Talking Classics is a mockumentary-style Web Video Series produced in the late 2000s by actor and comedian Nathan Barnatt, who portrays the character Keith Apicary.
Keith Apicary is a 28-year-old gaming geek who is starring in a late '90s web documentary. Keith is an archetypical loser: balding, socially awkward, a Casanova Wannabe, and not very bright. He's a huge fan of video games, particularly more obscure ones like SNK's Neo Geo, various Sega consoles like the Genesis and Dreamcast, and Nintendo's Virtual Boy. Many of the videos are interviews with Keith as he talks about and reviews these games or consoles. They're often interspersed with scenes of his daily life, which is... interesting, to say the least.
Nathan also records appearances in-character as Keith at gaming conventions such as PAX, E3, and SGC. He goofs around with his fans, pulls stunts, has awkward conversations with random people, and gets into bizarre hijinks. Not coincidentally, he has been kicked out of many conventions.
The series can be watched either on Screw Attack
, GameTrailers or Nathan Barnatt's YouTube channel. The series' website can be found here.
Talking Classics provides examples of:
- Amusing Injuries: During "Keith Apicary VS Dolph Ziggler", Keith gives a rundown of the various stunts he's done (including videos).Keith: I've fallen off of roofs, I've been hit by cars, I've hit cars, I've fallen down stairs, I've climbed convention centres, I've fallen down stairs, I've taken blows to the body from foreign objects, I've fallen down stairs, I've been dragged by vehicles, AND performed high-risk moves!
- Bloodless Carnage: No matter what he does, Keith very rarely seems to be seriously injured by his stunts.
- Corpsing: In-universe. Keith is clearly laughing at his own jokes in the Dolph Ziggler videos.
- Did I Just Say That Out Loud?: During the VGAs, Keith asks voice actress Ali Hillis for her address, and then she offhandedly mentions having a husband. After that, she pauses for a moment and looks at the camera, as if realizing what she just said.
- Fan Disservice: We really needed to see Keith dance in his tighty-whitey briefs. Worse yet is his bare ass in part 2 of the E3 2010 video.
- Kavorka Man: Though he doesn't officially have a girlfriend, female fans in the convention videos seem to love Keith.
- The Klutz: A lot of gags in both normal and convention videos involve Keith crashing into things or falling. In fact, the Virtual Boy video consists entirely of him crashing into things while playing the Virtual Boy in public.
- Naked People Are Funny: "Keith Apicary's Victory Dance" consists of Keith dancing in various public places such as malls and plazas clad only in his briefs. He somehow didn't get arrested.
- Poe's Law: Part of what makes the convention videos funny is seeing Keith talk to strangers who have no idea that he's just a character.
- Present-Day Past: The documentary takes place in the '90s, but that doesn't stop Keith from appearing in present-day conventions, acknowledging modern-day games during those occasions, and calling out Dolph Ziggler. Hand Waved by Nathan Barnatt, who claims that the documentary Keith and convention/real Keith are separate.
- Running Gag: Shouting "ASSASSIN'S CREED!" and then diving headfirst into a trash can (which usually falls over).
- Shirtless Scene: Keith gets shirtless as Marco Rossi in "Metal Slug: The Movie". Surprisingly, he's got some serious abs.
- Slapstick: When the humour isn't about Keith saying silly things or generally being awkward as all hell, it's about him performing ridiculous stunts or getting injured.
- Sleepyhead: Certain videos involve Keith sleeping in various (public) places. In the Super Mario Land review, the entire premise is that Keith wants to visit New York (where Mario is from in certain adaptations) to see what the big fuss is about Mario. In the end, he sleeps through his plane ride (and landing), instead ending up in France. He never notices and thinks he's in New York the whole time.
- Speech Impediment: Keith has a pronounced lisp.
- Stylistic Suck: In order to enhance the '90s feel, every so often there are VHS lines and distortions on the screen. And of course, there's the fact that the humour is usually extremely awkward. The "modern-day" videos such as conventions and the Dolph Ziggler videos are in noticeably higher quality than the "documentary" videos. Can be explained by Keith having better recording equipment in-universe.
- Troll: Keith often asks like one at conventions or other public outings. Some examples include asking God of War composer Gerard K. Marino what his favourite soundtrack was out of various obscure games, or running around E3 and asking where the Dreamcast 2 is.
- Trouser Space: Parodied in "Keith Apicary VS Dolph Ziggler".Girl: So, what do you want to do?
Keith: Uh, wanna play with my DOLPH ZIGGLER!? (reaches down pants)
Girl: Ewww! (slaps him and runs off)
Keith: (holding Dolph Ziggler action figure) What?! - Unfortunate Names: Dolph Ziggler has one, according to Keith.Keith: What kind of name is Dolph Ziggler, anyways? If you say that name out loud, you'll get arrested for sexual harassment!
- Unusual Euphemism: In the "Kelly's Classics" video.Keith: Man, look at Mai Shiranui's blast processing...
- Vague Age: When asked how old she is, Kelly simply replies, "I'll be eighteen someday!"
