If I'm sticking with my "Star Trek" movies theory for "Bored to Death," where I enjoy the even-numbered episodes but not the odd-numbered ones, then I guess "The Case of the Missing Screenplay" would be "The Search for Spock." Not only is it third in the series, but it's the only odd-numbered one that kinda/sorta worked for me. Even though they ditched the faux-private eye schtick for the week, there were amusing cameos from Oliver Platt, Jim Jarmusch and Denis O'Hare (as the pushy shrink). Not a highlight, but not as true-to-the-title as the pilot, either. What did everybody else think?
i just watched it, and I liked it. I was happy they got rid of the private eye stuff for a week. Before the episode started, I was wondering how long it would take before the cases get old. Zach Galifianakis is so hilarious, his scene after he left the therapist was great.
ReplyDeleteNext week should be great with Parker Posey.
Alan did you not like the New Star Trek? It happened to be an even numbered one.
ReplyDeleteI liked it, but I am also starting to wonder if this is going anywhere. I think a multi-episode arc could be pretty cool, but I might tire of self-contained cases every week.
ReplyDeleteI liked it a lot, though I also seemed to have liked the idea of Schwartzmann bumbling his way through cases every week. I'm so used to seeing Denis O'Hare on Law & Order reruns that it's odd seeing him in a modern-day role.
ReplyDeleteAnd boy, that opening title sequence is awesome. Probably the best non-Dexter credits on TV.
Without the private-eye stuff, the show felt pretty purposeless. Even as a big fan of Jim Jarmusch, I thought his cameo didn't really work, and while I love Zach Galifianakis, thus far there's really been no reason for his character to exist. To continue the theme, I am a fan of Jason Schwartzman but his performance on this show is so weirdly flat and affectless. The only consistent winner so far has been Danson.
ReplyDeleteI really, really want to like this show because I love the premise and everyone involved (including Ames, whose novel "Wake Up, Sir!" is one of the funniest books I've ever read). But I have to concede that it's not really clicking yet, and this episode was just treading water.
While I agree that the show hasn't really taken its shape yet, I'm more than content to watch Danson and Galifianakis be hilarious in the until they do. Hell, even if they never figure it out I'll probably still be on board because of those two.
ReplyDeleteThe reason I like this show is because the episode with the Jim Jarmusch cameo is the same one with the three straight therapist jokes followed immediately by a "To Kill a Mockingbird" reference. This seriously affected nonsense is exactly what people seem to dislike about it. It's possible they're right, but I likes what I likes.
ReplyDeleteWow. I thought this was the strongest ep yet. Over the course of just three short eps, ted Danson has managed to erase the bitter taste of the SPR cameo that his name has brought to mind ever sicne. Worst cameo ever. But here, he is really kicking ass and I smell an Emmy nod.
ReplyDeleteWho was the young girl? god, what a fantastic body. I have to admit the only thing i knew the guy that played her dad from was MICHAEL CLAYTON.
Alan did you not like the New Star Trek? It happened to be an even numbered one.
ReplyDeleteI definitely liked it. And I assume you mean it was an odd-numbered one (either the 11th film, or the first of a new series), which I guess breaks the trend.
Funny, this was the first episode that I didn't actively dislike. Even still, it still feels purposeless.
ReplyDeleteAs with Brian @1:41, I want to like this show because I like Schwartzman (in fact I like all the actors) and I like the premise of it, but it just isn't working for me. A big part of that is that I find the Jonathan Ames character to be really unlikeable. His interaction with the psychologist is a good example of why. A lot of the show involves people telling Ames to basically grow up and it is advice which he sorely needs to heed but his reaction is always to be a bit puzzled by it.
ReplyDeleteHe whines to the psychiatrist that he only wants his ex-girlfriend's love and it is necessary to explain to him, as if he is an 8 year old, that we don't always get what we want in life. Similarly, his confrontation of his girlfriend with the al-anon guy last week displayed a kind of infantile narcissism that I find truly grating. I get that this is whats supposed to be funny about the guy - that he is a technical grown up with all the self awareness and melodramatic solipsism of a typical 12 year old - but it isn't funny to me. Its really, really annoying. I think i will have to give up on this one.
That is one twisted father-daughter relationship. I didn't pick up on it when Claudia was talking about the difference between men and boys, but after the "collective unconscious" line, I think I laughed out loud every time it was referenced.
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ReplyDeleteHow'd they get that Roman Polanski dig in there?
ReplyDeleteI really like this show. It's the only new show of the fall I get excited to watch. I think every episode has been really funny so far. It's a respectable addition to the HBO lineup. I'm crossing my fingers for a second season, but I don't think that will happen since the show seems to have gotten a soft reaction from critics and viewers.
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree that the show hasn't really taken its shape yet, I'm more than content to watch Danson and Galifianakis be hilarious in the until they do. Hell, even if they never figure it out I'll probably still be on board because of those two.
ReplyDeleteSame here. They are both super-funny in this and make up for the shortcomings of the rest, AFAIC.
How'd they get that Roman Polanski dig in there?
ReplyDeleteHad to be just luck, right? Although the reference felt perfect for this crowd.
The weirdness of Ted Danson loving Jim Jarmusch's hair, and it's nearly his hair, and I think Ted wears a piece, I can't help but laugh. Also, Jarmusch cycling around his office in circles.
I don't love the whole show, but it's getting better for me, and at certain moments, I'm guffawing in my chair.
while the first two eps left me feeling empty, i was amused by the third one quiet a bit. the Polanski dig was just an added bonus, sign of the time i guess.
ReplyDeleteHi, does anybody know who "Marie", the naked girl in the apartment is?
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