Colossal TV Show thread

[shmenguin]

You think there is roughly an even spread of comedic talent across both genders? Is this your counter argument?

[dodint]

I see shmenguins argument as old-fashioned, not of this era.

Then I try to compile a list of the current funniest women comedians and it's really, really short. Iliza Shlesinger, Nikki Glaser, and maybe Tig Notoro? I went to check my math and if you look for 'list of funniest female comedians' they very quickly pivot away from stand-up to people like Melissa McCarthy and Tina Fey, neither of which I've ever seen perform a stand-up set. That pool is really shallow.

[nocera]

You think there is roughly an even spread of comedic talent across both genders? Is this your counter argument?

I just think making a blanket statement that women aren't funny is a bad move. And if we're looking at comedians, then obviously more men than women seem to make it to a certain level. But is that because men are legitimately funnier than women or is it that women comedians have a rougher go and aren't offered the same opportunities as the men?

[PFiDC]

Highly recommend the documentary Hysterical if you want to see about the lack of women in stand up.

[shmenguin]

I see shmenguins argument as old-fashioned, not of this era.

Then I try to compile a list of the current funniest women comedians and it's really, really short. Iliza Shlesinger, Nikki Glaser, and maybe Tig Notoro? I went to check my math and if you look for 'list of funniest female comedians' they very quickly pivot away from stand-up to people like Melissa McCarthy and Tina Fey, neither of which I've ever seen perform a stand-up set. That pool is really shallow.

Comedy is developed out of dark, weird places. Men have a higher degree of access to this pathology.

I mean…do you even need to look at celebrities? Think of people you know IRL. What’s the breakdown there. I bet it’s pretty predictable.

[nocera]

Source of the post Comedy is developed out of dark, weird places.

That's also an old school mindset. Comedy can be developed out of weird places, sure. But that's not the only source for comedy. Look at somebody like Conan who has been in comedy for 30 years and has been very vocal about comedy not needing to come from some dark mysterious pain. He had a happy childhood and continues to have a happy life. And again, to say that men just are innately funnier is weird.

[dodint]

Conan is awful. I get that it's just an example, but, yuck.

[PFiDC]

The reason you don't see as many women stand ups is not because that gender isn't as funny. What the actual ****?

[nocera]

Conan is awful. I get that it's just an example, but, yuck.

Haha I like Conan. He was best in the Late Night days but I still find him funny. Great podcast, too.

But yeah the point is this whole notion of needing to be dark to be comedic is silly. It's like new writers thinking they need to be an alcoholic or on drugs to be prolific. It's an old school mentality that just doesn't exist anymore.

[shmenguin]

Who were the funniest kids in your high school? Who are the funniest people you work with? Who are your funniest neighbors? Who are the comedic actors you laugh at the most?

You guys act like this is a “women cannot be funny, period” thing. I could rattle off a dozen women I find to be hilarious. This is about the scale and representation of women within the “funny people” pool. There shouldn’t be anything controversial about this.

[dodint]

Conan is awful. I get that it's just an example, but, yuck.

Haha I like Conan. He was best in the Late Night days but I still find him funny. Great podcast, too.

But yeah the point is this whole notion of needing to be dark to be comedic is silly. It's like new writers thinking they need to be an alcoholic or on drugs to be prolific. It's an old school mentality that just doesn't exist anymore.

Yeah. My dislike for Conan wasn't fair to you there; was a guttural reaction on my part.

I understand what you're saying and agree.

[PFiDC]

Who were the funniest kids in your high school? Who are the funniest people you work with? Who are your funniest neighbors? Who are the comedic actors you laugh at the most?

You guys act like this is a “women cannot be funny, period” thing. I could rattle off a dozen women I find to be hilarious. This is about the scale and representation of women within the “funny people” pool. There shouldn’t be anything controversial about this.

I don't think you're sexist or anything. I don't believe you're saying women can't be funny. I think you're wrong in that women are not, in general, as funny as men. I think there is more to it than that.

Seriously, watch Hysterical. It may open up some of the reason why some women don't even bother trying to be funny.

[robbiestoupe]

Can’t say Squid Games was great. Had a surprising but not revolutionary twist at the end. They dialed up the gore in an effort to shock but it got repetitive after a few episodes. I never really cared for any of the characters, even though they tried to make you care.

Not sure I’d watch a season 2 if there was one.

[NTP66]

I’ve read similar, mostly from comments on a story about how it was doing so well.

[robbiestoupe]

Probably Netflix fluffing their own feathers. It started out well then just flatlined.

[NTP66]

I watch a hell of a lot of Netflix now. So much so that if I were forced to pay for it, I would.

[meecrofilm]

Ted Lasso:

- I really liked the Beard episode. It was weird and very different, just like Beard. I'm glad the rest of the series isn't like that episode, but as a one-off I thought it was great.

- Last week's episode was fantastic. Extremely heartfelt.

Spoilers since LL is just joining the Led Tasso party:

- If I have one complaint about this season it's that there hasn't been enough about the actual soccer. Not even specifically on the field stuff. Two episodes left this season and there hasn't been a mention of their league performance or position since Nate turned himself into the Wonder Kid like a month ago.

- I didn't notice it initially because I was trying to convince a five month old that tummy time doesn't suck, but after Rupert told Rebecca that Bex was going to gift her shares of AFC Richmond to her, he immediately goes and has a brief one-sided conversation with Nate and then gives him a pat on the shoulder. What is he up to? Was it a "why the **** you wearing a grey suit to a funeral?" comment? Or is he up to something nefarious like buying a rival club. Watching the scene again, his "no time for footie anymore!" comment seems disingenuous and I think he's up to something.

That first spoiler seems to be a common complaint about this season.

I like the focus on the characters, and it was definitely needed in this season, but I do wish soccer played a slightly larger role. I think it will in the last few episodes, though. My guess is this season ends in promotion and next (and possibly last) season is all about winning the whole **** thing.

Promotion would be an absolutely STUNNING and unearned development in my opinion. To the best of my knowledge the last mention we see of their league performance is on the white board in the locker room during the Christmas episode, which shows the squad with a 4-14-4 record for 26 points. I don't remember a mention of their place, but 26 points at Christmas last season would have put them 17th out of 24. Norwich and Watford paced the ELC with 97 and 91 points. Bournemouth took the last promotion playoffs spot with 77 points. When we last see their record there are 24 matches and 72 points left on the table. Based on last year's table they would have to match Norwich's points percentage over the remainder of the season to sneak into the promotion playoffs, which is something I would hope they dedicate more than one episode to.

The creative team has publicly stated that this season is their Empire Strikes Back, so something bad is going to happen in these final two episodes. I don't think promotion is even a consideration, but that undermines the "win the whole **** thing" at the end of S1 given the three season plan for the show.

My Ted Lasso take: You can't complain about the realism of any of the soccer content when the entire premise of the show (hiring a D2 american football coach with zero soccer experience to coach an EPL team) is something that would never happen in a million years. And yall are dissecting the minutiae of Championship league promotion? I mean, really now . As far as I'm concerned, if you stayed on past Ep 1 then you've effectively said you don't care about the realism of the sport-side of the show.
SpeculationL Since S1 ended with a soccer disappointment, but optimistic people, I'm guessing S2 will end with a soccer success, but something bad on the "human" side of things, which is fine since it's a people show, not a soccer show.

[meecrofilm]

You think there is roughly an even spread of comedic talent across both genders? Is this your counter argument?

I just think making a blanket statement that women aren't funny is a bad move. And if we're looking at comedians, then obviously more men than women seem to make it to a certain level. But is that because men are legitimately funnier than women or is it that women comedians have a rougher go and aren't offered the same opportunities as the men?

I can tell you as someone involved in the local comedy scene, I'd much rather see a show with the majority of the performers being women than the other way around, as the majority of stand-up from the guys in the PGH scene is just the same self-deprecating **** over and over again.

And yeah, most of the gatekeepers in the city (or any city) are still guys. Guys determine the bookings. Guys dominate the greenroom (and these are mostly people who are not overly pleasant to be around). Women absolutely have to put up with a lot more **** and have a harder go of it on the local level in any city, which is why it's not surprising there are less recognizable women names in stand-up (which is generally a more toxic environment than the sketch/improv scene, though that is not without its flaws too) on the national level.

Also talking about recognizable female stand-ups and not mentioning Maria Bamford, who is quite funny and unique, is something I cannot abide by.

[dodint]

I like Maria Bamford but she seems to have disappeared. Her....sitcom...wasn't very good and I haven't heard from her since.

[nocera]

It seems like a lot of people from that comedians of comedy era either slowed down a bit or Im not looking in the right places anymore. Zach Galifianakis, Paul F Tompkins, Steve Agee, Sarah Silverman, Brian Posehn, Patton Oswalt. (I know I included people not in that movie but I associate all these people together for some reason)

[CBear3]

Ted Lasso:

- I really liked the Beard episode. It was weird and very different, just like Beard. I'm glad the rest of the series isn't like that episode, but as a one-off I thought it was great.

- Last week's episode was fantastic. Extremely heartfelt.

Spoilers since LL is just joining the Led Tasso party:

- If I have one complaint about this season it's that there hasn't been enough about the actual soccer. Not even specifically on the field stuff. Two episodes left this season and there hasn't been a mention of their league performance or position since Nate turned himself into the Wonder Kid like a month ago.

- I didn't notice it initially because I was trying to convince a five month old that tummy time doesn't suck, but after Rupert told Rebecca that Bex was going to gift her shares of AFC Richmond to her, he immediately goes and has a brief one-sided conversation with Nate and then gives him a pat on the shoulder. What is he up to? Was it a "why the **** you wearing a grey suit to a funeral?" comment? Or is he up to something nefarious like buying a rival club. Watching the scene again, his "no time for footie anymore!" comment seems disingenuous and I think he's up to something.

That first spoiler seems to be a common complaint about this season.

I like the focus on the characters, and it was definitely needed in this season, but I do wish soccer played a slightly larger role. I think it will in the last few episodes, though. My guess is this season ends in promotion and next (and possibly last) season is all about winning the whole **** thing.

Promotion would be an absolutely STUNNING and unearned development in my opinion. To the best of my knowledge the last mention we see of their league performance is on the white board in the locker room during the Christmas episode, which shows the squad with a 4-14-4 record for 26 points. I don't remember a mention of their place, but 26 points at Christmas last season would have put them 17th out of 24. Norwich and Watford paced the ELC with 97 and 91 points. Bournemouth took the last promotion playoffs spot with 77 points. When we last see their record there are 24 matches and 72 points left on the table. Based on last year's table they would have to match Norwich's points percentage over the remainder of the season to sneak into the promotion playoffs, which is something I would hope they dedicate more than one episode to.

The creative team has publicly stated that this season is their Empire Strikes Back, so something bad is going to happen in these final two episodes. I don't think promotion is even a consideration, but that undermines the "win the whole **** thing" at the end of S1 given the three season plan for the show.

My Ted Lasso take: You can't complain about the realism of any of the soccer content when the entire premise of the show (hiring a D2 american football coach with zero soccer experience to coach an EPL team) is something that would never happen in a million years. And yall are dissecting the minutiae of Championship league promotion? I mean, really now . As far as I'm concerned, if you stayed on past Ep 1 then you've effectively said you don't care about the realism of the sport-side of the show.
SpeculationL Since S1 ended with a soccer disappointment, but optimistic people, I'm guessing S2 will end with a soccer success, but something bad on the "human" side of things, which is fine since it's a people show, not a soccer show.

Ted Lasso:

My bet is that Rupert is whispering in Nate's ear that he shouldn't be playing second fiddle behind a washed up has been and two dumb Americans. Nate's going to get an interview or something and an opportunity to spill the beans on the staff. Beard is coaching high, Ted runs away from any pressure, if it weren't for me our team would be in the ****.
He's spent this whole season trying to impress his father and find validation only to be turned away. He's turning to the dark side and attempting to sink the whole ship.

[PFiDC]

You think there is roughly an even spread of comedic talent across both genders? Is this your counter argument?

I just think making a blanket statement that women aren't funny is a bad move. And if we're looking at comedians, then obviously more men than women seem to make it to a certain level. But is that because men are legitimately funnier than women or is it that women comedians have a rougher go and aren't offered the same opportunities as the men?

I can tell you as someone involved in the local comedy scene, I'd much rather see a show with the majority of the performers being women than the other way around, as the majority of stand-up from the guys in the PGH scene is just the same self-deprecating **** over and over again.

And yeah, most of the gatekeepers in the city (or any city) are still guys. Guys determine the bookings. Guys dominate the greenroom (and these are mostly people who are not overly pleasant to be around). Women absolutely have to put up with a lot more **** and have a harder go of it on the local level in any city, which is why it's not surprising there are less recognizable women names in stand-up (which is generally a more toxic environment than the sketch/improv scene, though that is not without its flaws too) on the national level.

Also talking about recognizable female stand-ups and not mentioning Maria Bamford, who is quite funny and unique, is something I cannot abide by.

This X1000

JC Coccoli is a local female comic who I think is pretty damn funny.

[DigitalGypsy66]

I've been watching the Ken Burns' Muhammad Ali documentary. As per usual, it's very good. Ali was an interesting dude. Evidently, he had a training compound in PA that's still open - Deer Lake, near you easterners.

Finished this up tonight. Obviously, I knew he'd had Parkinson's Disease - most of what I remember of him was post-diagnosis until his passing in 2016. But watching 7 hours of him speaking and boxing, it was quite striking to see his decline during the last episode. But yet his people kept pushing him out into the ring, and he didn't say no. The Larry Holmes fight was tough to watch.

[NTP66]

October 5th.

[count2infinity]

The largest audience for comedy is men. A not insignificant number of those men are incels.

There’s no real riddle as to why men are more successful in comedy than women. You play to your audience.