The Far Side’s iconic single-panel style with a fluid narrative void of any one recurring/main character is one of the major reasons it’s so beloved.The Far Sideisn’t a ‘franchise’ like the likes ofPeanutsorGarfield, but rathera short-form comic in the truest sense of the word.The Far Sideuses cartoons to tell jokes, and each illustration only exists to serve the joke, not the other way around.
That’s howThe Far Sidecan feature so many random charactersthroughout the comic’s syndication, and why literally no one is safe from becoming the butt of a joke. From scientists and farmers to aliens and literal trees,The Far Sideisn’t afraid to throw its absurdist lens on any and every subject- including cowboys. Here are10 of the funniestFar Sidecomics about cowboysthat fans didn’t know they needed!
10Cowboys Have a Bizarre Way of Choosing Their Sidekicks in The Far Side
A cowboy walks up to a general store and peers in through the window, only to see a sign advertising the sale of ‘sidekicks’, with three people in the window hoping to get chosen. It’s as if these people are puppies at a shelter trying to look as cute as possible to their potential new owner, as each of these ‘sidekicks’ wants this cowboy to take them home.
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Gary Larson’s The Far side was provocative art, in the sense that it made readers take a second look at social conventions and cultural norms.
It’s even funnier to consider that these people represent the usual sidekicks a cowboy will have in any Western film or show, likeThe Lone Rangerand practically anything with John Wayne or Clint Eastwood. In a classic Western, the hero will recruit a sidekick while on an adventure, but inThe Far Side, he just picks them up at a general store - and they’re eager to be chosen.
9The Far Side Takes ‘Riding Into the Sunset’ Hilariously Literally
A cowboy carries one of his cowboy friends into a saloon, shouting for help given the horrific injury his friend has suffered. The other cowboy had been severely burned, with parts of his body still on fire. As the first cowboy explains, the injured cowboy is in critical condition because he rode into the sunset - literally.
Riding off into the sunset is a common phrase used in Westerns to signify the end of a hero’s journey. They’ve done all the good they can do, and now it’s time for them to take their leave into the great unknown, to ‘ride off into the sunset’. However, this cowboy must have heard that phrase and decided that’s exactly what he needed to do. And, most impressively of all, he actually managed to do it - though he did pay a painful price.
8It is Not Cool to Be a Vegetarian Cowboy in The Far Side
Two cowboys are sitting at the bar together, and one is visibly annoyed with the other as he’s eating a chicken leg. The aggressive cowboy says to the other, “I don’t believe you heard me right, stranger… I said I’d like to buy you a chicken leg!”. It seems this tense situation arose when the vegetarian cowboy refused the first one’s offer, andthe carnivorous cowboy took that personally.
The Far Sideis always finding weird ways to throw an absurd lens on any situation or subject, and the same is true for two cowboys sitting together at a bar.
The Far Sideis always finding weird ways to throw an absurd lens on any situation or subject, and the same is true for two cowboys sitting together at a bar. It seems as though it isn’t cool to be a vegetarian cowboy inThe Far Side, and could lead to some bizarre conflicts when that information becomes known to the wrong cowboy.
7Cowboys Take “Home on the Range” Very Seriously in The Far Side
A gang of cowboys sits around one night, eating dinner, drinking coffee, and talking among themselves until it’s time to turn in. However, the conversation seems to take a bad turn, as one of the cowboys points out that another one of them - named Simmons - had just done the unthinkable: “uttered a discouraging word”.
This is a hilarious play on the folk song “Home on the Range”, otherwise known as the unofficial anthem of the American west. One of the lyrics in the song is: “where seldom is heard a discouraging word”. But, on this night, within this gang of cowboys in this Far Side comic, a discouraging word was heard, and it was Simmons who uttered it in a manner of blatant disrespect for “Home on the Range”.
6The Far Side Gives “Gunplay” a Whole New Meaning
As popularized in Western films and television series, cowboys are practically synonymous with impressive gunplay, as the vision of two cowboys dueling at high noon is practically tattooed in the minds of anyone even remotely familiar with the genre.
However,The Far Sidegives the term ‘gunplay’ a whole new meaning, and it’s decidedly more absurd than what the vast majority of people are used to. Gunplay, as it’s known in Westerns, refers to someone (usually a cowboy) being skilled with a firearm.
InThe Far Side, however, it refers to whatever it is these cowboys are doing in the above comic. It looks like they’re building a house of cards, but with guns instead of cards. That is technically playing with guns, but calling it gunplay just sounds wrong - and is utterly hilarious.
5The Far Side Puts a Hilarious Twist on a Classic Cowboy Saying
Two cowboys are facing each other, standing at the ready to draw their pistols, as they are engaging in a duel at high noon in true Western cowboy fashion, as the town they’re living in just isn’t big enough for the two of them. Andthese guys aren’t kidding, either, the town literally isn’t big enough for the two of them- or even two people in general - to live in.
“This town ain’t big enough for the two of us” is a common saying in old Westerns, and it means that two enemies cannot live in peace in the same town, and that one of them has to either leave or die. But, inThe Far Side, that saying is taken to its most absurd (and literal) level, as this town truly cannot handle the capacity of two people living in it - it just ain’t big enough!
41 Cowboy Listens to a Common Threatening Instruction a Little Too Well in The Far Side
A gang of no-good outlaw cowboys are shooting at the feet of a lone cowboy in an effort to both intimidate him and make him ‘dance’ for their own sick entertainment. However, the lone cowboy is far from panicked, ashe seems to actually be enjoying himself while dancing for these outlaws. His form is immaculate, and his focus is beyond compare. This man is a dancer, through and through, so when he was given the order to do so, this cowboy did not waste the opportunity.
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Cowboys shooting at someone’s feet and telling them to “dance” is a common threatening command seen in Westerns. But, they don’t actually mean for their victims to literally dance, just hop around avoiding the bullets in panicky movements for their entertainment. However, when these cowboys told this one to dance, he danced.
3Cowboys Come in All Shapes and Sizes in The Far Side
A wake of vultures is feeding on the carcass of a cowboy who was either killed or left for dead in the desert. As they’re eating, one of the buzzards takes a break to instead pilfer the body of more than just its decaying flesh. This vulture snags the dead cowboy’s coat and hat, and decides to put on a little show for the other vultures as they continue their meal.
Whether permanent or temporary, this Far Side comic proves cowboys come in all shapes and sizes - and sometimes, they’re vultures.
By wearing the clothes of the cowboy this vulture is eating, the vulture becomes something of a cowboy himself. He even says so while wearing the hat and coat, so who knows, maybe the vulture wants to adopt the role permanently after taking a liking to the cowboy style. But, whether permanent or temporary, this Far Side comic proves cowboys come in all shapes and sizes - and sometimes, they’re vultures.
2Cowboy Duels at High Noon Look Very Different in The Far Side
Two cowboys are facing off in the middle of their town in the classic style of the ‘duel at high noon’. Except, this version is a bit different. Instead of two gunslingers engaging in a deadly game of skill and chance with their trusty pistols,these two cowboys are going to settle their differences with a game of ping-pong. While table tennis is decidedly less serious than a duel, these cowboys seem to be taking it just as seriously (even if ol' Stumpy does look a bit confused).
The idea of two cowboys playing ping-pong in the middle of the town to settle whatever drama there is between them isabsolutely hilarious and utterly absurd, as readers cannot help but compare what these two are doing to the classic sight of two gun-toting cowboys preparing to kill each other. But, that’sThe Far Side- utter absurdity.
1"Shoot First, Ask Questions Later" Takes On a Whole New Meaning in The Far Side
In thisFar Sidecomic, a cowboy named Bart has just shot and killed another cowboy while a third watches in horror a few feet away. Eventhough the cowboy is dead, that doesn’t stop Bart from asking him a number of questionsin quick succession.
Bart isn’t even waiting for the answer before asking the next question, though it’s not like he’d get one anyway, as the person he’s questioning is the same man he just killed. The third cowboy points this out, telling Bart, “You can’t shoot first and ask questions later!”.
The term ‘shoot first, ask questions later’ usually refers to when someone kills a target and then asks who they were after the fact. What it certainly does not mean is killing someone and then asking their corpse a series of irrelevant and totally random questions. However, inThe Far Side, that’s exactly what that means, making this one of the 10 funniest comics starring cowboys.
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.
