evolution-4
Explanation
The Joke
In this comic, two celestial beings (appearing as God-like figures, one resembling a large orange alien or deity) are observing Earth from the clouds. The first one says they have let evolution run long enough and wants to see what has developed down on the planet. When they look, they find a large insect-like creature. One of them notes the creature has evolved intelligence, which initially seems promising, but then the creature announces it is going to "lay my eggs inside" something, referring to its abdomen in a way that highlights it is still fundamentally a terrifying bug despite its intelligence. In the next panels, the creature -- with any luck -- will begin "sucking the insides out" of its prey, confirming it is still a horrifying predatory insect. One of the celestial observers decides to throw asteroids at the planet. The final panel has the other observer telling God, "I told you to stick with the mammals, man."
The comic plays on the idea that if evolution had produced intelligent life from insects rather than mammals, the result would be deeply horrifying to us. An intelligent being that reproduces by laying eggs inside other creatures and feeds by liquefying and sucking out the innards of prey is objectively nightmarish, even if it can talk and reason. The comic suggests that God's choice to favor mammals on Earth was the right call.
The Humor
The comedy comes from the collision between the lofty concept of intelligent life and the revolting biological reality of insect reproduction and feeding. We tend to imagine intelligent alien life as humanoid or at least dignified, but this comic points out that intelligence does not make parasitoid wasps or predatory arthropods any less horrifying. The punchline -- God's companion telling him to "stick with the mammals" -- frames the development of mammalian intelligence on Earth as a deliberate design choice to avoid exactly this kind of nightmare scenario. The casual way the intelligent bug describes its gruesome behavior, as if it is perfectly normal, adds to the dark humor.
References
The comic references parasitoid wasps, which in real life lay their eggs inside living hosts. The idea of God throwing asteroids at the planet to start over is a playful nod to the asteroid impact theory for mass extinction events like the one that killed the dinosaurs.