MovieChat Forums > Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (2015) Discussion > i don't find this show funny whatsoever-...

i don't find this show funny whatsoever-this style of comedy is niche

posted 9 years ago by fragglecock666
22 replies | jump to latest

I am really surprised at the universal love for this show, i watched one episode and HATED it. hated it because its a comedy and i found it so unfunny, i did not wince once.

i understand that comedy is subjective, but this show is definitely for a veryyyyy particular audience, yet it has such widespread love??

i'm all about giving shows a few episodes to grow on me but the fact that i found this insanely unfunny makes me not want to waste my time.

what is the appeal? the humor just seems really silly and dumb and unclever. there was one scene where kimmy just kept yelling her lines and THAT was supposed to be funny, the fact that she was yelling

[–] SeamusWiles 9 years ago

Well like you said it may take a few episodes to grow on you, but I myself have found this show to be very witty. It's full of quirky characters that are well developed, and there are a lot of funny lines and situations throughout.

But yes, humor is subjective so it may not be for you, but I would advise at least watching multiple episodes before deciding that. Honestly though, I don't think the humor is for a niche group so much as it's a show where the humor requires you to pay attention more than a lot of comedies that practically spoon-feed the jokes. Yes some are very in your face, but many are subtle and will be missed if you're the kind of person who say watches a show while also constantly staring at your phone.

[–] narf131 9 years ago

Many of the jokes require a wide knowledge of pop culture. Also, why eould you wince if you found something funny?

[–] ImInTheater 9 years ago

Which episode? Just curious haha

I'll volunteer another comedy show that I actually watched all the first seasons and still found it largely unfunny... "Arrested Development"... I know, know, *hiss* blasphemy.

[–] Eva_Marrie 9 years ago

I'll volunteer another comedy show that I actually watched all the first seasons and still found it largely unfunny... "Arrested Development"

Ah, well, there's your answer! Shows like this, Arrested Development, Veronica Mars, 3rd Rock from the Sun, Eli Stone, Jane the Virgin are all aimed at a smarter than average audience that prefers wit and social commentary over broad American slapstick, and talented comedic actors as opposed to stand-up comics. They are rare masterpieces and are indeed niche in the US market.

This type of shows has an almost British type of humour that operates on a completely different wave-length to your average American sitcom.

[–] toesonherbells 8 years ago

This type of shows has an almost British type of humour that operates on a completely different wave-length to your average American sitcom.

Are you British? If so, then you're certainly aware that Britain has produced plenty of lowest common denominator sitcoms that were hits. The average working class guy sitting in the pub in Redding is not enjoying "Arrested Development" any more than the guy in Alabama who loves "Two Broke Girls". The idea that British humor is consistently refined and/or highbrow is a fallacy perpetrated by Brits and pompous Americans who believe that watching British produced content automatically makes them intellectual. The "wavelength" (one word, not two) may be different, but it's certainly not higher.

[–] johnsonium 9 years ago

Translation: Everyone loves this. I hate it. That must mean I'm weird. I don't like feeling weird. Help!

[–] fragglecock666 9 years ago

i'm replying to my OP because this is in response to a lot of you:

i don't like the implication that because i didn't find this show funny, i must have some low brow unintelligent taste in comedy like big bang theory or some *beep* i will give you some examples of current shows that i would say best describe my style of comedy:

you're the worst
difficult people
the mindy project (this one is a bit cartoony, but i find mindy to be incredibly witty so it's fine with me)
broad city
new girl
carmichael show
it's always sunny
superstore

comedy i DONT find funny:

anything on CBS especially big bang theory
amy shumer's show
30 rock (just tossing this in here because it's also tina's show)
the goldbergs
crazy ex girlfriend
brooklyn nine nine

[–] wheelr 9 years ago

Well, maybe there's your answer, you like Amy (Difficult People/Broad City) and you don't like Tina (this is implied because you 'automatically' placed 30 Rock in the NOT funny category simply because it's a 'Tina Fey' show), nothing wrong with that, each to their own. Sometimes we just take to certain people and not to others, meh.

While it might be unfair to suggest that maybe you don't like the show because it's more 'intelligent' funny than 'in-your-face' funny, it's also a little unfair of you to suggest that because you don't personally like it, it shouldn't be popular and most people shouldn't like it. Just an observation.

(I do have to give you some credibility for the fact that you don't like BBT-that show is a turd-fest, along with Two and A Half Men-bleurgh)

==============================================
Just because YOU don't like something doesn't mean it is empirically not good.-Tina Fey

[–] fragglecock666 9 years ago

i feel like the list i made show's I LIKE intelligent funny (i was only naming current shows, but you can add stuff such as the office and curb your enthusiasm to the list)

i don't dislike Tina Fey, but yeah her type of humor is kind of hit or miss for me, and alot of it is random and cartoony

i'm not trying to insult fans of this show i just kind it really hard to believe that so many people think this show is hilarious

[–] wheelr 9 years ago

UKS is a pretty smart show, with lots of intelligent humor, 30 Rock even more so, it could be that both shows just fail to capture your attention long enough for you to catch a lot of the smart jokes.

I guess I can understand where you're coming from, I personally can't understand why so many people love BBT and Two and A Half Men but whether we understand it or not, if a lot of people like something, we just have to accept that these shows are simply not our thing.

==============================================
Just because YOU don't like something doesn't mean it is empirically not good.-Tina Fey

[–] fragglecock666 9 years ago

perhaps i could give it another chance, but the one episode i watched i just found SO unfunny, and it was someone showing me the show, so obviously he was going to show me one of the better episodes. i just found the material so annoying, it was an episode from season 1 that i think was kimmys birthday party or something

[–] wheelr 9 years ago

Ah, now some of the material (or maybe that should be some of the characters) can be a bit hit or miss and I will say that the character of Kimmy's step-dad is bloody awful, I think most people agree that he is WAY too ott. Having said that, if there was nothing that made you chuckle in the episode then maybe it's not for you, you're certainly not obliged to give it another go just because other people like it :-).

As with 30 Rock, most of the characters are quite 'cartoonish'/exaggerated but if you can look beyond that, there is a lot of brilliant humor in there.

(If you do decide to give it another go, I might suggest watching the episodes in season 2 in which Tina herself appears, they have been my favorite so far)

==============================================
Just because YOU don't like something doesn't mean it is empirically not good.-Tina Fey

[–] Drusilla (565) 8 years ago

I LIKE intelligent funny

So Fraggle is pompous then. Well there is the reason why :)

[–] Taco_Lips 9 years ago

Yeah I'm on episode 3 - only watching it after seemingly every person and their dog have been raving on and on about the show online for the last few years, and I hadn't anything else to watch. So I decided to give it a go. But I haven't laughed once.

I'm actually irritated more than anything at the Native American storyline in this ep and struggling to get through it, which is why I decided to come to the messageboard and see what people were saying. I'm also annoyed at how over the top and predictable the characters and storylines are. It's just so basic. It's easy watching, but it's actually mind-numbing to the point I feel I'm being played 'down' to. I have no care-factor for any of these characters or their situations.

Since it's clear Season 2 was a bomb from the commentary here, coupled with many saying the same as OP and my own personal lack of amusement at the characters, storylines or dialogue - I really don't understand the hype it's got. Let alone how anyone can say it's "smart" comedy.

I mean, seriously outrageously over the top cliche characters, rambling while making pop-culture references and being 'cute-awkward' is considered "smart" comedy now? Really??? LMFAO!!!

Really, because a character makes mention to a noun or verb which you understand the meaning of - it makes it "smart" comedy?... LOL... by that logic my kids flashcards would be hilarious.

All I can is, they must have some good PR people. The amount of articles I saw written about this show was ridiculous, which is why I avoided it for so long. The hype is never what it seems. Or there are some really brown-nosed Tina Fey fans.

(Just to add: I hated 30 Rock, and most other shows mentioned in the posts above, Arrested Development was lame and cringe-worthy, over-rated, OTT etc. I felt the same about Breaking Bad, (Not a comedy show, I know, but I put it in the same realm because everyone praises it). These 'highly rated' shows that everyone clamors on about never live upto the hype.)

Riddle wrapped inside an enigma, wrapped inside a taco.

[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Eva_Marrie 9 years ago

These 'highly rated' shows that everyone clamors on about never live up to the hype.

They do. For the small percentage of people that like non-cookie cutter entertainment that takes risks. Critically acclaimed prestige TV caters to non-mainstream audiences by definition and many of those shows get by on tiny viewing nos. in the US (despite a lot of buzz and sometimes better overseas stats).

I apologise for implying that the OP was somehow not measuring up in intelligence to this show. That wasn't my intention. I just don't know a polite way of pointing out the long-observed correlation between a show's high IQ and low viewing nos. Even critically acclaimed free-to-air TV shows are lucky to catch a million viewers while plenty of complete trash does just fine because it appeals to the lowest common denominator.

[–] Eva_Marrie 9 years ago

What I'm trying to say is that there's nothing wrong with your taste if it aligns with the mainstream - it doesn't make you an idiot, but generally the smartest comedy made in the US is, like you said - niche. It's no accident that this show's on Netflix which doesn't give a hoot about ratings, and not a TV channel. However, it is this niche that produces the highest quality entertainment that Hollywood has to offer - so this is why something as wacky as 'Kimmy' gets so much love.

I actually find 'Kimmy' very flawed (mainly because of the casting choices for Kimmy and Titus) and a little too self-aware at times, but this style of off-beat comedy is the only type of American comedy that I would even touch. 99% of Hollywood's comedic output invokes a gag reflex for me just by looking at the covers.

[–] Craytonus_AP 8 years ago

My issue with this show hasn't really been with the quality of the jokes, which are decent enough, but rather with the way they're delivered. LOUD NOISES! BRIGHT COLORS! MELODRAMA 24/7! JAZZ HANDS!!!

That's what watching this show feels like for me. The fact that people are saying this show is for intelligent people makes me laugh.

"Tahiti is not in Europe . . . I'm going to be SICK."