In my opinion, they are two of the densest and funniest episodes, deliver on plot, and are beefed up by the appearances of Banks and Paula respectively.
Which episodes would you choose?
Who is in the wrong here? Liz being racist, Jenna sowing that seed in her mind or Tracy himself for not reading scripts/cue cards?
Preferably rock or soul
*Finally, a place to VENT*
Making friends has always been difficult for me. When I was a kid, that was because I was too quiet. And it certainly didn't help that I was raised in a stricter household than most. I didn't watch the same cartoons, or have the same hobbies or experiences as anyone else at school. Always left out of conversations. Always trying to join in, but then saying something weird that put the other kids off me. I was considered "the quiet kid" more than anything else - people would play the "someone likes you" prank on me, talk about me like a zoo animal ("when she closes her eyes it means this", etc.) right in front of me... You name it. Everything about me alienated others.
In my teens I'd made quite a few friends, but again, I pushed them away. By that time I wasn't as quiet (I was sometimes, but by choice). I could initiate conversations, get people to talk about themselves, share common interests, make jokes, etc. so my social skills were never at fault. And I'm proud to say that I was a good friend. Never talked about anyone behind their back, offered help and emotional support when needed, always checked in on my friends. But they all said I was coming across as too desperate or clingy. I didn't understand that then. I thought I was your friend. You said so yourself. You talk to all your other friends every day and spend a lot of time together. Why not me?
COVID started right before high school. I had one or two girls I thought I was close with, but again, it seemed I overestimated my importance to them, and they both left. So as you can imagine, lockdown was hell. Plus, my family, I thought, was a lot more cautious than we needed to be. We stayed in lockdown for about a year longer than everyone else. I thought that was rock bottom.
When school started again, though, I had a new approach to socializing. I would observe people - see what they do, who they hang out with, overhear their conversations (but not eavesdrop!) - and if I thought they were nice or interesting, I'd strike up a conversation. That proved a massive failure. No friends made. And high school was already hard for me academically (I had to do extra work to get into the university I wanted) but I had to go through it all alone. Even my parents couldn't help; I remember telling them I was so lonely and miserable all the time that I couldn't focus on my studies, and they said this didn't matter now because this was an important year academically and I just had to work hard and study for my exams. (To some extent, they were right about this, and they've always tried to support me, but this still bothers me.)
I'm aware of how pathetic and lame this sounds, but during those years I made up an imaginary social life and an imaginary best friend. It was always my happy place. I now know that this is called maladaptive daydreaming, and I'm not doing it as much anymore, but it kept me sane.
This loneliness continued with me into the first year of med school. I thought I was beyond repair. I'd chosen an incredibly difficult career (which I found out soon enough was completely wrong for me) and the burnout, plus the loneliness, made this the most difficult period of my life. There was no time to focus on my social life because I was completely lost academically.
Even though it failed me constantly, my approach to friendship remains the same - I won't just talk to anyone, it has to be someone with compatible interests, values and personality. Due to my past failures in making and keeping friends, I now find relationships exhausting. So I'm still very picky.
That's why, last summer, I decided to join a book club. Again, people with similar interests to mine, because I love reading. I only managed to make one friend in the group, the lady who runs the book club. Having learned my lesson from my teen friendships, I made sure not to come on too strong. And it worked. When she confirmed that I was her friend, I was delighted.
So this academic year has been a lot more bearable. I have at least one friend (and a couple acquaintances), I'm beginning to learn the ropes at med school and I have my hobbies and my family, which took a massive weight off my shoulders. But today, I remembered something: I was the odd one out wherever I went. In the book club, I'm the youngest by some distance, and from a different country. In my family, there's no one my age, or sharing my interests. And in med school, I'm the only one who isn't passionate about the career.
What triggered this realization was seeing the messages on the book club group chat. Everyone else constantly interacts, makes plans, discusses their life experiences, while my messages rarely get replies or reactions. Also, my one friend has been busy with work, so we're not talking as often, even though I'm putting in EXTRA effort (I'm not taking her absence due to work personally, but I've been the initiator for quite some time, even before she started working, and I'm just waiting for her to start reciprocating).
Like a lot of people who post on this sub, I want to be chosen, for once. I want to be important to ONE person. I often attribute the fact that I'm no one's first choice to me being a boring person, but then I realize that being boring, irritating, stupid, ugly or a bad person has never stopped anyone from finding people who care about them. Even A.H. was married, for god's sake. But I'm not waiting to be chosen - just trying to find my people.
I wish those who found making friends easy could understand this. It's not easy for everyone. I wish I could meet just one person who can appreciate and reciprocate my effort, because having few or no friends is the worst feeling. It makes you question yourself, and feel unlovable. Even though I learned to love my own company, and do almost anything without help, I can't help but get those feelings sometimes.
So I'll just keep looking.
*If you managed to read this far, thank you*
Obviously comedy is subjective, but I was wondering if there are certain criteria you have to consider when writing it.
I think almost all humor, even if it seems stupid, requires intelligence - the ability to cater to your audience, knowledge of culture/references they will understand, command of language, etc. and I think all of these can be practiced or learned.
But I have some questions: Where is the line between "trying to be funny" and "actually funny"? Is there anything that is objectively funny/not?
Any & all advice is welcome