Calvin and Hobbes return to explore their magical world

Perhaps some reader wished for the new year that the story would continue.

One last, impossible, hope.

Because cartoonist Bill Watterson became famous for his talent, but also for his firm convictions.

It was December 31, 1995 when

, perhaps the most beloved comic strip series of the 20th century, ended forever.

So decided its author, just a decade after its inception.

The millions of readers, the dozens of awards, the thousands of newspapers that periodically published his work did not matter.

There would be no more vignettes.

And point.

More information

Calvin and Hobbes become adults

That's how it went.

Little Calvin never again made snowmen, dreamed of galactic adventures, or offered bitter reflections on society.

Not even his faithful stuffed tiger could display his bittersweet sarcasm again.

And Watterson himself fell silent with them.

"After 10 years, he had basically said everything he had come to say," he recounted years later in one of his very few interviews.

Nor have there been dolls, cups, t-shirts or adaptations for television, cinema or video games: the creator of it always wanted

to be just a comic.

No more no less.

Hence, that is the only format in which the series can return, from the hand of the Astiberri publishing house: The great

It is the first volume of a plan with which the label intends to recover the original work.

After all, rescuing great icons is a constant in comics.

Panini has just announced the upcoming return of

as well as the so-called Marvel Library, which will reissue the first appearances of his great superheroes.

“If Peter Parker [Spider-Man] has trouble paying his rent, it was just as valid in the 1960s as it is now.

And the Disney characters have a special charm that appeals to both the young person who is starting to read and the adult”, explains Alejandro Martínez, editor of Panini.

Norma has been publishing the

back to the present day, and La Cúpula compiles the

Odio

in several volumes.

by Peter Bagge.

Not to mention labels like Dolmen, whose offer includes myths like

or

.

The return also includes recent Spanish authors, such as

(Desfiladero), by Miguel Calatayud, or the collection by Fernando de Felipe relaunched by ECC Ediciones.

Cartoons from 'Don Miki: Soccer Special', which will be published by Panini Comics.

Although Laureano Domínguez, editor of Astiberri, adds a nuance:

ended a long time ago and it's history.

“It's a perennial classic.

When Penguin Random House's rights expired and they didn't want to renew them, we thought it was worth keeping.

It's not going to be a best seller, because it's already been published, but it's a great title for any catalog”, he celebrates.

He himself, in fact, was in charge of publishing the series previously, in Ediciones B. And, now, he crosses paths with her again.

He promises a revised translation (by Francisco Pérez Navarro), with better quality paper and a typeface created

with Watterson's handwriting.

For now, this book, which includes the strips from December 1988 to July 1990, will be followed by another,

, in January.

And two more, probably, in the second half of 2023.

Anyone who knows the blond boy and his wild friend knows what awaits him.

And he will not wait to meet them again.

Calvin, his overflowing imagination and his battle against authority.

Hobbes, his wisdom and his biting humor.

And then the boy's parents, his teacher, his schoolmate Susie Derkins, or the dreaded babysitter, Rosalyn.

More generally, Watterson's art to enclose dilemmas and reflections of enormous magnitude in a few vignettes.

"His view of him on the media or his intelligent portrayal of childhood remain valid," asserts Domínguez.

Not for nothing, the name of the protagonist is due to the famous 16th century theologian [Calvin] and that of his favorite animal to the English philosopher of “man is a wolf to man”.

“Calvin is autobiographical in the sense that he thinks about the same issues that I do.

But, in this, he reflects my adulthood more than my childhood”, in the words of Watterson who collects an Astiberri brochure.

A page from 'The Great Calvin and Hobbes Illustrated', by Bill Watterson, edited by Astiberri.

For those who, instead, discover for the first time the universe that so many readers fell in love with, the adventure has just begun.

It might help to know that Watterson was inspired by

or

Although perhaps the best summary is precisely the phrase that closed the last vignette of

that December 31.

Before an extraordinary snowfall, the boy affirmed: “It is a magical world, Hobbes, old friend.

Let's explore it!"

Here is a complete symbol of comics, a mixture of humor, tenderness and depth.

And another example of the importance of the archive in the world of comics.

While the novels fight for the throne of the great novelties, the sales of the ninth art are more distributed between the present and the past.

“The background is very important.

Doing a market study years ago we realized that the average reader of Marvel in Spain has university studies, or at least higher, liberal professions and reads more books than the European average.

That is to say, he is not going to feed only on news, ”reflects Alejandro Martínez.

“All publishers look for the

, but the so-called

those who remain on the lists for years”, adds Laureano Domínguez.

And right there Astiberri hopes to place

Page from 'The Great Calvin and Hobbes Illustrated', by Bill Watterson, edited by Astiberri.

Watterson's own life helped forge the legend: he left right on the crest of a wave and (almost) never came back.

There is hardly a photo of him.

His appearances, since then, do not exceed a handful: a couple of drawings, some interviews and little else.

In one of those talks, he stated: “It is always better to leave the party early.

I think the main reason that

still finds its audience is because I chose not to burn it.”

And also: "I became a cartoonist to draw, not to run an industrial empire."

In reality, the series didn't even last a decade: Watterson took two sabbatical breaks during that period.

Even so, he gave it time to enter the history of comics and the hearts of its readers.

And also to fight —and win— for comic strips to be given more space and freedom in the newspapers.

Today, little is known about him.

Domínguez maintains that they have not had any contact with Watterson during the acquisition process: "We have asked the agent if there was a way to talk to an editor close to him, but so far there has been no response."

And he stresses that, among the conditions, is not to stray far from the US edition, in terms of format, content or number of pages.

Watterson is said to be painting and leading a peaceful life.

One story goes that for a time he secretly signed copies of his works at the library in Chagrin Falls, his hometown in Ohio.

And that he stopped doing it when he discovered that some were reselling them for millionaire figures.

It is seen that, over time, the firmness of his ideas has not changed.

The wonder of the drawings of him, luckily, either.

Bill Watterson, the creator of 'Calvin and Hobbes', in 1986.AP