Before you look at the video at the end of this post, answer me this: What do the following have in common?

• A wooden block of kitchen knives
• A troll doll on a tricycle
• A box cutter
• Four crayons
• Salt and pepper shakers
• A can opener
• A stapler
• A squeaky green frog toy
• A soda straw holder/dispenser, with straws
• A hand drill

Those are many of the items on the table of surgical utensils shown on the video of Like a Surgeon by Weird Al Yankovic. It’s a testament to its comic density that they all flash by in one second (at 1:15 below), much too fast for any viewer to find in one sitting.

When Mad Magazine was still a comic book, Will Elder pioneered the practice of adding little gags in every background of every panel. Like a Surgeon is the closest I’ve seen to bringing that “Chicken Fat” effect to live action. Weird Al’s other 80s videos were funny (mostly), but never like the first three minutes of this.