The pages of the current Wonder Woman comic are full of spycraft, violence, and death — but they also hold a hilarious “World’s Finest” backup series about Diana’s daughter, Lizzie, and her “big brothers,” Superman Jon Kent and Robin Damian Wayne. In an interview with Screen Rant, writer Tom King opens up about his inspirations for the Trinity backup stories: classic newspaper comic strips, including both Peanuts and Calvin and Hobbes.

In the interview, when asked about what it’s like working on the “World’s Finest” backup stories he co-creates with artist Belén Ortega, King calls out three creators specifically who influenced him: Peanuts’ Charles M. Schulz, Calvin and Hobbes’ Bill Watterson, and Bloom County’s Berkeley Breathed. All of these comic strips focus on kids and animals causing trouble and asking big questions about life, giving their stories a cross-generational appeal.

Similarly, King and Ortega’s “World’s Finest” stories have spanned years in the lives of these second-generation heroes, providing peeks into their lives, from Jon and Damian as teen babysitters for toddler Lizzie to all three heroes as adults taking on their parents’ mantles. These stories have clear roots in beloved comic strips. As King says himself in the interview:

I grew up a huge comic strip fan. I probably read comic strips before I read comics, just given the paper in the morning, because that’s how old I am. So this is like, you know, my reach out to people like Watterson and Schulz and Breathed, the comic strips of my youth that really just made me laugh. It’s a chance to flex that muscle.

Writer Tom King Wears His Comic Strip Influences on His Sleeve

Check Out Peanuts, Calvin and Hobbes, and “World’s Finest” Side-by-Side

The comic-strip humor appears everywhere in “World’s Finest,“ and it’s especially apparent after becoming aware of the influence. Charlie Brown’s mix of grown-up dialogue and youthful innocence is certainly there as Damian, explaining Batman’s purpose to Jon, simply says, “I am vengeance…I avenge.” As children, the three are supposed to keep each other safe, but keep getting into trouble with antics that would make Calvin and Hobbes proud. Finally, for all that they deal with big, global responsibilities, the three are just kids, echoing the blending of silliness and politics of Bloom County.

In Screen Rant’s interview with King, the writer expressed true joy about making these backups starring Lizzie, the first of which was nominated for an Eisner for “Best Short Story.” He sees the stories as a way for his Wonder Woman series to offer readers everything that comics can be. The main plot is a serious political thriller with a secret American king and his own Amazonian weapon, but after each issue’s cliffhanger, readers get to break the narrative’s tension with the adventures of three super-kids. The stories are also a way for King to bond with his children, who like the backups more than the main story. He said:

I have a 10 year-old and a 14 year-old, my kids, and it’s the one time they care about what I do for a living, because they love those stories. We talk about it at the table, and I pitch jokes to them, and they’re like, “No dad, that’s not good,” or “Let’s do this!” And if I’m making them laugh, I know it’s good. Yeah, it’s my favorite. It’s literally my favorite writing week of the year. And [artist] Belén Ortega just kills it on that, everything I’m bringing her.

[…]

Because I write these sour, sad comics where everyone’s crying and committing suicide all the time. So it’s just fun to release that other side of what I love about this medium.

Newspaper Comics Aren’t King’s Only Comedy Inspiration for Wonder Woman

Panels from Wonder Woman #7 by King, Guillem March, Arif Prianto, and Clayton Cowles

Tom King’s comedy isn’t just for Lizzie and her brothers: Wonder Woman #7 is a full-issue satiric romp starring Diana and Superman at an intergalactic mall, searching for a birthday gift for Batman. Within that story, an alien struggles to buy a bit of Kryptonite to take on the Man of Steel. However, the clerk, clearly inspired by Rowan Atkinson’s character in the classic romantic comedy Love Actually, holds him up by offering gift wrap and special packaging. It’s a delightfully unexpected reference, even for an issue that features Superman and Wonder Woman getting pedicures (it’s the only salon with the firepower to trim Clark’s nails).

King’s ability to balance serious dramatic action and light, family-friendly comedy is why he’s one of comics’ superstars. Wonder Woman’s new villain, the Sovereign, is a nemesis on par with the Joker, and the physical and mental torture he’s inflicting on the Amazon will surely have repercussions in DC’s upcoming event, Absolute Power. With those kinds of stakes, it’s great to be able to switch gears and read about the funny adventures of Trinity as readers wait for the next world-changing issue of Wonder Woman.

Trinity’s next “World’s Finest” adventure is in Wonder Woman #9, available May 21st from DC Comics.