(Make sure you check out our giveaway on this title!)
They’re back … and this time, even my mother is laughing. I was one of those kids who was prohibited from watching Beavis and Butt-Head when it first aired on MTV in the early ’90s. That didn’t stop me from doing it, though, and I was so excited to hear that my favorite imbeciles were coming back – because let’s face it, there are a lot of things today that deserve the B&B treatment.
Volume 4 contains all the episodes from this first comeback season, and they’re all pretty hilarious. My favorite installments are “Super Size Me” (which sees the boys think obesity will make them more attractive), “The Rat” (in which Beavis gets a new furry best friend, only after getting slapped with a rat trap), and “Copy Machine” (where Beavis tries to photocopy his butt, with disastrous results). All of the episodes have at least a few good lines in them. It’s hard not to laugh out loud in “Doomsday,” when Beavis expresses his frustration about being the last two guys on Earth and still being unable to score. This season, even my mother was laughing.
This is before you get to the music videos and show clips. I have no idea who 75% of the musical artists are (the only one I recognized was Gym Class Heroes‘ Travie McCoy), but damn do these people make some bizarre videos, and they are properly mocked. There’s one that turns into a discussion about Beavis and Butt-Head’s love of the Olive Garden. I’d love to see them take their shots at some more well-known artists next season.
Funnier than the videos, though, is the fact that MTV allows Mike Judge to lampoon its entire catalog of trash TV. Beavis and Butt-Head comment on 16 and Pregnant, Cribs and most (and most deservedly) of all, Jersey Shore. They say what many of us are probably feeling when it comes to that show. The best line of the whole season is Butt-Head speculating on how Snooki should get a job as a greeter: “I’m a whore, welcome to Costco.”
Okay, so now that we’re past how the show rules: the Blu-Ray transfer is also awesome. Watching it on my HDTV, the animation flows so smoothly that it’s almost realistic. The sound is serviceable (though obviously there’s not much call for awesome speakers when watching this show). Navigation-wise, you have a “play all” feature and episode selection, but since this is only a half-hour show there’s no scene selection.
Special features are a bit light. You’ll get the B&B panel with Mike Judge from San Diego Comic-Con 2011, and a series of further Jersey Shore clips which consist of the boys edited into scenes from the show as if they’re calling the Jersey Shore house. They’re good for a chuckle but nowhere near as funny as the clips that appear in the episodes.
The funniest bonus is also the most random: it’s Beavis and Butt-Head doing one of those “silence your cell phone” videos that appear in front of movies. Butt-Head gets right to the point: “I’m Butt-Head. Shut up.” (Now if only we could actually use that at my local movie theater.)
Of course, fans of the show will probably just be glad to have a B&B release that doesn’t have the music videos edited out. But whether you’re an old B&B fan or just wondering what the hype is all about, Volume 4 is worth checking out. It’s a great transfer of a very hilarious season. Welcome back, Beavis and Butt-Head!
Disclaimer: This review is based on a complimentary copy, provided to CliqueClack, solely for the purpose of this review.
Clacked by Brittany Frederick 
on Feb 15, 2012 @ 10:22 EST5EDT
