Work got done today hopefully. Yay! So loads more free time after sticking in quite a few extra hours :). Before I got this extra free time I thought I’d try out a few of those american comedies I’ve always heard people talk about but never got round to watching: How I Met Your Mother, Modern Family, Parks & Recreations and It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia.
Season 1 and 2 boxset cover
It’s Always Sunny.. is an american sitcom about four friends who run a failing irish pub. Later on in season 2 it expands to 5 cast with the addition of Danny De Vito, the father of Dee and Dennis. Charlie and Mac complete the comedy line-up. First impressions are very good, none of the characters fall into the one personality mode trap which is how I found Modern Family with my brief exposure there. The situation for the comedy is fairly non-descript and isn’t really integral for most of the stories.
Typically episodes have a brief in medium res starting scene where the episode’s premise is briefly given a back story before we cut to the title of the episode usually in quite a funny moment. After that it’s fairly standard sitcom fair although a little dirtier than you might find if you’ve only ever watched Friends. The series never reaches the dizzying heights of Arrested Development and I doubt I’ll find things nearly as interesting the second time through. For a first watch though it has that feel-good factor that sitcoms need: you enjoy being with the characters. They may be complete assholes you’d never want to be friends with in real-life but that doesn’t matter. You still enjoy tuning in and watching their exploits.
Stand out moments are probably the Gun Fever episode. There’s some great social commentary on the American’s love for guns. But just the shots of the gang firing a gun into a log and the facial expressions of pure joy cracked me up.
Will continue to watch Seasons 2 and beyond before I give a try to the rest of the series listed in the opening post. Will let you know how far I get before I get bored. From the bits of Series 2 I’ve watched so far though it seems like the introduction of the fifth character played by Danny De Vito at his best livens things up considerably. You’ve got the extra versatility in story plots a fifth character who is radically different to the others can bring. But you’ve also got Danny De Vito wearing a toupee and trying to dance with a woman 20 years younger and 2 foot taller :D.
Lenty's Blog 