Rei's first joke

In order to see if the Vuduri have a sense of humor, in the original long-form of Rome's Revolution, Rei tells Rome a joke. This is harder than you think because most jokes are culturally-oriented. Rei had to think of one that did not tie to his place and time. Rei is sitting with Rome in the Center Court. There are two other Vuduri crewman sitting at another table...

     “How about humor?” Rei asked. “Tell me a 35th century joke.”
     “What is a joke?” Rome asked.
     “It’s, I don’t know, a funny story.”
     “A funny story? Stories are stories. Can you give me an example,” Rome said.
     “All right.” Rei thought for a minute. “OK,” he said. “Here’s a joke. Two birds are sitting in a tree, watching a little turtle slowly make his way to the end of a branch…”
     “How did the turtle get in the tree?” Rome asked.
     “Hold on, you’ll see,” Rei said.
     “All right,” Rome replied patiently.
     Rei continued. “So anyway, the turtle gets to the end of the branch and starts flapping his arms and jumps off and goes crashing to the ground.” Rei slapped his hands together hard. “Boom!” he said loudly.
     Rome jumped. She frowned at Rei. The other two people turned and blatantly stared at him as well.
     Rei ignored them and continued. “So the little turtle gets up, dusts himself off and climbs back up the tree and back to the end of the branch. He flaps his arms again and jumps off and…”
     Again, Rei slapped his hands together. This time Rome was prepared. “Boom! He falls to the ground again.”
     “Go on…” Rome said, slightly alarmed.
     “OK. So now the turtle is climbing back up the tree a third time and the one bird turns to the other and says, ‘Dear, don’t you think it’s time we tell him he’s adopted?’”
     Rei laughed to himself. He looked at Rome. She did not react.
     “That’s it. That’s the joke,” Rei said.
     “I do not understand. How do birds talk? And adopting?” Rome cocked her head. “I believe I understand the word. Why would they adopt a turtle?”
     Rei sighed. “It’s a joke!”
     Rome said, “OMCOM says a joke is meant to be amusing which is the purpose of humor. Where is the humor in that?”
     “I don’t know. You tell me. "

After that, Rei gave up. But not permanently. Eventually he taught Rome how to laugh and by the end of the series, she is kidding him herself. Quite an improvement.