MovieChat Forums > Sledge Hammer! (1986) Discussion > Where did the funny go?

Where did the funny go?

posted 19 years ago by brescia3701
106 replies | jump to latest

Back in the eighties when I was watching this show on TV I thought it was the funniest thing ever. I would skip homework and avoid going out so I could sit home and watch it. It was that hysterical too me.

Now, 20 years later, the humor seems flat and it is embarassing to watch. I picked up the 2nd season and I keep on waiting to see all the funny stuff I watched back then and I am still waiting. I painfully went through all four DVDs and have not found whatever it was I saw back then.

The jokes are flat (Hammer recieves a badge from a security guard and says in a Mexican accent "We don't need no steenk'n badges." ...I know the joke, it was just terribly performed. And why would he suddenly have a Mexican accent? To see it done right, watch "Blazing Saddles.") the acting is terrible and the plots are barely there. You need at least two of the three for a successful comedy. This had zero.

At the end of one episode, the chief is handed a stuffed doll resembling Hammer which he starts strangling, then punching and then trying to rip the arms and legs off. It went on for a good half-a-minute before the episode ended. I kept thinking "where is the joke?" Funny would have been the doll inadvertenly fighting back (I remember Jackie Chan doing something hysterical on those lines where the dummy kept on kicking him whenever he punched it)or Hammer stepping in to correct the chief's attack stance or SOMETHING. It was very disturbing to watch.

When they transfered it to DVD, did someone suck the funny out of it?

[–] stevebanana 19 years ago

It's all a matter of opinion, and yours is as valid as mine (almost!) but I'm more ready to believe someone sucked the funny out of you.
Hammer actually says 'STICKING' badges. The humour is the play on Eli Wallach's remark in the Magnificent Seven (I think - not seen it in long while).
The doll joke of course is the Captain taking out his frustration on the Hammer doll, as he can't do it to the real Hammer. The irony is that Hammer enjoys the Captain's sudden descent into physical violence, even though it's directed at Hammer himself. This is Capt Trunk's one 'victory', for the doll to have hit back 'somehow' would have made it similar to other episodes endings.
Though I love the series, I'm not blind to its flaws. Some of the episodes could have been edited better, and the music (apart from the perfect Danny Elfman theme) sometimes is cheesy 80's synthesizer dreck.
For me though, it's just as funny as when I used to watch it, possibly even funnier as I now appreciate Anne-Marie Martin's performance much better. Back then it was just her looks.

[–] servo-9 19 years ago

I agree. I think it's just as funny as it was back then. It's a bit hit-and-miss at times, but the characters are so loveable that I feel inclined to forgive them anything.

Of course, some episodes are pure comedy genius - the Elvis one, the Satanist one, and Hammeroid are my favourites.

[–] el_ucca 19 years ago

The thing here is that you bought the Second Season, which SUCKS! The first season is FAR FAR better. We have a channel that airs old TV series and
i can tell you, the first season rules and made me laugh all the time. It was a new series for me a couple of years ago.

But i could not even watch the second season, it was dreadful. It felt like a completely different series. The show was supposed to be cancelled after the first season, but then they decided to make the second season with a smaller budget and it shows.

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[–] el_ucca 19 years ago

If a Alan Spencer is REALLY a friend of yours acidqueen1968, then of course you will not critizise his show. But at least give the rest of us the freedom to do so. And please stop bragging about it that you may have exchanged a few words with Alan Spencer.

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[–] digimini 16 years ago

"The humour is the play on Eli Wallach's remark in the Magnificent Seven (I think - not seen it in long while)."

The stinking badges quote comes from Humphry Bogart's- The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)

Gold Hat: Badges? We ain't got no badges. We don't need no badges. I don't have to show you any stinking badges.

[–] jaypattison 14 years ago

You're right, that's where the line came from,The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is one of my favourite movies.

[–] scoopey-1 15 years ago

I just got the first series and have to say that I still find it funnier.
I guess comedy moved on and switched to dull sitcoms that have been draining braincells for years.
Unfortuantely I don't think we'll ever see the likes of an updated Sledgehammer type comedy these days as it would not be considered "safe" to produced something that stands out from the crows. Also I guess 'hamnmer is not exactly politically correct by todays standards (well he did shoot everything!).

[–] rick-256 19 years ago

I'm inclined to agree and i've just bought the (supposedly better) first season. I loved this show when I was in high-school, and while it still has some laugh out loud moments I find most of the jokes embarrassing to watch. Most episodes also seem to culminate in some sort of shootout, which are nearly always dull and poorly choreographed.

Incidentally, while Sledge Hammer didn't have a great budget, excellent writing can work round this limitation. A scene where Hammer is in a sauna trying to get information from someone supposedly dying from a gunshot wound (despite the fact that he's wearing nothing but a towel and doesn't have a scratch on him) is plain dreadful.

I'm still enyoing watching it for the nostalgia value and it does have its moments, but part of me wishes i'd left it consigned to memory where it would have remained great.

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[–] rick-256 19 years ago

Yep, i'm really dumb for daring to think that this show has aged badly. Just because i'm disappointed with Sledge Hammer doesn't mean there aren't plenty of other old shows & films I like.

As for the scene in the sauna, I mentioned it because thats the episode i'm up to on the dvd set and I found it really jarring. Of course i'm not suggesting that they turn the scene into a bloodbath, but all they had to do was not show the guys body. It just looked stupid.

And i'm not critising the leads by the way. Sledge, Dori, & the captain all do the best possible with a hugely hit & miss script. As for the DVDs being 'huge sellers around the world', I think that might qualify for overstatement of the year.

Oh and as for 'None of you naysayvers have any talent and will die & be forgotten', now *there's* a dumb comment.

[–] servo-9 19 years ago

would you not agree that while some episodes are a bit off, others are absolutely superb? e.g. the elvis one?

[–] rick-256 19 years ago

Yeah, the Elvis episode was good. And I enjoyed the last one I watched where Sledge is poisoned and has 4 hours to find an antidote. But overall, I think the humour has been mostly miss rather than hit.

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[–] rick-256 19 years ago

Hmm, 'sold well' does not equal 'huge seller'. In any case, people only quote sales figures when it suits them as they have little bearing on actual quality. I don't hate the show, i'm just disappointed it's not as good as I remember.

I've never heard of Napolean Dynamite so that reference is lost on me, but as for being a contrarian, this is a discussion forum so i'm entitled to voice my opinion. Particularly as I watched the show on its initial run and have since bought the DVD.

I see you're still trying to pull of the argument that it's not acceptable for someone to critisise a show because they havent written or directed one themselves. Typical schoolboy argument. I'm surprised you're even old enough to remember it first time.

I'm not even going to lower myself to reply to your other post.

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[–] hivplus666 18 years ago

Does your friend Alan Spencer condone this kind of idiocy on your part?

[–] RikerDonegal 19 years ago

For me, unlike the other posters in this thread, Sledge Hammer never went away. I have all the episodes on tape and I never stopped watching them. It would be rare that six months would go by without me digging out and watching a few episodes.

So, I can't really see it as a 'dated' series. It's just a collection of episodes I never tire of watching. As far as quality goes, I think Season One is pretty much flawless, while Season Two has a couple of hit & miss episodes early on, but seems to find it's feet again and finishes the run on a high.

For me, it's far above any other TV comedy of that era.

What? The half-deaf giant carrying our fake uncle?

[–] tedhbrown 19 years ago

I just watched the first episode, and though mildly funny, this show doesn't hold up as well as it could. I think this show is so foundly remembered because it was a breath of fresh air in a time of crappy crappy crappy sitcoms that are currently airing on tv land and such. It must be more nostalgia than anything, because I think I only laughed about 3 or 4 times through the first episode. I think the biggest problem with the show is the actors, who delivered some lines so poorly that it made me cringe. The worst culprits I saw were sledge hammer himself, and the black police chief. I'll consider buying the dvds of this show, but only when everything else on my list has been crossed off.

[–] DrTrannySurprise 19 years ago

OH NOES SUM1 DOESNT LYKE MY FAVRITE SHOW!!!1111892 WUT R WE GOING 2 DO NOW!?!?!1111seventyfour. ROFLCOPTERLOLZZZZZZ!!111

Opinions shall forever be banished in this colony.

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[–] JermNaHalf 19 years ago

I'd have to agree with your general sentiment. I distinctly remember loving the show when it originally aired. I was five or six years old at the time, and when I saw the DVDs on sale, I actually remembered particular scenes from the pilot and bought them on impulse.

I think the pilot episode holds up to modern tastes quite well, but it seems like none of the other episodes reaches that level of consistent funniness, outrageousness and creativity. Which isn't to say the other episodes weren't funny, outrageous or creative, but there was definitely significantly less funniness, outrageousness and creativity.

Now that I've gone through all of the DVD material for both seasons, I have to say that overall, I'm pretty disappointed with the show. There are a few episodes that approach the quality of the pilot, and a few gags strewn about that are great, but overall it just didn't live up to my expectations or my fond memories of the show.

[–] marchodge 19 years ago

It still holds up, and is still very daring and different. The pilot is 1/2 hour of genius, and the first show to get rid of a laugh track.
Look at police squad episodes..now thats dated for ya!

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[–] greebo2001 19 years ago

I recently bought season one on DVD but haven't watched it yet.The reason? I'm saving it for when I have enough time to sit and watch the whole lot in one marathon. It was one of my favourite shows of all time. But I can appreciate that not everyone likes it.
Having said that,a couple of the people who have posted here look like they went to the Sledge school of diplomacy.Heh.
^..^

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[–] DrTrannySurprise 19 years ago

Over-zealous fans of this show seem to be the most thin-skinned of all. It is as if their spirits are crushed when they make the daunting discover that not everyone is giving the DVD sets a solid "Five Star" review on Amazon. And it is because of this they feel the need to express their "Holier than thou" pompous and condescending attitude towards those who disagree. Using the clichéd assumption that someone who doesn’t like the movie/show/book/etc. is a moron who doesn’t “get it” is a tired argument.
Sorry, but this attitude indicates a much greater weakness.

Although the show is still decent in 2005 it has NOT aged well. Truthfully, there are some episodes that are still hilarious, but the bulk of the jokes do not stand the test of time. Still a decent show to own, but watching it in 2005 it doesn't seem nearly as fresh as it probably did in 1986.
Shows like "Fawlty Towers" and "The Young Ones" are better examples of shows that still hold up even 20-30 years after their last episode aired.

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[–] DrTrannySurprise 19 years ago

"I don't think any of the defenders are thin skinned. They're just tired of the smug, illiterate Bush supporters who prefer to tear down as opposed to actually creating something."

What the hell are you talking about? Jumping to conclusions about ones political affiliations because they dislike a show?...
I don't remember when politics were mentioned on this thread. The original poster didn't say they disliked the show because it had a more liberal standpoint. They said they were dissapointed in it because it no longer had the same impact on them as it did when they were younger, which is understandable.

It's like assuming the ONLY reason a person didn't like (or hated)a movie like "The Brown Bunny" was due to the fact that Vincent Gallo is a staunch conservative republican and the viewer had a different political mindset. (I have also seen the "You just hated this because you're a liberal commie pinko!" on 'The Brown Bunny' boards as well.)
This kind of argument makes the poster seem just a tad bit close-minded and paranoid to me....... Just a tad.

With that being said I liked both "The Brown Bunny" and "Sledge Hammer" but it is understandable why people would not. I was just defending the naysayers for uhm...ya know....having an opinion... I understand how some will get defensive over a show or movie that they love to death. But at the risk of sounding redundat; the smug attitude and pompousness of some of these posters is really getting absurd.

But I guess I should appologize on their behalf.
Sorry everyone, sorry for these sinister people with minds of their own. Sorry for the difference of opinions.
Free-will is ridiculous. It should not ever be embraced here. Opinions are so stupid. yada yada yada.

P.S. Incase you were wondering... I am NOT a Bush supporter. Personally, I think he is one of the worst presidents America has had in a long time when it comes to both social and fiscal issues....And there was that whole Iraq War thing...

P.P.S "Bruno Stroszek" is not my birth name. It is a reference to the movie "Stroszek" (http://indie.imdb.com/title/tt0075276/). So unfortunately you will not find my epic body of work by searching for "Bruno Stroszek." I am not revealing my real name on these boards so no one finds out I am really Thomas Pynchon.

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[–] lokar3791 18 years ago

If your personal tastes change, that is one thing, but to say the show itself is not funny is, I think, far off the mark. I've got both DVD sets and I'm laughing my head off. The humor is for me still far ahead of its time even today. If I had just switched it on this afternoon, I would think this is still just as crazy. Yes, they did many weird things on the show, that's called satire. You're entitled to your opinion, but I happen to think you are sadly mistaken.

"You're not right in the head/
and nor am I/ and this is why/
This is why I like you"

[–] Littlebitsofgaming 18 years ago

I agree, tastes do change.

I had not seen Sledge for almost 20 years. (it's just does not get shown here in the UK). I used to watch it all the time as a kid.
I got the DVDs, a bit weary. Cos I too thought it just would not be funny now.

I was wrong.
I find it funnier now than I did 20 years back. Mainly cos I understand many more of the jokes, get more of the references, ect.
I was also pretty chuffed to find out both Al Jean and Mike Reiss were involved, both Al and Mike are 2 of the main forces behind The Simpsons....even some Sledge jokes pop up in some Simps episodes.

Imagine there's no heaven.
It's easy if you try.

God is an imaginary friend for adults.

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