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Sometimes life (and thus comedy) is stupid. Can I explain why Beavis pulling his T-shirt over his blond bouffant and declaring himself the Great Cornholio made me laugh louder than anything Bart Simpson has ever done? No, but it’s true. This was no provocation but a considered take – one I don’t regret.
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Yet if you talked to me back then, I would have told you with sniggering teenage confidence that the critically ignored Beavis and Butt-Head, a crudely drawn cartoon about two idiots chuckling over music videos, was clearly better. Beavis and Butt-Head didn’t make the cut. Beloved by critics and comedy nerds, it was producing classic episodes like Marge vs the Monorail (written by Conan O’Brien), building a reputation that earned it second place on a recent Rolling Stone list of the 100 greatest shows in history. When Beavis and Butt-Head premiered in spring 1993, The Simpsons was finishing up what many now consider not just its greatest season, but perhaps the greatest ever.
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