Wardrobe of Moral Imagination: My Favourite GMM Episodes Addition

Rhett & Link during Ice Bath Aftermath

Today is the only day I have all week for a long post, and, of course, I find myself too tired and lazy (dreading the week to come, I suppose!) to write anything extensive.

So instead of anything fancy, I thought I would finally get around to making my Top GMM Episodes List that Dr. Wright requested a few weeks ago.  I tried to incorporate my favourite videos in general as well as giving a broad sampling of the different genres (and seasons) GMM has to offer.  These are presented in no discernable order.

Jade's Top GMM Episodes List (in No Discernable Order)

1) Crazy Cookie Roulette Challenge (season 10, episode 81)
Great episode - I loved having Link's dad guest star (he's straight up savage and is definitely Link From the Future).  It also incorporates the classic GMM tropes - a Rhett vs Link game, eating weird and disgusting foods, amusing anecdotes, and fun trivia about an obscure topic (cookies)

2) Conjoined Twin Challenge (10, 54)
I laughed so much during this episode when they tried to dress like Guy Fieri that I could barely stand.  It's definitely one of the weirdest videos they've ever done with plenty of Rhett and Link friendship goodness (along with the mythical crew laughing hysterically in the background).

3) Song For When You Want To Say "I Love You" But You Can't (part of "The Disturbing Science of Love" 9, 24)
Definitely the best song they've ever composed, I think this video shows their great musical talents.  Rhett and Link have a long history of hilarious song writing (Veggie Tale level content here, guys), and this is by far my favourite.  I think it totally encompasses the commitment-phobe world we live in, but in a light-hearted way.  And Link's expression in the background every time Rhett stops short of saying "I love you" is hilarious.

4) Which Lipstick Lasts Longest? (TEST) (11, 14)
This episode does a great job at showcasing a long-standing tradition on the show, which is Rhett and Link cross-dressing and/or trying out various products usually meant for women in a lot of different scenarios.  It also featured another great trope of the show - testing out different product brands to see which one is best (I lost it when they started kissing the mannequin heads).  It was even featured in an Allure website post.

5) Extreme Jump Rope Challenge (11, 88)
This one had strains of the Extreme Yoga Challenge episode, which is my favourite GMM episode of all time.  The same set-up/concept of guessing different moves based on verbal instruction and name alone makes me laugh every time.  Also, their outfits are amazing.

6) Extreme Yoga Challenge (9, 3)
I actually cried from laughter when I watched this episode.  It took the classic Rhett vs. Link game concept and elevated it to the next level.  They had to try and perform different yoga moves based solely on verbal instruction/name of the move, and the one who arrived closest to the correct position won.  The entire thing was amazing from start to finish, and I also tried to play along with them, (which I liked that I could participate in the game too).  This is my favourite episode of GMM of all time.

7) We Try Dog Yoga (Good Mythical MORE 2016)
I love a lot of GMMore episodes, but this one was by far my favourite (which makes sense because it's the partner to my favourite main GMM episode).  I like that GMMore is a fun, casual "show after the show" that actually feels more like the original GMM tone (a talk show where they just talk about random things without any fancy gimmicks).  A good example of this would be a close contender for my favourite GMMore: Ice Bath Aftermath (2015).  Although other episodes, like "We Try Dog Yoga", still feature a game element - just more relaxed without any sort of prize.  And I might be biased since this was the first episode I watched where I found out Link has a dog named Jade.  And I laughed the entire time hearing Link try to control his dog but kept saying my name in that "dog voice" people do.

8) Does Dancing Increase Your Pain Tolerance? (11, 35)
This was my second favourite episode of GMM of all time.  I liked that it included a classic Rhett & Link staple of "vague science article about some obscure principle" being the basic concept for an entire episode.  But incorporating their ridiculous dance moves was so hilarious that it made me cry laughing - particularly the first round of dancing on their own and the second round where they have to dance together (not in sync).

9) The Oregon Trail IRL Challenge (6, 108)
This one has an "older" GMM feel, which I love - with a classic Rhett vs. Link game at its core with ridiculous outfits and challenges.  I also think it does a good job of showing how GMM is really creative at promoting their various corporate sponsors in a fun, entertaining way (not just as an awkward, obligatory shout-out) - I laughed the entire time I watched this episode.  And of course the fact that it's about the Oregon Trail video game makes me nostalgic both for my home state and the game.

10) Eating a Scorpion - Bug War Challenge (5, 79)
Yet another episode with an "old GMM" tone.  It incorporates eating disgusting food and a common game for a fun Rhett vs. Link.  It definitely feels like the embryonic beginnings of their now viral video concept: "Will It" (the first of which was featured just a few episodes after this one).  It amazes me how many crazy things the guys have eaten on the show - especially Link.

11) My Hair Song (Rhett & Link 2012)
Classic Rhett & Link, this episode is actually posted on their first channel instead of their second (Good Mythical Morning).  It does a good job at showcasing their musical talents along with their video making skills.  Sometimes I forget that they're professional filmmakers that have been in the business for a long time and that they know how to make a variety of different styles - not just a(n excellent) daily talk show.  I also like how their "early" music videos showcase how their road to success on YouTube was definitely not over night.  It was a long, hard road that included a lot of experimentation and perseverance.  This song was so catchy that it was stuck in my head over Bowie for a few days.  Other excellent contenders for film, acting, and musical work include 2 Guys 600 Pillows (Backwards) (2010), PHOTOSHOP Song (2011), It's My Belly Button (Song) (2014), and I'm On Vacation (Song) (2014).

12) Taking a Ranch Bath (9, 64)
This is one of my all time favourite "Question Episodes", in which Rhett & Link answer various questions asked by their viewers on their show.  These episodes are usually my least favourite, but watching two grown thirty-something-year-old men both over 6' tall try to take a ranch bath in a single steel tub made me laugh hysterically.  Not to mention the super random sketch where Rhett "shrinks down" to "talk" with a spider which feels a lot more like early Rhett & Link episodes.  It's also the origin of the "Link Finding a Sprite" gimmick which never gets old.

13) The Color Blast Game (10, 45)
Another "Question Episode" that I enjoyed because instead of just answering a lot of questions, they used a single question as the basis for an entire episode.  I loved the concept of the whole game - using colour blasters, slow-motion cameras, and getting to participate with the "contestants" by guessing which colour names matched with the appropriate colour.  I usually ended up guessing the same colour as Link, which was also fun to see that I was right (most) of the time.  Light Painting Challenge (10, 95) also does a great job of using a single question for a whole episode's worth of a fun game (Pictionary with light).

14) Toliet Paper: Over or Under? (6, 38)
Again, yet another old GMM episode, this one exemplifies the classic GMM trope of taking a single, usually frivolous/obscure topic, and spinning it out into a single episode.  This one used the classic "over or under" toilet paper debate as the launch point for Rhett & Link to take opposing sides and discuss why their perspective could be right (whether or not they "believe" it).  This is a personal favourite because I'm definitely an "over" person and my sister is definitely an "under"/"doesn't care" person, and they personality descriptions Link read for each person were dead on for both of us.

15) "NeverWet" Our Pants (4, 73)
The oldest GMM episode featured on my list, this one takes the classic Rhett & Link style of using a single topic for an entire episode's worth of content.  It's also layered with the other classic Rhett & Link trope of testing out a brand in a variety of comedic situations.  It's a joy to watch them gleefully take the "NeverWet" product to a ton of different materials.

16) The 4 Biggest Mistakes in History (7, 119)
One of my favourite examples of "List Episodes" where Rhett & Link discuss a list all connected by some "click bait" element like "5 Strange Languages Still Spoken Today", etc.  This genre of Rhett & Link was the first style I watched this past month and it is what made me originally click through/binge watch a lot of GMM.  I love that this style is a mix of talk show, comedic quips, and useless trivia.  The only thing needed is a game component with the trivia - which they actually do in another favourite of mine, "6 Really Messed Up Fairytales" - along with a lot of other episodes.