The Season 2 Christmas episode where Michael makes everyone play Yankee Swap and then gets them hammered to smooth things over is a classic. I’d say seasons 2-4 were good. Then it nosedived.
To me season 1 was fascinating. They tried to do a straight-over transfer of the UK show, and it was wrong, but they still made a go of it. Ricky Gervais is simply way too mean a character for an American audience to get invested in, and they tried a straight port of that character, but it wasn’t that good. By the time they reached season 2, they had worked out how to reinvent a more or less totally separate show that was suited for an American audience, and it turned really good (and then yes they kept it going too long instead of wrapping up the party while everyone was still having fun, and made several unnecessary and kinda painful extra seasons.)
It’s kind of interesting to contrast it with the American IT Crowd, where they simply put people who had no idea what was comedy in charge of a comedy sitcom and then expected it to work. IDK why that happens sometimes with UK->US translations but that’s what they did. But for The Office they seemed like they had good people who were able to eventually make something happen with it.
Just dumb levels of cringe. Like so cringey no one would actually do that kind of thing, and I’m autistic. So it’s so cringe I wouldn’t do it. It’s not even shitpost funny it’s just
Don’t watch Curb Your Enthusiasm. It’s purely cringe comedy with very little in the way of other humor. I personally like that style, and even I have to stick to a single episode in a sitting. There’s something wrong with Larry David because he’s said many episodes were based on things he really did.
Yes, that’s part of the point, like with Michael Scott being grossly underqualified for his job but landing it by accident and thus doing some unethical shit all the time. That’s where this meme comes from.
Just like Seinfeld pivots on narcissistic and selfish people living in a terrible world who don’t seem to grow from their experiences.
OMGF you would have hated Laverne and Shirley. When I was a small child mom had a diary entry of me saying it was hard to watch because I felt embarrassed for them. Stay far away from 70s TV my friend.
It’s way too uncanny to feel fun to me. I didn’t like Carrell for a long time but it turns out he’s a good actor, just got paired with a lot of unfunny material.
Why do people think it’s so edgy to not like stuff. You don’t like it, dope? I guess. I don’t like brussel sprouts do we want to hammer on about how fuckin cool and unique that makes me?
Yeah I don’t like people that brag about not liking mainstream shit, it’s hack.
Though I do find it funny you said that with a straight face. I’m not entitled to my dislikes but they are, dope. Real coherent consistent objection there bud.
You are entitled to your dislikes. It’s just that your comment comes off a little bit aggressive. I don’t see anyone here bragging or feeling smug about their preferences. Just a normal discussion.
The meme pictures a fictional genocidal magical dictator who tried to murder basically anyone who wasn’t his literal slave. The captioned comments imply derision to both fans of friends and the cast and crew in both a braggadocios and disdainful way.
What part of my comment is more “aggressive” or “abnormal” then that?
Ed: the comment I responded to for comparison
Friends isn’t funny, the office is like
Just dumb levels of cringe. Like so cringey no one would actually do that kind of thing, and I’m autistic. So it’s so cringe I wouldn’t do it. It’s not even shitpost funny it’s just
All the people that don’t know the original reference don’t have that background info. We just see a guy who doesn’t seem amused. I had no idea who the guy was (I still don’t know, I just know what you wrote), so count me in that population.
We’re in a memes community, not a specific fandom with shared esoteric knowledge. I could be wrong, but I imagine a lot of the people who upvoted/shared this meme probably thought “stone-faced guy didn’t laugh.” Which was all they needed to know in order to enjoy it.
Not looking to argue, just providing context for how others are looking at this meme. It doesn’t seem “aggressive” to those who don’t know where the image is from.
So how does my disagreement make me “aggressive” or “abnormal”, that’s the question.
To be clear my original comment was in response to:
Friends isn’t funny, the office is like
Just dumb levels of cringe. Like so cringey no one would actually do that kind of thing, and I’m autistic. So it’s so cringe I wouldn’t do it. It’s not even shitpost funny it’s just
Brussels sprout hate is a funny take for us olds because they used to be bitter when I was a kid. Got sweeter and sweeter and we bred them along. They’re a totally new vegetable now! (I got the joke BTW.)
Good god that show sucks so much. Glad somebody finally said it. I thought the whole world had gone crazy. Their other show, Parks and Rec, was considerably more entertaining.
I like how Steve Carell plays out Michael, and I enjoy Dwight as well. But the rest really is nothing special. The whole Jim and Pam story arc was more annoying than anything.
It is crazy how good Parcs & Rec is compared to the office.
This but The Office
The Season 2 Christmas episode where Michael makes everyone play Yankee Swap and then gets them hammered to smooth things over is a classic. I’d say seasons 2-4 were good. Then it nosedived.
I’d also include season 1 in there. It was rough around the edges, but it was memorable for me.
Watch the UK version instead of season 1. It’s the same script.
I know, they mentioned it a few times in interviews.
To me season 1 was fascinating. They tried to do a straight-over transfer of the UK show, and it was wrong, but they still made a go of it. Ricky Gervais is simply way too mean a character for an American audience to get invested in, and they tried a straight port of that character, but it wasn’t that good. By the time they reached season 2, they had worked out how to reinvent a more or less totally separate show that was suited for an American audience, and it turned really good (and then yes they kept it going too long instead of wrapping up the party while everyone was still having fun, and made several unnecessary and kinda painful extra seasons.)
It’s kind of interesting to contrast it with the American IT Crowd, where they simply put people who had no idea what was comedy in charge of a comedy sitcom and then expected it to work. IDK why that happens sometimes with UK->US translations but that’s what they did. But for The Office they seemed like they had good people who were able to eventually make something happen with it.
Huh, I enjoy both US and UK humor quite a bit. It didn’t even register that that was something some audiences would find off-putting. 😅
Friends isn’t funny, the office is like
Just dumb levels of cringe. Like so cringey no one would actually do that kind of thing, and I’m autistic. So it’s so cringe I wouldn’t do it. It’s not even shitpost funny it’s just
Humans being stupid?
Don’t watch Curb Your Enthusiasm. It’s purely cringe comedy with very little in the way of other humor. I personally like that style, and even I have to stick to a single episode in a sitting. There’s something wrong with Larry David because he’s said many episodes were based on things he really did.
Yes, that’s part of the point, like with Michael Scott being grossly underqualified for his job but landing it by accident and thus doing some unethical shit all the time. That’s where this meme comes from.
Just like Seinfeld pivots on narcissistic and selfish people living in a terrible world who don’t seem to grow from their experiences.
OMGF you would have hated Laverne and Shirley. When I was a small child mom had a diary entry of me saying it was hard to watch because I felt embarrassed for them. Stay far away from 70s TV my friend.
It’s way too uncanny to feel fun to me. I didn’t like Carrell for a long time but it turns out he’s a good actor, just got paired with a lot of unfunny material.
Why do people think it’s so edgy to not like stuff. You don’t like it, dope? I guess. I don’t like brussel sprouts do we want to hammer on about how fuckin cool and unique that makes me?
Bro, chill out, people are just discussing what they like and don’t like. It’s like a point of social media.
Yeah I don’t like people that brag about not liking mainstream shit, it’s hack.
Though I do find it funny you said that with a straight face. I’m not entitled to my dislikes but they are, dope. Real coherent consistent objection there bud.
You are entitled to your dislikes. It’s just that your comment comes off a little bit aggressive. I don’t see anyone here bragging or feeling smug about their preferences. Just a normal discussion.
The meme pictures a fictional genocidal magical dictator who tried to murder basically anyone who wasn’t his literal slave. The captioned comments imply derision to both fans of friends and the cast and crew in both a braggadocios and disdainful way.
What part of my comment is more “aggressive” or “abnormal” then that?
Ed: the comment I responded to for comparison
All the people that don’t know the original reference don’t have that background info. We just see a guy who doesn’t seem amused. I had no idea who the guy was (I still don’t know, I just know what you wrote), so count me in that population.
We’re in a memes community, not a specific fandom with shared esoteric knowledge. I could be wrong, but I imagine a lot of the people who upvoted/shared this meme probably thought “stone-faced guy didn’t laugh.” Which was all they needed to know in order to enjoy it.
Not looking to argue, just providing context for how others are looking at this meme. It doesn’t seem “aggressive” to those who don’t know where the image is from.
So how does my disagreement make me “aggressive” or “abnormal”, that’s the question.
To be clear my original comment was in response to:
I am not the person who said that. I’m just a bystander who was surprised to learn about the context of the original image.
Tbf no one likes Brussels sprouts /s
Tbf I was lying and I do actually like brussel sprouts it’s just a sun thing to brag about so I used it as an example.
Brussels sprout hate is a funny take for us olds because they used to be bitter when I was a kid. Got sweeter and sweeter and we bred them along. They’re a totally new vegetable now! (I got the joke BTW.)
There’s some merit in both simply by encapsulating a snapshot in technology.
Things like corded phones and answering machines or the lack of internet are interesting in how they impacted situations and culture.
Good god that show sucks so much. Glad somebody finally said it. I thought the whole world had gone crazy. Their other show, Parks and Rec, was considerably more entertaining.
What did you think of Brooklyn 99 then?
I like Terry Crews, but Andy Samberg’s mere appearance in the show ruins it for me, so I can’t enjoy it. I don’t know why people think he’s funny.
I love parks and rec, because every character is interesting. The office has like 3 and a half good characters
Every single character in The Office is unique and interesting and has a great development arc. I don’t get your take.
I like how Steve Carell plays out Michael, and I enjoy Dwight as well. But the rest really is nothing special. The whole Jim and Pam story arc was more annoying than anything.
It is crazy how good Parcs & Rec is compared to the office.
Especially after they get married and they have to keep inventing Jim and Pam conflict to keep their arc “interesting”