Customer Reviews

The Far Side ® Observer

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Gary Larson has most definitely outdone himself this time. This book is truly brilliant. Every drawing gets his point across and will make you laugh until you cry. Larson is undoubtedly the funniest cartoonist to ever live. Once you buy this book make certain that you do not have anything planned. Because once you start reading you will forget all about your plans. A must have for any Far Side fanatic or for anyone who likes to laugh.

we have a house full of guys who just can't get enough of Far-side, & I like it too

This book will have you laughing all the way to the toilet...What you need to do is gather round your friends and family, even the old ones and enjoy this book together because it's quite fantastic. I started to look at his books at a very young age and was inspired to draw my own cartoons, which i have done for many years. So hopefully in a couple of years time I will be up there with the grandad himself! Richard

This slim collection of Gary Larson's bizarre, single-panel cartoons contains singularly-strange snapshots of bears, cows, cowboys, and so on. Larson is the visual Stephen Wright. The best have no captions at all. Five of the better one-liner's:

- Washington crossing the street
- The portrait of Dorian Cow
- Bobbing for poodles
- Midvale School for the Gifted
- Air spear

Guess you have to be there. The book is good for a few laughs and just the right length to leave in the guest bathroom. For more extended reading try The Far Side Gallery, The Far Side Gallery 2, or The Far Side Gallery 3.

While my childhood trips to the Far Side were frequent and satisfying--like the finer bulk candy any sensible ten year-old will gorge themselves with when provided the opportunity--I find Larson's humor much more hit and miss as an adult. And I've always had the feeling that, like most cartoonists producing daily strips, Larson's well ran dry after several of his collections hit the shelves. The eight slim Far Side collection rehashes his familiar body of characters (Tarzan, bears, ducks, domesticated dogs, and the shallower end of our gene pool) in situations much less "zany" and endearing than you might recall. The gems are few (and none funnier than the classic "Midvale School for the Gifted" strip you've no doubt seen on many an educator's office wall), and most of the gags that land are of the slightly-bemused chuckle variety here. Stick with either of the two full-size collections for all of the undiluted sentimentality Larson's good for.