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.
Comments
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.