Watching TV was an essential part of everyday life for Garfield, as Jim Davis’ beloved comic strip routinely poked fun at Americans’ increasing appetite for television. Davis used the iconic orange tabby as a proxy for audiences, as Garfield initially had a love/hate relationship with TV, though over time he came to love just about everything about it – even the commercials.
By the time Garfield debuted in newspapers in the summer of 1978, television had been a staple of America’s pop culture diet for over twenty-five years, and Jim Davis seemed to correctly predict that it would continue to become an increasingly dominant force in the decades to come.
TV was one of the earliest subjects the comic tackled, and it did so regularly, establishing it as one of Garfield’s favorite things; alongside the character’s passion for lasagna and his penchant for drinking too much coffee.
10 “Happiness Is A Warm Television Set”: Garfield’s Love Of TV Started Before He Ever Even Watched It
First Published: June 23, 1978
The first Garfield strip about TV is also perhaps the most iconic, given its memorable riff on the classic Beatles song title and lyric, “happiness is a warm gun,” something Peanuts had previously adapted into the comic medium with Lucy’s “happiness is a warm puppy” line.
Here, Garfield finds that “happiness is a warm television set,” as he lies contentedly on top of the TV; the joke is simple, yet effective, and is likely a direct callback to Peanuts as much as to the Beatles. Coming in the first week of Garfield’s national syndication, this comic introduced television to the strip, though the character’s love of actually watching television would take another week to be established. Once it was, though, it would become foundational to the long-running strip.
9 “ZZZZZ”: Falling Asleep In Front Of The TV Was A Ritual In The Arbuckle Household
First Published: July 1, 1978
The first time Garfield actually watched TV, it was him and Jon Arbuckle sitting down to watch the “late-late movie” – which they promptly passed out without seeing a second of, their snacks still in hand as they snored loudly in front of the television set.
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This would be a common refrain for the pair over the years, and it is one of the many familiar “slice of life” jokes that were a staple of Garfield. Most readers can relate to this experience, having passed out on the couch watching TV at least once in their lives; for many people, it is a routine, a camp Jon and Garfield firmly found themselves in from early on in the strip’s run.
8 “I Hate Television Commercials”: Garfield On Why TV Advertising Is The Worst
First Published: August 4, 1978
As Garfield’s first few months of publication went on, Garfield quickly graduated from sitting in Jon Arbuckle’s lap as his owner sat in his recliner watching TV, and started occupying the recliner and consuming television all day himself. In this strip, Garfield voiced a common refrain among TV viewers: hatred of commercials.
Garfield’s reason why, of course, is a feline twist on a familiar critique “They’re too long to sit through,” he begins, evoking a complaint most readers could relate to, before adding, “and they’re too short for a trip to the sandbox.” Most TV viewers of the era would have echoed this sentiment; though long-gone are the days of a viewer missing a show’s return from commercial because they took too long washing their hands, this comic is still likely to evoke a chuckle, especially from older, nostalgic readers.
7 “I Don’t Like Violence”: Garfield Reveals The Distinction Between Real Life And TV
First Published: January 25, 1979
In this Garfield cartoon, the hierarchy of the Arbuckle household seems more firmly established – as Jon sits on the floor in front of his chair, while Garfield occupies the whole thing. Further, Garfield dictates what they watch, reaching out to smack Jon on the back of the head to get him to put something else on when a program gets too violent for him.
Jim Davis often found humor in contradictions like this; the humor of the panel, of course, stems from Garfield using real physical aggression – albeit, the most innocuous kind, a cat swatting their owner – to express his displeasure at fictional violence, which was only just starting to become more acceptable on TV in the late 1970s than it ever had been before, though it remained a far cry from today’s standards and practices.
6 “The Eight Hours I Watched Yesterday Was Terrible”: Garfield Complains There’s Nothing Good To Watch, But Keeps Watching
First Published: January 26, 1979
“I hate television,” Garfield declares in this cartoon, complaining that “there are too many commercials, reruns, and game shows,” before adding that “the eight hours [he] watched yesterday [were] terrible.” As long as TV has existed, its critics have always been met with the response of “why are you watching, then?” in some form or another, and this Garfield cartoon amusingly embodies that.
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The idea that people complain about television, but don’t stop watching, only became more prevalent in the era after this Garfield cartoon. Calvin and Hobbes made a similar joke over a decade later, and this theme can be found in everything from Simpsons jokes to the literature of the 1980s and 1990s, as America’s fascination with TV became an increasingly relevant social question.
5 “250 Miles Of Extension Cord”: Garfield Was An Early Example Of Over-Reliance On Screens
First Published: May 19, 1981
In the era before the ubiquity of screens, the idea of going camping and disconnecting for a few days was a daunting prospect for TV-lovers. This strip hilariously illustrates that, with Jon Arbuckle asking “did I forget anything?” as he finishes packing for their outdoor expedition –and Garfield shoves the television set in his direction, adding that they will need “250 miles of extension cord.”
Having debuted in 1978, Garfield is just a bit older than the first wave of Millennials, yet of all the generations that have been entertained by Jim Davis’ comic strip, they are the ones who will perhaps relate to the character the most. At least, that is, when it comes to fondly remembering a time when people could get away from their screens – but never actually wanted to.
4 “I Love Commercials”: Garfield’s Position On Television Advertising Does A Total 180-Degree Turn
First Published: September 16, 1981
Just a few years into Garfield’s publication, the eponymous tabby cat’s love of TV had become a core character trait. This is clear from the way the strip’s jokes about television evolved; while early on, Garfield served as a mouthpiece for audiences’ displeasure at commercials, here he has his own fully-formed opinion: he loves them.
“What great plot, fine acting, super photography,” Garfield thinks, chuckling at something on TV, which the final panel amusingly reveals to be an advertisement. In this way, Jim Davis presents a subtle commentary on the quality of TV shows – but at the same time, he also prefigured the future state of commercials, in which they truly would become high-quality mini-vignettes on par with some of the actual shows they accompany.
3 “I Love Television”: Garfield Extols The Limitless Possibilities Of The TV Medium
First Published: April 26, 1982
In this comic strip, Garfield soliloquizes about the virtues of television, stating:
Where else can you see significant world events? Where else can you see the great opera and ballet? Where else can you see Lorenzo the Woodchuck race a steam locomotive over Ricky the Rat?
The joke here, of course, is that Garfield’s viewing tastes are not as highbrow as he initially leads the reader to believe, yet this strip also makes a legitimate point about the possibilities of television as a medium.
This Garfield cartoon was published at a time when the 24-hour news cycle was just becoming a thing; though TV had garnered a reputation for being low-brow, and low-quality, it originally was a medium through which high-class entertainment such as “great opera and ballet” could be beamed to the masses. While the appetite for cartoons might be greater, nevertheless, this Garfield comic celebrates the broad spectrum of entertainment that TV affords viewers access to.
2 “Just What Is Television?”: Garfield Gives His Definition Of TV
First Published: May 12, 1982
Here, Garfield reflects on his own love of TV, asking himself “just what is television?” and providing a hilariously succinct explanation for why he – and masses of viewers around the globe – are so fixated on it. “Television not only gives the eyeballs something to do,” he explains, “but it’s a socially acceptable excuse to snack.”
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In other words, as much as it is decried for being the opposite, television is an activity; it is also a ritual, one that, for Garfield, includes snacking. Most readers will relate to this to some degree or another, especially those who readily admit that use watching TV as a way to pass the time, and distract themselves from other things.
1 “Pick A Station And Stay With It Garfield”: Who Really Controls The Remote In The Arbuckle House
First Published: May 23, 1982
For syndicated newspaper comics, Sundays were an opportunity to use additional space, and in the process flex some additional creative muscle. For Garfield, this meant jokes with a different pace than the strip’s usual three-panel format. Here, Jim Davis uses the additional panels to his full advantage; four consecutive frames are devoted to an increasingly frustrated Jon Arbuckle watching the channels on the TV flick by – until he finally shouts at Garfield, who is controlling the remote from across the room, to “pick a station and stay with it.”
The extra-wide final frame is a hilarious reveal, though astute readers would have seen the punchline coming, as both of Jon’s hands, sans remote, are visible in the preceding panels. In all, this represents an all-time classic Garfield television joke, one of the best visual gags about the characters watching TV.