give us this day our daily python

The Freckler gave me a belated Christmas gift of a Monty Python trivia calendar. The geeks at work have now annointed me their queen. It gets me an unlimited supply of peanut m&m's so I'm cool with it.

In any case, here is a favorite sketch. Now, guess the punchline.

Mr Praline enters a pet shop, complaining that the parrot he has recently purchased at the location is, in fact, dead. The shopkeeper denies this and points out the beauty of its plumage, further suggesting that the bird is merely asleep. Praline is unconvinced, especially when shouting and the offer of a lovely fresh cuttlefish fails to evoke a response from the bird.
Praline takes the parrot out of the cage and thumps its head on the counter ("Hellooo, Polly!"), then tosses it up in the air and watches it plummet to the floor without reacting in any way. The shopkeeper remains unconvinced, claiming that it is now stunned, and that it is "pining for the fjords."

Praline points out that the only reason that the parrot had been sitting on its perch in the first place was that it had been nailed there. The shopkeeper counters that it was simply to stop it escaping. Praline disagrees in these words:

Mr Praline: It's not pinin', it's passed on! This parrot is no more! It has ceased to be! It's expired and gone to meet its maker! This is a late parrot. It's a stiff. Bereft of life, it rests in peace, if you hadn't nailed it to the perch it would be pushing up the daisies! It's rung down the curtain and joined the choir invisible! This is an _______!

The shopkeeper admits defeat, claims that he is right out of parrots, and offers a slug as replacement. The dialogue continues:
Mr Praline: Does it talk?
(pause)
Shopkeeper: Not really, no.
Mr Praline: Well, it's scarcely a replacement then, is it?