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British Comedy vs American Comedy

Posted: 2002-09-26 09:30am
by Rathark
Two words:

Fawlty Towers.

Posted: 2002-09-26 09:42am
by Kelly Antilles
First off, it's Aye Carumba.

Second off...
It's cold outside, there's no kind of atmosphere
I'm all alone, more or less.
Let me fly far away from here.
Fun, Fun, Fun
in the Sun, Sun Sun.

Posted: 2002-09-26 09:47am
by Mr Bean
Two Words
Mr Bean :D

Three words
Keeping up Apperances

Three more words
Waiting for God

Four Words
Who's line is it anyway

Posted: 2002-09-26 09:58am
by Rathark
Kelly Antilles wrote:First off, it's Aye Carumba.
Thanks. I've just corrected my error.
Second off...
It's cold outside, there's no kind of atmosphere
I'm all alone, more or less.
Let me fly far away from here.
Fun, Fun, Fun
in the Sun, Sun Sun.
"Sir, you're a SMEEEEEEEE-HEEEEEEEEEE!!!!"

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Posted: 2002-09-26 10:05am
by Kelly Antilles
Mr Bean wrote:Two Words
Mr Bean :D
Oooh, there's a surprise. ;)
Four Words
Who's line is it anyway
Hell yeah, original WITHOUT Ryan and/or Colin.
WITH Josie, Mike McShane, and the ones who I really liked and can't remember their names because THEY WON'T SHOW THEM OVER HERE ANYMORE WITHOUT RYAN AND COLIN!

*breathes* Ok, so I have an issue. But geez, get over them! They weren't the ONLY freaking commedians on the show!

Posted: 2002-09-26 10:09am
by Ted
Mr Bean wrote:Two Words
Mr Bean :D

Three words
Keeping up Apperances

Three more words
Waiting for God

Four Words
Who's line is it anyway
Two more words:
Monty Python

Posted: 2002-09-26 10:09am
by Kelly Antilles
Rathark wrote:
Kelly Antilles wrote:First off, it's Aye Carumba.
Thanks. I've just corrected my error.
not a problem. :)
Second off...
It's cold outside, there's no kind of atmosphere
I'm all alone, more or less.
Let me fly far away from here.
Fun, Fun, Fun
in the Sun, Sun Sun.
"Sir, you're a SMEEEEEEEE-HEEEEEEEEEE!!!!"

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
You ever have someone ask "what is it?" and you suddenly reply "it's a white hole."

And just suddenly go "Today's fish is Trout a la grete, enjoy your meal."

Or am I just a Dwarf addict? 8)

Posted: 2002-09-26 10:11am
by Kuja
YES! Monty and the Holy Grail is funny as all Hell!

But so is MST3K!

Posted: 2002-09-26 10:13am
by Kelly Antilles
Ted wrote: Two more words:
Monty Python
How could I forget Python?

Funny Walks
Dead Parrot
Live at the Hollywood Bowl

It's British comedy at its best.

Posted: 2002-09-26 10:16am
by Lagmonster
British comedy is so *different* from American comedy that it's hard to compare them. 'Entertainment by any other name would make me chortle as loudly.'

Posted: 2002-09-26 10:30am
by salm
MONTY PYTHON!!!

Posted: 2002-09-26 12:18pm
by Ted
Lagmonster wrote:British comedy is so *different* from American comedy that it's hard to compare them. 'Entertainment by any other name would make me chortle as loudly.'
Americans can rarely pull off a good joke without cracking up or messing it in some way. Watch Python, and imagine a yank trying to do it. Impossible.

Posted: 2002-09-26 12:51pm
by IRG CommandoJoe
Seinfeld...

Posted: 2002-09-26 12:51pm
by IRG CommandoJoe
Oh yeah, duh, Simpsons.

Posted: 2002-09-26 01:03pm
by TrailerParkJawa
RUN AWAY! RUN AWAY!

WHERE DID YOU GET THE COCONUT?

Posted: 2002-09-26 01:03pm
by greenmm
Lagmonster wrote:British comedy is so *different* from American comedy that it's hard to compare them. 'Entertainment by any other name would make me chortle as loudly.'
Very true.

And even within each group, there are so many differences. I mean, can you really compare Monty Python to Benny Hill? Yet both are British comedies. Or can you compare sitcoms like Friends and Will & Grace to The Simpsons?

Personally, there are British comedies I love, and British comedies I hate, just as there are American comedies that I love and others that I hate.

That being said, my wife has yet to really like any British comedies, even after watching Monty Python (heaven help me if she ever saw Benny Hill). About the only one she'll even watch (and then only because nothing else good is on at 7:30 PM EST) is Are You Being Served?...

Posted: 2002-09-26 01:31pm
by Kelly Antilles
greenmm wrote: Very true.

And even within each group, there are so many differences. I mean, can you really compare Monty Python to Benny Hill? Yet both are British comedies. Or can you compare sitcoms like Friends and Will & Grace to The Simpsons?

Personally, there are British comedies I love, and British comedies I hate, just as there are American comedies that I love and others that I hate.

That being said, my wife has yet to really like any British comedies, even after watching Monty Python (heaven help me if she ever saw Benny Hill). About the only one she'll even watch (and then only because nothing else good is on at 7:30 PM EST) is Are You Being Served?...
I love AYBS. That is a hilarious show.

I'm guessing your wife is the kind who loves ER and Seventh Heaven and Dawson's Creek. *ugh*

And for whomever mentioned Seinfeld... what is so funny about that show? I always found it rather... stupid. About like Friends. Just idiot one liners said over and over.

American TV has very little in the way of decent comedy anymore.

Posted: 2002-09-26 01:46pm
by IRG CommandoJoe
Seinfeld is great if you watch closely and pick everything up, but if you miss a few minutes of the show or don't get one scene, the whole thing could be meaningless. There are a lot of parallels they make, but if you don't get what the parallel is, it just isn't funny. So it's only funny if you actually understand what the situations are mocking. Like if anyone hasn't ever seen Platoon, they wouldn't really get the episode where George's father recalls his Korean War cook days. If anyone hasn't watched the movie about investigating JFK's assassination, they wouldn't get the episode where Jerry was analyzing the trajectory of a spit wad.

Posted: 2002-09-26 02:23pm
by Vendetta
The League of Gentlemen.

It is the answer to all arguments of funny.

Posted: 2002-09-26 02:43pm
by Dirty Harry
Vendetta wrote:The League of Gentlemen.

It is the answer to all arguments of funny.
Dark british comedy (and I mean dark) at its very best,I think.

Posted: 2002-09-26 03:14pm
by greenmm
Kelly Antilles wrote:
greenmm wrote: Very true.

And even within each group, there are so many differences. I mean, can you really compare Monty Python to Benny Hill? Yet both are British comedies. Or can you compare sitcoms like Friends and Will & Grace to The Simpsons?

Personally, there are British comedies I love, and British comedies I hate, just as there are American comedies that I love and others that I hate.

That being said, my wife has yet to really like any British comedies, even after watching Monty Python (heaven help me if she ever saw Benny Hill). About the only one she'll even watch (and then only because nothing else good is on at 7:30 PM EST) is Are You Being Served?...
I love AYBS. That is a hilarious show.

I'm guessing your wife is the kind who loves ER and Seventh Heaven and Dawson's Creek. *ugh*

And for whomever mentioned Seinfeld... what is so funny about that show? I always found it rather... stupid. About like Friends. Just idiot one liners said over and over.

American TV has very little in the way of decent comedy anymore.
ER -- she can't stand it
Dawson's Creek -- she can't stand it
7th Heaven -- she loves it (but then, so do I). After all, who says TV has to be all about single people having sex and getting into trouble?

Posted: 2002-09-26 03:18pm
by Kelly Antilles
IRG CommandoJoe wrote:Seinfeld is great if you watch closely and pick everything up, but if you miss a few minutes of the show or don't get one scene, the whole thing could be meaningless. There are a lot of parallels they make, but if you don't get what the parallel is, it just isn't funny. So it's only funny if you actually understand what the situations are mocking. Like if anyone hasn't ever seen Platoon, they wouldn't really get the episode where George's father recalls his Korean War cook days. If anyone hasn't watched the movie about investigating JFK's assassination, they wouldn't get the episode where Jerry was analyzing the trajectory of a spit wad.
See, right there shows how utterly simplistic and unoriginal the show is. And since I've never seen Platoon or the JFK movie, I wouldn't get a damn thing on the entire show.

Four people sitting around a cafe talking about nothing. Ugh.

It's as bad as six Gen-Xers sitting around in a coffee house talking about nothing. But at least Friends has a few sight gags.

Posted: 2002-09-26 03:19pm
by Kelly Antilles
greenmm wrote: ER -- she can't stand it
Dawson's Creek -- she can't stand it
7th Heaven -- she loves it (but then, so do I). After all, who says TV has to be all about single people having sex and getting into trouble?
Oooh, I really missed that one. :)

I don't mind 7th Heaven, but I really like Yes, Dear. That is my husband and me.

Posted: 2002-09-26 03:22pm
by TheDarkOne
Douglas Adams...
...Terry Pratchett...

I don't think I have to say anymore.

Posted: 2002-09-26 04:08pm
by HemlockGrey
Terry Pratchett sucks ass. Douglas Adams is incredibly funny.

But...

Simpsons....Seinfeld....Who's Line(COLIN AND RYAN FOREVER!)....

Fawlty Towers...Monty Python....Blackadder...


aaaaagh! I cannot pick!