I am a bit of a comedy nerd. Not Judd-Apatow-cold-calling-comedians-in-high-school nerdy, but I have my comedians I have become obsessed with and devour as much of their material as possible. Louis C.K. is one of them. I came to the C.K. fan club a little later but I adore the guy and everything I've seen of his (though I skipped LUCKY LOUIE, because it was supposedly awful and I didn't want to see him in something awful). I was thrilled to learn he was getting his own show on FX, which could use a comedy hit besides SUNNY (Don't say THE LEAGUE. It sucks.) So is LOUIE everything I wanted and so much more? Uh yeah, pretty much.
I'm not gonna lie, I was a little worried after the pilot. It was fitfully funny but not quite what I wanted. Expectations probably had something to do with that, sure, but the pilot definitely had some issues. It felt a bit like 2 extended sketches starring the same character mashed together and the bus bit barely got a chuckle from me. Louie's awkward date was definitely funny, but still a little too familiar. But the fact that there was a scene where C.K talked about his daughters "infected vagina" and made it funny? That ain't no small feet.
"Poker/Divorce", on the other hand, was excellent from start to finish. The poker scene was not only hilarious, it was oddly moving. The comedians joke about their gay friend, and when he gives them a genuine, heartfelt answer about the term "faggot", they take it in... and then joke about it. That's as real a moment I've seen on a comedy this year. And this is episode 2. The rest of the episode was equally as good, as Louie looks far back into his past after he signs his divorce papers. His encounter with an old high school friend was awkward, real and funny; which is a difficult balance to strike.
As you can tell from these descriptions, the show isn't just a joke machine. It's trying for relatable (often painfully relatable) comedy, and it scores a bulls-eye. The stand-up routines serve as the culmination of his awkward/painful experiences and how he gets his comedy and they manage to be funny without feeling extraneous (if you compare it to SEINFELD, you're right and oh so wrong). I don't know if I've ever seen a sitcom quite this dark, while also being so very, very funny. And that's meant as a big compliment. LOUIE stings as it makes you laugh; what more could a comedy nerd ask for.
Pilot: B
Poker/Divorce: A-
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
RESCUE ME - "Legacy"
Tonight, while watching episode one of RESCUE ME's 6th and final season, I came to a sudden realization. RESCUE ME has the same problem that SIX FEET UNDER had in it's final season. Both shows have reputations as being "dark" and "edgy", and both shows, unfortunately, have tried a little too strongly to adhere to those two adjectives at times. SIX FEET UNDER became a bit of a mope-fest in it's final seasons, trying far too hard to stay true to it's dark roots by going completely overboard and making the show a parody of itself. Luckily, it managed to rein itself in and go out on a high note in it's last few episodes. I seriously hope RESCUE ME is able to do the same because there was almost no sign of the show I used to love in tonight's premiere.
That's not entirely true, I suppose. All of the issues and themes that have been present from the beginning of the show (Tommy's alcoholism, Survivor's guilt, etc.) were present in "Legacy", only they felt completely overdone and stale. The pre-credits scene was so over-the-top I could hardly believe my eyes. It doesn't surprise me that Tommy would have a "heaven-and-hell" dream/fantasy/whatever after he'd been shot, it surprised me that there wasn't even a hint of subtlety in the execution. Tommy was in heaven with his fallen comrades, then he was in hell inside a burning building. Really? No metaphor at all? I could have shrugged that off if everything else afterward hadn't have been just as hackneyed. Mickey's "harrowing" car ride going the wrong way on the freeway was so over-the-top, I expected Tommy to wake up from that encounter too.
The other storylines suffered from the sledgehammer subtlety as well. Teddy promises to kill him if he drinks again, Colleen is becoming an alcoholic, Sheila wants him because they're both insane (I think that was the reasoning), and Janet's storyline made no sense. She moved the kids in with him so he could drink himself stupid in front of them? WHAT? The only scenes that felt normal were the firehouse scenes; they weren't revelatory, but the looseness and camaraderie present in them was a welcome respite from everything else.
Having said all this, I'm still in for the rest of the season. I think all the plotlines presented for this season are interesting enough that they could be genuinely interesting if given subtler treatment than they were in "Legacy". I don't know if the show is capable of the dark insight that it used to pull off so well but I hope it can pull off the course correction it needs. SIX FEET UNDER managed it, after all.
C-
That's not entirely true, I suppose. All of the issues and themes that have been present from the beginning of the show (Tommy's alcoholism, Survivor's guilt, etc.) were present in "Legacy", only they felt completely overdone and stale. The pre-credits scene was so over-the-top I could hardly believe my eyes. It doesn't surprise me that Tommy would have a "heaven-and-hell" dream/fantasy/whatever after he'd been shot, it surprised me that there wasn't even a hint of subtlety in the execution. Tommy was in heaven with his fallen comrades, then he was in hell inside a burning building. Really? No metaphor at all? I could have shrugged that off if everything else afterward hadn't have been just as hackneyed. Mickey's "harrowing" car ride going the wrong way on the freeway was so over-the-top, I expected Tommy to wake up from that encounter too.
The other storylines suffered from the sledgehammer subtlety as well. Teddy promises to kill him if he drinks again, Colleen is becoming an alcoholic, Sheila wants him because they're both insane (I think that was the reasoning), and Janet's storyline made no sense. She moved the kids in with him so he could drink himself stupid in front of them? WHAT? The only scenes that felt normal were the firehouse scenes; they weren't revelatory, but the looseness and camaraderie present in them was a welcome respite from everything else.
Having said all this, I'm still in for the rest of the season. I think all the plotlines presented for this season are interesting enough that they could be genuinely interesting if given subtler treatment than they were in "Legacy". I don't know if the show is capable of the dark insight that it used to pull off so well but I hope it can pull off the course correction it needs. SIX FEET UNDER managed it, after all.
C-
Monday, June 7, 2010
TREME - "All On Mardi Gras Day"
"Happy Mardi Gras, honey"
That sentence would normally be read as an excited exclamation. You would think it'd be said in the middle of Bourbon Street by a bead-wearing, scantily clad woman. Instead it's a sympathetic consolation given by Annie to a New Orleans man forced to flee his city when the storm destroyed his home. Thus is Mardi Gras in a post-Katrina New Orleans.
Luckily, the episode was not all doom-and-gloom, and quite a few of TREME's characters found themselves having a great time. Unfortunately, Creighton was not one of them. The brief moments spent with him were the highlights of what was an otherwise decent episode. Who can't relate to what Creighton goes through in this episode? You look forward to some impending event and hinge entirely too much on it, and when it arrives, it doesn't quite live up to your expectations. Only Creighton hinged the soul of a city on one event, and, of course, it failed to be what he had hoped. He's been descending into a depression for a few episodes but this episode seems to be the steepest drop so far. The drinking and passing out is one thing but the way he interacted with Sofia was most most alarming. It lacked much of the affection he usually treats her with, something's seriously wrong if that's missing.
And as Creighton seems determined to carry New Orleans problems on his back, so does Ladonna seem determined to carry her family's. I can't stress how great Khandi Alexander is in this role. Ladonna tries so hard to hide any problems from her family, her voice goes up a few decibel levels whenever they ask if everything's fine. As if a high-pitched voice could be mistaken for care-free. It's almost heart-breakingly human.
Unfortunately, not much else this episode really stuck out. It was great to see characters like Janette, Annie and Albert let go of their problems for a bit and embrace the Mardi Gras spirit (and, of course, Antoine and Davis are more than happy to embrace it). But it didn't necessarily move much forward. Maybe that's the point. Mardi Gras can come and go in New Orleans without changing a thing... only making you forget for a moment.
B
RANDOM THOUGHTS:
- The scene with Antoine and his #1 Japanese fan was nice. I like how he continues to surprise Antoine with his knowledge of the NO Jazz scene.
- Annie and Davis together was pretty great but I'm not sure if we're supposed to think that it will lead to more or was just a Mardi Gras moment.
- I continue to not give a shit about Sonny.
That sentence would normally be read as an excited exclamation. You would think it'd be said in the middle of Bourbon Street by a bead-wearing, scantily clad woman. Instead it's a sympathetic consolation given by Annie to a New Orleans man forced to flee his city when the storm destroyed his home. Thus is Mardi Gras in a post-Katrina New Orleans.
Luckily, the episode was not all doom-and-gloom, and quite a few of TREME's characters found themselves having a great time. Unfortunately, Creighton was not one of them. The brief moments spent with him were the highlights of what was an otherwise decent episode. Who can't relate to what Creighton goes through in this episode? You look forward to some impending event and hinge entirely too much on it, and when it arrives, it doesn't quite live up to your expectations. Only Creighton hinged the soul of a city on one event, and, of course, it failed to be what he had hoped. He's been descending into a depression for a few episodes but this episode seems to be the steepest drop so far. The drinking and passing out is one thing but the way he interacted with Sofia was most most alarming. It lacked much of the affection he usually treats her with, something's seriously wrong if that's missing.
And as Creighton seems determined to carry New Orleans problems on his back, so does Ladonna seem determined to carry her family's. I can't stress how great Khandi Alexander is in this role. Ladonna tries so hard to hide any problems from her family, her voice goes up a few decibel levels whenever they ask if everything's fine. As if a high-pitched voice could be mistaken for care-free. It's almost heart-breakingly human.
Unfortunately, not much else this episode really stuck out. It was great to see characters like Janette, Annie and Albert let go of their problems for a bit and embrace the Mardi Gras spirit (and, of course, Antoine and Davis are more than happy to embrace it). But it didn't necessarily move much forward. Maybe that's the point. Mardi Gras can come and go in New Orleans without changing a thing... only making you forget for a moment.
B
RANDOM THOUGHTS:
- The scene with Antoine and his #1 Japanese fan was nice. I like how he continues to surprise Antoine with his knowledge of the NO Jazz scene.
- Annie and Davis together was pretty great but I'm not sure if we're supposed to think that it will lead to more or was just a Mardi Gras moment.
- I continue to not give a shit about Sonny.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
BREAKING BAD - "Half Measures"
The calm before the storm. That's what the latest episode of BREAKING BAD felt like for 99% of it's running time. Well, calm for BB. Not that this show is fraught with action and adventure every week, but there's almost no interaction that isn't as tense and exciting as most action scene's I've seen. After all the show managed to turn a common fly into one of the most haunting symbols of paranoia and self-doubt I've ever seen. So even though this episode was filled with a lot of talk, it set the scene beautifully for things to come.
But back to this week. This week, we learned what Walt is capable of... and what he isn't. Mike gave as impassioned and logical an argument for killing Jesse as I could've imagined. Really, what does he bring to the table? (I say this from characters like Mike's point of view, obviously Jesse is invaluable to the show). It makes perfect sense to get him out the way. But Walt just can't go there (yet?). I like that they didn't show Walt weighing his options, and pretend he may authorize the death of Jesse. We know he's not quite capable of that, and in fact he does pretty much the exact opposite. He kills for Jesse.
For a moment I wondered if this was too far for even Walt, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized it made total sense. The man has lost the trust of the one person that mattered most to him, and much of this season has been devoted to Skyler reminding him that no matter how much she may accept his "business", the fundamental trust has been broken between them. So when Jesse feels he's been betrayed by Walt, it makes perfect sense for Walt to go to extremes to win that trust back (and, ya' know,murder a couple of child killers in the process).
So what happens next? Well, the finale is next week and as calm as this episode was, it certainly propelled the show forward into what should surely be an insanely tense season finale. What else would you expect from the best show on Television?
A-
RANDOM THOUGHTS
- I wonder what role Hank will play in the finale? Since his hospitalization, he's had (understandably) little to do. I wonder if he has much to do next week or if his arc this season will lead mostly into next season.
- I like the idea of Skyler running the car wash but her Wikipedia-ing "money laundering" felt a little silly and I hope if she DOES run Walt's laundering business, it doesn't stretch credulity too much.
- Is there a more propulsive word than the last one spoken at the end of this episode? I think not. Can't wait for the finale.
But back to this week. This week, we learned what Walt is capable of... and what he isn't. Mike gave as impassioned and logical an argument for killing Jesse as I could've imagined. Really, what does he bring to the table? (I say this from characters like Mike's point of view, obviously Jesse is invaluable to the show). It makes perfect sense to get him out the way. But Walt just can't go there (yet?). I like that they didn't show Walt weighing his options, and pretend he may authorize the death of Jesse. We know he's not quite capable of that, and in fact he does pretty much the exact opposite. He kills for Jesse.
For a moment I wondered if this was too far for even Walt, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized it made total sense. The man has lost the trust of the one person that mattered most to him, and much of this season has been devoted to Skyler reminding him that no matter how much she may accept his "business", the fundamental trust has been broken between them. So when Jesse feels he's been betrayed by Walt, it makes perfect sense for Walt to go to extremes to win that trust back (and, ya' know,murder a couple of child killers in the process).
So what happens next? Well, the finale is next week and as calm as this episode was, it certainly propelled the show forward into what should surely be an insanely tense season finale. What else would you expect from the best show on Television?
A-
RANDOM THOUGHTS
- I wonder what role Hank will play in the finale? Since his hospitalization, he's had (understandably) little to do. I wonder if he has much to do next week or if his arc this season will lead mostly into next season.
- I like the idea of Skyler running the car wash but her Wikipedia-ing "money laundering" felt a little silly and I hope if she DOES run Walt's laundering business, it doesn't stretch credulity too much.
- Is there a more propulsive word than the last one spoken at the end of this episode? I think not. Can't wait for the finale.
It's about time...
I've written for other websites, it's about time I've written for myself, amiright? I'm going to be using this blog to post my thoughts on various TV shows I watch and my thoughts on the episodes week-to-week. I may verge into movies, music, books, comics or whatever the hell strikes my fancy. It's my blog, damnit!
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