Sometimes humor is hard to explain. This sketch probably struck some chord with a fad for “random” things at the time, and maybe hasn’t aged very well.

While the internet was of course influential in 2016, my recollection is that people weren’t nearly as jaded and cynical as they are now in the post-truth, post-pandemic world.

We’re constantly bombarded with memes, jokes, and other distractions…so perhaps people are not so easily amused now as they were almost a decade ago.

However, I do remember some folks being confused, annoyed, and unimpressed with it back then, too. But enough people were tickled by it to want to share it with everyone. And I do think Hanks brings a certain bizarre charm to it that not many comedians can pull off.