Screaming Goat, Keyboard Cat and a gaggle of memes will have you giggling at this Delta safety vid

If you’re wondering why anyone would watch a safety video on purpose. blame it on the memes.

Delta Air Lines’ latest in-flight safety video has drawn 8.5 million eyeballs on YouTube in the four weeks since it was posted. Why? Besides the memes, it could be the music. It’s definitely not the script.

It’s also not the first to try to inject some hilarity into the process, as you can see by the list below.

But the notoriously boring safety instructions -- how to buckle your seat belt, how to use an oxygen mask in the event of an emergency, etc. -- get a huge assist from Internet memes in Delta’s production -- lots of them.

Annoying Orange, check. Keyboard Cat, check. There also are Screaming Goat, Rainbow Man and so many others that you’ll watch it more than once to find all the pop culture characters (I did -- see the video above).

Delta calls it “The Internetest Safety Video on the Internet.� Online women’s magazine Bustle declared it worthy of “An Internet Oscar.�

The memes aren’t new, but there’s a nostalgic quality to seeing all these oddball characters together in one place. “A lot of people grew up with those memes,� says Mauricio Parise, Delta’s director of worldwide marketing communication.

The company started making offbeat safety videos in 2012, scoring a big hit with an ‘80s-themed one. And yes, he says he is out to entertain the 175 million passengers who fly Delta every day.

The memes safety video will rule until Delta changes it up again in August. (Parise won’t say what’s next.)

In case you want to catch up on your in-flight safety video watching, here are four worthy ones created in the past few years.

Air France: This seatbelt as fashion safety video promises your seatbelt “will elegantly highlight your waistline.� I’m not sure about that, but the video has a delightful American in Paris vibe that may inspire you to hop a flight.

Virgin America: The VXsafetydance made a splash when it debuted two years ago as singers and dancers made safety protocols seem like a bit of sexy fun -- now that’s an achievement. It too has grabbed more than 10 million viewers on YouTube.

United Airlines: This safety video takes you off the plane and around the world. From Japan to Las Vegas, pilots and flight attendants effortlessly demonstrate how to buckle your seat belt or stow your bag in an overhead bin while in some exotic location.

Air New Zealand: The airline has made many quirky and elaborate safety videos, including one with Betty White at a senior living center and one Middle-Earth epic in honor of “The Hobbit.� The newest one melds pro surfers in the water with the safety protocols -- all set to music too.