http://www.theonion.com/content/news/that_full_house_episode_where_they
I chose to write my third blog on the front-page article from this weeks Onion. The title is “That Full House Episode Where They Meet The Beach Boys Is On Tomorrow At 3 P.M.” and is labeled as a “National Alert”. The article is addressed to the people of the United States, warning us that the country is on high alert because tomorrow the episode of Full House is on, where the Tanners meet the Beach Boys. Specifically, this article is really addressed to anyone who has seen this specific episode or is familiar with this old 80s/90s sitcom. I have a faint memory of this specific episode and when I read the article, all the specific details they described I could picture clearly in my mind, making it even more humorous. The main point of this article is to make fun of the Department of Homeland Security (who are responsible for the alert) and also the once very popular show. The tone of the text is quite serious as it is supposed to be imitating a national alert. However the subject, the specific episode of Full House, is not so serious. This is what makes the article funny; it tries to make Full House appear to be a very important and serious matter, when in reality it is pretty typical American sitcom that has no deep significance. While the article appears to have the purpose of informing the reader of this well-known episode airing, in all actuality it’s purpose is to amuse the reader. As I mentioned earlier, details of this episode were used to remind the reader that the article is making fun of the show. For example, when the article reads, “It is up to and every one of you to be aware of the small but memorable moments, like Joey and Jesse’s jingle for Beach Butter Suntan Lotion, or that ridiculous yellow blazer Deej wears to the concert.” Another point I think this article has is to remind Americans of the relevance that popular sitcoms have in today’s society. Full House is part of American culture and this article makes fun of how a T.V. show of no real importance can be what our society revolves around.
1 comment:
I decided to comment on this entry of Zoe’s because I found the article she based her blog on particularly funny. I am often reluctant to read The Onion because many of their jokes do not hit home with me, as they allude to aspects of the American culture I am not always familiar with. Yet, this particular article caught my attention because even back in Brazil I grew up an ardent viewer of Full House, following every episode and making sure I didn’t miss the ones where the Olsen twins made a substantial appearance.
I thought Zoe made an excellent point when she said The Onion included this article to criticize the American society for being so obsessed with these situational comedies that serve to easily amuse the average non-educated individual, but end up getting herds of people (educated and not) hooked up. It is sad to realize how much television (specifically, trashy television) is a party of our lives today.
One point I felt Zoe missed was the criticism that went the other direction. That is, the article is also criticizing The Department of Homeland Security. The latter gives out so many “urgent” alerts of possible terrorist threats in America today that no one believes them anymore. Naturally, so many alerts compel people to think that there need not be a major happening for them to be sent out. In fact, the article argues that an episode rerun of a 90s sitcom is more worthy of an alert (in the newspaper’s front page) than any possible occurrence the DHS would warrant a terrorizing menace for the country. It is easy to relate to this when one goes into an airport: it almost seems arbitrary when suddenly the lights go from green to yellow, yellow to green, every ten minutes or so, signaling the level of threat the airport is under. Seriously, how can I so quickly be under a terrorist threat and then safely out of one?! Someone needs to redefine the word “threat” for this country.
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