These 10 Garfield Comics That Just Turned 40 Introduced a Character I Never Knew Existed

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These 10 Garfield Comics That Just Turned 40 Introduced a Character I Never Knew Existed

Garfield is one of the most hilarious and iconic franchises of all time, and that’s not just because of the titular orange cat himself, but also all of the other characters that make the series so amazing. From Odie and Jon to Liz and Nermal, there’s no shortage of wacky characters that stand out among the funniest in the world. Garfield series – including characters some may have never heard of.

Jim Davis created Garfield in 1978, and the comic books are still going strong to this day (not to mention the many adaptations, animated films, and live-action films that contribute to the broader lore). In other words, Garfield has been around for a long time, so it makes sense that there would be a number of characters for Garfield to interact with. And within these 10 Garfield comics that just turned 40fans are introduced to a particular character they probably didn’t even know existed.

10

Garfield finally meets people who are having a worse Monday than him

Garfield – October 1, 1984


Garfield mocking people who go to work on Monday.

One Monday morning, Garfield is sitting by a window, looking at a group of people on their way to work. He comments on how unhappy they probably are before immediately mocking them. Garfield makes faces at them, relishing the fact that he doesn’t have to work like them because he’s a cat. Then, Garfield – with a sarcastic smile on his face – admits that if it weren’t for him, he wouldn’t like him very much.

Typically, Garfield is the one who has unhappy Mondays, especially since it has been repeatedly proven that the very essence of ‘Monday’ actually has everything to do with him. However, on this particular Monday, Garfield did not suffer even a small inconvenience. In truth, Garfield even encounters people having a worse Monday than him – a noteworthy moment Garfield canon, indeed.

9

Garfield’s love for food doesn’t suffer because of his laziness

Garfield – October 3, 1984


Garfield slurping his food without getting out of bed.

Jon brings Garfield a bowl of food while the fat, lazy cat is still lying on his bed. Jon is certainly doing this in an attempt to get Garfield out of bed, trying to use food as a motivator. However, Garfield finds a way to remain lazy and eat the food Jon brought him. With a powerful “TO SUCK“, Garfield slurped up every bite of food in his bowl without getting out of bed..

Although Jon is deeply saddened by Garfield’s display of laziness in this comic, it’s truly impressive that Garfield is so committed to not moving that not even food can motivate him. Garfield is famous for being a food-motivated cat, but it seems the only food motivation inspired by him in this comic is a whole new way of eating without moving.

8

Jon catches Garfield with an adorable juvenile prank

Garfield – October 5, 1984


Garfield getting mad at Jon for making him scared of the dark.

As Jon says goodnight to Garfield, the fat, orange cat snuggles into his bed, ready for him to turn off the light. However, instead of becoming comfortable, Garfield quickly becomes terrified – and it’s all Jon’s fault. As he hangs up olright, Jon tells Garfield, “Don’t let the thing in the closet get you“, and this scares Garfield to the core. The next panel shows Garfield standing on Jon’s chest, angrily telling him, “Don’t do this to me!“.

Jon is usually the target of pranks between him and Garfield, but in this comic, Jon is the one who catches the orange cat – and he does it with such a juvenile prank. The fact that Garfield becomes scared of the dark at the mere suggestion of a monster is as hilarious as it is adorable.

7

Garfield and Odie accidentally make Jon look crazy

Garfield – October 7, 1984


Garfield and Odie playing tricks on Jon.

Jon is at his house when his two pets, Garfield and Odie, start doing tricks together right in front of him. Garfield and Odie notoriously don’t get along, and Garfield’s laziness is matched only by Odie’s ineptitude, so the idea that either of them could perform tricks – let alone together – was unthinkable. And yet, here they were. Jon is so impressed that he excitedly calls his neighbors to come and see, and at that moment Odie and Garfield are lying there, completely exhausted.

The animals weren’t doing anything impressive, taking Jon’s neighbors came to the conclusion that he had made it all up – or worse, that he had imagined it all. Although it wasn’t their intention, Garfield and Odie made Jon seem crazy, which is a pretty hilarious trick in itself.

6

Jim Davis Offers More Evidence That ‘Monday’ Really Hates Garfield

Garfield – October 15, 1984


Garfield listening to the radio while leaving the house only for it to rain.

As Garfield gets out of bed for the first time that day, he hears on the radio that it’s going to be sunny outside. The radio DJ asks listeners to go out and enjoy Monday morning as the sky is clear and the temperature is great. But as Garfield leaves the house, he hears the last part of the weather report: “Except more than one house in the suburbs“, and Garfield stands on his porch, drenched in rain.

Throughout the Garfield comic book, Jim Davis gave a series of hints that ‘Monday’ aims to target Garfield specifically. Unfortunate things happen to Garfield on Mondays that sometimes defy the laws of nature, leading readers to consider that Monday is attacking Garfield. And this comic adds even more evidence to that theory.

5

Garfield has never been more motivated by food than when he wants this apple

Garfield – October 28, 1984


Garfield working hard to pick an apple from a tree.

When Garfield sees an apple hanging from a tree, he is determined to eat it. The orange cat shakes the tree until the apple falls, but before he can grab it, Odie appears out of nowhere and grabs the apple. Garfield jumps on top of Odie, forcing the dog to drop the apple. So, Garfield chases the apple down the road, almost getting hit by a car in the process, before crashing head first into a stop sign. But, In the end, the apple is his, and Garfield doesn’t mind having gone through so much trouble to get it..

Garfield is famously lazy, and even the promise of food is often not enough to get him out of bed. However, with this particular apple, Garfield has never been more motivated by food.

4

Garfield proves he really only loves two things: food and sleep

Garfield – October 4, 1984


Garfield throwing away a gift Jon gave him.

When Jon brings home a special gift for Garfield, seemingly for no other reason than to show his cat some affection, Garfield doesn’t even open the gift before throwing it away. Garfield says, “It’s too light for food and you can’t sleep‘, therefore he is totally uninterested in what Jon could have gotten for him, adding:’It can’t be what special” as he throws the gift over his shoulder.

It’s no secret that Garfield is the laziest, most food-motivated cat in the history of fiction, and this comic is the perfect example of how true that really is. The only two things Garfield truly loves are eating and sleepingand since the present couldn’t be either of those, it’s not worth your time – Jon’s feelings be damned.

3

Garfield never misses an opportunity to insult Odie

Garfield – October 20, 1984


Garfield screaming in Odie's face, thinking it's his own reflection.

Jon brings home a picture frame he just bought and asks Garfield what he thinks of it. When Jon asks, Odie is sticking his face into the empty frame. Then, when Garfield takes a look at the picture frame to answer Jon’s question, he screams in fear before composing himself, saying, “Thank God! For a moment I thought it was a mirror“.

Garfield’s mean joke implies that Odie is so ugly and terrible that believing he had his appearance for even a second is scary enough to inspire a blood-curdling scream. But the thing is, Garfield didn’t think it was a mirror. Jon told him from the beginning that it was a picture frame. This means Garfield wasn’t really scared, he just wouldn’t miss the chance to insult Odie.

2

Garfield’s Cloud Watching Takes a Hilarious, Literal Turn

Garfield – October 19, 1984


Garfield watching the clouds before it rains.

Garfield is lying in a field of wildflowers, looking up at the sky, somewhat relaxingly watching the clouds. With a small smile on his face, Garfield happily imagines the clouds as familiar shapes – mostly related to food. But then, while he says that one cloud looks like a piece of chicken and another looks like a hamburger, things get literal really fast when he says, “I believe it’s a rain cloud“. At that moment, Garfield is hit by a torrential rain, totally ruining his relaxing day.

That Garfield comic gives the phrase ‘that cloud looks like rain’ a whole new meaningas it relates this common saying to the imaginative activity of cloud watching, giving the whole thing a hilariously literal (and, in Garfield’s case, unfortunate) twist.

1

Garfield introduces a character you’ve never heard of before: Pizza Nightmare

Garfield – October 14, 1984


Garfield dreaming of a gang of 'Pizza Monsters'.

Garfield goes to bed after eating too much pizza, and this has a strange effect on his dreams. Garfield dreams of a monster (technically a group of monsters) this is collectively known as the ‘Pizza Nightmare’. One monster represents pepperoni, another represents onion and the third is anchovies. Together they are ‘Pizza Nightmare’, an incredibly dark character Garfield introduced in October 1984.

While Pizza Nightmare isn’t very scary, the idea that Garfield is haunted by the living embodiment of the food he eats is hilarious (including a non-pizza monster, the matzo ball). It’s always fun to see new characters in a familiar series, and this comic offers just that to fans, making it one of the top 10 Garfield comics that just turned 40 years old.

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