Another in an occasional series on things that never fail to crack me up, for reasons I can never fully explain
Whaaaaat’s… soooooo… fuhhh…nnnny… abouuuuut…
Sorry about the protracted opening. I really do need to work on tightening things up.
(Not to mention keeping a closer eye on my self-imposed embargo of excessive ellipses…)
I can’t help myself. I was inspired by a classic sitcom scene defined by delay, confusion, and escalating repetition.
An absurd combination that instantly cemented a second-season show as one of the smartest comedies on television.
It’s from the 1979 Taxi episode, Reverend Jim: A Space Odyssey.
The episode features a scene that is silly, perfectly timed, and universally beloved among the show’s fans. Even when revisited decades later, it’s sure to cause a smile… and a facepalm.
The bit?
An aspiring New York City cab driver is taking the state required license test, flanked by the cabbies of The Sunshine Cab Company.
He’s terrified, confused, and possibly “medicated.” And yet, everyone, from the cab drivers to the studio audience, is rooting for his success.
Christopher Lloyd was already a veteran stage actor when he joined Taxi as the endearingly deranged Reverend Jim Ignatowski.
Originally appearing in just a single first-season episode, Paper Marriage:
Lloyd made such an impact that the showrunners brought him back as a series regular for the sophomore season.
According to show canon: After dropping out of Harvard and succumbing to 1960s drug culture, Jim Ignatowski drifted through life, and somehow became some sort of a street preacher. He certainly wasn’t any sort of formally ordained minister; his title was earned more through counterculture charisma than a seminary degree.
Established as Taxi’s resident space cadet, he was a former hippie whose brain had been permanently altered by decades of pharmaceutical experimentation.
True to his character, the good Reverend was anything but a huckster. His altruistic, if addled good nature always managed to shine through.
Notably, the writers got it right when defining the character of Jim. He wasn’t just a simple sitcom “stoner” with a weak catchphrase, or playing ‘dazed and confused’ as a shortcut to a cheap laugh.
The character was as nuanced and layered as any other in the ensemble.
Jim always operated on a completely different wavelength, finding profound complexity in the mundane, while missing obvious connections entirely.
Lloyd won two Emmy Awards for the role. And arguably, one of them was sealed with this single scene.
So: What’s So Funny About It?
Why does this scene make me laugh? Several elements combine perfectly:
• The patience of the writing.
In a strong setup, the first round of jokes aren’t throwaways – they all land solidly and set the table for a big finish.
Lesser comedies would have rushed through the questions for quick laughs.
Taxi lets Jim’s process unfold naturally, trusting that the character’s genuine confusion is funnier than any spoken punchline.
• The commitment to character.
The absurd meets the mundane. It’s a DMV test, but Jim treats it like a Buddhist koan.
It’s overthinking as performance art, and it’s absolutely perfect.
The fact that we’re laughing with Jim rather than at him makes it even better – he’s not the butt of the joke so much as the unwitting architect of it.
• Lloyd’s performance is transcendent.
He’s not merely repeating the final line, he’s reinventing confusion. Towards the end, he stretches – and re-stretches time with just five words.
The repetition isn’t lazy. It’s disciplined, controlled, and almost musical.
And as Lloyd drags the line further into the comedy void, the laughter grows, not because of the line itself, but because of the audacity of continuing to seek an answer to his question.
• The reactions amplify the comedy.
The other actors rise the occasion. They are forced to come up with a fresh reaction each time.
For a split second, I swear I see Marilu Henner and Jeff Conaway struggle to stay in character.
Watching the actors navigate through iteration is a great part of the fun.
As we all know, comedy is subjective. But this kills me. See if you agree.
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And here I was thinking this was going to be about an Elvis Costello bit.
*…
This scene will always be funny.
**Jim has good friends. Nobody says “bloodshot red” as a cheap joke when he asks about the color of his eyes. Isn’t that what the writer wants you to think somebody will say? And they don’t. Some subtle self-reflexivity going on. I’m the jerk for thinking that.
*- 223 words deleted.
**- Highlight from the 223 words.