1. Introduction to Writing and Drawing Humor in Comics
Comics Design
Introduction to Writing and Drawing Humor in Comics

2. Humor in Comics
Humor strips (like most newspaper funnies) typically do not have a story– they just follow the basic formula of set-up and punchline, and then start over the next strip, as if nothing happened in the previous one. The punchline is funny because it simultaneously is a surprise and makes sense to the reader. If it does not make sense, the reader will say “I don’t get it”– as in, I don’t understand.
Humorous Stories are STORIES first. Judd Apatow (film writer/director of 40 Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Trainwreck, etc) says: Write a story that would work just as well if there were no jokes– make the dramatic situation and story/character arcs first, then add the jokes out of the surprising ways the characters deal with their situations and conflicts.

3. Structuring a Joke
Show particularly funny comic strips in 1-4 panel variations: The Far Side, Dilbert, Penny Arcade, and Dinosaur Comics. Discuss how Dilbert twists the knife by placing the punchline in panel two and then going further in panel 3. In Dinosaur Comics, discuss rhythm, and have them make their own (as a jam? As homework?)

4. Humor in a Dramatic Story
Humor functions in a dramatic story to relieve tension and, like everything else in a story, to reveal character in their interactions, attitudes, and choices.
Show Girl Genius, The Last Halloween, and Atomic Robo to discuss humor in the context of a dramatic story.