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homeofjonicles · 2 years

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What Are 'The Jonicles'?

Hello. It's me, [Number1RatedShitposter1997] Jeremy here writing this at 2 in the goddamn morning! After having finished the first few entries of 'The Jonicles', I feel like I should write a note explaining what they are and why they exist in more detail and I wish this will be of better help for any (normal) people failing to understand.

'The Jonicles' are a series of journal-like entries often written in a satirical, overly formal and jokey style where I document my strange infatuation and (now hyper)fixation on Jon Arbuckle from Garfield, dates and all. Whilst these are often satirical, the fixation is real and I truly do feel a strong connection with Jon to the point where it would probably concern someone. Some entries are deeply personal, whilst some simple express my enjoyment of the cartoonist and his fun personality. This fixation started on the 19th of May, 2022 on a Thursday at 4:24 am and is currently ongoing.

I introduced this concept in 'The Jonicles - Entry 1' briefly, as I decided to do it on a whim while VERY tired. Initially, it started out as just that, and I was planning in my head that it would be a daily thing, like a journal. However, that immediately changed when I forgot to write an entry for the next day after writing 'The Jonicles - Entry 2', so now it's more of a "kinda daily but i write it whenever i feel like it so its not really daily" thing.

As mentioned before, 'The Jonicles' was only supposed to be simply a journal, but after the second and third entries, it's more than just a journal. It's a place to put my character analysis of Jon, my deep and complex feelings about him, and how much I resonate and relate to the cartoonist (see 'The Jonicles - Entry 3'). It was also supposed to be mainly satirical because I literally could not believe that out of any character, my brain chose him to fixate on. But after feeling the way I feel about Jon... Well, it's definitely more than a joke now, and I knew it would inevitably be this way, as my hyperfixations tend to end up. It's still pretty satirical in nature, but just know that my emotions past the second entry are all real and genuine, and that my tastes in men are definitely a little wacky compared to a normal human being who doesn't call Jon a "cum guzzler" after seeing THE comic (you know exactly what i'm referring to).

Anyway, I hope this more detailed explanation and small history helps you better understand this series, weirdo snooping around in my phone. I hope my Jon Arbuckle fixation both interests and frightens you as much as it did to me when it first happened. You will never understand my thought process however, maybe. No sane person would understand it but me, and no one will know nor understand why this fixation even happened in the first place.

At the time of writing, there are currently 43 images containing Jon in my downloads folder, a number I suspect will reach over 100 soon. And that's just on my phone. There's heaps on my computer, so much that it'd be silly to try to find and count them all (my downloads folder has over 3000 items not including the folders i'm not even gonna attempt that)

Last edited at 3:13 am. I am tired.

Update as of August 2nd, 2022 at 6:15 pm: I have counted, and there are now 388 images of Jon Arbuckle in the downloads folder in my phone, there's waaay more in my computer, but there's no way i'm gonna be able to count them all, there's just too many. So, I'm going to make an estimated of aboooouuut.... 400, which doesn't sound like a lot for 75 days at the time of writing, but trust me; that's a lot of Arbuckle, and that's just in my downloads folder. There's an extra 100 or so in my other folders, give or take.

I find it funny how I mention the fabled Entry 3 in here a few times considering it's not public... yet. I mean, I even say "(see: 'The Jonicles - Entry 3')" and yet... you can't see it. There will be a day where I may post it, but unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how i feel about it), that day is not today it seems. And also the "No sane person would understand it but me" quote, paint me surprised when I found out there are quite a few people who feel the same way I do about this fantastic cartoonist!

Also, the reason it says "weirdo snooping around in my phone" is because at the time of writing, the only place you could find 'The Jonicles' would have been in the notes app on my phone. I guess I had an inkling that there'd be more than one person reading these one day, and that inkling came true, obviously.

Cheers,

Your Local Jonnoisseur

Posted on the 2nd of August, 2022 at 6:32 pm.

#jonicles #what are the jonicles?#bonus entry... i think?#with a fresh new title image!#i made it in 5 minutes #are you proud of me yet #it's always bothered me how Jon has that one miscoloured white spot on his face in that image

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homeofjonicles · 10 months

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July 28th 2023

Today (at least in Australia) is Jon Arbuckle's birthday and also Jim Davis' birthday!! I'd like to wish a very happy birthday to both my favourite cat dad in comics who's silly, awkward and lovable and whom I identify with a shitton, as well as to the creator one of the biggest running comic strips ever. You have both inspired me a lot over the course of me knowing about and reading Garfield, and to have such a strong connection to this comic strip and the silly dorky guy in it is a pleasure. I hope that your birthdays are both fantastic and filled with joy!!

Sincerely,

The Jonicles :)

#non jonicles #jon arbuckle #garfield #jim davis #it's jon's birthday and i'm happy :)

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homeofjonicles · 1 year

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guys guys!! yesterday it was Garfield's 45th birthday in Australia! congrats on Garfield for sticking around for 4 whole decade, here's for another 45 years! thank you for making my life a little brighter each day a new strip is published :)

and here's June 19th 2023's strip to celebrate !! happy birthday Garfield!!

#non jonicles #garfield #HAPPY BIRTHDAY GARFIELD!!!#here's for another 45!

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homeofjonicles · 1 year

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happy new year! dilf time :P

#non jonicles #arts #redraw of that one part from garfield gets a life #havent drawn jon in a while and it feels good!!!#havent made a entry yet either....#maybe i should make a new entry......#hmm.............

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homeofjonicles · 1 year

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the only light you'll ever need

#non jonicles #WOE #GARFIELD LAMP BE UPON YE

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homeofjonicles · 2 years

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The Jonicles - Entry 26.5

It is currently the 3rd of October, 2022 at 7:33 pm on a warm-ish Monday night, the day of absolutel reckoning. You know, I don't really mind Mondays that much.... Sure, it's the first day you go to school or work, but they're not that bad... It is also day #137 of my Jon Arbuckle hyperfixation.

Woah! Another bonus entry? That's unheard of! Yeah, I'm writing a shortie today. I wanted to quickly talk about some interesting Garfield-related media that I've found recently that I may make full entries of eventually because I think they're definitely worth looking into!

Back in 1995, a Garfield themed eurodance album was released and, apart from a music video made for it back when it was released that was later reuploaded by Lumpy Touch, it hasn't gotten much attention. It's a strange, relatively obscure little thing that I discovered from a Reddit post in early-mid September. I haven't seen it mentioned on many Garfield icebergs and there's, to my knowledge, no videos that have been made about it, apart from the odd remix and the aforementioned music video (which you should check out, by the way. it's got a lot of 'Garfield And Friends' clips in there that really give off so much of signature late 80s early 90s aesthetic). The most interesting thing is how un-Garfield it is. Yeah, the lyrics do talk about cats, but there's nothing about Garfield's live for lasagna or the other characters, for that matter. In fact, they never really mention Garfield's name, which makes me wonder if they were just generic tracks that PAWS Inc. liscensed and slapped Garfy-Baby onto. That isn't to say that the music doesn't slap though - 'Cool Cat', the most iconic track in the album, is such a BANGER!! It gives me huge Sonic R vibes if Sonic R was more like Nightcore. That piano in 'Hold On To Your Dreams' is just the absolute chef's kiss, we have an official piece of Garfield media that contains the phrase "I'm Getting High", and don't even get me strated on how hype 'Party Of Love' is!!! I'm so genuinely surprised that something like this actually exists because of how oddly unique it is? Like, what genre of music do you think of when you think of Garfield? If you grew up with the 80s cartoons, you probably think of something jazzy, something smooth with a snazzy bassline that defines Garfield's character and makes it memorable. If you grew up with something more modern like the DTV Garfield movies and 'The Garfield Show', you might think of brass instruments that are loud and bursting with energy, something more goofy and energetic. But eurodance? I think it goes without saying that this is one of my favourite bits of obscure Garfield media because of how unique and how much of a BOP it is. Someone show this to Quinton - that is, if he hasn't already heard it!

This piece of media is a little, well, strange, to say the least... So, you know the comedian Gilbert Gottfried, right? You probably know him for his incredibly recognisable voice and taboo style of comedy... Now mix it with Garfield. Like, fuse them together. What do you see? Do you see some terrifying abomination of a man-cat hybrid? Just imagining Gilbert Gottfried's face plastered onto the fat cat? Wondering why the fuck anything like this would even come into existence in the first place and why this world is so unholy? Good, because that's what I thought too when I first saw this freaky little guy. It's called Gilbert Garfield, an ARG series that focuses on the person behind the archival of a lost series he recieved on VHS tapes that's similar to Garfield And Friends except, well, except that Garfield is also Gilbert Gottfried. Listen, this series is simultaneously on of the most eerie and hilarious ARGs I've ever seen. The premise is so silly, stupid even, yet it works so well... Fucking.... Gilbert Garfield... It starts out Gilbert Garfield saying something about the creation of lasagna whilst Odie is immediately shot in the face offscreen by an Italian-speaking alien who arrests Gilbert Garfield for the future crime of killing Jon Arbuckle and they take him to their spaceship, only to get lasered by Gilbert, and then everything falls into this plot of Gilbert being driven insane by his own third and fourth eye seeing abilities and it's crazy. That's not even scraping the surface yet. It's so fucking mental, I love it. The presence of Gilbert throughout the clips that have been uploaded really reminds me of Zalgo, an eldritch horror being that you may remember if you were on the internet and in the creepypasta community during roughly 2004-2010, to which the plastered Gilbert Gottfried face present on Garfield and how any media he's in seems to be corrupted parallels the corruption of any comics and cartoons Zalgo causes by his presence. Of course, Zalgo doesn't blast Italian aliens with a cosmic fire laser thing and have the face of Gilbert fucking Gottfried, but y'know! And this is all still being developed too. In fact, a new video was uploaded literally 2 days ago from when this is being written, and many more are being uploaded in other places. They even have their own website, it's crazy. I must warn you though, it is quite disturbing and is hard to follow, especially the latest video which has gore and mentions things relating to... Erm... Let's say, something being squirted onto people who are not alive... Yyyeeeaah! But seriously though, I really like this series, I even drew a little Gilbertfield on some paper while on holiday (as seen above), he's a horrifying little abomination that I love so dearly. I can't wait to see what further developments this will have!!!

So, that wraps up this little bonus entry. I have some other topics that are a little more spooky to write entries on during this month, including one that is near and dear to my childhood. I might talk for in-depth about these topics, but for now, I'll be leaving with this.

Last edited at 8:25 pm.

Cheers,

Your Local Jonnoisseur

Posted on the 3rd of October, 2022 at 8:35 pm.

#jonicles 26.5 #bonus entry WOOO #god i havent written one of those since day 10!#''THROW ORANGE SLICES DIRECTLY INTO HIS ASS'' - Gilbert Garfield #quote of the year everyone #god that drawing is horrifying

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homeofjonicles · 2 years

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The Jonicles - Entry 16 (strip drawn by Alex Hirsch)

Note: This is the sixteenth entry of The Jonicles, hence why the date does not match when this is being posted. This was written back in June of this year before I started this blog, and there will be errors or developments in how this series was being written. Please enjoy (or don't enjoy) the sixteenth entry of The Jonicles!

It is currently the 30th of June, 2022 at 6:59 am. I'm on holidays, which means I have had much more time to indulge in my Garfield hyperfixation now that school is out of the way (for now). And I didn't realise I forgot to write an entry for five whole days... It is also day #43 of my Jon Arbuckle hyperfixation. I'm losing it.

When most people think of Garfield, they usually think of the currently ongoing strip that's been in syndication since the late 70s. The once charming, funny strip that has since seemed to have lost a lot of what made it charming and funny to a lot of people and is now mundane and inoffensive. Some may think of the cartoons that aired during their childhood, like Garfield And Friends, Garfield In The Rough, Here Comes Garfield, the holiday specials and the oh-so cursed 3D cartoon, The Garfield Show. Some may think of the terrifying and awful movies they made, like the live action ones and probably the strangest piece of Garftoon history, Garfield Gets Real. Seriously, what was up with that movie?? Bonita's sythe shaped head still gives me nightmares to this day....

But not many people think of the name 'KaBOOM!', which is a comic publishing company that is an imprint of BOOM! Studios. They publish comics ranging from Peanuts, Regular Show, Adventure Time, and of course, comics about our loveable fat cat and his equally loveable dorky owner and pet dog sidekick, Garfield, Jon, Odie and their many msiadventures. Not Lyman though.

I have heard almost no one talk about this, and the only reason I discovered it was when I was snooping around on Tumblr looking for my daily dose of Jonstanence. I came across a blog called garfieldfashion through clicking the link of an image of Jon looking grumpy while holding two jugs of fresh lemonade on a beach that I had never seen before. And from there, I found a goldmine of posts featuring my favourite dorky cartoonist in many different artstyles, obviously taken not from the regular Garfield strip, but instead from something else, and I thought it looked veeeery familiar to me.

I scrolled down, marvelling at the art style of the cropped panels, thinking it had been the work of a very passionate and dedicated fan of the Garfield series, an unofficial fan work that was posted online for all to enjoy. However, as I scrolled, I came across an image that stopped me in my tracks. An image I had definitely seen before. It was Jon, and he was sitting relaxed in a chair at his cartooning desk, and he was wearing a yellow sweater with a blue jacket and appeared to be talking about his loveable self. "Why, that's the Jon fancomic I saw on a fan casting website that one time!" I thought, looking both shocked and excited that I came across that oh-so enjoyable image of Jon once again, something that was drawn so masterfully and something that clearly had so much effort and care put into it. It was pleasant. But as I remembered the struggle of trying to find more pages of that comic and coming up with nothing, I knew I had to know more.

This blog clearly knew their sources. There were multiple cropped pictures taken from what appeared to be the same comic, and curiosity struck me. Where was that Jon comic from? I had only seen the one page out of context, which is the image I put with this entry. Where was the rest of the comic and where could I read it? And most importantly, who made it?

That was when I noticed the text underneath the images, and I realised that was the name of the comic they were taken from. But some of them simply said "Garfield #37" and I knew that probably wasn't going to get me anywhere, so I scrolled up towards the images that had an actual name attached, which was "Garfield: TV Or Not TV?" and I looked it up, and lo and behold...

... It was an actual published comic! Like, it had a proper publisher and everything! And it was on sale, too! Like, a proper A4 paperback comic book, not syndicated as a strip or anything. It had more than three to seven panels that actually took up every centimetre of the page! There was no daily limit to how much could be told, it was a continuous effort of actual storytelling! As I scowered Google Images and gazed upon the many vibrant, gentle colours that seeped into every love-poured page, I could feel something, somrthing that in real life I only truly felt with like two people I had ever met... I was in love.... Platonically. With this comic.

Eventually I found a website that hosts these comics for free, and I delved into these mysterious and amazing panels, filled with colour and life and originality. And I was hooked. My first priority was finding where that Jon Arbuckle panel was from, and I read on the little caption underneath that Tumblr post that it was issue #16. Sone spoilers ahead!

It starts off with a story about a girl who is trying to sell lemonade, and after giving Garfield and Odie a free cup, she vents to Jon that she can't seem to get any money because of a man named Lyle, who's a competitor in lemonade selling. shenanigans ensue with a delivery race and a swapping of lemonades, but that's not the main point of talking about this issue. What I'm really interested in is the Jon panels and what they are.

It's a funny little story where Jon is a self-aware character who is also being drawn by himself, talking about how he is being drawn along with the whole comic while also drawing himself! Confusing I know, but it quickly becomes a lot of hilarity once Jon starts getting phone calls from all these women who make up a Jon Arbuckle fan club which fun fact, I am in fact a part of! And the only gay man there... Jokes aside, Garfield comes in and starts providing snarky commentary as Jon quite literally illustrates how Garfield is an obidient cat who has normal eating habits, how Liz is super overdramatic and hopelessly in love with Jon and is uncharacteristically over-doubting her ability to be with him, and then she gets hit on by another guy and Jon literally becomes a superhero and saves the day... yeah, it's pretty self-aggrandising! I think the only accurate thing there is Jon looking a little more handsome in his portrayal, but that's probably just me being biased... So Garfield goes over to Jon's cartooning desk and starts drawing how he thinks the comic actually goes, and ends up doing almost the exact same thing Jon was. Having (who i think is) Vito delivering a shitton of pizza and lasagna to him, talking about how Odie promised to never lick or slobber on him again, and of course, having Arlene be the damsel in distress. All the while, Jon's there outside the panels all like "Wait what's Garfield doing at my desk..? Hang on this isn't right... You know what, fuck it, I'm gonna go make dinner."

It's funny, it's charming, it's everything Garfield used to be and ten times more, and not to discredit Jim Davis or anything, but I think I actually like these comics way more than the actual strip. Of course, you couldn't fit an arc like that into three panels alone, but the comedy really hits so much more than it usually would. And not to mention the fantastic art! It's so expressive and bright and colourful, and they do this really cool thing where some comics have a different artist draw it, and it's so cool to see all these talented people draw an actual published Garfield comic in their own unique way. And the writing really feels like it was pulled right out of Garfield And Friends. Not too crazy, but not too mundane or slice-of-life-y. And many of them have little callbacks to episodes and arcs of Garfield And Friends. There's this cute little comic where Nermal actually gets mailed to Abu Dahbi and it turns out there's a bunch of kittens there, and Nermal isn't the cutest out of all of them. He wins a cutest kitten competition after failing previously, and he won because he was covered in mud, and got enough money to get sent back home. Him and this other cat who got him into the competition walk to the airport, and it turns Nermal caused a whole "fashion" craze with kittens covering themselves in mud because it's the cutest thing to do. And it's drawn in such a lovely art style, it's adorable and pleasing to the eyes. It feels so soft and comforting like a children's book.

So yeah. The KaBOOM! Garfield comics are awesome, they really feel like a "by fans, for fans" type of thing. The only gripe I have with it is that Jim Davis is always credited on the cover, and maybe I'm taking this the wrong way, but he actually didn't draw any or most of these. A lot of them were actually drawn by Andy Hirsch and David DeGrand. And they weren't written by Jim either, but instead Mark Evanier and Scott Nickel. And boy, did they do a fantastic job on these. It really does feel a lot like an episode out of Garfield And Friends, it's amazing and I'd recommemd it to any Garfield fan who wants fresh, new and funny comics to read.

That's all really. As usual, I would like to welcome Jon once again into my chaotic brain and my heart with the added knowledge and love for these comics that I had literally no idea even existed until now. Have a good read, Jon. Love you man :)

Last edited at 9:02 am

I really do love these comics a lot. They're so full of soul and personality, the art styles are lovely, it really does remind me a lot of Garfield And Friends. Not much else to say here, other than these are awesome and Jon is adorable. Also garfieldfashion rocks, give 'em a follow!!

Also, I would post a link to the site I found the comic hosted on, but the thing is, I don't know if the comic is legally hosted on there and I don't want anyone to get in trouble, so just to be safe, I won't link it.

Cheers,

Your Local Jonnoisseur

Posted on the 23rd of July, 2022 at 10:00 am.

#jonicles 16 #''producion''#i seriously love the jon arbuckle bit #it's hilarious anc charming and there's a lot of jon #more jon is always appreciated :)#jon drawing the strip while talking about drawing the strip while drawing himself talking about drawing himself drawing the strip #yeah i think i understand

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homeofjonicles · 2 years

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all i can say is that i'm not sorry.

#non jonicles #emo jon #the fucking KORN LOGO #its like that one lasagna cat video where jon arbuckle is an emo boy #this is horrific #the more i look at it the worse it gets

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homeofjonicles · 2 years

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The Jonicles - Entry 19

image above drawn by me using a really cool technique i learned on tumblr!! (the reason it says 30 is because jon is 29 in the strip and i wanted to reference that)

It is currently the 28th of July, 2022 at 7:19 am! This date is a very special one all revolving around a very special boy - It's Jon's birthday! You have no idea how long I've been waiting to celebrate the birthday of this beautiful man! It is also officially day #70 of my Jon Arbuckle hyperfixation (and 7 is a lucky number!), making Jon's birthday extra special as it lands on a great milestone this year!

You know, I've been waiting to write this entry for so long, I know who I'm going to write about and I know that what I'm going to write has to to with the special significance Jon has, but I never knew ehat to actually write on the notes these are written on. But Jon, O Jon…

Jon has really been there throughout almost my entire life whether I have realised it or not. When I was merely a small tiny child sitting on the floor watching Garfield And Friends, his smiling face was there onscreen for 4 year old me to enjoy. When I was still just a young boy sitting in my room reading my dad's Garfield strips, Arbuckle was lovingly sprinkled throughout the pages, prodiving chuckles and smiles wherever he went. When I was a young prepubescent boy, I had discovered and became fascinated with the complexities of the Garfield Minus Garfield strips and was introduced to the sadder side of Jon Arbuckle. And again, when I was only 11, discovering the hilarious and fucked up Garfielf shitposts and binging a compilation of them, Jon was right there the whole way in various different depictions, all of them making me laugh and smile. Every bit of my life that popped up that was even slightly Garfield related, whether it was a fact, or a funny shitpost, a meme, a comic strip, Jon was there, even if he wasn't present, he still lingered and floated around in my thoughts by pure association alone like a gaurdian angel.

And now… now we're here. On that fateful day of May 19th, 2022 at 4:24 am when I witnessed that singular image of that man, Jon appeared in my life once again and this time as a hyperfixation on a fictional character that I never could have predicted. He showed up in my life in a very special way at a time where I'm still discovering things about myself and when I've been feeling my lowest. Confused, in denial, anxious, hopelessness, nothingness, all these things swirling around in my head, and then here comes Jon. That handsome devil, that dorky loveable goof, that relatable fun cartoonist, he had swept me away into an interest that I could have never known would actually keep me in a state of fascination and joy, I think it's even at special interest status at this point! Jon is here, in my heart and mind. And he kinda is like a guardian angel in a way. He's always in my thoughts, his adorable little face looking over me contently. And it's no wonder he's always there if he means so, so much…

Jon is relatable. Incredibly relatable. I have went through this time and time again in many entries, especially Entry 3 which I'm still debating on publishing. But Jon is relatable, sometimes even painfully so and even to the point of me jokingly questioning "hey, maybe i am jon, haha wouldn't that be cool". He's like a representation of me, and I know that's because Jon is written to be relatable, but he's just so much more to me. His quirks, whether it's sorting his socks alphabetically, wearing colourful tacky mismatched suits, playing silly games with his cat like "Guess The Burp", somehow gluing a blender to his face for a strange and inexplicable reason, I am that. And I don't mean that literally, I haven't managed to glue a blender to my face (yet), but it's those little things Jon has that mirror my own quirks. And you may think "well yeah, everyone has quirks!", and you're right. But because I have a strong connection to Jon, because my identity closely matches his in many aspects, those weird and wacky quirks of his feel incredibly familiar like I was the one with those behaviours. Like I was Jon.

And it even goes into feelings. My behavioural and emotional patterns remind me of Jon. He can go from happy and jovial (not matter how fake it is) to null in the difference of a single panel. He can go from being somewhat content with his life to suddenly waking up the next morning and deciding he's going to completely flip it on its head and move to… Antartica or something before dropping that idea too. He can be completely silent and quite depressed looking through an entire strip, paying no mind to the situations unfolding around him, completely unenthusiastic at all. And that… hurts sometimes, especially when Jon isn't upbeat or goofy or even just happy. When Jon is just quiet, solemn, deep in thought, feeling worthless in life, there's no joy to his expression… It not only hurts to see a character I care for and love so dearly in a state of unhappiness, but it hurts in a more personal way. I feel those things, I feel almost exactly like Jon. Unworthy, numb, solemn, confused, anxious. Sometimes I'm scared to pull that lever and continue forward, and I often question the point of doing so, that nagging question that always hangs around in my head. But knowing Jon feels the same, knowing the connection I have to this single character, it makes it easier. And yes, I know that looking to fictional men for help doesn't replace actual social interaction or any professional help, but it helps. Jon helps.

Jon is here for me in my thoughts, I know that for a fact. It's been 70 days already, I think that's well established. He's a friend, a guardian angel, a buddy, a metaphorical shoulder to cry on, no matter how fictional he is. He's been there through thick and thin, he's seen my grow and I've seen him grow as well, and between that barrier that separates reality from fiction is a single connection between he and I. I probably sound like I've lost the plot, but if one day that barrier were to shatter and crumble and I was able to actually see Jon in person, I would. I would be his friend, be able to talk to him, be able to see him right there, I could share my thoughts on the connection between us, and it would be swell. It would be special. It would be theoretically catastrophic if that barrier broke for all fictional characters but hey, at least Jon's there, lol (and maybe Lyman could finally be free from his void prison…..)

So, Jon, on your special day, I celebrate the personal and emotional connection I have to you, as well as your birthday, because you mean so much to me. You mean so much to a random autistic kid from Australia who has a little too much time on its hands to write these, and I'm happy for that. I'm happy that you have been throughout my entire life and many other people's lives to share this similar connection with. You are a pretty underrated character, but you will not got underrated in my heart and in my thoughts, and I swear on that fact. You are special. You are worth something. You are Jon. So, happy birthday, Jon, from all of us. Whether some have been there since that first little strip in a small local paper in 1976, or whether some are just starting to read the comic today, we wish you a happy birthday. Love you, Jon <3

Last edited at 8:18 am

Happy birthday to our special boy from not only me, but many others in the Garfield fandom. Have a great day, Jon, you deserve it :)

Cheers,

Your Local Jonnoisseur

Posted on the 28th of July, 2022 at 8:43 am.

#jonicles 19 #happy birthday jon arbuckle!!!#you are so special to me jon #if only you knew how much you mean to me....#have a great birthday #love you jon <3

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homeofjonicles · 2 years

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The Jonicles - Entry 21

It is currently the 3rd of August, 2022 at 8:28 am, and it's a nice temporate Wednesday. I'm sitting on the ground at school just... writing this I guess??? Yeah.... Not the best writing position nor place, I know. It is currently day #76 of my Jon Arbuckle hyperfixation. It's almost day #80. I am almost horrified.

He doesn't like to admit it, but whether Garfield likes it or not, Jon is his sole caretaker. Jon does everything a cat owner could do for Garfield; gets him food, gives him pats, cooks him lasagna, takes him for walks, gives him the occassional bath, and gets him checked up at the vet. The same goes for Lyman's dog, Odie, who is now under Jon's loving care after the tragic disappearance of our boy in '83... Jon is a constant in Garfield and Odie's life, they depend on him to take care of them and to provide a living space for them. And in turn, Garfield and Odie are a constant in Jon's life. He needs them as much as they need him. As a reclusive, lonely and struggling man living almost entirely by himself in a small cosy house, Jon finds himself often talking to Garfield about his issues more often than not. Yes, he has Liz, and he also has the occassional chat with Irma at the coffee shop, but we don't really see Jon talking to any friends in his life outside of his immediate family. So, Jon needs these animals with him to feel connected and to just talk to someone every once in a while.

But what would happen if that all disappeared one day? What would happen if Garfield and Odie suddenly just weren't there for Jon?

Readers, I'd like to talk briefly about a storyline in the Garfield strip that went from the 25th of August, 1986 to the 28th of September, 1986. It is a storyline where Garfield and Odie go missing for, I'm assuming, more than a few days at least, and the significance of the effect it has on Jon Arbuckle. It's interesting to me not only because it's apparently the third time Garfield went missing, but it also brings a lot of insight to the psyche of Jon and his odd behaviours. It's interesting because Garfield and Odie are not only in a different environment (Odie gets taken in by a little girl and Garfield enters the circus), but we get to see a little of Jon's dependency on his pets and just the extent of how much this disappearance really could have messed with him.

The storyline basically starts with Jon telling Garfield to go get the newspaper, and so, a disgruntled Garfield does go outside to get the paper. However, being a creature of curiosity, Garfield thinks "I wonder what would happen if I just kept right on walking?" and thus, he strolls out onto the street to God knows where. 10 minutes pass, and Jon asks Odie to go find the fat feline.

The next strip after this one is where we can immediately begin to see Jon's dependency on Garfield and Odie crack open. Jon, in the last two strips, was at his normal routine of having a nice cup of hot coffee to sitting down on his possibly 100th armchair that has yet to be claimed by the vengence of Garfield's claws. Yet, in this strip which is also displayed above, Jon is laying down on the couch, shoes off, staring at the ceiling. It has presumably been a long time since Odie went to go look for Garfield, as Jon proclaims "Gee, I sure miss the boys". Jon then suddenly sits up, having been startled by something, before realising it was just the gaunt, harsh quietness of being alone. Jon is acting quite strange here, it's as if Garfield and Odie have been gone for an hour, and maybe they have, but hasn't it only been around 10 or so minutes? It's certainly not unusual to miss your pets, but Jon seems to already be grieving their absense. Jon is so used to having the little guys around that it's weird having it be completely silent, but when we take into account the insecurities Jon has, it's more depressing and heartbreaking to see him mope around like this.

Garfield has always been someone that Jon could talk to and vent his feelings out. He's a lonely man, so in place of proper socialisation he could have had with Lyman, Jon copes by talking to his cat and just vent out all his thoughts to. Jon has a very loud mind, he's constantly having these little thoughts that just need to come out sooner or later, but when the cat suddenly isn't around to do that, what's he to do? Just sit around all day in the deafening void of his own racing thoughts? Succumb to the void of self loathing and depression alone? It's no wonder Jon reacts this way. He's lonely, secluded, near desperate, he needs someone who he can talk to now that Lyman's gone, but no one's there, and he is truly alone. Depressed, lonely, worried about his pets, He just lays there quietly, his thoughts starting to becoming too much to resist the urge to blurt them out in a futile attempt to be heard by something.

And considering this next strip, I have the feeling Jon didn't take it very well.

This strip probably takes place maybe 20 or so minutes after the previous one, and after just sitting around doing nothing in that small little house, worrying his nuts off about his pets, Jon's boredom and stress starts to get to his head. His own thoughts are just too much, where are his boys? Why haven't they come back yet? Jon yells out to them from the window, "GARFIELD! ODIE!? WHERE ARE YOU?". Note the exclamation mark and question mark combo used when Jon calls out for Odie. Characters usually have this punctuation combo when they are incredibly confused, shocked, or near losing it, and the latter appears to be true for Jon. "HA-HA, GUYS. THE JOKE'S OVER. NOW COME BACK HERE!" he shouts, as his neighbour peeks at him from over the fence. Jon, in a state of desperation, begins to laugh unnaturally, his eyes crossing, laughing out in hopes that Garfield and Odie will come running back to him as he makes his neighbour progressively more concerned for his mental wellbeing.

What's happening here are the telltale signs that Jon is in denial, and that he also has an apparent dependency on his pets.

Jon isn't used to being alone for this long. Think about it, Jon may be lonely, but he is almost never physically alone. No matter where he is, Garfield is usually always with him. At resturants, at the shops he goes to, at dinner dates, over at the farm, Garfield is always there to tag along with Jon that I wouldn't be surprised if Garfield was his emotional support pet. One of the only reasons Jon hasn't fully snapped yet is because he has his pets by his side to keep him company. But to suddenly have no one by your side is scary, saddening, depressing, and Jon, unable to take the realisation of true loneliness growing bigger and bigger inside his head... He starts to lose it. He's never been without Garfield or Odie by his side for years, so to suddenly be completely alone without his pets, without a friend, without Lyman, without anyone... Jon has only had to deal with this a few times, he can't take it that well. He's in denial, and he's desperate. He just wants everything to return to normalcy. He can't take it, so he doesn't take it, which is why this strip is both so interesting and so saddening to me. It really shows how lonely (and relatable) Jon is in his life, I can't even imagine if he lost his pets for good.

The next strip I want to talk about also makes me quite sad. After trying and failing to find Garf and Odie through an ad in the paper (see: August 31st, 1986), Jon sits down in a chair, defeated, deciding to watch television to get his mind off things. "I don't know why I should be so upset over Garfield and Odie leaving." Jon thinks to himself solemnly, resting his tired head in his palm. "It's not like they're family or anything". Jon continues to watch television sadly, when what I think is a Public Service Announcement or something plays and says "It's 10:00. Do you know where your children are?". Thoughts of Garfield and Odie rush back to Jon's mind as he recoils, suddenly struck again with the bitter reality that it's been a day or two since his beloved pets had run away, and he cries openly. He misses them so much. So, so much.

What I find interesting about this strip is the mention of knowing where your children are. Jon is a cat dad, we know that, but think of the language Jon often uses towards Garfield and Odie. He often refers to both of them as his "boys" and not his pets, saying things like "Okay boys, time for a walk!" and whatnot. Whenever he takes Garfield somewhere and he misbehaves, he scolds him like a father would. Heck, even in Garfield Gets Real which I still regard as one of the strangest Garfield movies I've ever seen, when Garfield, Odie, Nermal and Arlene get into his car, he calls them all "kids"! Jon not only was reminded of his pets because the TV reminded him they were missing, but because Jon sees them as almost being his own kids. And in a way, they are. Garfield and Odie are brothers by bond, and Jon's always there to take care of them, feed them and raise them. I have this headcanon that Jon has always wanted to have kids of his own but never got around to being able to, so to me personally, this little detail about Jon has always been one of interest to me.

But this also matters because of the importance Garfield and Odie have to Jon for him to see them as his boys, his kids. Garfield and Odie matter so much to Jon, he'd be lost without them, as seen with the previous strips. He cares about them, he loves them, but most importantly, he needs them. He needs them by his side, he needs them for support, he needs them to feel loved and cared for in his lonely, unlucky life. And in return, Garfield and Odie need and care for Jon too.

Jon is very dependent on his pets. I mean, he literally begins to lose it when they're not there anymore. For the longest time, Garfield was the only person he could talk to. Before Liz became his partner, Jon would barely even be able to start a conversation... Not that he was able to start one with a cat, but regardless, Garfield was Jon's only form of socialisation. I mean, the cat even says it himself, "Jon, you're so insecure". Jon needs these two, otherwise what is he to do with himself? This really reminds me of Garfield Minus Garfield, granted that one's slightly different because it implies Garfield never existed in the first place, but still. You take Garfield away from Jon and you expose the insecurities and vulnarabilities of a sad, lonely man that all of us can relate to in one way or another (except i-hate-jon-arbuckle). This is why the ending to this storyline is even more heartwarming, because when Jon finally finds the two in a pet store, he takes them home in his arms, his face beaming the whole way in the sunset. Finally free from his loneliness and finally in a secure spot once again, Jon is happy to have his boys back home, safe and sound. It's nice, it's heartwarming, it's adorable, it's secure.

There is one more thing though that I wanna quickly mention and that's the detail of when Garfield enters the house in the last strip, you can see that the walls have visible cracks, the wallpaper's falling apart in some places, Garfield mentions that there's dry rot, which really makes me concerned for Jon, as without his pets, the house started to go into shambles along with his mental state. It's a small implication, but it matters. And so does Jon. And I know, "He's going to get sentimental about a cartoon character again, what else is new", but really. If Jon were real, I just want him to know that I and so many other people truly care about him, whether he knows it or not. Details like this make me concerned for him, and I just want to reach out, give him a hand, talk with him, and be his friend. I want to help him through his struggle and make him feel less alone because I care for him. Jon, you have proven to me that you are a strong man. You have struggles, you have issues, and sometimes it's hard. It's tough, I've been through shit too and I can tell you that it's not easy at all. And that's why it's worth it when you hold on and live though it to see the end. And it may seem useless, but please know that it isn't, and that you can do this, bud. I believe in you, Jon. With today's struggles comes tomorrows strengths, stay strong, Arbuckle. :)

Last edited at 6:28 pm. Long school day!

Not much I want to say here, other than I just... I just wanna hug Jon, man...

Cheers,

Your Local Jonnoisseur

Posted on the 3rd of August, 2022 at 7:06 pm.

#jonicles 21 #there's SO MANY #i wonder what number entry will be on day 100....#my bets are on entry 28 #should i start tagging these with ''arbuckle positivity'' just to piss people off #i should #arbuckle positivity #teehee #free hugs for jon #<3

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