Well, not really, but thanks to the magic of the Internet I've gotten a sneak peak at Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane's new show, The Winner. They're streaming episodes through the Family Guy Web site here. There're four episodes available... only catch is the FOX video player is pretty crappy.
It's definitely well done, as one would expect from MacFarlane, who deserves the acclaim he's gotten. Family Guy and American Dad are both on my watch-before-going-to-bed list when I get home from work on Sundays. Daily Show goof Rob Corddry has always been among that show's best and you can tell that their personalities work extremely well together.
Corddry's 30-year-old dweeb Glen and his relationship with his best friend 13-year-old Josh, played by Keir Gilchrist, are the basis of the show, and their interaction is genius. The opening episode (on the site anyway) has them both having freak-outs before dates where they each expect to be getting lucky for the first time (Glen with Josh's mom, Josh with the new girl at school). Somehow, Glen ends up at Josh's school declaring his worries to the entire hallway, to which Josh suggests he find someone to practice with.
What seems like a catalyst for some obvious jokes and sitcom situations are nowhere NEAR that thanks to these two, and Corddry succeeds where ex-Daily Show-er Steve Carrell, I think, blew it in The 40-year-old Virgin, which was cute, but suffered by not having the hilarious writing that Winner does. (Lesson: Let Seth write movies!... can someone e-mail this to him? I could use a job in Hollywood.)
Helping the show out even more is its setting in the mid-1990s, even though it's only peripheral, it's a little tidbit aimed directly at the 20-something Family Guy/American Dad audience that laughs at all the pop culture references in those shows, myself included. Another plus is the cast of characters MacFarlane's got surrounding the two leads, including Glen's cliche video store co-workers and his parents (Rescue Me's Lenny Clarke is Glen's dad).
More than anything, though, the friendship between the two is the most important part of the show. It's strong, and even a little endearing, if not a little creepy. I could rattle off a list of the gags in the first repisode that had me rolling, but that would be doing the show a disservice. WATCH IT! Now.
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1 comment:
Right on! I watched these clips too and I think this show could really work.
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