Raunchy, R-Rated Comedy Special Ruins Your Childhood In The Funniest Way

By Chris Snellgrove
| Updated 12 seconds ago

There’s one decade that movies and TV shows never get sick of: the ‘80s. The wildly popular show Stranger Things kept the Reagan era in pop culture for nearly a decade. And long before Eleven first showed her chopped haircut, Hollywood began bringing ‘80s franchises like Ghostbusters, Transformers, and G.I. Joe to the big screen. While this was certainly an iconic time period, it was enough to make this ‘80s kid (class of 2000, baby!) wonder when a much better decade will finally get its due.

If we can’t celebrate the ‘90s, though, we can do the next best thing: laugh at the ‘90s.  Recently, standup comedian Rob Anderson released a special, Are You Afraid of the ‘90s, and it basically gives the Bo Burnham treatment to our favorite overlooked decade. With killer punchlines, catchy songs, and perfectly timed video clips (not to mention several healthy heapings of raunchy humor), this is one special that’s guaranteed to leave millennials howling.

The Decade That Time Forgot

The formula for Are You Afraid of the ‘90s is simple but entertaining. Host Rob Anderson (who channels the self-deprecating, self-aware humor of Taylor Tomlinson and the manic, animated delivery of Gianmarco Soresi) brings up various arcane knowledge of the ‘90s and riffs on how weird these moments were. The result is a surprisingly fun performance that feels like the lovechild of Joe Bob Briggs’ How the Rednecks Saved Hollywood and the dankest memes in your favorite group chat.

Part of what makes Anderson’s humor so effective is how hilariously specific he gets. This isn’t just him saying “wow, that was crazy” and then moving on. Instead, he’ll pull up niche video clips of some of our favorite ‘90s protagonists and riff on how weird these moments are. For instance, in commenting on an awful anti-drug special, he points out the absurdity of just how quickly Simon from Alvin and the Chipmunks recognizes marijuana. In one of my favorite bits, he also talks about the weird visual similarities between the Burger King Kids, Captain Planet’s Planeteers, and Mrs. Frizzle’s kids. Like, it really was just genuinely bizarre!

From Stand-Up To Singing

Speaking of Mrs. Frizzle, Rob Anderson has an extended bit about Magic School Bus guaranteed to make you chuckle. This includes highlighting an episode where she forces the titular school bus into a kid’s body, leading to horrifying moments like them staring at this boy’s butthole from the inside. Strangely enough, the horrors of this pale in comparison to another episode where the children huddle in protective pods while a fish fertilizes them. Yes, it’s exactly what you think it is, and it looks just as insane as you imagine. Anderson really goes for it with the raunchy jokes, ensuring that you’ll never look at this beloved children’s cartoon the same way again.    

I don’t want to say too much more about the jokes in Are You Afraid of the ‘90s? (seriously, go watch it, the link is at the bottom!) because it’s worth experiencing all of this delightful weirdness with an open mind. However, I do want to comment a bit on Rob Anderson’s comedic style. Basically, he pairs hyper-specific pop culture references with an energetic, almost manic delivery, and the result is downright infectious. While his subject matter can get a bit naughty, he never punches down, and the audience is always in on the joke. Plus, he’s a genuinely gifted singer, and the demented musical sections are far catchier than they have any right to be.

As luck would have it, this New York Times best-selling comedian has made his entire comedy special available for free on YouTube. That means Are You Afraid of the ‘90s is just a click away, and it won’t cost you a thing to enjoy this relentless riffing on the decade that time forgot. That leaves you with more spare cash to go mindlessly spend on your favorite collectibles from that era. If you snag some Burger King Kids toys and some Captain Planet toys, be sure to have them fight in a big, Avengers-style crossover. Trust me: it’s what Rob Anderson would want!

ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE ’90S SCORE