How Monty Python and the Holy Grail became a comedy legend

Enduring cultural impact & quotability

• Many commenters treat Holy Grail (and broader Python) as near‑required viewing for adulthood, citing life‑changing first encounters and being “unable to take anything too seriously” afterward.
• Lines like “Help, help, I’m being repressed”, “strange women lying in ponds…”, “anarcho‑syndicalist commune”, Castle Anthrax, and interview‑question jokes (“unladen swallow”) are still widely referenced.
• Some note intergenerational transmission (teens quoting it, teachers laughing while classmates look blank), and see that as a marker of a shared but shrinking cultural canon.

Use in education and pop culture references

• One thread debates whether pop‑culture in‑jokes between teacher and student are inclusive; some schools explicitly forbid such references to keep focus on curriculum and “safe space” concerns.
• Others see pop culture (including Python) as a valuable shared language that can engage students.

Has it aged well? Mixed views

• Several argue the films and sketches remain “incredibly funny” because absurdity is timeless.
• Others feel parts of Python and Flying Circus have aged poorly: casual slurs, homophobic or misogynistic bits, and racist stereotypes (e.g., an Australian wine sketch) that still echo unpleasantly in real life.
• There’s disagreement over whether specific material (e.g., blackface, certain slurs) is “casual racism” or being misremembered; some recall being jarred rewatching old sketches.

Transgression, drag, and British comedy traditions

• Cross‑dressing is debated: some find “men in dresses” overused and unfunny; others stress it’s a long‑standing British stage/comedy tradition, often played straight rather than as a joke in itself.
• Commenters note Python’s broader transgression: nudity, attacks on class, religion, and authority; support for gay rights; and Life of Brian’s “blasphemy.”
• One view: they pushed boundaries “of their time” so sensibilities could move forward, even if some material now feels offensive.

Humor norms and online culture

• Multiple comments contrast Python’s celebrated irreverence with Hacker News’s strong discouragement of humor in threads.
• Some see this as necessary to keep discussion from degenerating into one‑liners; others miss spaces where “serious” talk and smart jokes can coexist (citing older Slashdot voting models).

What’s funny, and modern comparisons

• Some people simply don’t find Python funny, describing it as childish or obscure; others explain the appeal as the collision of high intelligence, absurdism, and furious social satire.
• Suggestions for “Python‑like” contemporary or later work include specific sketch shows, radio comedies, and live festival performances, with the caveat that what becomes legendary is often only recognized in hindsight.

Access, metadata, and side notes

• Complaints that much official Python content has disappeared from YouTube, reducing discovery for new audiences.
• A tangent on Hacker News auto‑editing titles (“How X became Y” → “X became Y”) and whether that’s helpful or distortive.
• One anecdote about Life of Brian being mislabeled “PG” on iTunes, leading to unintended early exposure for children.