jenny
Explanation
This comic shows a classic romantic gesture: a small airplane trailing a banner that reads "JENNY SMITH, WILL YOU MARRY ME?" A woman on the ground responds ecstatically: "I will! Oh my God!" But beside her, another woman says: "What in Jesus' name--"
The caption below delivers the punchline: "Did you know that Jennifer is the most common name for women between the ages of 20 and 40?"
The joke is about the unintended consequences of using a skywriting marriage proposal with a very common name. The man intended the message for one specific Jenny Smith, but because Jennifer (and its diminutive Jenny) is extremely common, and Smith is the most common surname in English-speaking countries, there are potentially dozens of Jenny Smiths in any given area who could see the banner and think it's meant for them. The woman saying "I will!" may not even be the intended recipient -- she's just another Jenny Smith who happened to look up. The second woman's shocked reaction suggests she too might be a Jenny Smith, or is simply bewildered by the first woman's response. It's a simple but effective gag about the pitfalls of grand romantic gestures that rely on public broadcasting when you have an extremely common name.