Mad #348 (Nick Meglin and John Ficarra) - Extremely Ultimate Issue - August 1996

Ugh!  This issue and the back cover of #347 mark the beginning of a painfully long period when the editors of Mad tried to appeal to the disgusting humor sense of a 13-year-old boy.  Unfortunately, that 13-year-old boy did not buy and read magazines.  The considerable talent of artist Mort Drucker was wasted on a cover devoted to the damaged internal body parts of two ultimate fighters.  This cover and Tom Bunk's drawings for "The Extremely Ultimate Fights" apparently serve as a parodies of the mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championships that was founded in 1993.  I don't get it. [JAM 4/6/2013]

Mad staffers Meglin, Ficarra, Jaffee, Aragones, DeBartolo, Kadau, Brenner et al. are part of the enthusiastic audience for Bunk's almost double-splash-page featuring the "Pancreas Pull" and other degrading attacks on human bodies.

Cyndi Lauper's shopping friend is Annie Gaines ("The Worst MTV Contests of All Time")

Departments:
Gays of Our Lives - The Nerdcage
An Embarrassment of Richard's - Mad's Guide to Health Clubs and Fitness Centers
High Life's a Bitch - The Hidden Drawbacks of Rock Superstardom
Them's the Brakes - The Cast Iron Laws of Car Repair
Plaques to the Future - Statues, Monuments & Historical Markers to Commemorate Generation X
Joke And Dagger - Spy vs. Spy
Berg's-Eye View - The Lighter Side
Do You Want Prize with That? - The Worst MTV Contests of All Time
Toys Aren't Us - Board Game Rejects
Philately Will Get You Nowhere - Commemorate Stamps for More Recent Comic Strips
Serge-In General - A Mad Look at Stuntmen
Two Sides of the Con - You're a Crook/You're a Businessman
Slay-Per-View - Mad Goes to the Extremely Ultimate Fights
Tales From the Duck Side - The Ridiculous Renaissance Revelation

Fold-In - Sports Fan