Yeah, the fact that many Americans have a tendency to see the irony or tongue cheek stuff until it comes as a direct insult in which case... RAGE! That being said, Americans also seem to have quite an interest in sexual humor if only because our culture seems to be so schizophrenic about the topic, though that could just be me living at college full of perverted not-quite-adults-yet.
The thing about making witty signature lines is that it first needs to actually be witty.I think there is a British sense of humour, if only because I tend to find British comedies funnier than American or Japanese ones. Not always, though.
Also, unfunny British, American and Japanese comedies tend to be unfunny in different ways.
Welcome To TV Tropes | How To Write An Example | Text Formatting Rules | List Of Shows That Need Summary | TV Tropes Forum | Know The StaffIt varies very, very much from region to region.
But the one I come from is pretty known for its love of gross-out humour, especially when it comes to sex-related jokes: it's really quite common to hear mild old ladies and gentlemen making jokes or using dialectal terms of a kind that would be extremely inappropriate almost everywhere else.
edited 19th May '11 11:32:01 AM by Carciofus
But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.Ireland: where pretend homoeroticism is the height of schoolyard humour, where we laugh at faggots who take things too seriously, and where most people speak with a vaguely sarcastic tone that never goes away.
Foreigners can never detect that last one. Seriously, when I was in New York, I had a conversation with a girl that went something like this:
- "So, you know the way they say the Irish really love potatoes? Is that true?"
- "No, it's not true, and you know what? You've just really offended me."
- "Oh gosh! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to!"
- "Jehsus Chreest love, calm the bap. I'm taking the piss."
edited 19th May '11 11:34:08 AM by SoberIrishman
I have noticed from holidays in America that the humour I saw on TV was...somewhat more unsubtle than its British equivalent. That's not to say it wasn't funny, just that it was a more direct kind of humour and maybe a touch more earthy.
With cannon shot and gun blast smash the alien. With laser beam and searing plasma scatter the alien to the stars.![]()
That, but replace "Ireland" with "Towns built by the Diaspora" and "Sarcastic" with "Deadpan" (we're still sarcastic, mind, it's just not quite as obviously sarcastic.)
England definitely has a very unique style of humour. Well, several, actually, but the most well known (at least 'crossed the pond) are the dry-British-wit type and the Monty-Python-batshit-insane type.
General American humour tends to be very slice-of-life-ish; our comedians talk about things like family life, marriage, the economy, etcetera, though there's also a lot of sexual humour. (There's also "Jewish comedy" which is definitely its own thing.)
edited 19th May '11 11:44:46 AM by Diamonnes
My name is Cu Chulainn. Beside the raging sea I am left to moan. Sorrow I am, for I brought down my only son.I have a friend who's Irish, and he reckons the people here (Wales, but there are a lot of English people around here) aren't very good at detecting sarcasm.
I'm not sure how I'd know whether this was true or not; it's possible I don't always notice when he's being sarcastic.
Welcome To TV Tropes | How To Write An Example | Text Formatting Rules | List Of Shows That Need Summary | TV Tropes Forum | Know The StaffIf Irish sarcasm is anything like Irish-American sarcasm, you'll miss it if you aren't looking for it.
WARNING: don't look for it, you'll become paranoid, then eventually suicidal, and no one wants to see you eating your gun on their lawn.
My name is Cu Chulainn. Beside the raging sea I am left to moan. Sorrow I am, for I brought down my only son.
Aye, that's what it's like. The only people I met in America who noticed I was being sarcastic were a black security guard from Washington, an extremely flamboyant Hollister cashier, and an Irish-American bartender from Ohio. The latter was pretty sarcastic himself, and also an excellent wingman. Thanks to his persuasive demeanour and my dashing good looks, I got to second base with an American girl with huge tits. That man and I may never see each other ever again; but we formed a bond that day that will never be broken.
edited 19th May '11 1:13:13 PM by SoberIrishman
Canadian humour varies too much to have a national sense of it. Corner Gas, SCTV, and Russell Peters for example.
If you don't like a single Frank Ocean song, you have no soul.Deadpan snarking, sarcasm, playing with (in/sub-verting, deconstructing or playing straight) stereotypes (lazy/incompetent gov't officials or employees, dishonest politicians, thieving lawyers, gruff pragmatic farmers, clueless "townies" etc), self-deprecation, subtle, earthy.
We tend to find American humour (most sit-coms and stand-up acts) too unsubtle/OTT/driven home with a sledgehammer. Subtle Brit humour is much preferred. There are exceptions, of course.
A Texan is visiting New Zealand and says to the kiwi bloke, "y'know, back in Texas it takes me three days to drive my car across my ranch." The kiwi bloke replies, "yeah, I used to have a car like that."
From the early Peter Jackson movie, "Bad Taste": "Use the gun, shoot him." "But he might be Ministry of Works." [A gov't-run road/park maintenance organisation.] "Nah, he's moving too fast for that."
An advertisement for an off-road vehicle has Kiwi Icon and "Good Keen Man", Barry Crump, taking his mate through a "shortcut" that shows off what the vehicle is capable of. They reach the destination and a totally unfazed Barry hands a mug of tea (from the thermos, natch) to his shell-shocked companion and after a pause says (totally deadpan) "ya gate's a bit to the left there, mate." ("gate" is standard slang for "mouth", here.)
Goddamnit. Every time I'm about to post in a thread I find Dia's been there first and expressed my point of view for me.
What a bollocks he is.
Australian humour... well, we swear a bloody lot. And we love making fun of people in power. I'm not sure what else characterises us though.
I remember reading this Australian play in english class, and one of the reviews said that Australian works tend to have jokes at the height of sadness, to keep things from getting too maudlin.
edited 19th May '11 3:34:59 PM by LoniJay
Be not afraid...I guess our cultures are perhaps similar enough that we can relate to and laugh at mostly the same things.
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British comedy is top class. Interestingly, Irish and British comedy, while distinct, seems to have enough of a crossover for comedians of both nationalities to be quite successful in both Britain and Ireland (see Dara O'Briain, for example).
edited 19th May '11 4:01:34 PM by DanEile
"You can only come to the morning through the shadows."Loni: A few of the examples of Australian humour I've seen also involved playing with national stereotypes; IE "How would you protect yourselves in a zombie apocalypse?"
"What do you mean? The drop bears would take care of them for us."
Dan: post faster then, ya twit. :P
My name is Cu Chulainn. Beside the raging sea I am left to moan. Sorrow I am, for I brought down my only son.

Do the people of the country you live in have a particular sense of humour? If so, what's special about it and do other nationalities "get it"?
Inspired because a Russian once told me that there is a Russian expression translating as "English humour" that people use whenever someone's made a joke that no-one else finds funny, and the symbolic tumbleweed blows through. Ouch.
As a subsidiary point for anyone who is from, or has been to, the US - you sometimes find snarky British journalists writing to the effect that Americans have no sense of irony. Clearly this is a ridiculous comment if you've ever seen any US-made comedy, but is there any basis for this view at all?
"Well, it's a lifestyle"