10. The 50-Egg challenge
Season 1, Episode 4
Nothing more American than a good ol' fashioned hard boiled egg eating challenge, and Jackass was the first show to realize it. Preston, Chris, and Stephanie sat in front of 50 delicious, wholesome hard boiled eggs. These contestants tried the best they could, but sadly were unable to finish the wonderful amount of 50 hard boiled eggs. Me and my family cherish the splendid memory of the contestants projectile vomiting over each other after 21, 8, and 3 eggs respectively.
9. Fisherman's Wharf
Season 2, Episode 7
How often have we wondered what it would be like to be put into a vat of freezing cold sardines? When nobody else seemed willing to take up the fun little challenge, Ryan Dunn was there. Now, I know that many of us would have jumped with joy into a cramped container filled with 32 degree water and smelly fish, but only Jackass could provide closure with their resources and limitless imagination. Luckily for Mr. Dunn, he smelled like fish for hours after the stunt, giving him a constant reminder of a pleasant afternoon.
8. Cow Insemination
Season 2, Episode 2
Babies. Nature. The circle of life. Just a couple of the educational topics touched on by the inspiring staff at Jackass. In this segment Johnny Knoxville goes hand deep into the beauty of animal husbandry, showing us that there's nothing disgusting at all about being a farmer. Some television shows out there rely on shock factor and dirty words, but what makes Jackass so special is it's ability to turn all that away and focus on good old fashioned segments about impregnating a cow by hand. Truly remarkable.
7. Butt Piercing
Season 2, Episode 3
Life is about taking risks. To move forward without hesitation. Jackass embodies these values more than anything else in the world ever made ever. Steve-O shows us his inspiring bravery in the third episode of season 2, when he makes the powerful decision to piece his butt cheeks together. Now, not everybody thinks this is possible, and several of his friends tell him so. Steve-O takes a stand for what he believes in and gets them pierced anyway, showing the world that if you truly want something then you should never back down or let others get in your way. After proving that the impossible was, in fact, possible, he got the piercing removed only minutes after it was put in. He's not crazy, after all!
6.Woodchipper
Season 3, Episode 1
Often times I find myself struggling through life. Sometimes it's just hard, I feel overwhelmed and just shut down completely, unable to continue. It's times like these that I think back to the most inspiring Jackass skit ever made: Woodchipper. The late, great Ryan Dunn stands in front of an industrial woodchipper as the rest of the crew feeds it with a myriad of food, clothes, paint, etc. Whenever my life is crashing around me and I can't go on, I think back to the tenacity shown by one of Jackass's greatest talents, and everything seems okay. When I stay in bed until the late afternoon, I think back to Ryan getting back on his feet after a rotten squid knocked him to the ground, and I get enough motivation to make myself breakfast at 3pm.
5. Electric Avenue
Jackass 3D
Theres nothing I love more than when the entire Jackass crew comes together and takes on a stunt as a team. In Jackass 3D the boys make their way down a hallway with active tazers and cattle prods hanging from the ceiling, tires on the floor, and love in their hearts. The quad seems to hesitate for a few seconds after the skit begins, presumably to silently pray in the hopes that their friends will pass through safely. Just then Bam and Ehren take the lead and charge through the electrified obstacle course. The leadership shown by these brave men, and the outstanding teamwork of the men to follow, are an inspiring lesson in facing your fears and working together with the people you trust. Next time I'm in a team building exercise I will make sure to show this clip and teach the lessons Jackass has immortalized through film.
4. Beehive Tetherball
Jackass 3D
Steve-O and Dave England take a little break from their stunts and shenanigans to play a game of tetherball! Of course, this is Jackass, so they need to make it slightly more educational than a simple schoolyard pastime. They added bees into a hive-sized ball and hit that around the pole, teaching us the invaluable lesson that bees are dying at an increasing and alarming rate. As Dave runs away in fear, the concept of Colony Collapse Disorder resonates through his retreat and permeates in our brains, convincing us that we must find a solution soon or the whole world will suffer. As Steve-O sticks around to finish the tetherball game, he shows us that there is hope and we must hang in there to figure all this madness out. A truly inspired piece.
3. Poo Cocktail
Season 1, Episode 1
Poo Cocktail is most elegantly described on the unofficial Jackass Wikipedia page:
"Over the course of a day, various crew members and members of the public take a dump in the portaloo. Johnny phones up his doctor to find out if he needs any immunization or protection during the stunt. To top it off, one of the crew members brings a bag full of dog shit from his two Pit Bull Terriers and empties it into the toilet."
This stunt is the epitome of class. Johnny is diligent in showing his safety precautions. Cute dogs come into the story. What I love most of all is the how the actors and crew alike come together and make a stunt more than a spectacle. They make it personal.
2.Poo Cocktail Supreme
Jackass 3D
In a revamp of a stunt from their original episode, Steve-O gets flung 150 feet into the air inside a porta-potty. Following his journey's apex, the poo-pod comes back to earth and bounces a few times with the bungie cord, spilling some sort of brown liquid on Steve. Mr. -O doesn't seem to agree with this concoction, and immediately vomits on himself. I will say, this section of the show is a tad difficult to watch, and isn't exactly appropriate for some bitch ass kids. However, the show has one of it's most touching moments when Steve-O, reeling from a near death experience, goes to hug a cameraman. The two run off into the horizon to lead a beautiful life together, and just that moment makes this stunt number 2 on our most wholesome Jackass stunts.
1.Steve-O becomes a drug addict and almost loses his life.
True Life: Jackass
The most wholesome story in the Jackass narrative has got to be Steve-O's transition from a fun loving, durable clown to a withering shell filled with booze and hard drugs. In the early years of Jackass, when they were still getting their footing, I always had a suspicion that Steve-O's character had some evolving to do. He had spirit, but there was something missing. What was missing, apparently, was whippets. After diving into a several-month long bender of nitrous, PCP, and Ketamine, Steve-O was finally a complete character with a real arc we could get behind. The great actor that he was, Steve-O fully immersed himself into the character of a man withing inches of death. Strangely enough, the show runners decided not to air any footage of Steve-O abusing drugs off camera. Most of this information actually came years later, when Mr. -O made a documentary of his time in the show and pits of addiction. Regardless of how we came to know this story, it goes without saying that it delivered endless positive, fluttery, wholesome emotions that Jackass is known for.
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