Comedy Series Review: Futurama

Created by the Simpson's Matt Groening and David X. Cohen, this series about life in the 31st century was one of FOX's many successful animated sitcoms, although production was in later seasons carried out for Comedy Central. The series follows Philip J. Fry, a pizza delivery-boy from the late 20th century who accidentally fell into a cryogenic tank on new year's eve 1999 which freezes him for 1000 years, thus he ends up in the year 3000 on January the first, mere minutes after midnight. The series follows his new life in the 31st century, trying to adapt to all the changes and deal with the loss of his old world. The series is wildly popular, won 6 primetime emmys and several other award and has found its way to the Internet in the form of several popular memes.

Alongside Fry the main characters include Turanga Leela, Professor Farnsworth, Bender, Amy Wong, Hermes Conrad and Dr. Zoidberg. They are also the crew of Planet Express, the delivery company owned by Professor Farnsworth. Professor Farnsworth is said to be extremely old, with his age most recently being mentioned to be 170 years old, and he ages along with the series. He used to be the oldest member of his family, until Fry came out of cryogenic preservation. Fry, being a distant uncle of the professor, is currently the oldest member of his family.

Fry and Leela

Fry's love interest is Leela. She's the captain of the Planet Express ship, although the used to be a career placement officer at the cryogenics lab, where she implanted a chip into the hand of fresh defrostees to identify which jobs they were best suited for. When Fry refuses to have his hand chipped, he flees and Leela follows him. After meeting Bender, a humanoid bending robot who just deserted his job, they are all hired as the new crew at Planet Express, since the old crew just died on a dangerous mission. The matter of former Planet Express crews dying becomes sort of a running joke in the series, with Professor Farnsworth sometimes assigning jobs to them which have cost the previous crews their lives. At one point the crew meet a previous crew, which was believed to be dead, stuck inside a giant four-dimensional space whale in the Bermuda Tetrahedron, which Leela manages to pilot back to Earth by the power of sheer obsession.

Leela is first believed to be an alien, although no-one knew where she came from. She was raised in the Cookieville Minimum Security Orphanarium where her parents abandoned her with a note covered in mysterious symbols to give the impression she was an alien. Eventually Leela finds out she is in fact a mutant, but as mutants are not allowed on the surface, her parents decided to give her up to the orphanarium in hopes she'd have a better life as an alien orphan.

Dr. Zoidberg is an old army friend of the professor. Also he is the only surviving member of the first crew of the Planet Express, having escaped from the whale by escape-pod. Zoidberg as a character is modelled after Jewish stereotypes, although most of his characteristics are not distinctly Jewish. He is an atrocious doctor with poor understanding of basic human anatomy, although he believes himself to be an expert. He is otherwise poor, unsuccessful with females (even of his own species), smelly and altogether disgusting. Also his manners – especially his table manners – are non-existent. He is not mean-spirited or of bad heart, just helplessly incompetent in just about everything. He often lies about his wealth and status and tries to appear of higher standing than he really is. This is something more people in his family do, so it's uncertain if its a Zoidberg thing, or a family or species characteristic.

Bender Bending Rodriguez

Bender is a bending unit robot fuelled by alcohol. He is generally an inconsiderate, selfish robot, although he does develop a close friendship with Fry. A humorous characteristic he has, is his dependence on alcohol. If he goes without alcohol for too long he grows weak and starts rusting around his mouth and chin, giving the impression of a beard. He more or less looks like a human would after drinking too much alcohol for a prolonged period of time often would look in a sitcom.

Futurama has aired 140 episodes. In 2013 the series had it's finale, but the producers have indicated they would like to continue or to make a film to conclude the series. Futurama has a huge fan base around the world and the episodes are still broadcast around the world by Comedy Central. The series has survived a cancellation before and many fans are hoping for a return of the series. Fingers crossed!

Comedy Series Review: Fawlty towers

The Cast of Fawlty Towers

Who doesn’t know this landmark of British comedy? Still regarded as one of the best televised comedies ever made, this sitcom still captivates and entertains viewers all over the globe. In the 1970s, the series won 3 BAFTAs; in 2000, a good 20 years after the final episode aired, it was named “Best British television series of all time” by the British Film institute; in 2006 the series came second only to Frasier in The Ultimate Sitcom Poll of Comedy Writers and in the same year Basil Fawlty (one of the main characters) ended first on Five’s Britain's Funniest Comedy Character Poll. All this is truly remarkable for a series consisting of only 12 episodes. So what makes this such a hit?

The establishment

During the 1970s there was a class struggle in the UK where the lower-paid working class started to rebel against the wealthy upper-class establishment. This sometimes led to clashes such as the miner’s strikes of 1972 and 1974 which derailed society to the point the government introduced the 3-day week to conserve power. The miner’s strikes are sometimes mentioned in Fawlty Towers, mainly by Major Gowen, who’s always looking for his newspapers to read up on the outside world.

This general discontent felt by many British people made them susceptible to the ridicule of the establishment throughout Fawlty Towers. Mainly Basil Fawlty’s attempts to attract upper-class rich people and the resulting chaos played in to the animosity many people felt towards the real-life upper-class.

Racism

Racism, mainly in a fairly innocent form, is recurrent throughout British humour. In Fawlty Towers a running joke is Manuel’s lack of skill in being a waiter and the English language. The usual excuse for this is “He’s from Barcelona”. Basil Fawlty’s racism towards the Spanish waiter usually bounces back to hit Fawlty - often literally. This kind of mildy racist humour is popular not only in the UK, but around the world. Even in Spain, where in the translated version Manuel is Italian.

Slapstick

Slapstick is one of the oldest forms of comedy and is as popular as ever. There is no lack of slapstick in Fawlty Towers, mainly on the expense of either Basil Fawlty or Manuel, the Spanish waiter. Generally there are no real consequences to the violence and slapstick, although Basil does end up in hospital once and Manuel is at one point locked in a burning kitchen.

Recognizablity

Many people who have stayed at hotels or been to restaurants are familiar with bad service and incompetent management. The series was based on the real-life Gleneagles Hotel, run by the Sinclair family. John Cleese (Basil Fawlty) described the Gleneagles’ manager Donald Sinclair as “the rudest man I've ever come across in my life.” And modelled the Basil character after him. The over-the-top ridiculous acting and drama in the series is laughable because it is so close to the truth and to existing stereotypes.

To sum up, Fawlty Towers is a timeless mix of many of the famous aspects of British humour executed brilliantly by a formidable cast. It is still loved by many and will continue to be popular for years to come. 

Comedy Series Review: Family Guy

Five time Emmy Award-winning show Family Guy is an international hit. With over 200 episodes already aired and the twelfth season currently airing, the show is going strong. Focusing on the Griffin family this series follows the antics of Peter, Lois, Meg, Chris, Brian and Stewie, with several recurring characters such as Glenn Quagmire, Joe Swanson and Cleveland Brown. Cleveland moved away from the neighbourhood and got his own spin-off show in 2009. When The Cleveland Show was axed by Fox in 2013 Cleveland moved back to Quahog, Rhode Island and resumed his old spot in the show.

Much of the humour is derived from pop-cultural references. Some films such as the Star Wars series and the Ghostbusters films are often referenced. Also there are a lot of cutaway gags, often caused by a character reminding a scene from their past and the episode then cutting to that memory. These cutaways are often absurd and portray unlikely situations. These sometimes include celebrities or mythological and religious characters. The parodying and referencing of other material has led to lawsuits, although in most cases the court ruled the use of copyrighted material justified as fair use, and/or protected by the First Amendment. One case was however settled out of court with undisclosed terms.

In early seasons a recurring joke came in the form of the family's baby (Stewie) having super-villain aspirations, often devising plans and weapons of mass destruction with the goal to get rid of things he doesn't like and in particular to kill Lois (his mother). His plans fail without exception but he does manage to build an entire room and fill it with weapons and evil machinery without his parents noticing. Over the course of the series Stewie's character developed and lost much of it's evil side. Although it is sometimes still referenced, he is now a more stable character, with strong sexual (sometimes gay) tendencies and he has formed a strong bond with Brian, sometimes showing a romantic or sexual interest in him.

Brian is the family dog. He is able to talk, walks on his rear paws, drives a hybrid and is an often pretentious left-wing wannabe intellectual. He has been 'working on his book' for years without result, drinks humongous amounts of booze and is a real ladies man. Besides alcohol he has used cocaine and marijuana and he smokes. He is also an Iraq veteran. Despite these definite human characteristics Brian still has clear dog perks as well: He sometimes barks at people or dogs, wags his tail when he's happy or aroused, he likes to ride up against people's legs and his parents were normal dogs. Brian has a human son called Dylan although it is questionable if this is really his son, given the fact that Dylan is older than Brian. Brian has accepted Dylan as a son though and managed to change him from a marijuana smoking, violent teenager into a well-mannered young adult.

Another recurring form of humour used is self-reference. Often these jokes are about FOX, the company the series is made for, or break the fourth wall. An example of a joke about FOX is Peter telling the family FOX has cancelled them to make room for a list of other shows. Lois asks if there is any hope, to which Peter replies they might stand a chance if all these shows were cancelled. The joke works even better because all the shows named, were actually cancelled by FOX during Family Guy's hiatus. Other recurring jokes include the ridicule of FOX News and the use of catchphrases such as Quagmire's “Giggity giggity goo” and Peter's “Freakin' sweet!”

Family Guy manages to keep a consistently high level of funny and it survives because it isn't afraid to adapt and evolve to keep it fresh and interesting. If you haven't seen it, go check it out!

Comedian Bio: John Oliver

John Oliver in 2011

John Oliver is a prime recent example of a comedian from England, who made a successful transfer to the USA. Although Oliver was already well-known in the UK as a panelist on Mock The Week, he is now successful around the world with his popular late-night talk show Last Week Tonight on HBO. 

Oliver started in 2001, at age 24, on the Edinburgh Festival Fringe as a stand-up comedian. During the next few years, he had a solo stand-up show and worked with UK comedian Andy Zaltzman on a double act and on the radio show Political Animal. In 2005 and 2006 Oliver was a panelist on Mock the Week.

In 2006 Oliver joined The Daily Show as its senior British correspondent, after having been recommended by Ricky Gervais. In 2009, 2011 and 2012, Oliver received Emmy awards for outstanding writing. In 2013, Jon Stewart left The Daily Show for 8 weeks to direct a film. Oliver guest hosted the show during this time, to critical acclaim. Several critics stated Oliver should succeed Stewart as show host, or receive his own show. Three months later, HBO announced Oliver would be getting his own late night show.

Last Week Tonight attracted over a million viewers during its first broadcast. Because many segments

John Oliver in 2007

were also uploaded to websites such as Youtube, the actual ratings have risen well into multiple millions. This is in part where Oliver gets his success from; he understands the importance of the Internet. By uploading his videos to Youtube himself, he can avoid other people uploading them and the show can collect ad revenue from Youtube. Also the show is able to attract greater audiences, which can help it survive in the long run. Plans have been announced to make every episode a full hour, instead of a half hour, with multiple episodes per week, as soon as Oliver “gets his feet under him”. Oliver has also received complete creative freedom from HBO, including the freedom to ridicule any corporation. This is made possible by HBO's ad-free subscription system. Therefore HBO can't be harmed if Oliver critizises a corporation, as they aren't receiving funding from other businesses.

With a young show gaining incredible ratings, Oliver seems to be set for the future. His work is hilarious, so if you haven't seen it, look for it on Youtube!

Comedy Analysis: Deadpan

A funny line with a 'dead pan'

Also known as dry humour or dry wit, the term deadpan is derived from the words “dead pan” where pan is a slang word for face. Therefore deadpan means “dead face” meaning expressionless face. Deadpan is the delivery of a humorous, sarcastic, blunt or apparently unintentional statement with a neutral face. This can add to the effectiveness of a joke, whilst also testing the observational limits and awareness (and thus the implied intelligence) of the audience. Especially British comedy often relies on this.

Many British comedians and television series use a lot of deadpan. For instance Mike in The Young Ones is famous for his deadpan one-liners used for comic effect. Often these can be confusing, such as his response when Rick asks him if he stole his apple: “Well, if you're gonna sin you might as well be original”.This can be seen as a reference to John Calvin's description of original sin, which includes theft.

Another popular British show frequently utilizing deadpan is Blackadder. The show's main protagonist, Edmund Blackadder, often makes dry witty statements and insults with a completely straight face. In one of the episodes of the final series, Blackadder goes forth, the following conversation takes place, where Blackadder tries to prove Capt. Darling is a German spy and remains completely deadpan up until the final sentence:

            Blackadder: What is the colour of the Queen of England's favourite hat?
            Darling: How the bloody hell am I supposed to know?!
            Blackadder: I see...Well, let me ask you another question. Who is the      German head of state?
            Darling: Well, Kaiser Wilhelm, obviously.
            Blackadder: (furiously) So you're on first name terms with the kaiser, are you?!

Not only British humour uses deadpan, it is increasingly common in American humour as well. Some well-known American series that use deadpan include Seinfeld, Adventure Time, The Office and Arrested Development. In series like Seinfeld not all characters utilize deadpan, as it is mainly George who remains expressionless during most of his screen-time. In Adventure Time deadpan is mostly utilized when characters make a statement or remark which is not weird or humorous to them, as it fits their universe. For the viewer however, their universe in itself is weird enough and some of the deadpan remarks can be absolutely hilarious. Especially when characters like Lumpy Space Princess and Princess Bubblegum make a joke or hilarious comment, they are usually completely deadpan.

To sum up, deadpan has been around for a while and isn't going anywhere soon. It is becoming increasingly popular in humour and comedy on both sides of the Atlantic as well as in on-line comedy. It's funny and puts the audience to the test, which in itself can have hilarious results. It rightfully deserves its place in comedy.

Comedy Analysis: Dark humour

Also known as black humour, this is a type of humour that makes light, an otherwise serious or depressing situation. It is closely related to gallows humour. Dark humour works because of cynicism and satire, often related to matters like death or disease as well as taboo subjects. In recent years STDs and HIV/AIDS have become increasingly popular subjects for dark humour. Dark humour is however generally not obscene and not intended to insult or offend people. Blue humour is a type of humour derived from and interrelated with dark or black humour which is usually less subtle and more obscene.

Dark humour is often considered to be a classic part of British comedy. Even though this is not necessarily untrue, it is not by origin British: the term was first coined in 1935 by the Frenchman André Breton (humour noir) who credited Irishman Jonathan Swift with it's invention. Since it has been adapted in British humour, American humor, and many other schools of comedy. Famous dark comedians include Dane Cook, Monty Python, M*A*S*H and Louie C.K.

Dr. Strangelove

A prime example of a dark humour film is Dr. Strangelove by Stanley Kubrick. This 1964 film deals with the threat of annihilation of the Earth due to nuclear war. Although films with this subject are generally dark, serious and treat the subject with gravity, this film doesn't. For instance the safeguards to prevent nuclear war in Dr. Strangelove are exactly the causes which trigger the war.

A more recent film utilizing dark humour is Horrible Bosses, which is a 2011 film. The film deals with 3 men who decide to murder their respective bosses. Although this is a heavy subject, bordering on the morbid, it is treated in a light-hearted and sarcastic way, which makes it enjoyably funny.

Although dark humour is a relatively young type of humour, it has secured it's place in the world of comedy. With much more yet to come no-one knows where it's gonna go from here.

Comedy Series Review: Bottom

Eddie Hitler and Richard Richard

Bottom is a British sitcom in alternative comedy created by and starring Rick Mayal and Adrian Edmondson, famous from the London stand-up scene from the late 70s and the BBC hit-series The Young Ones. Similarly to The Young Ones, this series had the two actors portraying two house-mates, although no longer students. Richard Richard (Mayall) has many similarities to the Rick characters from The Young Ones whereas Eddie Hitler (Edmondson) shares many traits with the Vyvyan character. The main difference is in that the Bottom characters are much, much more violent toward each other than in The Young Ones.

Since Richard (Rich) and Eddie are two bachelors living together, they have few interests. Cleaning is not one of those, which results in their apartment being consistently disgusting. The interests they do have include women, sex with women, booze and smashing each other's brains in.

The comedy in this series is generally relatively simple; there is a lot of slapstick, a lot of violence, quite a bit of blood and gore, not nearly as much sex as the characters would like, although it can't be said they aren't trying. A lot of the humour is derived from the contrast in personalities and the absurd situations they get themselves involved in. An example is the episode when they have found a sex tape starring the prime minister. When they subsequently try to blackmail said prime minister their flat is shot at by (presumably) armed police. Of course our anti-heroes survive but they loose the tape.

There is some semi-clever word play here, an example of which is the episode where the guys think there's a burglar in the house. Rich tells Eddie the burglar is in the drawing room, to which Eddie responds “we have a room just for drawing?!”. There's none of the really witty stuff found The Young Ones though.

Bottom ran for 3 seasons, consisting of 6 episodes each and also 5 live shows and 1 film were made. It's an entertaining series, but it's nothing ground breaking nor is it a work of genius. This is just simple, harmless slapstick being simply amusing.