2011-10-11
Explanation
This comic tells a visual story about a helicopter pilot who spots someone stranded on a small island with "HELP" written in the sand. The pilot flies toward the island, but crashes the helicopter. We then see the pilot screaming "AAAAAH!" in the wreckage. The next panel shows the island from a distance, now with what appears to be a sea monster or creature emerging from the water nearby, adding a new layer of danger. The final panel reveals this was all a fantasy or daydream: a man is talking to a woman, saying "I know I'm a jerk, but I could be a good person... if I were with you," while she thinks skeptically about the scenario we just witnessed.
The joke is about the self-serving fantasy of the "bad boy" who claims he would change for the right woman. The helicopter rescue sequence represents his imagined heroic self -- someone who would rush to help others. But even in his own fantasy, he crashes and fails spectacularly, suggesting that his claim of potential goodness is delusional. The woman's skeptical expression shows she isn't buying it.
The votey drives the point home with the man asking "You're cool with cheating, right?" -- immediately undermining his just-stated desire to be a better person and confirming that his promise to change was entirely hollow, as is typical of manipulative romantic rhetoric.