Recently the daily Oregonian asked its readers to select a strip to replace the limited reruns they had been publishing of “Calvin and Hobbes.”

They ran a week or two of each candidate, and then asked readers to vote on their favorite strip, which would then be added to the comics lineup.

The candidates were: Classic “Peanuts” (reruns of the beloved strip by the late Charles Schulz), “Adams’ Apples” by local artist Jim Adams, “Lio”, “Cow & Boy”, “Dog Eat Doug”, “Pajama Diaries”, and “Cleats”.

They announced the results today. I personally liked the darker more surreal options, like Lio or Cow & Boy, but I would have been happy with most any of the choices. Except the one that actually won.

“Peanuts” got nearly half the votes. I am shocked, amazed, and depressed. Here the subscribers of the Oregonian had the chance to be exposed to some fresh comic talent, with new ideas, new characters, and new situations. And instead they chose to return to Lucy pulling the football away from Charlie Brown again. Hyuck-hyuck, that never gets old.

Gah!

You people deserve to read bland crap. I’d like to say that at least I’ll be able to read the strips I want online, but more and more comics are limiting access to subscribers only (see the link to “Pajama Diaries”, above).

This result is so incomprehensible to me that I must be out at the end of the Bell curve on this subject.

Just like so many other subjects.