Space Ghost Coast to Coast

     Space Ghost Coast to Coast works well as a snapshot in time. A comedy that started a genre, Space Ghost Coast to Coast relied on its editors and writers to craft an absurdist story in post. 

     After Ted Turner purchased the rights to the Hannah-Barbara collection he asked a young writer, Mike Lazzo, to make him a cartoon for adults. However, Lazzo could only use the materials provided to him, namely a collection of old cartoons. Lazzo took Space Ghost from the show Space Ghost and Dino Boy and repurposed almost all the animation to make Space Ghost host a talk show. 

Lazzo wanted a show "people would pause on" and Space Ghost was the absurd, sometimes anti-comedy, that he wanted. The interviews with real 90's celebrities were recorded and then taken completely out of context. The writers would craft the show completely in post, changing the questions and moving around answers until the interview barely made sense or made the celebrity look bad. All this surround edby a B plot of Space Ghost's employee's; former villains Brak, Zorack, and Moltar all actively despise Space Ghost. 

The show's influence is widespread. It's popularity was at the height of late night talk shows, with the Tonight show being past to either Letterman or Leno and Conan doing more alternative comedy on the Late show. Coast to Coast didn't really fit into traditional programming and thus paved the way for Cartoon Network's late night half Adult Swim. From there shows like Aqua Teen Hunger Force and Harvey Birdman were born. Space Ghost is also a huge influence on The Eric Andre Show another surrealist late night show now on Adult Swim with live actors and comedians.

Lazzo himself has said he's done with Space Ghost Coast to Coast and is now an Executive VP at Adult Swim. But the show has lived on in the alternative comedy community for being such a creative idea that changed so much. Space Ghost was ahead of it's time in terms of content manipulation, especially for animation. While the show is not always clear and direct, it is always entertaining watching a giant generic superhero talk to celebrities who don't really know what's going on.

Louis CK's Horace and Pete

     Louis CK is a busy guy. He's both an acclaimed stand up comic, who's the only comedian to sell out Madison Square Garden three nights in a row, but he also writes, directs, and edits a critically acclaimed tv show Louie. He hasn't stopped there. Instead Louie has put out another self created show called Horace and Pete.

    Horace and Pete is a pretty experimental project even for a creator whose show is often described as surreal. H&P is only available on Louie's website and are pay per view. The first episode runs 67 minutes and costs $5. Each remaining episode runs progressively 10 minutes shorter and costs $3. Stylistically the show is a strange set up for television in 2016. The set is plain and the lighting is flat and it's clearly a multicam but there are never any shot reverse shots, only different angles. This lack of cutting and this open set design makes the show feel more like a recorded play than an episode of television.

                          

The show is about a bar in New York called Horace and Pete's which was founded 100 years ago by a Horace and operated in conjunction with his brother Pete. It has passed down for generations to the current Horace and Pete's, Horace portrayed by Louis CK and Pete portrayed by Steve Buscemi. 

The cast is filled with older comedy and drama stars: Alan Alda plays a curmudgeonly Uncle Pete, Steven Wright plays a bar patron, Edie Falco plays Horace's sister, and Jessica Lange as the dead Horace's old girlfriend. All the actors obviously have the entire script memorized and their are no cuts to help with lines or no close ups to convey emotion.

     Thematically the show is sort of an anti-Cheers. There is a surprising amount of topical discussion, in the first episode the bar patrons discuss Trump and the coming election and the Super Bowl. However this banter is the only place, if any, the jokes lie. Steve Buscemi's character is the only one that seems likable and he's having a mental breakdown. The family drama hinges on keeping with the old and going with the new and none of the characters seem to like each other very much. If Louie is a surrealist comedy, Horace and Pete is a tragic play.

      

     I wrote about Horace and Pete because it's something I'm trying to do with this thesis. I usually make comedies, between stand up and sketches that's what people know me for. I, like Louie, want to try something new and more realistic. But I'm not sure I like Horace and Pete. It's draining and gives me a sense of anxiety as all the characters fail to get along. Hopefully I can make a film that is emotional significant, yet not emotionally taxing.

Danger 5

     I said in my last post that I found the weirdest show on television. I lied. I found it this week, it's called Danger 5. 

     Danger 5 is an Australian show which is a play on 60's spy dramas mixed with WWII drama. Production wise the show looks terrible, on purpose. The girls are scantily clad, the set is poorly put together, the colors are oversaturated, and the audio goes in and out of sync. The boss of the titular Danger 5 is a man with an eagle head.

      The show is weird but it works. The dialogue is very tongue and cheek and matched with the production it looks and sounds hilarious. The plot is as over the top as the characters. Each episode the the Danger 5, each member a total caricature, has to infiltrate or defeat some strange Nazi development and, as always, kill Hitler.

     

     Hitler is a ladies man cool guy and the Danger 5 have to stop them. The second episode features Nazi dinosaur monsters. The show, created by Dario Russo and David Ashby, is ludicrous and so so funny. It's not for everyone but it's certainly found it's niche and is very popular on Netflix.

     There's a fake robot dog. That smokes cigarettes and woows men.

   The actors, even in Australia, are unknown but they don't need to give a beautiful performance in this unbelievable world where Hitler can't be hit by bullets and always escapes. 

    Danger 5 is fun and easy to watch and very entertaining. So it's not Annie Hall. It's still really really funny.

Man Seeking Woman

    Everyone should try Man Seeking Woman, a new comedy series on FXX. It's the weirdest and most unique show on television right now and is an interesting blend of romantic comedy and surreal story telling. 

    The show is created by Simon Rich, an SNL writing alum and Pixar staff writer before his 30th birthday, and based off his book The Last Girlfriend on Earth. The show stars Jay Baruchel, of This is the End and How To Train Your Dragon, who plays helpless lovetorn loser Josh Greenberg. Supporting cast include Eric Andre, of the already hyper weird Eric Andre Show, and Britt Lower, who plays Josh's overachieving and over-supportive sister. 

The pilot begins with Josh being dumbed by his girlfriend of six years. It only gets weirder after that.

     The first episode Josh goes on a blind date. As thoughts and concerns creep into his head that maybe this girl his sister set him up with will be ugly. Turns out his blind date is a troll. Not an ugly girl, an actual troll.

         

      The show isn't surreal like the Twilight Zone, it's unique. Instead of all the characters thinking it scary or strange that there's a troll present, everyone thinks it's completely normal. It's the opposite in fact, everyone thinks it's very rude that Josh is so opposed to a date with a troll. Later in the episode everyone gives Josh a hard time that he is uncomfortable with being at a party with Hitler. Like real Hitler; he's 126 years old. 

    It's the surreality that makes the show incredibly unique. It does watch a little like a book reads, the scene changes dramatically and all the characters are completely on board with that. This creates for a lot of heightened drama for a romantic comedy. In one episode Josh's mother tortured him ala 24, in another Cupid is going into rehab.

     The show is well produced and has attracted big name comedy guests for such a little known show, such as Bill Hader, Vanessa Bayer, and Tim Heidecker. The directors are important tv comedy directors, Jonathon Krisel and Ben Berman. Simon Rich clearly has the respect for his peers and it's no wonder; the show is new and creative and different than anything else.

     The performances are great and the show seeks the general in the strange particulars. The characters are relatable and emphatic even in such strange situations. I think the show is something audience should keep an eye on, as network tv starts to fall shows will become more personalized. Maybe this show is just for me but it's something everyone should test out. It's a hodgepodge of shows and styles and executes them all incredibly. It's theme, man seeking woman, is relatable to the core.

   

When Reality Becomes Surreal

I'm very picky when it comes to watching television. A show has to be well written, funny, with actors who play the part. That being said, I have a secret shame:

I love Real Housewives of New Jersey. I think it's one of the greatest shows on television, possibly all time. It's horribly photographed trash TV at it's finest. The show takes five women who lead lives of luxury in the dirty Jers and follow the petty crap they argue about on a daily basis. I can't even begin to describe the suffering and emotional trauma these upper middle class citizens endure every episodes. Stolen recipes, book deals, recording careers. It's hard not to empathize with them.

I began watching Housewives when the show began following the lives of women from Orange County back in March 2006. Since then, there's been five spinoffs, three international versions, and a new executive producer, Andy Cohen.

When the show first premiered, the premise was simple: follow the everyday lives of five women who live lives of luxury. In the first season of the show, there wasn't a single fight, screaming match, or petty argument. Everyone got along and stood by each other. They actually had real people problems, such as bankruptcy, divorce, and relationships.

Six years later, the show has become a poster-child for a new genre recently coined "Docusoap." The only one I continue to watch, just because it's so ridiculous, are the women from New Jersey. The producers continue to do everything they can to pump drama into the show. Since the first season, the entire cast has just been in a cross-media war, each battle consisting of something stupid being blown completely out of proportion. It's like high school with money.

Just recently, I watched the reunion. These supposedly upstanding members of society, each worth millions of dollars, personally dug in and attacked each other for the entirety of three hours. It was something to behold. They argued about who's mom created a recipe, someone faking an Autistic child, people wearing the same dress to an event, liposuction, nose jobs, lip synching, the list goes on and on. This wouldn't seem so bad, but each reunion shoot takes fourteen hours to complete. What was previously a reflection on the season by the cast has become a therapy session.

It's no secret that these women don't like each other. They apparently hadn't spoken to each other for a year before the reunion show. At the same time, how can people who have everything let something so stupid tear apart previously strong bonds?

People don't watch reality TV to see how other people live normal lives. They don't want to see people sleeping, using the bathroom, cleaning, or eating. People want to see fighting, arguing, hair pulling, drama. The producers have to do something to stir drama. While that may be the case for most shows, there's something pure about Housewives.

These women are truly pure evil. They will do anything to make each other's lives horrible. They constantly attempt to start something through twitter, magazines, celeb websites, blogs. The fights make for great reality TV. One problem: real people don't go that far out of their way to mess up someone's life. Even if they wanted to, most are too busy. The housewives primary paycheck comes from the producers at Bravo to make good TV by any means possible. Everyone involved in the show is choosing money over friendship, family, and public impression.

If the average person was asked to do this and no TV show was involved, they would likely decline. But the women of Real Housewives are incredibly heartless bitches. Therefore, I propose that the "reality tv" moniker be replaced by the much more appropriate "surreal TV."

David Lynch

One of the most interesting filmmakers that I know of has to be David Lynch. Out of all the main stream director's that I know of, his films are always the ones that seem the most out of the ordinary. Now I'm not saying that's a bad thing, I really enjoy his films and yet I couldn't really tell you why. They're bizarre, weird, crazy and yet I love them. To start things off here's a short film of his called The Alphabet.

Yes I know that that video is pretty strange but that's who Lynch is.

The first movie I saw of Lynch's was his first; Eraserhead; which is...interesting to say the least. It's a movie that puts you into a very fragile state of mind and it psychologically messes with you. It's a movie that I would highly recommend though because it gives you the sense of who David Lynch is and if you enjoy that one, you'll definitely like all of his others.