Funny / Pinky and the Brain

"They're Pinky and the Brain... and Larry."

Brain: Pinky, are you pondering what I'm pondering?
Pinky: I think so, Brain, but a show where two lab mice plot to take over the world on a weekly basis? What's so funny about that?

They might be second billed, but let’s face it, Pinky and the Brain will make you laugh.

Examples from the Animaniacs revival go here.

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• All of the "Are You Pondering What I'm Pondering?" gags. ALL OF THEM!
• In "Bubba Bo Bob Brain", Brain is trying to become a Country Music star:
  Brain: I have calculated every ingredient to become a successful country music megastar. Read me the list, Pinky.
  Pinky: A cowboy hat.
  Brain: Check.
  Pinky: A southern dialect.
  Brain: Check. "Y'all."
  Pinky: Nice, Brain. Working class values.
  Brain: I enjoy beef jerky and the comedy stylings of Gallagher. Check.
  Pinky: A song.
  Brain: Check.
  Pinky: A name consisting of not less than three words.
  Brain: From now on, I shall be Bubba Bo Bob Brain. Check.
  Pinky: And a height of at least six feet.
  Brain: A... drat. There must be some way to increase my height.
• "One is a genius, the other's insane - and the other one's Larry."
• "Napoleon Brainaparte" opens with an Establishing Shot and a narrator announcing "Paris, France"... while the Standard Snippet that plays is actually "Rule Britannia". After a few increasingly emphatic (and annoyed) repetitions of "Paris, France" from the narrator, the music hastily stops and switches to "La Marseillaise".
• "Hi Brain. Do you know the lyrics to Muskrat Love?" "OCTOPUS!! HELLLP!!!"
  • "Do sealions eat seazebras?"
    Brain: You are going to be a help this time. Say it!
    Pinky: "You are going to be a help this time."
• From the Halloween Special:
  Brain: No! Pinky, you got chocolate on my Jack-o-Lantronic Transmitter!
  Pinky: You got Jack-o-Lantronic Transmitter on my chocolate! Yummy!
  • In the same special, after Pinky sells his soul to Mr. Itch (who is later revealed to be Satan himself) so that Brain could finally rule the world, Mr. Itch brings him down to Fire and Brimstone Hell and subjects to various tortures, all of which Pinky actually enjoys, much to Itch's annoyance.
    Pinky: I must say, you really know how to spoil a guest. I mean, that sauna with the really hot rocks was to die for.
    Mr. Itch: That was a barbecue.
• Nine words: "Moo. We are a cow. Take us to China."
  • "The irony of it all, Pinky. Years of trying to take over the world, and all I had to do was say 'moo'."
• The episode "But That's Not All, Folks!" where Pinky and The Brain transmit a live infomercial. Some of the skits they do are interesting.
• There is also the funniest variation of their closing line, after Pinky fouled up Brain's attempt to win a horse race:
  The Brain: Quiet Pinky, I'm getting ready for tomorrow night.
  Pinky: Why? What are we going to do tomorrow night?
  The Brain: [Irritated] Guess!
  Pinky: Oh, try to take over the world, right.
• In All You Need Is Narf...
  Yoyo Nono: You look so sad. I will sing you my happy song. EEEYYYAAAOOOEEE!!!
  • Then a few more times after:
    Yoyo Nono: I will sing my beautiful song. EEEYYYAAAOOOEEE!!!
    Yoyo Nono: Oh, then I will sing my sad song. EEEYYYAAAOOOEEE!!!
    Yoyo Nono: I will sing my love song. EEEYYYAAAOOOEEE!!!
    And then again on the TV: EEEYYYAAAOOOEEE!!!
• "The Pinky POV".
  • This basically explains how Pinky comes up with his non-sequitur answers to Brain's famous question.
    Pinky: [voiceover] Look at Brain. He really does have a large brain.
    Brain: All we have to do is blah blah blah...
    Pinky: Maybe that's why he has such a large head.
    Brain: We'll sneak past the guards...
    Pinky: Hippopotamuses have large heads. It must be very difficult for them to buy party hats, not to mention their, erm, narf! Unmentionables. And I can't even begin to imagine what a large pachyderm would wear at the beach. Zort! Well, perhaps I can. [aloud] Bravo, Brain! I always knew you were going to be big someday.
    Brain: Be big? Hmm. Pinky, are you pondering what I'm pondering?
    Pinky: I think so, Brain, but what if the hippopotamus won't wear the beach thong?
• From That Smarts...
  • Brain decides that Pinky has become smarter than he, and to balance the group he must become the dumb one. Cue his Oh, Crap! face right after he realizes Pinky has just done the same.
• This beautiful moment from Welcome To The Jungle:
  Snowball: I have a joke for you, Pinky. Knock knock.
  [beat]
  Pinky: Well, that's not a very funny joke, now is it.
  • The opening of the episode involving a plan by Brain to brainwash people through booby-trapped birthday cakes really has to be seen to be believed.
• From the Christmas special:
  Brain: Just act natural.
  Cue Pinky's flurry of verbal tics and laughs.
  Brain: Not that natural.
• From Brinky...
  Pinky: I'm a mommy! I'm a mommy!
  Brain: Pinky, that's absurd! You are nothing of the kind! [The clone's] chromosomal make-up just happens to include both of our genetic building blo- [Beat, and the Brain screams!] Oh my Lord, you are its mommy...
  • And then later, when Romy gets his own place and they visit.
    Romy: Well, well, well. If it isn't My Two Dads. Saget and Coulier.
    Pinky: Oh, please tell me (points to Brain) he's Saget!
  • Romy sends Pinky and Brain a letter from his new home asking them not to try to find him but the envelope has his address written on it. Pinky still has no clue to his whereabouts.
• This exchange from "The Pinky Protocol":
  Pinky: "I see an angel coming for us out of the sky."
  Brain: "I see clams! Giant, shirtless clams!"
• Pretty much anything Mr. Sultana says is hilarious, but this takes the cake:
  "SORRY MEESUZ FELDMAN, BUT SOME OF MY USED CLOTHING HAS BECOME CRRRUNCHY!"
• Are You Pondering What I'm Pondering? gets a serious lampshade:
  Brain: Are you pondering what I'm pondering?
  Pinky: Phew. Oh, I'd say the odds of that are terribly slim, Brain.
  Brain: True.
  Pinky: I mean, really, when have I ever been pondering what you've been pondering?
  Brain: To my knowledge, never.
  Pinky: Exactly. So what are the chances that this time I'm pondering what you're pondering?
  Brain: Next to nil.
  Pinky: Well, that's exactly what I'm thinking, too.
  Brain: (realizing) Therefore, you are pondering what I'm pondering.
  Pinky: Poit! I guess I am.
• In "When Mice Ruled the Earth" when Brain tries to make mice the dominant species on earth so that they'll elect him as their leader.
  Pinky: Egad! Brilliant Brain! Oh wait-no, no. Why would they pick you?
  Brain: Because I'm very likeable.
• From, "The Visit":
  Brain: Pinky, my parents are driving me crazy.
  Pinky: Really? Well, that doesn't leave me with much to do.
• From "Snowball", after Brain realizes the world is now under Snowball's control...
  Brain: Come. We have work to do.
  Pinky: Oh, right. Taking over the world, and all.
  Brain: No, Pinky. Tonight we must save the world!
  Pinky: Egad, Brain! Save the world?
  Brain: Yes! So it is available to take over tomorrow night.
• The writers may have called "Yes, Always" a very expensive inside joke, but it's still a hilarious one for the viewers that do get it. The best part, though, isn't spoofing Orson Welles' commercial taping:
  Producer: Brain, you're here. Great! And only 45 minutes late today.
  Brain: You, leave!
  Producer: But Brain, I-I'm the producer.
  Brain: Then leave very quickly!
• This Radar moment:
  Brain: Now come, we are off to a place where women are paid huge amounts of money to look beautiful and change their clothes frequently.
  Pinky: Charlie Sheen's House?
• Not from the show, but related: Rob Paulsen let Pinky take over most of an episode of his podcast. Pinky even sang a few songs: Led Zeppelin's "Going to California", "The Star-Spangled Banner" (with all the lyrics replaced by the word "narf"), and parts of Frank Sinatra's "High Hopes" and Talking Heads' "Psycho Killer" and "Life During Wartime". All of which were Awesome.
• The Brain versus Christopher Walken
• Pinky's mother and father (both voiced by Eric Idle) have some hilarious moments, but the highlight is when they're packing to go to New York, and Pinky's mother is stuffing her suitcase full of food pellets.
  Pinky's Mother: I'm almost packed! We'll have food pellets for lunch, food pellets for supper, then for breakfast I thought... food pellets!
  Brain: I'm told they do have food in New York.
  Pinky's Father: Where is this New York? Is it far outside the cage?
  Brain: It's very far away.
  Pinky's Mother: Ooh, I'd better take some food pellets then!
  Pinky's Father: As far as that sink?
  Brain: Much, much father. We have to take a plane.
  Pinky's Mother: A plain what?
  Brain: An airplane! It's, uh, a giant metal bird.
  Pinky's Father: Bird?! Where?! Run!
  Pinky's Mother: Ah! Giant bird!!
  Brain: It's not a real bird!
  Pinky's Father: A bird'll swoop down and eat you right up, he will!
  Pinky's Mother: Unless it's a llama!
  Pinky's Father: I know — we'll feed it food pellets!
  Pinky's Mother: Food pellets? Where will we get food pellets?
  Pinky's Father: ...I don't know.
• Well I think so Brain, but what if The Hippo doesn't want to wear a Thong?
• The Bizarro Episode "Animaniacs Stew" pairs the Brain with Mindy instead of Pinky. He gets chased by a riding lawnmower, and tries to escape it by climbing the side of a tree. The mower simply runs right up the side of the tree after him. Seeing this, Brain looks at the camera, and deadpans "This is most unexpected."
  • The intro song's variation for this episode implies Brain to be the "insane" one. "One's a small girl. The other's (beat) The Brain."
  • On the other side, we have "Pinky and the Cat" (Rita and Pinky confined in the same very small cage). She obligingly waits for the theme music to end, then noms him.
• Pinky channeling every Kaiju fan in the world in "Tokyo Grows":
  Pinky: (in a stilted, Hong Kong Dub-like manner) Narf! Brain, Let us go and see Gollyzilla! We can watch excitedly as he crushes buildings and then flee in terror!
  Brain: (grabs Pinky and slaps him in the face) Snap out of it, Pinky!
  Pinky: (talking normally) Oh. thanks, Brain.
  • The JSDF blasting Brain in the face when he arrives to stop the rampage of "Pinkzilla" (Pinky after Brain turns him into a kaiju).
  • The Running Gag where the Raymond Burr lookalike keeps commenting on everything by saying "Yes, I see."
  • For another Running Gag, the people of Tokyo having to take off and on their shoes every time they enter or exit places, even Gollyzilla himself.
• This gem from the first episode "Das Mouse," where the two are piloting a submarine.
  Brain: (to an off-screen Pinky) Hit the flood lights! (loud thump is heard off-screen, followed by Pinky yelling "OUCH!") Turn on the flood lights.
  • Before this, Brain asks Pinky if he has any questions. Pinky, of course, asks something entirely unrelated:
    Pinky: If you could be any animal, what would it be?
    Brain: Oh, I'd have to say a hawk, Pinky. So I could soar through the sky, catch little white mice in my sharp talons, and feed them to my young.
    Pinky: Euuwww. That's just weird, Brain.
• In "Pinky's Plan," Pinky, to stop Brain from seeing the plans for his surprise party, whacks him on the head with the chalkboard.
  Pinky: Sorry, Brain, there was a, um, fly on your head.
  Brain: (hits him with the chalkboard) Sorry, Pinky, there was a, um, stupid look on your face.
• Al Gore the Donkey's political ramblings in 'The Megalomanical Adventures of Brainie the Pooh'.
  Al Gore (in donkey costume): The president and I are pleased with the manner in which we are moving towards the 21st century, by building a very long bridge made of wood. A wooden bridge may work... This wooden bridge will lead us to prosperity... As we cross this bridge we have built, to stand upon a platform built by contribution... Though in building this bridge to the 21st century, the president and I urge caution to guard against unfounded worries about inflation...
• "You Said a Mouseful"
  • Brain's plan fails because he suffers a concussion that causes him to involuntarily speak in Spoonerisms, preventing him from properly prompting Pinky in his Tongue Twister-laden plan. His incoherent mangling of his attempted warnings and pleas toward Pinky are just hilarious to listen to.
  • The chorus who sing the usual "They're Pinky, They're Pinky and the Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain" line at the end of every episode end up Corpsing and debating on whether they should sing the title with a spoonerism to match Brain's temporary speech impediment.
• The In-Universe case in "Brain's Song"; "The O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-OVERLORD!"
• "A Meticulous Analysis of History" has the Brain examining historical figures' downfalls so he can avoid making the same mistakes. Pinky spends the whole time making fun of the concept, and then zings Brain hard in the end...
  Brain: That concludes my little rhyme
  I hope this lesson wasn't just a waste of time
  Pinky: Well, Brain, I've learned that one thing's true
  Every one of them has failed, and so have you
  Brain: Thank you for that vote of confidence.
  • "Caligula was no Boy Scout/ He did things that we can't even talk about!"
• Brain's attempt to make a strong impression on the natives in "Brainania" does not go as planned.
  Brain: I'll address them in the primitive argot of the South Seas. (to Alan) Me number one fella, other fella number ten. Catchy all same same, you sabé?
  Alan: G'day, mate. You speak English? Me and the boys learned the lingo from an old island trader. Later on we ate him and shrank his blinkin' head. Wanna see?
  Brain: Ah... perhaps later.
• Outside the show, the duo's appearance in a Postmodern Jukebox video, tending bar while wearing Rob Paulsen and Maurice LaMarche suits.
• A similarly meta gag happened with The Nostalgia Critic's review of The Purge, where they appear in The Stinger - and Brain is cussing out Pinky for being The Load.

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