10 Funniest Garfield Comics That Just Turned 40

Summary

• Garfield’s comics extend over decades, with humorous strips both old and new still captivating audiences.
• The comics showcase Garfield’s apathetic nature, karmic irony, and actions against anything that annoys him – from rivals to diets.
• Garfield’s love for strong coffee, humorous caffeine addiction, and misunderstood singing prowess shine in these classic strips.

Garfield is one of the most widely recognized and utterly hilarious comic strips in the history of the medium, an absolute masterclass in short-form comics and quick-hitting comedy. And one of the coolest things about it is how long Garfield has been published. Garfield was created by Jim Davis in 1978, and the comic is still releasing new strips to this day, and they’re just as funny as they were decades ago.

While it’s unbelievably fortunate that fans are still getting new Garfield comics (on top of the new animated feature film), it’s also important to look back on the earlier strips to see exactly why Garfield’s legacy has been so long-lasting. In fact, as of May, 2024, an entire month’s worth of Garfield comics that were released in May, 1984 just turned 40 years old, which really puts in perspective the extensive history of the Garfield franchise in a more comprehensive and concentrated way. Here are 10 of the funniest Garfield comics that just turned 40!

10 Garfield’s Apathetic Golfing Advice is Utterly Hysterical (in the Darkest Way Possible)

Garfield – May 2, 1984

Jon Arbuckle is out golfing, with Garfield right there next to him. When Jon takes a swing, his golf ball hits an old woman in the head, and it knocks her out cold. Jon is freaking out, as he may have seriously injured someone, and he doesn’t know what to do. So, Garfield gives Jon some advice, except, Garfield’s advice is all about how Jon can improve his swing, with no mention of the old woman Jon hit, as Garfield seemingly couldn’t care less about that.

Garfield’s lack of empathy for the injured old lady is utterly hilarious, and ridiculously dark. It’s not as though Garfield should have rushed to the woman’s aid or anything like that, but he could have at least acted concerned for her well-being, especially given that it was Jon who injured her. Instead, Garfield doesn’t even mention the incident, and actively ignores Jon’s concerns to critique his golf swing. This strip perfectly captures Garfield’s apathetic nature, albeit in the darkest way.

9 Garfield Justly Suffers the Consequences of His Own Cruel Actions

Garfield – May 6, 1984

Garfield notices that Odie, Jon’s dog, is sleeping in his cat bed. So, rather than telling Odie to leave – or just letting it slide – Garfield decides to sneak up on the snoozing pup and stomp him where he slept. Garfield jumped up and down on top of Odie to punish him for being in his bed. But then, Odie runs up to Garfield from around the corner, meaning Garfield was mistaken. The orange cat then remembers that he stashed a sandwich in his bed for later, but due to his own actions, that sandwich is totally ruined, and his bed is assuredly soiled.

Garfield has never been nice to Odie, regularly pulling pranks on the dog or otherwise just being generally cruel with no provocation. So, when Garfield believes he has been slighted by Odie – as the pup should know not to sleep in Garfield’s bed – he takes this opportunity to be especially mean to the dog he doesn’t like, even on a good day. That’s what makes the fact that Garfield ruined his own sandwich (and his own bed) a perfect example of karmic irony, as it’s just what Garfield deserves.

8 Garfield Realizes that He Hates Tuesdays Just as Much as Mondays

Garfield – May 8, 1984

Garfield is incessantly scratching at the back door of his house, alerting Jon that he’s ready to come back inside after a long day of being out and about. Clearly annoyed, Jon swings the door open incredibly fast before walking away to let Garfield come in when he wants. However, the door swung open a bit too fast, catching Garfield off guard and flattening him against the house. Garfield, whose day had just decidedly gone downhill, thinks to himself, “I’m not very fond of Tuesdays, either”.

Garfield famously hates Mondays, with a number of comic strips dedicated to that iconic complaint, but he’s never really had any strong feelings about the other days of the week. But in this strip, after he was flattened by the back door by Jon on a day that happened to be a Tuesday, Garfield decided that Tuesdays were just as bad as Mondays, which is an interesting development for his character as well as being a hilarious spin on a running gag.

7 Garfield is Accidentally Affectionate with Jon

Garfield – May 11, 1984

Jon is standing by his counter, with Garfield scratching his back for seemingly no reason at all. Jon is slightly taken aback, if not pleasantly confused as to why Garfield decided to be so affectionate. Jon even jokingly comments on the absurdity of the situation, saying how peculiar it is that a cat is grooming his owner. Jon then asks Garfield why he’s doing this, and Garfield responds, “I just squashed a spider”.

While Garfield wasn’t being affectionate the way Jon assumed, the fact that he killed a spider that Jon didn’t know was on his back was definitely kind. However, Jon’s confusion as to why Garfield was showing any sign of affection is still warranted, as it would be far more like Garfield to just allow a spider to be on Jon, and then wait to laugh at Jon’s inevitable freakout. But, Garfield decides to spare Jon the fate of being scared (or maybe even bitten) by a spider, and in doing so, he accidentally shows his owner affection.

6 Garfield is Mad at Jon for Making Him Adhere to a Diet

Garfield – May 25, 1984

Garfield sits on his counter wearing a mean and irritated grimace on his face, when Jon approaches him to ask how his diet is going. Garfield allows his stomach to answer that idiotic question for him, as Jon is startled by an impossibly loud roar in his vicinity, and he immediately asks Garfield if that was, indeed, his stomach. Garfield responds in the affirmative, calling Jon a ‘twit’ in the process, which he hopes adequately conveys his frustration with the diet Jon is assuredly forcing upon Garfield.

Garfield famously loves eating food, including and especially lasagna, so it’s no surprise that a diet would not only make Garfield incredibly hungry, but also extremely irritable. So, when Jon comes at him with a stupid question like ‘how’s your diet going?’, Garfield’s aggressive and insulting response is one that should be expected.

5 Garfield Launches a Preemptive Strike Against a Rival Pet

Garfield – May 27, 1984

Garfield and Jon are sitting on a park bench when they’re approached by a woman and her dog. Jon smiles at her and fixes his hair, possibly in an effort to get the woman’s attention, and perhaps even spark a flirtatious conversation. And while Jon notices the woman, Garfield notices her dog, and he immediately puts his guard up. Garfield notes that he’s tangled with this dog before (which may or may not be true), and he knows that the dog will attack him if given the chance. So, Garfield strikes first, and he does so in the name of preemptive self-defense.

It’s no secret that Garfield is fairly violent by nature, especially against dogs, though usually that aggression is confined to the Arbuckle household, with Garfield acting as Odie’s personal bully. That’s what makes this strip so funny, as it shows that Garfield does not discriminate when it comes to committing acts of violence against animals he doesn’t like – most notably dogs.

4 Garfield Hates Mondays, and Mondays Evidently Hate Him Back

Garfield – May 28, 1984

Garfield opens this comic strip – as he has many times before – stating unprovoked that he hates Mondays. At that moment, Jon walks up to Garfield and tells him that he doesn’t know why Garfield hates Mondays so much. Moments later, a pie flies out of nowhere and hits Garfield right in the face. Without removing the splatted pie from his face, or cleaning himself up at all, Garfield walks up to Jon and simply points to the source of this particular frustration in an attempt to justify his hatred for Mondays.

Not only is this a classic ‘I hate Mondays’ Garfield gag, but this one stands above the rest, as it shows the seemingly impossible way Mondays evidently hate Garfield back. Who threw that pie at Garfield’s face? Odie certainly didn’t do it, he’s just a dog without the anthropomorphic traits of Garfield, and Jon was busy getting ready for work. The only explanation is that Monday itself somehow threw the pie as a way to let Garfield know that it knows Garfield hates Mondays, and that Monday feels the same way about him.

3 Garfield Only Likes Coffee that Breaks the Laws of Physics

Garfield – May 29, 1984

Jon makes Garfield a cup of coffee (because that’s just the kind of responsible cat owner Jon is), and Garfield couldn’t be happier. Not just because he’s getting an evidently much-needed cup of joe, but because Jon made it just as Garfield likes it. As Garfield is pouring the cup, he lets go of the handle to reveal that the coffee is so strong, that the flow of liquid is literally holding the coffee press up on its own. Jon knows that Garfield likes his coffee strong, and this comic strip reveals Garfield likes it so strong, that it breaks the laws of physics.

This Garfield strip is an absurd play on the common request for strong coffee, showing that the coffee is strong enough to lift its own press as it’s being poured. That’s the beauty of the comic strip medium, as it can deliver a joke that’s effectively a play on words with a visual depiction that’s literally happening to the characters, making it equal parts clever and absurd.

2 Garfield & Jon Hilariously Prove that Caffeine Addiction is No Joke

Garfield – May 30, 1984

Garfield and Jon are sitting together at the counter, both in a state of shock and irritation, as Jon spilled the last cup of coffee in the house. The spilled coffee sits on the counter, taunting the two caffeine addicts who are getting increasingly upset that they were just robbed of their cup of joe. Then, suddenly, the two of them get the same idea at the same time, and Jon and Garfield begin licking the coffee right off the counter – and both look very pleased with themselves as they do so.

This comic is a hilarious play on how much an average person (and cat, it seems) needs their morning coffee to get the day going, if only just a taste. Jon and Garfield are like junkies trying to get their daily fix any way they can, even going so far as to literally lap up small traces of coffee just to soothe the craving. Caffeine addiction is no joke, and that point has never been made in a funnier way.

1 Garfield Proves He’s the Most Misunderstood Singer of His Time

Garfield – May 31, 1984

Garfield stands on his fence, belting his little heart out as he sings a song that he believes deserves to be heard by the entire neighborhood. Of course, the noises Garfield makes are probably more akin to the incessant screams of an alley cat. At least, that’s what’s implied by one neighbor’s reaction, as Garfield has an entire planter – flowers and all – thrown at his head. Garfield then goes back inside, where Jon asks Garfield where the flowers came from, since the planter was still stuck on his head, and Garfield responds, “why don’t we just read the note?”.

Garfield’s sarcastic response references how singers who fans actually like get flowers thrown on stage for them following a performance, most of the time with notes that express the fans’ admiration. But, in Garfield’s case, this ‘fan’ wanted nothing more than for Garfield to shut up, meaning only Garfield’s sarcastic sense of humor (and perhaps semi-wishful thinking) would prompt him to respond this way to Jon. This comic is absolutely hilarious, making it easily one of the 10 funniest Garfield strips that just turned 40.