Today, I’m going to talk about three different moments of this episode, and talk about why they were particularly funny. Hopefully, this will make you a little more introspective about why something is funny to you and also make your next game potentially a little more lively!
Concept — Repetition
Repetition is the use of a word, phrase, or concept over a short period of time. This does a lot of things for the audience: when you hear a specific phrase repeated, a voice in your head jumps and goes, “Oh! This is happening!” Also, it makes you feel accomplished for spotting the joke — subtle stuff like this is easy to miss. Repeating a word isn’t necessarily funny, but on a base level, as a viewer, you give yourself a slight chuckle and pat on the back because you are proud of yourself. It is important to note that repetition can also very easily used to heighten a moment of dread or sadness too.
Repetition in an improv scene also means you are listening to what other people are saying. It creates a cohesions because you know that you are being listened to and what you’re saying matters. It allows other people to build up on your narrative and add with their own without taking away meaning or focus; even though it might be a minor, a theme is created.
Look at this scene where Molly wants a drink before he tells his story:
Now, this isn’t just funny because of the repetition but because of what the repetition laid the groundwork for. This is a remarkably deep scene, and you can find a lot of the rules of improv being shown so beautifully here.
Molly talks about his mother’s advice with great respect. We might not know a lot about his fantastical past, but we now know that his mother was somewhat of a storyteller and gave positive advice. We know that this memory of her is not negative, and that he probably has a good relationship with her.
Fjord’s, “Wise words,” shows respect for the concept. This might seem very marginal, but he didn’t have to respond this way or respond at all. He approves of this message with a very short response. Fjord’s affirmation is showing that he has a point of view of Molly.
Jester quickly jumps in with the next line and it shows a little peak into her upbringing and her relationship with her mother by how jovial she is. Molly’s statement of saying how he likes Jester’s mother is similar to Fjord’s: it further shows a kinship and development between Jester and Molly.
Finally, Beau is able to talk about her seemingly negative or… slightly caustic relationships with her mother. Notice how she subverts the positivity of the first two instances — this is why the entire situation is hilarious. Molly’s comment also shows his point of view about Beau, he could have said, “Well, that sucks,” but instead chooses to have Beau’s comment be one that furthers his dislike for her.
Honestly, this could not be a more perfect example of repetition: “mother” and “free” are repeated and scope of what isn’t free changes— “story,” “other things” and “nothing!” Sometimes repetition can work with a single word, but in this scene, it is much more complex. They are also using the repetition to give a little bit of subtle backstory while also allowing the responses to each blurb to develop the relationship among the characters a little more. Maybe Fjord wouldn’t have invited Molly to his room without this exchange? Little things like this can lead to a lot down the road.
When you listen to your scene partners in improv, beautifully magical stuff like this can and will happen. Laura listened to Taliesin and said Jester’s comment — notice how clever she was with her wordplay, she went the total opposite of Molly’s by saying “everything else.” This gave room for Marisha, in a matter of seconds, to pick up on the repetition and find something to say that made sense to her character but also something different yet the same of what was just previously said, and she did! This stuff is very hard and seems very complicated, but once you know what to look out for and what to do, it’s just a matter of time before you become just as brilliant.
Concept — Recursion
Recursion and repetition are somewhat exchangeable, especially depending on who you talk to, and recursion is funny in a similar way because it makes the viewer think they are clever for remembering previous instances. There is an automatic chuckle whenever your mind finds that connection. However, for me, and how I differentiate the two, is that recursion is more longterm. It requires a different choice and skill as an improviser to actually do. Repetition requires a quick wit while recursion requires the thought to know what is worth repeating.
With Jester using thaumaturgy for almost no reason and causing chaos, what is being recurred is pretty funny itself. With recursion, the thaumaturgy becomes the joke over time!
Notice that this is an instantaneous statement. It happens very quickly. It doesn’t require a lot of effort to say and it’s happens right away. There is a quick cause and affect with a very visual impact that other characters can react too. This thaumaturgy bit is perfect thing to be recurred.
I literally just contemplated only putting that gif for this section. I think I might do so in the future!
Concept —Recontextualizing
This is a pretty simple concept, but it can be difficult to do or use correctly. Look at what Sam does with “sticks” in the following gif.
Everybody laughed at this revelation. Why? Because it subverts your expectations in a way that makes absolute perfect sense. Sam did not have to change it to sticks; I’m not sure if this was something he came up with or knew all along. However, the presentation of Nott stealing meaningless objects to then stealing canes that people need to walk is hilarious. The instant change in the viewer’s perspective is why it is funny. Why did I not think he was talking about canes?!?! It was so obvious!
You can recontextualize many things. You can have a character talk about a very deep fear they have and have them act that it is the worst thing in the world to only discover that they are afraid of a teddy bear. Or an ant. Or glitter. I don’t know. There are many ways to recontexualize things.
This is not about being disingenuous with your story, and this is an important distinction. You can absolutely be withholding information about something specific but that requires active manipulation of misleading other characters while recontextualizing is about making one thing mean another because the circumstances have changed.
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I hope you enjoyed this short little look into some moments of this episode. And if there is a specific scene or something you’d like me to look into or have any questions, let me know! Have a wonderful evening and enjoy tonight’s episode.
