 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| |||||
November 15, 2005"I am Cornholio. I need T.P. for my bunghole."
Really… does it get any better than that?
It's been eight years since Beavis & Butthead started to disappear from MTV, shortly thereafter replaced by the live action versions of the boys in Jackass. It is an interesting study in a changing American perspective to remember just how upset these two moron teens got people back in the early 90s.
Beavis & Butthead were very primal. Whether it was eating endless amounts of sugar, smashing each other with books, rulers, pencil, bricks or other such items, they had the bravado of teenaged boys and the enthusiasm that made them irresistible.
When I saw that The Mike Judge Collection of his favorite episodes from the five-year run of the show, I immediately knew I needed to consume this DVD collection. It is not the most brilliantly laid out DVD set. With forty shorts of about five and a half minutes each, moving to your favorites for a second, third or forth viewing requires some memorization.
"What is your raison d'etre?" "It's in my pants."
And certain missing episodes are frustrating. For instance, while the third disc offers a very funny promo for B&B meeting Bill Clinton, it is not on the compilation. Perhaps it will be on Volume 2 of the collection.
There is something remarkably accurate about the vacancy of being a young teen. The world is not much bigger for Beavis and Butthead than nachos and slushees and television. And of course, fire… Fire… FIRE! Maybe you know a teen boy who isn't obsessed with fire, but I've never met one.
The outfits, hairstyles and metal bands on the t-shirts are really the only thing out of date in this collection. Stupidity is still as stupid as ever… and just as funny.
When I place this collection on my video shelf, it'll go right next to the Schoolhouse Rock collection. Basically, the experiences are the same. Great memorable little moments. The Great Cornholio and Conjunction Junction. It is easy to imagine these shorts working as bumpers on MTV today. And, God knows, the advertiser who would be smart enough to bring these two on as endorsers - something hard to imagine a decade ago - could quickly show how much they are still of the moment.
Their lack of eloquence makes them classic clowns. When the TV goes out, they kick it. When they see a dryer, they put a poodle in it and then when they see that the dog gets high by being in it, they get in it. When they watch the TV news, it's only to see themselves making faces at the camera while people suffer in the background. They love Todd for being a punk bully.
If only they were real, they'd be feted by the French every day.
"Uh... heh heh... heh heh... he said, 'French'... heh heh..."
