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If you can no longer bear the thought of watching even one more Brokeback Mountain parody, take heart, for relief is in sight. The NY Times has taken it upon itself to finally deliver the death-blow to the seemingly endless procession of mash-ups, dispatching critic Virginia Heffernan to deconstruct the form, thus ensuring that any joy we once derived from the recasting of Marty McFly and Doc Brown as gay lovers unstuck in time will be instantly erased. Says Heffernan:

The parodies typically use Gustavo Santaolalla's sexy, mournful theme from "Brokeback Mountain," together with the title cards from that movie's trailer, to reframe clips from another movie. It works almost every time: a gay movie seems to emerge when scenes between male leads, or a male lead and a supporting actor, are slowed down, set to make-out music and bumpered by portentous cards that say things like, "A truth they couldn't deny." The editing, and the use of slow motion, do suggest that close-ups, especially viewed at length, are intrinsically erotic. All that these parodies need to do to set up the relationship is show one man's face in protracted detail, and cut to the other man, who seems to watch with the same rapt attention that the viewer has been compelled to give by the slow-mo. A gay subtext suddenly seems plain as day.

It was fun while it lasted.

Following that bloodless breakdown, we can barely bring ourselves to share the wonders of Brokeback Pez, the bunnies reenacting the entire movie in 30 seconds, this interview with the auteurs behind Brokeback to the Future (in our estimation, still the gold standard of mash-ups), or Low Culture's heartbreaking examination of the history of Brokeback Mountain jokes.

The gay sheep have stampeded away from the campsite. Don't bother chasing them, friends, they're gone.