Mr. Show with Bob and David: Genius or Overrated?

I mean I guess some of their sketches are funnier for the peripheral jokes than the central jokes, but that's their style. E.g. the repeated shot of Josh Fenderman doing the dance is far funnier than the actual Josh Fenderman story. Not sure why that doesn't qualify as "comedy" though.

Yes, that's exactly what I'm trying to get at.

I was thinking about this after watching seeing Bob And David's stand up comedy and realizing that I don't find it funny at all, in spite of loving Mr. Show. Depsite what Bob might say about the better skits being the low budget ones (easy for him to say, as he would find himself to be really funny), it's the gestalt that counts, the periphery being as, often more important that the central jokes. I find approaching the skits in a kind of decentred way is more rewarding that looking at it as a vehicle for stand-up style comedy that you could get on an audio recording.
Take The Dylan skit at 7:30 here, which is a skit without a centre, all periphery without an origin that its supposed to be serve.

i love the bob lamonta sketch more for the "brave choice" satire surrounding it, which i think rescues the "bad retarded caricatures" jokes from what it would be on something like mad tv. still, i will be magnanimous and recognize your right not to like it as much as their other sketches. my two favorite sketches from the show are the story of everest and the pre-taped call-in show. however, the greatest mr. show moment of them all was at the end of the lost episode.

Take The Dylan skit at 7:30 here, which is a skit without a centre, all periphery without an origin that its supposed to be serve.

I wouldn't really even call that a skit. It's only about 60 seconds -- more of a transitional piece between skits. Monty Python used to do very similar things, and so did vaudeville acts for that matter. Plus the Dylan character shows up elsewhere and I think it's pretty clear that the "center" is just a spoof of a literary snob type who can't stand base pop culture -- maybe an easy target, but done well I think.

Besides, I think a lot of their comedy is more about certain television and film narratives as narratives than the content of those narratives.

this sequence is funny imo:

'everest' might be the best thing they ever did. i nearly died watching that for the first time!

i'm shocked that out of this entire cast, only Jerry Minor moved on to Saturday Night Live

Bob and Dino wrote for SNL and Sarah Silverman was a cast member.

They all moved onto tiny roles in Arrested Development.

i'm sad jay johnston hasn't had a better career- he was as funny doing slapstick (everest) as he was playing a guy in a suit and tie (like as the record exec trying to convince wykyd sceptyre that they were gay).

Jay Johnston is the best, I agree.

yeah, he's good on the sarah silverman show, but having him play one character, and not use his knack for physical comedy, is kind of a waste of talent.

i mean, the bit in the "tex mex" sketch in mr. show where he punches odenkirk is hilarious. just that punch is as funny as the rest of the sketch.

Choo-Choo the herky-jerky dancer

i dunno, i can't separate the punch from the sleazy look he gives jill talley. and how about the saxophone player in "honesty in motion" ??? another johnston moment where he's not even the center of attention, but he's the funniest part about the sketch.

Jay Johnston is indeed the greatest.

Choo-Choo the herky-jerky dancer

― i'm shy (Abbott), Tuesday, February 17, 2009 9:55 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark

I say this all the time

That, and "quarters; mostly quarters"

'Pallies' --> 'The Fairsley Difference' --> 'The Story of Everest'

is the absolute high point of the show. If only they could've gotten a better SNL-y restaurant sketch in there like The Burgundy Loaf or something in there instead of the lameass clumsy waiter thing and the connection with Rapist Coming Don't Get Raped would be pretty much the perfect Mr. Show episode.

fore I die I'm gon fuck me a fish

i am a tele-vision set—peter o'toole

i'm the hated milk machine
no one likes me now
i was doing what i'm told
he was trying to be bold
why can't people keep their willies out of holes

where do i go now
where do i go now
this is the knocking song
in days of auld lang syne

^ get this stuck in my head all the time

I personally prefer Y'all are Brutalizing Me (which was nominated for an Emmy... errr, "World's Biggest Asshole" Award!)

I walk around humming "I'm a superstar in a superstar machine! Taking it to the streets! Emotion lotion ..."

I'm Fran, and I'm a woman!

You need to respect the baby, 'cause life is precious... and God... and the Bible.

A rap, rap, a rap rap rap. A rap, rap, a rap tap tap. Get rappin' with it. Heyyyyy. Get rappin' with it. Hohhhh!

Damn, his science is too tight!

OK, fine:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ne0RrK5qJ-k

I walk around humming "I'm a superstar in a superstar machine! Taking it to the streets! Emotion lotion ..."

― Josh in Chicago, Friday, October 21, 2011 5:57 PM (23 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

and that's when Lincoln said, "Don't diss mah homies!"

weird al version is next level

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvCmvSKenzY

it's cool to think that besides jack black, the most famous person from this cast is mary lynn rajskub

naw Paul f Tompkins duh

Tom Kenny's obliquely pretty famous.

xpost i mean among normals, not onion a/v club commenters

Tom Kenny's easily the second most SUCCESSFUL of the bunch, but I wouldnt call him famous by any stretch of the imagination

actually Tom Kenney is probably more famous than any of them, in the kind of famous where no one really knows him

yeah that's called not being famous

the guy who does Spongebob vs the chick with the eyes on 24.

but anyways, yeah, 26 year-old Jack Black in the "Joke: The Musical" sketch is just fucking ridiculous. how gifted was that guy?

i like that he does the winged devil dance in that sketch that has become his hallmark in tenacious d.

also... sarah silverman is more famous than mary lynn rajskub, isn't she?

david cross easily in at #2 between arrested development and (more importantly) the chipmunk movies. odenkirk might have a higher q rating than rajskub at this point also, 24's been of the air awhile and didn't exactly go out on top either. calling sarah silverman mr show alumni feels like even more of a stretch than calling her snl alumni. she would rank over rajskub though.

Silverman was on it as much as Jack Black, if not more.

yeah rajskub is not really famous, def not as famous as silverman or cross, maybe not even odenkirk

don't know how i've managed to not troll this thread once in the past 10 years, def overrated as fuck

raskub may not be famous, but her mug is all OVER the 24 pinball game

yeah i guess that's true, i guess it's just i already knew who she was whereas i didn't know who jack black was at the time