Try not to stare at my entries in the Cartoon Collections Caption Contest #40. The drawing is by P. C. Vey.
"Relax. I'm low on batteries." "My name is Rachel but people call me Ray." "No worries. This thing hasn't worked all week." "I lost two husbands to a software glitch." "Why are men so intimidated by a powerful woman?" "Go ahead, say I'm shrill." "A penny for your thoughts, or should I just extract them?" "I find it's a great conversation ender."
I could have entered these captions but didn't. Were they up to speed?
"I like you. Is there anyone here you'd like annihilated?" "Actually, it dispenses mustard." "Go ahead, make my ray." "Watch out, buddy, the warranty is up." "With great power comes a great electric bill."
September 18, 2019 Update: The Winner
September 25, 2019 Update: I see that Lawrence Wood, in his analysis of this contest, mentions my last two entries, a first.
Leonard: A death ray?
Mary Cooper: Well, that's what he called it—didn't even slow down the neighbor kids.
It was 2007 and "The Big Bang Theory" was in its fourth episode. The series was already very good but had yet to hit its stride. This unusual snippet of dialogue seems a little out of place. The prodigal Sheldon Cooper invents a death ray if only in name. We know it doesn't work because they tried to use it on children in the neighborhood. A death ray? It goes by so fast I'm sure most viewers scarcely notice. But each time I see it, it nearly knocks me off my chair. With this macabre joke, are the writers of "The Big Bang Theory" paying homage to cartoonist Charles Addams?
Over the years this episode has been viewed millions of times and I'm sure at least a few may have picked up on the reference, but very likely most viewers did not. A cursory search of the internets does not show anything about the Addams connection, so I'll make the case for it here. In the video, Sheldon's mother Mary Cooper recollects what Sheldon was like as a child:
"A death ray?"
Image added August 10, 2015
Transcription of "The Big Bang Theory" Season 1, Episode 4 "The Luminous Fish Effect"
Excerpt from "The Big Bang Theory" Season 1, Episode 4
"The Luminous Fish Effect"
Video added April 29, 2023
This death ray could be a reference to a classic 1953 cartoon by Charles Addams originally published in the New Yorker. It has since been collected in Homebodies (1954) and elsewhere so it is not by any means unfamiliar to Mr. Addams's fans.
Charles Addams,"Death ray, fiddlesticks! Why, it doesn't even slow them up." The New Yorker, May 16, 1953, page 25
Earth Day falls on April 22. Last year, I'm sorry to say, my celebration of Earth Day was marred by the unsolicited appearance of Marvin Martian. Or is it Marvin the Martian? Either way, I'm certainly not going to let that happen again this year. Happy Earth Day, earthlings!
Virgil Ross, Bugs Bunny and Marvin Martian Profiles in History, July 29, 2012
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