[QUOTE=CandidGamera]
“Don’t get me wrong, a lot of my friends are (insert race here), but..”
Yeah. There’s no way you were being at all deceptive when you said that. :dubious:
[/QUOTE]
Is this a whoosh? Is there a Godwin equivalent for racism comparisons? If you’re trying to be funny, you’re getting Kaufman-esque*. Dude, I promise you. I really do like Family Guy. That’s why I spend countless hours watching it. That’s why I spend money on the DVD’s. That’s why, situated next to my monitor, there is a Cleveland Brown bobble-head doll. That’s why, hanging from a hook on my window, there is a Stewie Griffin talking pen (“So broccoli, mother says you’re good for me. Well, I’m afraid I’m no good for you.”). I am sorry if I touched some sort of nerve.
Now, back to your earlier post:
[QUOTE=CandidGamera]
"Actually, it reads ‘You’re a poor writer who expresses himself vaguely and expects people to read his mind,’ but that’s okay, I can see how you’d make that mistake.
[/QUOTE]
Let’s go back over this. I wrote an OP about two specific cartoons (both of which I like) that have considerable, devoted fan bases. I wrote the OP to address what I perceived to be heavy “borrowing,” if not blatant and flagrant ripping off, by one from the other. One of the examples that I cited was the use of news programs for exposition. Misstated? In retrospect, yes. I should have just been more specific and wrote something along the lines of, “the idea for Tom Tucker appears to be lifted from The Simpsons character Kent Brockman,” but truth be told, I couldn’t remember Tom’s first name at the time. Still many in this thread were able to conclude that I was referring to the similarity of the two characters (i.e. Brockman and Tucker). You responded and in doing so quoted the particular passage you were responding to (as is protocol on these boards) by stating that the news program as exposition is a common sitcom device (this statement is true, in it’s general form – it’s even true more generally, in that the news program as exposition is a common device in story telling in general: so true, that a list of examples would take a lifetime to compile). I responded to you and like you included the text I was responding to with the request to “name five.” I see now that one might, for a moment wonder, “five what?”, but I am convinced that anyone familiar with the shows in question who was being intellectually honest in his response, would know that the request was to produce five other Brockman-like characters from TV sitcom history. Still, had you simply said, “five what?”, I would have happily clarified my request. But you didn’t do “just” that. You had to be cute and be a smartass to someone you don’t know from Adam’s housecat by accusing me of “trump[ing] up” allegations. This has led to our current vinegary exchange, the highlight of which has been your refusal to divorce yourself from the firmly held conclusion that I don’t like Family Guy. Take a breath kid. As for my “poor” writing, let me assure you that this isn’t my A work. You know why? Cause it’s a stinking message board, man. I’m betting James Joyce might have at one time in his life left an empty bottle of Jameson’s on the counter with a note taped to it that read, “need more,” not stopping to think some wisenheimer would ask, “more what? paper, tape, bottles.”
[QUOTE=CandidGamera]
You’ll note I met your five-sitcom challenge. Or maybe you’ll just keep on rambling randomly, hoping no one noticed..
[/QUOTE]
I’ll note nothing of the sort, yet. You now must know what my intended request was. I don’t think your shows fit the criteria, but if you can just name the recurring newscaster in each, I will make the note that you have satisfied the request. Others have offered Married with Children, which by and large ran concurrently with The Simpsons. I don’t know whose newscaster showed first, but I’ll concede that MwC might fit.
[QUOTE=CandidGamera]
. . . your phrasing strongly implied you thought the show was unfunny. But go ahead, backpedal. It’s sort of funny to watch.
[/QUOTE]
I’ve already addressed the first part of this, but I wanted to include it for context. As for backpedaling, what part of “I am beginning to agree with you.” and “Knowing when I’ve been beaten and making a lame joke, my friend.” constitute backpedaling. I am beginning to think that maybe The Simpsons marks the birth of a new genre and that subsequent shows in this genre will inevitably look a lot like The Simpsons in a lot of ways. I still think Family Guy “borrows” too heavily sometimes, and others here have agreed. See, this is called discussing, thinking, reevaluating. It’s a concept most grasp by late primary school.
*Yes, I mean Kaufman-esque, not Kafka-esque. I am referring to what appears to be an absurd display of vitriol by CandidGamera toward me and my perceived Family Guy animus.
