A short video clip came through over the weekend from Neal Baer covering an episode of Law & Order SVU, “Sugar” and featuring Chris Meloni and Mariska Hargitay. Maybe now my feelings that the show is catering to a much younger crowd and maybe dumbing it down in the process have been confirmed. I think this shtick went out with the movie “Porky’s” (the “Mike Hunt” scene), and with grade school.
The link to the Neal’s video clip from "Sugar” is here , and for those of you who can’t get it to play, here’s what is said:
Immature Dork #1: “That geocacher…is a legend”
Immature Dork #2: “But he only goes by a nickname on his…on his website. (Benson and Stabler look on, quizzically) The Master Baiter.”
Immature Dork #1, giggling and can’t contain it: “Every time! It’s genius! “
Elsewhere, Stabler is on a store PA system, with Benson looking with a half smirk: “Attention employees! Will The Master Baiter please report to register one! (store clerks look around) Master Baiter, register one!”
Store employees look around, and when one nerdy guy moves to approach register one, Benson takes the microphone and says: “ Not ”A” masturbator, THE Master Baiter. “
OK, I don’t write the stuff, I’m just typing it out for you.
By the way, Neal Baer also changed the order of the episodes that her previously named and added two more:
Episode 1: Unstable
Episode 2: Sugar
Episode 3: Solitary
Episode 4: Hammered
Episode 5: Hardwired
Episode 6: Anchor
Episode 7: Tradecraft
Episode 8: Users
That’s that latest. Now I am off to work on my summary of AMC’s “Mad Men”, you know, it’s a TV show with “big people” scenarios and dialog.
(My sarcasm aside, I think it’s great that Neal is providing these kinds of things for the fans in advance of the shows! )
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I'm a little embarrassed to say that I found it kind of funny. I don't know whether being 23 puts me in the 'younger crowd', but maybe it's because I haven't heard the schtick in a while that it brought back some nostalgic teenage memories. Or nostalgic feelings about episodes of the Simpsons, whichever.
ReplyDeleteI agree ATL&O, it's an old joke that largely appeals to the juveniles (no offense Jojo). NBC is probably going after the 18 year old demo, which is a pity because they don't have the disposable income as the older 40+ year old viewers.
ReplyDeleteRemember when SVU used to be about the crime and adult drama? Now it's about what guest stars they can get and silly dialog like this that they try to pass of as creative writing. Note to writers - it's a old joke, and shows lazy writing, not good drama.
If this is what the new season is going to look like, maybe I will pass.
It's bad enough that the joke is older than dirt, but Meloni and Hargitay have the comedic talents of two rocks.
ReplyDeleteThe scene would have played better had it been Belzer and Ice-T because their characters are prone to humor, and this wouldn't have seen like such an antique joke if they did it.
I am so over Law & Order SVU. I am getting tired of the constant Chris and Mariska focus. I mean I like them both but if the best they can do to broaden their acting range is to recycle an old joke then I worry about the quality of the rest of the stories and dialog for the season.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait for the regular Law & Order to return. They had great stories last year and all of them act like grown ups.
I'm just going to leave what I said, via link.
ReplyDeletehttp://community.livejournal.com/same_law/657969.html
I haven't had the chance to view the clip, yet, but the third anon comment may have a point, as jokes are about delivery, too.
Still, it's bad dialogue, any way you look at.
While I agree w/John K's suggestion that it would have been much more comedic for Munch & Fin to deliver the lines, in truth the humorless deadpan way Meloni delivered the line was more realistic. Hargitay's delivery of her line would have been better if she had been a bit more wry/patronizingly sarcastic (which is what I would expect from any adult who made the statement under those circumstances).
ReplyDeleteWell, I had thought of Belzer/Ice-T as it's more their element, anyway. Although, Stabler and Benson should lighten up, too. To me, my issue is that joke could have been written better, that's all.
ReplyDeleteYou raise a good point, as Hargitay's acting is way too serious. If she could be more subtle sardonic, then we might have had less problems.
It was an anonynous poster who suggested the Beler/Ice-T combo would have worked better with the scene.
ReplyDeleteI am a big SVU fan but so far I have not be happy with the clisp we have seen. This "Master Baiter" clip is one, the other where Stabler calls ADA Paxton a bitch, Wentworth Miller's stiff acting...it is starting to look like a cheesy season to start. If I were Neal Baer I would cool it on the silly bubbletweets and find some clips that actually show some drama.
I wasn't much impressed with the last season of SVU and if this is any indication of what this year has in store, it's gonna be a LONG season... sigh...
ReplyDeleteIt's probably is a bit unfair to judge based on one very short clip, but as the last anonymous said, I'd like to see some clips that have some substance... some meat... so we can all say we can't wait to see that episode, rather than a pretty unanimous eye roll.
The clips are always silly and often deliberately deceptive; how many people thought there was going to be a big Benson v. Stabler brawl because of the ads for "Stranger" last season? I appreciate the fact that he's making these clips available; it's always nice when producers promote TV shows. It's better than speculation/whining about how long L&O has been on the air and how it's Sam Waterston's fault that there are "only" 10,000 other cop drams out there...
ReplyDeleteHaving read everybody elses comments, I just realised why I found it funny. Had Munch and Fin done the scene, I probably would have laughed with them. But I have a feeling I was laughing *at* Benson and Stabler, because it was so damn serious. I admit to girl-crushing on Mariska like so many others, but she should have cracked a smirk at least. She's so great at the dramatic stuff, but she's so intense that the light stuff never works - which is so odd seeing that she herself seems so light and friendly.
ReplyDeleteSVU is working toward their goal of being the CSI-Miami of the L&O franchise - you know, the one that everyone watches because it's so corny and campy and bad. That's where they are headed.
ReplyDeleteAs for the Belzer/Ice-T suggestion, I had forgotten to say it was from someone else in my last comment, but I did get it in my Livejournal entry, so it works out.
ReplyDeleteAs for this comment:
"I appreciate the fact that he's making these clips available; it's always nice when producers promote TV shows. It's better than speculation/whining about how long L&O has been on the air and how it's Sam Waterston's fault that there are "only" 10,000 other cop drams out there..."
Can't argue with that.
I found it funny and I am 30 years old not a young teeny bopper. Lighten up people...you take this show WAY too seriously. Do you focus on your careers as seriously as you do this show?? I highly doubt it.
ReplyDeletewho plays the master baiter? Danielle McKee? Or whom? IDMB has no entry for "master baiter" in their full cast list, but "Store Employee" could be as she was a store's employee...
ReplyDeleteIt could very well be Danielle McKee as she is listed as a "store employee" ib the credits but I am not 100% sure.
ReplyDelete