It’s worth saying that Watterson is not Alan Moore, who gets up every morning just so he can rage and froth about how nobody, including his fans, properly understands or respects his creations. Nor is he J.D. Salinger, who clearly took a lot of pleasure in being the world’s most easily discovered recluse, and who lovingly custom-tailored each “go to hell and be your own author, goddammit” letter he sent to the many teenage Holdens who wrote him about sequels or adaptations. He’s just a guy who decided not to make  a million Calvin plush dolls his personal legacy with respect to this strip.

Watterson is on record as being annoyed by the peeing Calvins (who wouldn’t be?), but I sort of doubt he spends much time thinking about it. It’s not costing him money, and if he were that easily swayed by what other people did, he’d never have retired in the first place.

I cringe both because I know they weren’t approved by Waterson and also because I think they’re made and purchased by people whose IQs are too low to read Calvin & Hobbes, let alone appreciate it.

Sometimes I think Waterson may have been better served by actually doing a bit of official merchandising just so he could come down hard on the rip-offs.