2010-10-10
Explanation
This comic is titled "Relationship Pranks" and presents an absurd scenario: "At the last possible moment, convince your wife having a baby was a terrible idea." The single panel shows a shirtless man wearing a pirate hat in what appears to be a delivery room. His wife is apparently in labor, and he exclaims "Oh! Oh! O... Is that a pirate hat" followed by "Avast! Fire the baby cannon!"
The humor comes from the idea of "relationship pranks" as a genre -- the concept that there exists a category of pranks you would play on your romantic partner at the worst possible moment. The specific prank here involves the husband putting on a pirate hat during childbirth and treating the birth as a pirate ship's cannon firing, calling out naval commands. The phrase "fire the baby cannon" is both a crude metaphor for the birth process and a perfectly timed way to make your partner deeply regret every life choice that led to this moment.
The votey panel shows the aftermath: the man says "Direct hit" while the woman responds "Shut. Up." -- confirming that the baby was successfully delivered but the wife is decidedly not amused by the pirate bit. The comic is a good example of SMBC's fondness for taking an absurd premise to its logical conclusion and finding humor in the most inappropriate possible timing.