationship didn’t feel as real as Calvin and Hobbes did now that he was gone. Still, I never stopped loving those two, they are iconic and it feels good to see my son interested in my good ‘ol comics.