Sunday, December 28, 2008

What the Kids are Watching Smackdown

WARNING: Some of the videos below are inappropriate for children and some adults. If any portion of Animal House bothered you, you might ought to skip this post.

In the last Smackdown, looks like y'all were Crazy about Aerosmith, which narrowly rode past Ozzie's Crazy Train. Oldest son, Davis, occasionally cues me in to what the kids at Sewanee are watching. He hooked me up with four videos that range from pretty funny in a conventional way, such as the Will Farrell skit, The Old Prospector; to a couple that are funny, but pretty raunchy; to one that is just bizarre. Anyway, The Old Prospector is pretty safe, but I can't embed it. If you want to watch it, you'll have to click the link above. What the kids dig the most is that the other actors can't keep a straight face while Will waxes crusty.

The second video is also by some SNL affiliated folks. The Lonely Island did their own thing before the boys joined SNL. This video is not for the easily offended (think "dick in a box"). It's pretty funny, though, and I love the cameo by Justin Timberlake as the "clean-up on aisle three" guy.


What do you get when you mix an innocent kids' show with gangsta rap? A natural! Lazy Town, Davis tells me, is a Nick, Jr. offering in the style of "Barney"; Lil John's nasty lyrics and raunchy style seem an oddly perfect pairing. Cooking by the Book became an immediate favorite (and one of the songs that Davis' friends played for him when he completed his comprehensive exams a few weeks ago). Nasty, but hilarious:



The last one, Shoehorn, is just... weird.



I'll post the poll tomorrow.

19 comments:

QuakerJono said...

Um...Shoehorn...um...yeah...I had a nightmare like that once...Furries. Yeah. Not one single thing right about that. Not one.

superdave524 said...

Nightmares, QJ, but in a GOOD way.

Mr. Matt said...

Er, you say they drink a lot at Sewanee? Yeah, I vote to skip that smack down.

superdave524 said...

Ah, Peaches!

John in IL said...

On what basis are we voting? The most irritating? The least offensive? It can't be the funniest because none of them were funny (they ranged from painfully unfunny to slightly boring). And you kids stay off my lawn!

John in IL said...

What the kids dig the most is that the other actors can't keep a straight face

Like this. Now that is funny.

superdave524 said...

Carol Burnett was good stuff, John. Humor is frequently a subjective thing, though. I remember Emo Phillips was kind of popular in the 80s. Andy Kaufman was bizarre, but popular. Don Rickles made his bones insulting people. A lot of stuff that amused me when I was younger (or would have, like Adam Sandler) just doesn't do much for me now, but I try to keep in touch with the stuff that various folks find funny. Anyway, I enjoyed the stuff that at least some of the college kids find funny because I remember- vaguely- those days. As to voting: use whatever criteria you want, or, like Andy, you could take a pass on this one.

John in IL said...

Get the fuck off my lawn.

John in IL said...

In other words, I never found Emo, Andy or Don terribly funny either.

superdave524 said...

I guess that's why they make more than one flavor of ice cream.

Mr. Matt said...

Yeah, but they don't make Chicken Ripple Ice Cream, and those videos, they're Chicken Ripple.

But that's ok too. I'm not the judge, but I probably should be.

Mr. Matt said...

Ok, ok, ok, ok, so I can't resist a poll, I probably will vote, but I won't like it!

(I mean if I want to be appointed the judge and all)

superdave524 said...

Neil Diamond said they make chicken ripple ice cream, too.

John in IL said...

Now a Neil Diamond smackdown is something I'd like to see/hear.

superdave524 said...

That can be arranged, John.

Anonymous said...

Keep posting dirty stuff like that Uncle David and I'll introduce the Lads to 4chan.

Star said...

1. Just gross. Teen boys enjoy it I'm sure.
2. Just creepy. Those little dolls give me the heebie-jeebies.
3. Just didn't watch more than 5 seconds.

Anonymous said...

a quick overview of comedy for those of you who are obviously ignorant of them:
1) there are two basic kinds of comedy that have been around for a long, long time: comedy of superiority and comedy of incongruity.
2) each of these interacts with the audience in a different way. por ejemplo, a comedy of superiority would involve empathizing with a part of the audience at the expense of another part (i.e. this guy knows what i'm talking about, but that guy obviously doesn't). on the other hand, a comedy of incongruity consists of a reaction to a situation which does not fit the situation. think of the lonely island boy who jizzes in his pants when he eats a grape, or better yet an innocent show like Lazy Town put in conjunction with Lil' Jon.
3) in the best situations, a successful joke uses both of these in order to create general merriment for all.

all of these videos use these elements with some level of success. for instance, many of you did not laugh at them, which develops a sense of superiority for those who did laugh. you might say, "but we got the jokes too, we just didn't find them funny." that develops a sense of superiority for you as well! and so everyone is happy, you for not getting the jokes and finding this post humorous because of that, and me for finding them funny and understanding that there are some that did not.

do i even have to go into the success of the other form of humor? probably not, you all understand that part well enough i'm sure.

and uncle andy, i expected better from you! well, sort of anyway.

superdave524 said...

Rob, I doubt there's much that the Lads haven't seen. They told me about different people and a cup, or some such thing (THAT, Star, is gross).

Ah, and Davis weighs in (weightily, in fact). Good explanation, Son; however, as your granddad used to say when I asked him to explain why something was funny, "If you have to explain it, it isn't funny". 'Course, he probably just wanted to get back to watching the golf match.