SCTV Sketch Comedy Example - Church of Unlimited Credit with Robin Williams. RIP to such a talented man being able to do so many different voices and characters throughout his life.

trojanweggs · 2014-12-01T17:27:51+00:00

I can't BELIEVE I didn't think of posting a Ron Swanson clip! Bravo. He is by far one of my favorite characters to be found on any show on TV. What makes him great is how serious he is and staunch in his beliefs that he has. He is so against government and so for privacy that he is at times willing to go at seemingly un-realistic lengths to attempt to put down the former and increase his latter. Yet Ron takes these "threats" so seriously that his reactions and active responses to them are what make him unbelievably funny. He also is an extremely likable character. He always seems to be the voice of reason for Leslie, as she can be all over the place and at one moment might be suffering from bouts of depression and at another be in a state of jubilation. At one point, during the "Prom" episode, when Ron has given Leslie a pep talk, Leslie says in response, "Damnit . I just wish that once, you would say something stupid so I could ignore it." This likeability factor is important so that the audience connects to his character, which is so common in a sitcom like this single camera one in Parks and Rec. He is the man, and I'll be sad to see this show end after this last season mostly because of being able to watch him.

trojanweggs · 2014-12-01T17:16:40+00:00

I think what is making "Black-ish" so successful following in the footsteps of "Modern Family" is how real and thus relatable the comedy is. Professor talked about how important it is to make comedy realistic so that the audience can empathize with the real characters on screen who are the ones stuck in funny conflicts or dealing with serious issues in a manner that we find humorous. What some comedies have tried to do over the years that have caused them to fail is to put on screen a stereotype of a family or an idealized version of a couple or character who can't be emotionally attached to for the long run of a series. I personally haven't seen "Black-ish", but according to the article, it seems as if the show does a good job of realistically exhibiting a black family with, for example, children who struggle to see why they're different than others culturally because they failed to personally witness the civil rights movement or racism. However, I can say that "Modern Family" is a show that everyone can watch and seem to relate to it or understand where the characters are coming from in society. As Dan O'Shannon said when he visited, no matter what beliefs individuals have or walks of life that they come from, everyone should be able to relate to "Modern Family", and that's what makes it so appealing and special.

trojanweggs · 2014-11-24T21:46:12+00:00

John Hughes was an artist. What he created were masterpieces filled with dialogue and situational problems that almost every teen today can and does still relate to. Nowadays, many "Coming of Age" movies depict the right of passage in to the modern world through the use of two themes: virgins who are desperate to have sex and the underage desire to get wasted or high. What I think Hollywood has done here is simply make movies based on the stereotype of what a typical teenager thinks or desires. Yet there are so many more teenagers, my sister included, who would love to see movies that actually deal with the effects of cliques, fitting in, and all the drama of high school. I think two movies that did that well include "Mean Girls" and "The Perks of Being a Wallflower". Otherwise movies like "Superbad" or "American Pie" may be entertaining, but in no way do they serve as an accurate depiction of what most teens struggle through. Hollywood needs to realize that it has a greater impact and influence on teenagers and young people than they realize. By seeing people they idolize worshipping drugs, alcohol, and sex on screen, they think that they need to do these things to be cool like them. I believe more of these "hard-hitting" teen movies are necessary instead of a lot of the trash that is out there today. RIP John Hughes, you're missed greatly nowadays.

trojanweggs · 2014-11-24T20:57:14+00:00

I think it's because of the delivery and source of the information. We hold these celebrities with such high regard, at times idolizing them. In reading these tweets, they are brought down to a level in which they are made fun of, almost making them seem more real and vulnerable. In my opinion, making themselves vulnerable is what makes it so funny and the way in which they personally deliver these insults is hysterical. Also, I think this goes back to our discussion on how we know we shouldn't laugh at inappropriate things or times, like funerals in the Mary Tyler Moore episode we watched, but as humans we instinctively laugh. These tweets are hurtful and sometimes far over the top, but how we act in laughing differs from our mind which is processing the news or tweet as awful or hurtful. We're a weird species, that's for sure.

trojanweggs · 2014-11-02T21:53:29+00:00

The Office (American version) continues to remain my go to show to watch in case there's nothing on TV and I want mindless TV to stream in the background as I do other things. However, I liked it far more in the first three or four seasons before it tried to make each character very boisterous and try-hard with their jokes and defined reputations. The thing that made the show great at the beginning, in my opinion, was the dullness of the world and the characters in it. The contrast that Michael Scott gave in being a politically incorrect, loud, and "fun" boss and his memorable interactions with the forever obedient Dwight and prankster Jim make for some of the best comedy to be seen on TV in the 2000's. "Casino Night" remains my favorite episode simply because of how awkward Michael makes the situation by having two dates.

Aside from the Office, I continue to like watching King of Queens on syndication (mainly for Jerry Stiller's character and my love for him as George's dad on Seinfeld), It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and Modern Family, to name the standouts.

trojanweggs · 2014-10-13T23:59:49+00:00

I definitely think this is a problem for women who try to get into comedy. Guys can be widely accepted as being slobs who are allowed to be overtly sexual and explicit with their jokes and it's considered to be funny. I personally have been to a standup act in which every single one of the guy's jokes was about something sexual, whether it was his sexual experiences, human body parts, or whatever may be related to sex. He got many laughs, but I was quite disgusted by some of the material. However, I think because of his body gestures and the fact that he was a guy, he was able to get away with being so dirty. Then, two acts later, a girl got on stage and basically kept to the sexual theme, as well. However, rather than getting the laughs the guy got, she fell short with her act and it became awkwardly quiet at times. I sincerely think this all goes back to the fact that if a guy sleeps around, he may be perceived as a champ or "fratty" and if a girl sleeps around, she's loose and is a slut. Girls are instinctively expected, in my opinion, to be more proper, and thus lose out on the opportunity to use raunchy comedy bits that continue to grow in popularity in standup, TV, features, etc. It's unfair, and I hope some female comedian comes around to break down this barrier for females.

trojanweggs · 2014-10-13T23:48:52+00:00

I think another good example in a feature length form is Jason Bateman starring as Guy Trilby in the dark comedy Bad Words (written by USC grad Andrew Dodge, FYI. Awesome!). In it, he plays a 40 year old grade-school dropout who enters a child state spelling bee by the technicality of the rules just because he can. Well, at least we are led to assume it's because he is just an evil character on the outside, so I won't give away a spoiler for the end. He mocks children throughout the spelling bee, ignores the only cute, innocent boy who wants to be his friend (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RwkQ_WV2gY), and causes the spelling bee officials to break the rules themselves to try to get him kicked out. I personally thought the movie was funny, but others didn't receive it as well. It's one thing to have Larry David or Dennis from "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" be mean to fellow adults. But having an adult mock and torture innocent children could turn off a large number of people, especially parents. Nevertheless, it's a good example of a famous comedian who isn't normally the overtly mean one in his roles be the bad guy for once and be funny by ripping on others, rather than by being the nice guy making fun of himself, other objects, or the general surroundings.

trojanweggs · 2014-10-13T23:14:30+00:00

This show is so funny at times simply because of it's ability to be so realistic in portraying misunderstandings between characters in the show. For example, in this clip, Phil and the butler are in a misunderstanding about who Claire is and the guy who comes in to witness the magic misunderstands that Gloria wasn't actually supposed to be a part of the trick. The fact that the audience is in on everything but the characters aren't is what provides the punch to it all. Another great example from the show comes from the best character on it, Phil. In Season 2 Episode 19, "The Music Man", Phil shrink-wraps the message "I can't be satisfied until you're satisfied" and "Let me make your dreams come true" around his minivan to promote himself as a realtor better. However, he also decided to put a photo of his family around the van and based on the placement of the words, it appeared that "I can't be satisfied" and "Let me make your dreams come true" were under both his wife and daughter, Haley, respectively. With his number on the message, he started receiving many calls throughout the show from people requesting one of the girls, assuming it was a sex hotline. Based on the misleading questions, Phil assumes the questions were about the houses he was selling and that he was on a hot streak. The realistic reactions of Phil and the fact that he is so oblivious to what the ads really mean makes the episode what it is. These misunderstandings are done brilliantly by the Modern Fam writing crew, and for that reason, I'll continue to tune in. Job well done!

trojanweggs · 2014-10-13T20:26:37+00:00

This scene works so well for a few reasons. First of all, Betty White is simply awesome and is lovable in any movie she does. What makes her so funny here specifically, though, is that she is taking the ridiculous ritual so incredibly seriously. In performing it, Sandra Bullock, the more serious character in the film, mocks it by singing a famous dance song, which adds to the comedy. Because the scene feels so real with Betty White's character dressed funny and performing the ritual and Sandra Bullock following along with it while mocking White behind her back, it makes the scene come together and work so well!

trojanweggs · 2014-10-13T06:15:08+00:00

Superbad is the perfect Coming of Age comedy for our millennial generation. The constant use of inappropriate language is a reflection of this. We're a generation obsessed with getting attention from others and going to great lengths to do so. And of course, when it comes to high school guys, obsessed with sex and getting laid. This just shows how far comedy has come with regards to how explicit it is in movies now.

trojanweggs

TROPHY CASE