Tag Archives: Comedy Television

TV Review – Carpark Clubbing

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TL;DR – This might be the most joyous, charming, and a little bit absurd series I have seen in a very long time.

Score – 4.5 out of 5 stars

Carpark Clubbing. Image Credit: ABC.

Review –

Comedy is one of those genres that is so difficult to get right. Sure it is not hard to make people laugh uncomfortably at gross-out jokes and the like. But for something to be truly funny you have to care about the characters involved. This is how shows like Brooklyn Nine-Nine, The Good Place, Parks and Rec, and Futurama (to name but a few) work. Today I get to look at a show that did all of that and more, but it did it in only 8 minutes.

So to set the scene, we open in Western Sydney in a carpark of the local doughnut stand Double Dee’s. Bonita (Monica Kumar) and her friends are getting ready to go out to the city when a mixup at the shop leaves her doughnuts with Sokhey (Sophea Op). Hoping on over to her car to sort it all out she gets left behind by her friends and decides to wait there while her Uber is coming. Which is the point when Nashrah (Tasnim Hossain) gets kicked out of her learner driver lesson and then there was three.

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TV Review – The Good Place: A Girl from Arizona Part 2

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TL;DR – A strong follow up at the start of the season with some really powerful moments.  

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

The Good Place: A Girl from Arizona Part 2. Image Credit: NBC.

Review –

We continue our look at the final chance to save humankind and … well … it’s not been going well so far. With the clock both figuratively and literally running out for both the character and us the viewers it makes even the smallest set back feel larger and that is only the first few minutes.

So to set the scene, at the end of Part 1, we got a bit of a reset with The Bad Place’s mole being discovered. However, all the problems still remain, Simone (Kirby Howell-Baptiste) still thinks this is all the figment of her imagination and is acting accordingly with chaotic abandon. Also Brent (Ben Koldyke) is a mediocre white man from privilege, so of course he thinks the world revolved around him. It is a tough nut to crack but at least Eleanor (Kristen Bell) has the backing of the team … right … Just a reminder that we will be looking at the episode at the whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

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TV Review – The Good Place: A Girl from Arizona Part 1

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TL;DR – A great start to propel the season forward.

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

Review –

Well, it is time for all good thing to come to an end, in this case today we are looking at the beginning of the end as we explore the first episode of The Good Place’s fourth and final season. As much as there is sadness, there is also a certain joy that at least the show will get to go out on their own terms. Indeed, from what everyone has said it was a creative decision to end the show at this point and I will always respect that. Well let’s dive into the weird and quirky world of the ever after. 

So to set the scene, in the Season Three finale Pandemonium, The Judge (Maya Rudolph) gave everyone a chance to show that the point system is broken by creating a new neighbourhood to test it out with new people. However, The Bad Place, devious as ever, did not pick the worst people in the world, just the worst people for the team, including Chidi’s (William Jackson Harper) ex Simone (Kirby Howell-Baptiste). Knowing that he could not remain impartial Chidi has his mind wiped of everything including his love for Eleanor (Kristen Bell). Now they have one chance to show that everything is wrong and it is not going to be easy. Just a reminder that we will be looking at the episode at the whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

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TV Review – Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Sicko, Suicide Squad, and Season Six

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TL;DR –  After a season of fun Brooklyn Nine-Nine comes to a close in what would have been a great series finale if we didn’t have an amazing season seven in store.  

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Sicko & Suicide Squad. Image Credit: NBC.

Review –

Today is an interesting review to write because I know that it would be a very different tone if it was not already announced that a Season Seven is on the way. It would be a review of closure and looking back. However, today, while there is a bit of closure we instead get the joy of looking forward to what is still yet to come.

So to set the scene, underneath all the hijinks, crimes, heists, and murders this season has been an overarching story about two futures for the NYPD. There is the future under John Kelly (Phil Reeves) which was looking back at Stop and Frisk and other outmoded forms of policing and the future under Raymond Holt (Andre Braugher) that is looking forward. At the start of the season in Honeymoon, it was clear that Kelly had won, and that he would make the 99 pay for getting in his way. After a season of back and forth, it finally comes to a head when Kelly puts Jake (Andy Samberg) right in the middle of their feud where he has to choose between following Holt and saving lives. Just a reminder as we dive into both Sicko and Suicide Squad we will be looking at the episodes as a whole, that there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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TV Review – Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Cinco De Mayo

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TL;DR –  After six years, will the annual heist be a dull affair, no of course not.

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Cinco De Mayo. Image Credit: NBC.

Review –

Throughout Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s history, there have been a number of running jokes and the most recurrent of these is the Halloween heist. For me, the original heist episode all the way back in Season One was one of the episodes that elevated the show from being just fun to something more. However, after six times around is there anything new you can do with this idea, indeed Rosa (Stephanie Beatriz) calls out this very sentiment, but I think the show still has a few surprises left.

So to set the scene, it is Cinco de Mayo and Terry (Terry Crews) is stress eating because it is the day he is taking his lieutenants exam. As a way to help take his mind off it Jake (Andy Samberg) and Captain Holt (Andre Braugher) both suggest that they run their annual heist today as they could not run it on Halloween because of a gas pipe explosion. Soon it is decided that the teams will be Terry and Jake vs Holt and Amy (Melissa Fumero), because Rosa and Charles (Joe Lo Truglio) are over it. All they have to do is get Scully’s (Joel McKinnon Miller) medical alert bracelet by the end of the night, which can’t be too hard … right. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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TV Review – Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Return of the King

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TL;DR – Gina is back, and she brings her hectic world with her.

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Return of the King. Image Credit: NBC.

Review –

When it was announced that there was going to be a new season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine there was a sense of jubilation that was only tempered slightly by the fact that it was also announced that Chelsea Peretti would not be doing the full season, but she would be back for guest appearances. Well, today we get the first of those as we get a little insight into the crazy world of Gina Linetti.

So to set the scene, at the end of Four Movements Gina left her job at the 99 to better find herself. Since that time she has been apparently blowing off her former friends, not that Jake (Andy Samberg) notices. But meanwhile, she has built a large media empire and brand that has been exploding across the internet. Well, she is back in New York, so she invites Jake and Terry (Terry Crews) come meet her, only for it to be a work thing. For you see someone has been sending her death threats, and this time it might be serious. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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TV Review – Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Ticking Clocks

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TL;DR – It experiments with the format while still having an emotional core.

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Ticking Clocks. Image Credit: NBC Studios.

Review –

One of the great things about getting another season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine is that it is clear that the writers, producers, and actors are swinging for the fences, making the most of their new chance. Today we get to see the fruits of that when we see the show experiment with its format without missing a beat of what has made it so grand.

So to set the scene, we open with Hitchcock (Dirk Blocker) and Scully (Joel McKinnon Miller) trying to work out how best to cook their lasagne only to discover in horror that they forgot the garlic bread. However, all is not what it seems because Jake (Andy Samberg) has discovered through keen observation of Holt (Andre Braugher) that the slow internet is actually a crisis, because there is a hacker in the building and if they are not found one of two things will happen. Either the hacker will know the identities of all the precincts criminal informants, or Holt has to wipe the entire server, losing months of evidence. Well, there are 19 minutes left for them to find who it is … if they can. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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TV Review – Lunatics Season One

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TL;DR – This is a show that wildly oscillates from being deeply offensive to just plain dull  

Score – 1 out of 5 stars

Lunatics Season One. Image Credit: Netflix.

Review –

Before we get into this review, let me take you back 14 years ago to 2005, this was when We Can Be Heroes first aired down here in Australia. It was a revolutionary comedy for many, as it satirised people that you thought you all knew. Also having one actor play multiple different parts was a novel concept … at the time. Chris Lilley won multiple awards for the show and it put him in the limelight which he followed up with the equally successful Summer Heights High two years later. Why am I opening with this, well I wanted to give it a bit of history for non-Australian readers, and I wanted to give a bit of context before we fall into the rubbish that is this series.

So to set the scene, Lunatics is based around the lives of several characters (all played by Lilley). There is Jana a lesbian pet psychic based in South Africa, Gavin a brat that somehow going to be an Earl, Joyce a former adult movie star, Keith a long time retail worker that is opening his own store, Becky a tall twin starting her first day at an American college, and Quentin a real-estate agent from the Gold Coast. The series explores their lives as they all move into their next stages of life. Now from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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TV Review – Brooklyn Nine-Nine: The Bimbo

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TL;DR – A fun episode that lets us have some great character moments and shift the dynamics of the cast a little

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

Brooklyn Nine-Nine: The Bimbo. Image Credit: NBC.

Review –

As we continue along this surprise extra season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, we have had big episodes, we have had funny episodes, we have had dramatic episodes. Well, today what we get is a smaller affair, but it takes a moment to use that contained nature to develop relationships more.

So to set the scene, Jake (Andy Samberg) arrives late to the briefing and gets punished in the cruellest way, okay that is just the cold open. We actually start with Keven (Marc Evan Jackson) leaving Holt’s (Andre Braugher) office and them sharing a public handshake before leaving. However, Kevin is not going straight to work because he needs to have a quiet word with Jake. For you see, a number of important coins had gone missing in the office that he works in, and he can’t go straight to Holt because Holt can become a bit out of place when there is a case where Kevin is involved. So they plan to do the case in secret, and that goes about as well as you can expect. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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TV Review – Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Casecation

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TL;DR – A heartfelt story of love … in a hospital room … while they wait for a comatose patent to wake up   

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Casecation. Image Credit: NBC Studios.

Review –

One of Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s strengths has always been its ability to juggle the comedy and drama. This is not an easy task as it can be a tightrope trying to balance everything without it coming off as half-assed. This week we get an episode that gets that balance right as it jumps from fun to real serious, real quick.

So to set the scene, we open in a hospital as Amy (Melissa Fumero) comes to meet Jake (Andy Samberg), thankfully he is not here on medical business but for the police as there is a mob boss that survived a hit and is now in a coma. The hope is that if Jake is there when he wakes up then the mob boss will give them the info they could use. However, Jake has an ulterior motive, because there is no idea when he will wake up, so he and Amy could share some time alone as it is there anniversary and with their work schedule this is the best chance they have. A case vacation or indeed a Casecation. Which is fine until a topic comes up that neither of them were prepared to hear the other’s response. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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