The show “Robot Chicken” by Seth Green and Matthew Senreich first aired on Adult Swim in 2005. I remember the first weekend I ever watched it. It was a tale as old as time – I was supposed to be doing something important, and instead, I watched clips of action figures doing terrible things to each other. It was the best waste of my time, and since then, this show has always been my go-to “I really should be doing something else instead but I just don’t feel like it” watch. This is far from an exhaustive list of “Robot Chicken” clips that have influenced me, but they were some of the most formative.

Content Warning: “Robot Chicken” is a typical Adult Swim show in that it is full of crude jokes, violence, and profanity. It’s not for everyone and not what I would call family viewing. If you want to watch a sweet, gentle show that’s appropriate for kids, then this is not it. Maybe you’d prefer “Hilda” instead?

Highlohander

Robot Chicken should pull some strings and make a feature-length movie of this Disney-teen-inspired “Highlander” parody.

Peanuts Halloween

Watching Charlie Brown kick that bitch Lucy in the face is so satisfying.

Mario Kart in Grand Theft City

Mario and Luigi learn that they’re no match for the big city.

Gummy Bear

In this harrowing clip, a young gummy bear in a difficult situation must dig deep to survive.

Care Bear Cleansing

The Care Bears are no longer satisfied with their impure Care Bear Cousins.

Smurfs vs. Snorks

Two tribes go to war with each other until they learn to co-exist peacefully. I would also like a full-length movie of this clip and also the prompt renewal of “Snorks.”

Lisbeth Salander Meets Scooby-Doo

When Velma (aka that famous gal from the show people have been hardcore trashing) is horribly injured during a case, the gang needs help from the main character from “Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.”

Big Bird Has the Bird Flu

This clip was pretty funny pre-pandemic. Post-pandemic, it’s still pretty funny.

Skeletor Leases Snake Mountain

Skeletor has to lease part of Skull Mountain to a local fraternity at Eternia Tech, and it goes about as well as you’d expect. I know jack-all about He-Man, so I like to pretend it’s exactly the way it’s presented in this show.

The Stages of Grief

This scene is such a classic that I remember showing it to the rest of my high school health class. I have only some regrets.

The more I worked on this list, the more I kept remembering the other delightfully demented clips that have taken root in my mind. I’ve been watching this show for fifteen years, so that’s a lot of content taking up space in my brain. And while it kills me that I can remember hundreds of Robot Chicken clips but not one question from all the CPA exams I failed, I’ve made my peace with my undying love for this show. I hope it gets twenty more seasons and that I continue making lists like this until the Happy Hagfish brand is purchased by whatever lucrative content farm is dominating the market in 2050.