Saturday, October 31, 2015
Friday, October 30, 2015
Blogtober: Hilloween
King of the Hill is one of my favorite animated shows. It is, as my Brother in law Grizz says "A show about a man who has a mid-level management job at a propane store, and thinks he has life by the balls."
Hank Hill, the aforementioned ball-holder, is the patriarch of the Hill family, and often the only sane man in a world populated by twigboys, tree-hugging noodle brained communists, and Christian Rockers.
Hank is a Methodist, but not a bible-thumper, which is addressed in several episodes, but none so notably as Hilloween. Here a newcomer to Arlen Texas, Junie Harper (voiced by the incomparable Sally Field) starts weaving the words of God into a tapestry of lies. Hank's niece by marriage, Luanne, gets sucked in, and helps convince the town to ban Halloween, and Bobby to see his father as a Satanist. It's up to Hank to save Halloween, and his son from a group of religious extremists.
The episode, aside from being hilarious, is one of the few TV depictions of Halloween that matches my personal views. It's not a holiday about worshiping Satan. It's just a time for horror-themed fun. Hank's whole plan for the holiday is he "...Just want['s] Bobby to have a real scary Halloween, like I did as a boy."
As a Baptist, and a big proponent of horror, this sums it all up. I don't agree with Hank's pro-egging and TP attitude, but other than that, we're on the same page. Most Halloween specials are about kids getting TOO scared, and parents having to talk them down, or shame themselves for taking it too far. As a kid, this ticked me off. I never got that scared at haunted houses or scary movies. Those kids seemed like wusses, and the parents like dweebs. Hank was the first TV parent I saw who 'got it.'
Another thing the episode tackles is the Christian alternative to a haunted house, a Hallelujah House (more commonly called a Hell House). It's a haunted house that delivers pro-Christian messages with scenes of abortions, premarital sex (special focus on gay couples giving each other aids!), school shootings, suicide, and evolution.
I went to one of these with my youth-group once. Once. Our pastor never made that mistake again. Next year we went to a normal haunted house. When the Baptists are scared off, you KNOW you're going too far.
Hank manages to save his son, his niece, and his town's Halloween celebration from the intolerant "Christians", all without losing his own ties to religion or personal beliefs. THAT'S a message I can get behind.
For more info on Hell Houses (and how to derail them) see THIS hilarious blog. Happy Halloween!
Hank Hill, the aforementioned ball-holder, is the patriarch of the Hill family, and often the only sane man in a world populated by twigboys, tree-hugging noodle brained communists, and Christian Rockers.
Preach it, Hank.
Hank is a Methodist, but not a bible-thumper, which is addressed in several episodes, but none so notably as Hilloween. Here a newcomer to Arlen Texas, Junie Harper (voiced by the incomparable Sally Field) starts weaving the words of God into a tapestry of lies. Hank's niece by marriage, Luanne, gets sucked in, and helps convince the town to ban Halloween, and Bobby to see his father as a Satanist. It's up to Hank to save Halloween, and his son from a group of religious extremists.
Accurate. Sort of.
The episode, aside from being hilarious, is one of the few TV depictions of Halloween that matches my personal views. It's not a holiday about worshiping Satan. It's just a time for horror-themed fun. Hank's whole plan for the holiday is he "...Just want['s] Bobby to have a real scary Halloween, like I did as a boy."
The scariest thing in this episode is the notion of people using God's name to be cruel and intolerant. Glad nothing like that happens in real life!
As a Baptist, and a big proponent of horror, this sums it all up. I don't agree with Hank's pro-egging and TP attitude, but other than that, we're on the same page. Most Halloween specials are about kids getting TOO scared, and parents having to talk them down, or shame themselves for taking it too far. As a kid, this ticked me off. I never got that scared at haunted houses or scary movies. Those kids seemed like wusses, and the parents like dweebs. Hank was the first TV parent I saw who 'got it.'
And by 'it' I mean POSSESSED BY SATAN!
Another thing the episode tackles is the Christian alternative to a haunted house, a Hallelujah House (more commonly called a Hell House). It's a haunted house that delivers pro-Christian messages with scenes of abortions, premarital sex (special focus on gay couples giving each other aids!), school shootings, suicide, and evolution.
Since Halloween is when all the kids go get abortions.
I went to one of these with my youth-group once. Once. Our pastor never made that mistake again. Next year we went to a normal haunted house. When the Baptists are scared off, you KNOW you're going too far.
Not only does he have AIDS, he has SATAN!
Hank manages to save his son, his niece, and his town's Halloween celebration from the intolerant "Christians", all without losing his own ties to religion or personal beliefs. THAT'S a message I can get behind.
For more info on Hell Houses (and how to derail them) see THIS hilarious blog. Happy Halloween!
"Fine, go on, all of you! More room in Heaven for me!"
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