According to Gary Larson, making readers of The front side ask “what-the?” can be as satisfying as making them laugh, as these 1986 cartoons illustrate. Larson said his goal is to get a reaction from the reader with The front sideAnd he was willing to do so by almost any means necessary.
That said, just like The front side Featuring different strains of Larson’s signature humor, it also achieved the end result of perplexing its readers in several different ways. Some For side Punchlines were Intentionally designed to be confusing, but there are also many cases in which the artist’s tendency towards obscurantism inadvertently led to a “what-the?“ Reaction.
In whatever way it was there, The front side Most confusing comics are often among the most unforgettable, and as a result, they can be considered some of his most successful entries.
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Gary Larson trusts the reader from the front page – sometimes too much
First published: January 7, 1986
This For side Panel is a perfect example of one particular subtype of “what-the?” Cartoon: The Obscure Reference. Gary Larson’s humor is often described as idiosyncratic, but another word for it is “niche” – that is, some of his jokes require very specific knowledge to be considered funny. In this Sense, Larson often has faith in his readers to “get” the joke, and that’s not always the case here, as A bird is depicted in an invisible barrier in the sky, with the caption explaining: “When migration routes encounter the window of vulnerability.”
Although most readers will likely recognize the phenomenon of birds flying through glass windows, for this joke to really land, one must be familiar with the term “Window of vulnerability,” which has diverse applications in several fields, from psychology to computer science. For readers unfamiliar with the term, the effect is a “what-the?” response, rather than laughter.
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On the far side, even a boy and his dog is not a simple matter
First published: February 21, 1986
If there is a reference here for the reader to “get,” it’s not one that jumps out as immediately obviously. Instead, this seems to be one of Gary Larson’s more willfully esoteric For side comics. The panel depicts a nerdy boy clutching a specimen jar how to beInvaluable lizard setterSniffs out a tiny reptile for him to add to his collection.
This is an example of a For side cartoon where the “what-the?“radiates out in all directions from its premise. Readers are likely to be confused by trying to grasp the meaning of the joke, and at the same time the question almost arises of “How did Larson come up with this“Although the artist professed that this was his least favorite question to be faced with, so many For side Panels invite it by their very nature.
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Gary Larson’s sense of humor was sometimes at odds with the jokes of the far side
First published: March 21, 1986
This panel features several Strips of tall grass, spread over winding hills at the edge of a forest, accompanied by the caption: “The Secret Python Burial Grounds.” Admittedly, this is another example of Gary Larson’s humor being perhaps too subtle, but that makes it an ideal comic for illustrating a useful distinction between the “humor” of The front side In general, and some of its punchlines in particular.
That is, the joke here is obvious enough: dead snakes buried in the place provide compost for bursts of wild growth. However, many readers will be left on uneven ground when it comes to figuring out what makes this joke funny. In this way, some For side Panels inadvertently undercut themselves as comedy, although often in these cases a “what-the?Reaction proved to be a suitable alternative.
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Gary Larson loved to slip scientific jargon into the far side
First published: April 21, 1986
Gary Larson’s penchant for referential humor appears in many ways throughout The front side. This included regular jokes about famous films, as well as references to real historical events and epochs, but it also resulted in his frequent use of scientific terminology and jargon, which could have the effect of confusing non-scientist readers rather than making them laugh .
Case in point, this panel, in which a female beetle half-heartedly looks at a male beetle’s underground crevice and huffs, “You call this a niche?” While the panel’s riff on the idea of a messy “bachelor pad” is clear enough, the use of the term “Niche” – referring to the ecological niche in which specific insect species live – runs the risk of flummoxing readers who do not recognize it.
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Reading The Far Side was an intellectually stimulating activity
First published: May 27, 1986
Most readers will probably be familiar with the term “mental gymnastics,” but this For side Cartoon offers a look at a lesser-known alternative, “Brain aerobics,” how a scientist leads his colleagues in an unusual form of mental exercise, inciting them to “Keep the cerebellums up!”
The images of the panel – a group of scientists standing awkwardly in front of a white board with a half-scribbled formula, all of them standing rigidly still, as they work out their brain muscles in an attempt to loosen their thought processes – stands a strong chance to get a laugh from readers. That said, conceptually, this For side Panel is in full-on”what-the?” territory, because most readers will get an intellectual chore just from pondering how Gary Larson might have arrived at this joke.
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Sometimes it was hard to know what Gary Larson was driving at
First published: June 27, 1986
For Gary Larson, it was the small details that could make or break a For side Funny – which is why some of his more perplexing creative decisions continue to puzzle readers to this day. Again, there seems to be a disconnect between the “humor” and the “joke” of the cartoon. The premise of a role reversal between humans and cows is clear, however the cow criesYakity Yak Yak Yak“In a pasture full of people from the back seat of a passing car Feels like a reference that flies over most readers’ heads.
Alternatively, it could come across as a placeholder, perhaps the result of Gary Larson not being able to find a satisfying line for the bovine to assist – leading the cow comic to lapse into inscrutable weirdness rather than delivering a laugh-out-loud punchline .
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Some far side cartoons are intentionally designed to bug readers
First published: July 4, 1986
This For side panel, Featuring a philosophical aside between two insects mingling at a partyis almost certainly one of the kind that Gary Larson knew would leave readers scratching their heads and going, “Huh? what-the?” The front side was often philosophical, and here Larson ruminates the scope of existence through the perspective of Earth’s smallest – but by far most populous – creatures, its insects.
What stands out about this panel is the way Larson overloads the reader with detail, just for everything to add up to a joke that’s so obvious it’s almost stunning. As often as The front side Warn its readers, sometimes it can end exactly where one would expect, and somehow this can have the effect of being even weirder than an outlandishly absurd punchline.
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Some far side comics have a disproportionate impact on the reader
First published: August 11, 1986
in this For side panel, A couple returns home from an evening out to find their house totally wrecked – and quickly assume the culprit is their parakeet, who has “was free all evening.” It’s a simple joke, but it’s likely to get an outsized reaction from readers, whether it’s a hard laugh, or a tough “what-the?“
Gary Larson’s humor is not always subtle; In fact, sometimes it can be downright obvious. That said, Larson’s close attention to detail often meant that the tiniest aspect of a panel could be what provoked a reaction from his readers. In a way, this For side Panel, with its huge mess wrought by a small bird, is like a visual representation of this.
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Readers won’t just ask “What the?” In this far side comic, they will scream it
First published: September 9, 1986
More than just a stand-out”what-the?“Carton, this ranks up there with The front side Most nightmarish panels. captain”Skin orchard“, it just describes that – Rumbled, human-shaped skins hanging loosely from otherwise normal-looking apple trees. When they encounter this painting, readers are much less likely to howl with laughter than they are to howl.”Why, Gary Larson, what?“
The front side Humor was notoriously macabre at times, but his images rarely tread into full-on disturbing territory, which this panel comes close to. Although it is certainly capable of generating an uncomfortable laugh in the reader, the most understandable response to Larson’s “Skin orchard“Punchline will be for audience members to shudder at the thought that anyone could come up with such a thing.
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The responsibility of the front page to puns has many readers shaking their heads
First published: October 6, 1986
Gary Larson unabashedly loved words, and he was exceptionally good at not only coming up with them, but illustrating them in an unforgettable way. Nevertheless, point-based For side Cartoons are a great example of how readers can provide the “what-the?side of the equation as much as Larson himself.
Here one cowboy asks another “Are you not a stranger in this part?“As they are nestled in the part of a man’s hair. For readers who are not afraid of words, this is an eye-roller For sideWhile even people who appreciate wordplay of this kind will likely be left asking “What-the?” How immediately awkward the joke is. That, for a certain subset of readers, is exactly what makes it hilarious.
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The front side was the product of “outside the sardine can” thinking
First published: November 6, 1986
This out-there For side cartoon, With the captions simply “business lunch,” one fixes himself a sandwich – using a butter knife to scrape people in suits out of a can and onto a piece of white bread, a la sardines. As absurd as it is, the comic also serves as Gary Larson’s commentary on conformity, something he steers clear of as far as possible.
It is no understatement to call Gary Larson a singular creative mind, and as a result of parlaying that in a successful career, he was about as much of an antithesis to people working in corporate America as it can be. Although the images of this For side Undoubtedly absurd, it contains a subtle strain of social commentary, although readers must first ask “what-the?Before he comes to this insight.
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With the front side, Gary Larson sought to provoke a natural response
First published: December 27, 1986
There is a biology to humor, in a way; Laughter is an immediate physical reaction to stimulus, and according to Gary Larson, so is confusion. Whichever way a reader responded to each given For side Funny, that was Larson’s end in itself: the answer.
That said, what response did he expect from a panel like this – With illustrations from “Some of the non-vital organs“, which is an absurdist mix of household items and vestigial-looking appendages – is as mysterious as the panel itself. One of the most unusual For side Panels by a mile, this is another example of a cartoon that seems to have been designed with the express purpose in mind of having the reader fold their paper and walk away wondering.”what?”