The presents are opened, the cookies are eaten, and in this post-holiday haze there’s just one question left on everyone’s mind: why the heck are King of the Hill + anime crossovers even a thing?
I haven’t seen much King of the Hill, but I think many Westerners are familiar with Hank Hill, his beer-drinking friends, and his son, Bobby. For the uninitiated, Know Your Meme has a great introduction to this American animated sitcom. Over 2013 I’ve seen more and more mashups mixing Hank, Bobby, and our favorite anime heroes and heroines.
I think Anime Herald was the first to point out this trend in September, but since then it’s only gotten weirder. I realized I needed to write about it after I linked my post about my top male anime characters of 2013, and Adam responded:
@laureninspace my favorite male anime character of 2013 is Hank Hill, who managed to get inserted into every anime in history this year.
— Adam Gurri (@adamgurri) December 23, 2013
Between Cowboy Hill, Attack on Hill and others, we’ve certainly seen no shortage of anime cameos for America’s favorite propane salesman. But… why?
Based on what I know about humor, the joke is in the juxtaposition of two completely opposite concepts. Like this blogger talks about in her inappropriate soundtrack compilation, neither the movie nor the music would be funny alone. It’s putting two clashing moods together that creates the absurd and unexpected, and therefore, humor. Or as the kids say, “That’s so random.”
In this meme, you first have King of the Hill, a show that’s totally inoffensive to the point of blandness; a show with a general audience that celebrates some of America’s most traditional values, like being Texan (I am definitely stretching here).
And on the other hand, we have anime, becoming more popular with younger people all the time, but still strange enough to freak out old-timers in the flyover states. Combine anime with a show they’d actually watch, and things get really weird.
Today there are more than 12,000 King of the Hill inspired mashups on DeviantArt. On Facebook, King of the Hill is the best anime has 2,000 fans. Any theories as to why King of the Hill x anime crossovers are so popular? I’m just spitballing here.
Photo credits, top to bottom: Steve Yurko, theshiningd, GarthTheDestroyer.
7 Comments.
It makes me wonder if the characters in King of the Hill represent anime archetypes or the show is an American version of the “slice of life” stuff that Japan craves.
@Tony, I’d like to hear more about that. Watch an episode or two and let me know if you post anything!
KotH is my favorite animated program of all time, mostly for the reasons you listed above: it’s inoffensive, predictably reliable, stable, capable of being chain-watched like a good shounen series, while still having all the tastes of a slice of life show. It has strong nostalgia factors, since it was on for over 14 years, is extremely “meta” and self-referential in the latter half of the series, and the characters are enjoyable, rather than over the top.
Unlike the shock-type series that seem to proliferate everywhere, KotH gets by on its ensemble cast and their ties to “bland, boring Americana.” Hank Hill is everyone’s stuffy dad, Peggy is everyone’s self-serving, know-it-all mom, Bobby is every one of us (right down to getting involved in all sorts of fantoms- just watch season 7 if ydn’t believe me. I even cited “Witches of East Arlen” in my dissertation), no matter how much we might laugh at him, we can sympathize as well.
It’s one of those shows that resonates because it is our life on some level. Moreso if you live in the ‘burbs. And because it’s so generic at times, it can be overlaid onto anything, really. King of the Poke-Hill was a good example of that.
Both of those are fascinating ideas. I’m with Lauren,would love to see a posting following through on them.
As an admin for the facebook page, the Propane Gods are pleased that we have finally gained some internet popularity. May King of the Hill be the best anime for many years to come, I tell you what.
We all know that feeling, you finish a anime and have no idea what to do next. After I finished Riddick I wanted to find something with action, romance and everything else. I found King Of The Hill. It showed me everything I wanted in an anime and more. It saved my life, I thank Hank everyday before bed.
It’s the juxtaposition. King of the Hill is my favorite animated show of all time. Its intentional blandness and satyrical representation of “true Americana” make it the complete opposite of what most anime goes for, which is flash and style. Also, the fact that anime is a foreign media, makes it the antithesis of what King of the hill satirizes (which are things that are too American, too domestic). And the fact that the characters of King of the Hill are painfully ignorant of foreign cultures (not hateful, just ignorant) gives it a whole fish-out-of-water vibe.
“You know, I read that the Chinese have over one hundred words for rice, but not one word for ‘friend’.”: Peggy Hill
“That’s what happens when you buy a Japanese leaf blower. They’re made for blowing off those little bonsai bushes and cherry blossoms.”: Hank Hill