American comedy

[The Sad Punk]

To counter the British thread. Oh yes, it's an unfairly broad genre, but this way you only have to post in one thread rather than ten. And just as some Americans might wrongly think that British comedy is nothing more than silly walks and that putrid Ricky Gervais character, here some Brits may learn that American comedy is more than just loud laugh tracks and fat husbands.

Some of my favourites:

Mr. Show
Arrested Development
Get Smart
Police Squad!
Seinfeld
The Jack Benny Show
and of course, it's easy to bring up the many movies, stand up comics and animated sitcoms, although for now I'll refrain (and since that really is crazy massive, maybe we should just stick to TV and maybe radio).

Bring the love!

 

[mad1]

Prince of Bel Air

Everybody Loves Raymond

 

[Sicy]

Everybody Loves Raymond

I was just going to say that!

Very few TV shows genuinely make me laugh out loud. This is one of them.

Seinfeld and Friends also do the job too.

 

[elevated_u2_fan]

Arrested Development

I'm afraid I blue myself prematurely

 

[daygloeyes2]

30 Rock
The Simpsons
South Park
The Daily Show

Arrested Development is amazing.

 

[Slipstream]

The only US shows that have really made me laugh out loud is Seinfeld, Frasier, M*A*S*H , and Three's Company < with that having mainly to do with John Ritter's antics. I sure do miss him.

 

[phillyfan26]

Arrested Development and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia are better than any British television comedies I can think of.

 

[Fernando-]

Seinfeld is king.

Friends is overrated.

 

[2861U2]

Seinfeld, Friends, Frasier, and Home Improvement never did anything for me.

I love Everybody Loves Raymond, and a lot of the old TV Land shows that my parents always watch (Andy Griffith, Dick Van Dyke, Lucy, Honeymooners). With a few exceptions (The Office, Conan, Colbert), I just don't think most TV is that funny nowadays.

 

[powerhour24]

30 Rock
Scrubs
Arrested Development

I rest my case.

 

[LMP]

Arrested Development and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia are better than any British television comedies I can think of.

Apart from anything Ricky Gervais-related.

Everybody Loves Raymond is not that funny to me, then again, it's not too relatable either.

Curb Your Enthusiam and The Larry Sanders Show belong on that list. Not to mention all of the classic sitcoms of the '60s and '70s. I know Three's Company was a remake of a German sitcom, but what a hilarious show.

 

[Slipstream]

^shit....that's right. Forgot about Curb!

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

American Idol

 

[Fernando-]

Everybody Loves Raymond is not that funny to me, then again, it's not too relatable either.

Curb Your Enthusiam belong on that list.

Bravo...

 

[LMP]

Also, Tyler Perry's House of Payne.

 

[BonoFox1]

Threes Company
Get Smart
Batman (the campy 60's series)
The Man Show
Punk'd
Cheers
3rd Rock From The Sun
I Love Lucy
Scrubs
Reno 911
I Dream Of Jeanie

 

[bono_212]

Get Smart all the way s all around.

 

[cobl04]

How I Met Your Mother
Scrubs
Friends
The Office

are the ones I've really enjoyed.

Never found Seinfeld that funny, has never made me elicit much more than a chuckle, though I still think it's ok, same with Boston Legal.

30 Rock's ok I guess, on too late here though.

Batman (the campy 60's series)

some of THE best shit I have ever seen.

 

[BonoFox1]

Weird thing about Seinfeld I tried to get into it because my brother tries to make watch it but Im just like -meh-

I HATED Friends! I hate comedy that is SO Predicatable!! I can't stand That 70's show either (for the same reason as Friends)

I HATED Rosanne!


My brothers want to force me to watch Family Guy! I don't like that show- it might get a *snort from me* but I'm a hardcore Simpsons fan

 

[BonoFox1]

Threes Company
Get Smart
Batman (the campy 60's series)
The Man Show
Punk'd
Cheers
3rd Rock From The Sun
I Love Lucy
Scrubs
Reno 911
I Dream Of Jeanie

Married With Children-2nd to 6th season

 

[cobl04]

YES. I DO like Two and a Half Men.

Shoot me.

 

[LMP]

YES. I DO like Two and a Half Men.

Shoot me.

I've got the gun ready.

 

[Fernando-]

I HATED Friends! I hate comedy that is SO Predicatable!! I can't stand That 70's show either (for the same reason as Friends)

My brothers want to force me to watch Family Guy! I don't like that show- it might get a *snort from me* but I'm a hardcore Simpsons fan

I feel exactly the same way, I'm not a hardcore Simpsons fan though.

You don't like Seinfeld?

You don't have a soul.

 

[BonoFox1]

You don't have a soul.

I just could not get into that show

 

[Slapnutz]

Seinfeld
Frasier
Curb

I find most American comedies to be a tad too touchy-feely and/or self-aware, but these three are classics.

 

[cobl04]

I've got the gun ready.

Ah, but would you pull the trigger?




It's not like it's essential viewing or anything, very predictable and so on, but it's easy to sit down and watch at 7pm after a looong day at work or uni, not have to think, and get the odd 'ha' out of it

 

[LMP]

Yeah, fuck that. I don't like being told when to laugh... in any show.

Thank God most of the better comedies now have done away with that trope.

 

[discothequeLP]

30 Rock
Scrubs
Arrested Development

I rest my case.

scrubs? it's alright, but throw in Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm in it's place, and you've got an assload of funny.


also, since we're on the topic....

 

[deep]

some of these series should be judged in the time period they were first released in

such as

All in the Family - amazing in its time.

and The Simpsons, the first season or two was amazing, ground breaking there was nothing like them.

Friends was never funny to me. The guys were all gay acting. Well, 18 of the 20 writers were gay so the characters came out that way.

Now, Will and Grace was brilliant. Comfortable about its gayness.

3rd Rock from the Sun, had some great moments, too.

 

[cobl04]

"Computer! Activate now!"

Do you like How I Met Your Mother, lmp?

And uh, what's the premise of Curb, if anyone'll enlighten me. didn't know it was a comedy.