45 Years Ago, The Far Side’s Weirdest Month Was A Turning Point For Gary Larson’s Career

Published Sep 4, 2026, 2:24 PM EDT Ambrose Tardive is an editor on ScreenRant's Comics team. Over the past two years, he has developed into the internet's foremost authority on The Far Side. Outside of his work for ScreenRant, Ambrose works as an Adjunct English Instructor. What's the weirdest Far Side comic ever? That's a tough call. There are thousands of Far Sides to choose from, all of which are pretty weird compared to any other cartoon. By the skewed standards of Gary Larson's sense of humor, there are dozens, if not hundreds of candidates for the strangest single cartoon he drew. How about the strangest stretch of Larson's career? The Far Side lasted from the start of 1980 through the end of 1994. That's 180 months. Subtract from that the occasional extended break Gary Larson took (most notably his 14-month hiatus from late 1988 all the way through 1989) and The Far Side ran more-or-less daily for about 165 months. And one particularly absurd month stands out, in particular, as a pivotal point for the comic's momentum. Initially, The Far Side was a localized phenomenon. "Cow Tools" made it a national media sensation in 1982, and following that, the next several years saw explosive growth in The Far Side's syndication numbers. It went from dozens of newspapers to hundreds. Before all that, though, Gary Larson faced a turning point where he had to decide whether to keep pushing the weirdness envelope, or dial down his idiosyncratic sense of humor to chase a wider audience. That choice came in the spring of 1981. Ultimately, Larson made the right decision, paving the way for The Far Side's success. May 1981 Was An All-Time Weird Month For The Far Side, As Gary Larson Committed To The Bit It is May 1981. The Far Side is less than a year and a half old. For Gary Larson, it was probably hard to believe it was still going. The Far Side had a toehold in a couple dozen newspapers nationwide, and it had its share of fans, but also plenty of critics. It's easy to see this as a crossroads moment. Yes, The Far Side was weird from the jump, but there were also hints from the beginning of a more toned-down, commercially viable version of the cartoon. Well, May '81 seems to have been when Larson leaned into The Far Side as an "if you know, you know," "if you get it, you get it" endeavor. Even if that meant dooming it to failure and obscurity. Apropos The Far Side's penchant for absurd irony, this wound up being what secured Larson and his comics a lasting legacy in American pop culture. The Far Side started off May 1981 with the Creature from the Black Lagoon hanging ten, looking to land surf using a wheelbarrow. It ended the month with a man on wooden stilts trying to ward off a woodpecker. In between, Gary Larson delivered classics like the inexplicable "Mr. Nose Finals," and the off-beat, silly "Step, Slither, Step," depicting snake dance lessons. There was also "Bear Waving, As Seen Through Rifle Scope," one of The Far Side's darkest but most potent bits of social commentary. And "Carnivorous Mailbox," one of the greatest multi-panel Far Sides. Just to name a few of the unforgettable cartoons Larson produced in this month. One big takeaway from the Far Sides of May 1981 is how many wordless comics Gary Larson produced that month. He really wasn't feeling captions that spring, or more likely, he was so in the zone with his visual humor that these comics didn't need captions. That and Larson was growing increasingly comfortable making his jokes inexplicable, or at least hard to explain. That eventually became his reputation, especially once "Cow Tools" popped off in '82. That might not actually be Larson's most confusing comic ("Cowboy Playing Tuba At Night" from May '81 gives it a run for its money), but its perception as utterly confounding, and the fact that made it more successful, was major validation for Larson's decision to turn pro at being weird. A decision that really seems to have solidified around May 1981. One of the weirdest and funniest months in Far Side history by far. What do you say, Far Side fans? If May 1981 wasn't The Far Side's weirdest month, what was? Writer Gary Larson Colorist Gary Larson