25 Most Popular Comics of 2016
2017 is finally here! We can now put the scariness of 2016 behind us, not that it was all bad. Last year saw a lot of big changes for Drunken Cat Comics and our lives, I had a baby, Derek bought a house, and our humble webcomic won an award for best webcomic.
As per usual this time of year, we’d now like to look back at last year and celebrate our most popular comics. So without further ado…
25. Helper Kitties
The trend of cat comics continues this year, people really do love comics about cats. This comic is one of the many journal comics I posted about the new baby and how having a baby changes your life (and the lives of your cats).
24. D.O.A.
Mid-summer I got really depressed about work and over the course of a lunch break hammered out three depressing stick figure comics. I can’t say they’re my best work but, they were therapeutic. They seemed to connect with people which again proves a trend from last year, people really like sad comics.
23. Being an artist is easy!
This one is easily one of my favorites from Derek this year. The ending caught me off guard and the timing made me laugh out loud.
22. iWant vs. I Need
This was one of my favorites that Derek did in 2015, I was happy to see it made the list this year. I really think Derek did a great job of poking fun at our culture.
21. Why Won’t They Call?
This one was another comic that I made during the stick figure lunch I mentioned above. The thought of an old woman waiting by a phone seemed like an interesting metaphor to me and I like that the comic is left to interpretation as to what it’s really about. I also had a lot of fun coloring with textures in this one.
20. Dear Ingrown Hair
Ingrown hairs are the worst. This is the first of two open letter comics that made the list. At some point last year I stumbled upon the idea of writing a comic like a letter to things (often things that annoyed me).
19. Hrrm…
One thing everyone can agree on, IKEA instructions are the worst. The only instructions I’ve found that are worse were the instructions for putting together our Pack ‘N Play from Garco.
18. What I Say Vs. What I Mean
Everyone loves a good translation.
17. Movies
Another lesson we learned in 2015 that’s still true today, people love Batman. Since Batman V. Superman Dawn of Justice movie came out last year it was only natural for Derek to share some of his thoughts. I think he did a great job of displaying the true nature and ultimate reality of opinions.
16. Have A Good Day!
Moral of the story: no one likes customers that are jerks.
15. A Life In Search Engines
I think this one’s a pretty interesting concept. In the future I wonder how our search engine history will be used to document our lives? Maybe it’ll lead to our final undoing when the machines seize control?
14. I will never solve this puzzle
The first of Derek’s comics that deal with his brain on this list. I especially like the kitty part of the puzzle:)
13. The Cure Will Cost You
A nice little social commentary piece as Derek continues to evolve his Derek character. I especially like the doctors nose, it’s very Fred Flintstone.
12. Do We Matter?
This may be one of my personal favorites from the Mixed Drink days of this site. I remember it being one of those rare moments when you finish a comic and know that you’ve nailed it. The choice to make the character more stick figure like making it more of an everyman projection that anyone can put themselves into I think was very effective, plus it adds a nice contrast between the more rendered backdrop.
11. Nature is magical!
True story, I was out catching lightning bugs with my wife and daughter when we came across two that were in the throws of sexual intercourse (an interesting sight to behold). We left them in the jar to finish their deed. Then about a day or two later Derek posted this comic (which I love). I think we should do more comics about the strange magic that nature provides.
10. It’s NOT Poison
Another from the Mixed Drink days of this site and the second comic to feature the couple from the Velociraptors make Terrible Babysitters comic, this one is a silly parody of infomercials. I had a lot of fun drawing and writing this one.
9. Be Normal
For the second year this strange comic about those lovably, awkward Blirps has made it to our top ten. Never underestimate the hilarity and relatability of a monster that doesn’t know how to talk to people.
8. 6 Quick Halloween Costumes for the Last Minute Shopper
This is the second year in a row this comic has made it into our top ten as well. I stand by my statement last year about it: “People are procrastinators and truly appreciate a helping hand.”
7. Oh The Places Your Brain Will Go
The stressed brain is an active brain. I really like the idea of a brain cruising in a car. I think it’s a cool visual, although it would be terrifying to see in real life… as most awesome things are.
6. What Does Anxiety Feel Like?
Derek’s Depression character made it on the list this year. Proving yet again that in the age of the interweb people just want to feel like others understand them. Everyone loves sad comics.
5. It’ll Happen To You
All I can say about this is that it was my attempt to make fun of aging and the ridiculousness of inflation. Maybe one day in the future I’ll be proven right. Remember, you heard it here first;)
4. Human Time Vs. Cat Time
Yet another comic that’s spending it’s second year in our top ten. This is just further proof that cats are awesome.
3. I Hate My Life.
There’s far too much negativity in the world today. As great as the internet and social media are, they have the magical ability to make people feel even worse about their lives than they already do. I guess this comic was me trying to put things in perspective. I also really enjoyed drawing the main character in this, especially his jacket.
2. 9 Ways to Get Rich in America
In the last few weeks leading up to the birth of my daughter a lot of things were on my mind, one of which was money and how we were going to afford all the bills that come with giving birth in this country. Thinking of Matt Groening’s comic “The Los Angeles Way of Death,” I decided to use comics to ease my stress and thus this comic was born. Inevitably (but not surprisingly), this comic sparked some discussion on our site (and other places online) from people who didn’t see the humor of “Be rich already” being included several times on the list. Good job America:)
1. Dear Non-Spooning Arm
Surprisingly, this comic has generated more comments than any other on our site to date. I was happy to find so many people related to my plight and that so many were anxious to offer solutions. I wrote this comic shortly after snuggling my wife to sleep one night. It was originally a journal comic that will be featured in my upcoming book, The Big Year, and was the first time I wrote a comic as an open letter. I found the process so enjoyable and interesting that I’ve done many more letter comics since then, but this was the first and I’m willing to argue the best. Moral of the story, people like to help others.
And there you have it, our most popular webcomics from 2016. Hope you enjoyed this latest little trip down memory lane. Be sure to check out our latest comics every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Here’s to hoping for an awesome 2017!
