Far Side

What Hacker News says

1. talldayoAug 2024
   > even though I only understood maybe 30% of them.

   My parents got me a Far Side collection when I was younger, and I understood maybe 15% of the comics tops.

   But it's still a great read; as an adult I'm stupefied by how much mileage Larson squeezed out of single-pane comics. He was willing to run the gamut of sight gags to double-entendres even to the coming-of-age Calvin and Hobbes style comedy. There's also a pervasive disdain for humanity that lovingly graces most of his comics. Humans are portrayed as baser and stupid compared to talking cows and sapient insects. Children regularly endanger themselves in outrageous situations and their caretakers respond in even stupider ways. Scientists and doctors are portrayed as self-congratulating frauds that care too much about their work to notice or interact with the consequences.

   Larson's cynicism is what connected me to his comics as a kid, even when I couldn't get the jokes about taxes and car maintenance. That, and his incredible knack for illustration.

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2. mrandishJul 2022
   For me, Calvin and Hobbes was usually good and occasionally great. The comic I miss the most though is Gary Larson's Far Side.
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3. mercerJul 2020
   For me Gary Larson is a close second to Watterson. That said, this is probably one of my favorite Far Side comics and there's a ton more that are just as great: https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2F...

   Third in line would be either the Gaston universe (Franquin) or Goscinny's oeuvre (Lucky Luke, Asterix)

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4. afandianMay 2026
   It's scandalous that no-one has yet posted Gary Larson's Far Side cartoon "Bullknitters".

   https://www.instagram.com/p/C2OQtokvzCa/

   (or google image search)

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5. bombcarOct 2025
   I think he's also directly implementing color, if you see color "original Far Side" it was added post-hock usually (though maybe some color Sunday strips exist colored by Larson).
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6. NickC25Dec 2024
   >He's the only artist I can think of to achieve that level of fame and success and not sell out.

   Gary Larson of The Far Side comes close but never touched the highs of Calvin and Hobbes

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