| Thoughts on 'Automan' episode | |
|
+14GaRRbagio Fargoth Benjamin-J relauby Mondo a Go-Go Tommy Wiseau anothercafejava Eckertmania IAKO yakityyakblah Frank Rizzo A Cockatrice Thecigarsnob Cactus_Matt 18 posters |
Author | Message |
---|
Cactus_Matt
Posts : 143 Join date : 2011-01-19 Age : 36 Location : Melbourne, Australia
| Subject: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Wed Feb 09, 2011 4:53 pm | |
| So Brad's released upon us the first episode of 80's Dan, and I for one think it was brilliant. It was exactly what I was expecting, heaps of 80's references, a great cast of supporting characters and a classic performance by Brad (seriously, I think it's his best character). If I had one complaint it would be the laugh track got a little obnoxious, perhaps tone it down in future eps? Otherwise an excellent start to what I hope will be a long running series, unlike the ill-fated Automan. | |
|
| |
Thecigarsnob
Posts : 99 Join date : 2011-01-19 Age : 43 Location : Alabama
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Wed Feb 09, 2011 7:43 pm | |
| after watching the 80's dan "pilot" , to me it all felt kinda forced..
i would have like it better as 80's dan"snobbing" cheesy 80's movies and tv shows. | |
|
| |
A Cockatrice
Posts : 184 Join date : 2011-01-19 Location : Minnesota
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Wed Feb 09, 2011 8:45 pm | |
| I'm not sure exactly how I felt. It had a lot of funny moments, but at the same time it had a lot of boring dragged out moments. I'll have to wait till the next episode of 80's Dan to be able to judge the show as a whole. But the episode was just OK for me, nothing to amaze me. | |
|
| |
Frank Rizzo
Posts : 1456 Join date : 2011-02-02 Age : 39
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Wed Feb 09, 2011 9:45 pm | |
| I kinda liked that Brad had it like a cheesy 80's sitcom, complete with the laugh track.
speaking of the laugh track, if I had *one* nitpick, it was that you heard an audible *click* everytime before the laughtrack started, which was kinda distracting. It was like.
80's Dan: *insert joke here*
*click*
*audience laugh*
I would try and edit the laughter in more seamlessly without the clicking sound, but other then that, it was awesome. | |
|
| |
yakityyakblah
Posts : 215 Join date : 2011-01-22
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Wed Feb 09, 2011 10:33 pm | |
| - Thecigarsnob wrote:
- after watching the 80's dan "pilot" , to me it all felt kinda forced..
i would have like it better as 80's dan"snobbing" cheesy 80's movies and tv shows. That's just The Cinema Snob with a different name. Also, being forced is kind of the point, 80's sitcoms were forced. | |
|
| |
IAKO
Posts : 83 Join date : 2011-01-28
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Thu Feb 10, 2011 12:10 am | |
| I thought it was great aside from one or two things. I love how cheerful and happy 80's Dan is, especially compared to his rather apathetic "family". My only real problem with the show was Rob the Robot, most of his jokes fell kind of flat (maybe that's the point?). I wouldn't say drop it/him, but I think it would be better if Rob was used in smaller doses throughout the episode. Surprisingly, I didn't really mind the laugh track, it felt appropriate here.
Good stuff! | |
|
| |
yakityyakblah
Posts : 215 Join date : 2011-01-22
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Thu Feb 10, 2011 12:52 am | |
| In general the different CA people just making their own versions of other CA people's characters is getting dumb. Not everyone needs to have a robot or hobo counterpart. | |
|
| |
Frank Rizzo
Posts : 1456 Join date : 2011-02-02 Age : 39
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Thu Feb 10, 2011 12:54 am | |
| I dunno, I kinda thought ROB was funny, but that's just my opinion. | |
|
| |
Eckertmania
Posts : 152 Join date : 2011-01-19 Age : 40 Location : Wisconsin
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Thu Feb 10, 2011 2:49 am | |
| I enjoyed it. Yeah, parts of it did feel forced, but like someone else said, it's part of that 80s charm. | |
|
| |
anothercafejava
Posts : 16 Join date : 2011-01-22 Location : Fairfield County, CT
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Thu Feb 10, 2011 2:54 am | |
| I love all of the shows on this site, but this was pretty bad. I think 80's Dan only worked as a one time thing and maybe can work for some cameo snob appearances. | |
|
| |
Tommy Wiseau
Posts : 369 Join date : 2011-01-19 Age : 30 Location : Back East. Where back East? Different places!
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Thu Feb 10, 2011 3:09 am | |
| I thought it missed more than it hit, but it was still entertaining. I would have liked it more if it were more fast-paced. | |
|
| |
Mondo a Go-Go
Posts : 304 Join date : 2011-01-22
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Thu Feb 10, 2011 4:00 am | |
| First off, I love the premise. Dan is so hilariously peppy that it hard not to love the character interactions; I especially liked the growing cast over the course of the episode. The laugh track and such was a great touch, but the recording is weird...it sounds sort of distant and echo-y, not natural. A better recording would make it a lot more tolerable. Rob has potential, but his voice sounds too dubbed. Maybe making it a bit more electronic and robot sounding could work better for the character. I hope to see more of Dan's adventures! What's the theme song? | |
|
| |
relauby
Posts : 167 Join date : 2011-01-20 Location : Newfoundland
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Thu Feb 10, 2011 4:48 am | |
| I didn't really mind the laugh track, but ROB really annoyed me. I understand he his jokes were terrible, sitcom jokes on purpose, but that doesn't make them any less unfunny. | |
|
| |
Benjamin-J
Posts : 37 Join date : 2011-02-06 Location : Northeast
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Thu Feb 10, 2011 5:28 am | |
| I really dug it, actually. Dan's a great compliment to the Snob character and proof that even endless optimism can be mined for comedy. The dubbing on Rob was off, yeah, but that can probably be easily tweaked.
Actually, the introduction had me hooked:
"They must've taken the budget for the pilot of Automan and tripled it beyond belief."
"What the hell is 'Automan'?"
*Shit eating grin, segue into premise-explaining opening credits*
Fuckin' hilarious. | |
|
| |
Fargoth
Posts : 4 Join date : 2011-02-10
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Thu Feb 10, 2011 8:13 am | |
| I really like this new concept. Reminds me of the Awesome Video Games show on YouTube in some ways. Some of the jokes seemed to fall a little flat, like the timing was off or something, but otherwise I enjoyed it. I couldn't really follow what was happening in Automan, but apparently that's just because Automan itself is hard to follow. | |
|
| |
GaRRbagio
Posts : 9 Join date : 2011-02-09 Age : 32 Location : Oceanside
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Thu Feb 10, 2011 8:14 am | |
| I think to add to the 80s charm Dan should have a crappy voiceover of himself while Dolly just sounds normal. | |
|
| |
Entertainer13
Posts : 39 Join date : 2011-01-19 Age : 39 Location : Midwest
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Fri Feb 11, 2011 9:23 am | |
| Ah, 80's Dan. I love the character. He really highlights the fact that Brad actually has decent acting talent when compared to some in the internet realms. His undying optimism is glorious, and his unabashed love for his time period is a little infectious. Once I finished viewing the first episode, I immediately thought of all the glorious cartoons, commercials, books, movies and games from the 1980's that I so enjoyed as a child.
The Good?
The introduction was pitch perfect. From the set up for the topic (Automan/New Tron), to the gloriously long 80's intro, with perfectly chosen music, I was drawn in. As a viewer of many classic 80's sitcoms, it was quite the journey into my early childhood. The laugh track is a great addition, though the timing of the track could use some work. The overall cast is great, and most of the requisite characters are there. If only they had access to an annoying kid, it would be perfect! ROB was fun, and Jillian benefits from having good chemistry with Brad for what I would say are obvious reasons.
The Bad?
Some of the amateur crew have improved, thanks to their long and arduous work on Hooker With A Heart of Gold, but there's still an obvious stiffness in line delivery, probably due mostly to the fact these are people with day jobs and lives, doing a favor for a friend, and don't have time to memorize the lines and agonize on perfect delivery. If this series continues, likely their abilities will continue. Nothing cringe-worthy, mind you, just something that always jumps out to someone who has a theatre minor and cares too much. Unscripted on the Bruno Mattei Show, they are always a strong group, so I'm not worried about this.
The format seems unfocused, and the jokes are a little off. Playing around with this series, though, seems worthy. Having a "sitcom review" show is original, and just another tool for Brad to add to his arsenal. Was it perfect? Hardly. This is essentially a beta pilot episode, and it shows. The Cinema Snob took years to perfect into the well oiled machine we now see.
I think 80's Dan is worth at least as much exposure as Kung Tai Ted, anyway. Love that guy! | |
|
| |
yakityyakblah
Posts : 215 Join date : 2011-01-22
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Fri Feb 11, 2011 11:53 am | |
| Overall it's a great concept that could be really really fun, it just needs to be tightened up a bit. The biggest thing is getting the proper rhythms down, you're in sitcom territory which is all about delivery. The reason some of the jokes aren't hitting is because the editing is making it really hard to play off of each other, especially the robot. Also, liberally lampshading the different tropes within the sitcom style works great. The "holy shit a talking robot" bit is fairly common but still works. If you take nothing else away from these reviews, it's to try and learn how actual sitcoms use the laugh track, where they put the camera, and what rhythms the actors use while delivering their lines. Once you have that down you'll be in a much better position to deconstruct it. | |
|
| |
The Original Greaser Bob
Posts : 1298 Join date : 2011-01-19 Location : Tampa
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Mon Feb 14, 2011 6:33 am | |
| Since this is the first episode, I'm going to give it the benefit of the doubt. It felt a little off, sure, but looking back on the first few Snob episodes, They suffered from similar problems. It took Brad a while to really decide what he wanted out of that show before he finally found the groove he's been working in, which I think will probably be the case with 80's Dan. | |
|
| |
EverythingsJake
Posts : 1 Join date : 2011-02-16 Age : 47 Location : Omaha, NE
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Wed Feb 16, 2011 7:26 am | |
| I believe I drink to forget some if not most of the 80's shows. Note the movies of that time line have been iconic and memorable. I see Snob has given you a resurrection there, 80's Dan and I am suggesting Misfits of Science, Riptide and by all means piss all over Galactica 80. | |
|
| |
Conan the Librarian
Posts : 64 Join date : 2011-01-29 Age : 43 Location : Jacksonville, Fl
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode Wed Feb 16, 2011 8:54 am | |
| Although I'm not instantly drawn to the new character, the content is teh fcuking shit as always.
I had seen Automan before and when I saw Brad covering it I was masterbatorial.
Great choice. | |
|
| |
Sponsored content
| Subject: Re: Thoughts on 'Automan' episode | |
| |
|
| |
| Thoughts on 'Automan' episode | |
|