Comments on: On YouTube, sarcasm is not funny.

On YouTube, sarcasm is not funny.

Tommy Gnosis — Fri, 11 May 2007 09:46:44 -0800

A YouTube PSA about sarcastic YouTube posts And the haters respond as read by the orginal poster.

By: bonaldi

bonaldi — Fri, 11 May 2007 09:52:32 -0800

The haters respond video is ace, but I'm not watching more than the 29 seconds I watched of that first one. YouTube comments in general are summed up perfectly by xkcd

By: crackingdes

crackingdes — Fri, 11 May 2007 09:56:47 -0800

First video was not very funny, but after watching 2nd video, I'm in love.

By: psmealey

psmealey — Fri, 11 May 2007 09:58:39 -0800

The first one was funnier after realizing that she was a Brit and that the val-ish accent was, like, a total put on. The second one was pretty funny, though.

By: Atom Eyes

Atom Eyes — Fri, 11 May 2007 10:08:33 -0800

A well done troll, but it's a little bit like picking on the retarded, isn't it? Still, very funny.

By: lemonfridge

lemonfridge — Fri, 11 May 2007 10:11:51 -0800

but it's a little bit like picking on the retarted

By: DU

DU — Fri, 11 May 2007 10:12:09 -0800

Niiiiice

By: srboisvert

srboisvert — Fri, 11 May 2007 10:18:10 -0800

Wow. I am left videoless.

By: delmoi

delmoi — Fri, 11 May 2007 10:35:20 -0800

It's always weird to hear brits do american accents.

By: unSane

unSane — Fri, 11 May 2007 10:46:29 -0800

Can we have a YouTube filter please?

By: unSane

unSane — Fri, 11 May 2007 10:46:47 -0800

And a pony.

By: Plutor

Plutor — Fri, 11 May 2007 10:49:33 -0800

I thought this was going to be terrible, but I'm loving it. She's a genius. I'm not being sarcastic. No, really, I'm not.

By: crackingdes

crackingdes — Fri, 11 May 2007 10:57:05 -0800

I'm sort of embarrassed to admit this, but I actually watched the "haters" video three times in a row. (I think it was three. It might have been four.) Something about her sophisticated, deadpan delivery of the most moronic insults ... just... so entertaining.

By: eyeballkid

eyeballkid — Fri, 11 May 2007 10:58:04 -0800

Can we have a YouTube filter please? There is a YouTubeFilter. It's right here.

By: Dizzy

Dizzy — Fri, 11 May 2007 10:58:24 -0800

A day without YouTube is like a day without chicken-eating spiders.

By: Down10

Down10 — Fri, 11 May 2007 11:00:38 -0800

Every featured video on YouTube gets at least 4000 hater comments from children. Comes with the territory, I guess.

By: miss lynnster

miss lynnster — Fri, 11 May 2007 11:04:37 -0800

Lesson learned. Hate mail makes you British.

By: bobo123

bobo123 — Fri, 11 May 2007 11:06:51 -0800

It's always weird to hear brits do american accents. Something about American accents make them easy to fake, at least to my ears. I'm always fooled by British actors pretending to be American but it's funny how hard it is to fake a British accent.

By: dreamsign

dreamsign — Fri, 11 May 2007 11:17:50 -0800

Metafilter: I'd enjoy hitting you with a shovel.

By: Pater Aletheias

Pater Aletheias — Fri, 11 May 2007 11:30:37 -0800

I have to work hard to remind myself that YouTube comments are not necessarily representative of the broader culture, and that I may not be surrounded by people who think that a nice looking young woman who doesn't sufficiently amuse them is a fugly dyke bitch who should be hit with a shovel until dead.

By: chuckdarwin

chuckdarwin — Fri, 11 May 2007 11:37:45 -0800

delmoi sez It's always weird to hear brits do american accents. Welcome to my world.

By: CitrusFreak12

CitrusFreak12 — Fri, 11 May 2007 11:41:22 -0800

I lost it at 2:01 of the second video. Very well done.

By: eyeballkid

eyeballkid — Fri, 11 May 2007 11:49:56 -0800

I'm always fooled by British actors pretending to be American but it's funny how hard it is to fake a British accent. Hugh Laurie in House is atrocious. As are Eddie Izzard and Minne Driver in The Riches. I can usually tell when a British actor is donning an American accent, though I was really fooled by Kate Beckinsale in Last Days of Disco.

By: CitrusFreak12

CitrusFreak12 — Fri, 11 May 2007 12:42:44 -0800

Hugh Laurie in House is atrocious. How the heck is he "atrocious?" He does the best American accent I've ever heard a non-American do. His accent was so good Bryan Singer said that Hugh Laurie was exactly the kind of American actor he had been looking for to play the role of House. You know who has a bad American accent though? Jake Weber on Medium. Terrible.

By: miss lynnster

miss lynnster — Fri, 11 May 2007 13:17:04 -0800

Yeah, I'm on the Hugh Laurie bandwagon I've gotta say. And FWIW I do a kickass British accent. Just trust me, old pip.

By: PeterMcDermott

PeterMcDermott — Fri, 11 May 2007 13:23:52 -0800

miss lynnster writes 'And FWIW I do a kickass British accent. Just trust me, old pip.' I hate to break the news, miss lynnster, but nobody actually talks like Dick Van Dyke in Mary Poppins, and nobody ever did.

By: LordSludge

LordSludge — Fri, 11 May 2007 13:24:50 -0800

CitrusFreak12: I lost it at 2:01 of the second video. WOW, absolutely -- those who bailed early missed some real gold there! (And, yeah, "Bill Hicks would have loved this!")

By: solotoro

solotoro — Fri, 11 May 2007 13:59:37 -0800

miss lynnster writes 'And FWIW I do a kickass British accent. Just trust me, old pip.' I hate to break the news, miss lynnster, but nobody actually talks like Dick Van Dyke in Mary Poppins, and nobody ever did. I think from now on, if you're going to make a sarcastic comment, you should put in subtitles or put in the top of the comment "This is a sarcastic comment", um, because otherwise, like, how are people supposed to know? I think we should start doing that from now on, ok? I'm gonna put that out there, um, you know, if you agree with me, then make a comment because I really think, you know, this could turn into something big and, um, you know, MetaFilter are going to have start listening to us, um, with this kind of an issue, ok? So, yeah. Say no to sarcasm. Seriously.

By: chlorus

chlorus — Fri, 11 May 2007 16:18:21 -0800

I hate to break the news, miss lynnster, but nobody actually talks like Dick Van Dyke in Mary Poppins, and nobody ever did. Oh come on now old chap, what say you and I take the carriage down to Piccadilly Circus and have a chandy!

By: delmoi

delmoi — Fri, 11 May 2007 17:15:47 -0800

You know who has a bad American accent though? Jake Weber on Medium. Terrible. That guy was supposed to sound American?

By: chuckdarwin

chuckdarwin — Fri, 11 May 2007 17:35:27 -0800

solotoro - I have reluctantly started to use the sarcastic wink thingy ;-) I also use [sarcasm] you suck, dude [/sarcasm]

By: chuckdarwin

chuckdarwin — Fri, 11 May 2007 17:36:23 -0800

I don't frequent youtube, despite having an account and some videos up... is she popular?

By: liquorice

liquorice — Fri, 11 May 2007 17:38:09 -0800

I didn't get through the first one but found the second one put together really well, surprisingly. So, yeah. My view has now been accounted for.

By: CitrusFreak12

CitrusFreak12 — Fri, 11 May 2007 18:53:00 -0800

That guy was supposed to sound American? To the best of my knowledge, yes. He had the same exact accent in Dawn of the Dead. He comes off as slightly Australian rather than American.

By: davy

davy — Fri, 11 May 2007 20:21:17 -0800

Is there Star Wars scrolling in either Youtube clip?

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Sat, 12 May 2007 00:01:04 -0800

amazing. keen on this tube.

By: jb

jb — Sat, 12 May 2007 05:34:03 -0800

Something about American accents make them easy to fake, at least to my ears. I'm always fooled by British actors pretending to be American but it's funny how hard it is to fake a British accent. posted by bobo123 at 7:06 PM on May 11 [+] [!] They save the worst American accents for Radio4 comedies. It is a challenge either way. I'm married to someone born in England, and have lived here for over 2 years collectively, but I can't do an English accent, not even a sentance or two. He lived in Canada for 13 years, from age 10 to 23, and he couldn't do a Canadian to save his life. We are both examples of people who are profoundly untalented at mimicking accents. That said, I had a friend from India who travelled a lot as a child, and who could could pick up accents so well - she could do American, New Zealander, British within a few weeks of listening to them. I don't notice fake British as much as my husband, just like he doesn't notice fake North American as easily as me. But there are people who have fooled both of us, including Hugh Laurie (whom we knew well before House, but didn't recognise at first). This girl's American accent is pretty impressive too -- I assumed she was putting on a certain tone, and was probably not as valley girl, but didn't realise she had put on the whole accent. I didn't hear any of the telltale signs of British attempting a fake North American accent (R's that are a little too hard, consonants that aren't quite right) that I hear whenever my husband tries the same thing.

By: TypographicalError

TypographicalError — Sat, 12 May 2007 10:34:46 -0800

After I watched the second video, I went back and closed my eyes and listened to the first again. You can hear slight giveaways that she's not actually American, but she pulled it off pretty well.

By: dirigibleman

dirigibleman — Sat, 12 May 2007 11:39:01 -0800

She gave it away with "Youtube are".

By: chunking express

chunking express — Sun, 13 May 2007 10:39:45 -0800

That second video was classic.