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John Oliver’s NY Stand Up Show Returns To Comedy Central
John Oliver
John Oliver’s NY Stand Up Show began its third season on Comedy Central last night. John Oliver hosts this show, which features short sets from both established and up-and-coming comedians. It once again succeeded in showcasing one of the barest forms of entertainment. There is something very enjoyable in watching one person share his or her observations in an attempt to make strangers laugh. This is the ultimate form of creative control.
John Oliver is a British comic and is well-known as a correspondent on The Daily Show. As host of this show, it almost seems he wants to be portrayed simply as the opening act. The truth is, he deserves more credit than that. Not only is he funny, but his show gives comedians a chance to gain a larger audience.
Sullivan & Son: Crass, but Pretty Funny
The promos for TBS’s new sitcom, Sullivan & Son seemed crass, stereotypical, and at times cringe worthy. There was very little context, so I really wasn’t sure if I was going to like this or be offended by it. There is a lot of shock value in the show. It is crass, stereotypical, and cringe worthy. It just also happens to be pretty funny. The series opened with two episodes last night that both showed potential.
Steve Sullivan is the son. He is a workaholic corporate attorney on Wall Street who is visiting his family in Pittsburgh for his father’s birthday party. The party is being held at Sullivan & Son, a bar that the Sullivan family has owned for generations. Steve is bringing his girlfriend of 8 months to the party. It is his first time back home since they started dating and she is obviously more serious than he is about the relationship. This type of dynamic seems to really establish Sullivan’s character from the get-go. Steve is portrayed by showrunner and comic Steve Byrne. He is a man who is simply going through the motions of life. He has a “big and important” job (which he has to describe several times throughout the show) and a girlfriend who assumes they are going to move in together. He is following a safe and conventional path, but that isn’t what he wants. In this sense, Steve’s character seems very real as he struggles to grow.
Episodes Laughs At Death
Episodes premiered its third show of the season last night. The show continues to provide laughs, even in the most uncomfortable way. The father of network president Merc Lapidus has died and the episode dealt with the awkward ways the Pucks! staff would provide condolences. It was clear how completely inappropriate everyone’s behavior was, which is exaclty what makes it hilarious. There were parts of the show where viewers should not laugh, but they laugh anyway because Episodes runs on cringe comedy. It is a challenge to find humor in the fact that no one cares about someone’s death, yet the show makes it work.
When Lapidus’ father died, everyone’s main concern was appeasing the president of a network and not Lapidus as a person. Everyone in the show is acting selfish and morally questionable. Even so, it never fails to be funny. Their biggest concern is not to make sure Lapidus is happy, but what would be an appropriate thing to send as a condolence. An ongoing joke centers around Matt insisting that a muffin basket is not a big enough gift. He insists on a huge catered dinner, which Sean rejects. Still, there’s a stubbornness to appease Lapidus, or rather conform to “funeral” behavior.
Episodes Review: Does Sean Forgive Matt?
The second season of Episodes has been superb so far. Sunday’s show was only the second episode. Considering how good the series has been, it’s probably not slowing down. The main arc of this season is about repairing damages and it’s working very well. The main issue is simple in that it is very difficult for everyone to move past the turmoil of the first season. The biggest struggle is not for the civility of Sean and Beverly Lincoln, but for Matt LeBlanc to win Sean over. Everything came together extremely well.
The episode opens with Sean and Morning Randolph in bed together. Randolph is leaving and Sean seems confused. He feels that their sleeping together deserves more attention. He asked if they should talk about what happened and Randolph simply said “I had fun.” Sean was confused again, and he asks, “That’s it?’ This really highlighted the emotional states of the characters well. Sean isn’t used to the dynamic of the one night stand. After all, he’s been married for several years. Sex that doesn’t mean much is new territory for him. That being said, the subtexts of the scene were executed very well. There were a few moments of silence between the two as if to communicate an uncertainty that they are both getting comfortable with. In this sense, there is still a feeling of emptiness. He’s separated from Beverly and he isn’t cheating. Out of familiarity, he almost seems to crave for the situation to be more complicated than it actually is. Instead, Randolph has the right idea, simply telling Sean she would see him tomorrow.
Episodes Returns Without the Sophomore Slump
The second season of the Showtime original comedy Episodes premiered on Sunday night and the show continues to be fantastic. The production of a low quality television show generally serves as only a minor plot point, but that’s okay. The main driving force remains the character interaction.
The show opens with a scene of Pucks! being shot. After the scene wraps, Sean and Beverly Lincoln exchange some witty banter and it almost seems like all is forgiven. Then, they say goodbye and head off in separate cars. This was a very cleverly written scene. It kept the viewer guessing and then revealed what appears to be the main conflict of this season: that there is still a struggle for everyone to coexist as colleagues.
The next scene features Beverly and Head of Programming for the network Carole Rance. Beverly still needs to vent about her situation with Sean. The situation is hard for her because it is Sean’s birthday. It is their first one apart and it feels weird to her. Sean has gone from her husband to “some boy who may or may not still like [her].” The interaction between Beverly and Rance is very enjoyable. As much as Beverly hated the idea of Pucks!, she still finds a friend in the process. The relationship is an effective contrast between a neurotic person in crisis and a no-nonsense perspective. Beverly adds that “if [she’s] ever feeling like the craziest person on Earth,” she should have dinner with Rance. The rapport between these two will probably get stronger as the season goes on.
Epix Announces Comedy Unbound
Comedian Jim Norton
The premium cable channel EPIX has announced a new monthly comedy showcase called Comedy Unbound. The show gives EPIX alumni a platform to perform new specials. The showcase kicks off with Jim Norton: Please Be Offended premiering on tonight. Each special will air on the last weekend of every month.
CEO Mark Greenberg said that the network has had great success with their original comedy specials since its launch and that the network is committed to featuring the most talented comedians today. He wants them to feel free to test boundaries as they please.
Comedian Jim Norton said, “My experience with EPIX has been unlike any other network. I’ve worked closely with the EPIX team throughout the entire process, including promotion, which is an incredibly rare luxury for a performer.” Other comedians feel the same way.
Comedy Unbound will also feature Kevin Smith, Austrailian stand-up Jim Jefferies, and Ben Stiller. Sherri Shephard, Eddie Griffin, and Lewis Black will also perform specials. The show will air new showcases on the last weekend of every month.
FX Brings Us Brand X
Last night, Brand X with Russell Brand debuted on FX. Either I misread the press releases or FX did not make clear the concept of Brand X. I thought it was going to be talk show, possibly along the lines of the short lived Talkshow with Spike Feresten. It wasn’t, but that isn’t a bad thing.
The show is basically a half hour comedy special with a lot of interaction with the audience and Brand’s sidekick, Matt Stoller. If you’re a fan of Brand, you’ll love it. If you hate Brand, Brand X won’t change your mind. If you’re like me, you were somewhere in the middle to begin with and this will leave you on the fence.
Anger Management Needs Therapy
Charlie Sheen as Charlie Goodson
Charlie Sheen got his shot to return to television and it’s already not working out. Anger Management opened with two episodes on Thursday night and there wasn’t really much chance it would be a huge success. An FX comedy is probably not enough to fix a disgraced career and the type of actor Sheen is just seems unappealing. After two episodes, it’s certain this is going to be a failure. The fact is the show could not have been any worse. There was not one moment worthy of laughter for the entire hour.
Sheen stars as Charlie Goodson, an anger management therapist who has anger issues himself. This should actually be treated as a serious conflict and the fact that it is portrayed comically just makes it seem wrong. Of course, comedy seeming wrong would be okay if it was funny and innovative. This was neither. This was just boring. The laugh track only made it worse.
Wait! What's A Dial? 