Having gotten to know more about this typeface, I actually appreciate it a bit more—just for what it is!
1)
When Microsoft designer Vincent Connare saw a beta version of the cartoon Microsoft Bob that used Times New Roman in the word balloons, he thought: "Comic dogs don't talk in Times New Roman.” In 1994 he created Comic Sans, but unfortunately this was too late for his typeface to ever be used in the Microsoft Bob cartoons.
2)
The comic book type of Dave Gibbons was one of the inspirations for Comic Sans. Gibbons has said that it was "a shame they couldn't have used just [my] original font, because [Comic Sans] is a real mess. I think it's a particularly ugly letter form."
3)
In 2012, a Dutch World War II memorial called "Reconciliation" was revealed, on which the names of Jewish, Allied and German military deaths were written in Comic Sans. This caused an uproar as the font was deemed inappropriate. Comic Sans’ consistent use over the past thirty years in contexts that it wasn't intended for is one reason why it is thought to be so despised.
4)
As part of the United Kingdom's Brexit debate, the Conservative Party tweeted an image stating "MPs must come together and get Brexit done" using Comic Sans. The tweet was heavily ridiculed—but some commentators saw it as a deliberate attempt to use the typeface's notoriety in order to bring their message to a wider audience.
5)
These days Connare lives in the French countryside, where he grows olive trees and practices calligraphy in his spare time. He is not overly concerned about people's opinions of him, or his typeface. "Most people are friendly and nice about it," Connare says. "It's like it's a song that they don't want anybody to know that they like." Perhaps Comic Sans has a secret following?
