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== IDs ==
One Small Step: We see some footage of Neil Armstrong's 1969 moonwalk, leading to a video where Neil puts up a flag. The flag says ''MTV: Music Television'' and the logo on the flag changes different colors.
Variant[]
There was an updated version featuring newer footage, which appeared in 1985. This was short-lived, however.
Elephants: We see a pink elephant. There are some yellow flowers, which the elephant turns into "Music Television". Then, the elephant turns himself into the MTV logo.
Cats in a Cemetery: On a blue background, we see a statue with a square on it, and some cats jump over it. Then one of the cats crashes into the statue and the statue and the cat merges into the MTV logo.
Swick: On a black background, we see the MTV logo placed on a platform, the logo continually changes texture.
Christmas Cards (pre): There is the MTV logo (with the "M" in green and "TV" in a candy cane pattern) buried in snow. Then two angels holding guitars fly into the scene, with one of them plugging a cord into the logo, which turns into an amplifier and flashes. Another angel with a drum set flies down as they continue playing.
Christmas Cards (post): It begins with "Pre-Christmas Card", starting at the angels plugging a cord into the logo. The logo shakes and an explosion happens, revealing a yellow background and the MTV logo wearing a party hat and party blower, which it blows.
Jackson Pollack: On a white background, a man shown from below paints the word "TV" in yellow on the screen. He then adds some yellow flourishes and pours blue paint to form an "M", which obscures him, and "MUSIC TELEVISION" appears below the MTV logo.
Alphabet Lesson: There is a man walking to the side of a large, green "M", which he opens like a door. Suddenly, musical notes start flying out of it, sending him flying backwards. He crawls back to where he was and tries to close the door, but is snatched by an orange cane from inside of the "M" and the door closes. Then the camera zooms in on the "M" as orange slime crawls out from the door and morphs into the "TV", followed by the text "MUSIC TELEVISION" fading in below.
M Rocks: A man chips a triangle into a chiseled square on a mountain using what appears to be a golf club. He gets off the square and chips a hole at its bottom, making an "M". He puts the letters "TV" on the "M", then falls off the mountain, revealing "MUSIC TELEVISION" behind some rocks.
Electric Wet: Amongst some thunder clouds, there is a giant metallic MTV logo slowly rising from a pool of water. As it does so, thunderbolts strike the logo. When it rises to stationary position, a bolt wipes across below it to reveal "MUSIC TELEVISION" in yellow.
Scribble M: TBA
Stereo History: A history lesson on stereo audio, from stereoscopy to grammophones to the more modern stereo television. A gray and red MTV logo then appears on a dark blue background.
Adverts: TBA
World Premiere: There is a cartoon globe spinning on a dark blue background. The globe comes to rest on a brown surface before falling into a hole inside it. The camera zooms out to reveal a TV with the globe now inside. The MTV logo (in yellow and red) spins around to face the camera on top of the globe with the "MUSIC TELEVISION" text in white fading in after. Finally, the white text "WORLD PREMIERE VIDEO" spins from the back of the TV before stopping in the front and emitting a "shining" effect.
French Fries: On a red tablecloth with a black M on it, we see some fries and a hand. After a off-screen voice says "Anybody got anything to eat?", the hand spins some ketchup on the fries. More hands take the fries, revealing the black M to be the MTV logo (without the "TV"). Four fries appear and form the "TV", then ketchup appears on them.
Freddy Buys it: Same as the "Sammie Buys It" (or "BubbleGum") ID, except there is a man instead of the girl, and the car runs over him.
Altered M: In a hallway, a flash of light spawns an MTV logo in the center. It bangs against the wall several times until it becomes normal, the background fading to black as it does.
Clock: On a blue background, we see a yellow wind-up clock. The camera pans around to show the inside of it, which is composed of M-shaped gears and switches. One of the gears has the text "MUSIC TELEVISION" imprinted on it just below one of the "M"s, and a silver lightning bolt appears on the "M" before morphing into "TV".
Dot-to-Dot: On a paper background, a figure composed of balls, lines and other random shapes throws a pink ball at a wall with numbers on it, forming the first part of the MTV logo. It then throws a blue ball, which creates the middle part, followed by a green ball, which finishes the "M". Then, the "MUSIC TELEVISION" text appears in red, followed by "TV" in yellow wiping in.
Club M: A hand puts an "M"-shaped slice of bread onto a plate, and then puts mustard, tomatoes, ham, and lettuce on it, followed by another "M" bread slice. Finally, some red "TV" peppers are placed on top, and a sliced pickle with "MUSIC TELEVISION" is placed under the bread.M Motel: At night, we see a pink neon motel sign with the "M" from the MTV logo as one of the letters. The sign below it changes to read "NO VACANCY", "NO POOL", "NO KITCHENETTES", "NO PHONES", and "NO ESCAPE". Finally, the "MUSIC TELEVISION" text appears, along with a white neon version of "TV" inside the "M".
Atomic Era: In a retro-styled house is the MTV logo playing on a television, when the entire room gets covered in several designs and graphs. The logo then becomes the center of the atomic structure diagram as the camera suddenly zooms into it.
M Factory: We see a conveyor belt with golden squares that a presser stamps onto, followed by a shot of another presser molding the squares into an outline of an "M". Then we see a row of "M"s going into a chamber with a yellow light and coming out from the other side to be stamped by two pressers that close the shape. Next we see a stamper that imprints the "TV" onto the "M", which is then colored yellow and red by a paintbrush which knocks it off the conveyor belt. We cut to an assembly line where a mechanical arm holding a television set (with the "MUSIC TELEVISION" text already on it) catches the MTV symbol and displays it on its blue screen. The camera "cut-zooms" to show the finalized logo on a blue background.
4th of July: On a beach, there is a peach and grey MTV logo lying under an umbrella on a towel based on the American flag. Fireworks are seen going off in the night sky. Once the camera zooms in enough, the towel wraps around the logo, giving it the colors of the flag.
Raiders of the Lost M: The camera zooms into an Egyptian temple and stops in front of a golden pedestal with the "M" on top and two statues beside it. Suddenly, a laser shoots onto a scepter below and beams onto the "M" as the "TV" script appears in white and the "MUSIC TELEVISION" text appears below.
Hairy M: In a bathroom, there is a peach, hair-covered "M" breathing. A can of shaving cream with a human arm slides by to spray "TV" on the "M" before leaving.
Cuckoo Clocks: A cuckoo clock is shown in someone's bedroom ticking away until a cartoon bird wearing a hat, boots, and sunglasses pops out and plays a riff on the guitar. He goes back in where a pink and green MTV logo is shown in place of the door.
Clouds: On a hazy blue background, there is an orange cube flying into view as black clouds fly in front of it. The cube morphs into an orange "M" as "TV" in black materializes and most of the clouds settle onto the "M" while the others disappear. The text "MUSIC TELEVISION" in orange then forms and zooms out to its proper spot under the logo.
Service Station: A TV drives down the road to an MTV gas station. The MTV logo plugs a cord on the TV and we see many MTV ID's. An oil stack drops and an MTV sign lights up. Another MTV logo cleans the TV and it drives off. We then zoom over the MTV sign.
Sunday Special: We see a green man in a black suit at a golden control panel. He attempts to get the MTV Sunday Special logo to appear, but instead brings forth parodies of the Columbia, MGM, and Paramount logos, one after another, before getting the right one, which bears a resemblance to the 20th Century Fox logo. The man happily puts on a top hat, climbs out the control panel, jumps in front of the logo, and uses a wand to magically turn himself into the words "SUNDAY SPECIAL." The searchlights all turn on and start waving as we zoom toward the MTV Sunday Special logo before fading to black.
Bubblegum: We see a girl on a street, with a blank MTV logo on it. A girl licks her finger, and spits out some gum. Then, the girl screams "AAAHHH!", and runs away from a coming car. Then, a man steps on the gum and forms "TV" on the logo.
Bonnie: We see a cow named Bonnie in a field. We zoom over to the cow's spots, and the MTV logo is one of them.
MTV Birthday: We see a rocket ship in the clouds, landing past a monolith (actually a red cake). A spatula forms the hole south of the cake, and the rocket crashes into the cake, forming the MTV logo with a birthday candle.
Construction Worker: We see a man in a construction site. He keeps complaining things like "Take her back! Back this way! Up a bit!", and "OK! Let her go!". Then a giant metal MTV logo falls on him, and he turns into a hat with feet. The hat crawls past the "MUSIC TELEVISION".
Street Life: The camera zooms through a yellow city, passing by a woman, her shoe, a toaster, a tiger, a toothpaste tube, and a police officer with the word "STOP" on his hand jumping out of the way. Suddenly, the MTV logo (with the "M" in pink and the "TV" in blue) crashes onto the street, and the "MUSIC TELEVISION" text in white appears below it.
Suburbia: There is a row of houses at daytime. Then a hand takes out a stencil of the MTV logo (without the "TV" script) and sprays it in green onto the scene. It then takes out another stencil of the "TV" script and sprays it onto the "M" in red.
Rockstar: On a city background, a figure made of yellow shapes plays a guitar. Then it throws the guitar into the air, which explodes into the MTV logo.
Dancing Cats: On a white fence, four cats are seen doing a dance. One of them, the red one, is knocked off by a boot. Two others, the blue ones, are also knocked off the same way. The green one remains and a speech bubble appeared from him with the MTV logo in it. Said bubble fills up the screen and the logo gets covered in eyes.
White House: Same as the "Suburbia" ID, but this time it takes place in front of the White House, and the hand spraypaints the MTV logo in yellow and the "TV" script in blue (albeit slightly off center).
Chainsaw: The sequence opens with black and white footage on a TV screen of a man and woman singing a soft love song. The screen cuts outside to see a woman in a skimpy purple jumpsuit revving up a chainsaw, the blade of which glows. She uses it to slice the screen off as the people in the footage run away. After, she lays the chainsaw on top of the TV, revealing an orange MTV logo inside the set.
M Metro: TBA
Cosmic Crash: From space, we zoom into the United States until we fly over a suburban neighborhood. We fade to the rooftop of one house, where a yellow MTV logo crashes through like a meteor, the house left in ashes.
Dancing Pants: At a dance party, there is a lot of people dancing such as the cats from "Dancing Cats" with the MTV logo in the background as the screen zooms in, one of the female dancing Indians is in a corner feeling alone, until a male appears and offers to dance. They do so and kiss, morphing into the MTV logo on a yellow background.
Indian Pants: A group of Indians are seen dancing around a fire. A large shadow looms over them and they bow in fear. The shadow's owner is shown to be a giant MTV logo with features of an Indian chief.
Trojan M: In a castle, we see a group of knights whispering to each other. Then the castle door falls down and you can see a trojan horse shaped like the MTV logo. A trumpet pops out of it.
Driving M: We see a girl, with an inner tube shaped like a seahorse, on a diving board. She jumps off, and her inner tube screams right at the screen. She falls into a pool shaped like the MTV logo, and cracks appear that form "TV".
Art History: The ident kind of speaks for itself. The origins of art history can be traced back to the Prehistoric era, before written records were kept. The earliest artifacts come from the Paleolithic era, or the Old Stone Age, in the form of rock carvings, engravings, pictorial imagery, sculptures, and stone arrangements. Art from this period relied on the use of natural pigments and stone carvings to create representations of objects, animals, and rituals that governed a civilization’s existence. One of the most famous examples is that of the Paleolithic cave paintings found in the complex caves of Lascaux in France. Though discovered in 1940, they’re estimated to be up to 20,000 years old and depict large animals and vegetation from the area. Ancient art was produced by advanced civilizations, which in this case refers to those with an established written language. These civilizations included Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, and those of the Americas. The medium of a work of art from this period varies depending on the civilization that produced it, but most art served similar purposes: to tell stories, decorate utilitarian objects like bowls and weapons, display religious and symbolic imagery, and demonstrate social status. Many works depict stories of rulers, gods, and goddesses. One of the most famous works from ancient Mesopotamia is the Code of Hammurabi. Created around 1792 B.C., the piece bears a Babylonian set of laws carved in stone, adorned by an image of King Hammurabi—the sixth King of Babylonia—and the Mesopotamian god, Shabash. The Middle Ages, often referred to as the “Dark Ages,” marked a period of economic and cultural deterioration following the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 A.D. Much of the artwork produced in the early years of the period reflects that darkness, characterized by grotesque imagery and brutal scenery. Art produced during this time was centered around the Church. As the first millennium passed, more sophisticated and elaborately decorated churches emerged; windows and silhouettes were adorned with biblical subjects and scenes from classical mythology. This period was also responsible for the emergence of the illuminated manuscript and Gothic architecture style. Definitive examples of influential art from this period include the catacombs in Rome, Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, the Lindisfarne Gospels, one of the best-known examples of the illuminated manuscript, and Notre Dame, a Parisian cathedral and prominent example of Gothic architecture. This style of painting, sculpture, and decorative art was characterized by a focus on nature and individualism, the thought of man as independent and self-reliant. Though these ideals were present in the late Medieval period, they flourished in the 15th and 16th centuries, paralleling social and economic changes like secularization. The Renaissance reached its height in Florence, Italy, due in large part to the Medici, a wealthy merchant family who adamantly supported the arts and humanism, a variety of beliefs and philosophies that places emphasis on the human realm. Italian designer Filippo Brunelleschi and sculptor Donatello were key innovators during this period. The High Renaissance, which lasted from 1490 to 1527, produced influential artists such as da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael, each of whom brought creative power and spearheaded ideals of emotional expression. Artwork throughout the Renaissance was characterized by realism, attention to detail, and precise study of human anatomy. Artists used linear perspective and created depth through intense lighting and shading. Art began to change stylistically shortly after the High Renaissance, when clashes between the Christian faith and humanism gave way to Mannerism. And so on. At the end, a "smiley face emoji" with the MTV logo inside it winks.
Fish: A fish swims through the ocean. It releases its tail and cuts the seaweed as it swims away; the tail, the seaweed and a nearby worm forming the MTV logo.
Frank M. Stein: A mad scientist turns on a machine to give life to his creation. Said creation is revealed to be the MTV logo in a Frankenstein's monster look. The "TV" beats like a heart.
Fly: A series of close-ups of some flies are presented. One of them looks straight at us before morphing into the MTV logo.
Mollusk M: There are some grass grow, which is followed by a snail sliding through the grass, removing it like a lawnmower and forming an M. Some mushrooms grow near the cut grass and form a white "TV", completing the logo.
Shadow Graffiti: We see an M shadow show up across a building. Some graffiti artists appear and spray paint on the building when the shadow appears. When the shadow is halfway there, the graffiti artists spray paint the MTV logo and by the time their done, the shadow was gone too. The words "MUSIC TELEVISION" appear under the logo.
Guillotine: During daytime, we see a guillotine's blade rise up. Then a black glove-clad hand pulls a lever, sending the blade down. Then, an M-shaped disturbing face falls, then one of his eyes pokes out, still being held by the organ.
Mask Dance: On a black background, we see 2 face masks with red eyes and mouths. Then a square with a face appears on a red scribble and says "Ungh!" Then 2 face masks that look like cubism appear. A yellow scribble with a face & red hair appears and says "Yaahh!". Then 2 more face masks that look like cubism appear. A pentagon with a face appears on a blue scribble. He says "AAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYY!" and swallows the screen. A tye-dyed MTV logo zooms close to the screen.
Procrastination No. 1: We see the MTV logo stuck in a gyroscope. We zoom close to the logo and random things out of nowhere pop out of the logo. Then a clip of a dog running appears, and the dog "pops" out of the MTV logo, barking at the screen.
M Zilla: On some raw footage of a town, a red M puppet peeks from above. The police officers see this, and everyone runs off as the M steps onto the raw footage and finds the town square. The M steps into the town square and trips on the traffic light, forming "TV", and causing a blackout.
M Street: An M shaped apartment building is seen with the camera zooming out from the center. Eventually, the logo completes when a purple balloon forms "TV" and a semi with Music Television on it parks nearby.
Daily World Record: TBA
Butler: TBA
Bath: In the ocean, there is a man on stilts trying to fend off some sharks. He is then picked up by a woman's hand, revealing that it's actually happening in her bathtub. She notices the viewer and splashes at the screen angrily, forming the MTV logo.
Greetings from the World: On a map, a guy holds postcards from Holland, Paris, and London, each coming to life and showing the MTV logo. Last, the guy holds a postcard from Australia. We zoom into the postcard, and a boomerang is being thrown into space. As the boomerang comes even closer to the screen, the MTV logo appears on it, before it crashes into the screen.
Potato Head: TBA
Snake: TBA
Brain: TBA
Breathmint: TBA
Brother's Quay: TBA
Vampire: TBA
The Wise Man: TBA
Diary: TBA
Peter Lorre: TBA
Boo: TBA
Machine: The sequence starts with a close-up of a machine's number counter. A robot arm drops a ball into a tube to try and give a face on the bottom of it a pair of eyes. Eventually, the counter hits zero and the eyes make their way to the face. When the face looks up, he sees a television screen and smiles. The logo zooms into the screen to see a blue and green MTV logo on a pink background.
Pig: TBA
Star: TBA
Thief: TBA
Skyscraper: TBA
Chase: TBA
Skull Rider: A blonde man is seen riding a skateboard as a skeleton with flaming hair chases him on a motorcycle. The man points to the right and dashes off, leaving the skeleton to fall off a cliff. We then find out that they were riding on a blue and yellow MTV logo.
Shapes: On a black background, we see shapes appearing at certain times. Then, an orange square flips to reveal an "M". Then it turns into a blue MTV logo.
Lupo the Butcher: Danny Antonucci's angry Italian-Canadian character, Lupo the Butcher, proceeds to cut a chicken in half while ranting about how MTV sucks, then the chicken head comes alive and Lupo exclaims that he's gonna die, and then pulls the curtain revealing the MTV logo. And then towards the end, he says that MTV stinks like feet.
Mirror: Unknown... Suddenly, there are two dressed men pulling chains away from each other, causing a box to materialize and stretch in until it forms a square shape. The screen then cuts to a wide shot of the two men and the box, revealing that the chains are actually connected to the ends of the box. The men continue pulling, causing the box to split and form the familiar MTV "Big M" logo. When it's completely formed, the stylized "TV" letters fade in on the right side of the "M" at the same time as "MUSIC TELEVISION", which is seen below in Helvetica.
Dreams of Clarence: TBA
Doubloon: TBA
Adam & Eve: TBA
Morphing Head: On a white background, we see a cartoon head, which morphs into several different faces. One of them forms the MTV logo, with a skin-like texture, which has blood on it and dripping green liquid.
Xerox Bug: We see an ant on a Xerox scanner. The ant moves to the middle of it and realizes the top is coming down and is squished by it. It is then put into different ways and eventually becomes the MTV logo.
Atama: We see a goblin-like shirtless man (some people might think of Marilyn Manson) at a table, with utensils. He breaks some food, and it had small, white, featureless, humanoids come out. They climb on the man and enter his body through the orifices. He tries to stop some of them, but then his head bulges and eventually explodes from him sneezing. Then an M is formed by the white creatures, 2 of them with wings fly across, and a ribbon with "Music Television" written on it falls on the M. Intestines then come out of the stack and from "TV". The background is entirely black.
Metal Machine: We see a seemingly metal centipede moving around a junkyard at night. It crawls into a hole and it becomes an insect-like flying robot. It then flies, and a red/orange dragon with a centipede-like body. Said dragon chases the flying robot around the junkyard. The robot gets in a machine/castle, which closes it's gate. The dragon tries to get in, but fails. The robot flies around the castle until finding a power source, and activating it. Electricity runs through the machine/castle, and wheels and drills on it turn. At the lower part, "legs" pull part of the machine/castle out and it was shaped like an M, and TV was made with other parts on the machine/castle. At the ending shot, "MUSIC TELEVISION" appears with an in-animation under the machine/castle.
Calamari Cereal: TBA
Amazing Place: TBA
Scary Chinese Halloween: There is a background of rapidly changing images such as a skeleton clown and a black cat/bat. A skeleton is also shown, along with flying black cats with wings across the screen. Chinese text appears at the bottom of the screen with a jack-o'-lantern stretching across the screen. Then, there is an MTV jack-o'-lantern with the "MUSIC TELEVISION" text in Chinese. The "TV" portion falls off.
Dinosaur: TBA
X-Ray: TBA
Prelude: TBA
Transformers: The ident takes place in Japan, which was evident with the text "MUSIC TELEVISION" written in Katakana. As the camera moves closer to the MTV logo on top of the building, the MTV logo then transforms into a full-on Transformer. The villain (presumably) then ordered 3 helicopters to attack the Transformer by running into it, only for them to collide against each other and explode as the MTV transformer crouched on the rooftop. Another helicopter flies above it, then grabs the V in "TV" and used it as a boomerang, throwing it against the helicopter, exploding it in process. A light ray shines through the transformer which turns out to be the villain's jet, activated laser rays, which then started to shield itself by forming back into the MTV logo. The transformer then grabbed the T in "TV" next, which acts as a lightsaber of sorts, finally swerved onto the plane and explodes, and the ident ends.
Dance: TBA
Alien Gun Bang: TBA
Hanky: The ID opens with a plate of food and twangy country music playing throughout. The fork lifting the peas stops as we hear a nose blowing. The camera pans to the server and the fork is heard being dropped. He says, "Oh look...made an MTV logo. Wanna see?" The customer screams off-camera. The server, disgusted, screams, "Well, I didn't want to show it to you anyway!", and runs off.
Big Chew: Over a blue background, a purple humanoid creature with two long black hairs, exaggerated cheeks, and a red bow tie reaches into his torso, and pulls out a green bar of gum, with yellow slime leaking from his mouth afterwards. The gum bar has a yellow image of a man along with text reading "DULLARD," with "BIG CHEW" underneath it. He then starts to chew it, causing his face to warp in a surreal manner, eventually causing him to spit out pinkish orange slime, which he grabs and forms into the MTV logo.
Scream: In a painting, a guy looks up, then screams. The camera zooms in on his mouth showing the MTV logo bulging in a red-white fashion in a black background. The camera zooms out. (Side note! This ident scarred me for life this is really bothering me.)
Chicken Fight: TBA
Taco: A puppet man is seen at a table. He is offered some peppers and he gleefully chows down. After he's done, he is given some crust, which he picks up, and his head splits to reveal a live-action version of himself who breathes fire on it. He presents it to the screen, showing that he made the MTV logo in the crust.
Clay Foot: The camera pans to a close-up of the MTV logo engraved in clay. After panning through the whole logo, it cuts to a woman with frizzy lair cuddling a white pillow. The screen then cuts to a close-up of her eye, which opens, then the camera cuts to various hands waving in the air as feathers fly across the setting. The woman tears the pillow apart, then we get a brief shot of her dress before cutting to the camera rotating around her. The screen cuts back to the hands flying in the air before cutting right back to the aforementioned MTV logo. A bare foot appears and smudges the logo away, with some close-up footage of the process.
Stop Racism: TBA
B-Movie: TBA
Butterfly: TBA
Alien Operation Game: We see a countdown effect like in an old movie, but without the numbers. Then we see the alien's nose going red. Then the doctors are ready, then it cuts to the alien again. One doctor got a medical supply so he can look inside the alien's body. Then another one got another medical supply. But he hits the alien's body so hard. Than another one tries to squeeze the alien, but it immediately sprayed on the doctor. Then a doctor pulled out a wrench out of the alien's body and showed the other doctors. Then another doctor sticks inside the alien's blood. Then another one hit the alien's body. Then another one pulled out a knife, almost killing the alien and a doctor. Then a doctor used another medical supply. Then another doctor pulled out the MTV logo in green and yellow.
Rodeo: TBA
Alien Autopsy: We see the same countdown effect from Alien Operation Game. Then, a group of doctors are seen carefully putting down an alien and sacrificing the black eyelids. Then, a doctor gets a medical supply to cut open the alien's stomach (a drip of blood can be seen leaking before the stomach is open). The doctors then dig inside the alien, only for them to find luminescence reflecting. Then, the MTV logo with green/yellow colors is pulled out by one of the doctors, much to its disgust.
Bug Man Fly: We fade in to a scene of a typical bedroom, where we see a lump writing under the bedsheets. A kid comes running into the room, and tugging on the sheets, his sister and their mother walk in as well. They tear off the sheets, revealing a bug-like monster, which is gushing blood. The kids and the mother scream in terror. The bug gorily morphs itself into the MTV logo. A man with bug-like wings and antenna than bursts out of the bug, picks up a briefcase, and flies out the window, likely going to work.
Cupid: We see a beating heart. It then cuts to an insect (unknown) with wings, which then flies up to the heart and starts ripping it apart, causing the heart to bleed everywhere, including on the screen. The blood then blends in with a transparent MTV logo.
Len Lye: TBA
Launching Moon: TBA
Beach: TBA
Art Museum: In a museum, a security guard stands in the entrance of the exhibition as he pulls out a remote control to turn them on, displaying all the artworks like a TV. The guard then whistles for the chair, which drags itself, grabs the guard and drags him onto the same position where the chair was. The small artwork of a barely naked woman then clings itself onto another artwork, which interrupts the signal of the artwork the woman was clinging onto. This prompts the guard to try to fix it, but to no avail, and he comes over to the small painting of the woman, where he places it back on where it was by himself. The painting starts moving and running on the walls, to which the guard chases the painting around the whole exhibition. The painting then slides onto the floor, causing the guard to slip and hit his head on the wall. Despite being in pain, the guard chases the painting after it runs again, and the chair then catches the guard, chasing the painting with him. The painting is now at a higher level, where the guard stands up and goes towards it. He jumps and hovers, attempting to grab the painting until he succeeds, and goes back to the ground before turning around and slamming the painting on the wall, which causes the other artworks on display to fall to the ground. Overwhelmed, the guard snaps as he hits himself with a skateboard, has a complete psychological meltdown, and runs out of the museum in desperation. The camera then shows the small painting itself, where the woman moves causing the signal of the painting to switch into the MTV logo.
Dentist: TBA
Frank-M-Stein II: TBA
Frankenskippy: We pan out of a tombstone in a graveyard at night. FrankenSkippy, a monster with a wolf's tail, jumps out and mutters "FrankenSkippy, FrankenSkippy" in a voice not unlike Frankenstein. FrankenSkippy then pulls his heart (shaped like an M) out. We see some brief close-up shots of his head and heart before the logo cuts back to the original camera position. FrankenSkippy then says "FrankenSkippy's coming..for..YOOOOOU!" He slaps his tail at the screen, which then cuts to an x-ray of his heart before he pulled it out, this time with "TV" bones hanging in front of it. The heart and bones thus form the "MTV" logo. The words "MUSIC TELEVISION" can also be seen at the bottom of the x-ray. The logo then cuts to FrankenSkippy again, who this time has a chainsaw. He uses the chainsaw to cut the screen in half, which then cuts back to the x-ray again. A flower can be seen growing on the "TV" bones.
Food For Thought (not to be confused with the MTV Asia bumper): In outer space, we see an extreme close-up of a creature with two pairs of legs (one of the pairs is upside down) with an eye. Then it cuts to a close-up of another creature with lips in the center, sucking on a white, blue, and black striped straw. The camera zooms out to reveal the previous creature and it is depicted with two eyes. Both creatures are standing on a steel platform with eyeballs and bones on the ground. Off in the distance, we can see fossils on circular platforms, straws blowing on jacks, and Earth. The leg creature proceeds to suck on its fellow creatures' skin which is torn apart to reveal the rib cage bone inside, which includes an "M"-shaped heart (similar to the one from the "FrankenSkippy" ID). It also sips up a femur bone on the floor, which cuts to a close-up of the straw blowing in the bone. After the creature finishes sipping up the remaining femur bones on the floor, we cut to a close-up of the heart getting sucked into the straw. Once the eyeball creature is fully finished sucking, it drops the straw on the ground and opens its lips to reveal the heart and bones, which are arranged to form the MTV logo (similar to the "FrankenSkippy" ID). The camera zooms in on the logo contained within. The words "MUSIC TELEVISION" flickers in red and white underneath. Like the "FrankenSkippy" ID, a pink flower is growing on the "TV" bones. The ID ends with a "TV-turning off" effect.
Blowfly Heaven: We see a blowfly at the start, and then a wooden barrier appears in front of it. The barrier reads "Outback Bunny." We then zoom out to see a swarm of blowflies and a bagged-up ear creature. (possibly the bunny) A blowfly closes up on us and bites in front of the screen before going back into the swarm. Two blowflies lift up a bag which shows the MTV logo made of filth in which a caterpillar is crawling on. Just like the "FrankenSkippy" ID and the "Food for Thought" ID, a blue flower can be seen on the top-right of the logo.
Microskippy: Over a white/gray background, many black and gray cells are seen moving around, with three of them being longer than the others. The camera then zooms out from the cells through the inside of the yellow tube, revealed to be a microscope that makes up the body of a monster with human-like arms, stretched feet with three toes and a rat's tail, within a lab that has vials of green and yellow fluids, a reflective gray floor, a clipboard and a large, white feather pen with a blue end. The monster adjusts its microscope to move lower and then takes the feather pen out of its holder, crossing out an incomplete MTV logo on the clipboard, which has the letters M and TV and the words "Music?" written on it among a series of scientific observations. The monster then clenches its fist in close-up and slams it on the clipboard before putting the feather pen on it and adjusting its microscope to move closer to the bottom, with the scene cutting back to the microscope view. The longer cells join together to form the TV and the M of the MTV logo is formed from the rest of the cells. The scene then fades to the MTV logo written on the clipboard, with the words "YES!!!!!!" and "DISCOVERY!!!" written over it and underlined. The camera zooms out to show the monster clapping before jumping around, taking the feather pen out with its tail and colliding into the camera, knocking it over as the scene turns to static.
Music/Sounds[]
One Small Step: Neil Armstrong saying "One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind", then a rock tune that was composed by Jonathan Elias.
Elephants: The elephant trumpeting with ambient nature sounds in the background.
Cats in a Cemetery: A bunch of cats meowing, and a bashful trumpet sound at the end.
Swick: A hard rock tune.
Christmas Cards (pre): TBA
Christmas Cards (post): TBA
Jackson Pollack: TBA
Alphabet Lesson: TBA
M Rocks: TBA
Electric Wet: TBA
Scribble M: TBA
Stereo History: TBA
Adverts: TBA
World Premiere: TBA
French Fries: A bunch of adults (Marcy Brafman, Alan Goodman, and Richard Schenkman) talking about fries and a bunch of random sound effects.
Freddy Buys it: A pop sound, a car screech when the car enters the screen, and a squish sound for when Fred gets hit by the car.
Altered M: A distorted synth tune.
Clock: The ticking of a clock accompanied by mechanical sounds and an announcer saying, "Around the clock, the music never stops. MTV: Music Television."
Dot-to-Dot: TBA
Club M: TBA
M Motel: An ominous synth theme, with crickets, passing cars and the buzzing of the neon light.
Atomic Era: TBA
M Factory: An industrial version of the "One Small Step" theme.
4th of July: TBA
Raiders of the Lost M: Tribal ambience followed by a laser sound effect and a synth choir when the laser shoots onto the "M".
Hairy M: TBA
Cuckoo Clocks: TBA
Clouds: TBA
Service Station: A synthesizer tune along with the lyrics: "When your TV needs a fill-up and some service, you can see / A quart of something special, come on out to MTV / We brighten up your picture and we send you on your way / So don't forget to turn to us, MTV, today!" (sung by Steve Linden and Bill Groshelle), as well as various other sound effects.
Sunday Special: A whimsical tune at the start along with various cartoon sounds. When the MTV logo appears, a soundalike of the Fox theme is heard.
Bubblegum: A licking sound, followed by a bunch of sound effects.
Bonnie: A short country piece, followed by a fast guitar riff at the very end.
MTV Birthday: Same as the "Man on The Moon" ID, but redone and different.
Construction Worker: The man (voiced by Alan Goodman) complaining, and a crash sound and a rubbing sound at the end.
Street Life: TBA
Suburbia II: TBA
Rockstar: TBA
Dancing Cats: A steady rap beat along with the cats meowing.
White House: TBA
Chainsaw: TBA
M Metro: TBA
Cosmic Crash: A distorted whoosh as we go through space and a loud crash during the meteor part.
Dancing Pants: TBA
Indian Pants: TBA
Trojan M: The knights whispering, the Trojan horse rolling, and the Trojan's yelling for victory.
Driving M: A synth trumpet fanfare, then a drum-roll and the inner tube screaming, and two more synth trumpet notes when the cracks appear, and a synth tuba Note when the man and inner tube appear from the cracks.
Art History: TBA
Fish: TBA
Frank M. Stein: TBA
Fly: TBA
Mollusk M: TBA
Shadow Graffiti: A quick rap beat.
Guillotine: First we hear a crowd chattering and a creaking sound from the ascending blade. When the blade descends, off-screen screaming is heard (probably from the victim of the execution) and a thud when it lands. Afterwards, a gag-like sound is heard when the face appears along with the wind blowing. Finally, a "sproing" sound effect plays when the eye pokes out.
Mask Dance: A bunch of drum-beats, along with the shapes screaming.
Procrastination No. 1: A remix of the tune heard in the "Man of the Moon" ID.
M Zilla: Some suspenseful music.
M Street: TBA
Daily World Record: TBA
Butler: TBA
Bath: TBA
Greetings from the World: Some rock music.
Potato Head: TBA
Snake: TBA
Brain: TBA
Breathmint: TBA
Brother's Quay: TBA
Vampire: TBA
The Wise Man: TBA
Diary: TBA
Peter Lorre: TBA
Boo: TBA
Machine: TBA
Pig: TBA
Star: TBA
Thief: TBA
Skyscraper: TBA
Chase: TBA
Skull Rider: TBA
Shapes: A majestic musical score, ending with a droning synth.
Lupo the Butcher: TBA
Mirror: TBA
Dreams of Clarence: TBA
Doubloon: TBA
Adam & Eve: TBA
Morphing Head: A drum beat, overlayed with "squish" sounds.
Xerox Bug: TBA
Atama: A bell note is heard at the start of the ID. The man gasps when he finds the creatures in his food, which is followed by shuffling from the creatures and the man panting in fear. Sneezing and a boom is heard when the man's head explodes and there is gobbling and a whistle sound when it cuts to the MTV logo.
Metal Machine: TBA
Calamari Cereal: TBA
Amazing Place: TBA
Scary Chinese Halloween: TBA
Dinosaur: TBA
X-Ray: TBA
Prelude: TBA
Transformers: TBA
Dance: TBA
Alien Gun Bang: TBA
Hanky: Country music.
Big Chew: TBA
Scream: TBA
Chicken Fight: TBA
Taco: A jangly tune and the man breathing fire.
Clay Foot: TBA
Stop Racism: TBA
B-Movie: TBA
Butterfly: TBA
Alien Operation Game: A beep, followed by a silly, cartoonish theme and sound effects of what was going on in this logo.
Rodeo: TBA
Alien Autopsy: A theme, which is lacking the silly nature from Alien Operation Game, accompanied with a voice-over saying "Roswell, New Mexico. Two casualties were recovered from the wreckage of an unidentified flying object. The doctors on duty that day were delegated to the supreme responsibility of documenting mankind's first recorded contact with an alien species. What is this? Amazingly, there seems to be luminescence emanating from inside the cavity itself! Any guesses as good as another as to what this perplexing icon represents." If you listen closely, a heartbeat can be heard at the end.
Bug Man Fly: The sounds of what goes on in the logo, with the kid saying "Papa.", as well the kids screaming.
Cupid: Ominous music.
Len Lye: TBA
Launching Moon: TBA
Beach: TBA
Art Museum: TBA
Dentist: TBA
Frank-M-Stein II: TBA
Frankenskippy: Some traditional horror music and sound effects (beating hearts, squishy sounds, etc.), with FrankenSkippy's muttering throughout. The horror music stops to some sound effects of TV static and a chainsaw, which plays as FrankenSkippy cuts the screen with his chainsaw. A mellow violin tune starts just before FrankenSkippy cuts the screen.
Food For Thought: A slightly spooky bass synth theme with chimes and whirring throughout along with some slurping from the straw and the TV static from the transitions. In addition, the creature belches when it reveals the logo along with beeping when "MUSIC TELEVISION" is flickering.
Blowfly Heaven: TBA
Microskippy: TBA
Scare Factor[]
One Small Step: Low. This is a favorite of many, and was a great way to start off MTV.
Elephants: Low.
Cats in a Cemetery: Low. It's pretty cute thanks to the cats, but the scare factor can raise for those scared of cemeteries.
Swick: None.
Christmas Cards (pre): TBA.
Christmas Cards (post): TBA.
Jackson Pollack: TBA.
Alphabet Lesson: TBA.
M Rocks: Medium. The man falling over can scare a few, but it's a little funny.
Electric Wet: Low.
Scribble M: TBA.
Stereo History: TBA.
Adverts: TBA.
World Premier: TBA.
French Fries: None
Freddy Buys it: Medium to high, the car appearing and running over Freddie and Fred being crushed onto the MTV logo might disturb some viewers.
Altered M: Low. This is a very well animated logo.
Clock: Low to medium. The strange sounds and the sudden appearance of "TV" may get to some, but it's harmless.
Dot-to-Dot: TBA.
Club M: TBA.
M Motel: Low. The color scheme and creepy theme might unnerve some.
Atomic Era: TBA.
M Factory: Low, due to the dark atmosphere. However, it is pretty cool how it manages to remake the original theme with the sounds.
4th of July: TBA.
Raiders of the Lost M: Low. The creepy sounding choir and laser may scare some viewers.
Hairy M: TBA.
Cuckoo Clocks: TBA.
Clouds: TBA.
Service Station: Minimal. The fast paced animation may get to some.
Sunday Special: TBA.
Bubblegum: Low to high; some people won't realize the car is coming.
Bonnie: None
MTV Birthday: None, unless the rocket suddenly going into the cake gets you.
Construction Worker: Low to medium.
Street Life: TBA.
Suburbia II: TBA.
Rockstar: TBA.
Dancing Cats: Low. The cats falling may not sit well with some.
White House: TBA.
Chainsaw: TBA.
M Metro: TBA.
Cosmic Crash: Minimal to medium, due to the crash and the loud explosion.
Dancing Pants: TBA.
Indian Pants: TBA.
Trojan M: Low.
Driving M: Low.
Art History: Low to medium. The ascending synth can get to some viewers, but it is a harmless logo that talks about history.
Fish: TBA.
Frank M. Stein: TBA.
Fly: TBA.
Mollusk M: TBA.
Shadow Graffiti: Low to medium. Nothing too intense, but the next ID will change that.
Guillotine: Medium to nightmare. The subject matter will scare anyone who is sensitive, but the screaming and ugly face (especially when his eye pokes out) are likely to grab your attention, even if you aren't scared of it.
Mask Dance: Medium to high. The music, cubist masks, and the noises they make will frighten someone, but it's tamer than "Guillotine".
Procrastination No. 1: Low.
M Zilla: Low to medium. The suspenseful music may get to some, but this was intended to be funny.
M Street: TBA.
Daily World Record: TBA.
Butler: TBA.
Bath: TBA.
Greetings From the World: Low, but this is tame compared to below.
Potato Head: Medium to nightmare. The nature of this logo can be seen as very creepy and disturbing. The music doesn't help, either. This could be worsened for those who are scared of the Klasky Csupo 2nd logo or the Nickelodeon "Box" ID.
Snake: TBA.
Brain: TBA.
Breathmint: TBA.
Brother's Quay: Medium to high, because of the man and some of the sounds. It can also be scary for those who don't like old buildings.
Vampire: TBA.
The Wise Man: TBA.
Diary: TBA.
Peter Lorre: TBA.
Boo: TBA.
Machine: TBA.
Pig: TBA.
Star: TBA.
Thief: TBA.
Skyscraper: TBA.
Chase: TBA.
Skull Rider: TBA.
Shapes: Low. The shapes may look strange, along with the dark atmosphere, but it's another well animated logo.
Lupo the Butcher: Medium. The violent subject matter, and walking headless chicken will scare some viewers, but others will find it funny.
Mirror: TBA.
Dreams of Clarence: TBA.
Doubloon: TBA.
Adam & Eve: TBA.
Morphing Head: Low to high. This ID is pretty disturbing, thanks to the body horror and sounds, although the brightness tones it down.
Xerox Bug: Medium to high, the bug being killed and disfigured into an MTV logo will likely disturb some viewers alongside the dark atmosphere outside of the Xerox and the creepy sounds, But it is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING compared to the next ident, which is considered far worse than everything here up to now.
Atama: Nightmare. The disturbing content, exploding head, creepy music, strange creatures, scary man, and the darkness make this one likely to disturb people and give them nightmares. You should not watch this in the dark or while eating at all. However, this is intentional given that it was used as a Halloween ID, and some may even find it funny due to its absurdity, it is still however, one of the most disturbing idents to ever make its way onto television.
Metal Machine: Medium to nightmare. Thanks to (among other things), the dragon, the dark background and the creepy music. Some consider this a cool ID, and it is certainly considered more appealing than the previous one.
Calamari Cereal: Low to high. Mr. Calamari may frighten a few, but it's funny and memorable.
Amazing Place: TBA.
Scary Chinese Halloween: Medium to nightmare, because of the rapid speed, imagery and sounds.
Dinosaur: TBA.
X-Ray: TBA.
Prelude: TBA.
Transformers: TBA.
Dance: TBA.
Alien Gun Bang: TBA.
Hanky: None to low, But that changes with the next logo...
Big Chew: High to nightmare. The scary looking humanoid creature alongside the bizarre subject matter and gross imagery are likely to cause discomfort in many.
Scream: Medium to high. The strange appearance of the man, its loud scream, the trippy animation during the scream can catch so many people off guard, unless you might find this ident to be comedic. It's still generally considered tamer than the last ident though.
Chicken Fight: TBA.
Taco: Minimal to low, due to the fire.
Clay Foot: TBA.
Stop Racism: TBA.
B-Movie: TBA.
Butterfly: TBA.
Alien Operation Game: Medium to nightmare. While not massively gory or horrific, the content of this ident is still quite disturbing, especially at the ending and the parts where the surgeon reaches his hand into the alien's torso cavity, and the cavity spraying a disgusting fluid. The lack of colors, the alien itself and the brief psycho strings can add to the scariness. However, it is generally intended to be comedic, and it's lower to those who don't find it as scary and/or disturbing as others, those who find it silly and those who are used to it.
Rodeo: TBA.
Alien Autopsy: Low to nightmare. Although it's not violent, the disturbing subject matter can get to many people. It's even worse when you have the grayscale colors and the alien retained from the Alien Operation Game ID. However, it's lower for those used to it and is intended to be darkly ccomedic. The next ident is much worse though...
Bug Man Fly: Nightmare. The bug gorily tearing itself apart and the man with bug wings bursting out of the bug's corpse combined with all the screaming will no doubt disturb many viewers. However, the end is darkly comedic. The next ident isn't any better...
Cupid: Nightmare. The insect ripping the heart apart combined with the surreal feel of the ident will definitely disturb many. It will worsen if you are afraid of insects and/or queasy to blood. Ultimately, this is one of the scariest IDs to ever be shown on television. This is generally considered to be one of the most disturbing idents ever shown on television.
Len Lye: TBA.
Launching Moon: TBA.
Beach: TBA.
Art Museum: TBA.
Dentist: TBA.
Frank-M-Stein II: TBA.
Frankenskippy: Medium to nightmare. This is due to the overall "horror movie monster" theme of the ID. The eponymous character himself and the music can also be considered as quite scary, especially the way FrankenSkippy is animated, but for the most part its pretty funny. However, the next ident is much worse...
Food For Thought: Nightmare. This is one of the most disturbing idents to ever be shown on television thanks to the eyeballs, the two creatures with giant mouths in their center and two sets of legs with one replacing the upper body entirely(!!), music, the surreal nature and overall very disturbing subject matter.
Blowfly Heaven: High to nightmare. The surreal nature, ear creature, bizarre noises, the high amount of insects, the fly getting close to the screen and.the graphics can scare a number of viewers, especially if they don't like insects.
Microskippy: Medium to high. The disturbing look of the eponymous character and suspenseful music can scare some, but it's tamer than most MTV Halloween IDs.
12 Days: Nightmare. The exaggerated shots of injured children, along with the twisted and horrifying rendition of a Christmas classic makes it the scariest MTV bumper ever.
Videos[]
Classic MTV Idents (1981-83)
MTV Home Video Logo (2000)
1998 Doctor FRANKENSKIPPY Comercial MTV
Scary MTV IDs