Morons Redux
If you hadn't noticed (I hadn't, until this weekend), Beavis and Butt-head is back. I wrote about the program earlier, admitting that I enjoyed the show. One TDE reader seconded my opinion and my stat counter didn't show a precipitous drop in readership, so I'm going to assume there are a few other closet B&B fans out there.
For those who aren't acquainted with the show, I recommend the Wikipedia entry linked above, which provides this superb summary: "The show centers on two socially awkward, rock/metal-loving teenage delinquents, Beavis and Butt-head (both voiced by Judge), who live in the town of Highland, Texas. They have no apparent adult supervision at home, are woefully undereducated and dim-witted and barely literate, and lack any empathy or moral scruples. Their most common shared activity is watching music videos, which they tend to judge by deeming them "cool", or by claiming, 'This sucks!' They also apply these judgments to other things that they encounter, and will usually deem something 'cool' if it is associated with violence, sex or the macabre. Despite having no experience with women, their other signature trait is their obsession with sex, and their tendency to chuckle and giggle whenever they hear words or phrases that can even remotely be construed as sexual. Each episode features a few interstitial scenes in which they view videos in this manner, their commentary improvised by Judge, with the rest of the episode depicting them embarking on some scheme or adventure."
In the new B&B episodes, they don't just watch videos. They also watch a lot of the trashy shows on MTV (e.g., Jersey Shore), and in the process, they make hilarious comments. In one episode, they're watching a scene in which a bunch of trampy women are drawing up a flow chart of who has hooked up with whom. Butt-head says, "This is probably what your family tree looks like, if your family is a bunch of whores." About thirty seconds later, he says, "I bet if they trace this tree back far enough, they'll find where herpes came from."
That's funny stuff, and it might be the first time in 30 years I've seen or heard anything remotely redeeming on MTV. They also watch some MTV show about teen mothers (which would appear to feature exclusively white trash). Their commentary is biting. Thirty minutes of B&B commentary about that teen mom show would do more to keep girls away from pre-marital sex than 20 hours of preaching.
I wouldn't say B&B is great. Far from it. It's good, but too many parts are just stupid, and, of course, they need to throw in a good measure of sacrilege, which is always disturbing. But if you're looking for something different and something that, in the three new episodes that I've watched, shows a different side of MTV, check it out.
The Time Nears
"In his life here on earth, man is one who waits. As a child, he wants to be an adult; an an adult, he wants to forge ahead and be successful; and finally, he yearns for rest. At last, there comes the time when he realizes that he has hoped for too little: he has set his hopes on a job and a good position, but now he has nothing else left for which to hope."
Joseph Ratzinger, The Blessings of Christmas
