For those who’ve been living under a rock,Don’t Hug Me I’m Scaredis a British comedy horror series styled after a children’s television show. It started life as a one-off on YouTube but ended up becoming a full-on web series following asuccessful Kickstarter campaign. Then, more than a full decade on from its debut on YouTube, it was picked up by British broadcaster Channel 4 for an initial six-episode television series.
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Despite more than half a decade separating the final episode of the web series andDon’t Hug Me I’m Scaredbeingbroadcast on Channel 4, not too much has changed other than the length of the episodes. The show still revolves around three friends known as Red Guy, Yellow Guy, and Duck and continues to rely heavily on songs to convey its humor. However, the bestDHMISsongs from the show are arguably much better than any of the ones that came before them.
5On the Road
Thoughthe transport song that the old train character singsat the beginning of episode 5 is also very good, the one that the three friends sing after hopping into the train’s corpse and going on a road trip ends up being quite a bit funnier, not to mention a whole lot stranger. Given that weird and wacky are central themes of the show, it all seems wonderfully appropriate.
From Yellow Guy playing with “the shapes in the cupboard that burn [him]” to Duck customizing his area of the car with pictures of a tuxedo-wearing swan and his favorite electric shredder, the song perfectly capturesthe strangeness of the showand puts it front and center for all to see. Red Guy throwing the creepy hitchhiker out of the window is also very amusing, perhaps due to how abrupt it is.
4There’s Three of Us
“There’s Three of Us” serves as themain theme songfor season 1 ofDon’t Hug Me I’m Scaredand is played at the beginning of each and every episode. Like many of the songs found throughout the show, it’s incredibly catchy and also does a wonderful job of preparing viewers for the weird and wacky antics that they’re about to see throughout the course of the episode.
What makes the song even better is that it changes slightly with every new episode, which encourages viewers to actually watch theintro sequencerather than just skipping ahead. Another altered version of the song, “There’s Four of Us,” plays near the end of episode 2 after Duck returns from the grave and it’s this one that is perhaps the funniest version of the lot due to the way that it ends.
3The Jobs Song
Pretty much all of the songs inDon’t Hug Me I’m Scaredare strange to a certain degree, but none more so than the jobs song from episode 1. It’s effectively just a talking briefcase and the three friends discussinga variety of different jobs, but the way that they choose to summarize these professions and the ones that they end up honing in on manages to be as unique as it is wacky.
From Duck wanting to “invent a digital currency based around respect” to Red Guy’s complete lack of interest in the prospect of having to get a job, the song’s full to the brim with memorable moments. The way that it picks straight back up again after Brendan’s meltdown is genius as well, as too is the reprise at the very end of the episode.
2The Special Day
For any other show, an upbeat song aboutgetting ready for a funeralmay seem a little strange. ForDon’t Hug Me I’m Scaredthough, it’s pretty much par for the course at this point. The song is initiated by a talking coffin, who shows up at the three friends' home after Duck reads about his own death in the local newspaper. What follows is comedy gold.
The trio sing about getting ready for the “special day” of Duck’s funeral, with tasks like writing a sympathy card and choosing a nice tie to wear all included. Things get even funnier when Red Guy and Yellow Guy end up forgetting what they’re supposed to be doing mid-way through the song and begin singing about making a shepherd’s pie. Eventually, however, Red Guy realizes his mistake and the song comes to an abrupt end.
1The Electricity Song
Episode 6 begins with the three friends receiving a large electricity bill in the mail. After taking a moment to discuss it, they decide that they’re not going to pay the bill as they don’t believe that electricity is all that important. Naturally, this assertion leads to their fusebox coming to life to teach them all about electricity throughthe wonders of song and dance.
Not only does the fuse box point out that many of the appliances in the trio’s home rely on electricity, but she also uses electricity to improve the ones that don’t. This includes turning Yellow Guy’s “boring chair” into an electric chair and tearing a hamster in half to reveal that it has some electrical wires inside. The highlight of the song is undoubtedly Duck asking about his beloved shredder though, with the fusebox’s frustrated response to his glorious singing and harmonies one of the very best moments of season 1.
