The Smashing Cartoons (Archive)
Smashing Cartoons is a new regular section on Smashing Magazine. Every Friday we will be publishing a new cartoon created by Ricardo Gimenes, the creative mind of Behind the Websites. The cartoon will be dedicated to design and web development, but also have a comic twist about everything happening around the Web and give you some insights behind the curtains of Smashing Magazine. Also, on this page we will be collecting all issues of the Smashing Cartoon for your convenience. You will also find the latest cartoon on the sidebar of our pages.
We are looking forward to your feedback and your ideas!
Cartoon #39: Web Battle
Cartoon #38: Designer’s Conscience
Cartoon #37: Modern Jobs
Cartoon #36: Back to work
Cartoon #35: Happy New Year
Cartoon #34: Wishes
Cartoon #33: The Beatles
Cartoon #32: iPhone 4, White
Cartoon #31: Cookies
Cartoon #30: Children
Cartoon #29: Search III
Cartoon #28: Search II
Cartoon #27: Search
Cartoon #26: New Experiences
Cartoon #25: Evolution (Some Things Never Change)
Cartoon #24: Food Delivery
Cartoon #23: Ping Without Pong
Cartoon #22: Open Standard Live Streaming
Cartoon #21: Face and Places
Cartoon #20: The Smashing Cartoons
Cartoon #19: Forbidden Apps
Cartoon #18: Twitter Birds II
Cartoon #17: Twitter Birds
Cartoon #16: Crime Scene
Cartoon #15: Hell’s Meeting
Cartoon #14b: Summer Holiday
Cartoon #14: Summer Holiday
Cartoon #13: How To Choose a Smartphone
Cartoon #12: Comments
Cartoon #11: The Flash Guy
Cartoon #10: Adobe vs. Apple
Cartoon #9: Jessica Talk Show (Cont.)
Cartoon #8: Jessica Talk Show
Cartoon #7: Smashing Team and Ricardo Gimenes
Cartoon #6: The Intern
Cartoon #5: The Intern
Cartoon #4: How to make money from iPad
Cartoon #3: iPhone OS 4
Cartoon #2: iPad
Cartoon #1
Pilot
We love high-quality content and we care about little details. We believe that good content and design are crafts worth sharpening. Located in the lovely city of Freiburg, Germany. Mostly Vitaly (vf), Iris (il), Stephan (sp) and Sven (sl).
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1
Oh, God, WHEN WILL YOUR COMICS MAKE SENSE??
Comic: “Fleaty is a geek bug.”
I’m thinking, “Okay, so this is a comic about software bugs.”
Comic: “Fleaty loves technology.”
Brain: “Okay, I’m sorta with you. More advanced tech means harder-to-understand bugs. Oh, look, IE9 is there. I guess they’re saying there are bugs in IE9. Somehow the bug is supposed to be endearing.”
Comic: “Unfortunately, technology hates him.” [IE9 spraying poison at him and I guess killing him.]
Brain: “Okay… Um… okay….. Um…. WTF. IE9 eliminates bugs? IE9 eliminates geeks? IE9 eliminates the wrong bugs? IE9 is somehow exclusionary? Using the transitive property, IE9 is anti-technology because it is anti-technology-bugs?? AHHH!!!! WHY DO YOU MAKE MY BRAIN EXPLODE???”
Please hire someone who can tell a simple story, because try as I might, I can’t ever make heads or tails of your comics. I can’t even tell if they’re supposed to be funny. I can’t tell if they make a point remotely, and if so, what that point might possibly be. The best I can say about Smashing Magazine comics is that they are horrible, incomprehensible stories drawn pretty well. Sort of like a never-ending repetition of Waterworld, only with 250% more Kevin Costner.
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2
no one’s forcing you to read them…
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3
wow…
cant remember when last I spent 15 minutes on a single page.
Well done guys!
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4
the last ones are really a waste of time. they’re not funny at all.
Make funny ones again or leave it.thanks
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5
hehehe, that was a good one: brazil -> netherlands…
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6
I assume Spain will kick the Dutch back to Holland.
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7
This is absolutely brilliant! Love it… and I’m sad Brazil got sent home, but happy that Spain rules.
cheers
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8
worst post ever
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9
They are just amazing! :D
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10
Any chance of a cartoon showing how much thought, pain and re-design goes into pleasing the users that don’t care or notice anything :0)
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11
Gosh these comics are lame. Great animation, awful, awful, content.
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12
now..now… i just think you guys are germany fans (you should! :p)
ok, this is my prediction:
holland will go to the final against Spanish.
and let see then….^^ -
13
Norman: I agree, a link to a news article of some sort would be nice.
Basically Apple livestreamed their “event” (Salespitch) in a way that the only devices able to see it were theirs.
“Apple® will broadcast its September 1 event online using Apple’s industry-leading HTTP Live Streaming, which is based on open standards. Viewing requires either a Mac® running Safari® on Mac OS® X version 10.6 Snow Leopard®, an iPhone® or iPod touch® running iOS 3.0 or higher, or an iPad™.”
Note the “Based on Open Standards”-bit. That’s a bit like what they say on “Orange Juice” packaging.
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14
“Worst post ever!”
:o)
I love it all and cry laughing with some :D
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15
Amazing! :-)
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16
pretty funny joke cartoon..
i love it !
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17
I second Brock Peters. You guys are great illustrators, but your writing leaves much to be desired. Some comics don’t even make sense. #39. Web Battle? What’s the battle in the comic? I mean, I know the Flash/HTML5 reference, but how does the comic represent battling with the somersaults? Is it saying Flash has had to do a lot? Is it saying Flash is confused with the squiggly lines? What does the fading Flash logo mean? And then disappearing and re-appearing? Did Flash leave and then return? Does it mean HTML is not prepared? Or capable? Dear God, WHAT DOES IT MEAN??
Hire a writer. Better yet, hire a comedic writer. Better yet, a comedic writer who makes comics. Like Axe Cop.
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18
Great style, very well done, but sadly there are at most 2 or 3 that actually made me laugh…
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19
Amazing…will buy these artworks in a book form if it comes out…
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20
MOM DAD WHERE DID I COM FROM ?
Cool
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21
“Worst post ever” Do you remember this? Yes, yes you remember!! hahaha ohhh!! It was you!
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22
nicely drawn but you guys need a writer, they are not funny even in the slightest.
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23
yup, totally agree! the execution is nice, but the humour… seldom…..
Indeed Mr.Winters is so much better & so much funnier. -
24
For wooden-headed individuals
The flash comic is supposed to mean that we ve all seen what flash can do in terms of features and ease of use proved by the numerous examples all over the web (flash ads not included)
so lets see how how html5 responds..
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25
still waiting for HTML 5′s response.. grrr come on now don’t leave a dude hanging.. and #39 was COMPLETELY understandable.. just sayin..
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26
…if you want to get beat up.
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27
I see nothing funny guys, sorry.
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28
Thanks for the advice, James. Designing for a 1024 pixel width monitor is pretty standard. Many people still use that size monitor. Especially on laptops and netbooks. For a site that specializes in web design, it’s kind of a silly mistake to make. Telling people to buy things to fix the website’s problem is a lazy snob’s excuse – it’s the same as a web designer ignoring their IE users and telling them to install FF.
And I’m in agreement with the majority of readers here – the comic’s not even funny!
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29
ok.. i am still searching for the funny-ness here :(
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30
Lol… The little IE character is funny… “WHAT!?”
Can’t wait for the series…
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Windo
October 28th, 2010 7:28 amHahahaha., how did you choose the colors for the cartoons Ricardo?
Jenneke
October 31st, 2010 4:14 amNice cartoons overall. I like the style but not all of them are funny. Freelance Freedom from N.C Winters are a bit more witty than these cartoons. Still keep up the good work.
Simona
November 25th, 2010 3:45 pmyup, totally agree! the execution is nice, but the humour… seldom…..
Indeed Mr.Winters is so much better & so much funnier.
Salas
November 5th, 2010 9:47 am“Worst post ever” Do you remember this? Yes, yes you remember!! hahaha ohhh!! It was you!
the matching socks
November 7th, 2010 11:54 amI love the comics!
aecha
November 8th, 2010 6:18 ami just love your cartoons! they’re so hilarious, creative and brilliant!! keep posting them!
weno
November 11th, 2010 9:14 amawsome work!
usr128
November 17th, 2010 4:10 pmthe cartoon is so clear, i like to see ‘em.
Web Jedi
November 17th, 2010 11:33 pmExcellent cartoons. Would like to see larger versions of each so they could be used on the OS desktop.
Hafees Khan
November 18th, 2010 5:11 amOwesome work :)
Lutz
November 18th, 2010 2:39 pmMan…your stuff is another level of nerdism and rocks!
ali aljowaher
November 21st, 2010 10:40 pmlooooooool really nice cartons really enjoyed it keep up the good work guys :)
Alex Debkalyuk
November 23rd, 2010 7:45 amKeep ‘em coming! Great stuff. How do subscribe to just these via RSS?
rage
November 29th, 2010 11:56 pmnicely drawn but you guys need a writer, they are not funny even in the slightest.
Pradeep
December 1st, 2010 10:45 pmnice and creative :)
Gulshan kumar
December 2nd, 2010 8:47 amvery nice & very clear Graphics & awesome Creativity.
Great stuff !
Vipin
December 14th, 2010 10:00 pmReally Amazing……….Toons Concepts
Jon Ivee Hernandez
December 16th, 2010 7:36 pmTwitter Birds 2 Cool!
The Masked Cat
December 17th, 2010 4:10 pmIt’s superb!
Very very very cool superb cartoons!
TWEN STUDIO
December 18th, 2010 8:02 pmMOM DAD WHERE DID I COM FROM ?
Cool
JPtdin
December 23rd, 2010 3:12 pmReally nice cartoons!! Like the humor on some of them.
Impressive drawings by the way.
Brock Peters
January 7th, 2011 3:55 pmGosh these comics are lame. Great animation, awful, awful, content.
Criky perez
January 7th, 2011 5:11 pmAwesome and funny!!!:)
nixsona
January 7th, 2011 8:02 pmIt’s so funny and nice graphic!
I like Cartoon #24: Food Delivery and Cartoon #30: Children
hanks
January 12th, 2011 12:33 amgood. very cute & exiting. :)
Balaji
January 13th, 2011 11:22 pmNice and expressive
Brock Peters
January 14th, 2011 12:07 pmSeriously, get the guy from xkcd.com to write your content. At least his comics are incredibly intelligent. That’s the only thing missing from your cartoons. Great animation, awful and lame content.
Subvert
January 14th, 2011 12:31 pmGreat style, very well done, but sadly there are at most 2 or 3 that actually made me laugh…
sumitk
January 14th, 2011 6:32 pmBest post ever! thanks for it :)
Erinah
January 15th, 2011 3:47 pmSome of the cartoons won’t be understood later, when the context gets forgotten. Why don’t you not show the date?
It would be better than the current numbering only.
Ben
January 17th, 2011 1:19 amI don’t know what it is but these cartoons just don’t contain and funny :|
Samson
January 17th, 2011 3:16 amHillarious and amazing work
Akshay Chauhan
January 19th, 2011 3:32 amAmazing…will buy these artworks in a book form if it comes out…
Eduardo rodriguez
January 20th, 2011 9:57 amDoes every single cartoon got to be about Mac or steve jobs?
Craig
January 22nd, 2011 12:55 pmI’m sorry, but you guys need to retire these comics. They look nice, but their lack of humor really takes away from the professionalism of Smashing Magazine. I look forward to reading new stuff from this site on a daily basis, and these cartoons are seriously not funny, or worthy of the Smashing Brand.
Sarah
January 26th, 2011 6:03 pmI thought I was the only one thinking this.
But, I have to say, kudos to Ricardo Gimenes for drawing up a new comic every week. Maybe they need someone to tweek or improve the storyboard and punchline? Because really, that’s the only thing that makes these comics a bit of a miss instead of a hit.
Santosh
January 23rd, 2011 8:47 pmwow you guys realy good work this is awesome…
erika
January 27th, 2011 2:11 pm¡¡jajaja, están geniales!!
=D
Matthew
January 28th, 2011 10:41 amI second Brock Peters. You guys are great illustrators, but your writing leaves much to be desired. Some comics don’t even make sense. #39. Web Battle? What’s the battle in the comic? I mean, I know the Flash/HTML5 reference, but how does the comic represent battling with the somersaults? Is it saying Flash has had to do a lot? Is it saying Flash is confused with the squiggly lines? What does the fading Flash logo mean? And then disappearing and re-appearing? Did Flash leave and then return? Does it mean HTML is not prepared? Or capable? Dear God, WHAT DOES IT MEAN??
Hire a writer. Better yet, hire a comedic writer. Better yet, a comedic writer who makes comics. Like Axe Cop.
andy
January 29th, 2011 4:40 pmman these are so depressing :( they are on the funny level of “family circus”
kurniawan joko purnomo
January 31st, 2011 7:33 pmits good joke .. but some toon make me think hard.. what is the meaning.. but overall.. is verry good toon..
Joe Makala
February 10th, 2011 5:36 amPlease discontinue these ASAP. They are horrible. Don’t you listen to your readers?
Some Guy
February 21st, 2011 10:50 amFor wooden-headed individuals
The flash comic is supposed to mean that we ve all seen what flash can do in terms of features and ease of use proved by the numerous examples all over the web (flash ads not included)
so lets see how how html5 responds..
Tarun Singh
February 23rd, 2011 2:00 amGood work. its awesome :)
Tarun Singh
February 23rd, 2011 2:01 amReally Amazing………….. I love it :)
Vasimkhan
March 3rd, 2011 6:15 amExpressive !!! Good !!
Gian Faye
March 4th, 2011 12:34 pm“the worst post ever.”
hahahaha. this is too cool. XD
Mike
March 7th, 2011 12:32 pmstill waiting for HTML 5′s response.. grrr come on now don’t leave a dude hanging.. and #39 was COMPLETELY understandable.. just sayin..
Edward
March 14th, 2011 11:03 amAny chance of a cartoon showing how much thought, pain and re-design goes into pleasing the users that don’t care or notice anything :0)
Jared
March 18th, 2011 12:41 pmWhen is the next one coming out. It’s been a while…
mokrem
March 20th, 2011 10:05 amthese cartoons really fun and amazing !!
Matthew
March 25th, 2011 10:14 amOh, God, WHEN WILL YOUR COMICS MAKE SENSE??
Comic: “Fleaty is a geek bug.”
I’m thinking, “Okay, so this is a comic about software bugs.”
Comic: “Fleaty loves technology.”
Brain: “Okay, I’m sorta with you. More advanced tech means harder-to-understand bugs. Oh, look, IE9 is there. I guess they’re saying there are bugs in IE9. Somehow the bug is supposed to be endearing.”
Comic: “Unfortunately, technology hates him.” [IE9 spraying poison at him and I guess killing him.]
Brain: “Okay… Um… okay….. Um…. WTF. IE9 eliminates bugs? IE9 eliminates geeks? IE9 eliminates the wrong bugs? IE9 is somehow exclusionary? Using the transitive property, IE9 is anti-technology because it is anti-technology-bugs?? AHHH!!!! WHY DO YOU MAKE MY BRAIN EXPLODE???”
Please hire someone who can tell a simple story, because try as I might, I can’t ever make heads or tails of your comics. I can’t even tell if they’re supposed to be funny. I can’t tell if they make a point remotely, and if so, what that point might possibly be. The best I can say about Smashing Magazine comics is that they are horrible, incomprehensible stories drawn pretty well. Sort of like a never-ending repetition of Waterworld, only with 250% more Kevin Costner.
Crazy J
April 4th, 2011 12:31 pmI must wholeheartedly concur with Matthew’s assessment. No offense to the artist, but these are incomprehensible to the point of being offensive.
I’d suggest becoming at least somewhat familiar with western culture and American humor before firing up Illustrator and creating another one of these.
xceptor
November 13th, 2011 7:54 amincomprehensible to the point of being offensive…
I Love it
both the comic and that comment
SIA
March 27th, 2011 8:41 amWell i really love this section.
The characters are great and you deliver the messages in short and great way
Riyo
March 28th, 2011 7:10 amReally Nice !
Akshay Chauhan
April 2nd, 2011 9:59 amGone through this whole series again. Love the symbolism.
In future, archaeologist will try to interpret these and find out the phases of humanity’s technological advancement.
May be that would prevent future humans from not making Internet Explorer again..
mn9or
April 2nd, 2011 4:40 pmSo Funny Keep it UP :D
Vijay Kumar
April 6th, 2011 7:30 amWOW! this cartoons look great, color usage and characters wonderfull, Keep it UP
Berenice Weber
April 6th, 2011 12:50 pmthese are great!
my favorite tough…
http://media.smashingmagazine.com/cdn_smash/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/smashing_23_bigB.png
Laura
April 13th, 2011 1:27 amI like the look of these comics – they’re nicely drawn – but I don’t really get a lot of them, and several just aren’t very funny! Sorry!
ariadng
June 6th, 2011 5:24 amI love those cartoons :D
Rockandroll
January 8th, 2012 6:32 pmPlease sir – do continue your amazing work! Never listen to your critics!
And please dear critics – follow some of the more main stream blogs. And leave this one alone – I think I just scared my neighbours laughing…:)