Explain SMBC — the wiki for Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal

This comic is about hot dogs and the mismatch between the number of buns and hot dogs in standard packages. A father tells his son: "Son, we don't need any fancy math. We just need dog company." But the son points out: "But you sell buns AND dogs, don't you?" The dad explains that people want to be able to buy buns and dogs in the same quantity, but buns come in packs of a different number than dogs.

The middle panels show the mathematical revelation: you can create a formula or system where buns and dogs can never be equal, but you can find a number that makes them nearly equal, and the number of purchases needed grows ever larger. The dad reacts with an awed "My God." The final panel shows the store sign: "Buns: 5 ct. count" and "Dogs: 6 count" -- revealing the classic American grocery store problem where hot dog buns come in packs of a different size than hot dogs.

The joke is a mathematical/consumer satire about the famously frustrating mismatch between hot dog bun packages (typically 8) and hot dog packages (typically 10) in American grocery stores. The comic elevates this mundane annoyance into a mathematical conspiracy, suggesting the mismatch is a deliberate business strategy to force consumers into buying more packages to reach parity. The humor lies in treating this trivial grocery store inconvenience with the gravitas of a mathematical proof or business conspiracy, complete with a father-son dramatic revelation scene.