Author: Ruben Bolling

Here are some of the comments entered by people voted for Tom the Dancing Bug as the Best Comic Strip Ever (TM) at Rankopedia in just the last few days.  Modesty would ordinarily prevent me from drawing attention to such praise, but some of these are so insightful and spot-on, lucidly compiling an air-tight case for Tom's #1 position (see "czwheeler" and "jimminy", third and fourth ones down, for example), I felt I owed it to my readers to post these entries.

Hey hey,  party people.  Check out the new comic!  And don't forget to fan me on facebook!  And twitter!   Wheeeee!

almost forgot to mention that this weekend I'll be at the Arles Faire… I'm chipping in on a table with my friend Vincent , an up-and-coming artist.  Come by and say hi.

Or is that a stupid question?

The Washington Post refused to run a Tank McNamara comic this week — the installment satirically depicited Dick Cheney suggesting that the NFL solve the Mike Vick situation by having him killed.

Back in 2007, they pulled this comic I did about Dick Cheney.  Then a couple months later they canceled Tom the Dancing Bug ("Best Comic Strip Ever."  -The Internet) altogether, despite great reader outcry.

As most of you know, the most reliable and prestigious barometer of excellence in comics is the Rankopedia "Best Comic Strip Ever" poll.  Each morning, I, and doubtlessly millions of others, peruse the pantheon of luminaries at the top of the list over a cup of coffee to see which comic strips the critics, historians and fans hold in the highest esteem.

So imagine my shock today when I checked on the list and found my own comic strip, "Tom the Dancing Bug" sitting on top of this list, above some of the greatest popular artists this globe has ever seen.

What I did to suddenly deserve this wholly unexpected honor, I know not.  (But writing in a pretentious, self-important manner by mixing up the order of clauses, I shall.)  Perhaps it was my recent award-winning, wildly popular comics about James Caan's ghost.  Maybe it's because the strip's enduring catchphrase, "Giant Wombats!" has swept the nation.  Some might say it was simply the zeitgeist catching up with genius, although humility would prevent me from saying so myself, thus leaving it to Some.

How this happened isn't important.  The only thing that is important is that "Tom the Dancing Bug" is objectively and irrefutably the Best Comic Strip Ever.

Ever.

I'm speechless, and I'm humbled.  Which is why I just wrote this long speech about how great I am.

Here it is.  It's on the internet, so it must be true.

Yet I happen to know for a fact that far less than 1% of those reading this have gone to Rankopedia to vote. 

You're better than that, people.

Let's do this.

Go.  Vote.

UPDATE:  When you vote for "Tom the Dancing Bug,"  the polling requires you to rank at least two other comics strips as well.  Be sure NOT to include any comic strips ranked higher than "Tom."   

UPDATE 2:  Btw, there is an optional comment section when you vote. What say we get the weirdest, most nonsensical non sequiturs in the tom the dancing bug comments?

I was alerted to this online poll to determine the "Best Comic Strip Ever."  "Tom the Dancing Bug" is currently at position #21, a ranking it's probably lucky to have.

But if every person reading this goes to Rankopedia and votes for "Tom the Dancing Bug," it will be instantly catapulted into the #1 spot, leaving such obviously inferior efforts as "Peanuts" and "Calvin and Hobbes" in the far distance.  Then I could rub my hands together and laugh maniacally for about thirty seconds.  Then we can all move on.

You do have to register (i.e., give an email address) in order to vote, but if you have any qualms about that, you can enter a phony address.  I just registered, and there was no verification process (I couldn't bring myself to vote for "Tom the Dancing Bug" — I voted for "Cul de Sac.")

Let's see what happens!  It takes only a few seconds.

Ready, GO!  Vote for "Tom the Dancing Bug!"

Or, "Malthusian Merriment."

update.

I recommend this article by Tim Kreider, who gave up (put on hiatus?) his great comic strip "The Pain" a few months ago, to focus on other projects.  Turns out this guy is a wonderful writer.

Sold, for $277.