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One of The Far Side’s most underrated recurring gags involved ice cream trucks, or in several hilarious instances, their competitors. Though Gary Larson only made this joke a few times during the course of his career, compared to some other recurring bits, his depictions of ice cream vendors and their rivals stand out as fan-favorite Far Side panels.
It is particularly interesting to chart the evolution of Larson’s ice cream truck gag over the years. Early on, The Far Side’s creator used the ice cream truck as a way to achieve a punchline; later, though, his absurd, silly alternatives to ice cream became the joke themselves.
In other words, two distinct modes of The Far Side’s humor are captured by these cartoons, and comparing them side-by-side helps make it easier to recognize the unique way each operates, all in the interest of achieving the same result: a strong response, hopefully laughter, from the reader.
6
In The Real World, Ice Cream Melts; On The Far Side, The Ice Cream Man Melts
First Published: October 14, 1981
This early Far Side cartoon is an example of Gary Larson’s ability to play with surreal, and even borderline-grotesque imagery, all in the service of a joke that, at its core, is whimsical rather than “dark” or “edgy.” In the panel, the driver of an ice cream truck frantically radios for help, shouting “something horrible is happening out here” as he melts exactly like one of the cones in the back of his truck would.
This premise, while horrifying in the abstract, amounts to a deeply amusing Far Side cartoon, one which, along with the rest of Larson’s early-career panels, helped establish his reputation for warped humor.
5
The Far Side Reminds Readers That Everyone Deserves An Ice Cream Break
First Published: June 16, 1982
Countless Far Side panels depict scientists hard at work in their laboratories, but this one hilariously catches them in a moment of child-like fun, as they all run outside in their lab coats to catch the ice cream truck passing by.
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These Far Side comics aren’t afraid to criticize the smartest among us, demonstrating that even the greatest minds can be clueless at times.
Two things contribute to making this a “successful” Far Side joke. First is the composition of the panel, the way Gary Larson frames the truck through the window in the background, while the scientists in the foreground rush for the door, one even throwing his hands up in the air in unmitigated excitement. The other thing that makes this cartoon great is the way it earnestly captures the joy of chasing down the ice cream truck on a hot summer day, while setting that feeling in a context where it is slightly unexpected, and therefore even more delightful.
4
The Far Side Captures That Brutal Feeling When The Ice Cream Truck Runs Out Of Your Favorite Treat
First Published: June 13, 1983
This classic Far Side cartoon merges Gary Larson’s frequent “lost in the desert” trope and his more sparingly used ice cream man gag, bringing “desert” and “dessert” together in unexpectedly brilliant fashion. In this comic, a haggered man wandering through the hot, arid desert miraculously stumbles upon an ice cream vendor, only to find, to both of their dismay, that he is “out of everything.”
This cartoon effectively combines absurdist and ironic humor; it is absurd, of course, that the ice cream man’s territory is the middle of what appears to be a Midwestern expanse of sand, dirt, and rock, with only the occasional cactus or shrub, rather than a beachfront somewhere, while it is darkly ironic that he would have nothing refreshing whatsoever to give a thirsty man on his trek through the landscape.
3
A Competitor Tries To Get In On The Ice Cream Man’s Turf, But His Odds Of Success Aren’t Great
First Published: July 15, 1983
In this underrated captionless Far Side cartoon, a pair of neighborhood kids understandably shoot skeptical glances at the “Liver & Onions” truck rolling down the suburban street out front of their house, as it looks, and from the music notes emanating from the horn on top, sounds like an ice cream truck, but it is selling something very different.
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Unlike Larson’s early ice cream truck punchlines, this one is entirely focused on the absurd premise of a “Liver & Onions” truck instead, counting on the wild disparity between the notoriously pungent meal and the sweet treat of ice cream to get a quick, decisive laugh from readers.
2
The Far Side Makes Public Health A Treat In This Strange, Laugh-Out-Loud Cartoon
First Published: October 17, 1987
Here, Gary Larson executes the same premise as the previous entry, except this time in even more bizarre fashion, depicting “the Vaccination Man” driving around, searching, as the caption tells us, “for that occasional careless child who confused him with another vendor.”
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These Far Side jokes are exemplary of Gary Larson’s legendary ability to produce memorable jokes readers are still talking about decades later.
What elevates this Far Side joke, is the way that, while the “Vaccination Man” premise is still the centerpiece of the punchline, Larson also takes a moment to acknowledge, in a hilariously oblique way, that this public health official, or perhaps vigilante, is intentionally ripping off the ice cream man in order to attract business.
1
The Far Side’s Best “Failed Marketing Plot” Is A Successful Gary Larson Gag
First Published: May 24, 1993
Here, Gary Larson arguably achieves the pinnacle of his later-career ice cream truck jokes; in this case, it is the “asparagus truck” instead, which cruises through the neighborhood boasting the slogan “I cuss, you cuss, we all cuss for asparagus!“
The humor of the joke starts with the absurdity of the punchline, but it then goes a step further and offers a patented Far Side riff on the iconic “we all scream for ice cream jingle,” twisting it in a way that offers a tongue-in-cheek endorsement of children swearing. Add to that the downright goofy visual of a smiling stalk of asparagus sticking out from the top of the truck, with a speaker embedded in it, and the result is an unquestionably fantastic Far Side cartoon, which showcases how the comic’s creator always sought to outdo himself.
- Writer
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Gary Larson
- Colorist
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Gary Larson
Summary
Written and drawn by Gary Larson, The Far Side is a comic strip series that ran from December 1979 to January 1995. A worldwide hit, The Far Side explores life’s surreal side and uses a mix of humans and anthropomorphic animals. As of 2020, Gary Larson decided to pick his pencil back up again and has started The Far Side up, circulating the comics on his official website.
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