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[[File:Calvinball.png|thumb|250x250px|A game of calvinball.]]
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[[File:Calvinball.png|thumb|250x250px|A game of Calvinball.]]
 
[[File:The Very Sorry Song.png|thumb]]
'''Calvinball''' is a game invented by [[Calvin]] and [[Hobbes]]. Calvinball has no rules; the players make up their own rules as they go along, making it so that no Calvinball game is like another.
 
  +
'''Calvinball''' is a game invented by [[Calvin]] and [[Hobbes]]. There is only one rule: it can't be played the same way twice.
   
 
Rules cannot be used twice (except for the rule that rules cannot be used twice), and any plays made in one game may not be made again in any future games. The game may involve wickets, mallets, volleyballs, and additional sports-related equipment.
 
Rules cannot be used twice (except for the rule that rules cannot be used twice), and any plays made in one game may not be made again in any future games. The game may involve wickets, mallets, volleyballs, and additional sports-related equipment.
   
There is only one permanent rule in Calvinball: players cannot play it the same way twice. For example, in one game of Calvinball, the goal was to capture the opponent's flag, whereas in a different game of Calvinball, the goal was to score points by hitting badminton shuttlecocks against trees using a croquet mallet. Masks must be worn at all times in Calvinball; these are not allowed to be questioned.
+
There is only one permanent rule in Calvinball: players cannot play it the same way twice. For example, in one game of Calvinball, the goal was to capture the opponent's flag, whereas in a different game of Calvinball, the goal was to score points by hitting badminton birdies against trees using a croquet mallet
   
 
==Creation==
 
==Creation==
Calvin created the game when he first became tired of organized sports. Although the first depicted game of Calvinball followed Calvin's failure to join the baseball team [http://freewebs.com/calhobbes/first.jpg], the game appears in such a complete form there that it is likely that Calvin and Hobbes had been playing the game for a long time beforehand.
+
[[Calvin]] created the game when he first became tired of organized sports. Although the first depicted game of Calvinball followed [[Calvin|Calvin's]] failure to join [[Baseball|the baseball team]], the game appears in such a complete form there that it is likely that Calvin and Hobbes had been playing the game for a long time beforehand.
  +
 
The only hint at the true creation of the game comes from the last Calvinball strip, in which a [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_football game of football] quickly changes into a game of Calvinball. [[Calvin]] remarks, "Sooner or later, all our games turn into Calvinball," suggesting that a similar scenario led directly to the creation of the sport.
   
The only hint at the true creation of the game comes from the last Calvinball strip, in which a game of football quickly changes into a game of Calvinball. Calvin remarks, "Sooner or later, all our games turn into Calvinball," suggesting that a similar scenario led directly to the creation of the sport.
 
 
==Gameplay==
 
==Gameplay==
Although all games of Calvinball are different, (you make up the rules as you go), many of them seem to involve a volleyball (the Calvinball), masks, and pickets with numbers printed on them.
+
Although all games of Calvinball are different (as players can make up rules as they go), many of them seem to involve a volleyball (the "Calvinball"), masks, and pickets with numbers printed on them.
   
 
Key features of various games have included (in approximate order of appearance):
 
Key features of various games have included (in approximate order of appearance):
Line 19: Line 21:
 
*Masks
 
*Masks
 
* Small signs with numbers
 
* Small signs with numbers
* Songs
 
 
* Zones/Sectors
 
* Zones/Sectors
* The "Opposite Pole" (Everything becomes the opposite; a player must declare when he or she touches it, but because it is the "opposite" pole, the player declares touching it by not declaring it)
+
* The "Opposite Pole" (when a player touches it, everything becomes the opposite of what it was before. Also, a player must declare when he or she touches it, but because it is the "opposite" pole, the player declares touching it by not declaring it)
 
* The "Very Sorry Song" (see below)
 
* The "Very Sorry Song" (see below)
* The "No Song" zone (a player doesn't have to sing the "Very Sorry Song" if he or she is in the "No Song" zone)
+
* A "No Song" zone (a player doesn't have to sing the "Very Sorry Song" if he or she is in the "No Song" zone)
 
* The "Bonus Box"
 
* The "Bonus Box"
 
* Croquet mallets
 
* Croquet mallets
* Badminton shuttlecocks
+
* Badminton Birdies
 
* The "Invisible Sector" (this sector cannot be seen, and whoever wanders into it must cover their eyes; the only way out is to be bonked by the Calvinball)
* "Vortex spots" (the player who steps in one has to spin around until they're dizzy)
+
* "Vortex spots" (if a player steps in a vortex spot, they have to spin around until they fall down)
* The "Boomerang Zone" (A decree is returned to the player who called it and they must do what the decree says instead)
 
  +
* The "Boomerang Zone" (if a player incurs a penalty while in the boomerang zone, the penalty is instead suffered by the player who called them on it)
* The "Invisible Sector" (This sector cannot be seen and whoever wanders into it must close their eyes; the only way out is to get bonked by the Calvinball)
 
 
* A volleyball (the "Calvinball")
 
* A volleyball (the "Calvinball")
 
* Trees (as goalposts)
 
* Trees (as goalposts)
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* Poems
 
* Poems
 
* Sacks
 
* Sacks
  +
* Non-numerical scoring values (such as "oogy," "boogy" and "Q")
* Odd Scoring (Oogy to Boogy, Q to 12, etc.)
 
 
* The Calvinball theme song (see below)
 
* The Calvinball theme song (see below)
 
* Decrees
 
* Decrees
 
* Water balloons
 
* Water balloons
 
* Hobby horse
 
* Hobby horse
* The "Pernicious Poem Place" (The player caught in this area will be forced to recite a poem followed by a penalty relating to it)
+
* The "Pernicious Poem Place" (a player caught in this area must recite a poem and incur a penalty relating to the poem, such as ice cold water.)
 
* The Bag Flag Zone
 
* The Bag Flag Zone
  +
* Being forced to move and speak in slow motion
* The Secret Base
 
* Slow Motion
 
 
* The Perimeter of Wisdom
 
* The Perimeter of Wisdom
 
* The Corollary Zone
 
* The Corollary Zone
* The Baby Sitter Flag (The babysitter calls the game to an end and puts the other players to bed)
+
* The Baby Sitter Flag (any player touched by the Baby Sitter Flag must obey [[Rosalyn|the baby sitter]])[[File:2021-04-12 (31).png|thumb]]
  +
 
==Calvinball theme song==
 
==Calvinball theme song==
The Calvinball theme song made its only appearance in the penultimate Calvinball storyline. Calvin sings the lead while Hobbes sings backup with "Rumma-Tum-Tums."
+
The Calvinball theme song made its only appearance in the penultimate Calvinball storyline. [[Calvin]] sings the lead while [[Hobbes]] sings backup with "Rumma-Tum-Tums."
 
:"Other kids' games are all such a bore!
 
:"Other kids' games are all such a bore!
 
:They've gotta have rules and they gotta keep score!
 
:They've gotta have rules and they gotta keep score!
 
:Calvinball is better by far!
 
:Calvinball is better by far!
 
:It's never the same! It's always bizarre!
 
:It's never the same! It's always bizarre!
:You don't need a team or a referee!
+
:You don't need a team or a [[Mr. Lockjaw|referee]]!
:You know that it's great, 'cause it's named after me!"
+
:You know that it's great, 'cause it's named after [[Calvin|me]]!"
  +
:"If you wanna-"
   
After that, Calvin tells [[Rosalyn]] to "feel free to harmonize with Hobbes on the 'rumma-tum-tums'".
+
After that, Calvin tells [[Rosalyn]] to "feel free to harmonize with [[Hobbes]] on the 'Rumma-tum-tums'".
   
 
==Quotes==
 
==Quotes==
 
{{Big Quote|No sport is less organized than Calvinball.|||Hobbes}}
 
{{Big Quote|No sport is less organized than Calvinball.|||Hobbes}}
<br clear="all" />{{Big Quote|Sooner or later, all our games turn into Calvinball.|||Calvin}}
+
{{Big Quote|Sooner or later, all our games turn into Calvinball.|||Calvin}}
 
<br clear="all" />{{Big Quote|The only permanent rule in Calvinball is that you can never play it the same way twice!|||Calvin}}
 
<br clear="all" />{{Big Quote|The only permanent rule in Calvinball is that you can never play it the same way twice!|||Calvin}}
 
{{Big Quote|The score is oogy to boogy!|4 = Hobbes}}
 
{{Big Quote|The score is oogy to boogy!|4 = Hobbes}}
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==The "Pernicious Poem"==
 
==The "Pernicious Poem"==
In one strip, Calvin landed on the Pernicious Poem Place and was forced to recite the following poem to [[Susie Derkins|Susie]]:
+
In one strip, [[Calvin]] landed on the Pernicious Poem Place and was forced to take a bucket of ice cold water to [[Susie Derkins|Susie]], and recite the "Pernicious Poem":
   
"This is a poem! Please do what you're told! And here is a bucket of water, ice-cold! Please take this water, and dump it on me! Don't hesitate, do it A.S.A.P.!
+
"This is a poem! Please do what you're told! And here is a bucket of water, ice-cold! Please take this water, and dump it on me! Don't hesitate, do it A.S.A.P.!"
   
  +
[[Susie Derkins|Susie]], after a moment of confusion, gleefully obliged.
==The Very Sorry Song==
 
In one strip, [[Calvin]] and [[Hobbes]] are playing Calvinball, and Calvin <!-- The brackets that directly follow this message are grammatical, and SHOULD NOT BE A LINK!! --> "[steals]" Hobbes' flag, and Hobbes hits him with the Calvinball. As a result, Calvin is required to put the flag back and sing the Very Sorry Song''.''
 
   
 
==The Very Sorry Song==
 
In one Calvinball strip, [[Calvin]] stole [[Hobbes|Hobbes']] flag, and [[Hobbes]] hit him with the Calvinball. As a result, [[Calvin]] was required to put the flag back and sing the "Very Sorry Song."
   
'''-Lyrics'''
+
=== '''Lyrics''' ===
 
The "Very Sorry Song" has two parts, one sung by the one who did the action (the "offender"), and one sung by the person whom the action was done to (the "victim"). It is not known if the offender's lines and the victims lines are sung one after the other, or at the same time.
   
The "Very Sorry Song" has two parts, one sung by the one who did the action (the "offender"), and one sung by the person whom the action was done to (the "victim").
 
 
:{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse:collapse;"
 
:{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse:collapse;"
! Offender
+
!Offender
! Victim
+
!Victim
 
|-
 
|-
| "Here's the 'Very Sorry Songg.' Won't you help and sing alongg?" || "Bum bum bum"
+
|"Here's the 'Very Sorry Songg.' Won't you help and sing alongg?"||"Bum bum bum"
 
|-
 
|-
| "I blew it!" || "He's sorry!"
+
|"I blew it!"||"He's sorry!"
 
|-
 
|-
| "I knew it!" || "So sorry!"
+
|"I knew it!"||"So sorry!"
 
|-
 
|-
| "I'm very very sorry that I took your precious flaaggg!" || "Just don't do it any more, you scurvy scalawaaggg!"
+
|"I'm very very sorry that I took your precious flaaggg!"||"Just don't do it any more, you scurvy scalawaaggg!"
 
|}
 
|}
  +
In one game, The offender is free after singing this and gets "free passage to wicket five". In a different one, Offender and Victim alike must jump everywhere until somebody finds "the bonus box".[[File:Very Sorry Song.png|thumb|link=Special:FilePath/Very Sorry Song.png|The "Very sorry song"]]
[[File:Song.png|thumb]]
 
   
==Obscure Point System==
+
==Obscure Scoring System==
Nobody knows how to score in Calvinball. The only known point values are Q and 12 in one game between Calvin and Hobbes and oogy and boogy in another.
+
The scoring system in Calvinball is never made clear, and it's unlikely that it has a consistent scoring system across games. The only detail that is known is that scores can have non-numeric values. In one game, the score was Q to 12 and in another, the score was Oogy to Boogy.
   
 
==Trivia==
 
==Trivia==
* [[Bill Watterson]] once said, "People have asked how to play Calvinball. It's pretty simple: you make up the rules as you go."
 
   
 
*[[Bill Watterson]] once said, "People have asked how to play Calvinball. It's pretty simple: you make up the rules as you go."
* In one strip, Calvin and Hobbes are seen playing an obscure combination of croquet, cricket, and baseball. It is unknown whether or not this is a variation of Calvinball, a predecessor to Calvinball, or simply another obscure game.
 
  +
 
*In one strip, Calvin and Hobbes are seen playing an obscure combination of croquet, cricket, and [[baseball]]. It is unknown whether or not this is a variation of Calvinball, a predecessor to Calvinball, or simply another obscure game.
  +
*While most games of Calvinball are solely between [[Calvin]] and Hobbes, [[Rosalyn]] takes part in a game during the final [[Rosalyn|babysitter]] arc, in a successful ploy to get [[Calvin]] to behave. As stated by [[Calvin]], "She picked up the nuances of this game ''fast!''", and [[Calvin]] even willingly conceded defeat when [[Rosalyn]] invoked the "Baby Sitter Flag" to get [[Calvin]] to go to bed.
  +
  +
==External Links==
  +
https://www.picpak.net/calvin/calvinball
  +
 
[[Category:Sports]]
 
[[Category:Sports]]
[[Category:Stubs]]
 
 
[[Category:Running gags]]
 
[[Category:Running gags]]
 
[[Category:Games]]
 
[[Category:Games]]
Line 107: Line 115:
 
[[Category:Created by Calvin]]
 
[[Category:Created by Calvin]]
 
[[Category:Calvinball]]
 
[[Category:Calvinball]]
 
[[Category:Calvin]]

Latest revision as of 02:22, 15 September 2023

Calvinball

A game of Calvinball.

The Very Sorry Song

Calvinball is a game invented by Calvin and Hobbes. There is only one rule: it can't be played the same way twice.

Rules cannot be used twice (except for the rule that rules cannot be used twice), and any plays made in one game may not be made again in any future games. The game may involve wickets, mallets, volleyballs, and additional sports-related equipment.

There is only one permanent rule in Calvinball: players cannot play it the same way twice. For example, in one game of Calvinball, the goal was to capture the opponent's flag, whereas in a different game of Calvinball, the goal was to score points by hitting badminton birdies against trees using a croquet mallet

Creation[]

Calvin created the game when he first became tired of organized sports. Although the first depicted game of Calvinball followed Calvin's failure to join the baseball team, the game appears in such a complete form there that it is likely that Calvin and Hobbes had been playing the game for a long time beforehand.

The only hint at the true creation of the game comes from the last Calvinball strip, in which a game of football quickly changes into a game of Calvinball. Calvin remarks, "Sooner or later, all our games turn into Calvinball," suggesting that a similar scenario led directly to the creation of the sport.

Gameplay[]

Although all games of Calvinball are different (as players can make up rules as they go), many of them seem to involve a volleyball (the "Calvinball"), masks, and pickets with numbers printed on them.

Key features of various games have included (in approximate order of appearance):

  • Wickets (referred to as "time-fracture wickets" in one strip)
  • Soccer balls
  • Flags
  • Masks
  • Small signs with numbers
  • Zones/Sectors
  • The "Opposite Pole" (when a player touches it, everything becomes the opposite of what it was before. Also, a player must declare when he or she touches it, but because it is the "opposite" pole, the player declares touching it by not declaring it)
  • The "Very Sorry Song" (see below)
  • A "No Song" zone (a player doesn't have to sing the "Very Sorry Song" if he or she is in the "No Song" zone)
  • The "Bonus Box"
  • Croquet mallets
  • Badminton Birdies
  • The "Invisible Sector" (this sector cannot be seen, and whoever wanders into it must cover their eyes; the only way out is to be bonked by the Calvinball)
  • "Vortex spots" (if a player steps in a vortex spot, they have to spin around until they fall down)
  • The "Boomerang Zone" (if a player incurs a penalty while in the boomerang zone, the penalty is instead suffered by the player who called them on it)
  • A volleyball (the "Calvinball")
  • Trees (as goalposts)
  • Buckets
  • Poems
  • Sacks
  • Non-numerical scoring values (such as "oogy," "boogy" and "Q")
  • The Calvinball theme song (see below)
  • Decrees
  • Water balloons
  • Hobby horse
  • The "Pernicious Poem Place" (a player caught in this area must recite a poem and incur a penalty relating to the poem, such as ice cold water.)
  • The Bag Flag Zone
  • Being forced to move and speak in slow motion
  • The Perimeter of Wisdom
  • The Corollary Zone
  • The Baby Sitter Flag (any player touched by the Baby Sitter Flag must obey the baby sitter)
    2021-04-12 (31)

Calvinball theme song[]

The Calvinball theme song made its only appearance in the penultimate Calvinball storyline. Calvin sings the lead while Hobbes sings backup with "Rumma-Tum-Tums."

"Other kids' games are all such a bore!
They've gotta have rules and they gotta keep score!
Calvinball is better by far!
It's never the same! It's always bizarre!
You don't need a team or a referee!
You know that it's great, 'cause it's named after me!"
"If you wanna-"

After that, Calvin tells Rosalyn to "feel free to harmonize with Hobbes on the 'Rumma-tum-tums'".

Quotes[]

No sport is less organized than Calvinball.

—Hobbes

Sooner or later, all our games turn into Calvinball.

—Calvin


The only permanent rule in Calvinball is that you can never play it the same way twice!

—Calvin

The score is oogy to boogy!

—Hobbes

The score is still Q to 12!

—Hobbes

The "Pernicious Poem"[]

In one strip, Calvin landed on the Pernicious Poem Place and was forced to take a bucket of ice cold water to Susie, and recite the "Pernicious Poem":

"This is a poem! Please do what you're told! And here is a bucket of water, ice-cold! Please take this water, and dump it on me! Don't hesitate, do it A.S.A.P.!"

Susie, after a moment of confusion, gleefully obliged.

The Very Sorry Song[]

In one Calvinball strip, Calvin stole Hobbes' flag, and Hobbes hit him with the Calvinball. As a result, Calvin was required to put the flag back and sing the "Very Sorry Song."

Lyrics[]

The "Very Sorry Song" has two parts, one sung by the one who did the action (the "offender"), and one sung by the person whom the action was done to (the "victim"). It is not known if the offender's lines and the victims lines are sung one after the other, or at the same time.

Offender Victim
"Here's the 'Very Sorry Songg.' Won't you help and sing alongg?" "Bum bum bum"
"I blew it!" "He's sorry!"
"I knew it!" "So sorry!"
"I'm very very sorry that I took your precious flaaggg!" "Just don't do it any more, you scurvy scalawaaggg!"

In one game, The offender is free after singing this and gets "free passage to wicket five". In a different one, Offender and Victim alike must jump everywhere until somebody finds "the bonus box".

Very Sorry Song

The "Very sorry song"

Obscure Scoring System[]

The scoring system in Calvinball is never made clear, and it's unlikely that it has a consistent scoring system across games. The only detail that is known is that scores can have non-numeric values. In one game, the score was Q to 12 and in another, the score was Oogy to Boogy.

Trivia[]

  • Bill Watterson once said, "People have asked how to play Calvinball. It's pretty simple: you make up the rules as you go."
  • In one strip, Calvin and Hobbes are seen playing an obscure combination of croquet, cricket, and baseball. It is unknown whether or not this is a variation of Calvinball, a predecessor to Calvinball, or simply another obscure game.
  • While most games of Calvinball are solely between Calvin and Hobbes, Rosalyn takes part in a game during the final babysitter arc, in a successful ploy to get Calvin to behave. As stated by Calvin, "She picked up the nuances of this game fast!", and Calvin even willingly conceded defeat when Rosalyn invoked the "Baby Sitter Flag" to get Calvin to go to bed.

External Links[]

https://www.picpak.net/calvin/calvinball