Understanding Judge Parker: June 2009

Monday, June 29, 2009

Tell Me What To Do!

[Click any image to enlarge.] Cathy, Judge Parker

Friday, June 19, 2009

I Don't Think So!

[Click any image to enlarge.] Rose is Rose, Judge Parker

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Take Your Time...

[Click any image to enlarge.] Peanuts, Judge Parker

Monday, June 15, 2009

Don't Do This To Me!

[Click any image to enlarge.] Dilbert, Judge Parker

Friday, June 12, 2009

I'm Not In The Habit Of Sending Roses To Women I've Just Met!

[Click any image to enlarge.] Foxtrot, Judge Parker

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Have You Ever Thought That Maybe You And Rachel Could Be Friends?

[Click any image to enlarge.] Bliss, Judge Parker

Monday, June 8, 2009

He's Supposed To Take Medication...

[Click any image to enlarge.] Doonesbury, Judge Parker

Friday, June 5, 2009

It Sounded Like A Groan!

[Click any image to enlarge.] Luann, Judge Parker

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

I Didn't Hear Anything!

[Click any image to enlarge.] Curtis, Judge Parker

Monday, June 1, 2009

Not Exactly!

[Click any image to enlarge.] Foxtrot, Judge Parker

Introduction

Judge Parker. Possibly the most misunderstood of all comic strips. And certainly it’s the comic with the deepest storyline and the most complex subtext and meaning. You cannot skim through Judge Parker over your morning cereal as you do “Blondie” or “Garfield.” To do that would be to miss the whole other world in which the Judge lives. No, instead you have to study the Judge. Take him in context with the rest of the strips on the comic page. See past each isolated panel and discover the real Judge Parker.

I read (browsed may be a better word) Judge Parker for many years; to take a glance and move on was the norm. Although earnestly drawn and involving detailed story lines, the Judge never made much of an impact. Maybe it was the old-fashioned writing style, maybe my 21st Century short attention span, but I was never able to fully grasp what was going on from day to day. Characters came and went without ever showing who they were, what motivated them. I was not even sure which character really was the good judge. (I’ve since learned it’s Alan. Randy is his son. The Judge himself rarely appears.) Plot lines would drag on for weeks or months; you could go on a two week vacation without a daily Judge Parker and come back having missed very little of the story.

But to judge Judge Parker in isolation is to miss the larger picture, the 10,000 foot view that puts the Judge in context with the rest of the comic world. One must learn to read between the lines, to view Parker’s actions against a more global backdrop and how he relates to the other characters on the comics page.

My comic aficionado friend Joe Richter planted the seed for Understanding Judge Parker. I fertilized, watered, weeded, and nurtured that seed, and reaped a bumper crop of examples showing the complex interrelationship between Judge Parker and the others under the morning coffee cup.

One finds that other strips are the setup and Judge Parker is the punch line. Using the trademark reactionary statements and facial close-ups, Judge Parker characters reveal a great deal about themselves and others on the page. The humor, drama, violence, sexuality, and simple Zen-like truths begin to emerge. Occasionally the Judge Parker strip will serve as the setup, allowing his fellow strip characters to make the point. But the point is made. It’s there to be read if you know how.

NOTE: These panels do not correspond to real-time comic page publication. Some of these panels go back to the late 1990s and are in no particular order.

The December 8, 2008 posting begins Volume 2, not yet available in paperback form.

DISCLAIMER: The images contained in this blog are owned by their respective copyright holders and are used here without authorization. Any repercussions arising from my actions are my responsibility.

dan

Understanding Judge Parker

Monday, June 29, 2009

Tell Me What To Do!

Friday, June 19, 2009

I Don't Think So!

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Take Your Time...

Monday, June 15, 2009

Don't Do This To Me!

Friday, June 12, 2009

I'm Not In The Habit Of Sending Roses To Women I've Just Met!

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Have You Ever Thought That Maybe You And Rachel Could Be Friends?

Monday, June 8, 2009

He's Supposed To Take Medication...

Friday, June 5, 2009

It Sounded Like A Groan!

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

I Didn't Hear Anything!

Monday, June 1, 2009

Not Exactly!

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