dws (02/20/83)
remember when second city used to perform in toronto, ont.
franka (02/21/83)
#R:sri-unix:14400003:tekcad:11500002:000:892 tekcad!franka Feb 21 10:51:00 1983 I think that everytime SCTV goes through personel changes people feel that the show goes downhill. I remember having the same conversations with my friends back when SCTV was still syndicated and Eugene Levy left. The show's quality did not decrease. It simply emphasized other points. I think that the main thing to remember is whenever a show goes through a personel change, it isn't always for the worst. Don't think of the show as being bad now that a few of its characters have left. Think of it as different. The new members are obviously experimenting as to what works with them. I've seen it happen before. It happens every time there is a big change. The tone of the show was shakey for a few weeks after they first moved to NBC, also. Just give it time. I'm sure it will be just as good as their past work. I never have seen a rotten SC group (TV or Chicago), Frank Adrian
paul (02/21/83)
I still like SCTV, although a few reruns are showing up. I watch them on Canadian TV Channel 9 from Windsor, as well as NBC. I am hoping that Bob and Doug will come back as their movie project gets finished up. Anyway, I am a John Candy fan, but I do like "the new guy", and bust a gut at things like the Half Wits game show.
bernie (02/22/83)
Just for the record, dws@mitccc, Second City *still* performs in Toronto, Ontario; I saw them just a few weeks back. Their stage show is extremely good; I only wish I could say the same for SCTV. I can sympathize with them, though; churning out an hour and a half of comedy every week for a few seasons is difficult to do, and losing Moranis and Thomas was a bit of a blow. For those who like revue-type comedy, there's another group here in Southern Ontario called the "Acme Harpoon Company". They do stuff much like what you'd see in Second City's stage show, plus some genuinely good improvisational comedy (lots better than Second City's). There's also a group called Theatresports, which is entirely improvisational and which performs regularly in Waterloo, Toronto, Hamilton, Calgary, Vancouver, Seattle and probably elsewhere. --Bernie Roehl ...decvax!watmath!watarts!bernie
bernie (02/23/83)
There seems to be more interest in SCTV on the net than I had thought. SCTV was at its best during its very first season, when it ran half an hour a week on Global Television here in Ontario. It's never completely re-captured that same freshness, though they have done some remarkably funny things during the course of the series. Don't misunderstand; I *like* SCTV, and hope it thrives; it's just that I know how much better it could be if they didn't have to crank out material for the show at the enormous rate they do. Anyone who's seen the Toronto or Chicago stage shows of Second City will know what I mean; putting together a show every six months or whatever means that the entire show is *good*, and well worth watching. I can't always say the same for SCTV. --Bernie Roehl ...decvax!watmath!watarts!bernie
mclure (03/09/83)
#N:sri-unix:14400003:000:171 sri-unix!mclure Feb 19 01:06:00 1983 Does anyone else think that SCTV has gone down considerably in quality since Moranis, Thomas, and O'Hara left? It seems to have completely lost its former touch. Stuart
bernie (03/17/83)
SCTV has certainly changed since Moranis, Thomas and O'Hara left. It tends more towards story-telling now, and the interactions of the characters (and of course the characters themselves) are what hold the audience's interest. When was the last time you saw a really *funny* scene on SCTV? Now it's mostly something you smile at and passively enjoy. (Not that there's necessarily anything wrong with that...) --Bernie Roehl ...decvax!watmath!watarts!bernie