The last time we saw Neil Patrick Harris, he was in his underwear and hosting the Oscars. And now he’s getting pissed off at kids who aren’t at the same level of Thomas the Tank Engine fandom that he is. Never a dull moment for NPH. Check out the excellent Funny or Die video below.
You think you’re a huge fan of Thomas & Friends? (If your answer is “yes,” then I’ve apparently misidentified our site’s core demographic.) In any case, no one will ever be a bigger “tankie” than Neil Patrick Harris, or so he’d have a group of birthday party dwellers believe. Good on these parents for hooking the kids up with a prop-filled celebration, but I’m not even sure why they hired Harris to come and speak, since I doubt any of the kids are How I Met Your Mother fans.
This is admittedly one of the more enjoyable things I’ve ever seen Harris do. I’m kind of a sucker for scenes and sketches where adults acting high and mighty and turn ruthless on packs of children in an effort to save face. And these little bastards called him a diesel, so it’s no wonder he flipped, calling them Troublesome Trucks before attempting to chase one down inside a piece of the scenery.
I’m pretty sure this would have been the kind of party entertainment I would have liked as a kid. I don’t give a shit if he corrects people when they talk about Thomas. He taught them a new word, cerulean, and also gave them a few facts about different types of trains and how speed enters into it. Plus, that was a pretty great pratfall as he got out of the cardboard Thomas. Clowns and magicians just look unlegendary in comparison.
Want to see Harris in another Funny or Die clip? Here you go, although this one sadly features no yelling at small children.
Here’s hoping Harris brings his obsessions to the next season of American Horror Story: Train Yard.
