RTE: The Savage Eye

DangerMouse27

They could put that quote on the dvd...loved it,very funny,pity he is a dickhead.

I never had any dealings or heard much about him but as soon as i saw the first few mins i was hooked.The only people who seem to really hate this are tossers who pine for Halls pictorial and other such ****e.Val Falvey is awful,even the minister for breathlessness would get elected before him

AnonoBoy

DangerMouse27 wrote: »

The only people who seem to really hate this are tossers who pine for Halls pictorial and other such ****e.

Or that separate group - people who prefer funny stuff to sh*te stuff?

MikeC101

Jip wrote: »

I watched it Monday night on the player, is it the property episode ?

You know what - I forgot they take down episodes after a while, it was missing the first one (the one on the arts) and genius that I am, I didn't realise that.

D'oh!

Libero

AnonoBoy wrote: »

Or that separate group - people who prefer funny stuff to sh*te stuff?

Of course, like all TV - and entertainment and the arts in general - reasonable people will disagree on what's good and what's not.

That said, I've been disappointed at the fact that out of 28+ pages on this thread, those who dislike it generally haven't gone beyond saying "it's sh*te", so that we could better appreciate their lack of appreciation.

In the absence of such explanation, the only message coming through loud and clear from most critics is that they didn't like Dave McSavage in the first place. Well, neither did I. But I think the same stridency and bad taste that makes him a regular flop at stand up can inform the sort of satire this country needs now, especially if it's channelled through a team of other writers, performers and a good production crew.

Wyndman

Libero wrote: »

I've been disappointed at the fact that out of 28+ pages on this thread, those who dislike it generally haven't gone beyond saying "it's sh*te", so that we could better appreciate their lack of appreciation.

I thought I was fairly detailed in my reasons but to recap...

1) Stolen jokes. I know RTE have zero experince with comedy but stealing other people's jokes is very bad form. The jokes in this mess are few and far between but the only mildly amusing ones were better done years ago by better comedians.

2) Those filler vox pops with sneering hipsters. Cheap filler from the type of people who'd laugh at McSavage's bullying busking.

3) Easy targets. I actaully take offernce at people calling this "edgy". It's no more edgy than Val Falvey. It just has a lot of cheap cursing and stock offesiveness to trick braying idiots into thinking it has something to say. It is meaningless trite.

Notice how the property episode didn't mention Fianna Fail's role in the bubble? The same old priest = peadofile joke every week with no actaul elaboration on the subject.

McSavage has only ever been a bully, a hack taking easy swipes. He reacts very badly when people slag him off back. Givng it but not taking it with grace is the mark of a bully. It is a disgrace that RTE have chosen to give this well-connected hack an expensive platform to air his poison.

(And no, I haven't been personally insulted by McSavage on the Street. I have seen him at it though and the only laughs came from those who answered him back.)

johjohn

David McSavage, Thank you, thank you, thank you for giving Joe Duffy the almighty kick up the arse that he richly deserves for all the whinging, all the misery, all the knocking and criticizing and especially the unqualified, unenlightened, unknowledgable and downright stupid criticisms of complemetary health and other things that he knows absolutely nothing about, thank you David McSavage for giving me the revenge that I deserve for having to listen to that supremo of gob****es droning on and on in radio filled workplaces that I could not get out of as sweat and rage suffused me, thank you David McSavage for bringing infinite cheer to my irritated, child filled, homework plagued evening, thank you for screaming abuse on my behalf, thank you for making me laugh until I cried. I love you


john

TheCandystripes

well said johnjohn

A Disgrace

Wyndman wrote: »

I thought I was fairly detailed in my reasons but to recap...

1) Stolen jokes. I know RTE have zero experince with comedy but stealing other people's jokes is very bad form. The jokes in this mess are few and far between but the only mildly amusing ones were better done years ago by better comedians.

Who did he steal from? Throw us an example so we can discuss properly

Sir Gallagher

A Disgrace wrote: »

I thought I was fairly detailed in my reasons but to recap...

1) Stolen jokes. I know RTE have zero experince with comedy but stealing other people's jokes is very bad form. The jokes in this mess are few and far between but the only mildly amusing ones were better done years ago by better comedians.

Who did he steal from? Throw us an example so we can discuss properly

One of the jokes in the first episode was a direct rip off of Robert Downey Jr's. characters fake trailer at the start of Tropic Thunder, the one about the two gay monks/priests.

I've also noticed very similar stuff to The League of Gentlemen on The Savage eye too.

I think its not a bad program at all, but stealing jokes is lousy.

AnonoBoy

Libero wrote: »

That said, I've been disappointed at the fact that out of 28+ pages on this thread, those who dislike it generally haven't gone beyond saying "it's sh*te", so that we could better appreciate their lack of appreciation.

Read my post on it above. It lacks punchlines and funny gags. I've only seen the one episode but the Joe Duffy 'parody' that our one-post wonder above is so grateful for didn't raise a smile with me the first time but he went back to it three or four times in the episode without any new gags. That's just weak. If you return to a situation in the same episode you need to build on the gag with new material, throwing in a midget in leather is not a punchline, the whole thing just felt like filler because there wasn't enough material for the whole show.

The ministers (which I initially liked in the pilot episode) didn't have any real gags in this episode and instead were just given lines which had no real humour to them. They seemed to serve as a linking device only. This is fine except for the fact that they were the linking device to another linking device. Why keep going back to them if they weren't delivering jokes?

McSavage tearing up an office when he got a promotion was so weak it didn't even deserve the 20/25 seconds or so it got in the show. That gag at most could sustain for about 5 seconds, a very quick cutaway at best with a caption instead of some badly scripted and delievered dialogue by the two looking in the window.

There you go.

Oh yeah - and it's sh*te.

Elka

Punchlines? Punchlines went out with Spike Milligan and Q! No longer do sketches have to have a punch line, nor do they need to be wrapped up - just segue to the next gag. Think Monty Python's Flying Circus: "And now, for something completely different."

As for the Savage Eye, bravo is all I can say. Not being Irish, but having been here since before the Celtic Tiger, he hits on alot of home truths I feel, and even if it does make uncomfortable viewing (I'm thinking of the publican or 'Miriam'), that's a good thing: I for one don't want to be spoon fed my comedy. I like a bit of a bite!

As for the Joe Duffy incarnation, bravo again - it's someting I felt quite a while ago: there is a tendency for (Irish?) people to masturbate their misery...

AnonoBoy

Elka wrote: »

Punchlines?

Ok then - jokes. It needs more funny jokes. Having Joe Duffy masturbate himself in the studio? Even if you did find it funny the first time, by the third or fourth time were you honestly still laughing? "Oh I see what he did there, Irish people get off on misery. Oh look he's making the same joke again. Oh here it is again, same gag, no elaboration." It got old very very quickly.

The show wasn't great at all. And to be honest I think people who did like it are over-rating it just because so much Irish comedy is absolutely terrible even a small step up seems amazing.

McSavage isn't a comedy genius and he could have done with another two or three writing partners on this to get the most out of the jokes that were good and cut away the stuff that wasn't. It's very very hard to write a good sketch show by yourself. I defy anyone to name a classic sketch show that only has one writer. McSavage needs to let the ego take a backseat and collaborate with other writers if he wants to take this beyond mere crass mockery and into something that is genuinely funny and will maintain for a second series.

[edit]Just noticed I'm responding to yet another one-post wonder. Quelle surprise![/edit]

Elka

AnonoBoy wrote: »

Ok then - jokes. It needs more funny jokes. Having Joe Duffy masturbate himself in the studio? Even if you did find it funny the first time, by the third or fourth time were you honestly still laughing? "Oh I see what he did there, Irish people get off on misery. Oh look he's making the same joke again. Oh here it is again, same gag, no elaboration." It got old very very quickly.

The show wasn't great at all. And to be honest I think people who did like it are over-rating it just because so much Irish comedy is absolutely terrible even a small step up seems amazing.

McSavage isn't a comedy genius and he could have done with another two or three writing partners on this to get the most out of the jokes that were good and cut away the stuff that wasn't. It's very very hard to write a good sketch show by yourself. I defy anyone to name a classic sketch show that only has one writer. McSavage needs to let the ego take a backseat and collaborate with other writers if he wants to take this beyond mere crass mockery and into something that is genuinely funny and will maintain for a second series.

[edit]Just noticed I'm responding to yet another one-post wonder. Quelle surprise![/edit]

I take your point about there needing to be more jokes if the series is to last the duration. That said, compared to what's out there, this seems to be as good as it gets.

That's not to say that I/we/the public should be satisfied with second best, but the show and the issues it does (albeit repeatedly) raise are timely e.g. the monotony of the priests kidnapping kids: isn't that just illustrating the monotony of regular 'scandals of the church' and paedophile priests?

I don't know much about the creative process in writing, but if a collective helps, I for one hope McSavage does take on some help - he's got some good starting points and I would be curious to see where they lead to with a writers' group behind them.

Et alors pour les 'one post wonders' - sans nous, vous n'auriez rien a dire!

Lemondrop kid

Libero wrote: »

Of course, like all TV - and entertainment and the arts in general - reasonable people will disagree on what's good and what's not.

That said, I've been disappointed at the fact that out of 28+ pages on this thread, those who dislike it generally haven't gone beyond saying "it's sh*te", so that we could better appreciate their lack of appreciation.

.

I wonder if the original op should do a poll?
Having read all the posts my strong impression is around 90% like the show, despite their feelings towards McSavage.

ScumLord

AnonoBoy wrote: »

Ok then - jokes. It needs more funny jokes. Having Joe Duffy masturbate himself in the studio? Even if you did find it funny the first time, by the third or fourth time were you honestly still laughing?

I think it's funnier and funnier the more I think about it.

Lemondrop kid

AnonoBoy wrote: »

Ok then - jokes. It needs more funny jokes. Having Joe Duffy masturbate himself in the studio? Even if you did find it funny the first time, by the third or fourth time were you honestly still laughing? "Oh I see what he did there, Irish people get off on misery. Oh look he's making the same joke again. Oh here it is again, same gag, no elaboration." It got old very very quickly.

The show wasn't great at all. And to be honest I think people who did like it are over-rating it just because so much Irish comedy is absolutely terrible even a small step up seems amazing. my bold

Yep, that'd be true. But so far this is that step.:)

McSavage isn't a comedy genius and he could have done with another two or three writing partners on this to get the most out of the jokes that were good and cut away the stuff that wasn't. It's very very hard to write a good sketch show by yourself. I defy anyone to name a classic sketch show that only has one writer. McSavage needs to let the ego take a backseat and collaborate with other writers if he wants to take this beyond mere crass mockery and into something that is genuinely funny and will maintain for a second series.

[edit]Just noticed I'm responding to yet another one-post wonder. Quelle surprise![/edit]

Em , apparently there were 12 or so credited according to an earlier post. McS does need to share the acting a bit more though - the joe duffy would have been better played by one of the others (physically more accurate)

AnonoBoy

Lemondrop kid wrote: »

Em , apparently there were 12 or so credited according to an earlier post. McS does need to share the acting a bit more though - the joe duffy would have been better played by one of the others (physically more accurate)

I just saw the 'written by Dave McSavage' but just checked on the RTE Player there and lo and behold there were additional writers credited. Oh well. There's that excuse out the window. I'm back to just plain old needs to be funnier.

DangerMouse27

the quotes are brilliant!

that skit of irish porn and the post man looks in the window..Jaysus your in great voice today fanny! hahahaha

NormanNicetouch

Just watched the property episode. And it surprised me. Couldn't actually stand the man from what I had read in the papers and saw of him on the Late Late. But this is actual bloody genius by RTE standards. Well done, that Blackrock boy.

RABTMOUSE

Wyndman wrote: »

I thought I was fairly detailed in my reasons but to recap...


McSavage has only ever been a bully, a hack taking easy swipes. He reacts very badly when people slag him off back. Givng it but not taking it with grace is the mark of a bully. It is a disgrace that RTE have chosen to give this well-connected hack an expensive platform to air his poison.

(And no, I haven't been personally insulted by McSavage on the Street. I have seen him at it though and the only laughs came from those who answered him back.)

Aaw you clearly hate McSavage personally from the pit of your soul. That's sweet. You dislike the man so much, yet you've tuned into his show and logged on here to voice and vent your hatred. You sound like a very unhappy person. A healthy person who had a strong dislike for another person would avoid them. Your ill wishing and evident need to seek out reasons to fuel your hatred makes me not want to read any of these forums anymore.
People who go out of their way to hate other people make me feel sad.

Well done to anyone who tries at anything.

worded

Sir Gallagher wrote: »

One of the jokes in the first episode was a direct rip off of Robert Downey Jr's. characters fake trailer at the start of Tropic Thunder, the one about the two gay monks/priests.

I've also noticed very similar stuff to The League of Gentlemen on The Savage eye too.

I think its not a bad program at all, but stealing jokes is lousy.

Young novelists rob, old novelists borrow. That my original thought on this.

philstar

the bit about the famine was hilarious...."you've took the soup you turned into a protestant!!"

Johnny Utah

but I still think this show is hilarious. Keep up the good work.

Why so much hate for McSavage though? Maybe some posters were the victims of his impromptu street comedy?

fabbydabby

Johnny Utah wrote: »

Why so much hate for McSavage though? Maybe some posters were the victims of his impromptu street comedy?

I presume you use the term comedy in its broadest possible sense. i was at one of these sessions and although I personally wasn't ripped on I felt that some of his jokes were in very bad taste.

Not to be confused with 'pushing the boundaries' of comedy (Southpark / Family Guy) they were just puerile and tasteless in the extreme.

Also he ripped off jokes from other Comedians, most notably Eddie Murphy. Fk sake I could do that like.

WolfForager

"We'll knock 3 shades of ****e out of ya!"

"And i'll come back for the other 4..."

omahaid

LOL at giant space hen

Steoob

What was the song playing during the scene with the pedophile preist? Used to know it but its totally gone out of my head.

Stench Blossoms

Steoob wrote: »

What was the song playing during the scene with the pedophile preist? Used to know it but its totally gone out of my head.

Oh Fortuna is it?

currythis

Very funny tonight as usual!

'Are ya a queer?'
'No'
'Well ya might not like Tuesday to much then so!'

Bob_Harris

Anyone know what the name of the song is that was playing a few minutes ago when the priest was doing the magic show?

This show is surprisingly good it has to be said compared to everything else RTE put out. I've not seen a full episode yet though.