The Far Side was famous for his often laconic jokes, as artist Gary Larson developed a reputation as a man of few words, but there were always exceptions to this rule; Especially in the later years of the comic’s publication, Larson’s drawings became more wordy and his jokes more elaborate.
According to Larson, many Far Side The panels began as short stories, which he then concentrated on a single moment, in a solitary panel. One can assume that this part of his creative process became more and more frequent over time, judging by the way Larson’s humor became more engaging; the scenarios he crafted are more detailed, with more and more of them extending beyond the boundaries of the comics.
These comics not only broaden readers’ understanding of The Far Side humor, but it also raises questions about the pros and cons of the limitations of the comic medium.
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The note from the other side to homeowners: Don’t mess with your mad scientist neighbor
First published: May 30, 1994
In recent years of The Far SideGary Larson became increasingly comfortable writing dialogue; as such, the use of longer captions and more speech bubbles in the illustrations themselves has become increasingly standard in comics.
In this panel, readers will recognize a classic Far Side setting: an owner explaining something to the guest. Here, a woman tells her friend how her husband turned into a fly, explaining that he confronted the mad scientist next door and paid the price for it. “Well you know George”, she says, drinking coffee, subtly blaming her husband for not involving the police in the dispute with the scientist, in one of the The Far Side Lots of unforgettable, twisted “slice of life” moments.
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The note from the other side for werewolf hunters: Don’t trust store-bought silver bullets
First published: May 18, 1994
Some of Gary Larson’s most ambitious Far Side jokes left readers with more questions than answers, while others managed to tell a complete story themselves but still hint at a much larger context. This panel is an example of the latter; his ambition is also clear from the complexity of the illustration, in relation to most Far Side panels, as they involved extended captioning, dialogue within the frame and image within the image, all situated around an action scene.
In the comics, a man manages to fire a few shots from his pistol at the werewolf who broke down his door, “moments before he was torn to pieces”, when he realizes that the man who sold him the silver bullets is his werewolf killer. The character’s purchase of silver bullets suggests he was prepared for a werewolf attack, but in a hilariously macabre twist, chose the wrong gun store.
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The note from the other side for farmers: don’t fall in love with a chicken in a red dress
First published: February 19, 1993
That Far Side The comic book is unforgettable precisely because it will leave the reader asking questions.”What?“, failing to shake the feeling that there is more to the joke that they are missing. The comic presents the exploits of”Madame D’Gizarde“, who is the legend informs readers “used deception, drugs and his seductive charms to become the bane of chicken farmers everywhere“, like a dressed up chicken illicitly broadcasting from a passed out farmer’s houseafter drugging your wine.
That Far Side The joke is certainly bizarre, but the most surreal thing about it may in fact be how detailed this scene is, leaving its joke to be pieced together by the perplexed audience, in what amounts to one of Gary Larson’s strangest chicken comics – which is saying something.
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The note from the other side for paddle throwers: be careful what you wish for
First published: February 11, 1993
One of Gary Larson’s favorite comedic techniques involved setting his comic strip in the moment after something has happened—here, a tense game of ping-pong in The Far Side silly version of the Wild West ends with the town’s resident paddle thrower magnanimously accepting defeat at the hands of a young rival, but leaving his opponent with an ominous warning.
“Now every punk packing an oar and trying to make a name for himself will come looking for you,” the older cowboy declares, in a hilarious subversion of the gunslinger trope, before adding a hilarious “welcome to hell boy” for emphasis. Given the way this cartoon engages the reader, however, Far Side fans can’t help but wonder about the old paddle thrower’s history and the future of his replacement.
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The note from the other side for the talkative lepidopterists: play it cool and keep quiet
First published: January 15, 1993
Far Side Fans remember comic books for their sharper panels, but cartoons like this one – full of characters and dense with the Far Side equivalent to the plot – were equally important to the DNA of Gary Larson’s work. Here, the caption functions as a voiceover to tell readers what happened after the cartoon illustration, which depicts a butterfly collector boasting to a room full of colleagues, and presumably rivals, that he has encountered.the holy grail of butterflies.”
As the caption explains, though, “Professor DeWitt“pays for his arrogance, as he is quickly “immortalized by an unknown assailant” – who readers may assume is one of the other characters in the panel, in an iconic Far Side mysterious moment – ”and ‘relieved’ of his trophy.“
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The Note From the Other Side on Unexpected Friendships: They Never Last
First published: September 16, 1992
In this hilarious Far Side bear panel, readers discover an ongoing ursine crisis of consciousness, as a bear, Boomer, who has inexplicably become friends – or perhaps friendlier – with a grub, Doug, must decide whether to protect the bug from other bears or succumb to the pressure of nature. and hand Doug over to be eaten.
That Far Side the joke is a great example of Gary Larson’s increasingly adventurous humor in the later years of his career; the panel’s action and its outcome depend on an ongoing situation occurring outside the panel. While The Far Side always contained jokes like this, they became more common as Gary Larson’s career reached its lowest point.
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The Note From the Other Side on True Crime: A Strange Foreshadowing of an Infamous ’90s Case
First published: January 14, 1991
In principle, this Far Side The joke may strike readers as a dark reference to the West Memphis Three murder case, but it actually predates the controversial true crime case of the 1990s by several years. What’s most surprising about this panel, though, is the way Gary Larson foreshadowed the media’s fixation on the case – which can be seen as a pivotal point in the American public’s growing obsession with true crime media.
Of course, Larson was responding to this trend, not predicting it—which is precisely what makes that “Chicken Coop Three“cartoon, featuring three canine culprits being removed from the scene of”carnage“in a chicken coopso darkly fascinating. In a way, this panel is an indicator of this trend at a critical moment in its progression, giving this Far Side cartoon an unexpectedly powerful sociological meaning.
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The opposite side’s note on worker revolts: They never work
First published: January 1, 1991
This cartoon is another example of Gary Larson’s technique of capturing a single moment after some unseen action – in this case, a riot in the “ACME Pan Co.” which led to the rebellious workers hitting each other in the face with pans.
Consistent with the ACME configuration, a Far Side Basic, cartoonish, slapstick style, the illustration shows workers being led out of the factory with flattened faces, led by police not to ambulances but to a waiting rice cart. The humor of this panel depends on the absurd images and detailed caption, which work together to tell a complete story while engaging the reader’s imagination as a crucial factor in filling out the backstory of the riot.
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The other side’s note on news as entertainment: a little too predatory
First published: January 2, 1990
That Far Side cartoon features a simple caption – “Geraldo Rivera of nature” – but its premise is complex and leaves comic book fans with many questions. “All of our guests today share the strange behavior of dressing like other species and mating out of season.…”, explains the animal Geraldo, while Gary Larson satirizes the increasingly salacious nature of the newswhich at the time was still slowly turning into entertainment.
Anthropomorphized animals are one of the The Far Side more recognizable features; Although Larson has always used this technique to poke fun at individual behaviors and familiar social habits, over the course of his career he has become more comfortable using animals as proxies to make tangible social critiques, as is the case here.
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The note from the opposite side to stampeding cows: wait
First published: March 10, 1988
In this Far Side cow drawing, a cow uses a phone booth to call home, explaining to her mother that “the stampede seems to be over,” before pulling his heartstrings as he admitted: “I miss the corral.” With this joke, Gary Larson humorously portrays the phenomenon of being caught in a crowd and only later realizing it was a mistake.
Once again, Larson places this joke in the aftermath of the action, instead portraying a moment of silence – one that manages a surprising amount of emotional depth, which makes the most of it. The Far Side tendency to use cows and other animals as substitutes for human behavior, making this cartoon an all-time classic.