Amid the internet-wide arguing about whether Harlem Shake videos have redeeming cultural value or demonstrate the "real" Harlem Shake (answer to the latter being a clear negative), I think the point is lost.
If you've not yet been bombarded with Harlem Shakes and need an introduction to the phenomenon, here is a good one.
The point of a Harlem Shake video is not expression of brilliance, nor creation of a lasting work, and it's damn sure not ability to dance. It's creative exploitation of a tidy format. Each Harlem Shake video will begin with a rumble of ordinary activity, often punctuated by the foreshadowing movement of one person, and then--and you know just when it's coming! as the beat kicks in!--explode into mayhem.
If one's pleasure in watching them could be charted on a graph, the line would rise steadily for a while, as each fresh click of the triangular YouTube arrow reveals an unexpected scenario conforming to an expected format. (The line would of course turn negatively-sloped as one hit diminishing YouTubing returns.) Sure, they're dance videos without good dancing, and have Harlem in the name while having naught to do with Harlem. The irrationality is part of the delight.
The predictable and the unpredictable, perfectly aligned. Doesn't all great entertainment give us just that?
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