Hogan's Alley

And two more today:
On the FastTrack by Bill Holbrook
Garfield by Paws, Inc.

If there is any strip that no one is ever upset about when I put it here, it is Garfield. Is there anyone out there who will come to his defense. Is there anyone who doesn't hate it?

Oh, I mentioned the new issue of Hogan's Alley the other day, but as a reader pointed out, I didn't really say anything good or bad about it. So, yes, it is a good issue. The most interesting article is an interview with Marcus Hamilton, the artist who has carried on Dennis the Menace after Hank Ketcham. Ketcham worked with Hamilton for several years ensuring that the eventual transition would be seamless. There is an example of Hamilton's sketches, along Ketcham's criticisms and Hamilton's ensuing revisions of a single cartoon. Hamilton and Ketcham went back and for apparently months perfecting a drawing of Dennis, Joey and a cat named Hotdog in a sandbox. The amount of work and attention involved is simply amazing--almost as amazing as the actual gag is lame. The caption for this extensively worked cartoon is "I like my sandbox, but Hotdog really likes my sandbox." Perfection is relative.