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==Explanation==
 
==Explanation==
This comic is a parody of the {{w|Discovery Channel}} commercial showing various clips of people singing a song with the chorus line [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=at_f98qOGY0 'Boom De Yada']. The comic is divided into a grid of 4 by 6 panels, each depicting a character or situation from a previous xkcd strip. In each panel is written a part of a song similar to the song from the Discovery Channel commercial."
+
This comic is a parody of the {{w|Discovery Channel}} commercial showing various clips of people singing a song with the chorus line [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=at_f98qOGY0 'Boom De Yada']. The comic is divided into a grid of 4 by 6 panels, most depicting a character or situation from a previous xkcd strip. In each panel is written a part of a song similar to the song from the Discovery Channel commercial.
  
 
The campaign from the {{w|Discovery Channel}} was not called "Boom De Yada", but "{{w|I Love the World}}". The title "xkcd Loves the Discovery Channel" is in reference to this.
 
The campaign from the {{w|Discovery Channel}} was not called "Boom De Yada", but "{{w|I Love the World}}". The title "xkcd Loves the Discovery Channel" is in reference to this.
  
Most of the panels are references to previous xkcd strips, but some are not.
+
Most of the panels are references to previous xkcd strips, but a few are not.
  
 
;Panel 1 ''I love momentum.''  
 
;Panel 1 ''I love momentum.''  
:A reference to comic [[162]], where Megan spins in a circle to "rob the planet of angular momentum."
+
:A reference to comic [[162: Angular Momentum]], where [[Megan]] spins in a circle to "rob the planet of angular momentum."
 
;Panel 2 ''I love to engineer.''  
 
;Panel 2 ''I love to engineer.''  
:A reference to comic [[413]], where Megan and Cueball turn an EEE PC into a household pet.
+
:A reference to comic [[413: New Pet]], where Megan and [[Cueball]] turn an {{w|EEE PC}} into a household pet.
 
;Panel 3 ''I love this bakery!''   
 
;Panel 3 ''I love this bakery!''   
:A reference to comic [[434]], where Beret Guy shows his liking for bakeries in first panel. His love of bakeries is a recurring gag in the comic.
+
:A reference to comic [[434: xkcd Goes to the Airport]], where [[Beret Guy]] shows his liking for bakeries in first panel. His love of bakeries is a recurring gag in the comic.
 
;Panel 4 ''I love the blogosphere!''  
 
;Panel 4 ''I love the blogosphere!''  
:A reference to comic [[239]], where someone from the far future believes many people blogged from high-altitude balloons whilst wearing red capes and goggles. The flying character may be {{w|Cory Doctorow}}, who is mentioned in the comic as the only blogger to actually do this, and who also appeared in comic [[345]] in this guise.
+
:A reference to comic [[239: Blagofaire]], where someone from the far future believes many people blogged from high-altitude balloons whilst wearing red capes and goggles. The flying character may be {{w|Cory Doctorow}}, who is mentioned in the comic as the only blogger to actually do this, and who also appeared in comic [[345: 1337: Part 5]] in this guise.
 
;Panel 5 ''I love the whole world.'' (Cueball running in large hamster ball.)  
 
;Panel 5 ''I love the whole world.'' (Cueball running in large hamster ball.)  
:Likely a reference to comic [[152]], though there are multiple comics featuring human-sized hamster balls.
+
:Likely a reference to comic [[152: Hamster Ball]], though there are [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Hamster_Ball multiple comics] featuring human-sized {{w|Hamster ball|hamster balls}}.
 
;Panel 6 ''And all its messed-up folks.''  
 
;Panel 6 ''And all its messed-up folks.''  
:A reference to the /b/ ("Random") forum on {{w|4chan}}, which is in fact home to plenty of "messed-up folks". This internet behavior is something Randall coments on in several comics both before and after this. For instance here: [[202: YouTube]]
+
:A reference to the /b/ ("Random") forum on {{w|4chan}}, which is in fact home to plenty of "messed-up folks". This on-line behavior is something [[Randall]] comments on in several comics both before and after this. For instance in [[202: YouTube]].
 
;Panel 7 ''Boom de yada, Boom de yada'' (Cueball and Megan immersed in playpen balls.)  
 
;Panel 7 ''Boom de yada, Boom de yada'' (Cueball and Megan immersed in playpen balls.)  
:A reference to comic [[150]], where Megan decides that she has the ability to, and wants to, turn her house into a giant playpen.
+
:A reference to comic [[150: Grownups]], where Megan decides that she has the ability to, and wants to, turn her house into a giant ball pit.
 
;Panel 8 ''Boom de yada, Boom de yada'' (''I put on my robe and wizard hat'')  
 
;Panel 8 ''Boom de yada, Boom de yada'' (''I put on my robe and wizard hat'')  
:A reference to [http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/text/bloodninja this roleplay chat transcript] (NSFW), which became an Internet meme. A user named bloodninja would roleplay as a wizard during {{w|cybersex}} (saying "I put on my robe and wizard hat" to signal this) and invariably infuriate his unwitting partners with demeaning actions. Other incidents involved him roleplaying as a rhinoceros.
+
:A reference to [http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/text/bloodninja this roleplay chat transcript] (NSFW), which became an Internet meme. A user named bloodninja would roleplay as a wizard during {{w|cybersex}} (saying "I put on my robe and wizard hat" to signal this) and invariably infuriate his unwitting partners with demeaning actions. Other incidents involved him roleplaying as a rhinoceros. In the above mentioned comic [[150: Grownups]] the two characters also disappear, but in that case a big pink heart comes out of the playpen balls. 
 
;Panel 9 ''I love your suffering.''  
 
;Panel 9 ''I love your suffering.''  
:The recurring character [[Black Hat]] is being his usual self and causing suffering for his own amusement, as in comic [[72]]. In this panel he is seen either taking a present away from a child, who is upset, or giving the child a package containing a bobcat, like the package in comic [[325]].
+
:The recurring character [[Black Hat]] is being his usual self and causing suffering for his own amusement, as in comic [[72: Classhole]]. In this panel he is seen giving the child a package containing a bobcat, like the package in comic [[325: A-Minus-Minus]]. This would explain the lines indicating the box to be moving in Black Hat's hands.
 
;Panel 10 ''I love cryptography.''  
 
;Panel 10 ''I love cryptography.''  
:{{w|Cryptography}} is a subject that comes up often in the comic, notably, in comics [[153]] and [[177]] before this one (for a full list see [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Cryptography Category:Cryptography]). The panel shows a flowchart of the kind commonly used to show how a particular cryptosystem works and/or how it can be broken.
+
:{{w|Cryptography}} is a subject that comes up often in the comic, notably, in comics [[153: Cryptography]] and [[177: Alice and Bob]] before this one (for a full list see [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Cryptography Category:Cryptography]). The panel shows a flowchart of the kind commonly used to show how a particular cryptosystem works and/or how it can be broken.
 
;Panel 11 ''I love entangled sheets.''  
 
;Panel 11 ''I love entangled sheets.''  
:Sexual reference. Also brought up in comic [[230]].  
+
:Sexual reference. Sex and red sheets are also brought up in comic [[230: Hamiltonian]].  
 
;Panel 12 ''And kite photography.''
 
;Panel 12 ''And kite photography.''
:A reference to Randall Munroe's own hobby of [http://xkcd.com/kite/ kite photography] as well as comic [[235]].
+
:A reference to Randall's own hobby of [http://xkcd.com/kite/ kite photography] as well as comic [[235: Kite]].
 
;Panel 13 ''I love the whole world'' (Map of the internet.)
 
;Panel 13 ''I love the whole world'' (Map of the internet.)
:A reference to comic [[256]], featuring online communities of the time visualised as a world map, with geographic area representing their approximate membership size. There is, more directly, a pun on "internet", namely "outernet".  
+
:A reference to comic [[256: Online Communities]], featuring online communities of the time visualised as a world map, with geographic area representing their approximate membership size. There is, more directly, a pun on "internet", namely "outernet".  
 
;Panel 14 ''And all its mysteries.''
 
;Panel 14 ''And all its mysteries.''
 
:A reference to a series of comics on "red spiders:" [[8|8: Red Spiders]], [[43|43: Red Spiders 2]], [[47|47: Counter-Red Spiders]], [[126|126: Red Spiders Cometh]], and [[427|427: Bad Timing]].  
 
:A reference to a series of comics on "red spiders:" [[8|8: Red Spiders]], [[43|43: Red Spiders 2]], [[47|47: Counter-Red Spiders]], [[126|126: Red Spiders Cometh]], and [[427|427: Bad Timing]].  
 
;Panel 15 ''Boom de yada, Boom de yada'' (Two people sword-fighting on rolling office chairs.)
 
;Panel 15 ''Boom de yada, Boom de yada'' (Two people sword-fighting on rolling office chairs.)
:A reference to comic [[303]], where two coders battle with fake swords at work, with the excuse that their code is compiling.
+
:A reference to comic [[303: Compiling]], where two coders battle with fake swords at work, with the excuse that their code is compiling.
;Panel 16 ''Boom de yada, Boom de yada'' (Classroom with two students and Mrs. Lenhart.)
+
;Panel 16 ''Boom de yada, Boom de yada'' (Classroom with two students and a teacher.)
:Nothing too special, but it does embrace the "everybody joins in" theme behind the commercials. Mrs. Lenhart first properly appeared in comic [[263]] but may have made an appearance in comic [[59]].
+
:Nothing too special, but it does embrace the "everybody joins in" theme behind the commercials. The teacher is [[Miss Lenhart]] who was first properly introduced in comic [[263: Certainty]] but may have made an appearance in comic [[59: Graduation]].
 
;Panel 17 ''I love elections'' (''Barack me Obamadeus!'')
 
;Panel 17 ''I love elections'' (''Barack me Obamadeus!'')
:A pun on the song {{w|Rock Me Amadeus}} and US president {{w|Barack Obama}}.
+
:A pun on the song {{w|Rock Me Amadeus}} and US president {{w|Barack Obama}}. At this point Randall had not done any comics directly on elections but he made this after the one in 2008: [[500: Election]] and has shown his love for this subject also around the 2012 election.
 
;Panel 18 ''I love transistors.''  
 
;Panel 18 ''I love transistors.''  
:This panel has Cueball's crotch replaced with the (similar-looking) icon used for a {{w|transistor}} in a circuit diagram.
+
:This panel has Cueball's crotch replaced with the (similar-looking) icon used for a {{w|transistor}} in a {{w|circuit diagram}}. Randall later showed how much he loves anything that can go in to such a diagram in [[730: Circuit Diagram]].
 
;Panel 19 ''I love weird pillow talk.'' (''There ''must'' be Taft slash fiction.'')
 
;Panel 19 ''I love weird pillow talk.'' (''There ''must'' be Taft slash fiction.'')
:"[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/pillow+talk Pillow talk]" means intimate conversations between lovers, "{{w|slash fiction}}" is fanfiction with characters of the same sex, and "Taft" is {{w|William Howard Taft}}, a US President mostly remembered for his severe obesity. It appears they are invoking {{w|Rule 34 (Internet meme)|rule 34 of the Internet}}. Weird pillow talk is also the subject of comic [[69]], while the Taft reference comes from comic [[214]].
+
:"[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/pillow+talk Pillow talk]" means intimate conversations between lovers, "{{w|slash fiction}}" is fanfiction with characters of the same sex, and "Taft" is {{w|William Howard Taft}}, a US President mostly remembered for his severe obesity. It appears they are invoking {{w|Rule 34 (Internet meme)|rule 34 of the Internet}} as a reference to [[305: Rule 34]]. Weird pillow talk is also the subject of comic [[69: Pillow Talk]], while the Taft reference comes from comic [[214: The Problem with Wikipedia]].
 
;Panel 20 ''I love your sister.''
 
;Panel 20 ''I love your sister.''
:A reference to xkcd's recurring joke of dating the female character's sister, which spans several comics including [[49]], [[279]], [[317]], and [[408]].
+
:A reference to xkcd's recurring joke of dating the female character's sister, which spans several comics including [[49: Want]], [[279: Pickup Lines]], [[317: That Lovin' Feelin']], and [[408: Overqualified]].
 
;Panel 21 ''I love the whole world'' (Roller coaster with Cueball holding chess board)
 
;Panel 21 ''I love the whole world'' (Roller coaster with Cueball holding chess board)
:A reference to comic [[249]] which inspired an internet meme.
+
:A reference to comic [[249: Chess Photo]] which inspired an internet meme.
 
;Panel 22 ''The future's pretty cool!'' (Beret Guy in a forest.)
 
;Panel 22 ''The future's pretty cool!'' (Beret Guy in a forest.)
:The picture of the forest is similar to that in [[269]], though it may also be a reference to comic [[167]], where Cueball and Beret Guy make observations about the future while climbing a tree. Later, in comic [[1322]], the two are seen walking through a forest very similar to the one shown here.
+
:The picture of the forest is similar to that in [[269: TCMP]], though it may also be a reference to comic [[167: Nihilism]], where Cueball and Beret Guy make observations about the future while climbing a tree. Later, in comic [[1322: Winter]], the two are seen walking through a forest very similar to the one shown here.
 
;Panel 23 ''Boom de yada, Boom de yada'' (Megan doing the MC Hammer slide towards Cueball.)
 
;Panel 23 ''Boom de yada, Boom de yada'' (Megan doing the MC Hammer slide towards Cueball.)
:A reference to comic [[108]], where Hairy falls in love with "a girl whose only mode of transportation is the M.C. Hammer Slide."  
+
:A reference to comic [[108: M.C. Hammer Slide]], where Hairy falls in love with "a girl whose only mode of transportation is the M.C. Hammer Slide."  
 
;Panel 24 ''Boom de yada, Boom de yada'' (Cueball and Megan on an electric skateboard.)
 
;Panel 24 ''Boom de yada, Boom de yada'' (Cueball and Megan on an electric skateboard.)
:A reference to comic [[409]], where Megan and Cueball go on an electric skateboard ride.
+
:A reference to comic [[409: Electric Skateboard (Double Comic)]], where Megan and Cueball go on an electric skateboard ride, but he already introduced these back in [[139: I Have Owned Two Electric Skateboards]].
  
The title text continues the song, self-referentially. Self-reference is a reoccurring theme in Douglas Hofstader's books, notably Gödel, Escher, Bach, which have been referenced in other comics, such as [[472]] and [[917]]. Self-reference as a form of humor has also been explored in comics such as [[33]] and [[688]].
+
The title text continues the song, self-referentially. Self-reference is a reoccurring theme in {{w|Douglas Hofstadter|Douglas Hofstadter's}} books, notably ''{{w|Gödel, Escher, Bach}}'' which Randall reefers to directly in [[24: Godel, Escher, Kurt Halsey]]. Later Hofstadter has been referenced in other comics, such as in the title text of [[555: Two Mirrors]] and [[608: Form]] plus of course in [[917: Hofstadter]]. Self-reference as a form of humor was also [[:Category:Self-reference|explored before]], but most famously in the later [[688: Self-Description]].
  
 
==Transcript==
 
==Transcript==
 
:[The comic is in parody of the Discovery Channel commercial showing various clips of people singing a song with the chorus line "Boom De Yada."]
 
:[The comic is in parody of the Discovery Channel commercial showing various clips of people singing a song with the chorus line "Boom De Yada."]
:[The comic is divided into a grid of 4 by 6 panels, each depicting a character or situation from a previous xkcd strip.]
+
:[The comic is divided into a grid of 4 by 6 panels, each depicting a character or situation often from a previous xkcd strip.]
 
:[In each panel is written a part of a song similar to the song from the Discovery Channel commercial.]
 
:[In each panel is written a part of a song similar to the song from the Discovery Channel commercial.]
  
:Panel 1: (Reference Comic 162)
+
:Panel 1:
 
:[Megan spinning around.]
 
:[Megan spinning around.]
 
:I love momentum.
 
:I love momentum.
  
:Panel 2: (Reference Comic 413)
+
:Panel 2:
 
:[Megan laying on floor tinkering with EEE PC hamster ball robot.]
 
:[Megan laying on floor tinkering with EEE PC hamster ball robot.]
 
:I love to engineer.
 
:I love to engineer.
  
:Panel 3: (Reference Comic 434)
+
:Panel 3:
 
:[Beret Guy standing in bakery holding a loaf of bread in each hand, sign with "PIE!" in background.]
 
:[Beret Guy standing in bakery holding a loaf of bread in each hand, sign with "PIE!" in background.]
 
:I love this bakery!
 
:I love this bakery!
  
:Panel 4: (Reference Comic 239)
+
:Panel 4:
 
:[Cory Doctorow in goggles and red cape flying superman-style.]
 
:[Cory Doctorow in goggles and red cape flying superman-style.]
 
:I love the blogosphere!
 
:I love the blogosphere!
  
:Panel 5: (Reference Comic 152)
+
:Panel 5:
 
:[Cueball running in large hamster ball.]
 
:[Cueball running in large hamster ball.]
 
:I love the whole world
 
:I love the whole world
Line 93: Line 93:
 
:And all its messed-up folks.
 
:And all its messed-up folks.
  
:Panel 7: (Reference Comic 150)
+
:Panel 7:
 
:[Cueball and Megan immersed in playpen balls.]
 
:[Cueball and Megan immersed in playpen balls.]
 
:Boom De Yada
 
:Boom De Yada
Line 103: Line 103:
 
:Boom De Yada
 
:Boom De Yada
  
:Panel 9: (Reference Comic 72)
+
:Panel 9:
:[Black Hat taking gift away from kid with party hat.]
+
:[Black Hat giving a moving and shaking gift to a kid with party hat.]
 
:I love your suffering.
 
:I love your suffering.
  
:Panel 10: (Reference Comic 153)
+
:Panel 10:
 
:[Diagram showing RSA fingerprint authentication between two people.]
 
:[Diagram showing RSA fingerprint authentication between two people.]
 
:I love cryptography.
 
:I love cryptography.
  
:Panel 11: (Reference Comic 230)
+
:Panel 11:
 
:[Cueball and Megan in bed covered by red sheet.]
 
:[Cueball and Megan in bed covered by red sheet.]
 
:I love entangled sheets.
 
:I love entangled sheets.
  
:Panel 12: (Blag)
+
:Panel 12:
 
:[Cueball hanging from kite string holding camera.]
 
:[Cueball hanging from kite string holding camera.]
 
:And kite photography.
 
:And kite photography.
  
:Panel 13: (Reference Comic 256)
+
:Panel 13:
 
:[Map of the internet.]
 
:[Map of the internet.]
 
:I love the whole world
 
:I love the whole world
  
:Panel 14: (Reference Comic 8)
+
:Panel 14:
 
:[Cube with red spider on top.]
 
:[Cube with red spider on top.]
 
:And all its mysteries.
 
:And all its mysteries.
  
:Panel 15: (Reference Comic 303)
+
:Panel 15:
 
:[Two people sword-fighting on rolling office chairs.]
 
:[Two people sword-fighting on rolling office chairs.]
 
:Boom De Yada
 
:Boom De Yada
 
:Boom De Yada
 
:Boom De Yada
  
:Panel 16: (Reference Comic 263)
+
:Panel 16:
 
:[Classroom with two students and Mrs. Lenhart.]
 
:[Classroom with two students and Mrs. Lenhart.]
 
:Boom De Yada
 
:Boom De Yada
Line 145: Line 145:
 
:I love transistors.
 
:I love transistors.
  
:Panel 19: (Reference Comic 69)
+
:Panel 19:
 
:[Cueball and Megan in bed, Cueball saying "There ''must'' be taft slash fiction."]
 
:[Cueball and Megan in bed, Cueball saying "There ''must'' be taft slash fiction."]
 
:I love weird pillow talk.
 
:I love weird pillow talk.
  
:Panel 20: (Reference Comic 49, 279, 317)
+
:Panel 20:
 
:[Cueball speaking to Megan.]
 
:[Cueball speaking to Megan.]
 
:I love your sister.
 
:I love your sister.
  
:Panel 21: (Reference Comic 249)
+
:Panel 21:
 
:[Roller coaster with Cueball in front car holding chess board and thinking about a move.]
 
:[Roller coaster with Cueball in front car holding chess board and thinking about a move.]
 
:I love the whole world.
 
:I love the whole world.
  
:Panel 22: (Reference Comic 167)
+
:Panel 22:
 
:[Beret Guy standing in the midst of leafless trees.]
 
:[Beret Guy standing in the midst of leafless trees.]
 
:The future's pretty cool!
 
:The future's pretty cool!
  
:Panel 23: (Reference Comic 108)
+
:Panel 23:
 
:[Megan doing the MC Hammer slide towards Cueball.]
 
:[Megan doing the MC Hammer slide towards Cueball.]
 
:Boom De Yada
 
:Boom De Yada
 
:Boom De Yada
 
:Boom De Yada
  
:Panel 24: (Reference Comic 409)
+
:Panel 24:
 
:[Cueball and Megan on an electric skateboard.]
 
:[Cueball and Megan on an electric skateboard.]
 
:Boom De Yada
 
:Boom De Yada
Line 172: Line 172:
  
 
==Trivia==
 
==Trivia==
*This comic was enacted by Olga Nunes and various famous people as [http://www.olganunes.com/xkcd ''We Love xkcd''].
+
* This comic was enacted by Olga Nunes and various famous people as [http://www.olganunes.com/xkcd ''We Love xkcd''].
 +
* Noam Raby and Olga Nunes also produced an animation based upon this comic, named [https://vimeo.com/7151435 ''I Love xkcd''].
  
 
{{comic discussion}}
 
{{comic discussion}}
Line 188: Line 189:
 
[[Category:Cryptography]]
 
[[Category:Cryptography]]
 
[[Category:Hamster Ball]]
 
[[Category:Hamster Ball]]
 +
[[Category:Self-reference]]
 +
[[Category:Kites]]
 +
[[Category:Food]]
 +
[[Category:Your sister]]

Revision as of 10:01, 25 March 2018

xkcd Loves the Discovery Channel
I love the title-text!
Title text: I love the title-text!

Explanation

This comic is a parody of the Discovery Channel commercial showing various clips of people singing a song with the chorus line 'Boom De Yada'. The comic is divided into a grid of 4 by 6 panels, most depicting a character or situation from a previous xkcd strip. In each panel is written a part of a song similar to the song from the Discovery Channel commercial.

The campaign from the Discovery Channel was not called "Boom De Yada", but "I Love the World". The title "xkcd Loves the Discovery Channel" is in reference to this.

Most of the panels are references to previous xkcd strips, but a few are not.

Panel 1 I love momentum.
A reference to comic 162: Angular Momentum, where Megan spins in a circle to "rob the planet of angular momentum."
Panel 2 I love to engineer.
A reference to comic 413: New Pet, where Megan and Cueball turn an EEE PC into a household pet.
Panel 3 I love this bakery!
A reference to comic 434: xkcd Goes to the Airport, where Beret Guy shows his liking for bakeries in first panel. His love of bakeries is a recurring gag in the comic.
Panel 4 I love the blogosphere!
A reference to comic 239: Blagofaire, where someone from the far future believes many people blogged from high-altitude balloons whilst wearing red capes and goggles. The flying character may be Cory Doctorow, who is mentioned in the comic as the only blogger to actually do this, and who also appeared in comic 345: 1337: Part 5 in this guise.
Panel 5 I love the whole world. (Cueball running in large hamster ball.)
Likely a reference to comic 152: Hamster Ball, though there are multiple comics featuring human-sized hamster balls.
Panel 6 And all its messed-up folks.
A reference to the /b/ ("Random") forum on 4chan, which is in fact home to plenty of "messed-up folks". This on-line behavior is something Randall comments on in several comics both before and after this. For instance in 202: YouTube.
Panel 7 Boom de yada, Boom de yada (Cueball and Megan immersed in playpen balls.)
A reference to comic 150: Grownups, where Megan decides that she has the ability to, and wants to, turn her house into a giant ball pit.
Panel 8 Boom de yada, Boom de yada (I put on my robe and wizard hat)
A reference to this roleplay chat transcript (NSFW), which became an Internet meme. A user named bloodninja would roleplay as a wizard during cybersex (saying "I put on my robe and wizard hat" to signal this) and invariably infuriate his unwitting partners with demeaning actions. Other incidents involved him roleplaying as a rhinoceros. In the above mentioned comic 150: Grownups the two characters also disappear, but in that case a big pink heart comes out of the playpen balls.
Panel 9 I love your suffering.
The recurring character Black Hat is being his usual self and causing suffering for his own amusement, as in comic 72: Classhole. In this panel he is seen giving the child a package containing a bobcat, like the package in comic 325: A-Minus-Minus. This would explain the lines indicating the box to be moving in Black Hat's hands.
Panel 10 I love cryptography.
Cryptography is a subject that comes up often in the comic, notably, in comics 153: Cryptography and 177: Alice and Bob before this one (for a full list see Category:Cryptography). The panel shows a flowchart of the kind commonly used to show how a particular cryptosystem works and/or how it can be broken.
Panel 11 I love entangled sheets.
Sexual reference. Sex and red sheets are also brought up in comic 230: Hamiltonian.
Panel 12 And kite photography.
A reference to Randall's own hobby of kite photography as well as comic 235: Kite.
Panel 13 I love the whole world (Map of the internet.)
A reference to comic 256: Online Communities, featuring online communities of the time visualised as a world map, with geographic area representing their approximate membership size. There is, more directly, a pun on "internet", namely "outernet".
Panel 14 And all its mysteries.
A reference to a series of comics on "red spiders:" 8: Red Spiders, 43: Red Spiders 2, 47: Counter-Red Spiders, 126: Red Spiders Cometh, and 427: Bad Timing.
Panel 15 Boom de yada, Boom de yada (Two people sword-fighting on rolling office chairs.)
A reference to comic 303: Compiling, where two coders battle with fake swords at work, with the excuse that their code is compiling.
Panel 16 Boom de yada, Boom de yada (Classroom with two students and a teacher.)
Nothing too special, but it does embrace the "everybody joins in" theme behind the commercials. The teacher is Miss Lenhart who was first properly introduced in comic 263: Certainty but may have made an appearance in comic 59: Graduation.
Panel 17 I love elections (Barack me Obamadeus!)
A pun on the song Rock Me Amadeus and US president Barack Obama. At this point Randall had not done any comics directly on elections but he made this after the one in 2008: 500: Election and has shown his love for this subject also around the 2012 election.
Panel 18 I love transistors.
This panel has Cueball's crotch replaced with the (similar-looking) icon used for a transistor in a circuit diagram. Randall later showed how much he loves anything that can go in to such a diagram in 730: Circuit Diagram.
Panel 19 I love weird pillow talk. (There must be Taft slash fiction.)
"Pillow talk" means intimate conversations between lovers, "slash fiction" is fanfiction with characters of the same sex, and "Taft" is William Howard Taft, a US President mostly remembered for his severe obesity. It appears they are invoking rule 34 of the Internet as a reference to 305: Rule 34. Weird pillow talk is also the subject of comic 69: Pillow Talk, while the Taft reference comes from comic 214: The Problem with Wikipedia.
Panel 20 I love your sister.
A reference to xkcd's recurring joke of dating the female character's sister, which spans several comics including 49: Want, 279: Pickup Lines, 317: That Lovin' Feelin', and 408: Overqualified.
Panel 21 I love the whole world (Roller coaster with Cueball holding chess board)
A reference to comic 249: Chess Photo which inspired an internet meme.
Panel 22 The future's pretty cool! (Beret Guy in a forest.)
The picture of the forest is similar to that in 269: TCMP, though it may also be a reference to comic 167: Nihilism, where Cueball and Beret Guy make observations about the future while climbing a tree. Later, in comic 1322: Winter, the two are seen walking through a forest very similar to the one shown here.
Panel 23 Boom de yada, Boom de yada (Megan doing the MC Hammer slide towards Cueball.)
A reference to comic 108: M.C. Hammer Slide, where Hairy falls in love with "a girl whose only mode of transportation is the M.C. Hammer Slide."
Panel 24 Boom de yada, Boom de yada (Cueball and Megan on an electric skateboard.)
A reference to comic 409: Electric Skateboard (Double Comic), where Megan and Cueball go on an electric skateboard ride, but he already introduced these back in 139: I Have Owned Two Electric Skateboards.

The title text continues the song, self-referentially. Self-reference is a reoccurring theme in Douglas Hofstadter's books, notably Gödel, Escher, Bach which Randall reefers to directly in 24: Godel, Escher, Kurt Halsey. Later Hofstadter has been referenced in other comics, such as in the title text of 555: Two Mirrors and 608: Form plus of course in 917: Hofstadter. Self-reference as a form of humor was also explored before, but most famously in the later 688: Self-Description.

Transcript

[The comic is in parody of the Discovery Channel commercial showing various clips of people singing a song with the chorus line "Boom De Yada."]
[The comic is divided into a grid of 4 by 6 panels, each depicting a character or situation often from a previous xkcd strip.]
[In each panel is written a part of a song similar to the song from the Discovery Channel commercial.]
Panel 1:
[Megan spinning around.]
I love momentum.
Panel 2:
[Megan laying on floor tinkering with EEE PC hamster ball robot.]
I love to engineer.
Panel 3:
[Beret Guy standing in bakery holding a loaf of bread in each hand, sign with "PIE!" in background.]
I love this bakery!
Panel 4:
[Cory Doctorow in goggles and red cape flying superman-style.]
I love the blogosphere!
Panel 5:
[Cueball running in large hamster ball.]
I love the whole world
Panel 6:
[Depiction of internet sludge (4chan b-Random)]
And all its messed-up folks.
Panel 7:
[Cueball and Megan immersed in playpen balls.]
Boom De Yada
Boom De Yada
Panel 8:
[Mass of playpen balls with speech "I put on my robe and wizard hat" originating from it.]
Boom De Yada
Boom De Yada
Panel 9:
[Black Hat giving a moving and shaking gift to a kid with party hat.]
I love your suffering.
Panel 10:
[Diagram showing RSA fingerprint authentication between two people.]
I love cryptography.
Panel 11:
[Cueball and Megan in bed covered by red sheet.]
I love entangled sheets.
Panel 12:
[Cueball hanging from kite string holding camera.]
And kite photography.
Panel 13:
[Map of the internet.]
I love the whole world
Panel 14:
[Cube with red spider on top.]
And all its mysteries.
Panel 15:
[Two people sword-fighting on rolling office chairs.]
Boom De Yada
Boom De Yada
Panel 16:
[Classroom with two students and Mrs. Lenhart.]
Boom De Yada
Boom De Yada
Panel 17:
[Cueball saying "Barack me Obamadeus!" to another man speaking energetically at a podium.]
I love elections.
Panel 18:
[Cueball holding schematic diagram of a transistor in front of his crotch.]
I love transistors.
Panel 19:
[Cueball and Megan in bed, Cueball saying "There must be taft slash fiction."]
I love weird pillow talk.
Panel 20:
[Cueball speaking to Megan.]
I love your sister.
Panel 21:
[Roller coaster with Cueball in front car holding chess board and thinking about a move.]
I love the whole world.
Panel 22:
[Beret Guy standing in the midst of leafless trees.]
The future's pretty cool!
Panel 23:
[Megan doing the MC Hammer slide towards Cueball.]
Boom De Yada
Boom De Yada
Panel 24:
[Cueball and Megan on an electric skateboard.]
Boom De Yada
Boom De Yada

Trivia

  • This comic was enacted by Olga Nunes and various famous people as We Love xkcd.
  • Noam Raby and Olga Nunes also produced an animation based upon this comic, named I Love xkcd.


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Discussion

I think that panel 9 actually is meant to be Black Hat giving the child a present and the lines around the gift suggesting that there is something moving around inside (likely alive and agitated) for the child to open and be mauled/harmed by.

  • The transcript comes from Randall himself, and it says he's taking the present away. Blaisepascal (talk) 10:14, 22 August 2012 (UTC)
I was hoping it was a bobcat. 76.106.251.87 19:05, 10 May 2013 (UTC)
It definitely looks like its a present being taken away, and it fits the line better 172.71.151.98 05:04, 10 April 2023 (UTC)

Great! Now I have a targeted list of comics to add explanations for! Blaisepascal (talk) 10:14, 22 August 2012 (UTC)

To Dgbrt, "Links do not belong to the transcript, this needs to be fixed." I know I'm just a noob here, but if you're so sure of that, why didn't you remove them yourself? Isn't one of WikiMedia's pillars "Be Bold"? I personally see no problem, given the self-referential nature of this comic. Anonymous 07:53, 12 January 2014 (UTC)

This is not actually a WikiMedia site, but you're right that "Be Bold" is a wiki thing, in general. Nevertheless, in this case, the official transcript provided by Randall includes these references, so they might as well be wikilinked here. (In Dgbrt's defence, he (or she) may not have had the time to undo it himself (or herself).) Mark Hurd (talk) 12:12, 12 January 2014 (UTC)
No time was in fact my first reason; but on the other hand I didn't want to remove links without an section at the explain section. The links are not from the original transcript, it does only mention the references, and this belongs to the explain. The transcript is a transcript, not more. (even no time today for me on this...) --Dgbrt (talk) 22:26, 12 January 2014 (UTC)
A compelling argument. I'll take care of it. Anonymous. 18:18, 15 January 2014 (UTC)
Please remove next time only the links but not the text. --Dgbrt (talk) 22:23, 15 January 2014 (UTC)
Whoops. Sorry I misinterpreted. Anonymous 09:46, 21 January 2014 (UTC)

For panel 19, I have to point out: Everything r34 related isn't necessarily a reference to the comic about it. Just because it is related doesn't mean that he was specifically making a joke about a previous comic, as he is making a joke about r34 which he ALSO happened to make a joke about in another comic. If it referenced Wetriffs or something, THEN it would be a reference. 173.245.50.72 03:44, 25 July 2014 (UTC)

I love lamp. 162.158.126.46 13:44, 9 July 2019 (UTC)

The Discovery Channel song is itself a parody of a traditional children's song: I love the mountains I love the rolling hills I love the flowers I love the daffodils I love the fireside When all the lights are low Boom dee ah dah (Randall writes "boom de yada") Boom dee ah dah ......... Jsharpminor (talk) 16:07, 28 December 2019 (UTC)