Flight of the Conchords: Best new show of the year
The new HBO show "Flight of the Conchords" is hysterical. It's my absolute favorite new show, hands down. Yes, it borrows liberally from "Tenacious D", which got its start as a series of comedy shorts also on HBO.OK, maybe it borrows a lot. The story is pretty much the same: Two guys in a band (in a band? they are the band...) trying desperately to make it big. But the music business is a cruel mistress, and try as they might their efforts never quite seem to add up to success.
Both the "D" and Conchords have a small, but ravenous, fan base. Lee, in the case of Tenacious D, and the semi-creepy (but pretty hilarious) Mel for the Conchords.
But where Tenacious D was pretty much a constant barrage of Jack Black's over-the-top antics playing off Kyle Gass' stoic straight-man routine, Conchords is a lot more low-key. The jokes aren't of the whoopy cushion/squirting flower/seltzer water variety. This is bone-dry deadpan humor in the vein of "This is Spinal Tap" or "The Office".
There's also a good bit of referential comedy, especially the music. In this past week's episode, the boys do "Inner City Pressure," which is an absolutely deadly -- like spittake funny -- sendup of '80 new wave ennui. Hilarious if you know the genre. Not so funny if your cultural references begin and end with Avrill Lavigne.
So, for that reason I can see where some people would watch Conchords and simply not find it remotely amusing, which is fine. But, if you're a fan of the genre, you really ought to do yourself a favor and tune in.