Moonbase 8

I found the first episode really bad, but it slowly became watchable over the course of the season.

In the beginning, before I watched an episode, I was a tad confused what this new series was about. A documentary about NASA simulation moonbases in the Arizona? A Science Fiction drama set in the future? A Big Brother reality? The lack of marketing didn't help. If don't take Moonbase 8 serious, and enjoy the ride of chaotic situations faced by the three remaining space wannabes, it is actually fascinatingly humorous. Imagine putting three comedians as diverse eccentric-scripted characters inside a locked room and record what happens and that is Moonbase 8.

Reilly, Armisen & Heidecker are known for their semi-comedic awkward improv stylings and this is just more of that really. Set in an experimental NASA facility in the middle of a desert with three trainee astronauts, it's never going to set the world afire as a comedy but it has a lowkey charm that kept me sticking with it throughout.

The best parts are when it's just the three main characters feeding off eachother and being mildly strange. I feel someone in the chain doesn't quite trust this enough as a dynamic to work by itself so most episodes include encounters with "others" but frankly it doesn't need it - and most of these scenarios go roughly as you'd expect them to with little deviation or surprise. The biggest emotional arcs of the series happen within their dynamic and the strongest episode by quite some margin is "Move the Base" which solely concerns that.

Tonally - it's refreshingly unpretentious and quite mellow for the most part which made it an appealing watch - here's hoping a potential second season dials down on the theatrics and stunt cameos and allows the central three a bit more time to breathe.

If you know anything about the 3 main actors in this show, you should know what to expect, and if you like these guys and their sense of humor in their other roles, I think you'll enjoy this show. I really liked it and think it deserves better ratings than it has, but I can see how it may not be for everyone.

If you're familiar with Tim Heidecker and John C Reilly's work together, you know exactly what you are getting. The focus of the show is the foibles of incompetent NASA employees trying to maintain a Moon base training program. The humor is awkward, subtle, and generally revolves around the interactions between seemingly incompatible characters who struggle to keep things afloat. For instance, you have a Captain desperately trying to impress his crew by any means necessary - from having a foot race with competing astronauts to digging a well in the middle of a dessert to try and stop a water crisis. It reminds me a bit of season 1 of the Office.

This was never going to be a Big Bang Theory, there aren't laugh tracks and it isn't meant to appeal to the lowest common denominator. Therefore, I think it is unfortunately not going to be a big hit with critics or general audience. Showtime may not be the best home for Moonbase 8, but I hope that it lives on for a season 2.