August 1, 1953: Plaid Ice Cream

Y'know, I think this is a common attitude with kids. I know when I was little I thought chocolate was just better, generally, than vanilla, which seemed like plain, or "default," ice cream.

Plaid, however, is not one of your more common flavors. Funny thing is, Schulz has used this joke before. I do think it's common for kids to confuse flavors and colors, a state of affairs that is not, I'd say, helped by modern kiddie marketing.

June 13 and Sunday, June 14, 1953: The evil side of Charlie Brown

Charlie Brown isn't a very nice kid in these two comics.

June 13, 1953

Patty and Violet's reaction at the end here (including off-screen violence) is a bit exaggerated. I mean, they didn't have to follow CB's suggestions.

Sunday, June 14, 1953

This one is actually a little disturbing, considering that Schulz actually drew the flashbacks of Charlie Brown's antisocial behavior. Violet's reaction here seems quite justified. We can accept Charlie Brown's rueful chagrimace at the end as due to regret over personal failings rather than a "that's the way it goes" kind of resignation.

Is that how Violet fell off her tricycle? Because CB pushed her?

Who really throws lumps of sod at people? Did Schulz choose a clump of earth because it's less injurious than, say, a rock?

Wait a second, did he say plaid ice cream?

February 26, 1953: Snoopy, dog about town

I can only assume that Charlie Brown's comment, about the dogfight, is a turn of phrase that has fallen out of favor in the 50+ years since the strip first saw print.

Question 1: Who dressed Snoopy up in that outfit? He still doesn't have an explicit owner, nor opposeable thumbs. Evidently it was someone who appreciates tartan.

Question 2: How did Schroeder know where Snoopy was going?

Snoopy's role here is subtly different from his original personality. Here, he is sort of an honorary kid. He can't talk, but Charlie Brown and Schroeder know he can understand them. The disconnect between his obvious nature (dog) and the kids' treatment of him (colleague) is what provides the joke.