An example of a postmodernist comedy is The Office, one of the most successful UK comedies of all time and has been remade in 8 different countries. It has several postmodern features such as it's "mockumentry" style, with heavy emphasis on parodying documentaries. Several times"The office" breaks conventional sit-com conventions, such as breaking the fourth wall, with Tim and David looking at the camera on several occasions.
It also uses bricolage by mixing genres and media texts such as "Sitcom", "Drama","Rom com" and obviously Documentary. These make it postmodern as it is hard to categorise the Office into one genre. It could also be seen as postmodern by it's use of fragmentation, this meaning it is hard to differentiate between David Brent and Ricky Gervais.
There is also examples of intertextuality in the Office, especially in one scene where Brent finds out that his nicknames are "Bluto" (The bad guy from "Popeye") and "Mr Toad" (a character from "The Wind and The Willows"). Here Merchant and Gervais are referencing other texts to create humour. Below is the video link of this scene:
The Office also uses mundane and boring topics like business appraisals and makes them funny by using subtle humour. This is an example of mixing high and low art together and is a very postmodern feature.
Written by Ruaraidh, Davide and Hannah
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