This is about the TV show not The Big Bang Theory....Read the post not just the title. Honest mistake!Caramel Frappe said:
Why do some nerds hate Big Bang Theory?
- Thread starter Buccura
- Start date
I've got mixed feelings about it, honestly. I'm neither a great fan nor a great hater of the show.
It doesn't offend me that it's a comedy about nerds, I freely admit, heck one of my favorite things about nerd culture is that nerds are hilarious (and not always intentionally). Some of the jokes the show has are great, and as has been said, the show does fairly well at casting nerds in a positive light.
However, the more irksome aspect of the show is when it does get somewhat lazy about its jokes (like most comedy shows do, occasionally) and then it does seem just like laughing at nerds. For example, in the link that was posted above from the laugh track removed (for the record, I don't think it really counts against the show that it's awkward without a laugh track) the first line of the video is "My mom just sent me my old N64. *laughtrack*", which is really not a joke on any level deeper than "I'm a nerd, haha"
In short:
Jokes about nerds being funny - great.
Jokes that run as "haha, he's a nerd" - not so great.
It doesn't offend me that it's a comedy about nerds, I freely admit, heck one of my favorite things about nerd culture is that nerds are hilarious (and not always intentionally). Some of the jokes the show has are great, and as has been said, the show does fairly well at casting nerds in a positive light.
However, the more irksome aspect of the show is when it does get somewhat lazy about its jokes (like most comedy shows do, occasionally) and then it does seem just like laughing at nerds. For example, in the link that was posted above from the laugh track removed (for the record, I don't think it really counts against the show that it's awkward without a laugh track) the first line of the video is "My mom just sent me my old N64. *laughtrack*", which is really not a joke on any level deeper than "I'm a nerd, haha"
In short:
Jokes about nerds being funny - great.
Jokes that run as "haha, he's a nerd" - not so great.
I agree with you that referencing as the only way to get a laugh is usually annoying but I think Scott Pilgrim did it pretty well...Maybe less so in the movie but in the comics i thought it was tasteful.ZeroMachine said:
No I didnt see the other post sorry. And yeah thats why I said Honest Mistake. I probably came off as a little bit Hostile. My bad.Caramel Frappe said:
If you have a Something, you will have Haters for your Something. It's the way the world works. I know a guy who will hate something simply if I mention that I like it. I told him I liked BBT and he wasn't satisfied with just hating it, he had to try and convince me that it was the worst thing on TV. (he's tried this before with other things in other media, i.e. The Office (both versions), Inception, Heroes of Might and Magic III, and basically every other game, movie, or TV show I've expressed interest in that he wasn't already a fanboy of.)
So, the quality of the show isn't what is on trial here, it's the fact that some people think it's cool to hate.
p.s. I do like the show. They hit some things right-on, but rarely hit something I'd call "comic gold." I would be very interested in seeing the show without a laugh track every 3 seconds to see what the script writes could really do in 22 minutes of broadcasting time. That would probably change a lot of opinions about the show.
So, the quality of the show isn't what is on trial here, it's the fact that some people think it's cool to hate.
p.s. I do like the show. They hit some things right-on, but rarely hit something I'd call "comic gold." I would be very interested in seeing the show without a laugh track every 3 seconds to see what the script writes could really do in 22 minutes of broadcasting time. That would probably change a lot of opinions about the show.
I just see it as a misrepresentation of the nerd sub-culture. The show seems to be more about making fun of nerds than embracing them. It's just generally not very well written.
Some of it is pretty hilarious, the acting is very well done, that's really all you need for a decent sitcom. This is one of those times where I feel worse just for having looked at a thread, honestly I don't care what the popular opinion or even the general nerd-culture opinion of the show is, I enjoy it sometimes.
Intolerable intolerant mickey taking. People who don't know anything about nerds making jokes about how anti-social they are, while they don't talk to anyone outside their social circle either.
A formulaic sitcom written on the back of a Walmart receipt that just says "N3RDS LOL".
Just in general, the entire reason people are laughing is they're laughing at the lampshade hanging off the one dimensional characters. It may as well be called "Don't Clever People Do The Stupidest Things", and consist entirely of a little spotty kid with glasses getting bullied for every thing he dares to say.
It's not a situation comedy because there is no situation, only a premise (N3RDS LOL), and it's not a comedy because that would require it to have a funny script, not a series of unconnected remarks about how other people are different.
The IT Crowd does it a million times better.
For example: Why is it called "The Big Bang Theory"? Because it sounds "science-y"? There's your problem right there.
This is one of the funniest lines, according to their fans:
Another laugh a minute quote
Trash.
A formulaic sitcom written on the back of a Walmart receipt that just says "N3RDS LOL".
Just in general, the entire reason people are laughing is they're laughing at the lampshade hanging off the one dimensional characters. It may as well be called "Don't Clever People Do The Stupidest Things", and consist entirely of a little spotty kid with glasses getting bullied for every thing he dares to say.
It's not a situation comedy because there is no situation, only a premise (N3RDS LOL), and it's not a comedy because that would require it to have a funny script, not a series of unconnected remarks about how other people are different.
The IT Crowd does it a million times better.
For example: Why is it called "The Big Bang Theory"? Because it sounds "science-y"? There's your problem right there.
This is one of the funniest lines, according to their fans:
What sitcom would that NOT be out of place in?
Another laugh a minute quote
Ho fucking ho. Because they're nerds and they're being nerdy (which they're not), we should all laugh at the funny people.
Trash.
I hate it because I find it painfully unfunny. It's easily one of the worst sitcoms ever created. The script is weak and the characters are terrible. The show tries so hard to be nerdy it has basically turned into a jock's feeling on what a nerd is.
What Jersey Shore does for New Jersey people, Big Bang Theory does for nerds, in my humble opinion.
Edit - Earlier in the thread someone posted a video that highlights how much of the show is laugh tracks. Firstly, laugh tracks are horribly outdated, and any decent comedy doesn't use them anymore. Secondly, it seems that show is basically half unfunny lines, half laugh track, just to cut down on what almost non - existent writing they already have to do. Thirdly, and this is probably the most important, the laugh tracks are completely innapropriate.
"I went to my mums and got my N64" [laugh track] "I'm going to play Mario old school" [laugh track] - WHY ARE THERE LAUGH TRACKS!? He didn't say anything that could be construed as a joke. If my friend came up to me and said "Hey Dan, I got an N64" and then started laughing like he'd just told the funniest joke ever, I'd be in the yellow pages getting a shrinks number for him.
Edit 2 - Ok, it seems there are still a few sitcoms that use laugh tracks, however, I usually don't notice that much because generally I am amused at the times they appear.
What Jersey Shore does for New Jersey people, Big Bang Theory does for nerds, in my humble opinion.
Edit - Earlier in the thread someone posted a video that highlights how much of the show is laugh tracks. Firstly, laugh tracks are horribly outdated, and any decent comedy doesn't use them anymore. Secondly, it seems that show is basically half unfunny lines, half laugh track, just to cut down on what almost non - existent writing they already have to do. Thirdly, and this is probably the most important, the laugh tracks are completely innapropriate.
"I went to my mums and got my N64" [laugh track] "I'm going to play Mario old school" [laugh track] - WHY ARE THERE LAUGH TRACKS!? He didn't say anything that could be construed as a joke. If my friend came up to me and said "Hey Dan, I got an N64" and then started laughing like he'd just told the funniest joke ever, I'd be in the yellow pages getting a shrinks number for him.
Edit 2 - Ok, it seems there are still a few sitcoms that use laugh tracks, however, I usually don't notice that much because generally I am amused at the times they appear.
I love you so much that I'll be Aquaman in that hug.Caramel Frappe said:It's cool I don't hold grudges against people. Maybe stay mad a bit but thanks for apologizing. Here you go (Warning, may seem a little odd):Mr. Google said:
<spoiler=Apology Hug>
I'm going to give the same answer I give to any "why do some members of group X hate/like thing Y":
Because not every member of a group is going to have exactly the same opinion of every single thing. Being part of a certain group does not automatically align your thought process with every other member of that group.
Now will people please stop asking questions about why differing opinions exist?
Because not every member of a group is going to have exactly the same opinion of every single thing. Being part of a certain group does not automatically align your thought process with every other member of that group.
Now will people please stop asking questions about why differing opinions exist?
What I personally find annoying about the show is how it condescends "nerds". The characters are a bunch of nerd stereotypes (which is fair enough, lots of shows use stereotypes) who pretty much can't function by themselves, but the show always makes a point to show that their heart is in the right place, or that they just need to be shown some compassion. Somehow that's more annoying to me than outright hate or fear.
Hm, I'm finding it difficult to describe what annoys me exactly. To me, the show is basically saying "Don't worry, it's not your fault you're a nerd.". Like "nerds" need special help or something.
Of course I have nothing against those who do watch it, and I could be completely misunderstanding the intent of the show, it just grates on my nerves a little so I avoid it.
Hm, I'm finding it difficult to describe what annoys me exactly. To me, the show is basically saying "Don't worry, it's not your fault you're a nerd.". Like "nerds" need special help or something.
Of course I have nothing against those who do watch it, and I could be completely misunderstanding the intent of the show, it just grates on my nerves a little so I avoid it.