Caption Contest Commentary

The campers in Benjamin Schwartz’s cartoon are in their sleeping bags. They’ve been awakened by a bear, who’s performing a stand-up routine just outside their tent. The male camper is reaching into his backpack for his cellphone, and his girlfriend is saying something to him. I first made references to killing and dying, words that…
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Ivan Ehlers’ cartoon is set in a restaurant, where a waiter with a menu in his hand is addressing two diners. They look like slugs, but because they don’t have eye stalks I’m assuming they’re alien life forms. All my captions are inspired by comments or suggestions that waiters make before taking orders. “Might I…
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In Kaamran Hafeez’s cartoon, a clown whose office furniture has been fashioned out of circus balloons is addressing a female colleague. I didn’t like my first idea—“I’m dressing for the job I want”—because some variation on that joke is submitted for every contest that features a character wearing inappropriate clothing. I expect to see a…
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This contest is so challenging, Bob Mankoff received an e-mail from a former editor at The Wall Street Journal asking for help deciphering Maddie Dai’s cartoon. Bob didn’t give him or me any hints, but it looks like a counterfeiting or forgery operation. Two men are seated at a table, busy at work. Hanging above…
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