Married with Children
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ProjectError
— 7 years ago(April 23, 2018 08:23 AM)You can't even call it a show about "white trash" because they lived in a 2-story suburban house with a 2-car garage in Chicago., yet Al was the only one with a job, and supported his family as a shoe salesman making minimum wage. It's impossible, and situations like that don't and can't exist, and that's the joke.
Roseanne and Dan both had jobs ranging drywalling, working in a plastic factory, fast food, government mechanic, etc. You can't even say MwC is a parody of white trash because what it represents doesn't exist.
I am addicted to you; I have tasted your mind, and I cannot forgo its flavor. -
jriddle73 — 7 years ago(April 25, 2018 01:47 AM)
"I wouldn't call MWC a satire."
But your apparent total lack of familiarity with the family sitcom milieu of the time in no way constitutes an argument in this matter. Shows like FAMILY TIES, GROWING PAINS and, most especially, THE COSBY SHOW–the biggest thing on television at the time and the one that led directly to WMC–presented wholesome, often sickeningly saccharine family-values stories in which well-meaning parents benevolently oversee the foibles of their basically-good but mildly wayward children, liberally punctuated with "very special episode" installments featuring straight, somber drama about some weightier matter. A completely ridiculous Reagan-era fantasy. MWC intentionally set out to turn all of that on its head, to poke a stick in its eye, to blow it a raspberry. It, too, was an exaggerated fantasy but it was an exaggerated fantasy of Americans as they are.
In its time, ROSEANNE was also received as a reaction to the state of these sitcoms, a sort of blue-collar, more earthy version of them. It was just really badly done and too conventional to be worth the time.
"The Dig"
http://cinemarchaeologist.blogspot.com/ -
ProjectError
— 7 years ago(April 25, 2018 02:21 AM)A completely ridiculous Reagan-era fantasy. MWC intentionally set out to turn all of that on its head, to poke a stick in its eye, to blow it a raspberry. It, too, was an exaggerated fantasy but it was an exaggerated fantasy of Americans as they are.
I don't disagree, but it was only this during the 1st season when it was aiming for realism. By the middle of series, it became a parody of itself and the writing got terrible. Al went from the blue-collar everyman to total absurdity.
The characters were flanderized too early.
First-season Marcy: The "nerdy" neighbor who were friends with Al and Peggy.
Later: Marcy became a feminizi who hated Al and existed to humiliate him whenever possible. She existed to be the butt of Al's flat and chicken jokes.
First season Peg: Not a fan of housework, but seen cleaning cooking for her kids once in a while.
Later: Never cooked, insulted her husband often, became lazy and did nothing for the family. Her wardrode and hair also became more over-the-top.
First-season Kelly: boy-crazy like a typical teenager. Not as smart as Bud, but is seen doing her homework sometimes.
Later: Became a total airhead where she couldn't spell "C-A-T" and a town slut who would sleep with anyone.
Bud: Went from the clever, but nerdy, kid to loser virgin nobody likes.
First season Al: Lacked sensitivity and hated showing emotion, but initiated sex with his wife a few times.
Later: Lost interest in his wife sexually and it became a burden for him when she came on to him. He became
Evolved fantasy:
First-season: We know Al doesn't make much money, but enough to support a house and give allowance to his kids.
Later: Al and Peg show up on Bud's computer as the two lowest-paid people in the world.
And the final season became so idiotic there may as well have been an "Al in Space" episode.
The writing became horrible too early on. I like MwC, but it's not a show that'd ever win an Emmy. Roseanne, like the Cosby Show, will go down as one of the great classic sitcoms. MwC is not
objectively
up to that standard. It's like I enjoy Dawn of Justice, but it's not going to be remembered as Citizen Kane.
The only reason this show lasted for 11 seasons is because Fox was a new station at the time and this was the first show they had, right before the Simpsons. MwC didn't pull in many ratings but Fox didn't require them at the time, and the show was cheap to produce.
I am addicted to you; I have tasted your mind, and I cannot forgo its flavor. -
Sockagawea — 7 years ago(April 23, 2018 03:50 AM)
When Al and his "No'Mam" crew were hanging on the roof to get away from their wives, and a large bird took one of them away because he got to close to his egg. You wouldn't see a cartoon gag like that in Roseanne or Good Times.
hahaha! Voting for Married With Children! -
Fugazi — 7 years ago(April 23, 2018 06:04 AM)
Well said.
There's nothing wrong with over-the-top **** though. Always Sunny is over-the-top and ****ing great, but MWC is just not funny to me as an adult. Its main appeal was that it was edgy for the time, but eventually became the norm. 90's was all about edge, man. -
Bongo — 7 years ago(April 23, 2018 03:39 AM)
Butthurt vhs doxxing again. ^^^
Screencapped for posterity… with the doxxing obscured.
The original has been sent to the appropriate places. vhs-retardo is such a sicko.
Apparently, stupid people
don't know
they're stupid.