Epic Meal Time is a YouTube Channel that is catered to the "Man's World" style cooking. A group of men combine gross amounts and combinations of food and then attempt to eat it all in one sitting.
Please skip ahead to minute 1:15.
What techniques does Epic Meal Time use to gain it's target audience of primarily males?
How does their language reinforce that the show is watched by a certain audience?
How does the comedy make the food appealing?
Why does the combination of food appeal to the audience?
Is an appetite gained or lost from watching the show?
http://www.youtube.com/user/EpicMealTime?feature=watch
I've seen Epic Meal Time before, and I would say that their target audience is definitely the high school/college age crowd. Big appetites, youtube videos, drunkenness, and "more" in general are all things that appeal to the majority of that age group. The combination of the food and the pure ridiculousness and comedy of the main guy in the video are all humorous in general, perhaps poking fun at the gluttony of the food industry now while having fun themselves. For me, an appetite is neither gained nor lost but just in pure shock and entertainment value of the creativeness they have in creating these massive recipes is what I get out of watching it.
ReplyDeleteThe language of the show reinforces that people who use profound language are the people who incorporate it into their daily lives, such that, men are prone to making disrespectful remarks unlike ladies who are to be polite and respectful. People who do not use profound language will more than likely not watch this video because the langue disturbs the viewers concentrating on what the guys are saying and not in what they are preparing, which takes away from the video's purpose of preparing a meal. The comedy makes the food appealing by overlooking the color of the meat before it is cooked. Also, the comedy makes the viewer more engaged in what the guys are going to layer on next, which springs interests to the viewer and makes them want to see more. I would have to say an appetite could be lost by the show from the man at the very end shoveling the sandwich into his face. Although it is humorous, viewers might be disturbed by this indulgence.
ReplyDeleteThe language just comes hand in hand with the comedy. In today's society many of our comedies incorporate foul language. That being said, I would not justify your argument that "men are prone to making disrespectful remarks unlike ladies who are to be polite and respectful." Women use profound language as well and I know a lot of people, men and female, who enjoy this show on YouTube. I would however agree with you that the comedy makes the viewer more engaged and makes the viewer want to watch more. Like you said, although the video was quite funny, I would not want to eat that sandwich.
DeleteThe main target audience is definitely males around the college age. The male audience is attracted to the alcohol and the crazy, unhealthy food creations. All of the episodes feature men cooking, drinking, and swearing, which appeals to men because a lot of men act this way. The episodes also invite the audience to try their own crazy creations on their own by showing how much fun you can have with friends when trying to cook. The comedy aspect of the episodes also attracts the audience and makes the audience think that if they try to cook, then they in turn will have fun too. Furthermore, the episodes break down the stereotype that woman are the ones that should be cooking in the kitchen. The episodes suggest that men can cook good meals just as well as women and that men should try to cook more often and experiment in the kitchen. Overall, the episodes propose that cooking is a manly activity and that cooking is a fun thing to do with friends.
ReplyDeleteThis show is obviously geared toward men in their early to mid 20's. The clip shows many stereotypical "male" behaviors and appearances. For example, the two guys that are shown from the start are wearing scrubby, baggy clothes. One of the guys T-shirts says "drunk bacon God" and the other T-shirt says "Bacon Strips" all the way down the shirt. Most females don't pride themselves with eating a lot of bacon and especially do not typically wear T-shirts that have obnoxious sayings on them. The men are also drinking Whiskey from the bottle. Whiskey is traditionally more of a manly alcohol. If women were drinking on TV, they would most likely be shown holding a glass of wine that was already poured. This show is a "guys night out" in television form. It isn't paying respect to any "lady-like" behaviors. The producer and the actors simply do not care and are just having a fun and drunk time with a lot of food (this is what they would be doing if they were away from their girlfriends).This also suggests certain social behaviors that are naturally more acceptable of a man then of a woman. Drinking in public, being loud, stuffing their faces, making sexual jokes, and using profound language is certainly not what someone would expect to see out of a woman. However it is perfectly okay for a male to present himself in that manner. It is seen as "entertaining".
ReplyDeleteThere are themes within Epic Meal Time that are masculine, but it would be a stretch to call any of the themes as social commentary. Epic Meal Time is the exaggeration of a guy's night out and displays a fantasy world that would entertain men that have been in similar situation. There is no reason to deny that men do sometimes make ridiculous meals and drink with friends, but but it is not a display of what females can not do when with their friends. Epic Meal Time targets a male audience and will therefore show the dream of a "guy's night out". Since most men do not actually make a meal with nearly 30,000 calories for themselves, this does not display a typical masculine world. The men are shown to drink as if the audience is drinking with them and the audience might feel like it is cooking with Epic Meal Time. With these techniques, a man watching Epic Meal Time might feel like he is living in this fantasy world cooking ridiculous meals.
DeleteThe language in this clip compared to the other cooking shows we've watched in class is very different. They use a lot of profanity which creates a harsher environment to mirror the manly audience they're trying to appeal to. The music also adds to the specific gender appeal. While they're preparing the food, the music almost seems like a soundtrack to an upcoming battle scene. There is this sense of anticipation throughout the commercial until the man takes a bite out of the sandwich. At this point, he's conquered the opponent, all 1,354 g of fat and 27,970 calories of it. The simulation of a battle is more appealing to men because men tend to be more physical and confrontational than women in certain situations.
ReplyDeleteEpic meal time uses the technique of straight up manliness to gain their target audience's attention. They use swearing an talking about alcohol to reinforce the fact that they think they are both manly and awesome. The comedy really doesn't make their food appealing to me, probably because I don't like the look of raw meat. This combination of food could appeal to the target audience because it is a kind of standard that manly men "like their meats" and this meal is certainly no exception to that statement. I completely lost my appetite when I watched this clip
ReplyDeleteOne thing I noticed that can portray to most men is that while they cook, they are drinking. I know whenever my family gets together and cooks on the grill they have an ice cold beverage with them. A majority of men enjoy their meat, “it’s a man’s food” and that is what they are cooking with in this episode. They also mix and cook everything with their hands, “they get their hands dirty”, just how men do when they work. The show is all about men, from the vocabulary to the deep voices they use.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the point about men drinking while they eat because I know that is something that my dad does while he eats. Most men associate their style of cooking as the grill, and they make a big deal about having a cookout and making lots of meat and have a competition between themselves and other men as to who can put on the best barbecue or grill out of the summer, and always they will have a cold drink with them, usually a "men's drink" such as beer. The video appeals to the male audience by doing everything the way a "real" man would do it. A real man, in a man's opinion I agree, would not use the utensils, they would get their hands dirty and not care if things were not tidy and neat while cooking. The voice also appeals to men, because it makes it seem as though someone manly is talking to you, not a woman or dainty man that they would not want to follow after. However, the deep voice could also slightly appeal to woman, thinking that they want to be with this man who is cooking and seems to be a rugged, deep voiced, strong man.
DeleteIn this video Epic Meal Time is appealing the male audience. The use of profanity, along with alcohol (specifically Jack Daniels) and grilling are all ways to appeal to males. There's a lot of meat used in the meal created which included beef filets, bacon, meatballs and cheese. The calories of the entire meal were 27,970. Those calories may also appeal to the male audience considering males tend to eat more than females and like eating meats that can potentially help them get big at the gym. As a woman watching this video my appetite was lost, but that could vary from person to person.
ReplyDeleteThe language, humor, and choice of food all seems to play toward a younger male audience. But this would be expected as the creators of this series fall exactly into the target audience. I think this is because instead of trying to think about what young men would want to see, they just enjoy doing this series for their own pleasure. You get the feeling that behind the scenes of this show the same humor and language is being used to entertain themselves. These guys enjoy drinking, swearing, and making ridiculous amounts of manly foods and so instead of searching for a specific audience, they let the audience find them.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching this show, it is clear that it is meant for men. They use vulgar language and speak with very harsh and unapologetic tones. They describe the foods as “pussy food” and say that baking is not very manly. Their vulgar language parallels with manly behavior and an all male audience because men are expected to swear more than women and are less polite. Throughout the entire show, they are shown drinking bourbon, which is usually a “masculine” type of alcohol. I do not think that the comedy makes the food appealing. The screen showed how many calories were in the foods that they were combining and it actually made me nauseous. Even though this is my personal opinion, I can see why men might like food like this. There is a lot of meat incorporated in this meal and meat is primarily a manly food.
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ReplyDeleteThe Epic meal uses the "yum factor" to target it's audience, which is obviously the high school guys all the way to a senior in college. By the "yum factor" I mean how in depth he goes with the meat rub he has made, and the flavors he combines. He added a lot of "manly" drink, which is a hard whiskey, which appeals to most younger men. They talk about being a man, and needing to to add more alcohol which would seem to be more of a teen/college kid persona. When it comes to the actual language, they curse a lot to define most of the food and things they are doing as a man thing and everything else is "pussy food". They almost make talking about this sandwich like it's making love to his mouth. I did not find the comedy to help make the food appealing just watching it being made and some descriptions made it appetizing. I think personally this combination could almost pass as good. When you think about the rub they make to put on the meat and the sauce they make, it all works really well. I personally would not be able to eat all that meat as one sandwich but adding some bread with smaller portions of the meat it looks appetizing. I personally gained an appetite. I thought of all the possibilities that could come from this sandwich and how I could add to make it better.
ReplyDeleteThe men are portraying a comical strectch to a drunken meal. The use of multiple meats in this show could be said to be for a masculine audience. Most people consider meat a manly food. The show doesnt draw one in to desire the food portrayed. Mostly the show is just entertainment and in no way meant to be an actual cooking show or entice one to make what is displayed.
ReplyDeleteEpic meal time uses the appeal of big food and easy cooking to attract their target audience. Their sense of humor is more toward a younger type of audience. Although the show uses mainly males to cook and consume the meals, it could target both males and females. The comedy in the show appeals to men and women. The funny comments and use of profanity attracts a college audience. The comedy makes the show more enjoyable. The choice of ingredients, which are everyday snacks and meals that most people enjoy, really gives a connection to the viewer. The ridiculous food can appeal to some audiences, like males who love big meals, but can turn away some viewers by the way the characters consume the food at the end.
ReplyDeletePersonally for me Epic Meal Time was portrayed to be disgusting. Through that conclusion, one can definitely tell that the proposed audience for this show is males, particularly college and high school aged males. Epic Meal actually made me lose an appetite. I believe the show gains its target audiences through the use of gross humor. Humor appeals to audiences especially males. Comedy makes food appealing because it distracts the viewers’ attention by providing them with something else to think about other than what is going on with the food. If the viewer relates the food to a funny phrase or act, the food automatically has a good connotation attached to it. Also the use of techniques that males would particularly use in cooking because they are uneducated about the topic including crushing chips for breading, or making a marinade out of pop, definitely targeted the male audience. Finally by using profanity and displaying alcohol throughout the show, the audience of males is directly targeted by portraying these everyday items which are attractive to the male sex.
ReplyDeleteEpic Meal Time is watched mainly by males because this kind of food is appalling to most females. Guys would think this show is funny and the actors try to act silly and funny when eating such disgusting foods. The show appeals to more guys because of the humor used. Personally, this show made me lose my appetite. The actors wear shirts about bacon and food to ad more to their visual appearance. By using comedy, they try to get more viewers and to take away from how gross the food actually is. By showing they have a sense of humor, more people would be willing to watch it rather than watching a boring food show.
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