I haven’t watched friends, but I’m sure Twin Peaks is funnier overall.
Dated a girl who thought it was the best show ever. Shoulda seen the red flags, but I had on rose tinted glasses.
I don’t think it’s the funniest show on earth, I don’t think it’s even an amazing show, but it has its moments. Pretending otherwise for internet points is cringe.
Same. Never understood the appeal. The one guy, Joey?, so cringe…
Edit: back to say one thing that it did capture well was what it was like to just hang out with people and not be online all the time.
That’s me watching any sitcom
I liked Friends. It hasn’t aged particularly well, it’s not without its flaws, but it was popular for a reason.
More importantly, its success meant NBC continued to invest heavily in comedies, which gave us a golden age of much better shows. A golden age that eventually included Scrubs, 30 Rock, The Office, My Name is Earl, Parks and Rec, Community, etc.
My Name is Earl is one of my favorites. It just has so much feel-good to it.
My face watching Big Bang Theory
The worst part of Big Bang Theory is how bad it makes you feel when people you know recommend it to you.
“What kind of person do you think I am, exactly? And who do you think this show is for?”
Anytime someone told me I “reminded them of Sheldon” I cut that person out of my life.
You don’t like watching nerdface performances played for derisive laughter?!
But I actually do like that - it just needs to be IT Crowd or Office Space or Silicon Valley or literally anything is fucking better than BBT gah.
I love all 3 of those - any more similar recommendations?
Hm, only other coming to mind is Mythic Quest, maybe. I don’t think it reaches the same heights of funny but still balances around nerd culture. I also have a sweet spot for Superstore but that might just stem from my time in retail.
Superstore just went too long. Fun show mostly.
That’s the thing. IT Crowd or Office Space etc, ask youto laugh at the action because they are absurd, not laugh at the people. Thats why TBBT is so bad.
I want to watch IT Crowd but anything with laugh tracks loses me immediately :/
Is there a tool for removing laugh tracks on shows that are good but need to tell you when they did a funny?
Like most British TV comedy series, it was recorded with a live studio audience, rather than a “laugh track” added later - so there’s probably no versions that exist without it.
There’s a chance that it’s a 5:1 mix rather than stereo, and might have the audience on a different channel to the main dialogue - which would then be fairly easily to remove in something like Audacity.
Otherwise your options are turning the sound off and reading text subtitles, or using an “llm-powered” vocal remover.
Not to mention how awkward laugh track comedies usually are when you get rid of the laughter, with everyone just standing in silence for a few seconds any time something funny happens.
That’s why you get about twenty retirees and sit them in front of your tv. Then you tickle them with a feather duster when you want them to laugh, that way you have your own live studio audience. Just remember to press record on the camera you’re filming the tv with
I’m about to blow your mind: the IT Crowd has a live studio audience. One of the specials goes over each cast member and shows bloopers and such, and you can see them in several shots. I believe they also talk briefly about the audience, though it’s been a while. If I remember right, they would take the audience reactions of two takes and sort of merge them together.
Can’t recommend anything I’m afraid. But I will warn - I’ve seen edits that remove the laughing from I think it was Friends? It really ratchets the awkwardness to 200% with all the actors pausing for silence, I’m not sure what’s worse.
I don’t understand the struggle some people have with laugh tracks. You can just use your own judgement and decide for yourself if you find the things funny or not.
Not sure about others, but for me if the comedy is largely unfunny I find the laugh track to reflect an overscaled and nonsensical appreciation of this comedy which is somewhat grating. It makes the whole scene dumber to a varying degree.
On the other hand, if the comedy is good I can very easily overlook a laugh track as it paces the laughter more closely which seems to bother me far less.
[audience murmurs]
The original BBC IT crowdbdidntnhave a laugh track, did it?
I know nerds who love the show. Well, they’re people who made being a
nerdconsuming pop culture their whole personality. Not terribly great at analyzing said media though.Ungh I had some professor give me a bad grade on a paper for ripping to shreds the portrayal of specific characters (it was entirely appropriate for the class). They were like “maybe you just don’t understand, its supposed to be kinda offensive, but these are great representations of (thing)!”
BBT, turns out, was prof’s favorite show, like you said, their personality.
No. Absolutely no. In fact, quite the opposite of good portrayals. I lost all respect for their opinions or teaching credentials, as both are clearly worthless.
friends, big bang theory, two and a half men then you switch the channel to find reskin 3737267 of the same old boring ass police show
stuff like this running all the time is why i stopped watching tv ages ago
OMFG cop procedurals. My parents watched so many of those fucking things that I sarcastically wrote an episode of one. Turns out that Federal Agent With Speaking Role IS Mr. Diddit.
I refuse to watch that shit and know the spin off is garbage because my Maga loving dad loves that show.
Yeah that show sucks too. I never got thru an episode…
Me watching Seinfeld
Seinfeld and Friends was just the worst era. Fucking dumb ass work associates wanting to talk about vapid bullshit shows. So awful.
Same, but funnily enough I love Curb Your Enthusiasm. Jerry Seinfeld just doesn’t land with me while Larry David does.
> character says something obnoxious and pauses
> canned laugh track lasts just long enough to not overlap dialog magically
> repeat
I have never seen that gif before but god do I hate it
Actually, like most sitcoms of that era, it was filmed in front of a live studio audience, it’s not a canned laugh track. The reason it lasts just long enough to overlap audio is because the actors wait for the laughter to die down before continuing. The whole point of the laughter isn’t to make it funnier to the viewer, it’s so the actors can see how the jokes land and tweak their performance, it’s constant feedback. It’s done for the same reason comedy has an audience even when it is a filmed special.
Funnily enough, it was filmed in front of a live audience, and it is canned laughter. In the edit, they often replaced the audience’s genuine reactions with stock laughter for various reasons. For example, when Monica popped out from under the sheets with Chandler, the audience shouted for minutes on end, they trimmed that for broadcast.
Hollywood trope: Applause sign. Forced laughter and laugh tracks are definitely real.
Makes me wonder what commonly accepted tropes from today will be laughed at in 10 years.
Is there a trope for “pointing out tropes?”
There should be. People too often act like a trope is always bad, but they exist for a reason. Used properly, they can aid storytelling.
Yeah, it’s almost as if different people find different things funny. Mindblowing, I know.
How you doing?
You can Add in Always and Community too under love it.
Parts of Friends are funny, but overall it has way too much manufactured drama with Ross and Rachel to be enjoyable.
