Hägar the Horrible

Hägar the Horrible (sometimes referred to as simply Hagar) is the title and the name of the main character of a syndicated comic strip by Dik Browne (and later by Chris Browne), first seen in February 1973 and distributed to 1,900 newspapers in 58 countries, in 13 languages. The strip is loosely based on a caricature of medieval Norwegian life as presented in Henrik Ibsen's play The Vikings at Helgeland. Hägar is an overweight Viking warrior who regularly goes off to invade Europe. The humor of the comic strip comes from his interactions with his longship crew. His first mate, contrary to depictions of Vikings as big muscled warriors, is a short, naïve fellow named Lucky Eddie. When he is not on his voyages, Hagar is with his wife Helga, their son Hamlet, daughter Honi, Helga's pet duck Kvack, and his dog Snert. For a brief time, the strip had its own brand of sponsored soda, which was unfortunately named "Hägar the Horrible Cola". It is generally recalled as one of the funnier...