Stone Soup by Jan Eliot for July 12, 2020

I’m gonna miss all of the stone soup fam!

One more week and Ms. Eliot can finally rest her wrist after all that doodling.

It is like an old friend is going far away with no chance of communicating. Everybody deserves to retire. I sure wish there were someone to take over. Maybe you could send a postcard now and then.

When is the end again?

Jan-whiny Cricket?

The very first Simpsons looked a little “odd”, but then the Koreans took over the drawing.

25 years, huh? Looks like a Retirement cruise heading for a come back by “Popular Demand”!

As sad as your creations critiquing you.

Is this strip suffering a slow death? Keep it going as it is one of the best.

Stone Soup is unique. I tried to find similar kind of humor, without success. Calvin is great too, but Stone Soup has so many layers. 3 generations, teens, kids, dog, women vs men, very special man Wally, home, job, vacation – phew I could continue without end here. Great job done.

Yup, Valerie Stone’s first appearance! November 20, 1995: https://www.gocomics.com/stonesoup/1995/11/20?ct=v&cti=1734523

It’s fun to look at the first year of most cartoons… Doonesbury, BC, even Peanuts look very different.

I know there are two weeks left, but enjoy retirement, Jan. You’ve earned it. Thank you.

Question: Do coffee-cup vapor swirls ever start off going to the right? All the ones above start off going to the left. Must be a mystery of the universe.

Mind you, you can say the same for several of the long-running comics – Doonesbury, Foxtrot, Pearls, all saw great artwork improvement over the years from where they started. Even BC and Peanuts evolved over time ‘til finally settling on the ’final’ look in the early ’60s.

Jan, we all can’t thank you enough. <3

I’m enjoying this count-down. I think it will help letting go to “know” that the characters live on in another world. They’ll probably continue to live and develop in Ms. Eliot’s brain, but it’s nice to have a small insight into that world.

So long, Jan, and thanks for all the fish.

Not sad. The early art still had it’s own charm. I can’t believe that i have been reading your work for so long. I’ve loved it all. :)

Favorite strips or arcs? Mine was a Sunday cartoon when Joan was in the later stages of pregnancy with Lucy. The whole family goes to the aquarium and the first generously sized frame is Joan in front of the whale tank saying, “How appropriate.” I shared it with a friend in the office who was also very pregnant and we laughed until our eyes watered.

It is interesting to be able to go back to the beginnings and see how a strip. jokes and artwork, develop over time.

this is one strip that I will miss. Thank you Jan

Awkward Moment #255: When our creations remind us of our beginnings.

It looks to me like everyone is drinking a cup of coffee. It seems to me that Joan and Val are usually drinking tea, as identified by the string and tag hanging out of the mug, but there are no strings and tags here.

At least can enjoy 2 more Sunday strips. Jan you gave us a lot of pleasure over the decades.

Is this also coming to an end?

I’m going to miss this comic so much! But, as everyone has said, we have the Stone Soup Classics to read.

What is with ending more and more strips? Do people think the world is coming to an end?

C’mon Val, don’t you remember the old saw ’bout getting better with age.

So…they get better looking as time passes? Draw me!

This is great. I have never seen a cartoon series end like this before.

This is so heartbreaking. :-(

Thanks again for all the smiles over the years, Jan … and for the nice build-up to the big finale. I look forward to reading Classics, and hope you’ll come back to “see” us in the comments sometime.

From the picture it looks like she’s actually lost some weight

I’ve followed Stone Soup for years and love it. I will miss it :-(

That IS an improvement. But Stone Soup is always great.

I just love this strip! Thank you Jan for all your wonderful work!

Too bad they all still look like they have a single tooth

When the daily strip ended, I was bereft (good word, huh?). It was years before I discovered it had continued on Sundays because there is no Sunday paper in Ithaca, NY, where I live. I vowed that I’d tune back in at some point and catch up with all the characters. Which is now, when I learn that it is ending. It is a loss because as others said, there’s nothing quite like Stone Soup, but there is a time for everything, and the view of Jan Eliot in that boat looks pretty wonderful. Thanks for all the fun and entertainment you provided over the years! We’ll miss you!!

Wow; it actually has been 25 years!Well, I certainly hope that Jan (Eliot) enjoys retirement.Jan, I commend you, on your personal perspective portrayed through the years.Jan Eliot is certainly one cartoonist who knows how to convey a message succinctly without inferring a personal subjective to each..I don’t know the life of a cartoonist. But I bet it’s hard work, especially for someone who commits the time and energy to doing an excellent job..I’ve held long term positions in many fields over the years:analyst, engineer, college (university) and industry instructor (technical trainer); and, (long time) professional technical writer.I know what it is like to work hard and to enjoy (semi) retirement when you reach a certain age, so enjoy retirement Jan.- Graham Cooke (Canada)