However, Sir Thopas has no true accomplishments to sing of considering that he flees battle and is portrayed as rather a mock-hero, producing a very anticlimactic charade of a tale. Monty Python and the Holy Grail uses The Tale of Sir Thopas as a model in creating their Tale of Sir Robin. "Sir Robin's troubles stem not so much from the many monsters he almost fights, but from the minstrels who accompany him everywhere. The minstrels presented here are the traditional celebrators of knightly prowess, highlight the horizon of expectations established in Arthurian romance in their song introducing Sir Robin" (Neufeld). Sir Robin seemingly enjoys hearing his praises sung, until he encounters the Three Headed Knight. Instead of fighting the Three Headed Knight, Sir Robin runs away. The minstrels then keep their upbeat melody and tone but change their lyrics to reflect an anti-hero of sorts singing, "Packing it in and packing it up, and sneaking away and buggering up, and chickening out" It becomes evident that the symbol of a chicken on Sir Robin's shield is of no coincidence.
Monty Python and the Holy Grail furthers their parody of Arthurian tradition by not only examining Arthurian literature but by also focusing on the authors of various Arthurian texts. In the scene where The Monster of Arrghhh confronts Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, the knights begin to flee and their quest seems doomed. "However, a voice-over says, 'As the horrendous black beast lunged forward, escape for Arthur and his knights seemed hopeless, when suddenly the animator suffered a fatal heart attack.' A film shot shows the artist fall backwards from his drawing table, letting out a yell of 'Aaaaagh!' at which point the terrifying carton monster turns white and dissolves into thin air" (Meuwese). In this sequence, the creators of Monty Python and the Holy are Grail are acknowledging the fact that many Arthurian authors did not live long enough to finish the texts they had begun.