25 Most Popular Comics of 2017
2017 is finally over! And we thought 2016 was terrifying. Not that everything was all bad last year, a lot of exciting things happened in the world of Drunken Cat Comics. We launched and fully funded our very first Kickstarter campaign which enabled us to not only come out with our latest graphic novel, The Big Year, but also allowed us to fund a wide assortment of other comics throughout the year. In fact, 2017 now holds the record for most comics we’ve ever printed in a single year, 12! Which is pretty awesome. Among those comics were the final issues of our long running crime comic, Ruffians. Wrapping up a story that took twelve years to make.
In the non-printed matter side of things, 2017 marked the 5 year anniversary of Derek and myself producing webcomics for this site. Which is a pretty big milestone, in internet years that’s like 20 years. In celebration of that accomplishment, Derek and I took a nice little Holiday break at the end of 2017 to recharge our batteries and work on some other projects but, now we’re back.
And 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. Babies VS Zombies
Combining two things that the internet loves into one comic. To be honest, I wasn’t surprised that this one made it to our list, I was more surprised that it wasn’t further up.
24. Ask The Drunken Cat #5
Surprisingly, since the webcomic is called Drunken Cat, this year marks the first time a comic starring The Drunken Cat has made it to our list (in fact this year he made it on the list several times). Aside from that fun fact, Ask The Drunken Cat has become a really fun way for our readers to ask us questions and has led to some comics that I never thought I’d make. This comic, in which we ask the age old question “Where do clowns go when they die?”, is a particular favorite of mine.
23. Fit In
While we’re on the subject of regularly occurring characters, the Blirps have been in a ton of comics at this point but, ever since their first appearance, the only comic that’s ever appeared on this list has been their first, Be Normal. Not so this year however, this is the first of a few entries and one of my favorites from last year.
22. How to Make Friends as an Adult
This may be one of my favorite How To comics that I’ve done with The Drunken Cat. When I planned out this comic one of the ways to make friends that I had written down was “Plan a bank heist” which ended up being a beautiful B plot in this strip. It was also a lot of fun to bring back Sober Dog for another adventure.
21. Be Patient
The Blirps get their second spot on this list with tale that echoes with sadness and desperation. Sometimes no matter how hard you stare at it the phone just won’t ring.
20. In Bloom
The world is a scary place and 2017 was a scary time. One can’t really blame Derek’s seed character for acting the way he does.
19. Babies VS Frat Guys
Not really sure why this one is ranked higher than the Zombie one… I guess we can chalk it up to boobies… or that people like seeing frat guys getting hurt. How else would you explain why they’d make a sequel to the movie Neighbors?
18. A Metaphor for The Simpsons
This comic still makes me laugh. There’s just something about a dead horse being ordered to sit that cracks me up every time… not really sure what that says about me.
17. How to get Drunk
Another comic starring The Drunken Cat. This one was the comic that started a great string of How to comics and was the first time I hand lettered a comic featuring everyone’s favorite intoxicated feline. I also really like how the beer bottle turned out in this comic.
16. Don’t Blink
This is easily one of my favorite Blirp comics ever. It says a lot and sneaks up on you, sometimes requiring a second reading to get it (which says a lot since it’s only four panels). This was the beginning of a new Blirps renaissance for me last year and I’m really happy with how this one turned out.
15. I Don’t Get It…
How soon we forget our younger selves.
14. It’s NOT Poison
The second year in a row for this one 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 it.
13. Be Normal
For the third year in a row, the first comic to feature the Blirps and a mainstay on these lists.
12. How to be Despondent
Yet another How to comic featuring The Drunken Cat. I just thought it was funny (and appropriate) that he doesn’t get up from the easy-chair:)
11. It’ll Happen To You
Aging and inflation, they go together like peanut butter and jelly. Remember, you heard these prophecies here first;)
10. Growing Up
This comic started out, as many do, as a brief note in one of my notebooks. I really the line the fish is greeted with when he gets up on shore… hooray for adulthood:)
9. What It’s Like Being a Web Developer
Everyday is a new challenge.
8. How to be a Productive Member of Society
This idea came about quickly one day as I was walking to my car after work. I’m really happy with how it turned out and, as Drunken Cat comics go this year, this one is one of my favorites. This is also the first comic that I started having fun hand-lettering titles, I think it turned out nice.
7. Family Meals
Back for another year, after a year off our list, I wrote this comic while waiting for a shuttle with my family shortly after getting off the Disney Cruise. I still like the color palette that I ended up settling on and the view out the family’s screen door is still hilarious to me.
6. I Hate My Life.
Spending it’s second year in a row in our top ten, this comic’s all about negativity (there’s so much of it these days). I’m still really happy with the main character, especially his jacket.
5. Human Time Vs. Cat Time
Three years in a row in the top ten, this comic has been a mainstay on our site. Further proof that cats are awesome!
4. The Biggest Cat Toy
Back again, after a year off our list, this comic stems from a conversation my wife (Amy) and I had one night at dinner as we watched our new kitten attempt to play with our Christmas tree.
3. 6 Quick Halloween Costumes for the Last Minute Shopper
This is the third year in a row this comic has made it into our top ten. I stand by my original statement about it: “People are procrastinators and truly appreciate a helping hand.”
2. 9 Ways to Get Rich in America
Back for it’s second consecutive year on this list. Still, not surprisingly, this comic continues to spark 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. Keep up the good work America:)
1. Dear Non-Spooning Arm
For the second year in a row, this comic has taken the top spot on our list. I wrote this comic shortly after snuggling my wife to sleep one night. It was originally a journal comic featured in my 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. This comic also stands as one of the most commented on comics on our site. Moral of the story, people like to help others.
And there you have it, our most popular webcomics from 2017. Hope you enjoyed this latest little trip down memory lane. Be sure to check out our latest comics every Tuesday and Saturday. Also be on the lookout for more great printed matter from Derek and myself this year. Here’s to hoping that 2018 is way more awesome than 2017!
