Mundane Side

If you think things through, fantastical elements may involve less fantastic things either as requirements or results of their presence. Sometimes there are Required Secondary Powers or refueling with Unobtanium. There are inherent limitations such as Exact Words or outstanding power corrupting outstandingly. And sometimes there's a more common and down-to-earth side in this.


 * A Planet of Hats needs people not wearing the hat (or at least willing to remove it for a while) to remain competitive - and often to survive at all. But Klingon Scientists Get No Respect.

The second variant involves starting with something mundane and downright trite, and refresh it by exploring how it could function in a fantastic setting.
 * Endless variations of "Kick Me" Prank.
 * "My other steed"/"My other spaceship"/etc jokes.

Both variants can be a source of comedy, drama or plot-limiting rules... or a filler.

Web Original

 * GlennZ uses both sides of this.
 * Just in one set: Banana gun: reloading and mounting Laser Sight. What happens after you use a Hover Board? You plug it into a recharging station, of course! See also: a stick insect taking selfie.

Other Media

 * Several cartoons (including a few in Dragon) dealt with the question of how one get the familiar to a veterinarian.
 * Psychologists and the Freudian Couch provide a nearly universal setup for this humor (and half of the time, horrible puns, of course).
 * Dragon had cartoon with a dwarf complaining that he "suffers from low elf-esteem".