Line #62 Main/ToughRoom


1	->''"Wow, what a terrific audience."''
2	-->-- '''Jimmy''', ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark''
3
4	Characters who are constantly making witty jokes and wry observations, no matter how clever and funny they are, will not elicit more than a smile from the rest of the cast (except for maybe [[OnlyOneFindsItFun one person]], who's often [[TheHyena easily amused]]). Real people might consider them charmers, but in-universe they are seen as annoying losers.
5
6	There is good reason for this. Constantly chuckling characters would drive viewers insane (oddly, having a [[LaughTrack constantly chuckling audience]] has a similar effect but is far more common), especially if they're [[HumorDissonance laughing at a joke the viewer doesn't find funny.]] Even if the joke is funny, a good way to remove the humor from the situation is to script in a scene where everyone laughs at it.
7
8	Another reason this happens is that a lot of humor comes from it being unexpected. If you've read the script and rehearsed the scene a dozen times... it's jut not going to be funny any more. Rather than force an unnatural laugh, it's better to give a wry smile and let the scene continue. Writers and directors have found a way to avoid this, though it makes things more difficult; [[ActingInTheDark don't give anyone the full script]], so they'll end up reacting naturally.
9
10	Contrast {{Corpsing}}, especially if it's [[ThrowItIn left in the final cut]], and ActuallyPrettyFunny.
11
12	[[JustForFun/{{IThoughtItMeant}} Not to be interpreted as an actual tough room.]] [[note]]Or [[VideoGame/TheStanleyParable a serious one]][[/note]]
13	----
14	!!Examples:
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16	[[foldercontrol]]
17
18	[[folder:Advertising]]
19	* In an American Express commercial, Jerry Seinfeld performs in Britain and his stand up with American cultural idioms is met with stony silence. Fortunately, with his Amex card, he goes on a whirlwind cultural immersion and he creates a British savvy act that brings the house down.
20	[[/folder]]
21
22	[[folder:Comic Books]]
23	* Yorick from ''ComicBook/YTheLastMan'' peppers his speech with pop culture references, to which 355 reacts with indifference and Dr. Mann with snarkiness. This can be read as either an example or a subversion of the trope, depending on how funny you think he is.
24	* DependingOnTheWriter, the dialogue of ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} and ComicBook/SpiderMan can range from mildly amusing to absolutely hilarious, yet their peers tend to consider them TheFriendNobodyLikes.
25	[[/folder]]
26
27	[[folder:Fan Works]]
28	* ''Fanfic/TheNightmareHouse'', a fanfiction of ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'', subverts this. Nobody is laughing at Luan's jokes... because they're statues.
29	[[/folder]]
30
31	[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
32	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Hercules}}'': In his EstablishingCharacterMoment, Hades's sarcastic "hunk of moussaka stuck in [his] throat" joke isn't appreciated by his fellow gods, who are not very happy to see him, causing him to wonder if it's an "audience or a mosaic." On the flip side, the entire pantheon [[HypocriticalHumor bursts in laughter]] when Zeus made a similar pun about his workaholism, causing Hades to storm out in anger.
33	[[/folder]]
34
35	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
36	* In the classic film, ''Film/ANightAtTheOpera'', Groucho Marx's character improvises an opening speech at an opera theatre that in real life would have brought the house down with laughter and inspire thunderous applause for making a normally boring formality so entertaining, but in the film, evoked only stony silence.
37	* In the Marx's earlier film ''Film/MonkeyBusiness'' the director told the extras in the party scene to laugh when [[HarpoDoesSomethingFunny Harpo did something funny]] because he was afraid the movie's audience wouldn't laugh otherwise, thinking that there was something wrong with him.
38	* ''Film/AustinPowersInGoldmember'': In response to the silence when Dr. Evil makes a surprisingly good joke;
39	--> '''Dr. Evil''': "Gentlemen, welcome to my Submarine Lair. beat It's long, hard and full of seamen!"
40	--> Stony silence
41	--> '''Dr. Evil''': No? No? Not even a titter? Huh. Tough sub.
42	* [[Film/{{Arthur 1981}} Arthur Bach]], a FunPersonified [[LonelyRichKid millionaire playboy]], deals with this ''constantly'' and often finds himself the only one laughing -- and comments upon that. ("Tell me, has there been a death in your family? This is funny stuff here.") He drops the trope name when he visits his fiance's humorless father and can't make the butler or him crack a smile with his quips about such things as the stuffed-and-mounted moose head on the wall. "This is a tough room -- I don't need to tell you [the moose] that." One reason he and working-class Linda fall in love is because she ''does'' appreciate his sense of humor.
43	[[/folder]]
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45	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
46	* In ''Series/AreYouAfraidOfTheDark'' episode "Tale of the Dead Man's Float", Tucker's friend Stig tries to join the Midnight Society and tells the story of a sinister, pool-haunting Corpse, which ends up being the scariest story in the entire series. Unfortunately, despite the story being good, the Society vote has to be unanimous, and Stig didn't get it.
47	* Exception: Supporting characters on ''Series/{{Raines}}'' frequently smile or chuckle at the title character's one-liners.
48	* ''Series/SportsNight'' subverts this quite nicely with most characters, especially Danny. Whenever anyone makes a joke or just an amusing comment, the other characters actually laugh!
49	** This was actually first introduced as a way to hide the canned laughter showrunner Aaron Sorkin had been stuck within the early days of the series. He hated it, so for most of his funny lines, he tried to have a couple of characters just off camera so viewers could at least pretend that the canned laughter came from ''somewhere''. Later, when they were able to get rid of it, they kept the characters laughing at each others' jokes.
50	* Justified with John Crichton from ''Series/{{Farscape}}''. He makes a lot of references to American pop culture... [[FishOutOfWater to aliens]]. And they definitely [[AliensStealCable don't steal cable]]; none of them have any idea where Earth is. Even with [[UniversalTranslator Translator Microbes]] Crichton comes across as a lunatic constantly spouting nonsense.
51	-->'''D'argo''': Are you mocking me?
52	--> '''John''': D'argo, I mock all of us.
53	* Like RealisticDictionIsUnrealistic, this is more likely to be averted in {{Mockumentary}}/FauxDocumentary shows. [[Series/TheOfficeUK Ricky Gervais]] interviewed [[Series/CurbYourEnthusiasm Larry David]], and this trope was one of the things they talked about.
54	** And as you might expect, the trope is generally avoided in ''Series/CurbYourEnthusiasm'', and often in ''Seinfeld''.
55	* An example with something other than humour: in ''Series/CriminalMinds'', Reid is a walking encyclopedia who is always willing to share some kind of interesting fact with his teammates, but they never seem to want to hear it.
56	** Also an example that does involve humour, in the episode "Masterpiece", Reid tries to crack a LightBulbJoke about existentialism and it draws absolutely no laughs whatsoever. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] because Reid is telling the joke to an audience [[GeniusBonus that has no idea what he's talking about.]]
57	* In ''Series/{{Friends}}'', Chandler is sometimes acknowledged as funny by the others in early episodes, but they laugh less and less as the series goes on, suggesting they are getting tired of him. It doesn't help that most of his jokes are about them and their crises.
58	** His toast at Ross and Emily's wedding rehearsal dinner completely bombs, with the audience either not getting his jokes or just thinking they're too inappropriate to laugh at. Afterwards Monica claims she though it was funny, but didn't want to laugh out loud because then she'd look stupid.
59	* Although ''Series/{{House}}'' is almost always making sarcastic quips, none of the characters in-universe find them funny. Justified in that he's either mocking them or CrossingTheLineTwice at a patient's expense.
60	** They do occasionally avert this trope, but only when it's a plot point (as in the episode where Foreman [[spoiler:contracted an infection which made him giddy]]).
61	* ''Series/{{Mash}}'' has a lot of witty one-liners, mostly done by Hawkeye, but there weren't many times when people were laughing. Most probably because the [[WarIsHell situation]] they were in and Hawkeye was like an early Chandler.
62	* This is noticeably averted in ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'', where this trope is a pet peeve of the writers. Anytime a character on the show is intentionally telling a joke, only the actor playing the character telling the joke is told the joke beforehand. Thus, the other characters listening to the joke will laugh, or at least smirk, at the joke since [[EnforcedMethodActing this is the first time the other actors have heard it.]]
63	** They sometimes even include "games" to keep the actors on their toes, such as Colbie Smoulders being free to use as many "No's" as she wants in response to someone thinking [[SheIsNotMyGirlfriend Robin and Barney are a couple]], Neil Patrick Harris had to keep track of the number and include it in his response. The scene as aired only had 16, but a HilariousOuttake had him say "Really? ''[[OverlyLongGag 35 'No's!']]''" and everyone broke down laughing.
64	* Series/{{Castle\|2009}}'s quips are largely ignored, especially in the earlier seasons. As the show went on and the cops became more acclimated to Castle's presence, they started to crack a smile now and then, and now Ryan and Esposito sometimes [[NotSoAboveItAll join in]] when Castle launches into his [[{{Pun}} lame puns]].
65	* Strictly invoked [[PlayedForLaughs for]] [[{{Irony}} laughs]] in a ''Series/WhoseLineIsItAnyway'' parody (this time titled "''Whose Idea Was This Anyway''") on mid-to-early ''Series/MadTV1995'': When the cameras cut to Drew Carey (played by Creator/WillSasso), who is trying to elicit a laugh from the audience (who are actually the real audience for ''Series/MadTV1995''), no one does so. (...except for a few close to the back who are {{Corpsing}}.)
66	* ''Series/MythBusters'': Any room that has only [[FunPersonified Adam]] and [[TheStoic Jamie]] will ''generally'' be this when Adam goes into his usual antics. Occasionally, though, [[NotSoStoic Jamie will have trouble keeping his composure]].
67	* While ''Series/TheThickOfIt'' does use ActuallyPrettyFunny quite a lot, too--it's set in a very aggressive environment where being funnier than everyone around you is both a survival strategy and proof of dominance--it's worth pointing out that even characters treated by everyone else as stupid (like ManChild Phil) or annoying (BeleagueredBureaucrat Terri) are all far, far funnier, wittier and quicker than anyone could possibly be in real life. This comes under AcceptableBreaksFromReality in that these characterizations are expressed instead by the ''quality'' of their observations, rather than not having them make them (for instance, the other Coalition politicians disgustedly remark that all of Phil's clever references and comparisons are to fiction, usually fantasy fiction (''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings''), fiction aimed at children (''Series/DoctorWho''), or both (''Literature/HarryPotter''). It's also played within that even though Malcolm is acknowledged in-universe as an incredibly funny person, most other characters are [[TheDreaded far too terrified of him]] to dare laugh at anything he does most of the time.
68	** There's one scene where the name of Ollie's favourite film temporarily slips Malcolm's mind and so he describes it as "the one about the fucking hairdresser, the [[RecycledINSPACE space hairdresser]] and the cowboy. He's got a tinfoil pal and a pedal bin. His father's a robot and he's fuckin' [[BrotherSisterIncest fucked his sister]]. Franchise/{{LEGO}}, they're all made of fucking LEGO." Even after Ollie figures out what the film is ([[spoiler:''Franchise/StarWars'']]), he reacts with bewilderment and mild annoyance instead of the hysterical laughter this would more likely cause.
69	* In ''Series/TheFreshPrinceOfBelAir'', Will attends the funeral of Uncle Phil's former mentor turned political rival, a cantankerous and perverted creep [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor who died when Will shouted at him to drop dead]]. When it turns out that all the "mourners" there [[LastDisrespects hated the man and are just there to make sure he's really dead]], a guilty Will chews them out. One demands to know who he is; Will says "I'm the dude that killed him", causing the room to erupt with applause. Will drops this trope's name in response, and Uncle Phil readily agrees.
70	* Nick Di Paolo encounters this in Series/{{Louie}} when he attempts to lay one on the then-recently elected Barack Obama. He takes out his resentment at what he perceives as WhiteGuilt on Louie himself.
71	* ''Series/DoctorWho'': In the episode "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS33E2DinosaursOnASpaceship Dinosaurs on a Spaceship]]," the Doctor shows Rory and Rory's father how to pilot a spaceship designed for Silurians; essentially, LizardFolk.
72	-->'''The Doctor:''' The controls are straightforward; even a monkey could use them! Oh look, they're going to!\
73	''[{{beat}}]''\
74	'''The Doctor:''' Guys, come on, comedy gold! Where's a ''Silurian'' audience when you need one!
75	* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1985'': In "Take My Life...Please!", the stand-up comedian Billy Diamond performs his usual act for a crowd as soon as he arrives in the afterlife but none of them even crack a smile. It soon becomes clear to him that he is in {{Hell}} and [[IronicHell that the only way to make the audience laugh is to tell them all of the horrible things that he has done in his life]]. His new agent Max tells him that he has been booked to perform this act for the next two eons, possibly more.
76	* Averted on ''Series/TedLasso'', where characters frequently laugh at each other's jokes. It's a subtle but effective way to demonstrate the show's emphasis on positivity and relationships. One of the earliest signs that Ted is winning over the other characters is that they are consistently amused by his jokes and wordplay.
77	* Averted for a special reason on ''Series/BoyMeetsWorld'', where the characters often express amusement at Eric's physical comedy. This is because the ''actors'' are {{corpsing}} at Creator/WillFriedle's antics and ad-libs, which is then left in. Friedle and Creator/RiderStrong cracked each other up so much that they couldn't even have scenes together because they ruined too many takes with their corpsing!
78	[[/folder]]
79
80	[[folder:Newspaper Comics]]
81	* This is common in ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes''. There are times when you wonder if the title characters are the only people with imagination or a sense of humour in the entire town. One of the more obvious examples is Calvin's mom's comment on how people are moving out of the neighborhood because they find Calvin's snowmen disgusting. In real life, the sheer amount of creativity and [[BrilliantButLazy work]] Calvin puts in them would net the area frequent visitors every winter and probably attract some attention in the media about a kid with such artistic talent.
82	[[/folder]]
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84	[[folder:Stand-Up Comedy]]
85	* Comedian Creator/RodneyDangerfield would often incorporate a "tough crowd" into his stand-up comedy, pulling at his necktie and sweating along with self-deprecating humor, as part of his signature style.
86	* Part of Creator/StewartLee's SignatureStyle is to point out when an audience doesn't laugh enough at a joke (usually an intentionally bad one), scold them, and [[DontExplainTheJoke explain it to them]]. All in the name of StylisticSuck, of course.
87	* Creator/BillBurr weathered an eleven-minute set of this in the "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jMhoGUiIkk Philadelphia Incident]]," insulting the crowd [[TheHeckler for booing the previous comics]] to the point they just [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere walked offstage rather than suffer the abuse]], and literally counted down how much time was left in his set every so often. By the end of it, [[VillainRespect a few of the Hecklers were instead cheering Burr]] for his RefugeInAudacity.
88	[[/folder]]
89
90	[[folder:Video Games]]
91	* ''VideoGame/Beacon2018'': Parodied in Hard difficulty's description mentioning enemies having a reduced chance to laugh at your jokes:
92	--> '''Hard:''' Looking for a challenge? Enemies are more numerous, deal more damage, and are less likely to laugh politely at your jokes, even if you look like you need a win.
93	* ''VideoGame/LeisureSuitLarry1InTheLandOfTheLoungeLizards'': The comedian tries to tell jokes to people in the cabaret room, but nobody laughs at them (probably because nobody is sitting there except for Larry sometimes). He will complain about it with remarks like "Tough crowd. Tough crowd."
94	[[/folder]]
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96	[[folder:Webcomics]]
97	* In ''Webcomic/QuestionableContent'', [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2465 Claire's pun]] is met with a BeatPanel and abrupt change of topic.
98	[[/folder]]
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100	[[folder:Western Animation]]
101	* In ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', Aang tells Bumi that he comes from "Kangaroo Island". Bumi replies "Kangaroo Island? I hear that place is really hopping!" After a long {{Beat}} Sokka bursts out laughing.
102	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Bluey}}'': In "The Pool", Bluey and Bingo start to get bored while waiting for the shade to grow bigger so they can play in the pool without sunscreen. Cue Bandit trying to cheer them up with a twist to the classic dad joke:
103	--> '''Bluey''': I'm bored!\
104	'''Bandit''': Hi "Bored", nice to meet you!\
105	'''Bluey''': ''[groans]''\
106	'''Bingo''': I'm hungry!\
107	'''Bandit''': Oh hello, "Hungry", this is "Bored"!\
108	'''Bingo''': ''[groans]''\
109	'''Bandit''': Ooh, tough crowd...
110	* Numbuh Two in ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'' often finds his attempts at {{One Liner}}s met with groans, complains, [[LamePunReaction or outright assault]] from his fellow agents (especially Numbuh Five).
111	* The Flash in ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' is sometimes deliberately subject to this trope. He's surrounded by a number of ComicallySerious characters, and he tends to have a [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] sense of humor. When he gets his DayInTheLimelight, the audience finds out he's actually quite capable of being serious and practical.
112	* ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'' examples:
113	** ''WesternAnimation/BugsBunny'' finds himself dealing with this in ''Hot Cross Bunny''. Thinking that the operation theatre was a stage, he performs an impressive impression, dance, and magic act only to be met with [[http://i.imgur.com/Z77mlKS.jpg the same stern silence from the audience of doctors]]. ("What a tough audience! It ain't like Saint Joe!")
114	** In "Night of the Living Duck", Daffy dreams he's about to perform in at a nightclub where the audience, is made up of famous monsters, mostly the UniversalMonsters "Gee, tough audience!" he quips. Fortunately, he finds a bottle of "Eu de Torme", that lets him sing like Mel Torme (who does his singing voice in the cartoon) and he's a hit.
115	* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'':
116	** In "Baby Cakes" Pinkie Pie attempts to cheer up the crying Cake Twins with a standup act. This elicits ChirpingCrickets, and Pinkie dropping the trope name.
117	** In "Make New Friends and Keep Discord", Discord attempts to hijack the Grand Galloping Gala with standup comedy. Similar to Pinkie, he references the trope when it doesn't get the response he wants. Even worse, it's Maud Pie's deadpan heckling of him that gets the laughs.
118	--->'''Discord:''' [[CallBack Tough crowd]].
119	*** However, the joke about [[TheHero Twilight Sparkle]] being [[CaptainCrash terrible at flying]] does [[ActuallyPrettyFunny elicit a chuckle]] from [[BigGood Princess Celestia.]]
120	* Krusty the Clown of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' might be an example of this. He tends to alternate between this trope and SoUnfunnyItsFunny.
121	-->'''Krusty''': How d'you make the King ''Lear''? Put the Queen in a bikini! ''(gets booed)'' Whoa, tough crowd! [[ComicallyMissingThePoint They're booing]] ''[[TheBard Shakespeare!]]''
122	[[/folder]]
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Context Main / ToughRoom