Japanese Humor in the Office

20 comments

1. Your expectations for office humor anywhere might be too high.

2. How about Tanaka-san, who habitually falls asleep at the Thursday morning meetings.. and everyone just says.. “nnnmmm, he must have had a busy night. “

3. Sounds like the Japanese pendant of the office us.

4. A 50 year old salaryman (who had lived in the States for a long time) had the penchant of slapping younger guys asses and saying ‘Hello sailor’.

5. People laugh when I pop open a beer at 5 pm. Our fridge is stocked with beer. I wouldn’t think about it too much.

6. I doubt anyone think it is actually that hilarious. It is just obligatory laughter 愛想笑い to avoid awkward atmosphere.

   Imagine someone said “wow!” and everyone are dead silent ignore her, the atmosphere would be so awkward.

   In real life(especially workplace), people generally laugh when someone trying to be funny regardless they think it actually funny or not.

7. >”when someone’s cell phone rings an OL says ‘wow!’ in a funny voice”

   >he doesn’t know

8. Hell is other people

9. They’re probably inside jokes you just don’t know the backstory too.

10. I swear now I understand why that other sub used to rag on this one all of the time. Christ almighty

11. Clearly both examples are pop culture references that you don’t get. I mean, it still probably wouldn’t be funny even if you got the reference. But at least you would understand the intent of the joke.

12. Japanese humour in general. If you like slapstick level stuff that hasn’t evolved since the 1930s then you’re in the right place. Not exactly Stewart Lee.

13. Japanese humor consists of five things:
    * slapstick
    * toilet humor
    * puns
    * repeating the same thing rapidly three times
    * inside culture or pop references that typically fit under the first four items

    It’s a comedy desert here.

14. Sounds like you just didn’t get the joke.

15. Agree with you 100%.
    Office humour is probably terrible everywhere though. I used to cry laughing working in a British office but I’m sure a Japanese person would think we were annoying as fuck.

    My office here in Japan humour-wise is literally everything you listed plus:

    – like Japanese tv just a man shouting things really loudly. Loud volume = funny

    – the manly sales guys hitting their colleagues on the head

    I hate it here sometimes….

16. The funniest one was a post here and someone told their Japanese boss they were thinking of buying a bmw or whatever. And he replied:

    “Really? You seem more like a Kei guy”

    Still makes me chuckle whenever I think of it

17. Humor is a very cultural thing. Most Japanese don’t find a lot of western humor to be funny. I am not a big fan of Japanese humor but I didn’t grow up here so it makes sense.

18. Had a video call with some European clients recently, the sun was shining behind someone and another person commented “is that the sun or is your wife shining a torch behind you?”… so it’s universal

19. I’m sorry, Japanese what?

20. In Kyoto, if someone’s phone rang out loud in the office, someone would jeeringly say “Omoshiroi oto ya naaaa…” (What an interesting sound…) and chuckle. I just thought it was shady 🤣