There are certainFar Sidecomics that dominate the discourse surrounding Gary Larson’s iconic newspaper cartoon – butthe deep-cut selections from Larson’s canon collected here represent the full range of his abilities as a humorist, in a way that only true diehardFar Sidefans understand. In other words,for every “Cow Tools,“there is also a panel about “drunken aardvarks.”
Larson produced thousands of comics during his career; except for several extended breaks Gary Larson took over the years,, most notably a fourteen-month hiatus in the late 1980s,TheFar Sideappeared daily in newspapers for a span of fifteen years.
The two-volumeComplete Far Side, published in 2003 – which collects the entirety of the strip’s run – is thoroughly labyrinthian, and even experts on the cartoon have a habit of getting lost in it and discovering a panel they had missed previously, or not fully appreciated before. This list celebrates some of the best of thoseFar Sidecomics.
10"Drunken Aardvarks” With Heavy Machinery Perfectly Encapsulates The Chaos Of The Far Side
First Published: July 14, 2025
The intrusion of modern civilization onto nature’s turfwas a perennialFar Sidetheme, but few comics as perfectly encapsulate that theme like this panel, which can be described as nothing less than zany, as it explains:
Like frozen sentries of the Serengeti, the century-old termite mounds had withstood all tests of time and foe – all tests, that is, except one involving drunken aardvarks and a stolen wrecking ball.
The faux-gravitas of the caption’s language, which replicates the tone of a nature documentary, is brilliantly at odds with the pure absurdity of the scenario, whilethe image of the aardvarks in question piloting the pilfered heavy machinery is itself laugh-out-loud funny.
Further, the image instills the chaotic energy at the heart ofThe Far Side– its dissonant tones, its patented irreverence mixed with its naturalist ethos, its streak of satire, undercut by its lack of pretensions; all of this and more, all wrapped up in this ridiculous joke.
9Gary Larson Was A Master Of Comedic Misinterpretations
First Published: July 15, 2025
ThisFar Sidecartoon featuresa farmer sitting on a chair in the middle of one of his pastures, clutching a rifle in his hands, with a paranoid expression on his face, eyes seemingly caught mid-dart from side-to-side, with the caption explaining that: “misunderstanding his dying father’s advice, Arnie spent several years protecting the family mules.”
10 Hilarious Far Side Comics That Make the Ordinary Outrageous
Gary Larson’s comedic style hinged on his unparalleled ability to take things that were familiar to readers and turn them upside down & inside out.
As inane as this joke on the term “family jewels” might seem to some,Far Sidefans recognize it is as a literal expression of Gary Larson’s incredible talent for intentional misinterpretation; Larson’s work is full of deliberate misunderstandings, and warped perspectives, which manifest in his panels in one way or another, and in the case of thisLarsonian play on words, it is made overt, and hilarious.
8Gary Larson’s Take On “Just Because You’re Paranoid, It Doesn’t Mean They’re Not After You”
First Published: August 03, 2025
This low-key hilariousFar Sidecartoon isset at the “National Conference of People Who Follow Paranoiacs,” where a dense crowd of attendees mingle around booths such as “Eddie’s binoculars,” “ACME Big Nose & Glasses,” “Carl’s Camoflage,“and more, in an amusing validation of countless peoples' paranoid fears.
The joke here is essentially flawless, stemming from a clever concept, and then subsequently being executed expertly by Gary Larson, who gets a great deal of mileage out of the joke with the details of the illustration, without having to include acharacteristicFar Sidecaption. Though it isn’t credited enough for meeting all the benchmarks of a great Gary Larson cartoon, “People Who Follow Paranoiacs Conference” absolutely merits a place in theFar SideHall of Fame.
7No Lie, The Far Side’s Funniest Jokes Don’t Get Enough Attention
First Published: July 11, 2025
ThisFar Sidecartoon features another play on the “Conference” joke, except this time, Gary Larson depicts theaftermath of the “National Association of Prevaricators,” with one attendee showing up a day late, irately shouting at a custodian cleaning up the conference hall that he “was told the meeting was today!”
The Far Side Complete Collection
Arguably, this is another example ofa perfectFar Sidejoke, because it is funny at every stage, from premise to publication. In truth, though, the best thing about it is the delightful ambiguity of the dialogue. While most readers will take it as though the man was lied to about the date of the meeting, it is also possible that – being a dishonest man himself – he is lying about why he showed up on the wrong day. Taken either way, or both ways, the result is hilarious, making this a certified classicFar Sidecomic.
6The Far Side’s Chickens Are Famous, But This One Warrants More Acclaim
First Published: June 26, 2025
In thiscaptionlessFar Sidecomic, Gary Larson tackles the joke which has, for a long time, been the nexus of populist humor and philosophical musing: “why did the chicken cross the road?” Here, Larson’s chicken stands on one side of the road,gazing across it at a billboard which reads “THE OTHER SIDE: Why do you need a reason?”
As simple as it might seem on the surface, this truly stands as a testament to Gary Larson’s comedic abilities; it is a magnificent elaboration on the timeless joke, both capturing the essence of the question as set-up, while also subverting the answer in a pleasantly amusing way. The panel should also be praised for being visually straightforward, and highly effective on the reader as a result. It is safe to say that thisFar Sidecartoon deserves more acclaim than it gets, even among all but the most committed fans of Larson’s work.
5The Far Side’s Technique Of Subversion Reaches New Heights With This Comic
First Published: July 17, 2025
This isa classicFar Sidecomicby any standard, as Gary Larson flips the term – and the concept – of the convenience store on its head, resulting instead inan “inconvenience store,” which, instead of a small store loaded with stuff, is a huge room with only two shelves placed way, way too high up on the otherwise bare wallsfor any customers, especially kids like the one in the comic, to reach.
These 10 Hilarious Far Side Comics Are Evidence Of Gary Larson’s Most Underrated Recurring Bit
Many of the Far Side’s courtroom cartoons are among its most memorable, which is why it is almost criminal that they aren’t appreciated more.
This definitely falls into the category ofFar Sidecartoons in which the punchline is elevated by Larson’s illustration; the “inconvenience store” joke is amusing, but nebulous, yet Larson visualizes it in the simplest possible way, which is also the funniest. The composition of the comic is sparse, which perhaps contributed to it leaving less of an impression in many readers' minds, but that is essential to the joke, and part of what elevates this from a good to a greatFar Sidepanel.
4The Far Side’s Pop Culture Riffs Hold Up To This Day, Even If Some Readers Don’t “Get” The Reference
First Published: June 12, 2025
ThisFar Sidechicken cartoonis funny in isolation, but it is hilarious when one realizes that Gary Larson is lampooning the book/film,Gorillas in the Mist, except using a rooster and a hen. This highlights the issue manyFar Sidecomics face in perpetuity; with each passing day, the topical references Larson made at the time of his comic’s publication become less topical.
Admittedly, this one can be said to have aged into a “classic movie” reference, but what makes thisFar Sidecartoon underrated is that it holds a certain charm even to those fans who don’t recognize the reference.The strangely direct tone of the extended caption, which includes the rare use of first-person narration, and the heavy-handed illustration of fog that obscures the image of the panel,are both amusing in their own right, whatever knowledge a reader does or does not bring to their reading of the comic.
3Gary Larson’s Ode To The Consummate Worker, Explained
First Published: June 17, 2025
While some of the entries on this list are unfairly underappreciated, this stands as one of Gary Larson’s most obscure jokes for a reason. Yet that, in itself, is part of why diehardFar Sidefans appreciate it. The panel depictsa moment in “civil service history,” in which a federal worker goes into work on a holiday to “take care of some unfinished business.”
The Far Side’s “Cumulative Attack Of the Willies” Comic Reveals How Asking “What If?” Was Essential To Gary Larson’s Humor
Far Side’s “Cumulative Attack of the Willies” cartoon perfectly illustrates how asking “What if?” was foundational to Gary Larson’s writing process.
That phrase naturally carries more ominous connotations than Larson is actually implying here, which is a factor in the punchline. Still, it is one ofThe Far Side’smost “inside baseball” jokes, so to speak, one that has a real “if you know, you know” feel to it – whichmay, or may not, have been the author’s intention.
2This Far Side Character Makes The Mistake Of Getting Self-Reflective
First Published: July 17, 2025
This is another particularlyesotericFar Sidecartoon, which gives readers a vantage point ona man staring out the window of an apartment in high-rise building, with the caption explaining that, “on a clear day, Eugene rose and looked around him and, regrettably, saw who he was.”
The joke – which seemingly comes at the expense of the man’s crushing moment of self-awareness – isn’t immediately obvious, or admittedly very laugh-out-loud funny, but that is what makes it the kind ofFar Sidecomic that distinguishes haters, from critics, and critics from casual fans, and casual fans from Gary Larson Loyalists. In other words, this cartoon will strike a chord with a subset of the audience, and essentially, that was all Larson ever set out to do.
1Fans See The Far Side In Black & White, But It Was A Colorful Exploration Of Life
First Published: June 12, 2025
This hilarious, highly underappreciatedFar Sidecomic features a fish lounging in a bubble bath, in a bathroom decorated with brightly colored drawings of humans– in an inverse of the aquatic life theme a human might have in their own bathroom.
The joke is funny, but the execution is what makes it excellent, as here, Gary Larson delivers one of his most visually-arrestingFar Sideillustrations; the panel is busier thanmanyFar Sidecomics, and deliberately so, as the “loudness” of the wall paper hilariously contrasts with the seeming serenity of the fish lounging in the bathtub. Though that might be all there is to it, this is without question aFar Sidecomic that deserves to be remembered more fondly, by more people, than it is.
