time-prank
Explanation
The Joke
The comic presents "High Tech Prank #7,819: A Wrinkle in Time" as a step-by-step guide. Step 1: Create an app that makes people's faces look much older. Step 2: Wait for someone to use a time-related figure of speech (like "Come on, it's 2021. How is this still an issue?"). Step 3: Respond in fake confusion ("2021? It's 2051. My God, are you just waking up from the chemical wars?"). Step 4: Turn on the aging app and hand over the phone so the victim examines their face for marks or boxing injuries. Step 5: Enjoy the amusing result as the victim panics, shouting "It's all gone. It's not fair! It's not fair!"
The Humor
The humor comes from the elaborate, multi-step nature of the prank that exploits a very specific and common conversational habit -- people referencing the current year to make a point. The prank weaponizes a face-aging app to make someone believe they have somehow been transported decades into the future and missed catastrophic events like "chemical wars."
The final panel's victim reaction -- "It's all gone. It's not fair!" -- is a reference to the classic Twilight Zone episode "Time Enough at Last," where a bookworm finally has all the time in the world to read but breaks his glasses. This connection is reinforced by the comic's subtitle "A Wrinkle in Time," referencing the Madeleine L'Engle novel, tying the whole prank to time-displacement fiction.
References
- "A Wrinkle in Time" is a 1962 science fiction novel by Madeleine L'Engle about children who travel through space and time.
- The victim's reaction in Step 5 strongly echoes the famous ending of "Time Enough at Last" (1959), a Twilight Zone episode starring Burgess Meredith.
- Face-aging apps like FaceApp became viral phenomena in the late 2010s.