One of the defining landmarks of 1990s lowbrow animation, Mike Judge's extremely popular Beavis and Butt-Head (1993-1997) caught on fast and burrowed itself deep in American pop culture shortly thereafter. It's debatable whether the antics of our two heroes include clever observations of society or crude slices of slacker life---but most fans agree that the series represents a bit of both. The original broadcast episodes merged short animated adventures with Mystery Science Theater 3000-style critiques of music videos, both old and new. The blend between the two halves was rarely seamless, but it was a formula that often worked extremely well.

Presented on DVD in a three-part series dubbed "The Mike Judge Collection", the original format of Beavis and Butt-Head has since been put under the knife; that is, the shorts and videos have been separated as stand-alone segments. Additionally, roughly one-third of the total run of Beavis and Butt-Head shorts will never be a part of this collection, as series creator Judge doesn't feel they're good enough to include (and only a fraction of the videos will ever see the light of day, thanks to expensive rights issues). Fair enough, regarding the former problem: it's Judge's baby, and at least we're getting most of the cartoons. Incidentally, what's made the final cut is generally entertaining stuff: sure, it was a bit funnier 10 years ago, but it's still pretty amusing stuff in its own right. Either way, there's just no other series like it.

Here's the complete list of all 40 shorts included in this second volume:

Representing what creator Mike Judges defines as his "hand-picked favorites" from the 1994-96 popular peak of Beavis and Butt-Head, this second collection is a bit uneven but still stronger than the first batch. The packaging makes no mention of these being "Director's Cuts"---and for those who didn't purchase Volume 1, that meant a few shorts were actually trimmed in certain spots (or added to, in certain cases). Not being a fanatic of the show, I don't have old VHS copies and the like to compare these to; as such, I'll have to assume these are unaltered from the original versions. If any sharp-eyed viewers spot changes to these shorts, let me know and I'll post them here.

Standouts from this collection include "Lightning Strikes", featuring our heroes emulating Ben Franklin and ending up in the hospital---only to be interviewed by a woman who assumes they've been emulating music videos instead. There's also "Bus Trip", featuring a memorable performance by the peace-loving Mr. Van Driessen; "Animation Sucks", a look at the dynamic duo's art prowess; "Another Friday Night", the 'sequel' to an earlier episode with more Maxi-Mart high-jinx; and "Candy Sale", highlighting the economics of selling school candy bars. A few clunkers are also on board, including the less successful "Stewart Moves Away", "Oil Change" and "Here Comes the Bride's Butt". Overall, there's more good than bad here, though the music video-free shorts don't flow as well as the original broadcast versions.

All things considered, nearly half of the cartoons included here are reportedly new to DVD, so owners of the Time-Life discs or the recalled History of Beavis and Butt-Head don't have to worry about tons of repeats. This 3-disc set, presented by Paramount, combines all 40 shorts with a selection of interesting bonus features that fans of the series should really enjoy. Any way you look at it, this is a solid package that should appeal to disciples of lowbrow animation.

As with the first volume, these episodes are presented in their original 1.33:1 format. The transfers aren't all in perfect shape, but they're all relatively clean and clear. The only problem here is a moderate level of interlacing---especially common in animation DVDs---which creates a bit of softness and blurriness during scenes of action (NOTE: Viewers with standard-definition TVs may not notice this problem). Even so, it's safe to say that these episodes offer a visual improvement over the original broadcast versions, so fans of the show shouldn't be disappointed.

The audio department offers a quality presentation, as the included English 2.0 Stereo mix is front-heavy but surprisingly dynamic with a lively atmosphere that gets the job done nicely. Unfortunately, no subtitle options have been provided for these episodes---and worse yet, Closed Captioning isn't supported either.

The extras continue with Part II of Taint of Greatness: The Journey of Beavis and Butt-Head (19:51), a continuing behind-the-scenes documentary spanning all three volumes of the Mike Judge Collection. Among others, we hear from the creator himself (below left), South Park co-creator Trey Parker, Snoop Dogg (below right) and more. Though it's a bit clip-heavy, there are plenty of great stories and a brief look at unused concepts and sketches.

Next up is a collection of Special Appearances aired on MTV through the years (7 clips, 12:47 total), including "Butt Bowl '94-'96", "MTV's 20th Anniversary Special", "Calvin Klein" ad parodies, "Moron-A-Thon" clips and an unaired "I Love the '90s" segment. On a related note, we also get to see a few Promos for the show (3 clips, 1:43 total), including the preview for the 1993 series premiere. Also included are a pair of Montages (3:09 total) highlighting "Memories of Love" and "Friends and Neighbors"---the first is particularly funny, boasting a non-stop barrage of failed attempts to score. Closing things out are a selection of Previews (5:57) and a promo for Mike Judge & Don Hertzfeldt's Animation Show.

The concept may not have all aged as gracefully as we'd like, but there's no doubt that anyone who enjoyed Volume 1 of Beavis and Butt-Head: The Mike Judge Collection will want to scoop up this second installment. The shorts are a bit uneven but still entertaining, while the decent technical presentation and collection of bonus features support the series well. Though it's still unfortunate that the cartoons and music videos don't maintain the original free-flowing format, at least the former don't seem to be trimmed like those found on Volume 1 (at least according to the packaging). Overall, this is a solid package and easily worth the price of admission for lowbrow animation fans. Recommended.