Chappelle's Show Is 10 Years Old Today. No Sketch Show Has Surpassed It. Discuss.

[Lumenskir]

I'd make this entire post just Youtube links, but this bracket breakdown of the 64 greatest sketches contains all the links you could ever want AND funny commentary and insight. (http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8847357/view/full/a-battle-best-chappelle-show-sketch-ever)

But yeah, it's been ten years. Which is actually very scary for me because I live in this bubble where it's always just been put on hiatus while Dave Chappelle works out some stuff, maybe make a concert documentary, but always with an eventual triumphant return on the horizon.

Now though...shit, ten years seems like a long time. And it's even more sobering to think that nothing's really risen up to take over it's mantle. I mean there have been some great revolutions in sitcoms, but nothing's really come close to Chappelle's Show in terms of just sheer hilarity per second of sketch. Some can do it on a sketch-by-sketch basis*, but even then you can see the strain. I'm pretty sure Dave Chappelle is a sketch comedy genius, and I don't know when we'll even get one of those anymore, and I guess I'm bummed but I'm also reliving his sketches which means I can't be bummed, and it's all very confusing.

*Off the top of my head, I'd maybe include Numberwang and the East v. West Bowl.

[Magus]

Yeah, Key and Peele is pretty good but it's not as funny.

[Professor Smarmiarty]

A little bit of fry and laurie says you're full of shit

[Lumenskir]

Yeah, Key and Peele is pretty good but it's not as funny.
I really like Key and Peele, but I think it's sort of emblematic of the inherent problem with a lot of non-Chappelle Shows, in that its very aware of the fundamentals of comedy and can push and pull on the aspects it wants, but at best it can produce something...I dunno, composed.

I guess the best way to say it is that a lot of sketch comedy these days is made by people who have come up through established comedy channels, where they've honed their craft and refined what they want to say, and they produce these beautiful little crystalline objects of humor with great regularity. And Chappelle's show just feels really organic, like a gushing/messy vein of hilarity.
A little bit of fry and laurie says you're full of shit
Meh, he was better on House.

[Nique]

I liked the idea of The Chapelle Show (and a few sketches) better than I liked what I saw of the show itself. But I'm a fan of Chapelle for walking away from it for the reasons he did.

[Professor Smarmiarty]

Meh, he was better on House.

Hahahaha. That was about as funny as a Dave Chappelle sketch.

[Lumenskir]

I liked the idea of The Chapelle Show (and a few sketches) better than I liked what I saw of the show itself.
1) It's just "Chappelle's Show", no 'The'.

2) Cuz I'm genuinely curious, what's the 'idea of' Chappelle's Show you liked? As in, I could tell that there are individual sketches with 'points' or 'messages' they want to push, but I never really saw the show having anything like a guiding thesis beyond "What Dave and his writers found funny."

[Nique]

I liked the idea of The Chapelle Show

Also misspelled 'Chappelle' :sweatdrop

2) Cuz I'm genuinely curious, what's the 'idea of' Chappelle's Show you liked? As in, I could tell that there are individual sketches with 'points' or 'messages' they want to push, but I never really saw the show having anything like a guiding thesis beyond "What Dave and his writers found funny."

Well, what I mean is a couple of things. For one, I can appreciate the humor and quality of the show even though what little I saw didn't consistently amuse me, and the only reason I think that is is because I don't always like sketch comedy a lot.

Also I do think that Chappelle had at least a somewhat specific focus based on some things he said when he was getting burned out on the show


You know why my show is good? Because the network officials say you're not smart enough to get what I'm doing, and every day I fight for you. I tell them how smart you are. Turns out, I was wrong. You people are stupid.

[Solid Snake]

It's because of this thread that I'm now watching all these Chappelle's Show clips for the first time ever tonight.

[Lumenskir]

It's because of this thread that I'm now watching all these Chappelle's Show clips for the first time ever tonight.
Ugggggh, I want that so bad. I just want a neuralyzer so I can watch Prince for the first time everytime.

[Magus]

1) It's just "Chappelle's Show", no 'The'.

2) Cuz I'm genuinely curious, what's the 'idea of' Chappelle's Show you liked? As in, I could tell that there are individual sketches with 'points' or 'messages' they want to push, but I never really saw the show having anything like a guiding thesis beyond "What Dave and his writers found funny."

I'd say it was famous for racial humor or humor that pushes the boundaries. I don't think you can overlook sketches like "The Niggar Family" or what have you. Of course many of the sketches have nothing to do with that but those stand out in my mind as perhaps part of a "thesis". On the other hand ones like "I'm James Brown Bitch" or "Is Wayne Brady Gonna Have to Choke a Bitch?" became the most popular memes (ironically the show was extremely popular, perhaps most popular by sheer number, among middle-class caucasian teenagers) and have next to nothing to do with race.

Key and Peele is in a similar tradition of having a few sketches about race (including the two's biracialness), but again, many or most have nothing to do with that (most obvious I can think of is the two college guys branding themselves with their teams logo, the one guy keeps screwing it up and has to keep painfully branding the guy over and over again).

[Lumenskir]

ironically the show was extremely popular, perhaps most popular by sheer number, among middle-class caucasian teenagers
Speaking as one who first came to love the show as a middle-class Caucasian teenager, I don't really find it's popularity across races or whatnot that surprising. It's not like the race-focused sketches were incomprehensible to white people (and when Chappelle did want to make fun of people, he had this great method of making the jokes so inside that those who didn't get them had no idea they were being laughed at, which helped).

To make a good sketch, you basically 'just' need a great concept and great execution. Chappelle's Show had amazing concepts all over the place and pretty much perfect execution all the time.

[Token]

On the other hand ones like "I'm James Brown Bitch" or "Is Wayne Brady Gonna Have to Choke a Bitch?" became the most popular memes (ironically the show was extremely popular, perhaps most popular by sheer number, among middle-class caucasian teenagers) and have next to nothing to do with race.

The most popular, overused meme from the show, and you still say James Brown instead of Rick James. I get that they're both black singers, but they ain't exactly interchangeable.

As for the Wayne Brady skit, it's pretty inherently race related considering it's a response to jokes about Wayne Brady being "white" in earlier sketches, which culminated in this one where he was stereotypically ghetto.

Hell, all of Chappelle's skits are race related- you can't divorce the race from the sketches without robbing them of context and culture. They're jokes about society from an inherently black viewpoint, both at our expense and the expense of other cultures. You couldn't just Pat Boone it up without runining it, and the fact that people tried is part of the big problem that led to his breakdown.

[Nique]

ITT: White folk.

XJgiBDUHfso

They're jokes about society from an inherently black viewpoint, both at our expense and the expense of other cultures. You couldn't just Pat Boone it up without runining it, and the fact that people tried is part of the big problem that led to his breakdown.

Because of his patiucular perspective and, again, what little I saw of the show, I think I might need to give Chappelle's Show another shot. He is a really cool dude.

[Lumenskir]

Because of his patiucular perspective and, again, what little I saw of the show, I think I might need to give Chappelle's Show another shot. He is a really cool dude.
Just go to the bottom of the bracket in the link I posted and reverse-work your way through the winners.

Try not to think about all of the time you've wasted not quoting things back and forth to your friends.

[Magus]

The most popular, overused meme from the show, and you still say James Brown instead of Rick James. I get that they're both black singers, but they ain't exactly interchangeable.

As for the Wayne Brady skit, it's pretty inherently race related considering it's a response to jokes about Wayne Brady being "white" in earlier sketches, which culminated in this one where he was stereotypically ghetto.

Hell, all of Chappelle's skits are race related- you can't divorce the race from the sketches without robbing them of context and culture. They're jokes about society from an inherently black viewpoint, both at our expense and the expense of other cultures. You couldn't just Pat Boone it up without runining it, and the fact that people tried is part of the big problem that led to his breakdown.

"I'm Rick James Brown bitch!"

The most overused one was the Lil' Jon "YEAAAH!" "OKAY!" one, actually. My god. Just never-ending.

[Jagos]

Wow... It's like no one ever saw the comedy of Chris Rock, Eddie Murphy, or Richard Pryor before DC did race comedy.

[Lumenskir]

Wow... It's like no one ever saw the comedy of Chris Rock, Eddie Murphy, or Richard Pryor before DC did race comedy.
http://snag.gy/ugg5Q.jpg
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http://snag.gy/HNb5T.jpg

[Bum Bill Bee]

Nah thankx guys, I'm still stuck being an In Living Color fan.

Its a big shame the reboot has been cancelled. :(

[synkr0nized]

That's a retarded response. edit: the wine-guzzling one, I mean


Ugggggh, I want that so bad. I just want a neuralyzer so I can watch Prince for the first time everytime.

I know what you mean. So much of the show is still funny to me, but a lot of the sketches were just amazing on the first viewing.

Yeah, Key and Peele is pretty good but it's not as funny.

They have a few good ideas, but their show is pretty lame, imo. They take too long to get to the jokes, and neither of them has very good delivery. HOWEVER, Obama's anger translator Luther is amazing.

On the other hand ones like "I'm James Brown Bitch" [...]

hahaha Holy shit, are you serious?




Anyway, I don't care that other comedians have been using race-based humor before -- Chapelle has a definite knack for it, and for a time it came through well in his show.

[Solid Snake]

I'm kind of conflicted so far with Chappelle because, of the first seventeen skits I've seen (the first seventeen on the bracket), some have really positive and constructive social commentary motivating their scripts and others just seem...racist for the mere sake of being racist, for lack of a better way to put it. Neither the Tyrone Fear Factor and Mad Real World episodes really worked for me. I'd actually be genuinely intrigued to read an African American's commentary on skits like that because those skits seemed to play on racist stereotypes of blacks to make their jokes in a really negative and spiteful way, but it's entirely possible that by virtue of my privilege, I'm missing crucial context.

[Magus]

I'm pretty sure being able to misquote Chappelle's Show means I'm one of the luckiest motherfuckers on the planet because I apparently DIDN'T have to hear that said as many times as the rest of you.

[Nique]

I'm kind of conflicted so far with Chappelle because, of the first seventeen skits I've seen (the first seventeen on the bracket), some have really positive and constructive social commentary motivating their scripts and others just seem...racist for the mere sake of being racist, for lack of a better way to put it. Neither the Tyrone Fear Factor and Mad Real World episodes really worked for me. I'd actually be genuinely intrigued to read an African American's commentary on skits like that because those skits seemed to play on racist stereotypes of blacks to make their jokes in a really negative and spiteful way, but it's entirely possible that by virtue of my privilege, I'm missing crucial context.

Well, and this is coming from probably virtually the same perspective as yours so take it for what it is, but it seems like it's a combination of things. There's some stuff that's an in-joke, some stuff that makes a point, and some that is just straight-up gross. Even the most thoughtful of the 'big' comedians still present pretty messed-up material.

[Jagos]

I'm kind of conflicted so far with Chappelle because, of the first seventeen skits I've seen (the first seventeen on the bracket), some have really positive and constructive social commentary motivating their scripts and others just seem...racist for the mere sake of being racist, for lack of a better way to put it. Neither the Tyrone Fear Factor and Mad Real World episodes really worked for me. I'd actually be genuinely intrigued to read an African American's commentary on skits like that because those skits seemed to play on racist stereotypes of blacks to make their jokes in a really negative and spiteful way, but it's entirely possible that by virtue of my privilege, I'm missing crucial context.

Have you seen the Real World and how stereotypical must of the people began to be around the 5th season?

And no... Tyrone was always this stereotypical black homeless crackhead. I never liked his character because he was the worst of black stereotypes that Chappelle could play. Thinking back on it, it may have to do with my remembering him as a class caricature, someone that most white people actually think is the existence of blacks in this country (you have no idea how many people are amazed I speak two languages as an example). It just seemed to... Forced given some of his other comedy.

I also felt the pimp party was stupid for the same reasons. Once you realize that the 70s black actors could only find work as pimps, police officers, or prostitutes, it's kind of hard to make a joke about it (but then again that's me being meta)

[Premmy]

I also felt the pimp party was stupid for the same reasons. Once you realize that the 70s black actors could only find work as pimps, police officers, or prostitutes, it's kind of hard to make a joke about it (but then again that's me being meta)

Well,
1: It was a Player-hater's ball.
2: It's a parody of an actual thing that happens. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Players_Ball)

[Jagos]

Well shit...

[Aerozord]

I assume you mean no live action sketch show has surpassed it, because I will go on record as saying Robot Chicken is the most hilarious sketch comedy show

I guess the best way to say it is that a lot of sketch comedy these days is made by people who have come up through established comedy channels, where they've honed their craft and refined what they want to say, and they produce these beautiful little crystalline objects of humor with great regularity. And Chappelle's show just feels really organic, like a gushing/messy vein of hilarity.

So you are saying

flawed random comedy talent > carefully refined and perfected skill

Plus he came through established channels, well as established as most comedians in sketch shows.

Personally I liked the early days of the show but noticed him just repeating himself alot as things went on. Its an inherent issue with any sketch show featuring a single individual. Burning out and running out of material becomes an eventuality.

[Lumenskir]

I assume you mean no live action sketch show has surpassed it, because I will go on record as saying Robot Chicken is the most hilarious sketch comedy show
tFtPVc6nt0U
So you are saying

flawed random comedy talent > carefully refined and perfected skill
Not at all, but I commend you on your framing. (bt way, messy =/= flawed/random, nor does refined =/= perfect)

If you look at what I was actually comparing, it's the difference between something that feels organic and something that feels crystalline. These are admittedly bullshit terms for generalized feelings, but I was talking about what I look for in art so I think it's allowed.

[Aerozord]

tFtPVc6nt0U


cute, but last time I checked you aren't ten. You should try actually making an argument instead of childishly rebuking it with mockery, or at the very least do it in your own words instead of using internet memes. Come now, you are better than this.

[Magus]

Come now, you are better than this.

I object to this assertion. Made wholly without evidence or objective proof.

[Lumenskir]

I object to this assertion. Made wholly without evidence or objective proof.
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