Only You Can Prevent Digital Video Parodies

I fought long and hard over this one, my blogger’s ethics (???-Ed.) wrestling over whether it was right to give still more publicity to what is essentially desperate cry for publicity. But then, I glanced up from my Moleskine and I saw a laughing young child, gay and innocent, features illluminated in a slim shaft of late afternoon sunlight on the Coffee Bean terrace. I thought, if I can convince just one young boy (just one) out there with a DV cam, an iBook, a rip of Final Cut and a DSL hookup, to not make that parody video he has been thinking about making, well, then our (and the Lord’s, really) work is done here.

But wouldn’t you know it, I am too late to stop these youngins from already going down that dark path. Damn it. Still, we will fight. Because we must.

You see, this “Lazy Monday” clip that’s making the the in-box rounds is a harbinger of bad things to come. This soi-disant West Coast (Santa Monica & Bev Hills mostly) response to the infamous SNL clip nudges us further down a slippery slope of diminishing comedic returns. The video is amusing, probably not as funny as you and your group of friends though. It displays the competency of someone who’s taken an extension DV editing class or two plus a Groundlings class or two. The references–Coffee Bean, 405, NPR–will make locals chuckle, while reinforcing the worst L.A. stereotypes to East Coasters. Thanks, dudes.

And so, ultimately, friends, this “Lazy Monday,” is just some more useless web video detritis, a genre that needs no more entrants. The original (?) “Lazy Sunday” Narnia rap clip was like an unexpected corpse fart from that comedic morgue that is SNL ’06. They’ve already shown themselves unable to bottle lightning again with a terrible follow-up in “Young Chuck Norris.” Let’s zip up this body bag now.

Parodies are one thing. Parodies of parodies are another. Please let the East Coast/West Coast parody video shorts end here. It’s only a matter of time before someone ends up with a shitty NBC sitcom. And none of us wants that.