There's really something special about Sunday comics, isn't there? The sensational articles and dry stock market reports give way to almost two full p

The Story Of The Failed, Comic-Inspired Dilbert Burrito

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2025-01-04 07:00:04

There's really something special about Sunday comics, isn't there? The sensational articles and dry stock market reports give way to almost two full pages of color comic strips, gags, puzzles, and zingers. Whether you're a fan of the wishy-washy Charlie Brown of "Peanuts," the military stylings of "Beetle Bailey," or the comical misadventures of lasagna-loving "Garfield," the world of the Sunday comics page is filled with zany, oddball, and even heroic characters. But there's one comic in particular that stands out, detailing a hero who finds himself navigating a place far more treacherous and strange than any fantasy kingdom: the corporate world.

Introduced in the early '90s, Scott Adams' "Dilbert" details the life of the titular Dilbert, an engineer in a company who seems trapped in a surreal nightmare of corporate banality and incompetence. Much of the comic's humor comes from the lampooning of corporate culture, influenced by Adams' earlier career working in the Pacific Bell Telephone Company, where his banal, go-nowhere job inspired him to create an outlet for his complaints (via Harvard Business Review). While "Dilbert" today is also known for Adams' somewhat controversial views (via Fox News), "Dilbert" has been seen as a staple of the newspaper comic industry, even having its own animated show in the late '90s (via IMDb).

But where exactly does a comic about corporate culture and burritos come together? It seems that all these years later, it's still kind of a mystery.