2015-03-03
Explanation
The Joke
In a parody of Lord of the Rings, Gandalf tells Frodo that the ring must be destroyed and must be taken to Mount Doom. Frodo objects, saying he's "not tromping all that way" and that he already took care of a similar errand last week. Gandalf then reveals that the box of stuff from that previous errand is filled with random junk — teeth, wire, flossing, mostly "the worst care package you get when you eat a lot of candy." He says he just dropped the ring in there. He then challenges Frodo: "Go ahead! Fish it out! Unlimited power! Just stick your hand in there!"
Frodo declines, saying "That's what I thought."
The Humor
The joke reimagines the One Ring's security system not as an elaborate quest to a volcano but as the much more relatable (and disgusting) strategy of hiding something valuable in a box of gross stuff that nobody wants to dig through. Gandalf has essentially made the Ring of Power inaccessible by burying it in a box of dental flossing waste, candy-related detritus, and other unpleasant objects. The comedy lies in the mundane effectiveness of this approach — Frodo, who in the original story would brave orcs and the fires of Mount Doom, is completely deterred by the prospect of sticking his hand into a disgusting care package. It satirizes how often simple, unglamorous solutions are more effective than epic ones.
References
- The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien: The comic parodies the central quest of the story, in which the hobbit Frodo must carry the One Ring to Mount Doom to destroy it, guided by the wizard Gandalf.