Barney and Clyde and the Wind

Referencing one work of art in another is clever -- but referencing two can be genius. The sequence run in Barney and Clyde on April 27, 2015 was one such example. Here's the strip itself: (click on image to enlarge).

If your a comics fan, you may recognize that the mouse has morphed into the maniac Rat from Stephen Pastis' Pearls Before Swine. (see below)

Really observant readers will also note the reference to The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, and especially its classic illustrations.

But those are just extra layers. To really get to the heart of this strip's gag, you need to put together the title of the book referenced, and the function of the drug being advertised. It's then that you realize that it's not just wind in the willows, its the rabbits breaking wind in the willows (a phrase that would not be allowed in the comic).

Kudos to the Barney and Clyde creative team, Gene Weingarten, Dan Weingarten & David Clark.