What is it?


3eanuts is a webcomic based on a simple premise: Take Charles Monroe Schulz's popular comic strip, Peanuts and intentionally omit the last panel (basically, removing the punch line)

The result is often a mix of existential sadness, desperation and humor (and, depending on the reader, Schadenfreude)

Who does this?


Obviously, the primary author is Charles M. Schulz, who drew and wrote Peanuts during its almost 50 year run (from October 2 1950 to February 13 2000). He is often cited to be one of the most influential cartoonists ever due to his unique writing with sarcastic jokes, his minimalist style of drawing and the control he kept over his work (he insisted on not hiring assistants to do colors or letters because "it would be equivalent to a golfer hiring a man to make his putts for him.") A more complete biography can be found on the Schulz museum here.

The secondary author is Daniel Leonard, a teacher, writer and musician from Pennsylvania who, in his own words deletes parts of things in his spare time. he also edits the New Whirled Dictionary and is the producer and handler of Freddy the Raccoon.

Why?


According to Leonard, the gag structure of the Peanuts strips is based on showing the characters in a bleak, dark world and the punch line of the last panel serves as a turning point, transforming the reader from a co-sufferer of the multiple trials and tribulations of Charlie Brown to an onlooker. The punch line distances the reader from the problem, showing us indirectly that a little humor goes a long way to minimize suffering.

In other words, the last panel is used as a means to redeem the characters and the reader from the darkness set up in the previous panels. By eliminating the punch line, Leonard points out how gloomy Charlie Brown & co. really are (and how much the uplifting merchandising of Peanuts hides this gloom)

Where is it?


His main site is based on tumblr: http://3eanuts.com/, but new entries are also published to its Twitter feed and its Facebook page.

I like this idea! Is there something similar elsewhere?


There are two particular comics that use the premise of purposeful omission (deleting a key part/character):