The Itchy and Scratchy (and Poochy) Show
Do you watch Simpsons? I assume that means you find it absolutely hilarious. Turning on the TV and leaving the channel on Simpsons because there simply is not anything better on does not qualify as watching, so if you come in claiming that is what you do, just know that I find you and kick your ass.
Anyway, the point of this thread is to discuss I&S. Do you find this show within a show funny? I'll admit to laughing at some tv shows wherein the humor is defined by the sheer ludicrousness of the injuries people inflict on each other (including the sheer amount of blood that pours out). Of course, my limit to enjoying slapstick stops just beyond watching Kenny from South Park repeatedly killed and my tolerance for blood stopped short of the acupuncture skit on Saturday Night Live where the absurd amount of blood spraying out of Jason Sudeikis's back simply put me off. Point being: I do not laugh at Itchy and Scratchy and the question that arises whenever I see it is what kind of a kid laughs at this sort of thing?
I had to ask my parents if they ever laughed at the Acme cartoons which frequently featured anthropomorphic animals blasting each other with TNT, crushing each other with rocks, shooting each other with guns, and cutting each other with scissors and swords. Hell, they've even tarred and feathered each other. As a kid, I never got the humor of this. I don't recall ever laughing at Acme cartoons.
But it remains a paradox. While I could claim I like slapstick only if it is not intentional or at least not malicious, a lot of what I laugh at, in fact, is. I find Stewie Griffin's repeated attempts to injure or eliminate his mother hilarious. I laugh every time Homer strangles Bart and Bart finds some blunt object with which to repeatedly strike Homer in the skull. These things seem a lot more violent that what you'd imagine at hearing the word slapstick.
As I write this, I find myself wondering what my real point was and imagining that this would likely fit better in the EOEO section.
Still, I dwell on the Itchy and Scratchy Show more than a man in his right mind should. I frequently imagine how this show could be better and could even be made into a spin-off series if only the formula were expanded upon. I hate Itchy with a fiery passion because he simply has no motivation for attacking Scratchy. The opening sequence for the show always shows Scratchy attacking Itchy, but the show itself is always about Scratchy getting utterly mutilated without even having the chance to fight back.
The formula of the show is a little flawed despite its simplicity and this much is pointed out in an episode where a bunch of kids suggest they should add a new character. Unfortunately, they mistakenly believed introducing a new character also meant to completely abandoning the formula as it existed previously. If Poochy had gone on to try to kill either Itchy or Scratchy as the formula demanded, they would not have hated him so much. So basically, for the formula to work, there has to be a balance, so either Scratchy has to be able to get Itchy from time to time or a new character has to throw a wrench in it (to an extent).
I don't know. What do you think?
