2013 / Video / Physical-comedy animal sketch

How Animals Eat Their Food

One roommate ate salad normally while the other demonstrated why a rhinoceros should never be invited to dinner.

The original is hosted off-site; this page provides context and a link to it.

What was this?

At a small table, one man calmly eats while the other commits to wildly exaggerated versions of animals feeding: a giraffe, a horse, a seal, and more. The joke gets better because the ordinary diner barely reacts to any of it.

Why it spread

The short traveled through YouTube shares, reaction posts, and school-computer repeat viewings. Its visual gag needed almost no dialogue or cultural translation, which made the escalating animal impressions easy to pass around everywhere.

Watch on YouTube ↗

What happened

At a small table, one man calmly eats while the other commits to wildly exaggerated versions of animals feeding: a giraffe, a horse, a seal, and more. The joke gets better because the ordinary diner barely reacts to any of it.

Where it came from

Nick Sjolinder released How Animals Eat Their Food through his MisterEpicMann channel in April 2013, with Ian Deibert playing the increasingly alarming dinner guest. Later that year, YouTube named it its top video in the United Kingdom and third top trending video overall.

Why it mattered

How Animals Eat Their Food is compact YouTube comedy: two performers, one table, a specific premise, and physical performances that become more exaggerated with each animal.

How it spread

The short traveled through YouTube shares, reaction posts, and school-computer repeat viewings. Its visual gag needed almost no dialogue or cultural translation, which made the escalating animal impressions easy to pass around everywhere.