Tim and Eric's Appeal?


Comedy is one of those things where you get it or don't. These guys obviously have a decent following. Adult Swim loves them and they're connected enough to always get big name guest appearances, but I just don't get them.

The Mayor show and their silly live-action shows are just total misses for me. Do most of their fans smoke the herb? Wondering if maybe that's it since I don't "toke" anymore.

What's the primary demographic for these guys?

http://www.gameplaytoday.com/

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[deleted]

[deleted]

I have to agree with, IchangedmyIDbored. It really shouldn't be that hard to understand Tim and Eric's subversive comedy, yet so many people clearly 'don't get it' - as lame as that is to say.

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Well besides being insulted, I was looking for something more insightful into the appeal. I tend to love dark comedy and often feel forced to watch British comedies because America seems to love horrible crap like Steve Carrel or Adam Sandler.

So is there any feedback that's helpful and not full of pretentious, self-inflating BS? I'm clearly not bashing the shows or actors. So let's drop the defensive silliness.

http://www.gameplaytoday.com/

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[deleted]

I don't know... Perhaps reading up on anti-comedy or the aesthetic of public access television will put the show in perspective for you.

By the way, the show is supposed to be uncomfortable to watch and deliberately confronting to the viewer. I guess that's also part of it's appeal - it makes you feel something, unlike a lot of programming.

The conventional tension and release of tv/film is denied in the show a lot too.

There are some articles around that explain Tim and Eric better than I can at the moment.

Sorry, I just find Tim and Eric very misunderstood, even by some fans.

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The amusing thing about it all is that I watch it from time to time. I think the defensiveness of some replies is off-putting, to say the least. Thanks for the input Xerces, but I hope the others realize that a question isn't necessarily an attack.

I get a show being misunderstood. Most people don't like "The Mighty Boosh", but I guess I just wouldn't accuse anyone of bashing it for asking about it. :) Maybe I'll check them out again sometime despite the majority of negative replies.

http://www.gameplaytoday.com/

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[deleted]

In my opinion, there's just so much hilarity about this show. Perhaps the absurdist humor is so off-putting to some that they miss it? One of my many favorites is the "B'owl" informercial that begins with two young girls sitting peacefully and are soon interrupted by the b'owl's screeching. The girls then scream in horror. After that, there is a laundry list of stupid things you can do with b'owl like putting it in the attic where no one can see it. While these things are absurd, the last one is that b'owl is newly improved for throwing away. This rings true with the progressively disposable nature of our products. And, I can't help but think Americans might actually buy something like that so their pets can "looook at b'owl." It's satire, absurdity, and parody rolled up for your viewing pleasure.

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It's like this:

On their fake anniversary show, they had a bunch of fake callbacks to things they fictionally did during their run - this was in season 1, and was supposed to be them looking back on their show and career. One joke that the fake audience seemed to love was a character called Grumm, a creepy, poorly animated CGI thing that came out and sang a bad song about crackers and snacks. The whole audience got up and started singing along, but obviously there's not really a CGI person on stage in front of them. When asked about it in an interview, they said that it had to do with the fact that it really was awful, but that type of thing really happens. There are terrible productions that really would have made something like Grumm a reality, and there really are shows where they pretend that CGI characters are in front of real audiences singing along, and there really are songs as bad as "Crackers and Snacks" that studios get behind and try to get audiences enthusiastic about. Grumm's not real, but he could be.

Some people will see Grumm and like the comment, think that the fact that that type of thing could really exist in our world is funny and laugh at how terrible it is, as well as the comment it's making. Others will just look at it and not enjoy it.

Of course, there's all the weird editing and such, but a lot of their humor has to do with this. Hence rips on public access, weird celebrity stuff, etc.

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I don't see the appeal at all OP, it's just not funny. Maybe it's because I enjoy good comedies. These guy's comedies seems to be for people who like to think they're smart, but whatever, it's good to have imagination.

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Come on now quionic, I wouldn't bash anything you found funny your GOOD COMEDIES. Calling something unfunny, however is such a narrow mindset. So many people really enjoy this show (refer to the FABULOUS comments above for reasons why), it's not all satire, and I don't feel witty for laughing at it. It is good to have imagination because I can't stand watching dry comedians or sitcoms, so why shouldn't there be an imaginitive comic duo for me to enjoy. My humor is very broad though. I love American Psycho, The IT Crowd, MST3K, Wes Anderson films, Darkplace etc. etc. You just don't need to focus on what you don't like and find what you do like. It's okay that you don't like Tim and Eric, just roll with it :p

enjoy your balloon...

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[deleted]

I think Quionic7 just found the "ruder" comments off-putting, just as I did initially. Thankfully there were some polite responses. Like I said in my op, tastes vary. We have thousands of channels, shows, restaurants, stores etc because everyone likes different things.

Honestly, the only person who was remotely rude, or better yet, absurdly silly in their reply was the guy who seemed to think T&E required a high IQ and then proceeded to state his IQ was high - which we all know typically means the opposite.

Besides all that, the bottom line is; We all have different tastes. Some of us have open minds. Some of us are a little too defensive and attack before understanding a question. But again, thank you to the polite responders with courteous explanations.

http://www.gameplaytoday.com/

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[deleted]

Calling something unfunny, however is such a narrow mindset.


Funny thing to say, given your comments on Shrek...

I don't know if you're aware of this but I've already changed things. I killed Ben Linus.
--Sayid

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I honestly couldn't tell you why I love Tim and Eric, I can only tell you that they make me laugh hysterically without fail. And before you ask, no I don't smoke weed.

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I use to watch and enjoy their show alot... but now that I do smoke, it's just got a whole lot better! lol

"This is what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object". - The Joker

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It's impossible to explain why it's funny. It's funny because it's absurd but all of those spoof movies (i.e Meet the Spartans) are too but they suck. There's just something about the best of Adult Swim that has this weird niche of humour, Squidbillies, Aqua Teen, etc are just so impossibly surreal that it's funny i don't know how to explain it.

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As snobbish as this will sound, from my own personal experiences, I've NEVER known a less then notably intelligent person that enjoyed/"got" the theater of the absurd type of humor that Tim and Eric employ.

I base this on the handful of Tim and Eric night marathons I've hosted locally.


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It's all about absurdity. Some people find it funny, others don't. Ever since I was a little kid, surreal humor made me chuckle most, but I understand how some people might prefer more sophisticated humor.

"Pink walls? What is this, a Turkish whorehouse?"

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