"Boing" - Lame or Laime

[Steve S. 1]

A sound effect that was slammed by the judges last week, was used this week.

Listen to "Concept and Content Day 2" at about 28:00. Matt says "...Then use the 'wa wa' thing, which is the most hack sound, probably, there is. If not the applause, which was another sound he used." PFT says "What about 'Boing' ?". The Laime Podcast then uses the 'Boing' sound effect in their segment this week.

Why would you use a sound effect in a competition, where the judges have made fun of it?

I'm not trying to 'sling mud' at the Laime Podcast. It just jumped out at me.

[RobM 66]

I think the difference, honestly, was that Totally Laime used it ironically, with a wink towards how corny it was, while Ham Radio, while arguably doing the same, was using it in a sketch that was already trying to make a somewhat serious point about what is and isn't hacky in comedy.

To put it another way, Laime's use of the boing was similar to how Scott uses overly long intro music to all the segments on Bang Bang. It's a joke unto itself. On the Ham Radio clip, it wasn't as clearly used a joke, and even worse, it was part of a sketch that arguably seemed to be saying "doing X, Y, and Z is hack comedy," while using a corny sound effect without commenting on it.

[RobM 66]

Plus, from what I understand, the episodes are being released a few weeks behind recording. Totally Laime wouldn't have heard the criticism of the "boing" on Ham Radio by the time they submitted their own "boing" segment.

[CarolineEAnd 41]

As someone who has listened to a bunch of Totally Laimes, the drops are used totally ironically and inappropriately and the guests always enjoy them and find them hilarious. They have about 5 (pac-man dying, Hallelujah, sheeeeee-it, Windows start up noise, etc) and like Rob said, it's similar to Scott's too-long (or not long enough, in my opinion) song intros.

[Bucho 188]

I think it kind of goes with what Matt was saying about how he really dislikes the Oprah segment for being intentionally bad. A big part of why Scott using overly long intros is funny is because in reality nobody would think that's a good idea. He's not making fun of anybody except himself. There are so very few cases of overly long intros being done unironically that what Scott's doing isn't really based in irony so much as it's based in absurdity. There's an originality and ludicrousness to that bit that's the meat of what sells it.
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On the other hand there's not a lot of creativity behind ironically using cheesy sound effects that were originally used unironically because it's a very old "joke" that feels like it's been done a thousand times already. I know Scott admits to having his own crutches, but the majority of the time he builds a layer or two on his, so they're stamped with his own sensibility. And I know he doesn't like things being called hacky but irony for the sake of irony is as hacky as it gets. It seems like so much of the time in comedy these days (or perhaps it was ever so) irony is deployed as a comfort blanket when it's far more fun as a blade. Or nunchuks. Or at least a sock stuffed with potatoes.
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On the other other hand beyond the clips on the Challenge I've only heard one full episode of Totally Laime so far, so I don't want to go dissing them when I don't really have a solid context for them yet. I'm really just talking about the sound effects, which aren't exactly the backbone of the show as far as I can tell, so I'm not about to condemn them for leaning on them here and there.

[Dan 5]

@Bucho How many hands do you have? HA! Also, you make some good points.

[JW Buchanan 1]

On the subject of sound effects that bug you:
I've heard more than one entry on the Challenge that used the old radio static going-up-and-down-the-dial sound effect to transition between sketches. To me, this is worse than "boing." I know it's just a hoary old device and it's shorthand and whatnot, but it seems so stale. And once you start questioning it it just seems so much more ridiculous. (Like, is each sketch an old-timey radio program and with each transition we're changing the station?)
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Left Handed Radio had the best entry this week but I'm surprised this wasn't brought up, especially considering all the criticism of Elizabeth Laime's boings and Brett Hamill's sad trombones.

[Bozarth 0]

@JW Adam from LHR here.

The boing and the sad trombone don't really bother me, for what it's worth. Brett used the trombone in a game show sketch, which seems like a proper context to me. Elizabeth obviously has a running gag with the boing that isn't a punchline to a boner joke. To me, they make sense.

Sure, the radio dial effect is by no means cutting-edge (as a transition device or as a reflection of the technology), but we use it for a specific purpose. Without live applause to go out on, or songs to cut to, the easiest way for us to delineate between the start and end of a sketch is a sound cue. Radio static just seems to fit well. We also like to throw in some vox pops, like on Python or A Bit of Fry and Laurie, disguised in the radio static to try and have fun with the static rather than just use it. Just because something has been done before or used before doesn't make it a complete no-no to use or play with in my opinion. Mr. Show linked together sketches like Python did, but they made it work just as well for them.

Sure, we don't use the conceit that everything on the show is being broadcast over the radio to justify the static, but how boring would an all-radio-parody show be? There are only so many morning zoo jokes you can do, especially in an era where the morning zoo is being replaced with fine programming from the Earwolf Network! (Ad).

It's not a perfect transition, nor is it edgy and mind-blowing, but it works for what we need it to do. If we can think of other ideas, we'll certainly try them. Except for fake crowd noise. We threw that sound effects machine away.

In the end, we are all trying to be as entertaining as possible. I would hate to think that the only thing keeping everyone from enjoying all the Earwolf Challenge shows are sound effects you may have heard elsewhere.

[Mike Q. 1]

@Adam, For what my two cents are worth (given today's exchange rates), I think the radio static works well in your show, given that your podcast's name is Left Handed Radio. It may be a too-often used crutch, but I think you guys use it in a proper context.
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I listen to TLP regularly, and part of the charm of the show is that it has a warm, homey feel for a podcast that has some famous comedians coming through. It feels like eavesdropping on a chat between friends. It doesn't feel overproduced, and so the audio drops that Elizabeth uses are definitely more of a gag. Often there's a lag between a punchline and the sound effect, as you practically hear Elizabeth frantically search for the right button. Sometimes you even hear the volume indicator as she turns the audio up or down. Some people might think it's lame, even or especially because it's meant to be (Matt Besser himself said he would stay away from intentionally bad as a comedy tool), but I think it contributes to the charm of the show.

[JW Buchanan 1]

@Adam Bozarth, I understand the purpose of using radio static transitions, I just don't understand why you're using them specifically. It just seems like the most default choice.
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<<sad trombones>>
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