Mr Show With Bob and David: "The Limits of Science"

"Mr Show With Bob and David" 1995-1998. David Cross and Bob Odenkirk, Home Box Office (HBO). Youtube 10.07.06

Mr Show was a sketch comedy show starring Bob Odenkirk and David Cross inthe mid to late 1990s. The show featured sketches based on absurd premises often dealing with religion, politics and relatively taboo topics. In the clip below, the show makes fun of religious beliefs of the past by showing how ridiculous they were. As people of the 21st century we can look at this and laugh, wondering how people could possibly believe the things they did, because in the clip, as in real life back then, people really did believe these things and other similar ideas. This clip not only makes fun of beliefs from the past, but it can also be transposed as an observation on today's spiritual and religious beliefs. Granted science has come a long way since the middle ages, but there are still those (many people) who hold on to beliefs. As a documentary made during the middle ages (an absurd idea in itself) people watching it at the time would have believed what it said. Viewers now look at it and scoff. Which makes us wonder, what present day documentaries about science or religion will people hundreds or thousands of years from now watch and view as being absurd? This sketch works on the level of making fun of religion and it also comments that science is an ever moving forward process and it is important to always be skeptical.

Brad Neely

Brad Neely is a comic book artist who also occasionally does short videos. His video series include "I Am Baby Cakes," "China, Illinois," and "The Professor Brothers." The Professor Brothers follows two professors, Frank and Steve Smith either teaching a class at a local college, partying outside of work, or (like in the video) singing a song, for example, one about JFK. The song about George Washington is humorous due to the exaggerated abilities given to him by the singers and the squeaky sounding voices of Cox and Combes. Although Neely sold the characters, the song, and the cartoon, Frank and Steve have the same voices as Cox and Combes and, in another video, the brothers sing their own song about a president.

"Cox and Combes' Washington." Super Deluxe. Brad Neely. Youtube.