Pharyngula

Posted by: pikeamus | January 6, 2009 10:42 AM

I went with Jesus and Mo for two reasons:
1. It's less well known.
2. Blasphemy is funny.

Posted by: pikeamus | January 6, 2009 10:48 AM

Also, Jesus and Mo is the reason I now call myself an atheist rather than an agnostic. Its the reason I found many great skeptic sites (such as this one and butterflies and wheels) as many of the commentors are pretty interesting intelligent people that will helpfully link you to more information when its needed. This process is also what has led me to becoming better informed politically as taking an interest in religious social issues has naturally led to me learning more about politics.

I love xkcd but all in all Jesus and Mo has made a big difference in my life. It is in many ways directly responsible for me being, I think, a better person than I was in years gone by.

(Vote Jesus and Mo!)

Posted by: Don in Rochester | January 6, 2009 10:56 AM

There is no justice, and there never will be; life is unfair.

(But I still had to vote for xkcd ;^)

Posted by: Ames | January 6, 2009 11:00 AM

PZ, it's worse than that. Weblog awards is CERTAINLY run by a crazy conservative, to the point that they put a crazy PUMA/conservative blog (Confluence) in the "best liberal blog" category, and another one of them (UppityWoman08) in "best new blog." They must both lose.

Please, tell your minions to vote for anyone other than UppityWoman08 here, and for anyone other than Confluence here

If you're unsure what a "PUMA" is, they're putative Democrats/feminists who pushed Sarah Palin as the "feminist" alternative to Hillary Clinton. They're almost worse than creationists.

Posted by: Ames | January 6, 2009 11:02 AM

And come on, G-G is awesome, especially because it pushes fair use to its logical extreme.

Posted by: abb3w | January 6, 2009 11:19 AM

Day By Day isn't all THAT bad; it's not particularly good, and cartoonishly conservatively leaning, but it does manage to be amusing once in a while.

XKCD is, of course, consistently amusing.

Posted by: SC, OM | January 6, 2009 11:22 AM

Voted xkcd, which is currently in second. But I'm a bit confused - how does a 2-liter bottle contain 3 liters? Am I missing something?

Andrew T. - See "Oh, no...not again" in Recent Posts. :)

Posted by: J. D. Mack | January 6, 2009 11:25 AM

I voted for xkcd, but man, Garfield Minus Garfield has me in stitches sometimes! Either one could win and I'd be happy.

J. D.

Posted by: Zeno | January 6, 2009 11:27 AM

I voted for xkcd because it's so consistently weird yet on target. It also seems to have a good chance to win, since it's nipping at the heels of "Garfield without Garfield" (merely a clever one-trick pony; good trick, but hey).

As for "Day by Day", it tends to be insipid while doling out conservative talking points. The calm acceptance of an interracial couple is cool, but then they bill and coo while doing wordplay on Rush Limbaugh. Gag.

Posted by: Not that Louis | January 6, 2009 11:30 AM

Should actual ability to draw count for anything? As amusing as xkcd and J&M may be, I'm not seeing the next Walt Kelly here.

Posted by: Tom Woolf | January 6, 2009 11:47 AM

I voted for XKCD, but got a scare. It is in 2nd behind "Garfield without Garfield". A cute idea, but WTF? That is not an original strip, so should not count. Plus, as cute as the concept is, it is still Garfield (cute, but not great by any means).

Another good one is "A Town Called Dobson". If you need to get some independent study time in, check the archives for 2008's Black History Month entries. Each included a comic that was either funny, horrifying, or sarcastic (sometimes a combination of those), along with a well researched and written history of the facts behind the comic. Some made me think "Holy S**T!"

Speaking of "holy s**t" (and being a devout atheist), based on the comments I'll have to check out J&M.

Posted by: the other adam | January 6, 2009 11:59 AM

Does voting at all legitimize these bogus awards? When they started up I knew people who asked to be removed from the running when they realized it was just an ultra right wing promotional tool. Well it's too late, I voted for XKCD, it's better written and better drawn, or at least Randall doesn't over-reach.

A 2 litre bottle has air space and thickness... think I'm going to have to get some pebbles and do a displacement test now. I hope the fish don't mind.

Not that Louis: Ability to draw doesn't seem to count in print comics either, nor in illustration (but for some reason graphic novels tend to be more draughtsman-like than a lot of the putative fine art I see). I suppose it's seen as elitist now, like being able to sing on key.

Posted by: Raynfala | January 6, 2009 1:02 PM

When looking at the pool of right-leaning comic strips, I don't think Day By Day can really be called awful.

Now... Mallard Fillmore... now THAT is awful with a side of awful.

Posted by: Ranson | January 6, 2009 1:15 PM

Could the 2-liter/3-liter thing be "2 liters of liquid and what would be 1 liter of carbon dioxide at one atmosphere crammed into a 2 liter space"?

Meh. Just a (probably very wrong) thought. Randall could just be fucking with us.

Posted by: Quiet_Desperation | January 6, 2009 1:47 PM

If there is any justice in the universe, one of those two must win!

So... I guess they won't. ;-)

Sorry, I'm one of those sticks in the mud who thinks a web *comic* should also have some visual artistic merit as well, such as someone who can actually, like, draw. Maybe they should just be blogging, or hook up with actual artists?

And what is "Garfield Without Garfield" doing there. Love the concept, but does it deserve an award for a web comic? It's an edited version of another comic.

I can't even see who else is there because the link is currently unresponsive.

Posted by: eddie | January 6, 2009 2:20 PM

XKCD and J+M are the only ones on their list I've heard of. There's so much better. Frinst;
Alien lvs Predator - a bit like j'n'm but characters you can believe in.
Those of you bemoaning g-g should check out partiallyclips or dinosaur comics. The minimalist drawing means the writing has to be done right. Anyway, for me it'll always be sluggy. Even their stick-figure weeks are quality.

Posted by: Not that Louis | January 6, 2009 2:34 PM

Yes but eddie (#31) there used to be comic strips where the writing and the drawing were both good. If it's all about the writing, why bother drawing pictures?

Posted by: 'Tis Himself | January 6, 2009 3:56 PM

Jesus and Mo is one of the few webcomics I have bookmarked and the only one on the list of candidates, so I voted for it.

Posted by: Sili | January 6, 2009 5:44 PM

Medium Large is awesome and deserves more recognition for its black humour.

But I voted for Jesus & Mo.

Why would anyone nominate xkcd for an award anymore? The hordes of rabid fanits puts any pharyngulation to shame.

Posted by: andyo | January 6, 2009 10:43 PM

You do kind of have to read XKCD in order though, to get some of the panels. For instance, some of the black-hat guy's are funnier if you know the character. Remember the "XKCD loves the Discovery Channel" one? That one is funnier after you spend one or two nights in a row reading four hundred XKCD's.

Posted by: andyo | January 7, 2009 4:16 AM

don't forget language and romance.

I love their jabs at literary criticism too! And they like to mess with string theorists as well, but I'm sure that one is all in good fun.

Posted by: Brian F | January 7, 2009 9:08 PM

No offense to PZ or his readers, but this blog isn't all that science-y. It's a great blog, & fun to read, but posts about actual science issues are few & far between.