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Kids in the Hall: Comedy Punks

nytimes.com

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Re: Kids in the Hall: Comedy Punks

#33

Post by at_a_remove »

I was a fan of Kids in the Hall even during their whole pilot, which many might have missed. Look up "Brian's Bombshell" as an example.

My theory is that each member has some strengths they play to. Dave passes best as a young woman and is also fantastic as a glittery-eyed psychopath (Manservant Hecubus, Sarcastic Guy, etc). Mark is amazing at accents and really inhabiting a character (Dar-ryll). Scott, once he breaks out of his Buddy Cole, is wonderful as a beleaguered middle-aged woman, but he also makes for a fantastic Dumb Lunk (the Compensation skit) who can sell with physicality rather than lines, and a very good (no pun intended) straight man to seem ... average. Bruce can hit the depths of bizarre humor (the Sausages episode), can do an Everyman -- even if Canadian, and has the highest intensity ("Doors Fan"). Kevin has no sense of shame and can be relied upon to do anything that makes him seem foolish for a laugh ("Bass Player").

So far I have enjoyed the new episodes, including the ones that off-handedly referenced old skits like the "Dipping Areas." It is a bit meta so far, and somewhat melancholy as well, because it is rough seeing these guys get old. I am withholding judgment until I finish.

If you liked the original, you might find on YouTube all of the episodes of the short-lived Vacant Lot, with some similar humor and people you have seen in the periphery of shooting Kids in the Hall. At least one of their skits is a riff off of a Kids in the Hall skit ("Drunk Dad"), and I believe there were six or seven episodes.

Re: Kids in the Hall: Comedy Punks

#34

Post by paulsmith »

throw0101a wrote: post #22

In case anyone is curious, the theme song is "Having an Average Weekend" by Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet: * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuifllwrFe0 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadowy_Men_on_a_Shadowy_Plane... Live performance at Sled Island 2012 reunion show (at a Legion hall of course): * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmU3FYlRZNM

This theme song says “the 1990s” to me more strongly than almost any other.

Re: Kids in the Hall: Comedy Punks

#36

Post by stormbrew »

version_five wrote: post #29
davesque wrote: post #24

My favorite thing about Kids in the Hall was how it was somehow impossible to describe one of their skits to a friend and have it seem funny. And, to be clear, I mean this as a compliment. By the way, a couple of my favorite sketches: * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7ApuaJrtck (The Monkeys) * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOQBXA5CPEM (Mouse Killer)

Part of that I think is their humor is very niche, and I don't know how to describe the niche. I had friends who absolutely loved them, and I never found any of their stuff remotely funny. There is something either in the context that people were introduced to them, or in some subtelness of people's sense of humor that seems to completely make or break how they get perceived. Sort of like the comedy equivalent of Rus…

At it’s best it’s a very quintessentially Canadian sort of absurdism, but then you have to define Canadian. That said i think this is no less true of Monty Python which is really a very British kind of absurdism. Weirdly i feel like there’s no really good, singular American equivalent (certainly SNL isn’t it - Canada’s SNL is probably this hour has 22 minutes). Maybe like… In living color or something.

It rarely makes that Canadianyness explicit but then that’s kind of quintessentially Canadian too.

Re: Kids in the Hall: Comedy Punks

#37

Post by jmacd »

I grew up in rural Canada. I dumpster dove for a broken black and white television and spent over a month back and forth to the Radio Shack until I finally managed to fix it. The antenna was now a coat hangar, but I could tune it just fine.

My reward was... 1 channel of CBC (Canadian Broadcasting). With that 9 year old me could stay up late and watch The Munsters and Kids In The Hall.

I know every episode by heart. I can't do impressions of anyone, but I can do impressions of each character in the show. It's deeply ingrained in my brain. A lot of very young Canadians watched that show sans supervision and it opened out minds to a lot of ideas that otherwise were not accessible.

Re: Kids in the Hall: Comedy Punks

#39

Post by CharlesW »

stormbrew wrote: post #36
version_five wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Part of that I think is their humor is very niche, and I don't know how to describe the niche. I had friends who absolutely loved them, and I never found any of their stuff remotely funny. There is something either in the context that people were introduced to them, or in some subtelness of people's sense of humor that seems to completely make or break how they get perceived. Sort of like the comedy equivalent of Rus…

At it’s best it’s a very quintessentially Canadian sort of absurdism, but then you have to define Canadian. That said i think this is no less true of Monty Python which is really a very British kind of absurdism. Weirdly i feel like there’s no really good, singular American equivalent (certainly SNL isn’t it - Canada’s SNL is probably this hour has 22 minutes). Maybe like… In living color or something. It rarely make…

> Weirdly i feel like there’s no really good, singular American equivalent…

I recommend checking out The State: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8O9Eo-rlZZc

Re: Kids in the Hall: Comedy Punks

#40

Post by davesque »

version_five wrote: post #29
davesque wrote: post #24

My favorite thing about Kids in the Hall was how it was somehow impossible to describe one of their skits to a friend and have it seem funny. And, to be clear, I mean this as a compliment. By the way, a couple of my favorite sketches: * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7ApuaJrtck (The Monkeys) * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOQBXA5CPEM (Mouse Killer)

Part of that I think is their humor is very niche, and I don't know how to describe the niche. I had friends who absolutely loved them, and I never found any of their stuff remotely funny. There is something either in the context that people were introduced to them, or in some subtelness of people's sense of humor that seems to completely make or break how they get perceived. Sort of like the comedy equivalent of Rus…

I also love Rush :). And no, I'm not Canadian.
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