I’m not one of those people that like straight-out comedy very much. I’m not saying that they don’t have their time and place in my television viewing line-up, but pure comedy shows with no deep, sad undercurrent or broken people quickly become boring for me. I think it’s why I’m having trouble with 30 Rock lately. The show is purely about the one-liners and laughs. The main roles are more caricatures than reality. They can’t be deeply sad or flawed because, let’s all face it, they aren't real people.
No, I’m all about the sad comedies. Arrested Development, for example, has everything a traditional comedy would ask for. But it isn’t all happy all the time. There is something sad about every one of its main cast, something essentially broken, and that’s what keeps me interested in the series as a whole-how comedy and brokenness intersect. I’ve mentioned Community every other post here, but the same principal is why I love the show so much. In the end, all of the study group members are terrifically sad. Their lives are uncontrollable disasters, their relationships are constantly are the rocks, and their futures are anything but bright and hopeful. They aren’t friends because they want to be, they’re friends because they’re holding on to each other for dear life, fearing what would happen if they were ever left on their own.
Enter Party Down. It’s a hybrid of a classic comedy and a Community-like comedy--leaning towards the straight-out stuff. The basic plot follows a bunch of actor/writer hopefuls who all work at a party service as they wait for their big breaks. Each of the twenty episodes is another party and another opportunity for the staff to mess up in some fantastically awful way. With this premise in place, the show piles on the jokes and awkward situations all of which I found passable. Don’t get me wrong, Party Down is a funny show and it has some great comedic actors (Jane Lynch for one) and great guest stars that will make you go "Wait...I know them from something.. However, the laughs aren't what really interested me and what kept me watching the series.
No, that was all the sad parts. Although arguably not as obvious as Community, all of Party Down’s principal cast of characters are really, really sad. Take Henry for instance (played by the spectacular Adam Scott who, not so incidentally, is currently in Parks & Recreation which is quickly becoming my favorite comedy in the world). When Henry got his big break in a series of beer commercials (with the hilarious catch-phrase “Are we having fun yet?”) he thought he was set for life. But he’s not. No one hires him and he’s stuck bartending for a catering service. Then, as soon as he gets the girl (Casey played by Lizzy Caplan) and convinces himself and everyone around him to “don’t stop believing” that their dreams will come true, the girl breaks his heart and he accepts a promotion that will effectively end his actor career, and dreams, forever. I mean--this is sad stuff. And that’s why I love it. The show is essentially about what we should do when it appears that our dreams just aren’t going to come true. It’s frank and honest about it, but in the end completely hopeful.
Party Down doesn’t earn a place in my top favorite shows of all time and I doubt that I’ll watch more than a couple of episodes here or there every again. But it’s fun and at times deep and interesting. And, if nothing else, an opportunity to watch some great comedians act.
Episode to Watch: "Steve Gettenberg’s Birthday"
