''Citizen Dog'' (May 15, 1995 – May 26, 2001) is a newspaper

comic strip A comic strip is a Comics, sequence of cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often Serial (literature), serialized, with text in Speech balloon, balloons and Glossary of comics terminology#Captio ...

Mark O'Hare Mark Sean O'Hare (born July 18, 1968) is an American cartoonist, animator, writer and storyboard artist who created the comic strip '' Citizen Dog''. O'Hare is well known for his work on animated television shows as a writer and storyboard arti ...

, distributed by

Universal Press Syndicate Universal Press Syndicate (UPS), a subsidiary of Andrews McMeel Universal, was an independent press syndicate. It distributed lifestyle and opinion columns, comic strips and other content. Popular columns include Dear Abby, Ann Coulter, Roger ...

Publication history

Originally pitched as ''Spot'', O'Hare's idea was to do an odd couple comedy. Printed nationally from 1995, ''Citizen Dog'' ended on May 26, 2001. O'Hare decided to stop the comic because he felt he was not able to put in the work that the comic deserved, but noted he would be willing to bring it back if given the chance. Daily reruns of the strip resumed on June 28, 2008, on GoComics.

Characters and story

The strip is focused on the antics of a

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') or modern humans are the most common and widespread species of primate, and the last surviving species of the genus ''Homo''. They are Hominidae, great apes characterized by their Prehistory of nakedness and clothing ...

male Male (Planet symbols, symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or Egg cell, ovum, in the process of fertilisation. A male organism cannot sexual repro ...

, Mel, and his male canine companion, Fergus. The lines between master and companion are extremely blurred: Fergus frequently asserts his rights as equal, or perhaps superior, partner in the friendship. In an early strip, Mel labors for three panels to install a

pet door A pet door or pet flap (also referred to in more specific terms, such as cat flap, cat door, kitty door, dog flap, dog door, or doggy/doggie door) is a small opening to allow pets to enter and exit a building on their own without needing a human t ...

, only to have Fergus stroll in via the doorknob. Of course, this works both ways; several strips later, Mel flounders with his order at a fancy

restaurant A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and Delivery (commerce), food delivery services. Restaurants ...

, only to be saved by Fergus, who orders for both of them in fluent

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

. All in all, Mel and Fergus's friendship is similar to that of the title characters in ''

Calvin and Hobbes ''Calvin and Hobbes'' is a daily American comic strip created by cartoonist Bill Watterson that was Print syndication, syndicated from November 18, 1985, to December 31, 1995. Commonly described as "the last great newspaper comic", ''Calvin a ...

'', sharing both adventures and frequent arguments about the silliest topics. Animals in ''Citizen Dog'' can talk, and most of them (particularly dogs and cats) walk upright, chatting with each other and their owners. Furthermore, many dogs look similar to their owners: a slender, bookish man may find his eyewear paralleled on his

dachshund The dachshund ( or ; German: 'badger dog'), also known as the wiener dog or sausage dog, badger dog, doxen and doxie, is a short-legged, long-bodied, hound-type dog breed. The dog may be smooth-haired, wire-haired, or long-haired, with varie ...

. Almost all characters feature O'Hare's distinctive large nose and

candy corn Candy corn is a small, pyramid-shaped candy, typically divided into three sections of different colors, with a waxy texture and a flavor based on honey, sugar, butter, and vanilla. It is a staple candy of the fall season and Halloween in North ...

-shaped body, even the women—with the sole exception of occasional nubile females, who are rendered with large bosoms and caricatured hourglass figures. *Mel – The primary human in the series, completely average and unremarkable in every way. He is "

suburbia A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area. They are oftentimes where most of a metropolitan areas jobs are located with some being predominantly residential. They can either be denser or less densely populated ...

" incarnate, often content to sit and watch TV for long hours at a time and working a middle-class desk job for an undistinguished company. He has an unusually large nose, likened at one point to a casaba melon, and rarely ever attracts attention from the opposite gender. *Fergus – Mel's dog who is arguably the more intelligent of the two, although this also leads to a massive ego. He and the other canines of the strip make frequent observations about the state of affairs in human society and how silly it is.

Technology Technology is the application of Conceptual model, conceptual knowledge to achieve practical goals, especially in a reproducible way. The word ''technology'' can also mean the products resulting from such efforts, including both tangible too ...

alternates between boring and scaring him. *Arlo – Another dog and Fergus's best friend, rarely ever seen on his own, so it can be said that he is strictly a follower and "yes-man" for Fergus. *Cuddles – The voice of reason in a dog's world, Cuddles is a cat who enjoys fine dining and reading

Jane Austen Jane Austen ( ; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for #List of works, her six novels, which implicitly interpret, critique, and comment on the English landed gentry at the end of the 18th century ...

novels. He frequently gets fed up with Fergus's unenthusiastic attitude to life, and has a well-known hatred of winter ("SAY NO 2 SNO!" is written on a button he tries to give to various people). Often uses baby-talk when conversing with his owner, an unnamed little old lady. *Bruno – A large, strong sheepdog who never speaks and is often depicted as being rather scruffy. He harbors a friendship with Cuddles which would be considered highly out-of-place by "regular" people, but is accepted as normal in the comic when others see him with the unfortunate cat hugged up under his armpit. *Mario – A fish who Mel often spends time trying to catch in later strips, but who he usually ends up discussing current events with. Almost landed a part in ''

Free Willy ''Free Willy'' is a 1993 American Adventure film, adventure Drama (film and television), drama film, directed by Simon Wincer, produced by Lauren Shuler Donner and Jennie Lew Tugend, written by Keith A. Walker and Corey Blechman from a story by ...

'', but was denied the role for being a trout. *Maggie – A dark-haired little girl who Fergus and Arlo follow to and from school, amusing them with her tales of what she has to study in

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

. She dislikes this attention intensely, especially after Fergus accidentally eats her homework on one occasion.

Collections

Three paperback compilations were released: * ''Citizen Dog'', * ''Dog's Best Friend'', * ''D is for Dog'',

References

External links

Citizen Dog at goComics.com
{{UniversalPressSyndicate American comic strips Gag-a-day comics 1995 comics debuts 2001 comics endings Comics about anthropomorphic dogs Comics about anthropomorphic fish