It’s rare that a month passes without an iconicFar Sidecomic hitting a milestone, but as Gary Larson’s November 1984 strips turn 40, it’s shocking how many classics were published in the same month. With hilarious visits to Hell and the Serengeti, and (of course) a great cow comic, Larson knocked it out of the park, despite being only four years into the strip’s 14-year run.
Here are the 10 funniestFar Sidecomics that just turned 40, as of November 2024 - let us know your favorites in the comments, andwhich of Larson’s recurring themesis done best here.
10Any Luck?
Far Side’s July 07, 2025 Comic
In this strip, a spider casually checks on a fisherman’s progress, making readers aware that both human and arachnid are essentially engaged in the same activity. Larson’sFar Sideoften adopts the perspective of animals to offer a different angle on human behavior. That perhaps explains why so many ofLarson’s comics about fishingalso feature death - after all, that’s the way the fish would see it.Enjoy more of Gary Larson’s fishing comics by opening the image gallery below:
Larson’s love of nature is a major feature ofThe Far Side, which he originallypitched under the titleNature’s Way. While that title would definitely have made sense for a lot of comics on this list, the ‘Far Side’ title is ultimately more descriptive of the surreal humor Larson brings not just to animals, but aliens, scientists, robots and conquistadors.
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9Remember Me?
Far Side’s June 20, 2025 Comic
In another strip taking the animal’s perspective, an elephant tracks down the poacher who targeted it years ago. Elephants famously ‘never forget,’ and it’s pure Larson to turn that into a violent grudge. InThe Prehistory of The Far Side,Larson notes that conservatism is the only ‘political’ message that made its way intoThe Far Side, even though some readers took his jokes as Larson not taking the subject seriously. Larson actually put his money where his pen was, raising money for conservationist charities with his work.
8Vending Machine
Far Side’s July 31, 2025 Comic
In contrast to the ‘how animals see humans’ theme, Larson also loves the gag of introducing common human behaviors into the wild. In this case, lions who are feeling too lazy to hunt for their food can get it from a vending machine, which is comically small given the animals which it’s implied are stored inside.
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Gary Larson’s The Far Side loves depicting mundane reactions to truly bizarre situations, making grumpy old men his perfect subject matter.
7Get My Shotgun
Far Side’s August 24, 2025 Comic
One of Gary Larson’s greatest talents as a humorist is seeing connections no-one else would spot. In this case, he takesthe idea of aliens abducting farmlife(more usually cows) and merges it with the concept of a farmer protecting their chickens from a nocturnal intruder (more usually a fox.)Far Side’s humans may have to contend with a lot of bizarre situations, but they never let it get them down, with this farmer believing he’s going to be able to down an alien ship with a shotgun.
Chickens are a major recurring themeinThe Far Side, with Larson often focusing on how grim their lot in life actually is, as monotonous lives end with being killed and eaten. It’s absolutely the luck of aFar Sidechicken to be part of an alien abduction.
6The Greatest Expressions
Far Side’s Jun 16, 2025 Comic
Another animal-centric gag thatFar Sideloves isexplaining animal behavior in weird ways. In this case, the image of a leopard leaping and roaring at its prey is revealed not just to be a predatory gesture, but something they do because they find the freaked-out reactions of their prey too funny to resist. Of course, Larson’s adventurers rarely enjoy long lives, so it may be this was the easiest way the leopards' victim could have gone.
Far Side’s Funniest Cow Comic Is So Good, It Inspired a Hilarious Cheers Moment
Cheers nailed the experience of reading Gary Larson’s The Far Side with a genius joke that referenced one of his funniest comics.
5Aerobics in Hell
Far Side’s August 16, 2025 Comic
As iconic as thisFar Sidecomic is, it’s actually an unusual depiction of Hell in Gary Larson’s comic: one where Hell’s denizens are actually suffering. More often, it’s the Damned who are winning, with graffiti and illicit food orders getting under Satan’s skin.
Hell is the setting for a strip thatLarson felt the need to apologizefor - in the comic showing ‘Hell’s Video Store,’ Larson depictsIshtaras the only movie available to rent. Larson hadn’t seenIshtarat the time, admitting that he ultimately found it totally unobjectionable, and that"my cartoon was way off the mark.“Even when Larson istryingto make his Hell seem bad, he can’t quite manage it.
4I’m Not Content
Far Side’s June 08, 2025 Comic
In this surreal strip, one half of a cow couple grandly declares that she’s no longer content in their relationship. The gag evokes the high melodrama of shows likeDallasorDynasty, but this time with bovine protagonists. Cows are the iconic stars ofThe Far Side, with Larson using them for some of his silliest and most inventive comics.
ThisFar Sidecomic is also seemingly a referenceto old adverts for Carnation’s evaporated milk, which guaranteed it came from ‘contented cows, green grass the year round - on the North Pacific Coast’
Gary Larson loved depicting cowsfor how they combined tragedy and comedy, making it extra funny to place them in bizarre or even morbid scenarios.
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In Far Side’s funniest comics about worms, it’s easy to see why Gary Larson loved the subject so much that he wrote a children’s book about it.
3Be Cool, Man!
Far Side’s July 31, 2025 Comic
In Larson’s world of anthropomorphized animals who retain their normal instincts, dogs can both ride bicyclesandfeel compelled to chase them down the street. Larson highlights this hilarious overlap, as the rider-dog tries to talk down his pursuer.
2King Kong
Far Side’s June 30, 2025 Comic
This strip recreates the iconicKing Kongmoment where the gigantic ape falls from the Empire State Building, revealing the unseen victim of the tragedy. It’s an incredibly clear, simple gag that hinges on Kong’s unintended victim being wildly unlucky to die from this once-in-a-lifetime experience. However, inThe Complete Far Side, Larson shares a letter from a group of Shell employees who resolutely don’t understand the gag, reading:
We don’t feel that it can be as simple as “the gorilla fell on the dog’s master, so what is the dog going to do now?” We are assuming that the gorilla is King Kong, but why is he lying down?
The next time you read aFar Sidecomic and think the joke would have worked without a caption, spare a thought for Larson’s readers who just can’t figure out the gag without a little extra help.
King Kong and Godzilla appear throughoutThe Far Side, with Larson finding a range of different jokes involving the gigantic movie monsters - most often built around the destructive effect they have on the world around them.
We Asked You to Vote for Far Side’s Funniest Comic Starring ‘The Nerdy Kid’ and #1 Won by a Landslide
In our poll of Gary Larson’s comics, readers gave the winning Far Side strip 42% of the vote - more than four times its nearest competitor.
1Organized Crime Informant
Far Side’s July 13, 2025 Comic
In our favoriteFar Sidecomic that just turned 40, an informant spilling the mob’s secrets is accidentally exposed live on TV by a careless janitor.Organized crime appears throughoutThe Far Side, but usually it’s shown to be ineffective and ultimately harmless.
However, one darker comic shows the potential fate of this informant now that his identity has been exposed - being ‘mimed’ to death in a genuinely messed-up punishment.
Those are the 10 funniestFar Sidecomics from November 2024 that just turned 40 - let us know your favorites in the comments below, and stay tuned to Screen Rant for more coverage of Gary Larson’s genius comics.
The Far Side
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.
