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| Scene from Angie Tribeca |
Welcome to a new column called Channel Surfing, in which I sporadically look at current TV shows and talk about them. These are not ones that I care to write weekly recaps for and are instead reflections either on the episode, the series, or particular moments. This will hopefully help to share personal opinions as well as discover entertainment on the outer pantheon that I feel is well worth checking out, or in some cases, shows that are weird enough to talk about, but should never be seen.
It is likely that if you've so much as been to a theater in the past three months, you're aware of TBS' new comedy series Angie Tribeca. The show premiered over the past two days in a 25-hour marathon structure that saw all 10 of its season one episodes air. While the success is definitely shown in the way that everyone now loves it, it's an intriguing premise that escapes the familiar format of contemporary alternative comedy. It's not familiar to the shows, even in star Rashida Jones' past, in which the comedy comes more from improvisational comedy and character moments. What Angie Tribeca sets out to do is something very retro. For those who remember The Naked Gun and the series that predated it Police Academy!, this show is very much trying to be it, but for modern crime shows.
It's true that this isn't the first comedy series to tackle the silliness of modern crime shows like C.S.I. and N.C.I.S.. However, it seems like one of the first dominant shows that has done it outside of [adult swim] and its "anything goes" style of comedy. While there's Brooklyn Nine-Nine, the series was always grounded in a certain sense of realism. Angie Tribeca immediately proves that it doesn't have any realism, let alone common sense. In that respects alone, it is the perfect heir to Police Academy!, with Jones taking on the Frank Drebin role of the straight man who has to live in the ridiculous world. By the end of the first episode, she is seen chasing a perpetrator out of a nude art class covered in the drawings that the students have been making (you know, for modesty). The show is impressively adept at bringing dozens of sight gags a minute and immediately becomes one of the most unique comedy shows on TV.
The level of tolerance for joke-a-second humor will be dependent on how much you are into the slapstick nature of the 70's old school comedy mold. A lot of the jokes frankly make no sense and exist solely to amplify the ridiculousness of the situation. Jones, while admirably dedicated, isn't as immediately stoic as Leslie Neilsen, and some of the comedy does feel forced. True, it make just be that Jones is coming off of an impressive run on Parks and Recreation from last year, but her familiarity keeps some of the jokes from working. However, as a pilot, this may be one of the strongest and most singular new shows to come out of a January (or "dead zone") release since True Detective two years ago. It's peculiar in all of the right ways.
The only real question is how people will see the show now that the marathon is done. Will it be consumed in the regular once-a-week model, or will fans just flock to it at their convenience? Considering that Netflix has mastered this technique perfectly, it's intriguing to see a network like TBS attempt to do the same thing for regular TV broadcasting. Luckily, the show is practically ADHD and lacks serialization to the point that one episode is likely inconsequential to the other. The show is brilliant filler, even if the writers clearly have a gift for making the show as ludicrous as humanly possible.
Unfortunately, I missed the marathon, so my experience to the series mostly comes from the first episode. However, its word of mouth is likely to help it. The fact that it's very different from modern comedies as well may help it stand out even more. Considering how much Jones has been a great actress on other shows, I'm confident that Angie Tribeca could be really good if given time. Various background gags already make the show have an immediacy that is missing from the more droll and talky comedies. At most, the show feels like a less successful version (format wise) of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, but that doesn't matter. It's still a lot of fun to watch, and that may be enough to justify its existence. Is it the next Police Squad!? Maybe not entirely, but it's close enough for now.
It's true that this isn't the first comedy series to tackle the silliness of modern crime shows like C.S.I. and N.C.I.S.. However, it seems like one of the first dominant shows that has done it outside of [adult swim] and its "anything goes" style of comedy. While there's Brooklyn Nine-Nine, the series was always grounded in a certain sense of realism. Angie Tribeca immediately proves that it doesn't have any realism, let alone common sense. In that respects alone, it is the perfect heir to Police Academy!, with Jones taking on the Frank Drebin role of the straight man who has to live in the ridiculous world. By the end of the first episode, she is seen chasing a perpetrator out of a nude art class covered in the drawings that the students have been making (you know, for modesty). The show is impressively adept at bringing dozens of sight gags a minute and immediately becomes one of the most unique comedy shows on TV.
The level of tolerance for joke-a-second humor will be dependent on how much you are into the slapstick nature of the 70's old school comedy mold. A lot of the jokes frankly make no sense and exist solely to amplify the ridiculousness of the situation. Jones, while admirably dedicated, isn't as immediately stoic as Leslie Neilsen, and some of the comedy does feel forced. True, it make just be that Jones is coming off of an impressive run on Parks and Recreation from last year, but her familiarity keeps some of the jokes from working. However, as a pilot, this may be one of the strongest and most singular new shows to come out of a January (or "dead zone") release since True Detective two years ago. It's peculiar in all of the right ways.
The only real question is how people will see the show now that the marathon is done. Will it be consumed in the regular once-a-week model, or will fans just flock to it at their convenience? Considering that Netflix has mastered this technique perfectly, it's intriguing to see a network like TBS attempt to do the same thing for regular TV broadcasting. Luckily, the show is practically ADHD and lacks serialization to the point that one episode is likely inconsequential to the other. The show is brilliant filler, even if the writers clearly have a gift for making the show as ludicrous as humanly possible.
Unfortunately, I missed the marathon, so my experience to the series mostly comes from the first episode. However, its word of mouth is likely to help it. The fact that it's very different from modern comedies as well may help it stand out even more. Considering how much Jones has been a great actress on other shows, I'm confident that Angie Tribeca could be really good if given time. Various background gags already make the show have an immediacy that is missing from the more droll and talky comedies. At most, the show feels like a less successful version (format wise) of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, but that doesn't matter. It's still a lot of fun to watch, and that may be enough to justify its existence. Is it the next Police Squad!? Maybe not entirely, but it's close enough for now.
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