I love dry, low key, intelligent humor. And this show advertises that this is what it delivers. Trouble is, this simply is a poorly thought out sketch comedy show that only pretends to deliver these things. It's not creative. It's not witty. It's simply a show that preys on stereotypes and relies on the counter-culture visibility of hippie and hipster culture to attempt to evoke a coolness factor that just falls flat in this show. And while Fred Armison is extremely talented, and I occasionally chuckled at his straight-faced deliver of some absurd line or facial emotion, it doesn't come close to making up for the boredom.
The best way I can describe this show is to ask you to picture Saturday Night Live. On most SNL episodes, there are about 3 sketches that kill, 4 that bore you, and 2 that make you want to gouge your eyes out. Portlandia falls between categories 2 and 3.
Now I will give the show props for being original. It's charting a course I haven't seen before. That alone is hard to do in today's cookie-cutter Ratings-driven Hollywood culture. And as far as cameos go, few shows beat it. There is a revolving door of A and B listers that show up which at times makes the show bearable.
But do yourself a favor and just pass. Unless, of course, you are trying to repent for something.
The best way I can describe this show is to ask you to picture Saturday Night Live. On most SNL episodes, there are about 3 sketches that kill, 4 that bore you, and 2 that make you want to gouge your eyes out. Portlandia falls between categories 2 and 3.
Now I will give the show props for being original. It's charting a course I haven't seen before. That alone is hard to do in today's cookie-cutter Ratings-driven Hollywood culture. And as far as cameos go, few shows beat it. There is a revolving door of A and B listers that show up which at times makes the show bearable.
But do yourself a favor and just pass. Unless, of course, you are trying to repent for something.