506: Theft of the Magi

Explain xkcd: It's 'cause you're dumb.
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Theft of the Magi
Every Roomba needs a dueling harness.
Title text: Every Roomba needs a dueling harness.

Explanation

This comic is a satirical play on O Henry's short story The Gift of the Magi. In O Henry's story, a couple with very little money go to great lengths to show purchase gifts for one another. The wife sells her prized possession, her hair, to purchase a fancy chain for her husband's prize possession, a watch; while the husband sells his watch to purchase some fancy hair accessories (clips/combs) for his wife. The story is about selflessness, as each party sold their prize possession to purchase something to enhance the other's prize possession.

In this comic however, the opposite occurs - Black Hat sold Danish's Roomba to buy a new game, while Danish sold Black Hat's x-box to buy a harness for her Roomba, highlighting their possibly mutually destructive selfishness.

Transcript

[Black Hat is holding up a video game. Danish is holding up a harness.]
Black Hat: Hey. I sold your Roomba on Craigslist so I could buy myself Left 4 Dead.
Danish: But I eBayed your XBox so I could get this dueling harness for my Roomba!
Black Hat: Aww.
Danish: Aww.


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Discussion

Is it an "aaw" of dissapointment, or an "aaw" of affection? 108.162.231.121 23:28, 19 February 2014 (UTC)

In the comic, it's spelled "aww", as in a cuteness overload. Please note the difference. /s
I think it's an aww of affection, as explained above. 173.245.55.67 21:24, 18 April 2014 (UTC)BK201

Correct me if I'm wrong, but in "The gift of the Magi", wouldn/t the wife's hair grow back eventually, thus meaning she actualy gave away nothing (And got a very nice set of hairbrushes in return)? 108.162.246.254 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

Said like someone who doesn't know how much effort maintaining long hair takes! -Pennpenn 108.162.250.162 03:44, 30 June 2015 (UTC)

Why is L4D expensive enough to cost a used roomba? and why does an expected-to-be-like-20-dollars dueling harness cost a used xbox? --108.162.215.58 22:40, 13 May 2015 (UTC)

It's not about the money value of the items, but the sociopathic malice invested in their theft that counts! -Pennpenn 108.162.250.162 03:44, 30 June 2015 (UTC)

i'm pretty sure it's an aww of dissapointment, as in aww i couldnt get that!

I'm pretty sure an aww of affection suits the dynamic of their relationship where there mutually destructive tendencies are a key factor binding them together.

162.158.92.101 13:09, 31 December 2021 (UTC)

Fun fact, this page shows up first when you search "theft of the magi" and the actual comic is second! 172.70.175.178 18:54, 20 March 2022 (UTC)Bumpf

guys, this actually exists! search "roomba dueling harness" New editor (talk) 20:46, 25 August 2022 (UTC)

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