'For Better' the Best

By: Dave Astor The Wichita Eagle recently conducted a comics survey that saw "For Better or For Worse" finish second after having won previous Eagle polls.

"Pickles," which came in first, is a nice comic. But I couldn't help wondering: "What's the matter with Kansas?" Because "For Better or For Worse" is not only the best comic in current syndication, it might be the best comic in the 111-year history of the modern newspaper strip.

"Whoa!," you say. What about comics such as "Peanuts," "Calvin and Hobbes," "The Far Side," "Terry and the Pirates," "Krazy Kat," and "Little Nemo in Slumberland"? Great features, all. But I think "For Better" is better.

Lynn Johnston's partly autobiographical strip, which began in 1979 and may end in 2007, has every element a discerning comics reader could want: Humor -- mostly character-driven and situational, but occasionally of the "gag-a-day" variety. Story lines about family life, relationships, and more. Emotional heft and pathos -- partly due to "For Better" being one of the few comics with characters who grow older.

Also, Johnston has skillfully created a comic that appeals to a general, mainstream audience while not pandering to readers who want a mythical 1950s world in their funny pages. Johnston introduced a gay character (Lawrence) in 1993, and she populates her comic with a multi-ethnic supporting cast that never seems forced. The Canadian cartoonist also has dealt unflinchingly and sympathetically with death -- doing poignant sequences about the passing of Elly Patterson's mother and Farley the dog.

And, last but not least, few strips in the history of comics are drawn as well as "For Better." Its spectacular level of detailed, fluid art is especially impressive in today's age of shrinking comics space. Johnston doesn't have nearly the space another artistic genius, Milton Caniff, had when he did "Terry the Pirates" more than six decades ago.

Fortunately, "For Better" is not one of those "Krazy Kat"-like strips that generate more admiration than readership. Johnston's feature appears in more than 2,000 newspapers via Universal Press Syndicate, and it frequently wins comics polls (the Eagle survey notwithstanding). For the price of a broadsheet or tabloid, "For Better" fans get to read something of top-notch quality every day.

Here are my thoughts on how some other classic comics match up against "For Better":

-- "Peanuts" was a masterpiece. But I give "For Better" an edge on the art (though Charles M. Schulz was an awesome minimalist when it came to drawing). Also, "For Better" has a cast of both adults and children (though the children who inhabited the "Peanuts" world were basically kid/adult hybrids).

-- "Calvin and Hobbes" was another masterpiece of writing and drawing, but it didn't have the sprawling cast of a "Peanuts" or "For Better." And Bill Watterson ended "C&H" after only a decade in syndication, while "For Better" is still going strong as it nears its 27th anniversary next month.

-- "Doonesbury" is also still going strong after 35-plus years, and it has a cast of three-dimensional characters rivaling "Peanuts" or "For Better." Indeed, Garry Trudeau's creation is a character-driven comic as much as a political comic. But "For Better" has more accomplished art (though the "Doonesbury" drawing has improved greatly since the 1970s).

-- "The Far Side" cartoon panel was one of the funniest and most original comics of all time, but Gary Larson's creation didn't have the emotional resonance of Johnston's feature.

-- "Terry and the Pirates" was an adventure strip with cinematic writing and drawing that couldn't be beat in any era, but it also shared some of its era's sexism and ethnic stereotyping. And "Terry" was only a dozen years old when Milton Caniff, after being denied ownership rights to his strip, went on to create "Steve Canyon" for more than four decades. ("Terry" was continued by another artist.)

-- "Little Nemo in Slumberland" had jaw-droppingly beautiful art that's never been duplicated in comics, but the writing in Winsor McCay's early 1900s strip left something to be desired.

There's also "Krazy Kat," "Dick Tracy," "Pogo," "Li'l Abner," "Gasoline Alley," and various other comics that might be the all-time favorites of many people.

What do you think? Is "For Better" the best ever? Or does another comic get your vote -- and why? If you'd like to weigh in, we'll run responses as letters to the editor or in a follow-up column.