How much longer can The Onion milk it? (1 Viewer)

[Greg_Y]

Tuesday night or Wednesday morning usually brings about a new issue of The Onion. Tonight I went to the home page, gazed over the article titles and let out a sigh. The same basic stuff they've continued to write is there again.
The humor pieces seem to have a few basic models that are repeated over and over again, just replaced with a different subject. Make fun of hippie guy's habits one week, a month later make fun of frat guy's habits, etc. etc. Then there's this one from Wednesday's issue:

MCMINNVILLE, OR—Bryce Tornquist and Stephanie Herrick, whose three-year relationship ended in August, are remaining close friends until one of them finds a new sex partner. "We still have a lot in common, and it's really nice to have someone around who knows you so well," the 26-year-old Tornquist said Tuesday. "So, until one of us is having sex with somebody else, it really works out for both of us." Tornquist added that he really, really hopes to be the one to find a new sex partner first.

The Onion has run this repeated times. Not the exact same article, but the same premise. It's not funny any more. I had to force myself to even read it because after skimming the headline, I knew where they were going with it. Sad...
Starting with the first issue after 9/11/2001, The Onion seemed to lose its edge. People seemed to champion that first issue as something that showed us humor was not lost, while I found it a lame attempt at best and certainly not up to their past standards.
Since then, there are a few things I enjoy about The Onion, but they don't include the main humor pieces. The AV Guide always seems to be on-target; that is, their reviews are many times in synch with my tastes. I also enjoy the Red Meat & Pathetic Geek Stories cartoons and Savage Love (none of which are original to The Onion.) But the humor pieces are always the same.
Doesn't anyone else find The Onion to have lost its edge? Garsh, everyone was proclaiming the death of sarcasm after 9/11 .. in the case of The Onion, they seem to be right, but for all the wrong reasons. I don't think it's sensitivity so much as laziness.
First The Simpsons, now The Onion. :frowning:

 

[Philip_G]

wow, McMinnville OR, I lived there for awhile

 

[Jeff Kleist]

That's because they save the really good stuff for the print issue that people pay for

 

[Brian Perry]

I think there have been some good bits lately:

"George Bush sends troops to West Nile..."
"Kevin Bacon linked to al-Qaeda" (the best part was how Molly Ringwald was connected not to Bacon, but directly to the main al-Qaeda guy)

 

[Richard Kim]

That's because they save the really good stuff for the print issue that people pay for

Here in NYC we can get the print issue for free.
I also liked the "Adam Sandler Fans Disappointed by Intelligent, Nuanced Performance" headline in regards to Punch Drunk Love.

 

[Jon_Are]

I haven't visited The Onion in a month or two - seems I always forget to check in - so I was a bit disinhearted to read Greg's musings above.
So...I jump over there and see this.
...and I laugh out loud through the entire article.
I love The Onion.
Jon