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thenewgreen · 4671 days ago · link · · parent · post: Karl Pilkington, the Onion, and the Problem of Free Will
So, I've watched some of these and I think Ricky Gervais is a funny guy but these annoy me. He's such a dick to Karl all the time when in fact, I think Carl presents some interesting questions and scenarios. The realization that there is a separation between the internal dialogue (the thinker) and Karl is a poignant one that I imagine Socrates and his contemporaries may have delved deeper in to instead of laughing at the guy.
I actually just stumbled upon this and figured that it was either scripted, or they were all just kind of joking around. And yeah, I use the term socratic very lightly here -- in that they're taking what Karl is saying and driving it to an absurd conclusion that forces Karl to reformulate his question until he gets to the core issue.
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thenewgreen · 4671 days ago · link ·
I don't think that they're scripted. I've actually listened to some of the podcasts. I get why you would label it as such, I just always feel bad for Karl. I think they are making a movie out of this??
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They have addressed this on the show. Ricky has said many, many times in serious interviews that Karl is one of his best friends. He also said, quite rightly, that if the show was just three people agreeing it wouldn't be funny or good. They have roles to play which they amplify.(Karl is the 'idiot' Ricky is the 'bully and Steve is the mediator.)
Although they do deliberatly misinterperet Karl at times but usually that leads to comedy gold.