Beavis and Butt-Head. Just the names immediately conjure up images in your mind. Most likely even now you’re unconsciously thinking “huh-huh huh-huh huh huh huh”. The fact that we’re in 2007 and people are still talking about these two misfits and laughing, says a lot about just how deeply written the characters were. Yet at the time they initially aired, very few of us realized that.

Beavis and Butt-Head: The Mike Judge Collection Vol. 3 is presumably the last of these sets that consist of creator/voice/director Mike Judge’s hand-picked favorite episodes. When I got this set, I was initially excited because I thought that these would be easy to write about. After all, I’m a huge fan of this show and nothing is easier than writing about something you love. Then I read the DIMP reviews for the first two sets.

Beavis and Butt-Head: The Mike Judge Collection Vol. 1 was reviewed by Palmerlime, who took the opportunity to explore why he liked the show now but didn’t when it originally aired. He touched on most of the basic points of the show and gives a well-written overview of his reluctance to embrace the show because everyone else liked it. Read the review for yourself to find out what he said.

Beavis and Butt-Head: The Mike Judge Collection Vol. 2 was reviewed by John Felix, who took things to a deeper level. His excellent review is a must read as he explores some of the dark subtext of the show that many of us missed in its initial airing. Seriously folks, take a moment to read this because you’re not going to get this kind of insight in the following review.

No, after reading those two reviews I knew that this wasn’t going to be as easy as I’d originally thought. I can’t go “deep” on you like John Felix. I can’t just give you the “jist” of things like Palmerlime. So instead, I’ll write about why I loved the show the first time around. I’m going to talk about two things that speak to the very core of my being. These two things put a big, fat fucking smile on my face every goddamn time I’m confronted with them.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, let’s talk about dick and fart jokes.

These two things are the bread and butter of comedy. Sure, for many of you out there, that’s hard to admit. You’d rather say that your favorite comedian is Jon Stewart and that you find Lewis Black’s insightful political diatribes to be hilarious. Saying this helps you keep up the façade of civility that you have somehow managed to hold together around your peers, but I’ve got news for you. Stewart and Black both love a good dick joke too. In fact, I will bet you almost anything that you will laugh or at least snicker if confronted by a good dick joke yourself, even if you are ashamed for doing so. You can’t help it. It’s something that speaks to the little kid in all of us. The thing is, you shouldn’t feel guilty about laughing!

In the episode Woodshop Beavis and Butt-Head stand in front of a table saw and begin randomly cutting things in half. At one point, Beavis looks at Butt-Head and says “This may sound weird, but I have a stiffy.”

Butt-Head, speaking as if he has just made an important realization, replies, “Maybe that’s why they call it ‘woodshop’.”

At which point I laugh. Admit it, you want to also. The dick joke is a major reason why Beavis and Butt-Head works on a surface level with most people. Within that same exchange there are so many comedic and dark things happening (Beavis’ sexual excitement over causing property damage being the one of them), but you laugh because Butt-Head said, “Wood” in reference to an erection.

“That’s disgusting,” you reply, “I don’t want to laugh at this sort of thing. I want to be sophisticated and civilized.”

My reply would be, “Get over yourself.” The world needs more people who will embrace their simpler selves. Dick and fart jokes are universal in their comic element. Let’s unite and take them back from the politically correct jackholes who seek to make us all grow up.

The truth is, back when you were a kid, when you were ignorant of what constituted ‘good taste’, you giggled when you farted. That’s a basic part of being human. Farts are funny. Seriously, what is not hilarious about the sound of gas leaving your body?

The fact that society beats this out of us at every opportunity is something that as a father I’m single-handedly fighting against. My 4-year-old daughter will fart loudly, laugh and proclaim, “I farted” while my wife and I look on with approval. How can we not? I firmly believe that if everyone sat down and laughed at a good fart joke now and then, there would be no tension in the Middle East.

Beavis and Butt-Head though take the fart joke to insane levels. In the same episode mentioned above, Beavis becomes obsessed with the table saw and cuts off his finger. Butt-Head accompanies him to the emergency room holding the severed digit. At one point, he looks at Beavis who is bleeding profusely, holds the finger out and asks him, “Pull my finger… I mean, your finger.”

And I laugh again, because this is not just a great twist on a fart joke; it’s an ingenious twist on the fart joke. Admit it, on some level, you need to laugh at this.

On Beavis and Butt-Head: The Mike Judge Collection Vol. 3 there are many, many great episodes to help you unleash that deep seated desire to chuckle at the crude and profane. This set contains some of the episodes I remember as being favorites from when I was first a fan in the early 1990’s. Head Lice, Shopping Cart, Vaya Con Cornholio, Woodshop, Pierced, The Miracle That Is Beavis, and Underwear are all fantastic and were ones I hadn’t seen in ages. However the three funniest episodes in this set are ones I never saw prior to receiving this for review.

Bride of Butt-Head finds the boys calling a Russian mail-order bride service and answers the question, “How did Todd get the girlfriend with the funky accent?” Butt-Head’s fantasy wedding daydream had me rolling (look for his best man… Slash). There’s also a great “pull my finger” moment in this where the expression on the bride-to-be’s face sells it completely.

Nosebleed is very high on my list of favorites now. After Butt-Head smacks Beavis in the face, his nose begins to bleed. Butt-Head then tries a number of different “remedies” to get the blood to clot, however this leads to just more and more blood loss. I have not laughed this hard in ages. The final scene, with the boys watching TV while sporting tampons in their noses, absolutely kills.

Finally, Just for Girls is now tied for the title of my all-time favorite episode. The boys con their way into the “girls only” presentation about sex and a woman’s body. That’s all I really need to say. If you know Beavis and Butt-Head at all, then you know that this is a virtual comedy minefield for these two.

Beavis and Butt-Head speaks to many people on many levels, but to almost everyone, it initially speaks to the gawky, confused teenager in each of us. They’re stupid. They’re awkward. The only difference between us and them is that the majority of us learned enough to evolve. Most of the time that’s a good thing but I would beg you to get in touch with your inner 13-year-old, not just for your own sake, but for the sake of society itself. Beavis and Butt-Head: The Mike Judge Collection Vol. 3 is as good a place to start reclaiming your juvenile sense of humor as any.

Remember, historians have noted that only four people in recorded history have never laughed at a dick or fart joke in their lifetime: Adolph Hitler, Joseph McCarthy, Osama Bin Laden and Jerry Falwell. Nobody wants to be in the same company as Jerry Falwell.

Presentation
These boys clean up pretty nicely. Yes, the animation is still cheap but it looks very good for what it is. Where the episodes MTV2 currently rebroadcasts seem washed out, these look spot on. The sound is adequate enough that I don’t have anything to complain about.

Extras
Woo-boy! Well, the scene stealers here are obviously the 15 music videos. I watched them with a group of people at my house and Butt-Head’s opening shot at Tripping Daisy’s “I Got A Girl” seriously got the whole room laughing. There are many great moments here from the crappy Euro-rap of Stakka Bo to Poison’s “I Want Action” and Rollins Band’s “Liar”. Plus, it’s got Crowbar!!!!

The featurette, Taint of Greatness: The Journey of Beavis and Butt-Head Part 3 is very entertaining also. Judge and the writers talk about the challenges of making the show fresh and there is a lot of discussion about the genesis of the movie also. This is a solid film about the final seasons of the show and a nice companion piece to the other two. Most interesting is the willingness of almost everyone involved to do more episodes if called upon.

There are a number of Special Appearances thrown in and while some are funny, most are forgettable. Just getting through the Letters to Santa Butt-Head was a bit of a chore. Still, they’re nice to have as are the promos. Here’s a tip. If you have DVD audio ripping software and you’re still a geek enough to make mix CD’s for people, rip some of the promos or the Yule Log bits and stick them between songs. Your friends will be envious of your skills and grateful for your creativity.

All told, the extras on all three of these sets really make purchasing them worthwhile if you are a fan of the show.

The Bottom Line
Beavis and Butt-Head: The Mike Judge Collection Vol. 3 is probably not for everyone, but it should be. If you’ve never seen the show, let me be the first to welcome you back from your long stay in Tibet. I would suggest you pick up volume 1 first as the individual episodes on that one are a bit more consistent. No matter what though, I would* implore you to embracSe your inner 13-year-old and remember what it was like to laugh at the simple things.

*Huh-huh… I wrote “would”.