ADVERTISEMENT

I don't have kids. And while I can understand what parents go through when raising their children (I think), I can't really relate to them. Unless I'm reading Chris Grady's comics.

For years, Grady has been drawing his experiences as a dad-of-two and sharing them through a project called Lunarbaboon. He started this endeavor to combat anxiety and depression, focusing on life-affirming aspects of everyday life. So it doesn't matter if a particular strip revolves around a not-so-pesky spider or teaching your son to respect women, Grady tries his best to infuse it with love and empathy. And it works.

Of course, a lot of inspiration comes from his family members too. For example, he said he's very lucky to be married to a smart, strong, and opinionated person who is constantly fighting against injustice, so a lot of what they talk about on a daily basis makes it into the comics as well.

But don't get the wrong idea, Grady keeps Lunarbaboon far, far away from toxic positivity, preserving genuine human emotions. I believe this sincerity is precisely what allows even childless folks like me to connect to the series.

More info: Facebook | Instagram | Patreon

#1

Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

lunarbaboon Report

Add photo comments
POST
HufflePuffleGothleGay
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I really wish my parents would follow the father in the comics lead when raising my brother. hes 8 and when he was 6 he picked a random girl in his class. ever since then , every day he writes a "loveletter" and gives it to her in school , sometimes with jewelery or toys he stole from my family . i hoped on her behalf that this would stop over lockdown, but my parents asked for her address so it can continue . AND HER PARENTS GAVE US THE ADDRESS. ive spoken to the girl before at my brothers 7th bday party, and she hates the constant barrage of letters . i know its stalkery , but my parents and her parents find it cute .

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu

"The comic is my outlet and the place I go to express how I am feeling," the artist told Bored Panda. "It’s not really a cure for anxiety and depression. There is none that I know of at this point in time, but it definitely helps channel some of that energy. Instead of letting my mind cycle over and over on negative thoughts I try and let it cycle on comic ideas."

After posting his comics on social media for a few months, Grady began getting messages from many people about how they connected to his stories and it gave him hope and strength as they went through their own dark times.

RELATED:

    As Lunarbaboon's follower count began to grow, Grady decided to continue to spread positive messages on social justice, gender issues, xenophobia, and other important topics.

    The artist thinks it is impossible not to be influenced by the world around you and says there is a lot of bad things happening in the world. But there is also a lot of good. So he tries to focus on the latter.

    ADVERTISEMENT
    #4

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    Hans
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This one made me think...and truly, many parents would stop boys from wearing girl costumers but not the other way around. Which is very sad, if you think about it.

    View More Replies...
    View more commentsArrow down menu

    When developing his comics, Grady believes the best ideas are the ones that connect to something more universal. "Usually, I try to simplify something that happens to me by elongating language and try to tell it with as few words as possible. If I can do that and it makes sense then usually it will make for a good comic."

    While Grady made a few comics about the pandemic, it looks like it hasn't become an important topic in your comics. However, the artist said this wasn't a conscious choice. "I have a bunch of comics that deal with the isolation we are all feeling, but I try to make them less specific to the moment we are living in and more general to the feelings we are feeling in this moment," he said.

    ADVERTISEMENT
    #8

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    Mimi
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Well done, dad. Extremely well done. I'm sure it's challenging.

    View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT

    According to Grady, the main character of the series is different from you and me in a few distinct ways. "Lunarbaboon has too many pubes. His body hair count is outrageous," Grady writes on his website. "When he eats he never really feels full. He poops 4 to 5 times a day and rarely smells his fingers after."

    ADVERTISEMENT
    #13

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    Lauren Caswell
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    There are species of house spider too, that have adapted over time to live in our dwellings and can't survive outdoors, I found that out recently. I let spiders stay, the ones where I live are small and harmless, and they keep flies and mosquitos away (I'm allergic to the latter)

    Aunt Messy
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    And I'm feeling no remorse at ending the black widow behind my credenza and her massive egg sac that was days away from spewing more toxic little demons into my office.

    Load More Replies...
    Nina
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    They live in our basement ... I never kill them, just trap the really big ones in a jar and let them free outside. :) They are very useful ... 🕸

    Martha Higgins
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I have very small spiders that drop out of the ceiling beam in the spring and they bite. . You wouldn't think a tiny spider bite would hurt as much as they do.

    Kay blue
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I have never allowed spiders to be killed in my home. Living in the UK we only have a few spiders that bite, the false widow can cause a nasty infected bite so those are put outside, all others I just leave them be.

    Emilycookie
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    i feel like i would still want it put outside in a humane way

    Vaida Kuodytė
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Eeexcept those that are venomous :|. You could like lose an arm.

    -OldCarnival-
    Community Member
    3 years ago

    This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

    My mom kept a spider, but I was terrified of it and wanted to kill it every time I walked by it. But my mom was like "no, your not.". Until one day it laid hundreds of eggs and I was like "oh hell no"... the end.

    View More Replies...
    View more commentsArrow down menu

    "Lunarbaboon is very fast, enjoys foods wrapped inside a taco shell, and never drinks with a straw (even when a straw is required). He is hardly ever satisfied with anything. He pretends to be nice and like human people, but generally, he does not like most people. This makes Lunarbaboon feel bad about himself."

    #16

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    Lauren Caswell
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yes pls, we all need people like this out there, to counterbalance the "dark side of the force" lol. We could all make a niceness effort on May 4th :D

    View More Replies...
    View more commentsArrow down menu

    If we are talking about making comics, or creating art, the biggest influence on Grady was his mom. "She is an art teacher and has always been incredibly supportive when it comes to me doing something with my (minimal) talent," the humble artist said in an interview."

    ADVERTISEMENT

    But if we are talking about how Grady lives his day-to-day life, the biggest influence on the man is his wife Danielle. "I consider myself a very weak and feeble-minded person, she is the opposite. She helps me be a more well-rounded human being."

    #22

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    #23

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    TheBookwormPotato
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Sometimes it only takes a little bit of work to make someone else's day. Learn from this!

    View More Replies...
    View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #28

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    Bisexual Tiger
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    If you think about it, just randomly kissing a sleeping princess is kinda creepy

    View More Replies...
    View more commentsArrow down menu
    Continue reading with Bored Panda Premium
    Unlimited content
    Ad-free browsing
    Dark mode
    #32

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    Kim Irving
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I do this all the time. I love the changes in expressions. First the fear of the employee thinking they've done something to upset me & the realization that I'm saying they're awesome & finally the giant smile they get when it sinks in. Customer service is one of the hardest jobs on the planet, if you don't agree, you've never done it. Pleasing people is very hard, especially when 99% of the time all people do is complain, no matter what you do. I always go out of my way to compliment great customer service, and I ALWAYS speak up if an employee is being abused by a customer.

    View More Replies...
    View more commentsArrow down menu
    #34

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    IDNOP008🥺
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I wish that this cute girl was my bff. My friends don’t give a damn about the world

    View more commentsArrow down menu
    See Also on Bored Panda
    #50

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    Ian Koch
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Cats are the solution. bad days, when you just don't want to, forcing a Karen to wear her mask, ANYTHING YOU CAN IMAGINE.

    View more commentsArrow down menu
    #52

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    See Also on Bored Panda
    #60

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    jazz
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    phone cameras somehow manage to always make you look like an abomination 😔

    View more commentsArrow down menu
    #63

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    Books
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I need this for my art teacher. He is constantly saying similar things like this!

    #65

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    #67

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    Nerdy
    Community Member
    3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I hated math for a very long time but then I had a teacher who was super understand and devoted. She understood that we for the most part hated math(It was a lower level math class) and she spent the time with student when ever she had time to give to help them understand better. Because of her I hate math little less.

    View more commentsArrow down menu
    See Also on Bored Panda
    #70

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    Ian Koch
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    You can think what you want to think. but sometimes you probably shouldn't do what you're thinking.

    View more commentsArrow down menu
    #73

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    Teresa Thomas
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I feel like I never get that moment. I freaking love these comics though, they do usually prompt me to stop and look at the bright side of things

    See Also on Bored Panda
    #85

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report

    Add photo comments
    POST
    See Also on Bored Panda
    #92

    Parent-Comics-Lunarbaboon

    lunarbaboon Report