re: Community and the Death of Quality Network TV

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Then some of the jokes are very inside.





This is just stupid comedy.


you ever try telling an inside joke to someone who is not on the inside? They stare at you blankly, and then you have to explain why it's funny. That kills the joke.

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It's not stupid comedy at all. It's just comedy that is specifically aimed...comedy that won't appeal to the masses, but the target audience will recognize it and appreciate it a lot.

And it doesn't mean that it's "smarter" comedy per se (which is often an argument on here, and one that I disagree with), it's just different. It's comedy that requires the viewer to try harder than simply laughing at "easy" jokes. Like I said the other day, the Civil War episode of Community, when it cut Britta off mid statement...that was hilarious. it's awesomely hilarious to me because I know the character and why it was funny. Average Joe American who isn't familiar with her character would likely think it was weird that she got cut off mid sentence and won't understand why it's funny/clever. It doesn't mean that America "only understands stupid, easy humor," it just means that the masses generally are more comfortable with that kind of humor, which is why shows like Community or Arrested Development don't last. And like I said, that sucks. I like Community as well as something like Rules of Engagement, and they are totally different shows with totally different types of humor. And it sucks that both can't exist/last on network TV.

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"TS:NM." Of course it means "Too Short: Need More."

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TWSS

i posted that before i realized this was 4 pages, and i was SURE that somebody else had dropped that

that just means this thread is srs bsns

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It's not stupidity and that misconstrues the argument. It's comfort.

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Completely. That's why it bugs me when some people act like others who don't like Community just are stupid or unintellectual. Average viewers aren't gonna try that hard. And that's okay, like you said, which is why shows like 2.5M and BBT have their rightful place on television. But there should be a way for other shows like the ones being discussed here to co-exist with those "easy humor" shows.

IMO, Psych is a great example of this. Psych is a pretty appealing kind of show, and that's because it straddles the line with easy humor and clever/referential humor, and straddles it perfectly most times. I could watch that show with my ex-gf and we'd both be laughing at the obvious jokes, but then I'd laugh at some random reference Sean or Gus made, and she wouldn't. It's not that I'm smarter than she is, it's simply that I'm on the internet more, or am more familiar with 80s movies/movie quotes, or more easily recognize song lyrics, or whatever..

I can laugh and appreciate the sillyness of Sean and Gus dancing like idiots to Tears for Fears just as much as I can appreciate the subtleness of all of the KK references in the Ralph Macchio episode.

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At a time when it was critical for Community to add new viewers, we were treated to: a Ken Burns spoof, a Law & Order spoof, an emphasis on the death of a minor character, an episode where everyone just dresses up as celebrities they somewhat resemble, and a complete eff you to anyone that doesn't know what Abed is like (the dreamatorium ep).

Then to close it out, we got a video game, Oceans 11, and the season finale.

They were all done extremely well, but were completely unaccessible at a time when accessibility was needed. I'm not upset, because I wouldn't trade those episodes for ones that would have appealed to a broader audience.

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But honestly, nothing about the show could draw in new viewers at the drop of a hat. Almost every episode of Community requires some sort of "meta" knowledge of the show. And I'd argue that something like the L&O spoof would be the kind of show taht has the best chance at drawing in viewers, because while you won't get all of the jokes (if you're unfamiliar with the characters), it has the referential humor of a massively appealing show like Law & Order (hell, I've never watched L&O, but recognized a ton of "crime/drama" show cliches) so fans of those kinds of shows could get interested.

One problem IMO is that the network fails to try and market the show to new viewers in this day in age. What I mean is that it's VERY easy to "catch up" on shows these days, ever since the advent of OnDemand, torrents, DVDs, Netflix, etc. So market the show to try and get new viewers and if people like what they see (even if some of the references don't make much sense), they could pretty easily rent/watch the older shows to catch up. I remember the very first episode of The Office I watched was Dinner Party. I had never seen the show before then, yet it was good enough to make me laugh, and I also recognized that there were some things that I was missing because of my ignorance of the show and its characters. So I went out, bought the available seasons, and caught up in only a couple of weeks. And I've enjoyed it ever since.

And I realize that a show like The Office is more broadly appealing than Community, but it's a great example of a show increasing its viewership (me) even though I wasn't familiar with the characters.

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What I mean is that it's VERY easy to "catch up" on shows these days, ever since the advent of OnDemand, torrents, DVDs, Netflix, etc.

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While we're bringing up this point and talking about Viewership.....

Why isn't Community available on Netflix? Wouldn't it be smart to allow, then advertise the show when trying to build an audience?

"Before you get to Season 2, check out Netflix for a recap of Season 1!"

Now, studios might stupidly think that this will somehow deter someone from buying the DVDs if it IS available on streaming sites (And it is on Hulu I believe but Netflix has more subscriptions). But fans who are big enough fans to buy the DVD, will buy the DVDs regardless. But let's find the solutions anyways:

1) I never understood why Netflix doesn't have either:
a) A viewership counter
b) An obvious date counter

If they really believe that limitations build audiences, fine, say that you release a movie on Netflix for "xxx amount of watches." That will get people to build their queues better and rush to watch things. Or B... Have an actual date counter. There has to be a reason Community is not on Netflix. It can't just be "Because we don't feel like it." Is it an agreement? A limit on NBC shows available? What is it? Why not go into a hard rotation of shows with countdown dates for ALL shows (Unless the show is unlimited forever).

2) Form a better co-marketing partnership with netflix. Rather than fighting it (and supporting it at the same time) find a partnership. Run promotions. DO SOMETHING to leverage the power. 23 million viewers is nothing to push aside.

3) Run promotions, back episodes more frequently. Instead of promoting usually lame "social network activities," SHOW THE frickING EPISODES (pardon my french). Hell, I've already watched the Paintball episode three times, most fans want to rewatch shows without having to DVR it and leave it there indefinitely OR download it and be a pirate.

DO.

SOMETHING.

But they just aren't grasping at social media with enough ferocity to really involve fans. But they would rather hold on to the status quo, squeeze every last penny out of broadcast and arse time in seats, and do nothing to cross-promote or open access.

Why do people watch TV? BECAUSE THEY WANT TO WATCH TV! Stop limiting them, grow some balls and pioneer some bigger, more available avenues for people to consume content.

Cool. Cool. Cool.

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One problem IMO is that the network fails to try and market the show to new viewers in this day in age.

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Really. Show web pages could be used to resell HuluPlus or NetFlix. You boost the ratings of the current show and generate revenue you never would have captured before by making it easy to access older episodes. Sometimes it feels like they aren't even trying to make money.

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I don't know why you'd think that the availability of streaming content on netflix wouldn't discourage DVD sales.

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I imagine that most of your DVD sales come from people who are already fans of the shows (and have already seen it). Most people aren't gonna buy the seasons on DVD if they haven't seen the show and aren't sure if they'll like the show or not.

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I hate to pick out one statement from a post like this, but I don't know why you'd think that the availability of streaming content on netflix wouldn't discourage DVD sales

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People rent DVDs if they just want to watch something. People that buy DVDs tend be adding to a collection. Hoarders gonna Hoard, even if they have NetFlix.