Where did the funny go?

It's all a matter of opinion, and yours is as valid as mine (almost!) but I'm more ready to believe someone sucked the funny out of you.
Hammer actually says 'STICKING' badges. The humour is the play on Eli Wallach's remark in the Magnificent Seven (I think - not seen it in long while).
The doll joke of course is the Captain taking out his frustration on the Hammer doll, as he can't do it to the real Hammer. The irony is that Hammer enjoys the Captain's sudden descent into physical violence, even though it's directed at Hammer himself. This is Capt Trunk's one 'victory', for the doll to have hit back 'somehow' would have made it similar to other episodes endings.
Though I love the series, I'm not blind to its flaws. Some of the episodes could have been edited better, and the music (apart from the perfect Danny Elfman theme) sometimes is cheesy 80's synthesizer dreck.
For me though, it's just as funny as when I used to watch it, possibly even funnier as I now appreciate Anne-Marie Martin's performance much better. Back then it was just her looks.

I'm inclined to agree and i've just bought the (supposedly better) first season. I loved this show when I was in high-school, and while it still has some laugh out loud moments I find most of the jokes embarrassing to watch. Most episodes also seem to culminate in some sort of shootout, which are nearly always dull and poorly choreographed.

Incidentally, while Sledge Hammer didn't have a great budget, excellent writing can work round this limitation. A scene where Hammer is in a sauna trying to get information from someone supposedly dying from a gunshot wound (despite the fact that he's wearing nothing but a towel and doesn't have a scratch on him) is plain dreadful.

I'm still enyoing watching it for the nostalgia value and it does have its moments, but part of me wishes i'd left it consigned to memory where it would have remained great.

For me, unlike the other posters in this thread, Sledge Hammer never went away. I have all the episodes on tape and I never stopped watching them. It would be rare that six months would go by without me digging out and watching a few episodes.

So, I can't really see it as a 'dated' series. It's just a collection of episodes I never tire of watching. As far as quality goes, I think Season One is pretty much flawless, while Season Two has a couple of hit & miss episodes early on, but seems to find it's feet again and finishes the run on a high.

For me, it's far above any other TV comedy of that era.

What? The half-deaf giant carrying our fake uncle?

I'd have to agree with your general sentiment. I distinctly remember loving the show when it originally aired. I was five or six years old at the time, and when I saw the DVDs on sale, I actually remembered particular scenes from the pilot and bought them on impulse.

I think the pilot episode holds up to modern tastes quite well, but it seems like none of the other episodes reaches that level of consistent funniness, outrageousness and creativity. Which isn't to say the other episodes weren't funny, outrageous or creative, but there was definitely significantly less funniness, outrageousness and creativity.

Now that I've gone through all of the DVD material for both seasons, I have to say that overall, I'm pretty disappointed with the show. There are a few episodes that approach the quality of the pilot, and a few gags strewn about that are great, but overall it just didn't live up to my expectations or my fond memories of the show.

It still holds up, and is still very daring and different. The pilot is 1/2 hour of genius, and the first show to get rid of a laugh track.
Look at police squad episodes..now thats dated for ya!

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If your personal tastes change, that is one thing, but to say the show itself is not funny is, I think, far off the mark. I've got both DVD sets and I'm laughing my head off. The humor is for me still far ahead of its time even today. If I had just switched it on this afternoon, I would think this is still just as crazy. Yes, they did many weird things on the show, that's called satire. You're entitled to your opinion, but I happen to think you are sadly mistaken.







"You're not right in the head/
and nor am I/ and this is why/
This is why I like you"

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