Comic relief
Encyclopedia : C : CO : COM : Comic relief
Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character or scene or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension.
Comic relief often takes the form of a bumbling, wisecracking sidekick. A sidekick used for comic relief will usually comment on the absurdity of the hero's situation and make comments that would be inappropriate for a character who is to be taken seriously. For example, in the first two James Bond films starring Roger Moore, an American sheriff named J.W. Pepper serves as comic relief.
The appropriateness of comic relief in some works is debatable, as some find them annoying or unwelcome additions. A notable example is Jar Jar Binks featured in . The presence of the aforementioned character, among other issues, turned many fans from the franchise.
Comic relief can be well done and instructive to the overall plot as seen in the science fiction movie Forbidden Planet. In this film an amusing diversion is provided by the enlisted cook, his quest for contraband whisky, and his encounters with Robbie the Robot. One of these encounters provides an for Robbie, who was a suspect in an episode of sabotage (preceding a terrifying energy monster attack) in an effort by unknown parties to prevent the commander from communicating with his base for further instructions.
William Shakespeare often included comic elements in his tragedies; the recurring character Falstaff and the door-keeper in Macbeth are examples. Sometimes his inclusion of puns or jokes in otherwise serious scenes can seem inappropriate to a modern audience.
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.