Does that mean that the person holding the fish is dead, or that the cheap plastic fish is dead, or a foreshadowing that someone else is about to die/has just died a la Clue?

Wouldn’t you know that you are dead without need of a plastic fish?

Not to sound like a smartass… Matt, to answer the question you never asked: "It’s" (with an apostrophe) is a contraction for the two words "it" and "is." "Its" (without the apostrophe) is a posessive indicitating whatever you are talking about belongs to "it."

To forever use the two words correctly for the rest of your life, say the sentence using the words "it is" instead of "its." If the sentence still makes sense, use the apostrophe. Ex: It is currently raining blood. Use it’s. If it doesn’t, then don’t. Ex: It is problem is it tends to explode. Use its. Now read pages 14-23 and do excercises 51-72 in the back of your work book. Have fun at lunch.

p.s. Say "its" over and over. It’s fun! Its its its its its its its its its its! Its.

To Gary: I think dead one means more along the lines of "dead in bed".