I think the problem is that humor isn't about reasoning and logic, but almost the reverse - it's about punchlines that surprise us (i.e. not what one would logically anticipate) and perhaps shock us by breaking taboos.
Even masters of humor like Seinfeld, with great intuition for what might work, still need to test new material in front of a live audience to see whether it actually does get a laugh or not.
Yeah, getting LLMs to invent jokes is an incredibly unfair test of them - but I derive enormous entertainment from seeing them try.
All this reminds me of another genius comedy duo, David Lynch and Louis CK: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HlEJbs02wAM
Come on, LLM, be funny! 3 2 1 go!
Good point, but this is an 8GB model. That's the problem. This is a spectacular answer given that constraint. Also it's hilarious how bad the final answer is.