10 Funniest Peanuts Comics That Just Turned 50

There are few comic strips that are more popular than Peanuts, as Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, and Lucy are some of the most iconic cartoon characters in history – and the longevity of the series is proof enough of that. Peanuts was created by Charles M. Schultz in 1950, and the original comic strip ran until the year 2000.

Within that time, Peanuts saw a number of animated adaptations in the form of holiday specials and original films/shows. Though even with all those beloved additions to the Peanuts’ catalog, nothing can beat the original comic strip. To this day, other comic creators look to Peanuts for inspiration, all while the classic comics continue to bring joy to everyone who reads them. And as of June 2024, an entire month’s worth of those comics that inspire and delight have turned 50 years old, making this the perfect time to look back on some of the funniest ones.

10

Snoopy Speaks on Behalf of All Writers During 1 Annoying Interaction with Lucy

Peanuts – June 2, 1974

It’s no secret that Lucy can be a bit abrasive when interacting with people, and Snoopy found himself in one such interaction with Lucy when he was typing a story on his typewriter, and Lucy took it upon herself to critique his work. Not only were all of Lucy’s notes overwhelmingly negative, but she even sat behind Snoopy and offered to critique his story as he was writing it.

Clearly irritated, Snoopy only wrote two words for Lucy to read over his shoulder, “Bug off!“. As any writer would agree, people are constantly criticizing or giving notes, and while that can be constructive, it can also be the absolute worst. And so, when Snoopy told his personal critic to ‘bug off’, he was speaking on behalf of all writers in the most hilarious way possible.

9

Charlie Brown and Lucy Come Up with an Absurd Alternative to ‘Knuckleball’

Peanuts – June 17, 1974

Baseball is one of the main pastimes for the Peanuts gang, and in this comic, it seems as though Charlie Brown and Lucy are ready to add their own unique spin to the game. When a ball rushes by Charlie Brown so fast that his shoes and most of his clothes are flung from his body, Lucy runs after the ball, only to catch one of Charlie Brown’s shoes in her glove.

When she points this out to Charlie Brown, he sarcastically says that he should pitch his shoe instead of the ball. To that, Lucy replies, “That’s a good idea… give ’em the ol’ knuckleshoe!“. It’s a funny exchange rife with sarcasm, but on the surface, it seems like these two are ready to change the whole game (and they may have a better shot at actually winning a game if they did).

8

Charlie Brown Has Had Enough of Lucy’s ‘Helpful Suggestions’

Peanuts – June 19, 1974

Lucy is someone who is always going to have her opinion heard, which is a great trait for someone to have, especially at such a young age. Unfortunately (as Snoopy can attest), those opinions aren’t always the best. In this comic, Lucy suggests to Charlie Brown that they should stop playing baseball altogether, and instead form a polo team. She approaches him with this idea as he’s on the mound about to pitch, meaning Lucy’s bringing this absurd suggestion to his attention during a game or practice – and Charlie Brown has had enough.

Charlie Brown makes a suggestion of his own when Lucy tells him they should just quit, and that’s to return to her position in center field. Charlie Brown is usually a pretty nonconfrontational guy, but in this case, he’s clearly had enough of Lucy’s ‘helpful suggestions’.

7

Charlie Brown Regrets Not Playing Hockey (for 1 Shockingly Violent Reason)

Peanuts – June 21, 1974

When Lucy approaches Charlie Brown on the mound (again), she makes a corny joke that she finds way too entertaining. After loudly laughing at her own joke, Lucy walks back to center field, only for Charlie Brown to comment to himself, “If I were a hockey coach, I could hit her with a stick!“. It seems no one can get under Charlie Brown’s skin like Lucy, as the normally passive pushover is not only making sarcastic remarks or telling her off, but he’s actively wishing violence upon her.

Again, this is due to an accumulation of increasingly annoying encounters with Lucy in a very short period of time, meaning Charlie Brown was driven to this state. But no matter the reason behind it, it’s still incredibly shocking to hear someone like Charlie Brown talk this way, and utterly hilarious.

6

Peanuts Admits That, Sometimes, Lucy Has a Point

Peanuts – June 6, 1974

When Lucy and Peppermint Patty are waiting in the nurse’s office to get their ears pierced, Patty comes up with an interesting plan. She suggests that they don’t get both their ears pierced at once, but rather go into the office for every other ear. Patty gets one, Lucy gets one, Patty gets the other, then Lucy gets the other. However, when Patty’s explaining it, she adds an ear to each of their rotations, and that’s pointed out immediately by Lucy.

This exchange shows that, sometimes, Lucy has a point, as Peppermint Patty’s plan of attack when it came to getting their ears pierced was utter nonsense. And the funniest part is that Patty still doesn’t even get it, as she agrees with Lucy that they should tell the nurse to “stop us on the fourth ear“, as if they have a choice.

5

Snoopy Tries to Improve the Beagle Scouts’ Survival Skills (& Fails Hilariously)

Peanuts – June 9, 1974

Snoopy takes the Beagle Scouts (Woodstock and his bird friends) out into the wilderness and tells them to go out on their own, and return to camp in forty-five minutes. However, these birds barely last forty-five seconds before they rush back to Snoopy. Snoopy gets more specific, and says none of the birds are allowed to hang around his feet. So, the Beagle Scouts decide to sit on his hat.

The Beagle Scouts were technically listening to Snoopy, because they weren’t hanging around his feet, which is a hilarious workaround to actually listening to their scout leader. But more than that, this comic is actually quite sweet, as it shows how much Snoopy cares about Woodstock and his friends by trying to help them build their survival skills in the wild (even if they aren’t listening).

4

Rerun Has Worse Luck than Charlie Brown During a Bike Ride with His Mom

Peanuts – June 10, 1974

Charlie Brown notoriously has bad luck in the Peanuts universe, with the unfortunate reality of only getting rocks for Halloween being proof enough of that. However, another Peanuts character gives Charlie Brown a run for his money during one strip in particular: Rerun. Rerun is Linus and Lucy’s little brother, and when he goes on a bike ride with his mom (sitting in a toddler seat behind her), he’s riddled with stress before literally ending up in the bushes.

Rerun’s mom seems to be a particularly bad bikerider, as Rerun comments about how this bike ride is going better than most, seeing as though they haven’t run into any cars (implying that’s the norm). But then, Rerun’s mom forgets to put the kick-stand down after parking next to some hedges, resulting in Rerun experiencing worse luck than even Charlie Brown himself.

3

Lucy’s Annoyance Gives Charlie Brown an Unofficial Catchphrase

Peanuts – June 16, 1974

While her position is center field, it seems Lucy’s real purpose on the baseball team is to annoy her coach and manager, Charlie Brown. When another fastball whooshes by Charlie Brown, he once again loses his clothes, with one of his socks flying over Lucy’s head and over a fence. So, of course, Lucy brings this to Charlie Brown’s attention in exhaustive detail, complete with her own unsolicited thoughts on the matter. To that, Charlie Brown says to Lucy what he’s been saying during practically every game or practice: “get back in center field where you belong“.

Charlie Brown says this to Lucy so often, that it’s become something of an unofficial catchphrase, one that Lucy’s annoyance single-handedly created – and Charlie Brown’s frustration while saying it is utterly hilarious.

2

Snoopy’s Writing is Hilariously Riddled with Anti-Cat Prejudice

Peanuts – June 13, 1974

As Snoopy continues to write an original story on his typewriter, he allows Linus to read the rough draft – and the famously intellectual Peanuts character has some notes. Most notably, Snoopy’s writing has some very clear prejudice against cats, as the main character is a cat that wishes they were a dog, with other points made in the story about how cats are generally the worst. Linus points this out to Snoopy, saying that he should ease up on the prejudice since a lot of people actually like cats – something Snoopy himself cannot fathom.

There’s just something so hilariously wrong about the fact that Snoopy is working on anti-cat literature, as the idea of such a beloved cartoon character being prejudiced against anything (even if it makes sense that a dog would hate cats) is pretty shocking in the funniest way.

1

Snoopy and Woodstock Prove They Have the Purest Friendship in Peanuts

Peanuts – June 18, 1974

Snoopy and Woodstock have been best friends for quite some time in Peanuts, and this comic strip shows that perfectly. Throughout this month, Snoopy has been working on a story. It was critically torn apart by Lucy, and called out by Linus for sending too strong of an anti-cat message (which, again, is hilarious), but this saga didn’t reach its heartbreaking conclusion until Snoopy began receiving official rejection slips from publishers.

However, Woodstock decided that he was going to cheer Snoopy up with the very things that caused him to be sad, making a quilt from those rejection letters that Snoopy found great comfort under. Peanuts never ceases to be funny, but one of the main reasons it’s so beloved is because of how heartfelt the series is, and this comic strip is no exception. That’s why this is one of the 10 best Peanuts strips that just turned 50.

Peanuts

Created by Charles M. Schulz, Peanuts is a multimedia franchise that began as a comic strip in the 1950s and eventually expanded to include films and a television series. Peanuts follows the daily adventures of the Peanuts gang, with Charlie Brown and his dog Snoopy at the center of them. Aside from the film released in 2015, the franchise also has several Holiday specials that air regularly on U.S. Television during their appropriate seasons.