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.
Saturday Night Live alumni have done rather successful on TV. Simply look at Tina Fey and the iconic work of 30 Rock or Amy Poehler and Parks and Recreation or Andy Samberg and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. While there haven't been that many failures out there, the pedigree that comes from graduating off of NBC's institutional late night sketch show is something that will cloud the series with anticipation and hope for something great. In the case of Mulaney, a series created by and starring John Mulaney should have been something greater than it was. On top of being the head writer for Saturday Night Live, he was also a very successful stand-up comic with an incomparable reputation. Sadly, it comes across as a Seinfeld knock-off in a few unpleasant ways.
For starters, the series doesn't play to Mulaney's strengths. Even if it opens with a stand-up routine, the surrounding episode is a rather poor affair. Starting with a trip to the doctor that results in a few unpleasant situations, the humor is derived from an observational comedian being thrown into situations in which he can observe. There's awkward pausing when things go awry, and it quickly becomes about how awkward the situation really is. The characters aren't more than stereotypes with them being stand-up comics who don't get much to do besides being petty towards each other. It could work, but the way that the episode is set up reveals everything in a broad fashion that leaves no confidence for the viewer.
The central premise of the series is that Mulaney is going to become a writer for Lou (Martin Short), who is egocentric and spends countless hours obsessed with his own jokes. The joke is almost that he is flamboyant and self-involved. He ruins Mulaney's life and that his future lies in the hands of this Hollywood professional. Meanwhile, Mulaney's friend Motif (Seaton Smith) is having some success with catchphrase comedy and serves as the underlying theme of Mulaney losing to a guy who sells "Problem Bitch" shirts for a living. Add in a drug dealer named Andre (Zack Pearlman) and a "why is she here?" woman named Jane (Nasim Pedrad) and the series has a lot of characters doing nothing but observing their surroundings.
It could just be the first episode jitters, but the premise already is a little confusing. Compared to high concept series like Manhattan Love Story and A to Z, the simplicity is a welcomed touch. However, there has to be something to counterbalance that. Sadly, there isn't much and it feels like a lot of ideas being thrown together and made up as they go along. It doesn't help that Mulaney is not a particularly adept actor and delivers lines more than performs them. This is something that can be worked out. However, when placed alongside Short's flamboyance, the episode reveals most of its problems. Thea archetypes don't do each other much justice.
Saturday Night Live alumni have done rather successful on TV. Simply look at Tina Fey and the iconic work of 30 Rock or Amy Poehler and Parks and Recreation or Andy Samberg and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. While there haven't been that many failures out there, the pedigree that comes from graduating off of NBC's institutional late night sketch show is something that will cloud the series with anticipation and hope for something great. In the case of Mulaney, a series created by and starring John Mulaney should have been something greater than it was. On top of being the head writer for Saturday Night Live, he was also a very successful stand-up comic with an incomparable reputation. Sadly, it comes across as a Seinfeld knock-off in a few unpleasant ways.
For starters, the series doesn't play to Mulaney's strengths. Even if it opens with a stand-up routine, the surrounding episode is a rather poor affair. Starting with a trip to the doctor that results in a few unpleasant situations, the humor is derived from an observational comedian being thrown into situations in which he can observe. There's awkward pausing when things go awry, and it quickly becomes about how awkward the situation really is. The characters aren't more than stereotypes with them being stand-up comics who don't get much to do besides being petty towards each other. It could work, but the way that the episode is set up reveals everything in a broad fashion that leaves no confidence for the viewer.
The central premise of the series is that Mulaney is going to become a writer for Lou (Martin Short), who is egocentric and spends countless hours obsessed with his own jokes. The joke is almost that he is flamboyant and self-involved. He ruins Mulaney's life and that his future lies in the hands of this Hollywood professional. Meanwhile, Mulaney's friend Motif (Seaton Smith) is having some success with catchphrase comedy and serves as the underlying theme of Mulaney losing to a guy who sells "Problem Bitch" shirts for a living. Add in a drug dealer named Andre (Zack Pearlman) and a "why is she here?" woman named Jane (Nasim Pedrad) and the series has a lot of characters doing nothing but observing their surroundings.
It could just be the first episode jitters, but the premise already is a little confusing. Compared to high concept series like Manhattan Love Story and A to Z, the simplicity is a welcomed touch. However, there has to be something to counterbalance that. Sadly, there isn't much and it feels like a lot of ideas being thrown together and made up as they go along. It doesn't help that Mulaney is not a particularly adept actor and delivers lines more than performs them. This is something that can be worked out. However, when placed alongside Short's flamboyance, the episode reveals most of its problems. Thea archetypes don't do each other much justice.
While the ratings are low, there shouldn't be any real complaints or comparisons to Dads. While the show is disappointing, it is more from the bland delivery than any content resembling racism or sexist humor. True, Pedrad gets nothing to do, but it doesn't make it sexist. Instead,t he show is more bad because it feels like something akin to Partners: a series on FX starring two big names that didn't have any real purpose. The idea of Mulaney having a show does seem great, considering how many Saturday Night Live alumni have succeeded in this medium, even on Fox. Mulaney is the kind of show that from the outskirts sounded like a great move. However, the first episode remains rather unimpressive.
The real question is if the series can get better. It already suffers from Seinfeld comparisons, and deservedly so. It's a show with nothing really to offer about a stand-up comedian who is funny, but not charismatic as an actor. Even considering that he was a former head writer, there is no sense of character. They're all too broad and winking at the camera. Andre's introduction alone feels like a grand statement of "Here's this wacky character we all hate." In a way, this feels like it fails because it has too much of a 90's vibe to it. The low production and being filmed before studio audiences (though not as egregious as CBS) definitely detract a bit. Still, there's hope that it is just a matter of finding a voice and that things will improve.
Even then, Mulaney falls more on the disappointing side of the spectrum. It is a series that you want to like because the cast is so talented. However, to sit through it is to notice how misguided many scenes can be. There's an abundance of predictable humor and Mulaney doesn't quite fit in. There's a lot of other things that feel like they're goofy for the sake of goofy. It's a shame because honestly, Mulaney is a funny man and so is a lot of the cast members. It may not be offensively bad nor as tacky as Dads or Manhattan Love Story, but it does call for too much leeway of being accepted as anything short of a series that needs to prove itself. Considering its ratings, it may not have very long to do so.
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