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greatpeanutsstorylines · 2 years

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Snow Leagues

Dates: November 26 - December 8, 1973

Synopsis: Charlie Brown is flabbergasted by the new phenomenon of regulated snowman building as a sport, or “Snow Leagues.”

“Snow Leagues” begins with Charlie Brown building a snowman. Linus tells him that “from now on, all snowmen have to be made under adult supervision” and hands him… a printed press release, I guess?

Charlie Brown reads it, and he knows the world’s gone crazy. He exclaims: “PLAYOFFS?!”

As it turns out, the other kids are just letting this scam roll over them: Sally’s on a team called the “Silver Flakes.” It sounds brutal, but it’s the only way to be allowed to build a snowman under the adults’ wicked regime.

Lucy’s super into it, because she’s a sucker for bells and whistles like recognition and an internal newsletter. She’s going to love having a corporate job. When told that they “have a newsletter,” CB gets in this sick dig:

Even wise, circumspect Linus is all-in on the adult-controlled version of snowman building.

Gamification: 1, Linus: 0.

(Also, this thing is already global:)

Sally comes home angry because of a bad referee call: improper mittens.

(By the way, Charlie Brown was looking straight to camera to react to another character’s nonsense decades before most of your faves.)

As if that isn't enough, Linus then tells Charlie Brown that he can’t come over to watch TV tonight because his parents are leaving for a “Snow Leaguers” party. This prompts another great Charlie Brown line:

Charlie Brown said, “LIFE IS TOO SHORT FOR THIS SHIT” in a beautiful, topical, prescient metaphor, which I’m reading as being muttered under his breath juuuust loud enough for Linus to hear? King.

After a standard Sunday break, the "Snow Leagues" storyline returned on December 3:

Sally has to file for $10,000 insurance coverage in case a snowman falls on her. Later, she chews out a referee for another bad call:

(Is it the same referee as before? Who knows!)

Anyway, Charlie Brown is losing sleep over all this insanity.

Charlie Brown taking the weight of the world onto his shoulders when no one asked him to is an essential and sometimes overlooked aspect of the character. He can be passive about some things, and he can be self-centered, but he really means well and gets worked up over the state of the world and how it affects the people he loves.

He's a future doomscroller for sure.

As we enter the final three strips of the “Snow Leagues” storyline, Charlie Brown is still lying awake when he decides to engage in an act of protest: "sneak[ing] out into [his] backyard to build a snowman without adult supervision."

He asks Snoopy to help him out, but he’s obviously too lazy.

I love Charlie Brown's smile here — not only is he excited about being rebellious, he’s letting his best friend (the most rebellious dude he knows) in on the fun.

Charlie Brown is acting in the spirit of protest, which is fierce! Children have rights, and having fun without being exploited, including by their parents, is one of them!

But it's not just about that for Good Old Charlie Brown. In the final strip of the series, we find him feeling a bit smug the next morning:

Charlie Brown didn't just want to fight for his friends' right to have fun; he also wanted to prove himself to them. Very Charlie Brown of him.

Anyway, the other kids are over it now, anyway:

A little bowling humor to round out the story.

The way the “Snow Leagues” storyline ends is quintessential Peanuts to me. Where A Charlie Brown Christmas ends on a hopeful note, with the other kids seeing things Charlie Brown’s way and surprising him by sprucing up his tree, this one ends with the other kids completely unmoved by Charlie Brown’s perspective or his subversive actions. Charlie Brown’s value system has lost a culture war, and that’s actually kind of devastating, but we have to laugh at it to survive.

“Snow Leagues” is one of my favorite Peanuts storylines. It’s satirical, on a level that’s accessible to younger readers and poignant to older readers, and funny to both. It could have been milked to run much longer; I can easily imagine Peppermint Patty, Marcie, Franklin, and Schroeder getting in on the fun. But it’s short and sweet, it’s super memorable (like, it’s literally the first Peanuts storyline I thought to cover) and it has a clear point of view.

One of the many, many properties that’s often pointed to as an example of Peanuts influence is, believe it or not, South Park, and I see it in this storyline, where a contemporary reality of childhood is satirized for comedic effect. Of course, South Park would certainly play the adult perspective on this situation for laughs, and while Peanuts has occasionally let adults be seen and/or heard, the audience never, ever experiences an adult character’s perspective. Unless you count Charles Schulz’ perspective permeating every aspect of the strip...

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#peanuts #charles schulz #great peanuts storylines #comic strip #Charlie brown #snow leagues #linus van pelt #lucy van pelt #sally brown #snoopy #gocomics #snowman building

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aurelion-solar · 2 months

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