Times-Union is refreshing its comics page with updated lineup

The funny pages were my introduction to newspapers. I had no idea that Garfield and Snoopy would send me down a career path, but here we are.

The comics were the only section I was interested in during my earliest newspaper-reading years when I was probably still too young to even understand the humor. Except Marmaduke. The joke is that he's large. Get it?

When I got into sports, I turned my attention to that section as my primary read. As I got older, I developed an appreciation for local news and current events and started reading the paper from cover to cover. I tried my hand at journalism in high school and decided it was my calling.

But it all started with the funny pages.

Many print readers still enjoy starting their day with a smile from their favorite comics. If you count yourself among that number, you'll notice a revamped lineup beginning Monday, Jan. 29.

Tastes and preferences evolve over time, and the refreshed comics section was informed by much input from readers. Most strips currently offered will remain, including a certain oversized dog. Some will go away. But more will be added.

In total, there will be one more strip in the daily comics section than we offer now. On Sundays, the full-color comics section will grow from four pages to five. So while you may miss a particular comic that you've enjoyed over the years, you'll get even more new ones that we hope you'll grow to love.

And more good news for comic lovers, if you weren't already aware, is that there are dozens of comic strips available at Jacksonville.com/comics above and beyond the ones you see in the paper each day. Included in that are many of the strips that will be phased out of the print edition.

Here's a look at the updated offerings:

Monday-Saturday: Blondie, Zits, Beetle Bailey, Family Circus, Hagar, Dennis the Menace, Garfield, Peanuts, For Better or Worse, Baby Blues, Pickles, Pearls Before Swine, Jump Start, Ziggy, Marmaduke, Non Sequitur, Crabgrass, Crankshaft, Luann, Baldo, Frank & Ernest, Born Loser, Close to Home, Argyle Sweater, Mother Goose, Rose is Rose, Wizard of Id, B.C.

Sunday: Blondie, Zits, Beetle Bailey, Family Circus, Hagar, Dennis the Menace, Garfield, Peanuts, For Better or Worse, Baby Blues, Pickles, Foxtrot, Pearls Before Swine, Jump Start, Ziggy, Marmaduke, Non Sequitur, Crabgrass, Crankshaft, Luann, Baldo, Frank & Ernest, Born Loser, Close to Home, Argyle Sweater, Mother Goose, Rose is Rose, Wizard of Id, B.C.

I hope you enjoy the new lineup and all of the great content found throughout the Times-Union each day.

Thank you as always for reading and supporting local journalism.

Paul Runnestrand is the executive editor of the Florida Times-Union. He may be reached at prunnestrand@jacksonville.com.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Times-Union is refreshing its comics page with updated lineup