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Far Side Collection #15
The Curse of Madame "C"
Copyright © 1994 FarWorks, Inc. All rights reserved.
The Far Side ®, FarWorks, Inc. ®, and the Larson ® signature are registered trademarks of FarWorks, Inc. in certain countries.
The Far Side ®, FarWorks, Inc. ®, and the Larson ® signature are registered trademarks of FarWorks, Inc. in certain countries.
112 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1994
4 people are currently reading
224 people want to read
About the author
Gary Larson
144 books711 followersGary Larson was born and raised in Tacoma, Washington. His parents were Vern, a car salesman, and Doris, a secretary. He attended Curtis High School before attending Washington State University and graduated in 1972 with a degree in communications. In 1987, Larson married Toni Carmichael, an archaeologist.
Larson credits his older brother Dan for his "paranoid" sense of humor. Dan would pull countless pranks on Gary, taking advantage of his phobia of monsters under the bed by, for example, waiting in the closet for the right moment to pounce out at Gary. Dan is also credited with giving Gary his love of science. They caught animals in Puget Sound and placed them in terrariums in the basement; even making a small desert ecosystem, which their parents apparently did not mind. His adept use of snakes in his cartoons stems from his long-standing interest in herpetology.
Since retiring from the Far Side, Larson has occasionally done some cartooning work, such as magazine illustrations and promotional artwork for Far Side merchandise.
In 1998, Larson published his first post-Far Side book, There's a Hair in My Dirt!: A Worm's Story, an illustrated story with the unmistakable Far Side mindset.
Larson credits his older brother Dan for his "paranoid" sense of humor. Dan would pull countless pranks on Gary, taking advantage of his phobia of monsters under the bed by, for example, waiting in the closet for the right moment to pounce out at Gary. Dan is also credited with giving Gary his love of science. They caught animals in Puget Sound and placed them in terrariums in the basement; even making a small desert ecosystem, which their parents apparently did not mind. His adept use of snakes in his cartoons stems from his long-standing interest in herpetology.
Since retiring from the Far Side, Larson has occasionally done some cartooning work, such as magazine illustrations and promotional artwork for Far Side merchandise.
In 1998, Larson published his first post-Far Side book, There's a Hair in My Dirt!: A Worm's Story, an illustrated story with the unmistakable Far Side mindset.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
October 19, 2016
Unless you're a caveman (in which case, some of your relatives may be featured within these pages), you've read The Far Side - those quirky, one-panel comics where wrong is right, up is down, and cows can talk.
This collection has a nifty little intro bit that's cool enough to make me wish Larson had done some graphic novels.
This collection has a nifty little intro bit that's cool enough to make me wish Larson had done some graphic novels.
October 8, 2022
Very amusing as is most of Larson’s work.
October 27, 2024
I loved reading these comics during summer break, I would get stacks of them from the library and my local discount bookstore. They are surprisingly only a little outdated on reread 20 years later, but they are still funny enough that I laughed out loud multiple times.
November 11, 2012
I read this book many years ago and it is a classic. Inside you will find an opening extended comic story about a man who runs into the legend of Madame "C." (spoiler, C. stands for "Cow").
This is great and really introduces people to Larson's humor (it did for me, this was the first book I read of his).
A great one. Recommend it for people who love to laugh.
This is great and really introduces people to Larson's humor (it did for me, this was the first book I read of his).
A great one. Recommend it for people who love to laugh.
June 13, 2012
Magical Moments !
December 28, 2014
Four stars because, well, it's The Far Side AND because it contains one of my favorites: "Mr. Sparky".
June 12, 2015
This book contains a marvelous collection of the humor, puns, commentary and witticisms of the great Gary Larson. It is worth every moment of your time to read this.
October 15, 2020
One thing that separates this particular collection of Gary Larson from many other Far Side collections, and certainly makes this a worthwhile one to read for fans who are familiar with the many galleries and collections of Far Side cartoons that exist, is the frame story that begins this particular book. While the origin account provided here is more than a little bit nonsensical, it is also entertaining and highly creative, as Larson imagines himself as being a young cartoonist who fails to heed warnings and finds himself cursed to draw about cows by someone when all he wanted to do was draw cats. Given that this particular collection was made in 1994, it was before the popularity of memes and lolcats from the World Wide Web, and it certainly is a prescient and deeply entertaining look at someone who wanted to portray themselves as creating under a curse and making cows seem more alien and more dangerous than they really are. As one of the most important aspects of humor and creativity is making the familiar alien and the alien familiar, this approach is certainly a good one and something that allows the reader to appreciate what Larson is able to accomplish in this small volume.
Aside from the titular beginning to the book that gives the story of the mysterious bovine Madam "C," this book offers precisely what you would expect from a Far side collection. Whether one is looking at Daffy's resume and not very observant detectives or scary peanuts and a bird on vacation still in a cage--something I can identify with all too strongly in these covid times--the drawings here are as humorous and poignant as they ever have been. Even after more than a decade of making Far Side cartoons this book shows Larson still able to draw humor out of a suite of situations, including anthropomorphizing plants and animals as well as showing the absurdity that is in ordinary human life as well as plausible if ridiculous scenarios in the world around us. Human beings and animals and plants are at least potentially ridiculous and that leads to a lot of chances for us to laugh at what is going on around us, and that laughter powers this book and Larson's work as a whole. If you have gotten to this book, the odds are that you have read a lot of Far Side calendars already and are a fan, and if so, good for you.
Aside from the titular beginning to the book that gives the story of the mysterious bovine Madam "C," this book offers precisely what you would expect from a Far side collection. Whether one is looking at Daffy's resume and not very observant detectives or scary peanuts and a bird on vacation still in a cage--something I can identify with all too strongly in these covid times--the drawings here are as humorous and poignant as they ever have been. Even after more than a decade of making Far Side cartoons this book shows Larson still able to draw humor out of a suite of situations, including anthropomorphizing plants and animals as well as showing the absurdity that is in ordinary human life as well as plausible if ridiculous scenarios in the world around us. Human beings and animals and plants are at least potentially ridiculous and that leads to a lot of chances for us to laugh at what is going on around us, and that laughter powers this book and Larson's work as a whole. If you have gotten to this book, the odds are that you have read a lot of Far Side calendars already and are a fan, and if so, good for you.
June 19, 2018
HOW ? HOW? Can Gary Larson continue to amaze me? I am sad that this collection will be his last. But It was an excellent way to say goodbye. I have to go back and pick up two of his books from older days early in his career. I have yet to read those, but thus far he is one of the few and I mean very few who kept me in stitches and enjoying each edition he put out to the public. Thank you so much Gary Larson for your service in making a lot of us laugh for so long.
April 10, 2024
Another hilarious Far Side book from Gary Larson, this is a fictional autobiography about his travels to a strange land where Larson-type characters live and how he is cursed by the bovine Madame C. The curse is to be a cartoonist of course. This little biographical cartoon takes 17 pages and then the rest of the book is filled with a collection of his trademark cartoons. Not as funny as Weiner Dog Art. But srill good for a laugh.
October 4, 2024
This is probably my favorite Far Side book. It's hysterically funny and shockingly nuanced. I remember when I was younger, the "Madame C" story at the start actually really did scare the bejeezus out of me. Now, I think it might be the best thing Mr. Larson did, and I would've loved to have seen him do longer comic strip-style vignettes. There's so much to love about it, and I adore this whole collection of craziness.
March 4, 2023
Okay, I get that most of you won't think that a comic strip book qualifies as a book, but I had to add this to my list as I enjoyed it so much. Far Side comics are endlessly amusing, clever and ludicrous. This is no exception. Good for a laugh.
September 23, 2017
One of the last books that Gary Larson drew; he ended his series on a high note.
September 25, 2018
Good for a chuckle
December 31, 2019
Sometimes I don’t know if the comics are just that funny or if I’m in the right frame of mind, but these were great (today).
January 8, 2020
This started off to be a bit different. It was more of a short story, then went into the short comics. Still funny. Enjoyed every page.
July 16, 2022
The Curse of Madame "C" (Far Side Collection #15) by Gary Larson – If you ever doubt that comic strip writers are a strange bunch, I give you exhibit C! Happy Reading!
January 4, 2023
"Now if you all would examine the chart, you will notice that -- well, well... seems Mr. Sparky has found something more engrossing than this meeting."
October 28, 2023
Contains the origin story.
July 23, 2024
Larson delights as always. Some panels are more obscure, some are more inane, and some cause gut-reflex guffawing.
August 7, 2024
Brilliant. Mad. Brilliantly mad!
December 31, 2016
Loads of laughs although very similar to the compendium I also just finished reading.
November 19, 2015
The Curse of Madame "C" is another fun collection of Gary Larson's The Far Side comic strips. The first fifteen pages of the book are printed in color on glossy pages. Eleven of the fifteen pages tell a story about how Gary Larson, as a young man just out of college, spent some time hiking across Europe. During his trek, he stumbles across strange people and soon meets a gypsy woman driving her own wagon. She takes him into his wagon and reveals her true self to him. In Rod Serling's voice, "Little does Gary Larson know that he is about to start on a journey that will lead him down the dark trail toward . . . The Far Side."
The Far Side has been one of my favorite daily cartoon strips for many, many years. Back when this comic strip was appearing daily in the newspapers, every day I would look forward to opening the newspaper, find the Funnies page, and see what kind of strange thing Gary Larson had come up with. Sometimes I would laugh aloud, sometimes just smile, and infrequently I didn't do either, but still thought that the comic strip had merit. It wasn't often that I either didn't understand one of the strips or that it just want' very funny. I was almost always entertained.
The collection of comic strips in this book are pretty good. They are not as funny as Gary Larson's earlier drawings, but since I have never seen these before, they were all new to me. I found about eight different strips to chose from to display above and finally settled on the dogs at the meeting table. That one made me laugh out loud.
Overall, The Curse of Madame "C" is a good collection of The Far Side comic strips. I think that there is only one more book to go before it all ends. I have been disappointed ever since Gary Larson put down his pencil and decided to never create any more comic strips. His last comic strip was published on January, 1 1995. What a shame and what a waste of talent.
The Far Side has been one of my favorite daily cartoon strips for many, many years. Back when this comic strip was appearing daily in the newspapers, every day I would look forward to opening the newspaper, find the Funnies page, and see what kind of strange thing Gary Larson had come up with. Sometimes I would laugh aloud, sometimes just smile, and infrequently I didn't do either, but still thought that the comic strip had merit. It wasn't often that I either didn't understand one of the strips or that it just want' very funny. I was almost always entertained.
The collection of comic strips in this book are pretty good. They are not as funny as Gary Larson's earlier drawings, but since I have never seen these before, they were all new to me. I found about eight different strips to chose from to display above and finally settled on the dogs at the meeting table. That one made me laugh out loud.
Overall, The Curse of Madame "C" is a good collection of The Far Side comic strips. I think that there is only one more book to go before it all ends. I have been disappointed ever since Gary Larson put down his pencil and decided to never create any more comic strips. His last comic strip was published on January, 1 1995. What a shame and what a waste of talent.
November 27, 2017
Amerikkalaisen Gary Larsonin "Far Side" on kyllä eräs kaikkien aikojen hauskimmista sarjakuvista, mikä johtunee myös siitä, että Bill Wattersonin tavoin hän ymmärsi lopettaa huipulla ollessaan.
"The Curse of Mademe C" (Andrews and McMeel, 1994) sisältää absurdien mutta samalla niin nerokkaiden yksiruutuisten vitsien lisäksi myös pidemmän tarinan, jossa tekijä kertoo nuorena miehenä tekemästään epäonnisesta vaellusmatkasta, jonka päätteeksi hän päätyi piirtämään "Far Sidea" - ja joutui ihmissuden puremaksi.
"The Curse of Mademe C" (Andrews and McMeel, 1994) sisältää absurdien mutta samalla niin nerokkaiden yksiruutuisten vitsien lisäksi myös pidemmän tarinan, jossa tekijä kertoo nuorena miehenä tekemästään epäonnisesta vaellusmatkasta, jonka päätteeksi hän päätyi piirtämään "Far Sidea" - ja joutui ihmissuden puremaksi.
June 3, 2015
Who didn't enjoy the twisted humour of Gary Larson?
At one point, I believe I had managed to own and read all of the collections (I did eventually fall behind) and I remember when the giant leather-bound collection of every Far Side cartoon came out agonizing over whether or not it was worth it from a nostalgia point of view. I didn't end up getting it - mostly because I already had those comics in smaller books that actually fit on my bookshelves, but it was a close call.
At one point, I believe I had managed to own and read all of the collections (I did eventually fall behind) and I remember when the giant leather-bound collection of every Far Side cartoon came out agonizing over whether or not it was worth it from a nostalgia point of view. I didn't end up getting it - mostly because I already had those comics in smaller books that actually fit on my bookshelves, but it was a close call.
June 25, 2008
Just as good as all the others. The color comic in the beginning had its some funny panels, but overall I didn't really think the idea of it was that great.
October 7, 2009
This is sadly the only Far Side collection that I have...
I must rectify that.
Hilarious.
I must rectify that.
Hilarious.
Read
May 1, 2010Fun, of course!
May 17, 2010
I just came across this collection casually, and I enjoyed it as much as the others. Larson is always great.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews