The thousands of The Far Side comics are a great comedic achievement, so if anyone has the honor of rewriting “Why did the chicken cross the road?”It makes sense that it’s him. Larson’s take on this iconic joke just turned 40 years old, having originally been published in October 1984. Luckily for Far Side fans, you are not alone.
Here are the 10 funniest Far Side comics that just celebrated their fortieth anniversary, including some of Larson’s favorite recurring themes: inventive cavemen, scared cowboys, and desert island accidents.
10
Do not touch
October 20, 1984 Far Side Comic
Dinosaurs are big business The Far SideThat’s a lot of comics, so it makes sense that Larson also has a little obsession with fossils. The story above is probably his most iconic fossil joke, occurring shortly after a museum visitor made a main error.
One of the other advantages of fossil jokes is that they allow Larson to indulge his greatest obsession: silly scientists. Far SideJokes about fossils include bizarre theories about their origins, childish behavior by the people who are supposed to study them, and a dark comic where dinosaurs return with a vengeance.
9
Tissue
October 17, 1984 Far Side Comic
This graphic novel is an incredible look into Larson’s creative process. In Prehistory on the other sidehe includes a sketch of this joke, which shows two Godzilla-sized monsters emerging from a ruined city. One is patting his ‘pockets’ and exclaims: “My monogrammed scarf! I left it behind… they’ll know it was me!” Larson rethought where to place the joke, revisiting the crime scene and thus finding a path funniest way to use the monogram idea, making the perpetrator King Kong instead of a nameless monster.
Larson loves the iconic monsters Godzilla and King Kong, with the duo appearing in several Far Side comics. However, for our money, the scarf gag is still the best of the bunch.
8
Not a rattlesnake
October 3, 1984 Far Side Comic
Far Side frequently visits the Old West, undermining the cowboys’ tough reputation. In this case, the telltale sound of a rattlesnake turns out to be something much more innocent, raising the question of how an entire person snuck into the cowboy’s sleeping bag without him noticing.
7
Next time it won’t just be in your living room
October 1, 1984 Far Side Comic
Far Side loves transforming mobsters from violent threats into goofy, fun figures, often turning their violence into something much funnier. In this case, the threat of “rearranging” someone’s face becomes an aggressive form of feng shui.
Far SideMobsters are rarely a true threat, although there are some occasions when they are genuinely unpleasant, such as threatening a clown and sentencing a victim to death ‘by mime’.
6
I think I see a ship!
October 4, 1984 Far Side Comic
The Far Side is iconic for its desert island comics, showing the unique social difficulties that only arise when two people are stranded together. This comic shows Larson’s ability to set his comics fairly before the really funny thing happens, allowing readers to imagine their own ideal version of the joke. In this case, a stranded person painted a boat on the other’s windows, creating the ‘illusion’ that they are about to be saved (at least, playing it safe). Looney Tunesstyle rules The Far Sideworld.)
5
The limit for these things
October 16, 1984 Far Side Comic
In The complete other sideLarson admits he knew he couldn’t make every comic laugh out loud funny, but he it could always make your readers exclaim “What…?” That’s clearly the case in this hunting comic, where a hunter brings back his catch of gnomes, only to be told he’s exceeded his hunting limit for the mythical creatures.
4
Animal Nerds
October 18, 1984 Far Side Comic
In a comic book for the whole family, a very insults are out of the question. This explains why Larson loved calling his characters “nerds,” whether they were wild animals, cowboys, or even aliens. Gary Larson’s nerdy comics introduce basic social faux pas in unexpected contexts—in his case, a nerdy wolf ruining his pack’s hunt by loudly bursting onto the scene.
Larson’s other “nerdy” comics outfit kangaroos with pocket protectors, sharks with AV equipment, and a Wild West hero with toilet paper stuck to his shoe.
3
Initial experiments
October 23, 1984 Far Side Comic
Larson loves the theme of cavemen groping their way toward modern inventions, making big mistakes along the way. Perhaps none of these mistakes are worse than trying to invent the concept of a wheel that can be driven with the rider on the outside. As with the desert island joke, Larson focuses on the moment before disaster, somehow making it funnier than the joke anyone else would write.
2
BEAR!
October 2, 1984 Far Side Comic
This clever comic changes the iconic Jaws moment when beachgoers flee the ocean after attacks by the titular shark, this time with the underwater menace flipping the script to persuade dinner to help themselves.
Sharks appear The Far Side14 years old, with Larson delighting in giving the cruel predators mundane, everyday scenes where they discuss eating humans.
1
Why did the chicken cross the road?
October 5, 1984 Far Side Comic
Let Gary Larson Rewrite the World’s Most Famous Joke‘why did the chicken cross the road?’ Not satisfied with the original anti-humor answer of ‘getting to the other side’ (funny because it presents the obvious answer, ignoring Who is crossing the street), Larson suggests that the chicken is actually a trickster. Not only that, but the original joke becomes a lame excuse for your outraged partner. This is not the only one Far Side strip to play with this iconic joke, but for our money and the best.
These were the 10 funniest Far Side comics originally published in October 1984, which just celebrated their fortieth year of being as hilarious as the day they were created.