Now don't get me wrong, it's quite an entertaining show, some of the recent series have had some good moments, but I do wonder whether or not it can actually be considered satirical?
Is Mock The Week satirical?
Satire is a genre of literature, and sometimes graphic and performing arts, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement.[1] Although satire is usually meant to be funny, its greater purpose is often constructive social criticism, using wit as a weapon.
A common feature of satire is strong irony or sarcasm-"in satire, irony is militant"[2]-but parody, burlesque, exaggeration,[3] juxtaposition, comparison, analogy, and double entendre are all frequently used in satirical speech and writing. This "militant" irony or sarcasm often professes to approve of (or at least accept as natural) the very things the satirist wishes to attack.
Satire is nowadays found in many artistic forms of expression, including literature, plays, commentary, and media such as lyrics.
Ummmm....
Yeah?
Yes.
Is it particularly clever or incisive satire? Very rarely.
I think the key point is that simply saying that Tarquin Tory, MP is a tw^t is not satire.
This country needs some proper satire like Bremner, Bird and Fortune. Something that angers, informs and still amuses.
Quote: Aaron @ December 29 2012, 5:15 PM GMTYes.
Is it particularly clever or incisive satire? Very rarely.
That.
The show pretty much consists of the panels recycled stand-up routine and is particularly formulaic. X + Y = David Cameron.
True satire is clever, biting, incisive and relevant. Mock The Week is the equivalent of drawing Hitler moustaches on all the photos in the newspaper.
I seem to be the only one who likes the show.
I don't really mind the fact that a lot of the material is copied from their stand-up routines - I'm still chuckling from Chris Addison's joke from last night's show: "my personal best in the 100 metres is 80 metres".
I love the show.
If it's a sort of stand up highlight reel, what's the harm in that? The one thing I'm not that fond of is the "whoever shouts the loudest" kind of format, which according to people I know who've been on the show is a bit of a pain (to put it mildly).
The poor man's Have I Got News For You.