Peanuts. The Far Side. Calvin and Hobbes. These names top the list of the greatest syndicated comics of all-time, but what other iconic strips round out the list, and why? Let’s take a look at the comics that transformed the genre and made the funny pages must-read material over the last century.

The decline of newspapers means comic strips often aren’t appreciated the way they once were. Still, the form has evolved online, and to this day, every modern cartoonist is indebted to the strips listed here.

In their own different ways, each of these strips had an outsized impact on pop culture.

10

“Little Nemo In Slumberland”

This Early 20th-Century Strip Is Still A Trip

Looking like a dream brought to life, Winsor McCay’s Little Nemo in Slumberland stands out as one of the most inventive comic strips of all time, and it dates all the way back to 1905. The series, which follows Nemo as he dreams of fantastical worlds and exciting adventures, only to always wake up at the end of a strip, took the medium to new heights.

And while McCay’s art and panel designs deserve much of the credit, the staff of the New York Herald also deserves some praise. McCay would craft his strips in black and white, then send them off to the Herald with detailed instructions on how to color them. The Herald staff then colored the strips, giving them the dreamlike quality that makes Little Nemo look unlike any other comic.

9

“Prince Valiant”

An Almost 100-Year-Old Comic That’s Still Going Today

Created by Hal Foster, Prince Valiant has appeared in papers since 1937. The series, consisting of nearly five thousand Sunday strips, tells a continuing epic adventure that stands out from other comic strips, thanks in no small part to its distinct and beautiful art style. It stands as Foster’s greatest work in the medium, and with good reason.

Foster’s art is some of the most vibrant and dynamic to ever appear on the comics page. Foster drew the strip for 34 years, and continued to write the series for another nine years, with Cullen Murphey as the artist. Even today, under the pen of Thomas Yeates, Prince Valiant continues to amaze readers.

8

“Nancy”

Another Old-School Classic That Still Resonates Today

When Ernie Bushmiller took over the Fritzi Ritz strip, he spent the first few years following the format created by Larry Whittington. But in 1933, the artists introduced a new character to the strip: Nancy. While Bushmiller had only planned to use Nancy for a week’s worth of strips, he quickly found that the character gave the strip a whole new life.

Readers agreed, and five years after her debut, Nancy completely took over the strip, with it now being named after her. Bushmiller’s panel structure always played on simple but fun gags, quickly making Nancy and her best friend, Sluggo, pop culture icons. Nancy had a recent resurgence in popularity when artist Olivia Jaimes took over and gave the series a 21st-century feel.

7

“Life In Hell”

A Pivotal Stepping Stone To The Simpsons

Before becoming known for The Simpsons, Matt Groening started off by selling copies of his semi-autobiographical comic, Life in Hell, out of the famous Licorice Pizza record shop on Sunset Boulevard. A year later, the strip was picked up by Wet magazine, and then by the Los Angeles Reader two years later.

Even as The Simpsons took off, Groening continued to produce weekly Life in Hell strips. The raunchy series, famous for combining dark humor with cute characters, is perhaps the biggest independent comic strip of all time. It led directly to Groening getting the chance to create The Simpsons, first for The Tracey Ullman Show, before the famous nuclear family gained their own series.

6

“Doonesbury”

The First Comic Strip To Win A Pulitzer Prize

For more than five decades, readers have looked forward to Garry Trudeau’s Doonesbury. The strip has followed the same sprawling cast of characters since it began, with its characters aging and changing alongside generations of readers. Doonesbury is best known for tackling the controversial US politics and the social issues of the day.

This led Trudeau’s strip to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for “Editorial Cartooning” in 1975. It was a milestone for the comic strip medium. The series has continued to break new ground in the fifty years since. Over time, Over the years, readers have seen their favorite characters get older and, in some cases, die; most notably, Alex Doonesbury, son of Mike, who suffered from a brain tumor.

Doonesbury stands as not only a discussion of the political world we live in, but of life in all forms. It blends comedy, tragedy, and “slice of life” commentary in a way that few other comics have ever pulled off. Those that have? They’ve played by Trudeau’s Doonesbury playbook.

5

“Bloom County”

Another Sprawling American Saga In Comic Form

Case in point: Bloom County. Inspired by Doonesbury, Berkeley Breathed’s Bloom County originally ran for just nine years, but left a massive imprint on the medium. The series, which follows the lives of some residents of Bloom County, including Opus the Penguin, Bill the Cat, and Cutter John, captured the energy of the 1980s in a way no other strip could.

With a clean yet detailed art style, Bloom County was clearly aimed at Baby Boomers, but its mix of nostalgia, politics, and pop culture also caught the attention of Gen X readers, many of whom grew up idolizing Bill the Cat’s less-than-ideal antics. Bloom County would go on to inspire countless strips, but few would ever capture the same chaotic nature that Breathed brought to the strip.

4

“The Boondocks”

The First Major Comic Strip Of The Internet Era

Aaron McGruder’s classic comic strip had a large following before it ever appeared in a newspaper. The series debuted on Hitlist.com before appearing in hip-hop magazine The Source. Seeing the attention the strip was getting, Universal Press Syndicate picked it up, and The Boondocks had one of the largest newsprint debuts of all time.

McGruder’s strip, with an art style that feels like a mix of Calvin and Hobbes and manga, quickly became a hit, leading to a TV adaptation. Boondocks was funny, but not afraid to court controversy, while showcasing the lives and thoughts of a Black family, which was unfortunately a rare sight in the comics page. McGruder, along with artists Jennifer Seng and Carl Jones, built a modern classic in just a decade.

3

“The Far Side”

Gary Larson’s Genre-Defying Comic Masterpiece

As the saying goes, brevity is the soul of wit, and no comic strip proves that more than Gary Larson’s The Far Side. From 1980 through 1994, Larson created single-panel comics that could be deeply intelligent and incredibly goofy all at once. Larson’s love of surrealist humor and interest in biology combined to create a strip like no other.

Everyone has a favorite Far Side strip, and for good reason: there isn’t a bad one in the bunch. Larson’s strips work on so many levels that everyone, from a child just learning to read to an entomologist, will always find something to chuckle at in each piece. Larson ended The Far Side in 1995, but has created sporadic new entries for his website since 2020, and they’re just as funny as ever.

2

“Calvin And Hobbes”

Bill Watterson’s Transformative, And Too-Short-Lived Magnum Opus

No comic strip has captured what childhood is like more than Calvin and Hobbes. Bill Waterson’s series, centered on the life of the hyperactive Calvin and his pet tiger Hobbes, who appears as a stuffed animal to others, has an innocent humor that feels both biting and soothing at the same time.

And while Calvin and Hobbes are clearly the stars of the series, Waterson never shortchanged the other characters. From Calvin’s parents to Susie Derkins to Miss Wormwood, everyone who appeared in the series was fleshed out and felt real. It’s hard not to look at Calvin’s parents and see what he gets from each of them.

1

“Peanuts”

Charles Schulz And The Peanuts Gang Defined The Comic Strip For The 20th Century

Charles Schulz’s Peanuts isn’t the best-looking comic strip. It isn’t the funniest, either. But there isn’t a person alive who hasn’t, at some point in their lives, felt like Charlie Brown. The forever put-upon child, who can’t win a game of baseball or kick the football, is the most human character to ever appear on the comics page.

Peanuts ran for 50 years, and was home to some of the most beloved characters of all time. From Snoopy to Pig-Pen, Schulz’s creation jumped off of newsprint and onto TV, movie screens, and even had a long-running Broadway show. Through his work, Schulz brought a smile to faces each and every day, and his legacy as a comic strip creator is impossible to top.

Created by

Charles M. Schulz

Cast

Christopher Shea, Kathy Steinberg, Bill Melendez, Sally Dryer, Peter Robbins, Noah Schnapp, Hadley Belle Miller, Mariel Sheets, Lisa DeFaria, Venus Omega Schultheis

Movie(s)

The Peanuts Movie, A Charlie Brown Christmas, A Boy Named Charlie Brown, Charlie Brown’s All Stars!, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, It’s the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown

Character(s)

Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy van Pelt, Linus van Pelt, Sally Brown, Pig-Pen, Marcie (Peanuts), Peppermint Patty, Woodstock