I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this, but I’m firmly behind the campaign to ban Comic Sans.
Why for? Because, while the font works perfectly well on the three occasions I’ve seen it correctly deployed (in speech bubbles), for the rest of the time it’s just stupid looking. Unprofessional, too blatant an attempt to inject *fun* into the working environment. It pisses me off almost as much as those daft emails that you get sent about stationary orders – you know, the ones with animated gifs at the end and random pictures of puppies.
The font is meant to be uses in comics; it’s not meant to be taken seriously. Which was why I was less than impressed to be reading the letter I read this morning: a death notification.
The letter said all the requisite things; sorry to inform you, all that could be done was done, Do Not Resuscitate in place, etc, etc.
The letter said that. The font said “oh, look at me, I’m so zany and fun I can write my letters like I’m in a comic book”. Merely vexing for me reading it in work, but what would you think if you received it as a family member.
So, yes. Let’s ban it. Just so that bitchslaps can be distributed to those who abuse it.
As a professional comic book letterer, I would like to stand up for the art of comic books and the creators who make them and state unequivocally that we despise Comic Sans as well and would never, never use it in a book. Comic Sans may have been inspired by comic books, but it was never created to be used for them and it shouldn’t be as it looks awful in a balloon, caption box or logo. Don’t blame the comic folks, we didn’t do it!
Its use (tragically) in the death notice you mention or the the resume my wife reviewed (and discarded) last week should be evidence that the human race needs to cull itself of people who use it.
I stand corrected. And sure I don’t blame the comic folk; I apportion blame directly at Redmond, with a slight diversion to the destination known as ‘human banality’
I heartily agree.
Admitidly I used it when I was younger – but never in the last 10 years. I learnt the error of my ways.