Got a couple hot takes on the brain, so here's one for y'all today.
"Comedy is about punching up, not punching down" is a refrain echoed throughout the internet.
It's very stupid.
This axiom is but a single lens through which comedy may be viewed and discussed. It is not unilateral truth. Some comedy can punch down. But more broadly, much (if not most) comedy isn't about punching anything. Is a Knock Knock joke about punching down? A joke about a chicken crossing a road, punching up? No. How about observations about human nature, like making fun of how someone eats a well-done steak? I could go on.
This reminds me of the Bechdel test. People learned about it on the internet. Then it became this tool that people use to decide if a movie is feminist or not. But similarly, it's only one lens! A person might look at Terminator 2: Judgment Day and say it isn't feminist because it fails the Bechdel test. That person would be dead wrong.
So that's it for today's hot take. Feel free to tell me how wrong I am and where you will shove my hot take when I bend over. And stay tuned for another take in the near future!