It’s no surprise that there are so manyThe Far Sidecomics starring kangaroos - an animal with a built-in pocket that travels mostly by hopping is a concept tailormade to spark Gary Larson’s imagination. Across his comic’s 14-year run - from 1980 to 1994 - Larson published many gags starring marsupials in bizarre situations.
We’re looking at the 10 bestFar Sidecomics starring kangaroos, as well as some extras that offer insights into Larson’s best comic tricks and thematic obsessions. Warning: some of Larson’s kangaroo comics also include wallabies.Don’t forget to vote at the end of this article for your #1, and to see which comic other readers thought was the funniest.
10If I’m Lucky…
Larson Has Always Reserved the Right to Injure His Characters
In this strip, an injured kangaroo discusses its accident with a friend, referencing the fact it’s been given a pogo stick in place of a crutch. It’s a funny sight gag that plays on a commonly known quality of the animal in question -one of Larson’s favorite joke structures, whether about animals, famous figures, or pop culture.
From the very beginning,The Far Sidewas built ona dark sense of humorwhere characters can be injured, or even killed, by the surreal world in which they live. Indeed, this was one of Larson’s big concerns early on, as he shares inThe Complete Far Side. Larson’s editors were keen that he introduce recurring characters to keep readers coming back, similar to most of his comic strip contemporaries. However, Larson knew he wanted his characters to be"crunched, speared, shot, beheaded, eaten, stuffed, poisoned, and run over about twice a week. (Tastefully, of course.)“Open the image gallery below for more of Larson’s kangaroo comics.
Thankfully, Larson stuck to his guns, andThe Far Sideproved to be a hit, with Larson never pulling his punches, since fans would never see an injured character again either way.
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9Pickpocket
A Wordless Far Side Strip Is a Rare Treat
In this strip, a pickpocket quietly lifts the wallet right out of a kangaroo’s pocket. It’s typical in the world ofFar Sidethat a kangaroo can stand waiting at a crosswalk and attract zero attention - indeed, the other people present are so blasé about the marsupial’s presence that a sneak-thief feels totally secure operating right under their noses.
While this strip does include a ‘Don’t Walk’ sign to give the scene context, it arguably qualifies asone of Larson’s wordless comics, and certainly one of his funniest with no caption. Larson’s love of words and witticisms means that mostFar Sidestrips have some level of caption or dialogue, but the odd treasure relies purely on visual comedy.Open the image gallery below for more of Larson’s wordless comics.
Far Sidewouldn’t be the same without Larson’s wordplay, puns and malapropisms, but the comics above communicate his skill as a visual humorist.
8I Don’t Jump
Even for Animals, Dating Is Hard
Larson depicts a kangaroo striking out while asking another to ‘dance,’ but the real treasure here is the adorable background art of a group of kangaroos hopping together on a dance floor. Larson rarely adds any detail past those a scene needs to work, but the lone disco ball is a genius touch.
7Kangaroo Nerds
Gary Larson Has a Major Nerd Obsession
In another ‘kangaroo pouch as pocket’ gag, nerdy marsupials use pocket protectors to stop their arsenal of pens leaking. While this imagery may no longer be true to life (if it ever was), the stereotype of bespectacled nerds with pocket protectors is so well-established by pop culture that this comic makes sense even today.
Despite its morbid undertones,The Far Sidewas published in family newspapers, and so Larson didn’t have access to insults beyond the level of ‘nerd’ or ‘bimbo.’ In the case of the former, hemorethan made up for the shortfall by using it wherever possible.Far Sideserved up animal nerds, alien nerds, cowboy nerds, dinosaur nerds, and even nerds in Hell.
SinceFar Sideusually only uses a single panel to tell its gags, Larson was always on the lookout for familiar concepts or stereotypes that came loaded with existing knowledge. In the case of both kangaroos and nerds, there are tons of visual signifiers and associated ideas for Larson to play around with.
6His Secret Pocket
Far Side Was Clowning on the TSA Before It Even Existed
While Larson has a lot of sight gags involving kangaroos - and this strip definitely counts - he also sometimes gives them a sneaky, crafty air perfect for this kind of joke, where a kangaroo is cast as a smuggler, distracting attention with its pouch.
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5You Might Be a Kangaroo…
Animals Spend a Lot of Time in Bars in the World of Far Side
In this strip, a kangaroo has the bad luck to sit next to a belligerent drunk who isveryconfident in his assertions about marsupials, whether or not the one in front of him agrees. Hilariously, despite his confidence, the man had seemingly missed that he was talking to a kangaroo until being explicitly informed of the fact.
‘An X walks into a bar’ is a classic joke setup, and one that Larson uses again and again acrossThe Far Side. Ducks, snakes and zebra all enjoy a drinkin Gary Larson’s world, and often take the opportunity to complain about their lives.
The Far Sidealways had a heavy focus on animals, with Larson originally pitching the comicwith the titleNature’s Way. Thankfully, his editors talked him into a wider remit, so readers still get all Larson’s animal gags, but they also get cavemen, aliens and more.
4Kangaroos and Wallabies
Justice Moves Slow in the World of Far Side
The purpose of a police lineup is for the victim to identify a perpetrator, but Larson turns that on its head as the victim struggles to even identify thespeciesof the criminal in question. Laypeople often struggle to differentiate between wallabies and kangaroos, with Larson making this concept funny by putting the need to do so in a truly unexpected context.
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3Hannibal’s First Attempt
Far Side Often Took on Real-Life Historic Events
This strip is a gag on the real-life event of Hannibal crossing the Alps - a celebrated military maneuver where the Carthaginian general pulled off a seemingly impossible feat, crossing a mountain range to attack Roman forces. Hannibal famously used elephants in this feat, and Larson imagines an early draft where - instead of riding on the backs of towering pachyderms - Hannibal’s soldiers were carried in the pouches of kangaroos.
The Far Sideoften referenced historical events, especially battles, from the Revolutionary War to the Vietnam War.This is likely part of whyFar Sideended up with the reputation of being one of the smartest comic strips around.
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2Boomerang
A Great Captionless Far Side Comic
In this strip, Larson parodies a typical scene from a thriller movie, where the main character realizes they’re being targeted after a near miss. While today boomerangs are most often used as toys, they were more traditionally used by Aboriginal Australians for hunting. It’s therefore not surprising that the kangaroo in this strip would realize they’re the thrower’s intended victim. The joke is in the fact that it’s just the weapon, rather than any clues aboutwhysomeone is trying to kill it, that makes the kangaroo realize it’s in danger.
1Boing, boing, boing!
We’re Calling This Far Side’s Best Kangaroo Joke
InThe Complete Far Side,Larson talks about respecting belly-laugh humorover all other types. In this case, a kangaroo yelling ‘boing, boing, boing’ is both goofily funny and weirdly relatable, as it’s hard to imagine anyhumanbouncing along at similar speeds without enjoying it at least this much.
Those are Gary Larson’s 10 funniest comics about kangaroos - let us know below which of theseFar Sidecomics you think deserves to be the official #1.
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.
