The humans of Gary Larson’sFar Sidedo everything in the weirdest way possible, and it turns out parenting is no exception. Larson loves to mess around with the theme of idyllic childhood, leading to some parenting decisions that may make readers laugh, but shouldneverbe recreated in the real world.
Here are the 13 funniest comics about parenting fromThe Far Side’s 14-year original run.Be sure to vote in our end-of-article pollfor your favorite of Larson’s parenting comics.
13Your Kids and Bruno
These Kids Get Off Easy Compared to Far Side’s Other Animals vs Children Strips
In this strip, two kids mercilessly tease their mom’s friend’s dog, with the canine fantasizing about burying them alive. As dangerous as it is for the kids' mom to let them bug a strange animal, even the dog’s revenge fantasy sees them get off lightly, as Larson was no stranger to depicting various animals snacking on kids.
One of the biggest themes of Larson’s work is how humans shouldn’t mess with the natural world, and in this case, that’s undeniably good advice.
12"I See You"
Far Side Knows Proud Parents Aren’t Always a Blessing
Larson loves a historical gag, and here a hangman in the Old West is interrupted at work by his overly supportive mom. This is one ofFar Side’s cuter comics - and one of thefew with a likable protagonist- although it’s a comment on Larson’s morbid humor that despite that, it still features an execution in progress.
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11"I Know You Miss the Wainwrights…"
Far Side Loves the ‘Weird Neighbors’ Joke
In this strip, little Bobby learns the absolute wrong lesson, as his father encourages him to embrace the fact that wolves have eaten the neighbors and that - if their own family turns out to be too weak and stupid - the animals will probably eat them too. It’s Larson’s take on a father/son nature talk about the need for predators in the circle of life, but taken to a chilling extreme. Of course, in the world ofThe Far Side, it’s possible Bobby reallydoesneed to be prepared for some alarming neighbors.
Larson often has nice suburban families forced to deal with weird and wild neighbors, introducing one wild new detail into mundane life. In a 1987 interview with20/20, Larson admitted that his own childhood was shaped bygrowing up during the Cold War, remembering,“sitting in my seventh-grade English class thinking that the world was going to end.“It makes sense in this context that Larson enjoys dropping notes of danger into otherwise blissful family life.
10Old Tire
Larson Puts a Dark Twist on the Idyllic American Childhood
While many people may pine for the halcyon days of childhood, swinging on a tire swing over the nearest lake, Larson turns the image into every parent’s worst nightmare asa wayward shark eats poor Billyalive. In a cynical twist, while one of Billy’s playmates is off to tell his mom about his untimely demise, the other decides to find a new tire so they can get back to their fun.
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9Grizzly
Far Side’s Animals Are Better Parents Than Its Humans
This is a rare example of good parenting in the world ofThe Far Side, so ofcourseit comes from an animal (though we still wouldn’t advise mauling anyone who happens to stand between you and your child.) Larson plays on the violent response of an animal protecting its young, but set in an urban environment to make it even more understandable that Conroy made this fatal mistake. Another piece of evidence thatGary Larson likes animalsa lot more than humans.
8What Are You Gonna Tell Your Dad?
Far Side Knows Kids Have Always Been Kids
As inhis many caveman comics, Larson takes a modern problem and sets it in a time period that makes it bizarre. In this case, Chuck has taken his dad’s ride out for some fun with friends, only to wrap it around a tree. Of course, that would usually describe a car, not the now-accordion-like horse that it’s unlikely has any chance of surviving the experience.
7Witch Babysitter
This Far Side Comic Got Larson in Hot Water
As he relates inThe Prehistory of The Far Side,this strip earned Larson some hate mailon publication. Writing and drawingThe Far Sideeventually taught Larson that some percentage of readers would always hate any suggestion of violence towards kids or animals, though in this case he says thatdespite the reaction, the witch gag remains"one of my personal favorites.”
Larson cites the double nature of the gag as the reason he still loves it - not only did the parents hire a notoriously child-hungry witch as a babysitter, but their reaction suggests they could have lived with her behavior if she hadn’t been so impolite as to eatbothof their children.
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6"Here Comes Mom!”
Even Animals Can Be Jerks in the World of Far Side
Kids pranking their parents is part of growing up, but Larson makes the mundane feel weird by setting it in the animal kingdom. In this comic, a fawn fakes being shot and mounted as a hunter’s trophy to scare its mom, despite there being no earthly reason any hunter would choose to mount a deer then leave it in the forest. Again, Larson draws attention to how hard animals have it - human kids may pull off playful pranks, but deer are far more used to matters of life and death.
5Michelangelo’s Father
Even the Ultimate Renaissance Man Can’t Escape Parental Critique
ThisFar Sidegag deals with the trials of adult kids who still have to soak up their parents' criticism, even when they’re the renowned painter of the Sistine Chapel. Michelangelo’s dad moaning about how much harder it was to paint"back in my day"is a cute image, and Larson keeps the iconic painter off-panel,allowing the reader to imagine his exasperated reaction.
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4Satan’s Mom
Far Side’s Hell Tortures the Devil More Than His Charges
In the world ofThe Far Side, even Satan has a mom. This joke plays with the disconnect between kids and their parents when it comes to priorities, as Satan is focused on torturing the damned and his mom is more concerned with being a good host. Most people will be able to remember their parent refusing to understand some game or project and wading in, eliciting a pang of sympathy as Satan suffers the same loving imposition. Ultimately, it’s a losing battle, asFar Side’s Hell already seems to go harderon its devils than its inhabitants.
