#9: The Dirty Joke
Original airdate: November 4, 1997
Production no.: AM-109
Written by: Martin Vale & Elise Pritchard
Directed by: Leonard K. Ames
Guest stars: Helen Drake as Judge Hopkins; Victor Bell as opposing counsel
Screen capture from my EP tape. Please credit this site.
THE WHOLE STORY (SPOILERS!!!)
Alan defends a comedian who told a joke about women, because it sounds like a joke Alan would tell. The punchline is under seal. Characters faint, leave, or stare at nothing when they hear it. Alan wants the joke to land with Bethany and casts Risus Aeternus.
The laugh track runs for 40 uninterrupted seconds while the picture goes grey. The judge says he hasn’t laughed in nine minutes and feels unwell. Continuity: the laugh track is not canned; it is an audience.
⚖ CASE OF THE WEEK
State v. The Joke: a comedian charged with criminal humour.
💭 INSIDE ALAN’S HEAD
Alan tries to tell the joke to himself in a mirror. The mirror does not laugh. It takes notes.
📖 CODEX LORE
THE LAUGH TRACK is not canned. It is the audience of every reality Alan deleted.
My Two Cents
The scariest the show has been and it's all because they never say the joke. Brilliant. My brother says the joke is just 'a man walks into a bar' but I think it is the Codex. I give it 🍔🍔🍔🍔🍔 out of five burgers.
Best Quote
JUDGE: Mr. McBurger, I have not laughed in nine minutes and I do not feel well.
Continuity Watch / Theories
The 40 second laugh track is real, I timed it. I am putting it in the McBurger Files.
A second screencap from my VHS archive
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Last updated: June 10, 1998 | Webmaster: McBurgerMan97 | McBurgerMan97@aol.com