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Quick Answer: Starboy and the Captain of Outer Space is the best movie the kids make on Home Movies. While we only get brief snippets of most of the kids’ movies, we watch Starboy and the Captain of Outer Space in its entirety. Full of pop culture references and cameos like Evil George Washington and the kidnapped Mermaid Queen, the movie is also a musical with clever allusions to Star Wars and Superman.

Sure, there are quite a few choices vying for the title of Best Home Movie seen on Home Movies (1999 - 2004). In almost every episode, Brendon (voiced by Brendon Small), Melissa (voiced by Melissa Bardin Galsky) and Jason (voiced by H. Jon Benjamin) make at least one movie, whether something original like The Hand That Wasn’t There (“Time to Pay the Price” S3:E10) or something derivative such as Weird Robot (“Curses” S4:E7), which is based on the movie Weird Science (1985).

The trio’s movies range from the educational (e.g. Don’t Put Marbles in Your Nose in “Mortgages and Marbles” S1:E11) to science fiction (e.g. Aliens…Go Home in “Life Through a Fish Eye Lens” S1:E9), from rock opera (e.g. The Wizard’s Baker in “The Wizard’s Baker” S4:E5) to spy thriller (e.g. Secret #50 in “Stow A Way” S3:E12), and everything in between.

More often than not, the viewers at home only get to see snippets of the movies the kids make, sometimes just a scene, and sometimes the films are only spoken of rather than seen. Of all of the movies the kids are seen making, Starboy and the Captain of Outer Space (“History” S2:E10) is one of the few that the audience gets to see from start to finish, rather than just for a few scenes.

Plus, the characters Starboy (played by Brendon) and the Captain of Outer Space (played by Jason) come up in three separate movies in four episodes of Home Movies. The movie The Starboy is the origin story for the characters (“Impressions” S2:E6), and in Starboy: The Phantom Girlfriend Menace the Captain of Outer Space tries to convince Starboy that his girlfriend is a ghost who is trying to kill him (“Time to Pay the Price” S3:E10). But it is Starboy and the Captain of Outer Space in which the characters and storyline get to really shine.

In this movie, we meet George Washington (played by Brendon) who was impeached for assassinating Lincoln, Picasso (played by Jason) who cut off his ear in a shaving accident, and Annie Oakley (played by Melissa) an orphan who was taken in by Daddy Warbucks and forced to sing. The three have kidnapped Shakespeare (played by Walter, voiced by H. Jon Benjamin), Oliver Twist (played by Perry, voiced by Brendon Small), and the Mermaid Queen (played by Junior, voiced by Brendon Small) and hold them hostage while attempting to destroy the human race.

The Villains: Picasso, George Washington, and Annie Oakely

The villains know that Starboy and the Captain of Outer Space will attempt to save the three victims and therefore employ Mr. Pants – an evil cat played by their friend Duane (voiced by Brendon Small) – to attack the heroes. Starboy and the Captain of Outer Space are of course victorious, befriending Mr. Pants who helps them save the day by trapping the villains in a flat object and hurling it into space, much like what happens in Superman (1978) and Superman II (1980).

In addition to the characters of the captors and the hostages, the movie includes numerous references to popular culture, such as the mentions of Daddy Warbucks from Annie (1982) and the musical Cats. The spaceship’s name, the Jefferson Spaceplane, is a reference to the band Jefferson Airplane whose members later formed the band Jefferson Starship. The rings used to keep the hostages captive are again reminiscent of the cell for the criminals in Superman and Superman II.

The Victims: Oliver Twist, the Mermaid Queen, and Shakespeare

Not to mention that the movie poster set up to look like the original 1976 poster for Star Wars (1977).

Moreover, Starboy and the Captain of Outer Space is a musical, meaning the audience gets to enjoy music by Brendon Small of Metalocolypse (2006 - 2013) fame. The Starboy and the Captain of Outer Space Theme Song, “Mr. Pants,” and “The Compliments Song” are all not only funny but also actually drive the story forward.

Mr. Pants sings his theme song

For all these reasons, Starboy and the Captain of Outer Space is clearly the best of all the movies the kids make in Home Movies. But if you don’t want to take my word for it, just remember that the powers that be not only used Starboy and the Captain of Outer Space as the basis for the cover art of the Season 2 DVD but also had the movie poster created, even though it is never used on the show.

So while it is hard to pick the best episode, or to watch a bad episode of Home Movies, it’s easy to see that Starboy and the Captain of Outer Space is the best movie the kids create on the show.