Arguably the best thing about The Far Side is that it doesn’t subscribe to the normal style of the comic strip medium in that the series doesn’t feature a main character. Recurring characters, sure, but no main character. That’s how The Far Side is able to get away with putting any type of character in its comics, as they only serve to highlight the punchline of any given joke.
There has been no shortage of bizarre characters featured in The Far Side, including babies, aliens, and even trees (yes, trees). Detective elephants and psychopathic ducks also litter The Far Side, further confirming that there’s really no telling what to expect with one of the series’ comics. Therefore, it should come as a surprise to no one that The Far Side has used bugs as starring characters in a number of its strips – enough, even, to put Pixar’s A Bug’s Life to shame. Here are the 10 funniest Far Side comics starring bugs!
10 Bugs Have the Strangest Daily Problems in The Far Side
An anthropomorphic ladybug walks to the front door of her house one day while her child is watching TV in the living room, and she sees an antenna stuck in the closed door. The ladybug comments on how her husband was in such a hurry that morning, that he closed his antenna in the door and accidentally ripped it off on his way out the door. And, strangely enough, this isn’t the first time that has happened.
These bugs are living their lives in a similar manner to humans. They live in homes, they have jobs, and their children watch TV. However, with all the similarities, these bugs still have strange daily problems that humans could never relate to, like losing an antenna on the way out the door. While strange, it’s certainly hilarious in a way only The Far Side can be.
9 The Far Side Reveals a Hilarious Mosquito Paradise
Two mosquitoes are chatting with a third who is noticeably bigger than the other two, as the third mosquito is practically bursting from the amount of blood he’s been able to drink recently. The first two mosquitoes are wondering how this one got his hands on so much blood, and the third mosquito has an answer for them: a nudist camp.
Apparently, the mosquito discovered a nudist camp not far from where this conversation is taking place, and he’s telling the other two mosquitoes all about it. Not only where the camp is located, but also why it’s a must-visit for mosquitoes everywhere, as none of the people there have even an inch of clothing to protect their bodies from mosquito bites, leaving them completely open for mosquitoes to drink as much blood as they want – just like this one.
8 Fleas are Much More Developed as a Society in The Far Side
Two fleas are sitting on a tiny couch watching the local news on the TV. The flea reporter is covering the latest developments in the fleas’ community as it relates to the dog that they all live on. The two fleas watching TV aren’t even living in a house, just a patch of skin they’ve claimed as their own, with the rest of the community members spread out across the animal’s body.
The fleas have a local news station, they have domestic life, and they even have a police department. Everyone knows that entire colonies of fleas make homes for themselves on a single animal, making this Far Side comic utterly hilarious, as it imagines one of those societies as being highly developed.
7 The Far Side Takes ‘Gentlemen’s Clubs’ to a Whole (Weird) New Level
A crowd of bugs is in front of a stage inside a nightclub, watching another bug perform for them. The bug on the stage is going through a metamorphosis, stripping the cocoon from her body in a way that seems titillating for the other bugs in the crowd. The caption reveals that this is a ‘Metamorphosis Nightclub’, meaning all the bugs in the crowd came to this establishment specifically to see this bug emerge from her cocoon.
This nightclub is suspiciously similar to a ‘gentlemen’s club’, where people watch women strip their clothing on a stage. But, instead of clothing, this bug is taking off the cocoon that she’s been enclosed in throughout the process of her metamorphosis, meaning The Far Side’s version of a ‘bug gentlemen’s club’ is hilariously weird.
6 Fly Birthday Parties are Very On-Brand in The Far Side
Three flies are sitting inside an open garbage can, and one of them has a birthday party hat and a balloon, indicating that this fly is celebrating their birthday with two of their friends. A fourth fly is stuck inside a house, frowning at the three flies at the birthday party, saddened by the fact that they weren’t invited. But while the sad fly is a funny touch to the overall scene, the real takeaway is the scene itself.
A fly’s idea of an ideal birthday party venue is a literal garbage can. It’s so ideal, in fact, that other flies get sad when they can’t go. Obviously, flies love swarming garbage for food, but the idea that flies see garbage cans as special destinations for celebratory events is hilarious in true Far Side fashion.
5 Nuclear War is a Bug’s Paradise in The Far Side
In a scene that would otherwise be a horrifying tragedy, The Far Side shows readers the fallout of nuclear war. Mushroom clouds can be seen in the distance, widespread destruction littering the comic panel. Out from beneath the rubble crawls a single bug, who takes into account the death and carnage all around him before shouting to the other bugs hiding underneath the destruction,