People relate to humor that highlights the selfish nature of people and inappropriate solutions to problems. If you have a job, you probably spend some part of each day trying to disguise your selfish motives as win-win scenarios. And your attempts are probably as transparent as Wally's.

"Reusable presentation"

Dilbert is an American comic strip illustrated by cartoonist Scott Adams. It was the first comic that focused primarily on satirical office humors (such as the inefficiency of meetings, the uselessness of management, and the absurdity of office politics) a lot of people could relate to.

Dilbert

A common humor technique involves juxtaposing something of immense importance with something trivial. In this comic, Wally is comparing his digestive system to Jesus rising from the dead. A dash of spiritual inappropriateness gives it some seasoning.

"Roll a donut in front of the cave"

Keeping true to the major theme of Dilbert, this comic highlights the uselessness of management. If you've ever had a boss, this one probably hits home for you. This one works because you never see the pointy-haired boss's reaction, but you can imagine it vividly.

"Catching up to competition"

Wally is the worst employee of all time, but he's likeable in his own way, so we enjoy seeing him get a win at the expense of the pointy-haired boss. And I think everyone who has a boss also dreams of becoming indispensable. It's easy to relate to Wally's glee in the third panel.

"Old Johannsen"

This comic causes the reader to imagine a funny future in which Wally will only pretend to do the assignment. Humor sometimes works best when one suggests what is coming without showing it. People laugh harder when they need to use their imaginations to complete the joke.

"Dream Job"

Management-by-slogan usually comes across to employees as ridiculous and condescending. That, in part, is what makes the staff in this comic so uncaring about the boss's house burning down. The ordinary evil of regular people is always funny to me. It's easy to relate to it.

"Opportunities"

W all know people who value form over function while being oblivious to how others view them. When you shine a light on irrational human behavior it usually triggers a laugh reflex.

"Asok's snout"

It's naughty, clever, and it has a point of view. And it makes the reader imagine what happened before that moment shown in the comic and what might happen after. It's rare to pack so many elements in one comic.

"Unix programmers"

Scott Adams enjoyes to mock common sayings. Often those little nuggets of wisdom make no sense whatsoever, but we've heard them so often they feel as if they do: Good things might come to those who wait, but so does starvation.

"Synchronizing excuses"

If you attend meetings, you probably spend a lot of time thinking your own thoughts while your coworkers drone on. This comic is funny because the boss is revealing his selfish thoughts.

"Brain golfing"

Dilbert, the well-known comic strip by cartoonist Scott Adams about the office everyman and his crew of incompetent colleagues, was the first syndicated comic that focused primarily on the workplace when it launched in 1989. Five years later, it had become so successful that Adams quit his corporate career to work on it full-time.

Dilbert

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Dilbert

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