Dilbert: The First Year by Scott Adams (1989)

I recently wrote an article titled “How I Choose My Books,” because I’ve realized again how eclectic my reading habits must seem. While reading books on fasting, Hebrews, and The Spirit of St. Louis, I’m also dabbling in fiction, graphic novels, and comic strips! My interests go everywhere.

I felt drawn to Dilbert lately, because I follow Scott Adams on X and appreciate his no-nonsense take on politics and technology. Yes, I know all about his cancellation for apparent racism and misogyny, but I also know he was an early victim of Wokism’s cancel culture. That he didn’t bend or break under the attacks but rather defended his logic made him a hero in my book—like J.K. Rowling in the face of transgenderism or Charlie Kirk in the face of the Left’s ungrounded posthumous attacks.

Scott Adams has published a great deal over the years, so I honestly could have begun anywhere. But I decided to go back to the beginning and get a running start to his thinking, and so I begin in 1989…

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Buy Dilbert 2.0: 20 Years of Dilbert

Early Takes from Dilbert’s First Year

Dilbert debuted as a syndicated comic strip in 1989, when I was just 6 years old. As a paperboy in my teens, I recall seeing him daily in the comics section—and I also recall skipping him daily in the comics section! Like Cathy or Doonsbury, Dilbert‘s adult-focused humor meant nothing to high-school me. I didn’t care about office life or politics at the time, so I gunned instead for Garfield, The Far Side, and Bizarro.

Viewing these early cartoons now, however, I realize that Dilbert wasn’t always about the quirks of adulthood. Dogbert plays an important role in probably 75% of the strips, and the humor is “punny” and situational.

Had I begun with these early strips as a teen, I might have learned to appreciate them as much as I did Garfield. In fact, I’m going to pass these on to my 14yo son and see what he thinks. I think he’ll become a quick fan.

Dilbert and Dogbert

As we meet Dilbert and his dog during their first year, we get what’s essentially another Jon Arbuckle—an aimless, single nerd looking for love and pouring his heart out to his pet. One difference is that Dilbert and Dogbert actually dialogue, whereas Garfield only thinks thoughts that Jon can’t hear. Dogbert, then, is essentially another human character—two men taking on the world in their own unique ways.

Also included in Dilbert’s world are a pair of dinosaurs (who never went extinct but only went into hiding inside Dilbert’s house). Aliens also appear occasionally, which proves that Adams isn’t afraid to move way outside the box of reality to land his daily joke. Rarely in this first year does he continue his strips on a single theme for more than 2 days, though characters and situations do recur.

Some Favorites Strips from 1989

I had to keep my favorites to a minimum, but I wanted to share seven that really landed for me and that made me want to keep reading. As an avid book-lover myself, several favorite daily strips were about poems and books. I’ve highlighted three other great ones as well.

Poems and Books

1. May 28, 1989 (Sunday)

2. May 15, 1989

3. July 11, 1989

4. October 24, 1989

Etc. Jokes and Puns

5. August 9, 1989

6. October 4, 1989

7. November 2, 1989

Conclusion

Perhaps only Dilbert fans will care to follow my foray into the history of Scott Adams, Dilbert, Dogbert, and all the rest. That’s quite all right. Come as you may and take what you like.

I’m here to share the joy of reading. Sometimes that includes spiritual publications and other times, it’s random novels. Sometimes, though, it’s just me sticking my nose in the Funnies—and I’m not overly ashamed to admit it.

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