I've always wondered what Mr. Bear's gift was.

what's a stomper?

[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWtpYhWEzp8&feature=related[?url]
But maybe it was some stream of consciousness from the last strip via this: http://www.lysator.liu.se/~zap/stomper/index2.html

Yeah, rereading these, it is surprising how early the phrase shows up.

I love that two strips in, we have a pretty clear idea of Phillipe's role in the Onstad household.

Why does Cornelius have a toy truck?

Damn, man! Yes!
Yes! Old School!
Old School!

He may keep it for the same reason as he keeps [kept] his childhood drum. Or it may not matter since this is still kind of proto-Cornelius as we know him now.

i used to regift other people's stuff all the time as a kid...oh, philippe, you make me regret my wasted childhood and resent your perpetual one.

dood it's a comic strip. the medium give it that nature.

Cornelius Bear has changed since this strip. the change has been Capital!

this makes me laugh despite still not knowing what the hell phillipes "problem" is

Phillipe's little flipperarm in the first two panels is just adorable.

I think his arms are supposed to be behind his back, as he hides his gift (and his problem) from view.

Such the good answer to that question. I see that. Mmmmmhmmm.

A grim, meat-hook philosophy. Brutal, apt, oddly touching. Words we can all live by...

"Because of a reason" is also a good reply.

I've used it =)

I always thought it wasn't so vague. I figured it Philippe is incontinent; we learn later that he has a bed wetting problem, so I think it fits?

The middle frame is the key here. Not merely because of the seminal phrase uttered by Mr Bear, but also because it speaks to the ultimate and enduring relationship that he and the otter share to this day.

God, i love this strip... i first started reading the archives at The Party,so i missed out on the dada-ist humor of the first few strips.

Can someone help me? Why is "momentary diversion on the road to the grave" such a famous line? I mean i love achewood, and i've read it in its entirety at least 3 times, and there are many other hilarious lines. why is this so famous?

Because it's on a t-shirt?

Yes. That problem is mortality.

If you have to ask, you'll never know.

"Because of a problem?" is hilarious.

Yes! And so "is a momentary diversion on the road to the grave."

I don't know why the first strip is rated higher than this one. Nostalgia and sentiment is interfering with your objectivity, people!

y'know, i shied away from achewood at first because i found the art too simplistic, and the humor... dumb... but then, i stuck with it for a while and grew to love it. i find when i go back and read the earlier strips, i "get" it better somehow. part of it is because i know the characters so well, but the other part of it illudes me. i have the feeling that this is similar to a lot of readers, so i don't think it's just nostalgia.

Would be a 3, but Cornelius's "Just a momentary diversion" comment bumps it to a 4

This was the first strip i saw, it's had me hooked ever since

Oh, I get it, boots! It's your awesome idea to post this exact sentence on every single strip! Dude, that is so funny! You're totally getting inside my head!

Which reminds me: who does a guy have to blow to get spam-marking privileges around here? I think I've earned them by now. Meanwhile, those of you who do have them, go to work on this phony account, please. It is a waste of space. Thanks.

This is one of my all-time favorites. I truly don't understand why it isn't rated higher.

I agree with the hell out of you. The second panel rules, and "because of a problem?" is one of my favorite achewood lines ever.

Why don't people like this one more? It's got 2 brilliant one-liners.

Wow, like 900 strips later I was reading Philippe's blog and "because of a problem" reappeared. Then I remembered it from this comic. Now I am telling everyone about it.

lol the kid gets corenelios a stompler not him but theordor a wets tompler. lol