M.C.F.A.T. XXIV Answers

Last week I posted the TWENTY-FOURTH batch of the M.C.F.A.T., or Mysterious Cloaked Figure's Astonishing Test questions. Here's what you had to say:

B13.

Darrell.

Jeff.

And as for me:

1) Is it good or bad when sitcoms feature celebrity guest stars?
I'll somewhat echo the sentiments of Darrell and Jeff, and say that the traditional sitcom model with the canned laughter or studio audience is all but dead. It was great in the ‘80s, and for a good portion of the ‘90s, but as I've gotten older I just don't find the things funny that a laugh track is telling me I should find funny. How I Met Your Mother is the sole current show with a laugh track that I still enjoy. It's those half hour comedies that break from telling me what's funny and let me figure it out for myself, while breaking away from filming in a studio, that still hold my interest, including The Office, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, 30 Rock, My Name is Earl, The Simpsons, Family Guy, and Scrubs(returning Tuesday, January 6 2009 on ABC).

I think the key to a celebrity guest appearance is to not call attention to the fact that the guest star is a “celebrity”. While the network promo departments are notorious for pointing that out as the sole reason to tune in to an episode, it's how that person is used that determines whether or not the guest is a good addition. Jennifer Aniston was one of the stars thrown at us in commercials for a recent 30 Rock, but it was the surprise inclusion of former cast members from Night Court in that episode that I really loved. The performance and the function these stars serve is the most important thing. Brendan Fraser is easily the best guest star to appear on Scrubs, but for his character's story arc, and not the fact that he was Brendan Fraser.

I think it's also important that a guest star mesh naturally with the regular cast, and not detract from their chemistry. If new viewers are brought in for a particular actor who isn't on the following episode, they might not stick around. Near the end of their run, Arrested Development had an episode subtly acknowledging the fact that the show was nearly canceled, and made fun of ratings stunts such as celebrity guests while incorporating several guests at the same time. Ironically, throughout their run stars like Henry Winkler, Scott Baio, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ben Stiller, and Charlize Theron all made integrated appearances that contributed more to the story than just star power.

I think the most important problem with the “celebrity” guest is that when a network pushes that, as ABC has, giving Courtney Cox more time in a recent Scrubs commercial than the regular cast, they forget that their regular stars are celebrities too.

2) What is the most shocking thing you've seen on the internet?
B13 is responsible for 90% of it, though I won't be linking to his favorite animated gif of a “meat chopper”, or any of the other shocking things I've come across on my own. After a friend sent some of us a video of a man who shoots himself in the head while in police custody, something I'd seen before, I started thinking about this question. That particular video, perhaps due to the theatric liberties movies take, didn't seem that shocking. There was no loud bang, no shouting, and no musical score. Just a pop, a slump, and some mild swearing and griping on the part of the officers. No, the most shocking thing I saw was a few years ago at my old job, when curiosity got the better of me and I allowed a coworker to play a video of an American slowly being beheaded by a group of terrorists with a dull knife. There are a lot of ugly, horrible, and shocking things in this world, and with the internet there really isn't anything we can't see on demand. Whether we should or would want to is a whole other question, of course.

3) Is it possible to have too much free time?
Free time isn't bad, and amid the hustle of work, band, family, and friends, I sometimes wish there were more hours in the day. Then I come to a long weekend like this one in which I finally get the time I've been wanting all year, and I worry about being bored. Thus far, I've found ways to occupy myself, and ultimately I don't think free time is bad, only what we do with that time. Sometimes it can be a welcome respite, and other times it can inspire us to be creative and come up with things we'd normally be too busy to think about.

4) Inspired by a recent Dwight Shrute monologue, I ask you: what's your perfect crime?
I think it would be great to create a fake persona with my friends, for all of us to maintain a blog about this fictitious individual. We could have him be in his thirties, still living with his parents, not have a girlfriend, and have legendary bad luck. He could also have way too much knowledge about comic books, movies, and television shows. Perhaps once a week this guy could post photos of his “vacations” to local nature preserves. If I could convince people that a loser like that actually exists, maybe even maintain this character for five years or more, that would be the perfect crime. I'm sure most people would see right through it though, and it would be difficult for multiple writers to maintain a consistent voice, and junk.

SPECIAL BONUS QUESTION: What (animated) fictional town offers a whirlwind existence, race cars, lasers, airplanes, mystery-solving, time travel, and more?
I got some good answers for this, but the one I was looking for is Duckburg. I was thinking of Duckburg.