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Comment by cjs_ac | Hacker News Reader

The American comic hero is the Stand-Up Philosopher, wittily demonstrating his superiority with every line. The British comic hero is trying his best and failing miserably in a way that is relatable to the audience.

Consequently, the only British comedy that is popular in the US is satire, like Monty Python and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

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There's plenty of American comedy that doesn't fit this mold (Broad City and Search Party are two examples that come to mind).

Definitely. It's rather that the plucky underdog surviving on his wits is practically absent in British comedy.

Brits don't do Bugs Bunny, only Wile E. Coyote.

I think there are also plenty of counterexamples in that direction. Isn’t Edmund Blackadder a plucky underdog surviving on his wits?

Blackadder almost always fails by some measure.

He wins sometimes. Ask the Bishop of Bath and Wells.

https://youtu.be/rBhTIoIXoTI?si=7Xc-1Mg7E60l645W

I would push back on your generalization, the American family sitcoms are as big if not bigger than standup comedy.

It's not standup vs sitcom so much as winning vs losing.

British comedy runs on kicking its protagonists in the nuts. Ideally, they bring it upon themselves, but cosmic irony will do in a pinch.

It's practically unheard of for a British protagonist to end an episode in a better place than they started unless it's the Christmas special.

This seems to be a rehash of Stephen Fry’s observation on the difference between the styles of humor.

You should watch 'It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'.

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