For me, this show is second only to Mr. Show with Bob and David as far as re-watchable sketch comedy! I collected both on VHS recorded from marathon airings on MTV and HBO, but the only reason I watched Mr. Show more was that someone stole my The State tape in the mid 90s' and I didn't get to see it again until they re-recorded the audio so it could be released on DVDs in the mid '00s. I appreciate the remastering of the audio, but I miss the original music. The reason why it took so long to release the show on DVDs was the use of all the music licensed to MTV in the early 90s which would have cost millions of dollars if they were kept in the DVD releases. The cast of The State tirelessly re-recorded all the audio and replaced the music with original compositions meant to invoke the spirit of the original. A lot of it works, but personally, the Pants sketch will never be right without The Breeders' Cannonball to punch the comedic beats. The basic formula of each is simply, a) Premise; b) Absurd twist on premise; c) Surreal elevation of absurdity and outrageous subversion of both premise and twist; and then sprinkle in some meta-textual and self-aware, self-effacing humor to bridge sketches and that's The State. The characters of Doug and Louie, for example, were the result of notes from MTV executives to create characters with catchphrases. The groups attempts at malicious compliance with the notes bore two of most memorable characters from sketch comedy every created. I still find myself saying, "I'm outa' heeeerrrreeee'" in different ways and can't help but announce, upon the acquisition of two balls in my hands, that "I WANNA' DIP MAH BALLS IN IT" to whatever anyone has in their hands. The troupe originally put a lot of attention and effort into writing sketches that weren't too topical for the times, and by-in-large they were very successful. Most if not all of the sketches are timeless and still hold up to this day. I think they left MTV too early and really could have benefited from a couple of more seasons on that venue instead of making a mercurial, handshake deal with CBS for four prime-time specials. Instead of more of The State, we got a one-time airing of The State's 43rd Annual All-Star Halloween Special in 1995, and no more.