Does Jim Sterling need to drop his gimmick?
- Thread starter Tarkand
- Start date
Recommended Videos
Its been his gimmick for over 10 years, he's like a British Maddox, before he was hired by Destructoid he had his own site called Morphine Nation where he was just the same. Its a shame that he had to leave it because he had an awesome comic series called "Skeletor is" (which he did) and "Cane Hat Man" (some other bloke did).Krychek08 said:
I'll try to find some archives because its good reading, "10 uses for David Duchovny" was brilliant.
Let's just say you aren't going to agree with my opinion since you seem so set in stone. However, throwing around thinly veiled insults (I realize it wasn't you but another poster) is hardly a way to foster a constructive debate.
I will say this in response to your post, did you think Gulliver's Travels was edgy? (I don't have a hidden agenda behind this question, I'm merely curious).
I will say this in response to your post, did you think Gulliver's Travels was edgy? (I don't have a hidden agenda behind this question, I'm merely curious).
Frankly, he can do whatever he wants. I saw everything I needed to see in his first three episodes and decided he wasn't worth my time. It's as simple as that.
If he's got a routine that people like, then he sure as hell isn't going to abandon it. It's part of what makes Denis Leary popular, as well as the Nostalgia Critic, and just about any wrestler out there; it's that small diversion from reality that brings the intrigue to them.
I don't watch him because I personally don't find him funny. It's as simple as that. No one is to blame. It's just a difference in taste.
If he's got a routine that people like, then he sure as hell isn't going to abandon it. It's part of what makes Denis Leary popular, as well as the Nostalgia Critic, and just about any wrestler out there; it's that small diversion from reality that brings the intrigue to them.
I don't watch him because I personally don't find him funny. It's as simple as that. No one is to blame. It's just a difference in taste.
I like it. I agree it was't good in the begining but now I find it pretty cool. I still think he is massively wrong on some things but I do like the impression I get of him as someone who doesn't treat games really seriously unlike say MovieBob who does come across like an evangelical preacher at time, certain that his words are true and what he says is really hard hitting and important.
While true, at least Yahtzee's fast-talking shtick is entertaining and charming. Jim's persona DETRACTS from the experience of watching his videos. I might actually consider him as good as, say, Extra Credits, if he didn't literally go out of his way to make me hate him with every video.Irridium said:
It removes credibility from his videos and makes a lot of people simply downright ignore him.
ZeZZZZevy said:
Love this series, and all its craziness.
----------------
OT: I never liked Jim Sterling in the first place, and I'm not sure he's made much of an improvement since. Too much being angry for angry's sake, not enough real point being made.
'course, I don't even watch Yahtzee anymore, really. And I can't stand MovieBob. Hell, I don't think I've kept watching any shows since Doomsday Arcade ended and Doraleous & Associates went on "sabbatical" or whatever.
Huh... so why am I even here?
*leaves*
I don't think he behaves like that in person. Look at this week's episode. He basically punches himself with self-deprecating humor. I don't think Yahtzee acts that way in person either. If they do it's just a small facet of their personalities that they magnify to make it funny.
So as long as he continues to be funny I don't care, go right on ahead, you self-appointed dictator of all things right in video games.
So as long as he continues to be funny I don't care, go right on ahead, you self-appointed dictator of all things right in video games.
to be perfectly hones, i find it funny that he haves to pay like 15 seconds to every other video he makes EXPLAINING that its just a damn act! and if he needs to explain people its an act to create a response, then i have to say "Well done Jim, Well done"
keep the persona, but making a column where you are more level headed (like ZP) would make people understand its just an act instead of OMG THIS GUY IS A DICK!!!!
keep the persona, but making a column where you are more level headed (like ZP) would make people understand its just an act instead of OMG THIS GUY IS A DICK!!!!
I think this poster said it better than I could have:anthony87 said:
Altho I don't actively hate him, I just turn him off because it's annoying. It isn't the content I'm uninterested in, it's the delivery.Stammer said:
Edit: I also get that what he states is actually the opposite of his opinion sometimes, which I thought was obvious. But since I'm not as smart as some people apparently I missed it. That's what I meant by his opinion is in line with everyone elses.
For me , that's the joke. It's a big play on how people who have these opinion videos are all telling us how we should act and what to think and we are stupid otherwise. There are many who vocally call some of these shows out on being 'preachy'. He's just taking it to the extreme and making a joke of it. Why not drop the facade and just present yourself as a dictator? I think that's good comedy.Lokithrsourcerer said:
I also agree with the people here who are saying that he's an entertainer and he has to have some kind of persona and/or schtick. I might be biased though, I've 'got' his humor since his first video on the Escapist.
I never got that from he always seemed more Yactzee's thing to hate on Nintendo, Jim praises Kirby's Epic yarn.lockecole21 said:
It's not so much I hate his gimmick I'm just tired of it over all lots of people seem to use the get everyone angry thing, I'd like more verity in internet personas.
True, his video's aren't for everyone. If you don't like them, there isn't much I can say to change your mind. All I can suggest is to read his written stuff. I feel they're much, much better than his videos. Still has his blunt style, but it's not the same as his arrogant persona.Stammer said:
http://www.gamefront.com/solving-the-sixty-dollar-situation/
http://www.destructoid.com/esports-defenders-the-reason-why-esports-can-t-be-sports-208512.phtml
Satirical of what?AlternatePFG said:
OT: In writing, I don't mind him, I don't actively seek his work out but it can be enjoyable. On video though, as you said, he mixes up "I'm a douchebag!" with "Not really, just kidding," so often it makes it worthless. Hyperbole isn't something you can just drop in and out of, and if its supposed to be a 'character', then stay in that character.
I don't like how he presents himself either way though, in character or out, and I guess that's just a personal thing. I really didn't like his early stuff, most of which was clearly flamebait, so I've simply stopped watching.
In principle, it could be a good schtick, and from his writing it seems like he has the ideas to pull it off, but somewhere in the middle it just becomes unconvincing. I don't believe him when he is saying "I'm the best," and I don't believe him when he says "Naw just kidding," making it incredibly difficult to buy into it.
Yahtzee and Moviebob, however, seem to stick to their personas perfectly, perhaps because they're a little closer to the real them maybe. Either way I wouldn't take out Yahtzee's point blank cynicism, nor Moviebob's sophisticate/pretentious dynamic.
I don't usually respond to the forums because, well, my discussions with forum members haven't gone great in the past (which was partially my fault, heh). Stumbled on this one while gauging some feedback for something else, and it's a pretty interesting thread, so I figured I'd chime in.
Firstly, I'll let you know why the show took the direction it took. As you all know by now, the first video was absolutely loathed by everybody. Production values were worse than they currently are (which means they REALLY sucked) and my unscripted rambling wasn't received as well as they had been on Dtoid. So, I took a week off and addressed the criticism. I tightened up the scripting, I cobbled a set together, and tried something else. I got pretty much the same reaction, with some people not even addressing the changes and acting like none were made.
It seemed to me that Escapist commenters were going to make me a villain no matter what, so I thought to myself, "Fine, I shall give them a villain. The antithesis of everything they like. To the laboratory!" I'd already concluded the show was dead on its feet, so I'd just amuse myself while waiting for it to keel over. Thus, I ramped up the arrogance factor, which I found incredibly fun (undeserved ego is one of my favorite comedy tropes). I figured that if the Escapist audience did not want to enjoy my show, the least I could do is provide them with something they enjoyed hating.
How ironic, then, that when I decided to give the Escapist something to really hate, the majority of them began to like it. That I decided to embrace the hatred and ended up becoming embraced myself is, perhaps, the perfect way to conclude that The Jimquisition has and always will be a running failure. It failed to make everybody like it when it tried, and it failed to make everybody hate it when it tried. Of course, it's ended up as a *happy* failure, but still, kinda funny.
Anyway, I'm enjoying the gimmick far too much to want to see it go away just yet, as it seems to still resonate with a lot of people. Somebody said that the dictator vibe doesn't work because I'm "camp as Christmas." That's part of what I love about doing it. The red flag, the trenchcoat, it IS obvious that it isn't who I am and it IS obvious that the gimmick is undermined the moment my girly voice comes out of my mouth. That, to me, is the fun of the show. The messiah gimmick is woefully pathetic and doesn't really work, but I think that's why so many people ended up finding it endearing rather than annoying. I realize it's not for everybody, and that some people will ignore it, but that's the risk of any presentation, right? I'm sorry if some people don't like it, but I'm ultimately more grateful for those that do.
Anyway, I apologize for what was a lengthy, self-indulgent, thoroughly unwarranted analysis of my own stupidity. Carry on!
Firstly, I'll let you know why the show took the direction it took. As you all know by now, the first video was absolutely loathed by everybody. Production values were worse than they currently are (which means they REALLY sucked) and my unscripted rambling wasn't received as well as they had been on Dtoid. So, I took a week off and addressed the criticism. I tightened up the scripting, I cobbled a set together, and tried something else. I got pretty much the same reaction, with some people not even addressing the changes and acting like none were made.
It seemed to me that Escapist commenters were going to make me a villain no matter what, so I thought to myself, "Fine, I shall give them a villain. The antithesis of everything they like. To the laboratory!" I'd already concluded the show was dead on its feet, so I'd just amuse myself while waiting for it to keel over. Thus, I ramped up the arrogance factor, which I found incredibly fun (undeserved ego is one of my favorite comedy tropes). I figured that if the Escapist audience did not want to enjoy my show, the least I could do is provide them with something they enjoyed hating.
How ironic, then, that when I decided to give the Escapist something to really hate, the majority of them began to like it. That I decided to embrace the hatred and ended up becoming embraced myself is, perhaps, the perfect way to conclude that The Jimquisition has and always will be a running failure. It failed to make everybody like it when it tried, and it failed to make everybody hate it when it tried. Of course, it's ended up as a *happy* failure, but still, kinda funny.
Anyway, I'm enjoying the gimmick far too much to want to see it go away just yet, as it seems to still resonate with a lot of people. Somebody said that the dictator vibe doesn't work because I'm "camp as Christmas." That's part of what I love about doing it. The red flag, the trenchcoat, it IS obvious that it isn't who I am and it IS obvious that the gimmick is undermined the moment my girly voice comes out of my mouth. That, to me, is the fun of the show. The messiah gimmick is woefully pathetic and doesn't really work, but I think that's why so many people ended up finding it endearing rather than annoying. I realize it's not for everybody, and that some people will ignore it, but that's the risk of any presentation, right? I'm sorry if some people don't like it, but I'm ultimately more grateful for those that do.
Anyway, I apologize for what was a lengthy, self-indulgent, thoroughly unwarranted analysis of my own stupidity. Carry on!
What bothers me about his gimmick is that he sucks at it. Once the actual episodes get going, they're always worth watching, but during the live action segments his delivery is terrible and his schtick is tired and predictable. It's not at all comparable to Yahtzee and Moviebob, who only play exaggerated versions of their own identities and opinions for comic effect; Jim puts on a full-on stage persona, seemingly just because it's what the cool kids do, regardless of the fact that he's no good at it and it doesn't gel with the actual content of his videos.
It also irks me that so many of his defenders seem to think people who dislike him just don't "get" that he's a troll and the preening "thank god for me stuff" isn't serious. Everybody "gets" it, it's about as subtle as anvil pie.
It also irks me that so many of his defenders seem to think people who dislike him just don't "get" that he's a troll and the preening "thank god for me stuff" isn't serious. Everybody "gets" it, it's about as subtle as anvil pie.
I enjoy his internet persona he's got going on. I find it funny and I tune into his show every week.
So, no, I don't want him to change a thing.
So, no, I don't want him to change a thing.
Thank God for Jim Sterling.
When I first saw him, my girlfriend literally left the room she found him so infuriating. That gave him instant kudos as she is normally incredible patient (works in customer service...)
But, if we can't listen to a fat British guy tell the world how great he is in a vaguely fascist-cult type manner, and let's be fair make some damn good points in the process, then we might as well give up on British humour.
When I first saw him, my girlfriend literally left the room she found him so infuriating. That gave him instant kudos as she is normally incredible patient (works in customer service...)
But, if we can't listen to a fat British guy tell the world how great he is in a vaguely fascist-cult type manner, and let's be fair make some damn good points in the process, then we might as well give up on British humour.