Arguably the most memorable aspect of use of anthropomorphized animals as characters, through which Gary Larson lampooned human behaviors and human activities by substituting animals for people; as Far Side fans will know, in some cases, Larson did the exact opposite, delivering cartoons in which humans exhibited animal characteristics. In both ways, the author reminded readers of the thin distinction between human and beast.

The Far Side’s “humans acting like animals” jokes are necessarily on the weirder side of the spectrum, when it comes to Gary Larson’s sense of humor, and that is partly a result of their infrequency, compared to the reverse.

That is, readers acclimated quickly to the comic’s “animals acting like humans" trope which is perhaps its single most repeated premise in The Far Side’s fifteen-year history, which in itself contributed to making the inverse joke feel even more out of the ordinary.

10 The Far Side's "Eye Spots" Joke Is Its Most Absurd Animal-To-Human Translation

First Published: December 23, 1991

The Far Side featured "humans acting like animals" jokes from early on, but they are debatably one example of a premise that Gary Larson refined as his career progressed, and this 1991 cartoon potentially ranks as the pinnacle of this particular subset of Far Side jokes. Here, a man is depicted backed into the corner of an alleyway by a larger, imposing-looking guy, prompting the former to squat down and angle his head toward the potential thread, revealing two eye-like markings on the top of his head.

"Sensing danger, Sidney flares his 'eye spots'" the caption explains, in a riff on the defensive behavior of various animals and insects, in which the potential prey develops markings or characteristics that make it appear more dangerous than it actually is. Though, whether Sidney's "eye spots" were effective at warding off this mugger is one of The Far Side's many open-ended questions.

9 This Deep Cut Far Side Reference Hasn't Aged Well, But The Premise Is A Classic

First Published: April 22, 1991

For this Far Side joke to be laugh-out-loud funny, or even particularly amusing, the reader must know who Leo Buscaglia is and immediately "get" the joke Gary Larson is making about him; unfortunately, the age of time has rendered this one of The Far Side's most obscure pop culture references, as Buscaglia, an author and motivational speaker, has not enjoyed the same enduring legacy decades after his heyday that Larson's work has maintained.

Still, there is something to the premise here, which substitutes a "Buscaglia impersonator" for a bull in a bullfighting ring, with the fighter seeking to avoid being hugged, rather than being gored. The premise of the circumstance and pomp of bullfighting, but with a human being in the bull's place, is certainly the groundwork for a funny Far Side joke, but the specific details of this one have, over time, undermined its humor.

8 A Perfect Example Of How The Far Side Flipped Human And Animal Behaviors Around

First Published: August 31, 1988

Dogs were among The Far Side's most ubiquitous characters, and given this, plus their proximity to human beings, it is understandable that they would be involved in some of the funniest instances in which humans and animals' roles were reversed.

That is the case in this cartoon, in which the usual scenario of a dog staring expectantly at its owner waiting for table scraps is flipped on its head, with a dog thinking "I wish they wouldn't do that while I'm eating" as four humans loom over it, eagerly watching its every bite. In the study of The Far Side, this is what can be described as a "clean" inversion of the characters' behaviors, in which the acts as a faithful mirror of a familiar situation.

7 The Far Side Tackles A Perennial Question: Who Gets To Be The Front Of The Horse?

First Published: September 8, 1988

Most of the comics aggregated on this list feature humans acting like animals in the sense that they exhibit animal characteristics, and mimic animal behaviors; this Far Side cartoon, however, is literally about humans acting like an animal, in this case a horse, as it centers on a backstage dispute between two actors in a horse costume about why one of them is "always the back end."

The visual joke of the , of course, is that the one asking is illustrated with a hyperbolically-huge backside; The Far Side is known for its absurdist humor, but that absurdism can be subdivided into the darkly absurd and the whimsically absurd, with this Far Side cartoon firmly falling into that latter category, given the way it features an obtuse character asking a question to which the answer should be as glaringly obvious to them as it is to the reader, while not making it a life-or-death situation.

6 A Familiar Far Side Punchline Illustrates Gary Larson's Attitude Toward Humans

First Published: July 7, 1988

The Far Side featured multiple instances in which giant aliens captured tiny, at least from their perspective, human beings, collecting them in jars the same way humans do with insects and bugs, as well as small fish, reptiles, and mammals. In a way, Gary Larson's position on the cosmic insignificance of humanity can be inferred from these s, though that is certainly a deeper reading than the author would endorse when it comes to his humor.

Still, it is notable that Larson repeatedly envisioned oversized extraterrestrials who viewed humans as akin to pets, or worse, vermin; this cartoon, in which two large purple aliens put a pair of U.S. astronauts in a jar, with one advising the other to "shake the jar and see if they'll fight" is a perfect way of putting humans' in non-human shoes, albeit against their will.

5 Dating Wasn't Easy On The Far Side, Regardless Of Species

First Published: February 4, 1988

This is another one of The Far Side's most successful "humans acting like animals" jokes, even if, at the same time, it might rank as one of the more obtuse Far Side punchlines that is too smart for its own good.

Captioned "when ornithologists are mutually attracted," the features two bird experts meeting at the bar, with both of them hopping off their stools and adopting avian mating behaviors in order to impress one another. It is a strange joke, for certain, but in the context of "humans acting like animals" premise, it is appropriately funny; one could say it is absurd with a purpose, where as in many cases, the absurdity of Far Side jokes was the purpose and goal in its own right.

4 This Uncomfortable Far Side Joke Will Make Readers Feel Claustrophobic

First Published: January 29, 1988

More than a fair share of Far Side comics featured characters squeezing themselves into implausibly small spaces, and this cartoon, captioned "hibernating Eskimos," will be cringe for even slightly claustrophobic readers; it is likely that Gary Larson played on this anxiety intentionally with comes like this, in order to get a quick, effective, if not positive, reaction from Far Side readers.

The cartoon depicts over half a dozen people crammed into a hole in the ground, in the way subterranean mammals or other creatures might pack themselves in to survive a harsh winter. Still, other than the "What the?" response this might evoke, the humor of this Far Side comic is understandably obscure, but while it might not be outright hilarious, it is still memorable, even if not for the best reasons.

3 The Far Side's Simple, Yet Brilliant Inversion Of The Human-Canine Dynamic

First Published:​​​​​​​ April 15, 1982

Once again, captionless Far Side comic, a pair of dogs scratch a human's belly, in the process finding the spot that causes the man to kick his leg emphatically, in a scenario readers will almost universally recognize.

The inversion of human and dog behavior is all there is to this Far Side joke, and the minimalism of the illustration reflects that. This serves as a reminder that simplicity was often a virtue when it came to Gary Larson's humor, even though, in retrospect, his reputation is defined by the more convoluted, confusing, obtuse, and obscure Far Side jokes from his vast body of work.

2 The Far Side's Humans Get A Taste Of Livestock Life In This Classic Alien Cartoon

First Published: August 4, 1982

In another fan-favorite Far Side alien cartoon, an extraterrestrial farmer throws food to its livestock, which in this case are a gaggle of humans, rather than hens, with their meal coming from a sack labeled "Earthling feed," in a punchline that makes it clear human beings are no different than chickens to these larger, if not more advanced aliens.

Though the comic does have a caption, it is the nonsensical "yakity yak" call of the alien farmer to its humans, and so for all intents and purposes, the illustration here has to do the same work as if a caption had been omitted. With this in mind, it is a highly successful Far Side cartoon, one that will get a laugh out of most readers the first time they have a close encounter with it.

1 Play It Cool; These Far Side Hunters Reveal The Flaws Of Camouflage

First Published: December 31, 1980​​​​​​​

This is another example of a Far Side cartoon in which the emphasis in the "humans acting like animals" premise is the "acting" part, as two indigenous hunters hide under a buffalo hide in an attempt to infiltrate the herd, with one hunter onishing the other that "act[ing] nonchalant...doesn't mean whistling."

It is an amusing joke, but what makes this , the final one of The Far Side's first year in publication, particularly funny, is the composition, as Gary Larson frames an actual buffalo in the foreground, giving the two inept hunters side-eye, and serving as an early reminder for readers that in the "hunter vs. hunted" dynamic, Larson and The Far Side were almost always on the side of the prey.