Leonardo6/ny_cartoon_1k huggingface dataset:
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Two thousand eyes, but it still takes you all day to read the morning paper. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A fly with many eyes presumably should be able to read a newspaper quickly, but it still can't. The woman is slightly annoyed that her bug spouse is spending all day reading the paper instead of doing something else.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: I told my ex I'll take her back if she drops some weight. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A play on the words "drops some weight" --- figuratively, to drop weight usually refers to go on a diet; this man has apparently broken up with his partner because she is too fat. But, she takes ironic revenge in the form of her literally dropping a weight, i.e., a cinderblock, on his head.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: I think we made a wrong turn at puberty. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: The two older men are too mature for this situation of teenagers driving a car wildly and irresponsibly. The joke is that on their trip, there's a physical place called "puberty", and at that road juncture, the two should have gone towards the direction of maturity instead of this immature direction. It's partly funny because puberty is often framed as an important figurative juncture in life, whereas here, it's a literal juncture.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: There's really nothing to it. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A play on the phrase "nothing to it" --- in the context of rock climbing, this phrase would usually mean that "there's no particular special skill required, it's easy to rock climb!" But, because there's literally no surface the person is rock climbing on, the climber is referring to the fact that he's literally climbing nothing.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: I suspect some people will deny this ever happened. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A joke about creationists denying evolution. Here, the body outlines at the crime scene form an evolutionary chain, and provide strong evidence for evolution. But, much like someone might deny that a crime happened as a cover up, the detective suspects that, despite this evidence, creationists will still not believe evolution ever happened.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: I'm supposed to call my doctor if it lasts more than 4 hours. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A crude joke about erections. People with erectile dysfunction will sometimes take medication to help, but are told that if the medicine works for longer than 4 hours, it's a problem. But here, while Rapunzel is usually the person lowering her hair, the prince tried to resolve their problem by taking medication to grow his own hair instead.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Fine—next time you slay the dragon and I'll cook. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: We expect that slaying a dragon is harder than cooking, but actually, the knight seems to have an easier time, as evidenced by the extremely messy kitchen and disheveled looking cook; this inversion of expectation is funny.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: He won't last long. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: Usually, people might say that someone "wont last long" to mean that they can tell a new situation for someone will not go well and they'll quit, e.g., in this case, when a new employee at a company won't fit in. But here, the new employee is made of bubbles, which literally do not last long because they pop, so the joke is that he physically won't last long (instead of socially).
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: I'm sorry, this is Tic-Tac-Toe—applications for Hangman are down the hall. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A stick figure, out of place in an otherwise normal office scenario, might be interviewing for the job of the stick figure from the word game "hangman". This building apparently offers interviews for various game roles, e.g., Tic-tac-toe.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: I'd like to try group therapy with a different group. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: Group therapy is usually conducted with a collection of people with a common set of experiences, and a common method of engagement, e.g., going around in a circle and talking. But here, the men are getting their therapy by watching the sports game, leaving the woman alone in the session. This plays on the trope that, on average, men and women have different emotional capacity to undertake introspective forms of therapy (with men being less capable).
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: How soon can you start? Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: The prior employee who had this job is getting violently chased out of the building and they need a replacement for him quickly; this is a metaphor for a toxic workplace. Even though the applicant might not want to work here because it's a bad job, he literally can't see how toxic the workplace is because he's facing the wrong way.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: He needed a place to park his wheel. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A person might construct a garage because they want to park their car in it; but because cavemen don't have cars, the joke is that the caveman was looking for a place to park his carved wheel, which is a common trope associated with cavemen. It's funny in part because the construction of a modern garage implies technological advancement, whereas the stone wheel is primitive.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: No, I said to play with more attitude. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A play on words: "attitude" and "altitude" sound the same. The pianist was given the request by his instructor to play with "attitude" (e.g., by playing more aggressively) but instead, he is doing the much more difficult act of playing with "altitude" by climbing to the top of a mountain with his piano.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: I have to warn you, I don't exactly have a bladder of steel. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: People on window seats in airplanes need to climb over people in aisle seats in order to access the bathroom at the end of the plane: this can be annoying because of how cramped the space is. Here, superman, also known as "the man of steel" is warning his seat-mate that he will need to get up to use the restroom because, despite his name, he doesn't have a "bladder of steel," i.e., he will need to use the bathroom to pee frequently.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Anyone have an objection? Please? Anyone? Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: The man doesn't want to get married as much as the woman does: she's clinging to him while he looks horrified. When people get married, officiants ask the crowd if there are any objections, and the man is hoping someone raises one. It's funny because the man could stop the marriage of his own accord, but is too afraid of his partner to do it.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: If I'm not back at the maze by eight, my wife reels in the damn string. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A minotaur famously lives in a labyrinth/maze. But, this mythical creature is at a bar lamenting about everyday problems with everyday people --- in this case, the minotaur's everyday problem is that his wife wants him home early (by 8PM), but his home is the maze. To "reel in the string" means to figuratively shorten his leash, i.e., his wife reduces his freedom (e.g., to go to a bar).
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: So what makes you think we need a health inspector? Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: The outlines of the bodies on the ground imply that many people die in this bar; the cause of death is perhaps poison or unsanitary conditions because the health inspector has been called, though the owner is in denial.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Carry on. I'll just be a fly on the wall. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: In the business context, "a fly on the wall" means a participant in a meeting that is simply there to listen-in and not participate. But the "fly on the wall" here is literal --- the man is literally on the wall.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Oh, hey, I almost didn't recognize you outside of work. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A joke about "Moby Dick." In the story, the one-legged protagonist is a sailor ruthlessly chasing down the whale who ate his leg. The joke is that both the whale and the sailor only did these acts as a job, and that off the clock, they casually ran into each-other at the grocery store. While work colleagues not recognizing each-other outside of the office is a common occurrence, it's surprising that the obsessive sailor has disconnected from his work enough to not even recognize his biggest rival in life.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: No, what I said was we need more stakeholders. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: "Stakeholders" sounds like "snakeholders": stakeholders would be a normal office request, but the two people holding a snake have surprised their boss by becoming literal snakeholders instead.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Now that I met your family, I want you to meet mine. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A joke about a man dating a fish. When couples date for a while, they often meet each-other's families. Here, the caption implies that the fish/man couple just met the fish's family in the ocean, and are perhaps on the way to meet the man's family on land. It's funny because it's a surprising framing of why a man and a fish might be leaving the water together.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Both the movie and I will be released this summer. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A play on the word "release" --- to release a movie means to allow public showings of it, e.g., in theaters. This actress stared in a movie that will be released this summer, according to her respond to the talk show host. But "release" in this case also refers to a release from prison --- the actress has apparently committed a crime and her sentence ends also in the summer.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Be careful, the bald spot is slippery. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: The joke is about the businessmen having an oddly nonchalant response to hell literally opening up in their office. Instead of taking this as a sign about their company or practices, they instead simply walk over the dammed souls, only commenting that one's bald head is physically slippery.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Worse than a cold. It's a common cold. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A play on words. "common cold" in the modern world refers to the usually benign illness, but for this king, a "common" cold would mean a cold that only commoners (and not royalty, like himself) get. The doctor is suggesting that the "common" cold is not only a sickness, but also beneath his status as king.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: I feel a vibration. Can you call my cell phone again? Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A surreal joke about a man attempting to locate his cell phone that has been eaten by an alligator. While it's not clear how the alligator ate the phone, to locate it, he's asking his assistant to remotely activate the vibration feature via calling it. The vibration can help him locate the phone because, while the sound might be dampened, he can feel through the skin/stomach its location.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Will the gentleman be alive for dinner, sir? Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A joke about a butler preparing dinner for a scientist and his subject. The scientist is trying to bring the monster back to life; the butler is wondering if the monster will be alive in time for dinner, and if he should prepare extra food for this potential dinner guest.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: We really need to revisit our immigration policy. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: The realistic looking head has immigrated to live with the Moai, who look uncomfortable because the new head looks different. This is a play on the idea that people are sometimes uncomfortable with outsiders coming in to their country; even the inanimate Moai statues want to update their policy accordingly.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: There may be some lingering resentment. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: People sometimes hang hunting or finishing taxidermy trophies of their kills/catches on their walls. The taxidermy has come to life and bit the man who was the one who killed him. It's thus understandable that the fish (if it could come alive) would resent its killer; the man nonchalantly quips about their tenuous relationship.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: If we just ignore it, maybe it'll go away. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A joke about financial collapse on wall street. Wall street has a famous statue of a bull which "represents the courage and can-do spirit of Americans," but the cartoon suggests that sometimes, for the stock market crashing, a more appropriate mascot might be an ostrich hiding its head in the dirt, as a representation of ignoring problems and hiding from them.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: My last office had a castle. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A silly joke about employees who work in fish bowls --- sometimes, fish bowls have decorations like fake seaweed or castle sculptures. While in the real world it would be impressive to work a desk job in a castle, here, the castle of the previous job is just a small, fake castle decoration in a fish tank.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: We met at the mini bar. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A common way for people to meet romantic partners is at a bar. Here, the woman is talking about how she met her partner, but because the person is very small, instead of the common case of meeting at a bar, they met at a mini bar, in reference to his size. It silly in part because a mini bar is a feature of a hotel room, not where people would meet.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Which kid do you want? Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A joke about a man keen to get divorced. In addition to eagerly building a brick wall to separate himself from his spouse, he is wasting no time to ask questions about custody that would normally be really tricky to answer. Bluntly: he's so excited about the divorce that he simply asks which kid she wants, which isn't even how custody usually works.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Let's continue this discussion over a hot barrel of coffee. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: Everything on the man's desk is over-sized, so perhaps everything in this company is too: instead of a mug of coffee, they will be drinking an entire barrel.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Didn’t you see the light? Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A play on the phrase "see the light". Figuratively, it means to have a revelation about a period of doubt, sometimes in a religious way. Here, satan, a fallen angel of god who sometimes masquerades as a good angel, has not seen the light. But here,  he also hasn't seen the literal street light, causing a car crash. The angel is surprised satan didn't see the light in either sense.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: It’s time you learned about managing people’s expectations. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A common lesson in the adult workplace is not to set expectations for your work too high: the dad using a small shovel has set low snow-clearing expectations, whereas the child has set expectations too high by taking the larger snow shovel. The dad is teaching the child this lesson.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: It could be a combination of things. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A play on the term "combination of things" --- doctors often have difficulty finding the cause of symptoms because their causes can be caused by multiple factors, i.e., a combination of things. But here, the patient is a combination safe, which is unlocked by a literal combination.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: How many times do I have to tell you, don't call me at work! Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: In a circus act, a lion plays the part of a ferocious and scary animal --- but, this phone conversation humanizes the lion by pointing out that they are only acting/doing their job. As a result, they have everyday concerns about their employment, e.g., this lion is embarrassed that their spouse called them at work and seeks work-life separation.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Dr. Ogden just called to say your mercury levels are on the high side. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: When doctors treat older humans, they measure things like cholesterol, blood pressure, etc. But, in this odd world, the walrus is being treated by a human doctor, and his medical problems are related to mercury, which is a problem for sea life like fish. The woman looks on disapprovingly, almost as if mercury levels were affected by the walrus sneaking unhealthy foods.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Between you and me, the owner can't unload this fast enough. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: To "unload" a property would mean to sell it quickly, but the double meaning of "unload" also applies to unloading a washer or drier: it's not clear if the owner wants to sell quickly, or just move the clothes out of the appliances.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: The piano's in tune, but the house is a little flat. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A play on words: "flat" can mean that an instrument is out of tune, like the piano could be (but isn't). The house is literally "flat", however, i.e.: it has been flattened to the ground.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: I got your message. How can I help? Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A joke about a message in a bottle and who is likely to receive it. Following the common "stranded on a desert island" trope, the person on the island sent out a plea for help by putting a message in a bottle, and throwing it into the ocean. However, the bottle didn't make it to a city, it was received by an unhelpful whale. The whale has their heart in the right place and came to help, but ended up just crushing the person.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Backstabbing was already prevalent--we just added a twist. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A play on the terms "backstabbing" and "twist". Figuratively, backstabbing in an office would refer to betrayal, e.g., by passing someone over for a promotion. But here, the backstabbing in the office is literal. Furthermore, the "twist" is indeed a figurative twist, i.e., an unexpected turn of events. But, it's also a literal twist added to the backstabbing: instead of stabbing with knives, employees are backstabbed with literally twistable "keys" that are usually used to wind up, e.g., toys.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Do YOU remember what you had for lunch last Thursday? Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: The shark being interrogated has eaten a person, and the cops are showing a picture of the person they ate to them. The cops accuse the shark of eating the person on Thursday, and, in defense, the shark retorts that he doesn't remember, and justifies this by saying that it's normal to not recall that type of detail: the cops also probably couldn't remember what they had for lunch a few days ago. The joke is that lunch isn't a small unimportant detail for the shark because they killed someone.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: Does our plumber do exorcisms? Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: A Clawfoot Tub is a type of bath tub with legs, here, that tub has come alive with the person inside, and it's walking down the hallway. An inanimate object might come alive if a demon possessed it. In this case, the man is asking if their plumber, who is familiar with clawfoot bathtub repair, is also capable of doing an exorcism (i.e., a ritual to rid someone/something of a demonic possession): both skills would be useful in this case.
user: Given a cartoon image and a caption. Caption: We're really looking for someone with more lab experience. Question: Generating an explanation of why this image/caption combination is funny. Answer: 

assistant: The turtle is applying for the job of running in the mouse wheel, but because turtles are not as commonly used as subjects in laboratory studies, its application is gently rejected. It's a play on the term "lab experience," which in a usual job application for a research position might refer to hands-on experience conducting experiments, but here refers to hands-on experience being a test subject.