The Complete Far Side 1980-1994 (2 vol set)
by Gary Larson, Steve Martin
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Book Reviews of The Complete Far Side 1980-1994 (2 vol set)
Book Review: The book is great
Summary: 5 Stars
I've been a big fan of Far Side comics since my youth. It's been a cultural icon for several generations of kids and adults alike. If you walk into any office building in America, you're bound to see at least one Far Side desktop calendar in someone's cubicle or office. This is why I was so excited when I heard that there was a "complete" anthology of Far Side comics. The comments written about some of the comics included in this collection is just icing on the cake. The entire collection is presented in two very pleasant (and heavy) books. You can see the high quality of the materials and print the moment you touch and open one of the books. Even the housing that holds these two books together seems to be very sturdy and well-made. Anyone who's chuckled at one of Gary Larson's twisted Far Side comics will love this "herniastic" collection. Personally, I have it crowning the top of my coffee table as it gives guests and myself something to read when you've only got 5 seconds to spare. I would definitely recommend getting this collection if you're a Far Side fan.Book Review: Worth Every Farthing
Summary: 5 Stars
Yes, I bought this 25-pounder and I got teased for spending a wad of cash on what is essentially a collection of cartoons I mostly already owned and probably could have acquired volume by volume at thrift stores and yard sales for 5 bucks total, but you know, I don't regret it. Gary Larson's intelligence, genius and bold, dark humor, rank him up there with Edward Gorey and Charles Addams as a master of this art form. It's nice to have every Far Side ever published, but this is NOT an easy way to read the works. Whereas the paperback collections can be read with ease, this thing tires your arms out inside of fifteen minutes. And forget trying to peruse this in bed: if you doze off and it falls on your face, you just might spend the rest of your life resembling a pug dog. Still, it's a tribute to one of the all-time great comic strips that such an anthology was ever published, and that a decade after it perished an untimely death The Far Side lives on in memory, in sentimental fondness, and in this new comprehensive titan of a collection. As I said, it's worth the money!Book Review: The book is great
Summary: 5 Stars
I've been a big fan of Far Side comics since my youth. It's been a cultural icon for several generations of kids and adults alike. If you walk into any office building in America, you're bound to see at least one Far Side desktop calendar in someone's cubicle or office. This is why I was so excited when I heard that there was a "complete" anthology of Far Side comics. The comments written about some of the comics included in this collection is just icing on the cake. The entire collection is presented in two very pleasant (and heavy) books. You can see the high quality of the materials and print the moment you touch and open one of the books. Even the housing that holds these two books together seems to be very sturdy and well-made. Anyone who's chuckled at one of Gary Larson's twisted Far Side comics will love this "herniastic" collection. Personally, I have it crowning the top of my coffee table as it gives guests and myself something to read when you've only got 5 seconds to spare. I would definitely recommend getting this collection if you're a Far Side fan.Book Review: Absolutely Sublime
Summary: 5 Stars
I didn't know that this book was coming out. I saw it in a book store and balked at the price tag, but was rescued when I received it as a gift. Now that I have seen it I can honestly say that it is worth far more than the list price. This is simply the greatest compendium of comics ever.The books are beautifully bound, and the set is VERY heavy (remember to lift with your legs, not with your back) and very large. That brings me to my only complaint about the set, which is that at a bit over 14 inches tall, the books will not sit in most standard bookcase shelves, so I have to figure out someplace else to put them now. It is a small price to pay for all of Larson's brilliance (and Cow Tools, too)!
The books are very well printed and many of the panels are in color (even some of the original black and white panels) which to me adds to the beauty of the books, although I understand some purists have objected to the 'colorization.' To those people I say 'get a life.' This is how Larson wanted them and I totally agree. I couldn't be happier with the set!
Book Review: The Greatness of Comic Strips in the '80's
Summary: 5 Stars
The Far Side is something that I miss from my younger years. The truly great comic strips of the 1980, which include Calvin and Hobbes, Bloom County, and even every now and then, Doonesbury (who's true greatness was exhibited in the '70's), along with the revered Far Side... Don't know what else can really be said. There aren't many strips today that are worthwhile. Maybe Dilbert and Get Fuzzy. But Dilbert jumped the shark a while back. And Get Fuzzy is not consistently great. They don't make strips like Far Side any longer. The greatness of The Far Side can probably be summed in the fact that Gary Larson never looked down on the people who read his strip. He always (1) assumed that people were intelligent enough to figure out what he was trying to say, even when they weren't, and (2) never assumed that what he was saying has great cosmic significance. This, of course, gave The Far Side great cosmic significance.
To have all the Far Side in one place... can, if only for a brief moment, make this planet an all right place to be.