My guess is that this is what the “too far” people are feeling, only because I admit to feeling a tiny twinge of it. That is, that ISIS activities should not be made light of. They are not funny, in any way, shape or form.
I share Mel Brooks attitude on this kind of satire; Brooks has said more than once that if he had the opportunity during the war years he would have written comedy to make Hitler look ridiculous and thereby diminish him and his nefarious ideas.
I agree with that approach, LW, but in this case I don’t think ISIS was made to look ridiculous enough. The dad looked like the ridiculous one.
SNL is not the only show poking fun at ISIS–check out Iraqi TV:
http://www.businessinsider.com/the-isis-sit-com-going-viral-in-iraq-2014-10
"A few weeks ago Iraqi TV launched a new sitcom that uses humor, songs, and kitschy costumes to mock the Islamist group that has taken control of numerous towns in the country’s north. The title of the show roughly translates to “Fairytale State,” though some news outlets have translated it as “State of Superstition.”
The sitcom’s director, Ali al Qasem, told 7:30 Australia they were fighting against the group’s use of fear and terror. “By tackling this issue with humor, you can reduce the fear of Islamic State among people, particularly children,” he said.
“The whole world is talking about ISIS — America, France — but once you make fun of them, they’re finished. I think this is the response they deserve," al Qasem said."
The girl looked pretty ridiculous to me. So right now ISIS is trying to recruit young people to perpetrate acts in place. They have been having some success recruiting on the romance and adventure of it as if they are running off to join the French Foreign Legion or something. Think about the Boston bombers hatching a plot to feel cool and a part of something bigger than their neighborhood boxing gym (not ISIS but other terrorist group). We saw the teenage girl “Slenderman” thing where regular people wonder how that is even possible. The skit poses the question, “how does the girl not see this?” and by extension how do other young people get sucked into being a joiner.
A Jeep full of guys with beards and guns is not “ridiculous.” That sight can be seen in many parts of America.
It used to be quite common to mock the enemy–this was done a lot during World War II (especially during the early days of the war). There are some Warner Brothers cartoons that focus on this–such as one in which Hitler is flying a plane to bomb Russia and is bedeviled by “gremlins from the Kremlin.”
“The skit poses the question, “how does the girl not see this?” and by extension how do other young people get sucked into being a joiner.”
Sure, but it’s a parody of a commercial where the organization being joined is the US Army. Also, the mocking is not of the enemy it is of the joiner girls which seems to be the problem for most of the people who have a problem with the skit.
I meant “joiner” of ISIS or similar group, not the US Army.
So people feel that they are mocking the US Army and being unpatriotic? I see the mocking Toyota for using a very tenuous connection to the military to sell cars or taking offense at using the military to sell cars. I see mocking ISIS and I see mocking the girl.
However . . . if I HAD meant the US Military would that be offensive? Do people feel that the skit is saying that she might be equally unsafe in ISIS as in the US Military (in light of the sexual assault crisis)? I don’t see it that way, but if that was the intent is it “going too far” to mildly poke at our institutions of power? I thought that the ability to do so is supposed to be part of what separates us from some other cultures and governments. Are we really this thin skinned?
In what way do people see ISiS being mocked in this skit?
I see the dad and the girl being mocked (and I also see marie’s view of the military being mocked), but I don’t see ISIS being mocked. I see them as being portrayed as they are.
I don’t see the military being mocked at all. I see the girls being mocked. And to make it more ludicrous, the dad seems OK with it.
How, exactly, is the US military being mocked?
You don’t get that sense unless/until you see the original ad by Toyota. If you watch them in proximity, you can conclude that the writers are either mocking Toyota, or patriotic service, or both. I’m not sure that was their intention, but its not an unreasonable inference, IMO.
I was spoiled on the punchline, so I just thought it was amusing. I also think it’s middle class girls being mocked more than ISIS.
And possibly Toyota. Iirc, ISIS has a lot of Toyota Hilux trucks. They actually came from the US govt, given to our “moderate Syrian rebel allies” and then magically show up in ISIS propaganda videos.
So our tax dollars actually paid for the some of the trucks ISIS is using for their raids.
I have seen the original online and the other night on regular tv. I saw it during the super bowl but just thought it was weird and not nearly as interesting as the Fiat ad.
Yep. Who could forget “Hilter on Ice!”
All I can say is that last year the nation mourned Joan Rivers, for whom there was NO joke too offensive. So I find the all-of-a-sudden “oh, it’s so offensive” a bit hypocritical.
I thought the skit was dark but funny. I perceived it as mockery of the privileged kids in the West who run off to play Call of Duty.
I wonder if those 3 British girls who bought the ISIS marketing message are now having buyer’s remorse.
I’m on humor side - dark but humor.
Count me as someone who sometimes found her funny, but often found her to be unneccessarily mean. Her frequent vicious attacks on women she deemed to be fat were never funny to me and kind of turned me off her brand of humor. Criticize the dress, fine, but keep your nasty comments about weight to yourself was how I felt about her. She was on a talk show where Adele’s name came up as a marvelous singer, and her reaction was to make a crude gesture about Adele’s size and act angry when the audience booed that.