The Far Side is easily one of the funniest comic strips in existence, but the reason it has remained so timeless is that it’s completely unique. Unlike other comic strips (like Garfield or Calvin and Hobbes), The Far Side doesn’t have a main character. Sure, it has some recurring characters, but mostly The Far Side’s illustrations serve to highlight any given joke unique to an individual comic.
10 The Far Side Confirms Cows are Secretly Jealous of Humans (for 1 Sick Reason)
This Far Side comic shows a cow cooking on a grill outside, and the cow's neighbors are horrified by what they're seeing. The cow seems to be cooking hamburgers, which - as everyone knows - is made of ground beef aka cow meat. The implication here is that the cow is grilling-up patties of dead cows with the intention of eating them. Obviously, this would be very upsetting to see for a cow, as this particular one is a sick cannibal eating their own kind out in the open.
It seems cows (or, at least, this cow) are jealous of humans for one shocking reason: humans eat hamburgers. Normally, a cow wouldn't dream of giving into this supposed jealousy, but that didn't stop this cow, resulting in this hilarious Far Side comic.
9 The Far Side Puts a Hilarious Spin on the Idiom "Wolf in Sheep's Clothing"
A wolf is wearing a sheep costume, lurking among a herd, waiting for his chance to ambush at least one of them. But, after sneaking through the herd of sheep for a time, the wolf starts to realize that this isn't actually a herd of sheep, but just a bunch of wolves in sheep's clothing. There isn't a single genuine sheep in this herd, and when one of the wolves finally figures that out, everyone there is disappointed.
This is a hilarious spin on the idiom 'wolf in sheep's clothing', using actual wolves in the comic to make the joke land. If wolves actually could dress like sheep to hunt them, it's a safe bet that every wolf would do just that - and, pretty soon, those wolves would assuredly find themselves in this exact situation.
8 The Far Side Introduces the World's Most Unlucky Deer
Two deer are standing in the middle of the woods, talking. One of them has what appears to be a bullseye on his chest, and the other one points to it and says, "Bummer of a birthmark, Hal". Hal's birthmark is obviously incredibly unfortunate, given that deer are already targets for hunters during Deer Season. Now, Hal is going to stick out even more, and is more likely to get shot once the hunters arrive.
This deer is easily the world's most unlucky deer, because through no fault of his own, he's become even more of a target than he already is just by being a deer. The comic also puts that fact into perspective, forcing readers to look at deer a bit differently, with Hal as an example of how the animal is considered a target by hunters.
7 The Far Side Reveals Goldfish Aren't as Harmless as They Seem
Two goldfish are swimming in their water bowl, sitting on a table in a woman's house, gleefully watching their owner dangling by her leg in the doorway. One of the goldfish turns to the other and says, "It worked!" over and over again, indicating that the goldfish themselves either set the trap, or, at the very least, orchestrated/masterminded the whole thing.
Goldfish - and all pet fish, for that matter - are famously harmless, especially regarding anything and everything outside their bowl of water. A goldfish can't bite its owner, it can't tear up a sofa, and it certainly can't set snare traps. But, in The Far Side, goldfish aren't as harmless as they seem, as these goldfish successfully trapped their owner in a way that should be impossible.
6 A Mole is Responsible for Humanity's Fall from Grace in The Far Side
This Far Side comic takes readers to the biblical story of creation, where Adam and Eve were standing in the Garden of Eden, enjoying a paradise on Earth. However, through them, humanity fell from grace after they ate the fruit from the forbidden Tree of Knowledge. In the bible, it's stated that Satan was responsible for Adam and Eve's downfall, but in The Far Side, it's revealed that the devil had nothing to do with it.
A mole with access to audio equipment was the reason Adam and Eve ate from the tree and fell from grace, and it was all because the mole was sick of the two humans setting mole traps all over the garden. It's a hilariously absurd concept, to be sure, but it's also interesting to consider that - after all this time - moles are the true 'villains' of this biblical story, as opposed to snakes.
5 The Far Side Reveals Things are a Bit More Intense for Santa's Reindeer than People Think
The Far Side takes readers to the magical land of Santa's workshop in the North Pole, where Father Christmas himself is having a discussion with his reindeer ahead of their epic annual flight around the world. However, the famously jolly St. Nick isn't so friendly during this conversation, as he's decided to address some of the complaints he's been getting from his reindeer. In fact, Santa only has one thing to say in response to those complaints: "Venison".
One would imagine that the life of Santa's magical reindeer is one of happiness and wonder, and that Santa would treat them kindly at all times. However, The Far Side reveals things are a bit more intense for Santa's reindeer than people think - indeed, Santa literally threatens to eat them if they don't fall in line.
4 Polar Bears are Much Craftier in The Far Side
Floating along on a piece of ice, a small group of penguins are on-edge, as they've just lost another member of their colony. Apparently, penguins are starting to disappear without a trace, and the other penguins are beginning to take notice. It's a great mystery, indeed. At least, until readers notice the polar bear sitting right in the middle of the piece of ice, who's wearing an absurdly conspicuous penguin disguise.
These penguins didn't seem to notice that the polar bear was slowly picking them off one-by-one, and they even seemed to have accepted the bear into their colony. While the bear's disguise is obvious to readers, it seems to be working for him, confirming that polar bears are a bit craftier than people gave them credit for (at least, in The Far Side).
3 Ducks are Far More Threatening in The Far Side
A man sits behind his desk in his office, paralyzed with fear. In the building adjacent to his, a duck is staring out the window, watching him from a distance. The man's worst fears have been realized, as he suffers from anatidaephobia, which is the fear that - somehow, somewhere - a duck is always watching him. Of course, anatidaephobia isn't a real condition (as categorized/recognized in the DSM-5-TR), but that's only in the real world. In The Far Side, anatidaephobia is very real, and this man is right to be afraid.
The idea that they should be feared - and even have a specific fear named after them - is just absurd. However, after reading this Far Side comic, fans might have to take another look at ducks - because they might already be looking at them, too.
2 Grizzly Bears are Way More Twisted in The Far Side
A momma grizzly bear is trying to get her cubs to sleep, so she's telling them a story to move the process along. This is something all parents do, but this scene is decidedly different - and much more morbid. The story the momma grizzly is telling her cubs is the true events of a couple of humans wandering into their cave, who were wondering if bears actually lived there before they found out the hard way. And the most twisted part? The bear is using the people's skeletons to tell the story.
The momma bear is using the humans' skeletons as puppets to reenact the moment of their deaths. Everyone knows (or should know) how dangerous a grizzly bear can be, especially when they're protecting their cubs, but this comic presents them as twisted sadists reveling in the deaths of humans.
1 Dogs Aren't as Interesting as People Think in The Far Side
A genius scientist is standing in the street wearing his latest invention: a helmet that allows him to understand what dogs are saying. It translates dog barks into English, allowing the scientist to know exactly what dogs are always 'talking' about when they're barking. But, as this Far Side comic confirms, dogs just aren't that interesting. Every bark is just a dog shouting "Hey!", which is pretty much exactly what anyone would assume they were saying.
Talking to animals, or at least understanding what they're saying, is something that people have dreamed of seemingly since forever. However, when this Far Side scientist finally figured out a way to do it, it turned out to just be a huge waste of time, which should make people rethink this particular dream.
The Far Side is a humorous comic series developed by Gary Larson. The series has been in production since 1979 and features a wide array of comic collections, calendars, art, and other miscellaneous items.
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