Tales From the Far Side

[Classic Speedy]

The topic about primetime specials reminded me of this gem from 1994. Anyone else remember it? It was based on Gary Larson's comic and, while it didn't quite nail the tone of the comic (largely because there wasn't much dialogue, and the comic was known for witty dialogue/narration), it DID have an offbeat, quirky sense of humor that was at least reminiscent of it, and the art style is definitely faithful to the comic. It was directed by Marv Newland and produced by his International Rocketship Limited studio in Canada. AFAIK it is one of the few 2D animated properties in the '90s that wasn't outsourced anywhere overseas for animation.

My favorite segment was the airplane full of flies, it just stuck with me all these years.

There was a sequel special a few years later but I never got the chance to see that one.

The specials are notoriously difficult to find online, as from what I understand Gary Larson hunts down copies, but there are some clips that sound designer Kerry Uchida posted on their YT page:


Anyone else want to chime in?

 

[Mejo]

Heh, I’ve seen both and I’ve always loved them. Granted, I’m a Far Side fan but still, even on their own they’re great.

It’s true that Gary Larson has been copyright striking any uploads of these specials online. Hell, I remember uploading a PROMO for the first special and Gary even took that down. They are still on the internet though, you just have to do a bit of digging.

Also, there’s a strange difference in CBS’s version compared to the Home Media version. In CBS’s version, the final segment has the main character get knocked out by a truck full of Exploding kid dolls. In the Home Media version, the dolls are replaced by rakes. Wonder why that change occurred
(comparison below):

Anyway, really wish this special was more readily available. It’s wonderful.

 

[Surreal Kangaroo]

I’ve heard of it but I have never seen it. It always sounded interesting to me because I like the comic. I wish it was streaming some where.

 

[Daikun]

I saw one of them in 7th grade when my history teacher showed a tape to the class.

 

[Pooky]

I can't seem to find anything about it, but the BBC seemed to have some financial involvement in these, or at least they were seemingly the only channel to actually air the second special and they released both specials on a single VHS tape through their label, so they were fairly high profile here, but I haven't seen either of them in full since the 90s.

 

[Chris Wood]

I saw one of those Far Side specials and was surprised to find it was quite dark and creepy. Not the kind of zany humor I was expecting.

 

[Classic Speedy]

I saw one of those Far Side specials and was surprised to find it was quite dark and creepy. Not the kind of zany humor I was expecting.

Agreed, though it definitely was appropriate for Halloween time (it aired on 10/26/94).

 

[Rick Jones]

I watched and enjoyed both specials a few times but I can't really recall the bits that well.

 

[wonderfly]

You know, I pride myself on knowing a lot of 90's animated oddities....but I've never heard of these. Now I have to track these down.

Where did it air? On Fox? On Cable? EDIT: Just googled it, and Wikipedia says it aired on CBS. Well, I certainly wasn't watching CBS in 1994. I was watching FOX (both Fox Kids and Fox Prime Time) at my house, and watching "Beavis and Butthead" and other MTV stuff at my friend's house (I didn't have cable yet). But I wasn't watching CBS.