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* HarsherInHindsight: In the episode "Massage Chair" when Mr. James has Dave cut the budget to the free snacks in the break room, Bill leads a revolt (more of a protest really) against Dave. Later in "Twins", it is revealed that Bill is actually the cause of the stations budget problems ([[spoiler: being that he somehow convinced Jimmy to pay him SIXTEEN TIMES his paycheck]]).

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* HarsherInHindsight: In the episode "Massage Chair" when Mr. James has Dave cut the budget to the free snacks in the break room, Bill leads a revolt (more of a protest really) against Dave. Later in "Twins", it is revealed that Bill is actually the cause of the stations budget problems ([[spoiler: being ([[spoiler:being that he somehow convinced Jimmy to pay him SIXTEEN TIMES sixteen times his paycheck]]).

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"Idiot Plot" is now Flame Bait.


** In [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin ''President'']], Jimmy James, with no prior political experience, decides to run for president on a whim, using vague and populist slogans and insisting he's an "everyman" despite using his immense wealth to fund his campaign. [[StatusQuoIsGod He drops out]] after revealing he has an ulterior motive to running: [[spoiler: to meet women]]. This episode contains several accidental parallels to Donald Trump's 2016 campaign, almost seeming like a parody 20 years before its time.

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** In [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin ''President'']], ''[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin President]]'', Jimmy James, with no prior political experience, decides to run for president on a whim, using vague and populist slogans and insisting he's an "everyman" despite using his immense wealth to fund his campaign. [[StatusQuoIsGod He drops out]] after revealing he has an ulterior motive to running: [[spoiler: to meet women]]. This episode contains several accidental parallels to Donald Trump's 2016 campaign, almost seeming like a parody 20 years before its time.



* IdiotPlot: [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] [[PlayedForLaughs for laughs]] of course. In "Complaint Box" Joe and Catherine are trying to use a homemade recording device that Joe made. They spend the entire episode trying to figure out what is making the noise they are picking up, only to realize the noise is coming from the recorder itself. Joe then exclaims his last homemade recording device had the exact same problem.
** Played straight in "Space". When Beth finds a problem with the station's reactor core, Dave tells her to wake up Joe to take a look at it. Since Joe is way too proud to admit that he doesn't know what he's doing, he just hits the reactor over and over again with a hammer, resulting in [[spoiler:the station being at risk of exploding. This leads to everyone being put in suspended animation, which leads to Matthew accidently killing everyone but himself and Bill]]. Considering both Beth and Dave suggest calling a specialist to Joe instead of trying to fix it himself and that he has been in suspended animation for the past 83 years, that begs the question, why did they even bother waking up Joe in the first place?
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** Could also be considered a SpiritualSuccessor to ''Series/WKRPInCincinnati''.

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** %%** Could also be considered a SpiritualSuccessor to ''Series/WKRPInCincinnati''.
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* RetroactiveRecognition: Creator/JonStewart, Creator/PattonOswalt, Creator/BenStiller, Creator/DavidCross and Creator/BobOdenkirk all made guest appearances of varying importance on the show before they were more widely known. For younger viewers, they're likely to see this show and think, "Hey, is that the host of ''Series/FearFactor''[=/=][[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionship UFC]]?"

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* RetroactiveRecognition: Creator/JonStewart, Creator/PattonOswalt, Creator/BenStiller, Creator/DavidCross and Creator/BobOdenkirk all made guest appearances of varying importance on the show before they were more widely known. For younger viewers, they're likely to see this show and think, "Hey, is that [[Creator/JoeRogan that]] the host of ''Series/FearFactor''[=/=][[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionship UFC]]?"
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* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: In "Space", there is an unseen small alien in Dave's office that him and Lisa panic about for a minute until Jimmy squishes it with a dictionary. It happens right before the end, itdoesn't connect to anything before or after, and it doesn't get brought up again.

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* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: In "Space", there is an unseen small alien in Dave's office that him and Lisa panic about for a minute until Jimmy squishes it with a dictionary. It happens right before the end, itdoesn't it doesn't connect to anything before or after, and it doesn't get brought up again.
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* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: In "Space", there is an unseen small alien in Dave's office that him and Lisa panic about for a minute until Jimmy squishes it with a dictionary. It happens right before the end, itdoesn't connect to anything before or after, and it doesn't get brought up again.


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* {{Padding}}: The alien scene in "Space" (see BigLippedAlligatorMoment).

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** In "Chock", Bob Odenkirk's character states that he quit the law firm to get the a capella group back together. [[Series/BetterCallSaul Hmm, Bob Odenkirk working at a law firm?]]
* IdiotPlot: PlayedForLaughs of course. In "Complaint Box" Joe and Catherine are trying to use a homemade recording device that Joe made. They spend the entire episode trying to figure out what is making the noise they are picking up, only to realize the nosie is coming from the recorder itself. Joe then exclaims his last homemade recording device had the exace same problem.

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** In "Chock", Bob Odenkirk's character states that he quit the law firm to get the a capella group back together. [[Series/BetterCallSaul Hmm, Bob Odenkirk working at a law firm?]]
* IdiotPlot: PlayedForLaughs [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] [[PlayedForLaughs for laughs]] of course. In "Complaint Box" Joe and Catherine are trying to use a homemade recording device that Joe made. They spend the entire episode trying to figure out what is making the noise they are picking up, only to realize the nosie noise is coming from the recorder itself. Joe then exclaims his last homemade recording device had the exace exact same problem.problem.
** Played straight in "Space". When Beth finds a problem with the station's reactor core, Dave tells her to wake up Joe to take a look at it. Since Joe is way too proud to admit that he doesn't know what he's doing, he just hits the reactor over and over again with a hammer, resulting in [[spoiler:the station being at risk of exploding. This leads to everyone being put in suspended animation, which leads to Matthew accidently killing everyone but himself and Bill]]. Considering both Beth and Dave suggest calling a specialist to Joe instead of trying to fix it himself and that he has been in suspended animation for the past 83 years, that begs the question, why did they even bother waking up Joe in the first place?
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* FridgeBrilliance: In the episode "Twins", it's revealed that Bill is the real cause of the budget shortage by [[spoiler:convincing Jimmy to pay him sixteen times what he should be paid. The lowest average salary of a radio personality is about $30,000. Assuming Bill was being paid the lowest amount at first (which he almost certainly was not), his new salary would have been $480,000, nearly one hundred thousand more than the maximum broadcasters are paid]]. No wonder WNYX was hemorrhaging money.

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* FridgeBrilliance: In the episode "Twins", it's revealed that Bill is the real cause of the budget shortage by [[spoiler:convincing Jimmy to pay him sixteen times what he should be paid. The lowest average salary of a radio personality is about $30,000.$30,000 per year. Assuming Bill was being paid the lowest amount at first (which he almost certainly was not), his new salary would have been $480,000, nearly one hundred thousand more than the maximum broadcasters are paid]]. No wonder WNYX was hemorrhaging money.
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* FridgeBrilliance: In the episode "Twins", it's revealed that Bill is the real cause of the budget shortage by [[spoiler:convincing Jimmy to pay him sixteen times what he should be payed. The lowest average salary of a radio personality is about 30,000 dollars. Assuming Bill was being payed the lowest amount at first (which no way was he), he had Jimmy start paying him 480,000 dollars (nearly one hundred thousand more than the maximum broadcasters are payed)]]. No wonder WNYX was hemorrhaging money.

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* FridgeBrilliance: In the episode "Twins", it's revealed that Bill is the real cause of the budget shortage by [[spoiler:convincing Jimmy to pay him sixteen times what he should be payed. paid. The lowest average salary of a radio personality is about 30,000 dollars. $30,000. Assuming Bill was being payed paid the lowest amount at first (which no way he almost certainly was he), he had Jimmy start paying him 480,000 dollars (nearly not), his new salary would have been $480,000, nearly one hundred thousand more than the maximum broadcasters are payed)]].paid]]. No wonder WNYX was hemorrhaging money.

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* HarsherInHindsight: In the episode "Massage Chair" when Mr. James has Dave cut the budget to the free snacks in the break room, Bill leads a revolt (more of a protest really) against Dave. In a later episode, it is revealed that Bill is actually the cause of the stations budget problems ([[spoiler: being that he somehow convinced Jimmy to pay him SIXTEEN TIMES his paycheck]]).

to:

* FridgeBrilliance: In the episode "Twins", it's revealed that Bill is the real cause of the budget shortage by [[spoiler:convincing Jimmy to pay him sixteen times what he should be payed. The lowest average salary of a radio personality is about 30,000 dollars. Assuming Bill was being payed the lowest amount at first (which no way was he), he had Jimmy start paying him 480,000 dollars (nearly one hundred thousand more than the maximum broadcasters are payed)]]. No wonder WNYX was hemorrhaging money.
* HarsherInHindsight: In the episode "Massage Chair" when Mr. James has Dave cut the budget to the free snacks in the break room, Bill leads a revolt (more of a protest really) against Dave. In a later episode, Later in "Twins", it is revealed that Bill is actually the cause of the stations budget problems ([[spoiler: being that he somehow convinced Jimmy to pay him SIXTEEN TIMES his paycheck]]).



** There are multiple references to violent deaths and crazy girlfriends. Including but not limited to; "You're just like Linda, EXCEPT CRAZY!", "Does it involve a gun with a built-in mouth piece?", "She tried to set fire to my hair while I slept. As if that wasn't bad enough, two weeks later she breaks up with me.", an episode ends with him realizing that a stalker has cut the brake line of his car ("CHECK YOUR BRAKES"), said stalker at one point saying "You're a dead man Bill [=McNeal=]", a psychic tells him he WILL live a ridiculously long time. Jokes about the death of other characters are few and far between. [The example mentioned above about Dave, two references to Jimmy jumping out the window, in the dreams episode, and in the episode where he is in a fight with Beth.]

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** There are multiple references to violent deaths and crazy girlfriends. Including but not limited to; "You're just like Linda, EXCEPT CRAZY!", "Does it involve a gun with a built-in mouth piece?", mouthpiece?", "She tried to set fire to my hair while I slept. As if that wasn't bad enough, two weeks later she breaks up with me.", an episode ends with him realizing that a stalker has cut the brake line of his car ("CHECK YOUR BRAKES"), said stalker at one point saying "You're a dead man Bill [=McNeal=]", a psychic tells him he WILL live a ridiculously long time. Jokes about the death of other characters are few and far between. [The example mentioned above about Dave, two references to Jimmy jumping out the window, in the dreams episode, and in the episode where he is in a fight with Beth.]
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* IdiotPlot: PlayedForLaughs of course. In "Complaint Box" Joe and Catherine are trying to use a homemade recording device that Joe made. They spend the entire episode trying to figure out what is making the noise they are picking up, only to realize the nosie is coming from the recorder itself. Joe then exclaims his last homemade recording device had the exace same problem.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
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* UnintentionallySympathetic: In "Luncheon at the Waldorf", after Beth kisses Bill, he goes on and on about how violated and unsafe he feels. While the tone implies that he is exaggerating for laughs, Beth's description of the kiss sounds very similar to sexual assault. Even if Beth was just swept up in the moment, Bill's attitude is not that far-fetched. It doesn't help that the station was worried about Bill making some sort of pass at Beth [[DoubleStandard but just seems to be confused that she would try something]].

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* UnintentionallySympathetic: In "Luncheon at the Waldorf", after Beth kisses Bill, he goes on and on about how violated and unsafe he feels. While the The tone of the episode implies that he is exaggerating we are supposed to see it as an exaggeration for laughs, laughs. However, Beth's actual description of the kiss sounds very similar tantamount to a sexual assault. Even if Beth was just swept up in the moment, Bill's attitude is not that far-fetched.of feeling violated in completely valid. It doesn't help that the station was worried about Bill making some sort of pass at Beth [[DoubleStandard but just seems to be confused that she would try something]].



** Matthew in "Big Day". While we are supposed to agree with Dave that no one should get the shaft (no bonus) and that Matthew especially shouldn't because getting the shaft for three years has hurt his feelings a whole lot. However, later episodes show that Matthew does little to no actual work, to a point that it's clear that the only reason he is still allowed to work at WNYX is that everyone is friends there. In fact, even in the episode itself, Matthew admits to often coming in late and leaving early. That being the case, Matthew doesn't really deserve a bonus.
** And again, when Matthew got fired, he didn't make it easy to feel bad for him considering that, by the time he was actually fired he was spending most of each day playing solitaire instead of working. Even when he eventually gets hired back, he doesn't really make any effort to do anything differently.

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** Matthew in "Big Day". While we are supposed to agree with Dave that no one should get the shaft (no bonus) and that Matthew especially shouldn't because getting the shaft for three years has hurt his feelings a whole lot. However, later episodes show that Matthew does little to no actual work, to a point that it's clear that the only reason he is still allowed to work has a job at WNYX is that everyone he is friends with everyone there. In fact, even in the episode itself, Matthew admits to often coming in late and leaving early. That being the case, Matthew doesn't really deserve a bonus.
** And again, when Matthew got fired, he didn't make it easy to feel bad for him considering that, by the time he was actually fired fired, he was spending most if not all of each day his time at work playing solitaire instead of working. Even when he eventually gets hired back, he doesn't really make any effort to do anything differently.

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* FunnyAneurysmMoment: Creator/PhilHartman's last scene on the show before he was murdered made light of the apparent death of one of his fellow cast members.
** The entire series is one long funny aneurysm moment. There are multiple references to violent deaths and crazy girlfriends. Including but not limited to; "You're just like Linda, EXCEPT CRAZY!", "Does it involve a gun with a built-in mouth piece?", "She tried to set fire to my hair while I slept. As if that wasn't bad enough, two weeks later she breaks up with me.", an episode ends with him realizing that a stalker has cut the brake line of his car ("CHECK YOUR BRAKES"), said stalker at one point saying "You're a dead man Bill [=McNeal=]", a psychic tells him he WILL live a ridiculously long time. Jokes about the death of other characters are few and far between. [The example mentioned above about Dave, two references to Jimmy jumping out the window, in the dreams episode, and in the episode where he is in a fight with Beth.]
** Somewhat subverted in the {{Bizarro Episode}}s "Space" and "Sinking Ship" where [[spoiler: everyone dies except for Bill and Matthew]].
** In the season 3 HalloweenEpisode, a psychic reads Bill's palm and predicts his future, she predicts that Bill will die on March 8, 2032 at 4:20 PM. In actuality, Creator/PhilHartman was killed on May 28, 1998, shortly after wrapping up season 4 by his wife Brynn, who [[AteHisGun later turning the gun on herself]]; later that year his character Bill [=McNeil=] [[TheCharacterDiedWithHim died of a heart attack off-screen]].
** Any jokes about crazy girlfriends can also be hard to take when one remembers how badly Dave Foley suffered from his divorce settlements after the series ended.


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** Creator/PhilHartman's last scene on the show before he was murdered made light of the apparent death of one of his fellow cast members.
** There are multiple references to violent deaths and crazy girlfriends. Including but not limited to; "You're just like Linda, EXCEPT CRAZY!", "Does it involve a gun with a built-in mouth piece?", "She tried to set fire to my hair while I slept. As if that wasn't bad enough, two weeks later she breaks up with me.", an episode ends with him realizing that a stalker has cut the brake line of his car ("CHECK YOUR BRAKES"), said stalker at one point saying "You're a dead man Bill [=McNeal=]", a psychic tells him he WILL live a ridiculously long time. Jokes about the death of other characters are few and far between. [The example mentioned above about Dave, two references to Jimmy jumping out the window, in the dreams episode, and in the episode where he is in a fight with Beth.]
** Somewhat subverted in the {{Bizarro Episode}}s "Space" and "Sinking Ship" where [[spoiler: everyone dies except for Bill and Matthew]].
** In the season 3 HalloweenEpisode, a psychic reads Bill's palm and predicts his future, she predicts that Bill will die on March 8, 2032 at 4:20 PM. In actuality, Creator/PhilHartman was killed on May 28, 1998, shortly after wrapping up season 4 by his wife Brynn, who [[AteHisGun later turning the gun on herself]]; later that year his character Bill [=McNeil=] [[TheCharacterDiedWithHim died of a heart attack off-screen]].
** Any jokes about crazy girlfriends can also be hard to take when one remembers how badly Dave Foley suffered from his divorce settlements after the series ended.
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* Unintentionally Sympathetic: In "Luncheon at the Waldorf", after Beth kisses Bill, he goes on and on about how violated and unsafe he feels. While the tone implies that he is exaggerating for laughs, Beth's description of the kiss sounds very similar to sexual assault. Even if Beth was just swept up in the moment, Bill's attitude is not that far-fetched. It doesn't help that the station was worried about Bill making some sort of pass at Beth [[DoubleStandard but just seems to be confused that she would try something]].
* Unintentionally Unsympathetic:

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* Unintentionally Sympathetic: UnintentionallySympathetic: In "Luncheon at the Waldorf", after Beth kisses Bill, he goes on and on about how violated and unsafe he feels. While the tone implies that he is exaggerating for laughs, Beth's description of the kiss sounds very similar to sexual assault. Even if Beth was just swept up in the moment, Bill's attitude is not that far-fetched. It doesn't help that the station was worried about Bill making some sort of pass at Beth [[DoubleStandard but just seems to be confused that she would try something]].
* Unintentionally Unsympathetic:UnintentionallyUnsympathetic:
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Added DiffLines:

* Unintentionally Sympathetic: In "Luncheon at the Waldorf", after Beth kisses Bill, he goes on and on about how violated and unsafe he feels. While the tone implies that he is exaggerating for laughs, Beth's description of the kiss sounds very similar to sexual assault. Even if Beth was just swept up in the moment, Bill's attitude is not that far-fetched. It doesn't help that the station was worried about Bill making some sort of pass at Beth [[DoubleStandard but just seems to be confused that she would try something]].
* Unintentionally Unsympathetic:
** Matthew in "Big Day". While we are supposed to agree with Dave that no one should get the shaft (no bonus) and that Matthew especially shouldn't because getting the shaft for three years has hurt his feelings a whole lot. However, later episodes show that Matthew does little to no actual work, to a point that it's clear that the only reason he is still allowed to work at WNYX is that everyone is friends there. In fact, even in the episode itself, Matthew admits to often coming in late and leaving early. That being the case, Matthew doesn't really deserve a bonus.
** And again, when Matthew got fired, he didn't make it easy to feel bad for him considering that, by the time he was actually fired he was spending most of each day playing solitaire instead of working. Even when he eventually gets hired back, he doesn't really make any effort to do anything differently.
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None

Added DiffLines:

* HarsherInHindsight: In the episode "Massage Chair" when Mr. James has Dave cut the budget to the free snacks in the break room, Bill leads a revolt (more of a protest really) against Dave. In a later episode, it is revealed that Bill is actually the cause of the stations budget problems ([[spoiler: being that he somehow convinced Jimmy to pay him SIXTEEN TIMES his paycheck]]).
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


** In the season 3 HalloweenEpisode, a psychic reads Bill's palm and predicts his future, she predicts that Bill will die on March 8, 2032 at 4:20 PM. In actuality, Creator/PhilHartman was killed on May 28, 1998, shortly after wrapping up season 4 by his wife Brynn, who[[AteHisGun later turning the gun on herself]]; later that year his character Bill [=McNeil=] [[TheCharacterDiedWithHim died of a heart attack off-screen]].

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** In the season 3 HalloweenEpisode, a psychic reads Bill's palm and predicts his future, she predicts that Bill will die on March 8, 2032 at 4:20 PM. In actuality, Creator/PhilHartman was killed on May 28, 1998, shortly after wrapping up season 4 by his wife Brynn, who[[AteHisGun who [[AteHisGun later turning the gun on herself]]; later that year his character Bill [=McNeil=] [[TheCharacterDiedWithHim died of a heart attack off-screen]].
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** In the season 3 HalloweenEpisode, a psychic reads Bill's palm and predicts his future, she predicts that Bill will die on March 8, 2032 at 4:20 PM. In actuality, Creator/PhilHartman was killed by his wife Brynn on May 28, 1998, shortly after wrapping up season 4 before [[AteHisGun later turning the gun on herself]]; later that year his character Bill [=McNeil=] [[TheCharacterDiedWithHim died of a heart attack off-screen]].

to:

** In the season 3 HalloweenEpisode, a psychic reads Bill's palm and predicts his future, she predicts that Bill will die on March 8, 2032 at 4:20 PM. In actuality, Creator/PhilHartman was killed by his wife Brynn on May 28, 1998, shortly after wrapping up season 4 before [[AteHisGun 4 by his wife Brynn, who[[AteHisGun later turning the gun on herself]]; later that year his character Bill [=McNeil=] [[TheCharacterDiedWithHim died of a heart attack off-screen]].
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** In the season 3 HalloweenEpisode, a psychic reads Bill's palm and predicts his future, she predicts that Bill will die on March 8, 2032 at 4:20 PM. In actuality, Creator/PhilHartman was killed by his wife Brynn on May 28, 1998, after wrapping up season 4, who [[AteHisGun later turned the gun on herself]]; later that year his character Bill [=McNeil=] [[TheCharacterDiedWithHim died of a heart attack off-screen]].

to:

** In the season 3 HalloweenEpisode, a psychic reads Bill's palm and predicts his future, she predicts that Bill will die on March 8, 2032 at 4:20 PM. In actuality, Creator/PhilHartman was killed by his wife Brynn on May 28, 1998, shortly after wrapping up season 4, who 4 before [[AteHisGun later turned turning the gun on herself]]; later that year his character Bill [=McNeil=] [[TheCharacterDiedWithHim died of a heart attack off-screen]].
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None

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** In the season 3 HalloweenEpisode, a psychic reads Bill's palm and predicts his future, she predicts that Bill will die on March 8, 2032 at 4:20 PM. In actuality, Creator/PhilHartman was killed by his wife Brynn on May 28, 1998, after wrapping up season 4, who [[AteHisGun later turned the gun on herself]]; later that year his character Bill [=McNeil=] [[TheCharacterDiedWithHim died of a heart attack off-screen]].
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* CrazyAwesome: Jimmy; the man's house is ''named'' "Fort Awesome". What more do you want?

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* CrazyAwesome: %%* Crazy Awesome: Jimmy; the man's house is ''named'' "Fort Awesome". What more do you want?
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** In [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin ''President'']], Jimmy James, with no prior political experience, decides to run for president on a whim, using vague and populist slogans and insisting he's an "everyman" despite using his immense wealth to fund his campaign. [[StatusQuoIsGod He drops out]] after revealing he has an ulterior motive to running: [[spoiler: to meet women]]. This episode contains several accidental parallels to Donald Trump's 2016 campaign, almost seeming like a parody 20 years before its time.
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Not approved by the Magnificent Bastard cleanup thread.


* MagnificentBastard: Catherine outwits Bill more than once in {{Escalating War}}s, and she also gets the "big bonus" in season one by pretending not to know or care that the rest of the office has been covertly competing for it.
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** In "Chock", Bob Odenkirk's character states that he quit the law firm to get the a capella group back together. [[Series/BetterCallSaul Hmm, Bob Odenkirk working at a law firm?]]

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* HilariousInHindsight: Matthew defeated Joe in an "Ultimate Fight" contest on the episode "4.20". Joe Rogan would go on to work as a TV announcer for the UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionship.
** Likewise in "Houses of the Holy" Joe subs for Catherine when she's out sick and does a phenomenal job on the air. Joe Rogan would go on to host a very popular podcast.
** "The Real Deal with Bill [=McNeal=]" seems almost like a precursor to RealLife crank [[Series/TheOReillyFactor Bill [=O'Reilly=]]]. Crossed with TearJerker since, had Hartman lived to have seen O'Reilly's success, he likely would have done an awesome parody of him somewhere.

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* HilariousInHindsight: HilariousInHindsight:
**
Matthew defeated Joe in an "Ultimate Fight" contest on the episode "4.20". Joe Rogan would go on to work as a TV announcer for the UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionship.
** Likewise in In "Houses of the Holy" Joe subs for Catherine when she's out sick and does a phenomenal job on the air. Joe Rogan would go on to host a very popular podcast.
** "The Real Deal with Bill [=McNeal=]" seems almost like a precursor to RealLife crank [[Series/TheOReillyFactor Bill [=O'Reilly=]]].O'Reilly]]. Crossed with TearJerker since, had Hartman lived to have seen O'Reilly's success, he likely would have done an awesome parody of him somewhere.



* RetroactiveRecognition: Creator/JonStewart, Creator/PattonOswalt, Creator/BenStiller, Creator/DavidCross and [[Series/MrShow Bob]] [[Series/BetterCallSaul Odenkirk]] all made guest appearances of varying importance on the show before they were more widely known. For younger viewers, they're likely to see this show and think, "Hey, is that the host of ''Series/FearFactor''/[[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionshi UFC]]?"

to:

* RetroactiveRecognition: Creator/JonStewart, Creator/PattonOswalt, Creator/BenStiller, Creator/DavidCross and [[Series/MrShow Bob]] [[Series/BetterCallSaul Odenkirk]] Creator/BobOdenkirk all made guest appearances of varying importance on the show before they were more widely known. For younger viewers, they're likely to see this show and think, "Hey, is that the host of ''Series/FearFactor''/[[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionshi ''Series/FearFactor''[=/=][[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionship UFC]]?"



** Could also be considered a SpiritualSuccessor to WKRPInCincinnati

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** Could also be considered a SpiritualSuccessor to WKRPInCincinnati''Series/WKRPInCincinnati''.

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* FunnyAneurysmMoment: Phil Hartman's last scene on the show before he was murdered made light of the apparent death of one of his fellow cast members.

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* FunnyAneurysmMoment: Phil Hartman's Creator/PhilHartman's last scene on the show before he was murdered made light of the apparent death of one of his fellow cast members.



** "The Real Deal with Bill [=McNeal=]" seems almost like a precursor to RealLife crank [[Series/TheOReillyFactor Bill [=O'Reilly=]]]. Crossed with {{Tearjerker}} since, had Hartman lived to have seen O'Reilly's success, he likely would have done an awesome parody of him somewhere.

to:

** "The Real Deal with Bill [=McNeal=]" seems almost like a precursor to RealLife crank [[Series/TheOReillyFactor Bill [=O'Reilly=]]]. Crossed with {{Tearjerker}} TearJerker since, had Hartman lived to have seen O'Reilly's success, he likely would have done an awesome parody of him somewhere.



* SeasonalRot: Some say it's because Jon Lovitz was a poor substitute for Phil Hartman. Others say that too many years of being ScrewedByTheNetwork had begun to take its toll on the staff's creativity. Whatever the case, it's pretty much agreed that the fifth and final season was inferior to the ones that came before it.

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* SeasonalRot: Some say it's because Jon Lovitz Creator/JonLovitz was a poor substitute for Phil Hartman.Creator/PhilHartman. Others say that too many years of being ScrewedByTheNetwork had begun to take its toll on the staff's creativity. Whatever the case, it's pretty much agreed that the fifth and final season was inferior to the ones that came before it.



* {{Tearjerker}}: "Bill Moves On." For the cast as well as the audience. To expand on: they had to keep re-shooting scenes because the cast members kept breaking down in tears they were so distraught at Phil's death.
** Even in the final cut, it's quite apparent the actors are only ''just'' holding themselves together. Notably, Dave Foley struggled to finish reading Bill's in-character note to the cast, his voice breaking as he did so.
** The way the episode ends is an odd example of a TearJerker [[MoodWhiplash being]] PlayedForLaughs. The characters gather around Bill's desk to eulogize him one last time and then disperse... before secretly coming back one by one to pilfer his office supplies. This culminates in Jimmy James coming in with a crew of movers to take Bill's desk. One of the movers points out the desk is not particularly nice and asking if he wouldn't prefer a newer one, an offer Jimmy quickly declines, saying this is the desk he wants. As the movers carry the desk out (with Jimmy sitting on top of it), all that is left is Bill's empty chair in the darkened news room, [[EmptyChairMemorial which the camera focuses on for a few silent seconds before fading to black]].
** Though nowhere near as powerful as "Bill Moves On", the final episode has its share of tears shed. Jimmy James sells off the station and offers to relocate the staff to a new job. They all accept... except Dave, whose loyalty to the station causes him to stay behind [[spoiler: and Matthew, who couldn't bear to see Dave left on his own.]]
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** Likewise in "Houses of the Holy" Joe subs for Catherine when she's out sick and does a phenomenal job on the air. Joe Rogan would go on to host a very popular podcast.
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* RetroactiveRecognition: Creator/JonStewart, Creator/PattonOswalt, Creator/BenStiller, Creator/DavidCross and [[Series/MrShow Bob]] [[Series/BetterCallSaul Odenkirk]] all made guest appearances of varying importance on the show before they were more widely known. For younger viewers, they're likely to see this show and think, "Hey, is that the host of ''FearFactor''/[[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionshi UFC]]?"

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* RetroactiveRecognition: Creator/JonStewart, Creator/PattonOswalt, Creator/BenStiller, Creator/DavidCross and [[Series/MrShow Bob]] [[Series/BetterCallSaul Odenkirk]] all made guest appearances of varying importance on the show before they were more widely known. For younger viewers, they're likely to see this show and think, "Hey, is that the host of ''FearFactor''/[[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionshi ''Series/FearFactor''/[[UsefulNotes/UltimateFightingChampionshi UFC]]?"
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Namespacing


* SpiritualPredecessor: Can be seen as this to ThirtyRock. Dave Nelson is the OnlySaneEmployee who has to manage a staff of nut jobs, and somehow channel this insanity into something resembling a professional broadcast over the air. Dave's boss and mentor is a somewhat ethically challenged high-powered capitalist businessman who likes to micromanage what should be a tiny part of his empire.

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* SpiritualPredecessor: Can be seen as this to ThirtyRock.''Series/ThirtyRock''. Dave Nelson is the OnlySaneEmployee who has to manage a staff of nut jobs, and somehow channel this insanity into something resembling a professional broadcast over the air. Dave's boss and mentor is a somewhat ethically challenged high-powered capitalist businessman who likes to micromanage what should be a tiny part of his empire.

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Removed: 221

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Has nothing to do with familiarity with in-universe fiction. And Natter.


*** To be fair, though he isn't Hartman, Colbert's done a damn good job of that all by himself, given that the original Colbert Report was a one-off segment with him yelling at pre-recorded video of various talking heads.



* MagnificentBastard: Catherine outwits Bill more than once in {{Escalating War}}s, and she also gets the "big bonus" in season one by [[GenreSavvy pretending not to know or care that the rest of the office has been covertly competing for it]].

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* MagnificentBastard: Catherine outwits Bill more than once in {{Escalating War}}s, and she also gets the "big bonus" in season one by [[GenreSavvy pretending not to know or care that the rest of the office has been covertly competing for it]].it.

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