History Main / Punchline

* One of the best known examples of a punchline, "[[ChickenJoke To get to the other side!]]", is actually meant to be an example of AntiHumor. Few people realize it now, but it was a subversion of older iterations of the joke. Most people hear it before they are old enough to have come to expect the typical conventions of a joke (like a punch line), so the joke is simply [[SeinfeldIsUnfunny unfunny]].

That which ends the joke and makes it funny. This is where dodgy {{Sitcom}}s cue the LaughTrack. And kitschy comedians get the {{rimshot}}. And bad {{pun}}s get the CollectiveGroan. In other words, it's the comedy equivalent of a TwistEnding: the surprising payoff to the StraightMan's line.

[[AC:{{Film}}]]
* Averted in Creator/SeltzerAndFriedberg "comedies".

->''"A punchline should be equated to an actual punch in the face. That's why it's called a punch-line. You deliver it and run. [[DontExplainTheJoke You do not hang around explaining how you did the punch]] and that the recipient [[{{Metaphorgotten}} should probably be in a lot of pain now.]]"''

* In Chapter 338 of ''Manga/MahouSenseiNegima'', Negi once {{lampshaded}} it after sneezing on Chisame.

* RuleOfThree: In a common joke formula, the punchline appears as the third item on a list.

->''"A punchline should be equated to an actual punch in the face. That's why it's called a punch-line. You deliver it and run. You do not hang around explaining how you did the punch and that the recipient should probably be in a lot of pain now."''

If somebody CannotTellAJoke, this is the part they're most likely to forget.[[note]]If somebody cannot take a joke, this is the part they're most likely to make the other fellow wish they ''could'' forget.[[/note]] Or it may take the hearer a long time to figure out the point, making them LateToThePunchline. When it works, however, it's responsible for a very good many SugarWiki/FunnyMoments.

Compare OneTwoPunchline and EscalatingPunchline. If a punchline appears without the rest of the joke, it's an OrphanedPunchline. If the rest of the joke appears without the punchline, it's an OrphanedSetup. If the joke appears to be setting up one punchline but then goes for another, that's SubvertedPunchline. On the other hand, the punchline can be left for you to figure out on your own; that's a StealthPun.

Compare and contrast with its dramatic cousin, the WhamLine.

Not to be confused with the 1988 film starring Creator/SallyField and Creator/TomHanks or the 2015 [[Anime/PunchLine anime]].

* In Music/PDQBach's choral cantata "Knock, Knock," punchlines are sung by the chorus after the setup has been delivered in recitative.

* One of the best known examples of a punchline, "To get to the other side!", is actually meant to be an example of AntiHumor. Few people realize it now, but it was a subversion of older iterations of the joke. Most people hear it before they are old enough to have come to expect the typical conventions of a joke (like a punch line), so the joke is simply [[SeinfeldIsUnfunny unfunny]].

* ''Series/TheFastShow''`s core concept is an inversion of the Python type approach, instead being practically ''all'' punchlines with very little lead-up. This was also sometimes used by ''NotTheNineOClockNews'' and its {{Spiritual Successor}}s, but interspersed in between more conventional sketches.

** They did occasionally do a conventional punchline if they thought of one that worked well. The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGrvQ1c5khU ''Nudge, Nudge'']] sketch is a good example.