May 28, 2013 Tuesday 10.5: Recurring Arrested Development Jokes
So you watched the new season of Arrested Development this weekend, right? Well, if you didn’t, I’m sure you had a good reason. But it’s too bad, really, and I hope you get a chance to see it soon. I’m not going to spoil anything about it other than to say I wasn’t so sure about the first couple of episodes, but by the end of it I was totally on-board. In fact, I’d rather have another season instead of a movie.
So in honor of a new season of one of the greatest shows ever put on the air, here are my favorite recurring gags from the first three seasons. I won’t go into my favorites from the new season for a while, but I’ll have to consult the Spoiler Rules to see just how long I have to wait.
Oh, and in case you missed it, be sure to check out Recurring Developments for a guide on all of the recurring gags. The wording on the following list is from them.
10. “Her?” – Poor Ann. She seemed nice enough (though that mayon-egg thing was certainly gross!).
9. Carl Weathers is frugal – Baby, you got a stew goin’!
8. “Annyong” / “C’mon!” – If this list was going by how much I used them in day-to-day conversation, “C’mon!” would be #1 with “Annyong” not too far behind.
7. “Well, that was a freebie.” – The thing I like about this one is that if it hadn’t been a freebie, the action would have been very, very horrible. Lucille would most likely have killed Buster with that beating!
6. “No touching!” – My favorite variation is on Bring Your Daughter to Work Day when the prison guard’s daughter says it. “Her self esteem is through the roof!”
5. “You’re gonna get some hop-ons.” – Oh, stair car. I love you.
4. “Gob” with a hard /g/– The name “Gob” is funny enough, and pointing out the absurdity of it by pronouncing it how it looks is just about perfect.
3. Literal doctor – This guy! “He’s going to be all right.” And I particularly like it when the family stats to figure him out – Michael’s “Let him finish” is a great follow-up.
2. “Steve Holt!” – So much fun to say! I love how much optimism is summed up in his delivery of that line. I know I’m supposed to think it’s egotistical, but to me it’s more like a “Yeah! This is great!”
1.5. “I’ve made a huge mistake” – [Not sure how this one disappeared, but it was always meant to be here. Rather than realign everything else, it gets a .5. Sorry!] – Whenever you use this line in your daily life (and you will), you must try to say it in Gob’s voice and emulate his far-off stare. A good companion piece to this phrase is Michael’s “What is wrong with me?”
1. Chicken dance – I have tried to do every last one of the chicken dances, and I have tried to figure out which one I like the best, and I have not done well at either task. They are all so very wonderful.
Bonus: It isn’t a recurring bit, so it can’t be on the list, but my favorite gag on Arrested Development is the bees/beads exchange with Michael’s follow-up: “Gob’s not on board.”
Tags: Arrested Development, Tuesday10
Written by: Mark
- 8 comments
- Posted under TV
Permalink # Mandy said
Kiel and I have been re-watching the first 3 seasons before watching the new one (I know, we’re late to the game!) but one of my favourites (since you’ve already mentioned the chicken dances) is the Charlie Brown bit. So good!! Kiel’s favourite one being Tobias, after looking in the fridge; “Who the **** stole my hard-boiled eggs??!” (Charlie Brown music and head hanging walk)
Permalink # Justin said
this
Permalink # Mark said
The Charlie Brown walk is great, agreed! But coupled with the later talk of “Linuses” and “Charlie Browns” and it takes on … weird overtones.
Permalink # bd said
You’ve made a huge mistake by not including “I’ve made a huge mistake”.
Permalink # Mark said
Wait a minute – that one was in my list! I don’t know where it went :(
Permalink # Eric said
One of my favorites that I say frequently is, “Typical!!!”. It’s always ironic because it’s usually, if not always, aimed at Michael and it isn’t something he normally does. Perfect.
Permalink # Mark said
Good addition :)
Permalink # Meags said
We do the Charlie Brown sad walk joke a lot. I think the best part about all of these callback gags are that they just get funnier as you watch the show. And then on rewatch.