throwaway panel
noun1
Comics, Literature, Media, Publishing A panel in the top row of a Sunday strip, intended to be inessential so it can be removed to save space.
- The long throwaway panel at the top shows the type of scale and atmosphere one can evoke with a bit more room.2001 September 17, Bill Watterson, Calvin and Hobbes: Sunday Pages 1985-1995, Andrews McMeel Publishing, →ISBN, page 35:
- The throwaway panel cannot contain any information vital to the main narrative of the strip. To test this page, skip the throwaway panel when reading; nothing is lost.2020 January 15, Walt Kelly, Pogo: The Complete Daily & Sunday Comic Strips Vol. 6: Clean as a Weasel, Fantagraphics Books, →ISBN, page 333:
1 more example
- Some of Schulz's throwaway panels are very interesting. They gave him a place to experiment or doodle or just play around, as with the above drawing of Peppermint Patty as a weed.2025 October 7, Mark Evanier, The Essential Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz: The Greatest Comic Strip of All Time, Abrams, →ISBN, page 236: