Sitcom Fans Love How Bad The Comedy Is In Nothing, Forever's Infinite Stream
Artificial intelligence is well on the way to doing some amazing things. For now, it's unlikely it'll spawn a robot apocalypse, but it's possible it could help doctors with imaging analysis and making decisions (via IBM). And that's just the beginning of its potential uses, with the world starting to see AI-generated art and text. It begs the question of whether, in the future, AI could be used to develop entire works of art people would actually want to watch.
If the latest Twitch sensation, "Nothing, Forever," is any indication, it'll be a while before AI can actually create on par with the best TV shows out there. But it makes for a fascinating social experiment.
For anyone who hasn't heard of it yet, "Nothing, Forever" is a completely AI-generated sitcom that lives up to its name by running in perpetuity. It goes on forever with a "Seinfeld"-like setup where there will be scenes of a guy doing stand-up comedy complemented by sequences of friends in an apartment building talking about nonsense. Having a computer try to replicate human humor is an intriguing experiment, and naturally, people have some thoughts about it on social media.
Some fans think it's funnier than actual sitcoms
"Nothing, Forever" has begun catching on with viewers. At the time of this writing, it was up to over 15,000 viewers, which is a lot of people to watch something where ultimately nothing happens. And while it plays nonsensical and abstract, some have found it to be oddly charming. On a Reddit thread detailing the AI sitcom, people have called it "frighteningly fascinating" and "insanely cool."
The show can be disconcerting to watch at first. The conversations don't seem to go anywhere, and it's clear AI still has a way to go before nailing down joke structure. Plus, there's a laugh track that will play at the oddest times. But apparently, if you watch it long enough, you can catch some gems. Redditor u/Dioder1 caught this at one point, "'What did the fish say when it hit the wall? – Damn' I f***ing lost it. This has potential." Meanwhile, u/citizentim offered their opinion, "I caught a few minutes and I'd categorize it as 'so bad it's good' I've also heard worse jokes on How I Met Your Father."
"Nothing, Forever" plays ad nauseam on Twitch, so you can tune in and out at your leisure. Theoretically, the show should improve as the technology gets better, but sitcom writers can probably feel safe that their jobs aren't going anywhere anytime soon.