# 'Splain this Far Side cartoon to me. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 26, 2006, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223 "2006-02-26T21:32:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![yBeayf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/e274bd/32.png) [@yBeayf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yBeayf)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2006, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/21 "2006-02-28T01:54:02Z")
This [Primus song](http://www.ram.org/music/primus/lyrics/brown.lyrics.html#song8) may explain it a bit better. ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2006, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/22 "2006-02-28T05:22:02Z")
People couldn’t follow Cow Tools WITH the caption. I always thought the Remoras gag was in the social faux pas, like having a zit, or scabies, never noticed they were only in the mirror; could just be a mistake, Larsen made them before…not that I don’t worship his work. Anybody else ever see the reject with the snake stuck in the crib? Not for the faint of heart, but I LOVE THAT ONE. ---
**Author:** ![mostbizarrefarside](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f6c823/32.png) [@mostbizarrefarside](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mostbizarrefarside)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/23 "2012-07-23T16:27:00Z")
1. Woman is having a seance, caption reads in part “Bootsy! We are calling you from the world of the living!..Are you there, Bootsy? Give us a sign, Bootsy!” There is a parrot or parakeet in a cage nearby, but otherwise nothing notable. Any guesses? 2. Several Indians (Native Americans) on horses outside fort. Three soldiers inside fort yell to Indians, “Hey! What’s the matter?..There’s only three of us here! C’mon!..It’s gonna get dark soon!” Besides the 3 soldiers is a big round object, possibly a setting sun, a rising moon, or big balloon? which is made up to look like a soldier with a hat and a big menacing frown. Any guesses? ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/24 "2012-07-23T16:36:09Z")
> [@mostbizarrefarside](#): > > 1. Several Indians (Native Americans) on horses outside fort. Three soldiers inside fort yell to Indians, “Hey! What’s the matter?..There’s only three of us here! C’mon!..It’s gonna get dark soon!” Besides the 3 soldiers is a big round object, possibly a setting sun, a rising moon, or big balloon? which is made up to look like a soldier with a hat and a big menacing frown. > Any guesses? Sounds like a riff on the Trojan Horse? I don’t suppose you have links to images of either of these cartoons? ---
**Author:** ![Vicullum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/6de8d8/32.png) [@Vicullum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vicullum)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/25 "2012-07-23T16:45:51Z")
Came here to mention [Cow Tools](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3211/2347642183_91247aa0c8_o.jpg) but someone beat me to it. Talk about making a “joke” that only the author got. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/26 "2012-07-23T16:51:23Z")
> [@mostbizarrefarside](#): > > 1. Several Indians (Native Americans) on horses outside fort. Three soldiers inside fort yell to Indians, “Hey! What’s the matter?..There’s only three of us here! C’mon!..It’s gonna get dark soon!” Besides the 3 soldiers is a big round object, possibly a setting sun, a rising moon, or big balloon? which is made up to look like a soldier with a hat and a big menacing frown. > Any guesses? They’ve got a giant soldier lurking in the fort? ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/27 "2012-07-23T16:52:37Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Sounds like a riff on the Trojan Horse? > > I don’t suppose you have links to images of either of these cartoons? > [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > They’ve got a giant soldier lurking in the fort? I thought maybe there was a ‘scalp’ joke in there somewhere. I remember seeing both of these before, and don’t recall _not_ getting them…so maybe the joke is conveyed in text very well. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/28 "2012-07-23T16:58:23Z")
I’m blocked from flicker-type images here but am intrigued about cow tools. Anyone have the time to explain what’s going on? ---
**Author:** ![puddleglum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puddleglum/32/137_2.png) [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/29 "2012-07-23T17:20:04Z")
[Try this site](http://www.byrnerobotics.com/forum/uploads/AndrewHess/2006-11-27_142614_cow_tools.jpg) I have always enjoyed that one, mostly for the expression of the cow. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/30 "2012-07-23T17:26:32Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > I’m blocked from flicker-type images here but am intrigued about cow tools. Anyone have the time to explain what’s going on? The absurdity of cows having tools is the joke. ---
**Author:** ![Vicullum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/6de8d8/32.png) [@Vicullum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vicullum)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/31 "2012-07-23T17:29:43Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > I’m blocked from flicker-type images here but am intrigued about cow tools. Anyone have the time to explain what’s going on? Just google image search “cow tools” and you’ll find a bunch of copies. The “joke,” as Larson himself explained it in _The PreHistory of The Far Side_, was that he read about how humans were the only animals that used tools (of course, we know that’s not true now, but hey, it was the early 80s) and he wondered, if they did, what kind they’d fashion. So he drew a panel of a cow proudly showing off her handiwork. After he started receiving a bunch of confused feedback he realized that (1) this idea really wasn’t all that funny and (2) he made the mistake of making one of the tools resemble a crude handsaw, which just added to the confusion because readers thought they had to decipher what the other doodads did to understand what the hell was so funny. Ironically, all the press about how confusing the cartoon was gave him a large amount of publicity and actually increased the popularity of The Far Side. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/32 "2012-07-23T17:31:10Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > [Try this site](http://www.byrnerobotics.com/forum/uploads/AndrewHess/2006-11-27_142614_cow_tools.jpg) I have always enjoyed that one, mostly for the expression of the cow. I got it. But I didn’t get it… Well, I guess I did, but it’s uncharacteristically unfunny for Larson. Anecdote: A friend of mine, I’ll call him Bill because that was his name, once shared a flight with Mr. Larson. Bill got his own personalized cartoon that Gary drew for him on the flight, complete with his name in the caption and everything. He had it framed. Bill’s gone now, but that was a great story of his for years. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/33 "2012-07-23T17:34:09Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > I’m blocked from flicker-type images here but am intrigued about cow tools. Anyone have the time to explain what’s going on? There’s a cow, proudly displaying some irregular crude lumps and sticks. If cows had tools, that’s the kind of tools they would have. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/34 "2012-07-23T17:35:00Z")
> [@mostbizarrefarside](#): > > 1. Woman is having a seance, caption reads in part “Bootsy! We are calling you from the world of the living!..Are you there, Bootsy? Give us a sign, Bootsy!” There is a parrot or parakeet in a cage nearby, but otherwise nothing notable. Any guesses? > > 2. Several Indians (Native Americans) on horses outside fort. Three soldiers inside fort yell to Indians, “Hey! What’s the matter?..There’s only three of us here! C’mon!..It’s gonna get dark soon!” Besides the 3 soldiers is a big round object, possibly a setting sun, a rising moon, or big balloon? which is made up to look like a soldier with a hat and a big menacing frown. > Any guesses? Bootsy is the cat (?) which the parrot offed, perhaps. ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/35 "2012-07-23T18:03:50Z")
> [@Vicullum](#): > > Just google image search “cow tools” and you’ll find a bunch of copies. > > The “joke,” as Larson himself explained it in _The PreHistory of The Far Side_, was that he read about how humans were the only animals that used tools (of course, we know that’s not true now, but hey, it was the early 80s) and he wondered, if they did, what kind they’d fashion. So he drew a panel of a cow proudly showing off her handiwork. After he started receiving a bunch of confused feedback he realized that (1) this idea really wasn’t all that funny and (2) he made the mistake of making one of the tools resemble a crude handsaw, which just added to the confusion because readers thought they had to decipher what the other doodads did to understand what the hell was so funny. Ironically, all the press about how confusing the cartoon was gave him a large amount of publicity and actually increased the popularity of The Far Side. Before reading this, I would have guessed that it had something to do with “cow pies” (i.e., what if cow pies were literally cows’ attempts to make pies …). Could it be that that was part of what Larson had in mind but he didn’t want to admit it? (Probably not; I think he’d be happy to admit it.) ---
**Author:** ![tapu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@tapu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tapu)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/36 "2012-07-23T18:09:56Z")
> [@Cliffy](#): > > It’s “whoa.” > > Carry on. > > –Cliffy, pedant What’s your name? Noah. Whatdya say? Woah. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/37 "2012-07-23T18:37:42Z")
Of course we would hear from Cliffy right after a _Cheers_ reference. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/38 "2012-07-23T19:10:26Z")
> [@Iguana\_Boy](#): > > I always thought that the remoras were there, it’s just that the angle of the cartoon meant they were only visible in the mirror! > > (Larson is the first to admit he wasn’t the best artist in the world.) > > A Far Side cartoon that was too subtle for me? The shame!! “The Misery of Psoriasis” was an often-mocked advertisement. > [@](#): > > (Larson is the first to admit he wasn’t the best artist in the world.) The cartoon that I did not get until I read the book, was the “Cows on Vacation”. I thought it was just a pretty family portrait, until the book pointed out the boy(calf) is doing the V-fingers thing behind the girl(calf)'s head. The simple black hoofs just looked like a bow on her head. ---
**Author:** ![BleizDu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@BleizDu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BleizDu)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/39 "2012-07-23T19:36:57Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > There’s a cow, proudly displaying some irregular crude lumps and sticks. If cows had tools, that’s the kind of tools they would have. Damn, until this thread I thought the joke was that the cow had made tools from cow dung (hence the crude and irregular shapes). ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223/40 "2012-07-23T19:55:21Z")
> [@mostbizarrefarside](#): > > 1. Woman is having a seance, caption reads in part “Bootsy! We are calling you from the world of the living!..Are you there, Bootsy? Give us a sign, Bootsy!” There is a parrot or parakeet in a cage nearby, but otherwise nothing notable. Any guesses? I found this image in a [power-point presentation](http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CEwQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fteacherweb.com%2FLA%2FCEByrdHighSchool%2FSermons%2CTerry%2F4.1bToFindDomainampRange.ppt&ei=CqoNUIakC5HOqAGT3ICCDA&usg=AFQjCNE5h3CpZxgDLECOe3b8N6jG2DR2ig) by googling “Give us a sign, Bootsy!” The only thing to add is that the window reads “Madame Zoe’s”, so we know that one is a “professional” medium. Either: 1. The parakeet is there to be part of the scam - if the parakeet starts uttering things (“I’m dead - how are you?”), then that’s ‘contact.’ 2. (more likely) - ca. 1990, the idea of contacting dead animals through a medium is _prima facie_ ridiculous. (It still is, but not to where it’s an obvious joke). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/splain-this-far-side-cartoon-to-me/346223.md?page=3)