Hmmm.
The "... but he genuinely seems..." bit of this is puzzling. Suppose you went to the theatre to see another performance, and at the end complained that Iago genuinely seemed to hate Othello. That would be strange: genuinely seeming to hate Othello would be a mark of success in that context.
And since a comedian on a stage is playing a role, that he or she should genuinely seem like they think φ - where "φ" stands for any attitude whatsoever - could also be a mark of success, couldn't it?
I can see how Lee's comedy isn't to everyone's taste. It's not jokey; it's not the sort of thing you could recount down at the pub with your mates. It's cerebral and it knows its way around a library. I happen to think that those qualities are virtues - not the only possible comic virtues, but virtues nonetheless - but I can see why people would think them vicious. It's often comedy about comedy; I guess it's something like the difference between watchmaking and striking the hour that defines what he's up to. That's what I like about him, anyway.
Also, I like paradoxes; so if you're right, then that's all groovy with me.
:)
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Enzyme is powered by sunlight, Sat 3 Nov 2012, 18:32,
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Totally agree with this.
It's clearly a political thing with those inbred cross-eyed types at DGMS, but there are a lot of Lee haters on lots of comedy sites. He must be doing something right to upset all those Jethro fans.
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brb Learn Ukrainian and prepare for a referendum, Sat 3 Nov 2012, 21:36,
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I take your point.
Perhaps his performance is so good that he doesn't appear to be playing a role. But even so, that role is a parasitical one which somehow doesn't sit well with me.
I know that without a pompous and corrupt Civil Service we never would have had Yes, Minister, and therefore a lot of good comedy relies on the things they mimic being bad. It is very often the essence of good comedy. But Mr Lee somehow just seems to cross the line from parody and mimicing to nasty and snobbish.
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TheSundaeLunch I'm a fucking shrub, alright?, Sat 3 Nov 2012, 22:16,
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