2012-08-23
Explanation
This comic subverts the sentimental trope of a dying father expressing his final wishes. An elderly bald man with glasses, lying in what appears to be a hospital bed, tells his red-haired daughter: "When I die, I don'''t want a big sad inconvenient event. Who'''d want to go to that?! I want a PARTY at my funeral. A great big party that'''s the best you'''ve ever seen!" The daughter begins to respond warmly with "Aww... Dad, that'''s so sw--" before he cuts her off with the sinister reveal: "That'''s how I'''ll trap you all in my mausoleum."
The joke works by exploiting the familiar and often cliched sentiment that people want their funerals to be celebrations rather than somber affairs. This is a common deathbed wish that is almost always presented as heartwarming. Weinersmith initially plays it completely straight, letting the reader settle into the expected emotional beat, before revealing the father'''s actual motivation is cartoonishly villainous -- he wants to lure everyone to a great party specifically so he can entomb them all with him, like an ancient Egyptian pharaoh taking servants to the afterlife.
The votey shows the father adding "By the way, please keep this conversation to yourself," which reinforces the dark humor by confirming this is indeed a deliberate, premeditated scheme rather than just a morbid joke. He needs his daughter'''s silence for the trap to work, adding a layer of conspiratorial menace to an otherwise absurd premise.