calvin and hobbes time travel homework

MOOD - Calvin and Hobbes - Full Story

Full transcript, by S Anand .

05/20/92: This is the worst assignment ever! I'm supposed to think up a story, write it, and illustrate it by tomorrow! Do I look like a novelist?! This is impossible! I can't tell stories! What about your explanation of the noodle incident? THAT WASN'T A STORY! THAT WAS THE UNVARNISHED TRUTH! Oh, don't be so modest. You deserved a Pulitzer.

05/21/92: Do you have an idea for your story yet? No, I'm waiting for inspiration. You can't just turn on creativity like a faucet. You have to be in the right mood. What mood is that? Last-minute panic.

05/22/92: If you ask ME, these assignments don't teach you how to write. They teach you how to HATE to write. Deadlines, rules how to do it, grades... how can you be creating when someone's breathing down your neck? I guess you should try not to think about the end result too much and just have fun with the process of creating. Every time I do that, I end up in the school psychologist's office. Well, maybe not THAT much fun.

05/23/92: Say, I'VE got an idea! For your story? No, I thought of a way I won't have to write one! Oh no. Hop in the time machine, Hobbes! We're going a few hours into the future! I'll have finished my story by then, so we'll just pick it up and bring it back to the present! That way I won't have to write it! Something doesn't make sense here, and I think it's me sitting in this box. Relax! We'll be back as soon as we go.

05/24/92: Thank you. Thank YOU. Yep. There's nothing like a big bed for dancing. I hope your parents don't mind bad springs.

05/25/92: Vortex goggles on? Here we go! We'll jump ahead to my bedtime and pick up my completed homework from my own future! Then we'll return to the present and we can goof off the rest of the evening! Here we are! You must be the 8:30 Calvin. Did you have a good trip? No. Pst! Why do you always go on these things?

05/26/92: Greetings, 8:30 Calvin and Hobbes! I'm 6:30 Calvin and this is 6:30 Hobbes! Charmed. Well, since we're YOU from the past, I suppose you know why we're here. Did you do the homework? Me?? No. NO?! Why not?? Because two hours ago, I went to the future to get it. Yeah, and here I am! Where is it?! That's what I said two hours ago! I knew this would never work. Right as always, Hobbes.

05/27/92: Do you mean to say it's time for bed and you still haven't written our story for school?! I figured the story was already done! How could it be done if YOU didn't write it?! Obviously it had to be done before now, because it's 8:30 and I'm supposed to be in bed! Wait a minute! If the story had been written in YOUR past, that would mean I should've written it! Well, why didn't you?! Because I came to the future to pick it up when it was DONE! If you hadn't screwed up my past, your future wouldn't be like this.

05/28/92: Hold it. Let's figure this out. I'M you at 6:30 and YOU'RE me at 8:30. Neither of us did the homework. Right. That means the homework SHOULD'VE been done between my time and your time. Right. We needed to do it at 7:30. But the 7:30 Calvin clearly didn't do it, or you'd have it by now at 8:30. Yeah! This is HIS fault! That lazy little punk! He'll get us BOTH in trouble! Let's go get him!

05/29/92: Hobbeses, the 8:30 Calvin and I are going to go back to 7:30 and make THAT Calvin do the homework. We'll wait here. All this time travel makes us queasy. We'll be right back. Off we go! This HAS to be the least efficient way to write a paper. All this modern technology makes people try to do everything at once.

05/30/92: Ah ha! Here we are, right at 7:30! Yikes! My past and my future! Put down that comic book and do our homework! Yeah! Get to work, you loafer! Hey! Why should I do all the work? Either of you could do it too! But I didn't at 6:30 and now it's 7:30. And at 8:30 it will be too late. You're the last chance. Now are you gonna start writing or do we have to pound you? Go ahead and hit me! My FUTURE self will be the one who hurts! HEY!

05/31/92: I don't think so. Definitely not. Mm... nahh... That's a little better. Eww. Yeah, perfect! What now, Calvin? No, absolutely not. Put those back. Mom says no way. Grown-ups have no taste.

06/01/92: You know, Hobbes, if the 7:30 Calvin is at all like the 6:30 and 8:30 Calvins, I'll bet he isn't going to write that story. You're right, Hobbes. Why don't WE write a story while we're waiting for them? Yeah! Calvin could use it for his class then. I'll write it down and you can illustrate it! OK, now what should our story be about? Calvin's not here. Let's write about HIM! Hee hee hee! Hoo hoo! Drawing Calvin is easy! You just make a big mouth and add some hair!

06/02/92: Look, guys, you can't gang up on ME! Oh yeah? Why not? Because we're all the same Calvin! In one hour, the 6:30 Calvin will be ME, and in another hour, we'll BOTH be the 8:30 Calvin. That means you guys will suffer whatever you do to me. Oh yeah. Oops. Whose dumb idea was this anyway? His? His!

06/03/92: We're back, but we didn't get the homework. Now it's 8:30 again and we're doomed. Here you go! Hobbes and I wrote a story for you while you were gone! You DID?? Ha ha! We're all done! We can go back to 6:30 now! Thanks, Hobbeses! You guys are life savers! Calvin? It's Mom! Hurry! Hobbes, get in! We'll be you in a couple hours! So long! Aren't you in bed yet? Don't come in! I'm... uh... changing into my PJs!

06/04/92: Did you write your story for class tomorrow? Sort of. What do you mean, "sort of"? Well, Hobbes helped and I had to do a lot of time traveling. Is your story written or not? Oh, it's written. I just haven't read it.

06/05/92: All right, Calvin, go ahead. What's YOUR story about? I don't know yet, but I'm sure it's good! My story is entitled, "How Hobbes, the handsome tiger, saved the day... ...no thanks to Calvin, the time-traveling chowderhead." WHAT?! Is there a problem? There WILL be for a certain stripey furball when I get home.

06/06/92: OK, YOU! Me?? This story you wrote is about ME trying to get OUT of writing the STORY! You made my time traveling sound like LUNACY! And the illustration You drew the THREE of me fighting! I was the laughing-stock of the whole class! What grade did it get? Um... A+. She wrote, "Very creative. The 'tiger' narration was a clever touch. I'm glad you're finally applying yourself." ... BUT EVEN SO...!! A+? Maybe I should send this to the New Yorker.

We will keep fighting for all libraries - stand with us!

Internet Archive Audio

• This Just In
• Grateful Dead
• Old Time Radio
• 78 RPMs and Cylinder Recordings
• Audio Books & Poetry
• Computers, Technology and Science
• Music, Arts & Culture
• News & Public Affairs
• Spirituality & Religion
• Radio News Archive

• Flickr Commons
• Occupy Wall Street Flickr
• NASA Images
• Solar System Collection
• Ames Research Center

• All Software
• Old School Emulation
• MS-DOS Games
• Historical Software
• Classic PC Games
• Software Library
• Kodi Archive and Support File
• Vintage Software
• CD-ROM Software
• CD-ROM Software Library
• Software Sites
• Tucows Software Library
• Shareware CD-ROMs
• Software Capsules Compilation
• CD-ROM Images
• ZX Spectrum
• DOOM Level CD

• Smithsonian Libraries
• FEDLINK (US)
• Lincoln Collection
• American Libraries
• Canadian Libraries
• Universal Library
• Project Gutenberg
• Children's Library
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• Books by Language
• Additional Collections

• Prelinger Archives
• Democracy Now!
• Occupy Wall Street
• TV NSA Clip Library
• Animation & Cartoons
• Arts & Music
• Computers & Technology
• Cultural & Academic Films
• Ephemeral Films
• Sports Videos
• Videogame Videos
• Youth Media

Search the history of over 866 billion web pages on the Internet.

Mobile Apps

• Wayback Machine (iOS)
• Wayback Machine (Android)

Browser Extensions

Archive-it subscription.

• Explore the Collections
• Build Collections

Save Page Now

Capture a web page as it appears now for use as a trusted citation in the future.

Please enter a valid web address

• Donate Donate icon An illustration of a heart shape

The Complete Calvin & Hobbes

Bookreader item preview, share or embed this item, flag this item for.

• Graphic Violence
• Explicit Sexual Content
• Hate Speech
• Misinformation/Disinformation
• Marketing/Phishing/Advertising
• Misleading/Inaccurate/Missing Metadata

plus-circle Add Review comment Reviews

13,522 Views

92 Favorites

DOWNLOAD OPTIONS

For users with print-disabilities

IN COLLECTIONS

Uploaded by Sketaful on February 18, 2019

SIMILAR ITEMS (based on metadata)

How Bill Watterson's Calvin & Hobbes Captures the Essence of Childhood Summer

Calvin and Hobbes always captured summer's endless qualities perfectly, representing everything that adults miss about childhood summers.

Summertime is for making fun childhood memories. Whether they're getting dirty in the backyard or sailing deep into their imaginations, this is the only time kids of all ages can be themselves. When the summer vacations roll around, it's time to let the textbooks gather dust and enjoy the feeling that there's no tomorrow. Bill Watterson's Calvin and Hobbes has always celebrated that spirit of freedom through its protagonists, a mischievous six-year-old and his imaginary furry friend. But summers have always been special in Calvin's world, as untethered creativity and reckless fun are a key part of every summer twilight.

Unlike his creation, cartoonist Bill Watterson was a shy and introverted kid growing up. He expressed his inner playfulness through his art, which took a hit when he became an adult. Detesting his job at an advertising agency, Watterson created a new comic strip where he relived his childhood through the eyes of the precocious and energetic Calvin and his sarcastic tiger, Hobbes. In most summer-themed stories, Calvin and Hobbes run through the woods, enjoying the shades of trees and debating their futures then getting into trouble with family and friends. While Calvin's life is never perfect, these are the perfect summer Watterson envisioned for his younger self, reimagined through Calvin's boisterous lens.

RELATED: How Snoopy Celebrated D-Day in Peanuts

Calvin And Hobbes’ Water Stunts To Beat The Summer Heat

Children love playing in water. It inserts an element of chaos into daily life and, for a kid, making the biggest splash means being the coolest. Calvin and Hobbes always found the perfect way to cool off on muggy summer days. The size of their kiddie pool never dampened their spirits, for they were too busy one-upping each other. If Hobbes made an elaborate show of diving or finished a lap in zero seconds, Calvin needed to upstage him with his own daredevil stunts. This was the epitome of how suburban American kids lived in the '80s and '90s, creating their own kingdoms, and ignoring their yelling mothers, standing in doorways.

Bill Watterson took his inspiration from his childhood days in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, where the summers are hot and humid and kids throw water balloons at their friends, both out of mischief and to beat the heat. Calvin loved to attack Susie Derkins, Hobbes, and even his mom with these cold, wet missiles, even if it always ended badly for him. Taking things too far with friends and family is part and parcel with growing up. From Hobbes cannonballing into the pool to Calvin losing his trunks in a scuffle with his tiger friend, the cold, refreshing water makes everyone pick up their water pistols and throw caution to the wind.

RELATED: Christmas is so Wonderful That It Even Makes Garfield Sentimental

Calvin And Hobbes’ Wacky Inventions Embody Freedom

Children can amuse themselves with the simplest things. Out on leisurely strolls on summer afternoons, they can pick up a stick and transform it into an imaginary laser gun or sword, suddenly embarking on a full-fledged quest for glory and might. However, Calvin tends to take things a step further and goes full-on evil genius with his inventions.

All Calvin needs is a cardboard box to create a terrifying invention. One of his earliest "devices" was the transmogrifier, an upside-down box with a dial drawn on the side. With it, he could transform himself and Hobbes into any animal or object. The only limit was the scope of his imagination. While these adventures weren't specific to summer, they demonstrated the essence of Calvin's love of imagination and freedom .

Calvin also reused the same cardboard box for other inventions. Turned on its side, it became the duplicator, useful for creating clones that Calvin tried to force to do his homework and clean his room. Turned upright, it became a time machine that Calvin and Hobbes used either for their shrewd moneymaking schemes or to travel to the past to take pictures of dinosaurs. Of course, six-year-olds often create an elaborate world filled with fantastical details. And while Calvin's tree forts and wagon rides down dangerous hills were the perfect illustration of how the kid embraced summer's freedom, his hilarious devices were the expression of his frustrated and untethered ambitions and dreams. Summertime frees kids from their rigid schedules and they focus more on having fun with whatever is near them, letting their imaginations do the rest.

RELATED: 15 Funniest Calvin And Hobbes Strips

Lazy Days And Endless Nights In Calvin And Hobbes’ World

Calvin likes summer vacations because he doesn't have to think about the rest of the world. No dash for school and even if he misses his favorite TV show, it makes more time for his best pal Hobbes, marching into the woods, debating reality, and leaping streams. Calvin and Hobbes often stared into the sky and imagined shapes in the clouds. However, on hot days, the two best friends would seek shelter in the cool shade of the forest canopy and ponder the meaning of life and the simplicity of doing nothing.

As evening sets in, kids return home with heavy hearts. With the day almost over, it is time to eat dinner and go to bed. However, on summer holidays, when there are no worries about school the next day, kids find ways to stay past their bedtime and make the most of every day. Calvin always hates going to bed unless bedtime stories are involved but on nights like these, when the sun is down and the fireflies come out to play, Calvin cannot contain his excitement as he chases these playful insects with Hobbes. Every child feels a bit like Calvin, here, when they argue with their parents to let them off the hook for a little while longer and pretend that the twilight will never end.

RELATED: 15 Weirdest Details In Old Charlie Brown Comics

Summer Freed Calvin From His Homework

Studying is the farthest thing from most kids' minds when there's a world of infinite possibilities just outside their doors. Summer homework isn't unheard of even for younger kids. Some assignments require kids to pay attention to the outside world, while others require concentration indoors. However, even fun activities can be annoying when they're mandated by someone in authority. Like every other kid, when Calvin suddenly realizes that his summer holidays are almost over he panics since he might have to pay attention to his responsibilities again soon. Calvin's more likely to complain about the anxiety his assignments create than to ever alleviate it by completing them, though, and he resents the fact that they exist and they force him back into the real world. His safe summer fantasia is always better than anything reality could ever offer.

Calvin's last few days of summer pass in existential dilemma as he dreads the beginning of the end of his freedom. He does not want to write boring essays about his vacation or collect leaves for Miss Wormwood's class. He wants to go on grand adventures in pirate ships with Hobbes as his first mate and travel through time to when the dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Sometimes, he simply wants to enjoy a warm, buttery corn on the cob on a hot summer afternoon, forgetting his worries about the future. That is the essence of being a child: looking forward to fresh experiences tomorrow rather than being bogged down by worries. Calvin doesn't always deal with his anger at reality well but it's hard not to sympathize with him when he acts out.

RELATED: The Doonesbury Comics Too Controversial to Be Published in Newspapers!

Calvin And Hobbes And The Endless Nostalgia

Calvin and Hobbes's comic strips are famous all over the world. Lighthearted, mischievous, and sometimes profound, every year they attract new fans, who laugh and nod at the characters' hijinks. However, for many readers, they're also a source of nostalgia. C&H reminds them of simpler times when cable TV and outdoor activities were the norm. When technology didn't invade dinner table conversations, and living in the moment was the essence of summer and childhood.

Times change, but some things always remain the same. Even now, kids can relate to Calvin's picky eating habits and his addiction to watching shows on repeat. They laugh at Calvin's antics as he declares war on his babysitter and they find solace in his inseparable bond with his fluffy friend. Calvin and Hobbes' summer stories have always captured the innocence and creativity of childhood. The way it manages to combine fantasy with grounded reality makes Calvin and Hobbes both comfortable and timeless.

• Show Spoilers
• Night Vision
• Sticky Header
• Highlight Links

Follow TV Tropes

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Recap/CalvinAndHobbesCalvinPutsOffMathHomework

Recap / Calvin And Hobbes Calvin Puts Off Math Homework

Edit locked, this episode includes examples of the following tropes:.

• All Just a Dream : The arc begins with Calvin about to hand in his completed math homework, when all the numbers jump off the page, which then explodes into flame. His teacher turns into a tentacled alien and douses him with gasoline; Calvin leaps off his chair and is abruptly plummeting from the clouds. Calvin wakes up just as he was about to strike his house like a flaming meteor... only to remember he hadn't completed his homework.
• Disproportionate Retribution : Dream Miss Wormwood tells Calvin she's tired of him constantly disrupting her class and douses him with gasoline near his spontaneously combusting homework to "teach [him] a lesson."
• Evil Laugh : Dream Miss Wormwood cackles while dousing Calvin with gasoline.
• Exact Words : At the end of the arc, Calvin declares that he's learned a lesson: business before pleasure. Then he says that having the homework completed would be a pleasure and so goes outside to work on a snowman.
• Gasoline Dousing : Miss Wormwood turns into an alien and pours gasoline on Calvin after his homework spontaneously combusts. It turns out to be just a nightmare Calvin is having.
• Guilt-Induced Nightmare : Implied; Calvin dreams about handing in some schoolwork. Then his answers jump off his paper and his paper suddenly bursts into flames. Miss Wormwood turns into an alien and sets him alight with a jerrycan. This dream gets Calvin to remember that he forgot to do his homework.
• Hypocritical Humor : When Hobbes suggests that Calvin should do the homework before playing in the snow, Calvin tells him that he's a practical man who doesn't think about hypothetical situations. Right now, the reality is that he's out in the snow. Hobbes points out that tomorrow is also a reality, and Calvin answers that "hypothetically" it could also be a second snow day.
• Ignored Aesop : Calvin has a nightmare which makes him realize he forgot to do his homework. He's saved by a snow day but wastes the opportunity by playing outside all day. He's then saved a second day in a row because the teacher forgets to collect the homework before the end of the day. He reflects upon his luck and that he won't put off work for pleasure anymore. Calvin : And it will be a pleasure to have that homework done! C'mon, let's work on a snowman. Hobbes : (rolling his eyes) No exceptions.
• Murder by Cremation : Miss Wormwood sets Calvin ablaze with a gasoline can during his nightmare.
• Religious Russian Roulette : As he's waiting for news about whether the schools are closed, Calvin lampshades that he's in big trouble if they aren't. Looking upward, he comments that he suddenly feels very religious. Hobbes snarks that it's "another deathbed conversion."
• Ridiculous Procrastinator : Calvin forgets entirely about his math homework until 2:00 AM the day it's due. When he's saved by a snow day, he again puts it off, and regrets it the next day at school. He's saved again by the bell, and immediately runs off to play in the snow again.
• Spontaneous Combustion : In Calvin's nightmare, his homework paper explodes for no reason.
• Tranquil Fury : Calvin wakes his dad up early in the morning calling the superintendent to see if school might be cancelled on account of snow. Midway through the call, Dad intimidates his son back to bed simply by standing there looking grouchy and telling him that he has two seconds to do something to make him happier.
• Would Hurt a Child : Calvin dreams about Miss Wormwood killing him because she's sick of having him in class.
• Calvin And Hobbes The Atomic Cerebral Enhance O Tron
• Recap/Calvin and Hobbes
• Calvin And Hobbes The Leaf Collection

Important Links

• Action Adventure
• Commercials
• Crime & Punishment
• Professional Wrestling
• Speculative Fiction
• Sports Story
• Animation (Western)
• Music And Sound Effects
• Print Media
• Sequential Art
• Tabletop Games
• Applied Phlebotinum
• Characterization
• Characters As Device
• Narrative Devices
• British Telly
• The Contributors
• Creator Speak
• Derivative Works
• Laws And Formulas
• Show Business
• Split Personality
• Truth And Lies
• Truth In Television
• Fate And Prophecy
• Edit Reasons
• Isolated Pages
• Images List
• Recent Videos
• Crowner Activity
• Un-typed Pages
• Recent Page Type Changes
• Trope Entry
• Character Sheet
• Playing With
• Creating New Redirects
• Cross Wicking
• Tips for Editing
• Text Formatting Rules
• Handling Spoilers
• Administrivia
• Trope Repair Shop
• Image Pickin'

Advertisement:

The Story Teller

Calvin hobbes time traveler.

No comments:

Post a comment.

Calvin's Most Creative Inventions in Calvin and Hobbes

P lenty of inventors appear in comics and cartoons, but one of the most creative and beloved cartoon inventors is Calvin from Calvin and Hobbes comics. As a young child, Calvin has an incredibly active imagination. His imagination can often get him into trouble, like when he daydreams about being a dinosaur instead of paying attention in school. However, his imagination has also allowed him to create some of the most iconic inventions in any comic strip.

Most of Calvin’s best inventions in Calvin and Hobbes comics have one of two purposes. Calvin often invents tools for the purpose of having fantastical adventures with Hobbes. Just as often, though, Calvin invents creative solutions in order to avoid performing chores or tasks he doesn’t want to do, usually with chaotic results. Although Calvin’s parents might wish that he approached tasks with slightly less creativity, Calvin’s greatest inventions have provided readers some of the best Calvin and Hobbes comics of all time.

15 Best Calvin and Hobbes Comic Strips Of All Time

Calvin's tiger trap introduced him to hobbes, first appearance - november 18, 1985.

"Tigers will do anything for a tuna fish sandwich!" - Calvin

The first of Calvin’s inventions to appear in a Calvin and Hobbes comic was Calvin’s Tiger Trap, which appeared in the very first Calvin and Hobbes comic strip in 1985. Every comic strip evolves over time, and early Calvin and Hobbes comics were full of strange details that creator Bill Watterson would eventually refine. Hobbes’ origin story is one of those details.

In the first Calvin and Hobbes comic, Calvin proudly tells his dad that he is off to check his Tiger Trap. The invention itself is simple, comprising a constricting loop of rope hanging from a tree branch, baited with a tuna sandwich. Calvin’s invention set the entire Calvin and Hobbes comic in motion. However, after the first couple of comic strips, Hobbes’ unusual origin was never referred to again.

Calvin Used His Invisible Cretinizer to Insult His Classmates

First appearance - march 15, 1991.

"As Ronald proves, it's quite effective, even at long range." - Calvin

Calvin & Hobbes 15 Best Characters

Some of Calvin’s inventions in Calvin and Hobbes comics spawned lengthy multi-strip storylines. Others, like the Invisible Cretinizer, were simple one-off gags. Calvin was always getting into trouble in school thanks to his overactive imagination and inability to focus on classwork. Calvin didn’t have many friends, and often had negative interactions with other students like the bully Moe.

One day in class, Calvin stood at the front of the classroom for show-and-tell. Instead of presenting a toy or other object, Calvin held up his hand as though there were an invisible ray-gun in it, and declared it his Invisible Cretinizer, an invention that would turn anyone into an “utter moron.” The invention was clearly a gag aimed at insulting his classmates, but the Invisible Cretinizer was still one of Calvin’s funniest inventions of all time.

Calvin Invented a Bed Making Robot to Do His Chores

First appearance - september 1, 1989.

"It's only work if somebody makes you do it." - Calvin

In Calvin and Hobbes comics, Calvin isn’t a bad kid, but he does struggle with staying on task and performing the chores his parents ask of him. It’s hard for a young child to spend time tidying up when they would rather play outside on a warm summer day . Because of this, Calvin created many inventions to help him avoid having to do what he deems as work.

In one short series of Calvin and Hobbes comic strips, Calvin had been asked to make his bed. Instead of performing that quick and simple task, Calvin decided that a better option would be to invent a robot that could make the bed for him. Calvin and Hobbes spent all day building the robot. They never got the robot to actually make the bed, but because the construction took them all day, it helped them avoid making the bed, anyway.

The Cerebral Enhance-o-Tron Made Calvin a Large-Headed Genius

First appearance - november 18, 1993.

"... I want to keep my ideas grounded in reality." - Calvin

"I think you're too late." - Hobbes

10 Best Comic Strips Like Calvin & Hobbes

Bill Watterson's Calvin and Hobbes comics are full of recurring themes, like the fact Calvin hates doing his homework. While struggling with an essay one day, Hobbes suggested they should put on their thinking caps. Hobbes meant the comment figuratively, but Calvin took it literally and began constructing a physical thinking cap out of a metal colander, a cardboard box, and some string. Calvin dubbed his invention the “Cerebral Enhance-o-Tron.”

Hobbes supplied imaginary electricity to Calvin’s invention, and the Cerebral Enhance-o-Tron worked, but with an unexpected side effect. To accommodate his enlarged brain, Calvin’s head also grew to epic proportions, though his “unobservant” parents didn’t notice. Unfortunately, by the time he had used his enhanced intellect to decide on a topic for his assignment, Calvin had to go to bed, and ended up getting a D grade, despite his temporary genius.

Calvin's Transmogrifier Gun Led to an Epic Shapeshifting Battle

First appearance - february 8, 1988.

"Great. Just great. Which of us is Calvin and which is Hobbes now?" - Owl

One of Calvin’s most iconic inventions from Calvin and Hobbes comics is his shape-altering Transmogrifier. Calvin was always refining his inventions, though, and he later designed a more compact version of the Transmogrifier, the Transmogrifier Gun. This device, which appeared as an ordinary water pistol, could turn any person or object into anything the wielder could imagine.

Calvin’s initial excitement over the Transmogrifier Gun was short-lived, as Calvin and Hobbes’ play quickly devolved into an argument. In one epic and hilarious Sunday Calvin and Hobbes comic , the pair began wildly transforming each other into a wide range of animals, leaving Calvin stuck as an owl. Although the invention didn’t work out as intended, it resulted in a very memorable collection of Calvin and Hobbes comic strips.

Calvin Brought a Terrifying Mutant Snow Goon to Life

First appearance - december 31, 1990.

"He keeps packing snow on himself! He's getting huge!" - Calvin

10 Best Calvin and Hobbes Comics Set In A Winter Wonderland

Of all the seasons, winter is when Calvin can show off his creative side the most. Many of the best Calvin and Hobbes comic strips take place during the snowy months. Snow is the perfect medium for Calvin’s imagination. Although Calvin rarely wants to put effort into tasks that he finds uninteresting, he can devote himself for hours to epic creations when he is making art or inventions using snow.

One year, Calvin invented a powerful and terrifying creature from the snow. This horrific beast, which Calvin dubbed the “Snow Goon,” possessed a chilling sentience, including the ability to make his own snowmen. Calvin was horrified by the Snow Goon and its army, and ambushed the frosty horde with a garden hose in the middle of the night. Unfortunately, Calvin’s parents were less proud of Calvin’s quick thinking than he was.

No Sport Is Less Organized Than Calvinball

First appearance - may 5, 1990.

"The only permanent rule in Calvinball is that you can't play it the same way twice!" - Calvin

Calvin’s creative inventions were one element that made Calvin and Hobbes the best comic strip ever . No invention of Calvin’s was more creative than Calvinball, Calvin and Hobbes’ own personal sport. The main rule of Calvinball is that the rules are constantly changing. In fact, both Calvin and Hobbes take pride in the fact “no sport is less organized than Calvinball!”

From stealing flags to putting soccer balls through croquet wickets and singing specific songs at particular moments, the rules of Calvinball become more inventive each time it appears in Calvin and Hobbes comics. Calvin’s often-grumpy babysitter Rosalyn even got in on the action, declaring that the game was fun after realizing it was an excellent way of keeping Calvin out of trouble.

Calvin and Hobbes Used a Time Machine to Try and Avoid Homework

First appearance - may 23, 1992.

"Something doesn't make sense here, and I think it's me sitting in this box." - Hobbes

10 Comic Strips That Defined Their Decades

Calvin is always thinking up creative ways of getting out of doing his homework. In one story arc, Calvin had to do a creative writing project for school. Unable to bring himself to do the work, he decided to make a time machine instead. He figured he could travel to the future when the work was done, and then he wouldn’t have to take the time to write a story for class.

Unfortunately for Calvin, like most of his inventions, his time machine didn’t exactly go to plan. Calvin from two hours in the future had not done his assignment either. Calvin from one hour in the future was unwilling to do the work and all the Calvins began fighting. Luckily, the various Hobbes decided to write the story instead. Calvin felt insulted by Hobbes’ version of events, but Hobbes’ story ended up earning Calvin an A for creativity.

Calvin Used His Transmogrifier to Become a Tiger Like Hobbes

First appearance - march 23, 1987.

"I'm disappointed too, but keep in mind transmogrification is a new technology." - Calvin

Calvin’s Transmogrifier is one of the most memorable of Calvin’s inventions in Bill Watterson's Calvin and Hobbes strips. The machine, made from a cardboard box, had the power to transform any being or object into anything else. Hobbes has more common sense than Calvin and was too scared to use the device, but Calvin volunteered to try it out. The pair decided to transmogrify Calvin into a tiger. When Calvin emerged from the box, he looked like a miniature Hobbes.

Calvin stayed as a tiger through dinner, after asking his mom to make tuna, which Calvin usually doesn’t like. After being disappointed that his parents didn’t notice his new look, however, Calvin decided to turn back into his normal self. There was a brief snag when Hobbes hit the wrong button and Calvin became a large frog, but the following day Calvin was back to his usual shape.

Calvin Used His Duplicator to Create Many Calvins

First appearance - january 8, 1990.

"Twins, heck! This summer I can make a whole baseball team!" - Calvin

Although the Transmogrifier was one of Calvin’s earliest and greatest inventions, Calvin also liked to revisit his previous technology and improve on it. By turning the Transmogrifier on its side, Calvin invented a Duplicator, which combined the powers of the Transmogrifier with a copier, creating clones of whatever goes into the box. Always the star of his own story, Calvin decided to test the device on himself .

Calvin, in his constant quest to get out of doing chores, decided to create duplicates of himself. That way, he could make his duplicates do anything he didn’t want to do. Of course, each duplicate was just as stubborn and chore-averse as the original. Calvin’s duplicates ended up getting him into constant trouble until he tricked them into returning to the Duplicator. Calvin then turned the Duplicator back into a Transmogrifier and changed all the other Calvins into gross worms, which they loved.

Calvin and Hobbes

From 1985 to 1995,  Calvin & Hobbes  had a legendary run in newspaper comics. Almost 30 years later, Bill Watterson's strip about an imaginative, chaotic child and his stuffed tiger is still one of America's most popular comic strips. Known for its versatile art style, sense of whimsy and imagination, and realistic characters,  Calvin & Hobbes  is easily one of the funniest and smartest 20th Century comics.

Writer Bill Watterson

Publisher Andrews McMeel Publishing

Artist Bill Watterson

Calvin's Math Troubles

• Edit source
• View history

A story arc that lasted from the 10th to the 29th of September in 1990.

It starts off with Hobbes "helping" Calvin with his math homework . When Calvin's mom sees him reading comic books , Calvin claims that he's all done with his homework and that he's doing just fine in class. Calvin's mom then leaves to go to a parent-teacher conference with Miss Wormwood , which of course freaks out Calvin and makes him nervous about what Miss Wormwood will tell his mom (and what his mom will tell his dad ).

After Calvin's mom gets home from her meeting with Miss Wormwood , she admits to her husband that it didn't go so well and they talk about what Miss Wormwood had said. After that, Calvin's parents talk to him about what Miss Wormwood had told them: Calvin's not doing so well in class and Miss Wormwood feels that Calvin needs to start putting more effort into his schoolwork, particularly when it comes to math. Deciding that Calvin needs to start spending more time on his homework , the first thing that happens is Dad comes up to Calvin to help him with some math homework , but Calvin's very resistant to it. Calvin argues that learning math is totally irrelevant and that he can get along just fine without it, but his dad points out that almost all jobs require some form of math -- to try and get Calvin more motivated, his dad uses pennies to teach him some basic addition and subtraction. Later on, he claims to his wife that it seemed to make Calvin more excited to learn math.

The next time that Calvin's in school , he's much more confident in his math skills (probably too confident). In fact, when Miss Wormwood hands out sheets for a math quiz, he gets very excited about it and makes a bet with Susie Derkins : whomever of the two of them gets a higher score on the quiz has to give the other a quarter. At first, Calvin's confident that he'll do great on the quiz and win his bet with Susie , but he gets stuck on the first problem ("6+5=___") and then gets lost in a Spaceman Spiff -fantasy. By the time he finally answers the first question (which he gets wrong), time's already up for the quiz -- Calvin , now freaking out and rushing to finish his quiz, guesses on the rest of the questions before finally handing it in to his teacher .

Calvin , predictably, flunks the quiz while Susie , not surprisingly, does much better -- in fact, Susie gets a perfect score on the quiz. Later that day, while talking to Hobbes about what happened, Calvin tries justifying what happened by claiming that the only reason he flunked was because he ran out of time -- and since Calvin lost his bet with Susie , he had to pay her 25¢. But Calvin then claims that he "cheated" Susie by "only" giving her three dimes (which is 30¢, obviously worth more than a quarter) instead. Hearing this, even Hobbes points out that Calvin needs to get more serious about improving his math skills.

• When Calvin was making his bet with Susie , he suggested doubling it, which he thought was 35¢ (the correct answer would've been 50¢).
• The correct answer to the first question of Calvin and Susie's math quiz would be 11 -- Calvin's answer was "6+5=6."
• 1 Calvinball

Calvin and Hobbes

Today's Comic from Calvin and Hobbes

The No Girls Allowed Club!

The gocomics team.

January 17, 2018

Updated Today

You might also like, richard thompson, more from calvin and hobbes.

Get the comics you want, your way.

Gombos Zoran

• Password reminder
• Registration

How does this work

• How it Works
• Top Writers