The Brink: Die Welt am Abgrund

Tim Robbins is Walter Larson, on the cabinet to the U. S. president. State department worker Alex (Jack Black) and fleet driver Rafiq ( Aasif Mandvi) go tooling around town, in search of fun and excitement...that is, drugs and girls. As things heat up in Pakistan, they try to keep a lid on the violence and anti-U. S. activity, which could turn into war. Pilot Zeke Tilson has taken too many pills, and is flying around in very expensive equipment. John Larroquette is the ambassador. It's a good mix of political drama and humor. Sadly, there's only one season, having been canceled already, after the first season. This is currently on HBO/Max streaming channel. Check it out! If enough people like it, maybe it will come back!

I am having the best time watching "The Brink." It's a funny, clever, fast moving half hour of t.v. If you're not paying attention, you'll miss so many great lines. Tim Robbins is hysterical as Secretary of State. Reminds me of Charlie Wilson; womanizer, drinker, but smart as heck. Jack Black is not my favorite comedian but he is winning me over in this series. John Larrouquette plays the fanatical religious ambassador to perfection. Pablo Schreiber is a lovable screw up. I don't think of Esai Morales as a comedic actor but he plays comedy really well. I could go on and on about each character so I'll conclude with this. Each and everyone of their performances knocks it out of the park. I applaud the writers of this great show. If this series is not picked up for a second season, I'll be terribly disappointed.

Clever, very, very funny, insightful, instructive and addictively entertaining. So, why did HBO not renew for a second season? Hmm. I wonder.

"The Brink" is most certainly a political satire and not a comedy. The exaggeration and the ridicule is obvious from the start. But sadly not far from the truth...

It's about a fictional U.S. government which must deal with a foreign crisis. Its first season focuses on a crisis in Pakistan. The show was conceived that each season will follow a different crisis somewhere in the world with the same characters. (IF it gets a 2nd season that is!).

There are a few main characters. An alcoholic Secretary of State played by Tim Robbins, a lowly Foreign Service officer in Islamabad played by Jack Black and lots of other known comedic actors in various roles.

It is mildly funny because of these talents but if you go for the satire you might need a sharper bite. It seems like the creators went for some kind of Dr Strangelove type of thing, but fails short to deliver any real political messages.

Overall: Basically I would say "Meh!" but the cast is good so I will keep watching for now.

UPDATE (after watching the whole season): It gets better and 9th and 10th (season finale) episodes are GREAT! Highly Recommended!!

Tim Robbins, Jack Black and Jerry Weintraub brought this superb satirical series, created by Roberto and Kim Benabib, to the screen via HBO. It ran one season, was renewed, then suddenly cancelled because "they could not do it justice," which may mean that it was expensive. (Well, yes, there are a lot of planes.)

A "Dr Strangelove" for the new millennium, this pacey, dark political farce fairly rips across the screen. It's superbly written, beautifully cast, and artfully performed by everyone from its stars to its bit players (though I feel that Aasif Mandvi, Pablo Schreiber and Eric Ladin deserve special mention.)

I cannot recall ever laughing so hard at anything, or seeing Cabinet in-fighting illustrated so credibly and outrageously.

Now that we Americans have a President who could never have got the part via Central Casting, I fear that The Brink's apocalyptic take on politics and antics at the highest levels may be closer to the truth than we would ever want it to be.

When the End of Days is upon us, it'll be a shame that we won't be able to go out watching at least three seasons of The Brink. Boo to whoever made this decision, because this show is a classic and deserved better.