Conan Season 2011 Episode 84 Dragonpuncher 3: The Punchening
- June 28, 2011
Conan O'Brien's late-night talk show, Conan, aired its 84th episode of the 2011 season with a comedic and action-packed segment titled "Dragonpuncher 3: The Punchening."
As the title suggests, the sketch centered around a fictional video game called Dragonpuncher, where players take on the role of a martial arts master who must defeat a series of opponents using a powerful punch technique. In this iteration, Dragonpuncher 3, the game has been updated with advanced graphics and complex opponents.
Conan, along with his comedian sidekick Andy Richter, welcomed a group of industry professionals who claimed to be the creators of Dragonpuncher 3. The group consisted of a melodramatic director, an overambitious producer, and a clueless writer. The trio introduced themselves and hyped up the new game's features before revealing that they had brought the actual game for Conan to play.
A large screen was brought out on stage, displaying the game's introductory cutscene which featured an animated Conan as the protagonist. The audience erupted in laughter as Conan's character went through a training montage that included him training on a mountaintop, riding a dragon, and fighting a horde of ninjas.
As the cutscene ended, Conan was handed a video game controller and he started playing the game. Andy joined in as the second player, and the two began to fight their way through the levels of the game. The audience was thrilled to see their favorite talk show hosts engage in high-flying martial arts combat, complete with crazy special effects and comical power-ups.
Throughout the sketch, the creators of the game made appearances on stage, offering commentary and feedback on Conan's gameplay. They also made fun of their own industry, with jokes about demanding producers, hackneyed writing, and endless sequels.
As with most Conan sketches, the humor was light and playful, with a wide range of pop culture references and jokes that landed well with the audience. Despite the over-the-top action and absurdity of the game, Conan played it straight, lending the proceedings a touch of sincerity that made the sketch all the more fun.
Overall, "Dragonpuncher 3: The Punchening" was a hilarious, action-packed sketch that showcased Conan and Andy's comedic talents and the show's knack for creating memorable pop culture parodies. Fans of video games and martial arts movies will surely get a kick out of this segment.