2013-11-13
Explanation
This comic explores the concept of hedonic adaptation -- the psychological phenomenon where people return to a baseline level of happiness regardless of positive life changes. A character explains that enjoyment is like a drug: you need more and more to reach the same levels of satisfaction. A score of 7 out of 10 that thrilled you as a child becomes merely average by the time you're an adult.
The character then asks his companion to think back over these "diminishing returns" and recall the pleasures of being five years old. The other person enthusiastically lists childish joys: pulling a girl's hair, jumping in mud, cookies. Then the scene cuts to a doctor saying "Hyperglycemic stroke. I'm sorry." The punchline darkly suggests that trying to recapture the simple pleasures of childhood (particularly eating lots of cookies) can have serious health consequences as an adult, adding a morbid twist to the otherwise philosophical discussion about happiness.