The scary thing about Dilbert, I’ve just realized, is not so much that it resembles the company I work for so many times, but the fact that it must resemble more than just my company alone to account for its growing appeal. I guess in my heart of hearts I was hoping that if I ever moved to another company, I could leave the Dilbertisms behind–fat chance, it seems.

Dilbert is well on its way to becoming a classic comic strip. Like the ones canonized before it, it has been able to take a segment of our society (Doonesbury) or life (Calvin and Hobbes) and relieve our tension. Adams is the one writer who can actually answer the question, “Where do your ideas come from?” because he often receives what becomes next week’s strip from a reader email. As long as there are companies searching for answers in a changing marketplace, Adams will likely have material. Me, I’m just glad someone is enjoying the situation.

[Finished 1996]