The Pantheon: Calvin and Hobbes

In a way, it's kind of a cop-out to reserve a spot in the Pantheon for something that is universally adored. The whole point of the Pantheon is to highlight things in entertainment that achieve metaphorical induction into my personal Hall of Fame, despite what the rest of the world thinks. But when it comes to Calvin and Hobbes, I have literally never met a single person who dislikes it. It's in everyone's Pantheon.

It's not hard to see why. There's the obvious reason, of course: It's hilarious. That's really all you need out of a comic strip, right? Calvin and Hobbes didn't stop there, though. It was funny, yes, but it could also be emotionally heartfelt. Or deadly serious. Or slyly political.

Thanks to Calvin's active imagination, the strip could go in any of a thousand directions, from monster snowmen to the farthest reaches of outer space, but it always came back to a bratty kid and the unshakeable bond he had with his best friend. The comics page hasn't been the same since they left.