Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!

When I first came to see the IMDb rating of 7.0 on Tim and Eric Awesome show, Great Job! my jaw hit the floor at why it could have such a low rating in regards to what the show is. Upon further investigation, and reading the reviews, I should have known all along that it would be a situation like this. There would be virtually no average reviews. It is either people who love it, and see it for what it is...which is some of the best comedy out there at the moment, and those who just don't quite "get it".

I don't want to be too patronising (british spelling) and say that the people who don't get it are stupid idiots...which i secretly think ;) but I do think it takes a certain amount of understanding to fully appreciate it. I think that there are several layers, with each layer getting more subtle and intelligent. Many of the people who see this show may only see the first layer, and claim it is base, toilet humour, which some have. This is because this is the easiest layer of the comedy genius to see, and they see it as this, and nothing else. The blatant toilet humour is almost just an exterior, which does have its use, and in many cases is genuinely funny. However those distracted by this will miss the far more intelligent humour that runs beneath. The way it mocks all aspects of television, from the cheesy shows of the last 2 decades, to the contemporary fads and phenomena that you see today. It doesn't just point it to you. some of it is obvious. Some is less obvious. I have found that I find an episode more funny after several viewings. This is a satire of the highest order. It is far from JUST toilet humour. It is supposed to be low budget. That is part of what makes it great. The show doesn't take itself too seriously at all. This show has made me laugh out loud more times than I can remember in a show.

I really like the actors in this show. These people are either the worst actors of all time, or the best actors of all time. I can never be sure, but either way the effect is the same, which is pure hilarity. The humaness, and realness of the actors in the show really makes them a lot more appealing. I freaking hate the fakeness and lack of realness in people in TV these days, but the actors they have in here I can really relate to. Their little nuances, the awkward silences and quirks makes them the most funny and humorous actors on the TV. I especially like David Libre Hart, Quall, Dunn, and all the rest of them that I am starting to recognise. There is a quiet but lovable desperation to it, which makes for some of the best black/dark humour out there...again...its not JUST toilet humour.

This show really is great. I am looking forward to future things from these guys. I think they have got a great formula here. I wouldn't want to see them get stale and stagnant, and of course I would like to see them experiment and push new frontiers, but I sure hope they don't sell out and become too mainstream. That would suck ass. Mad Props to Adult Swim for always taking risks and pushing the boundaries, and not opting for the formulaic mainstream crap thats out there (T & E do an excellent parody of this in season 4, with a sitcom, with canned laughter, and all the cliché mainstream comedy charcteristics. Its one of my favies). Basically, I think this is like classical music. Its one of those things that only the most sophisticated and intelligent people can fully sppreciate, but will never be adopted by the greater populous. Thats just the way I want it to stay.

I must say, that there is some really good comedy coming out of the USA right now, and this is definitely my favourite at the moment. Although I am British, I can still fully appreciate it. I did live in America for about 2 years, and so in a way I can relate to it more in terms of the things like the cable access style editing, and the commercials, etc but I think this stuff would be appreciated anywhere, and is really putting America on the comedy map, and showing that there is some really good cutting edge comedy in America, that isn't all about formulaic sitcoms and laugh tracks.

Although this comic gem may just seem like random trash to some people, others, like me, find all sorts of pleasure and entertainment out of this show's absurd style of comedy. It manages to make some nearly die laughing, and others just question the appeal of it all, and I cannot blame people who simply do not get it. Tim and Eric's style isn't for everybody, but I'm glad to see that there's plenty of people who are really into this surrealistic and hilarious show!

While every episode has a basic theme throughout, and a lot of the time even some sort of basic plot structure, it's normally all over the place. It'll mix celebrity cameos with fake commercials with some skits that come across as just plain uncomfortable and unsettling. If you're a newcomer to the show, you must be warned that at times there will be a sketch that will make you CRINGE, whether it's the over exaggerated gross out sound effects or bizarre dialogue, there's definitely plenty here to make anybody feel just plain odd. But it's all just simply part of the journey that is "Tim and Eric, Awesome Show, Great Job!"

The show also has a really satirical edge to it. There's plenty of sketches that are clearly mocking something, whether it be 90's television or even nature shows, they are absolute satirical masters! With all it's intentionally bad green screens, sharp satire, and just flat out uncomfortable scenes, "Tim and Eric, Awesome Show, Great Job" is truly something to behold!

Look, I completely sympathize with people who don't understand why this show is getting a 10/10 rating. I, along with most people, had to be ushered into this form of art. It is a form of art that most people aren't accustomed to. I want to try and make sure you, the reader, see that it is actually a very sophisticated form of art. I want others to like it because I feel understanding all forms of comedy are important and crucial to understanding what makes comedy what it is.

One thing I always tell someone who is unresponsive to T&E is to look at other forms of art that reflect similar goals. To look at Picasso and say it is not a good form of art, or look at the classical pianist Boulez and say he isn't making music is the same as saying T&E is not good comedy. There are many sophisticated, higher forms of art that have a point, but to the untrained eye, look completely bogus and not properly managed.

T&E tends to go one of two ways. One way is to make the watcher feel extremely uncomfortable. This is similar to approaches that amazing shows such as The Office, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Louie take. These shows tend to create awkwardness by using society and it's lack of clarity in order to create a situation we cringe at the thought of being in. T&E do this, but achieve it in a very unique way. They can create awkwardness through disturbing contradictions. This can be seen in sketches such as the obviously-on-steroids bodybuilder talking about becoming a mother, or a very pregnant woman singing an attitude driven song (bub-bubs bounce if anyone is familiar). There are more, but these two skits show what awkward humor T&E are getting at. I cringe at socially awkward situations performed well in other shows, but I actually had to try a few times before making it through some of T&E's awkwardness. They do it best... in the most disturbing way possible.

The other part of their humor (and the two directions they go in are always overlapped), is based off of low budget absurdity that can be found on any small town public access shows. Public access is legally established by the government to give more expressive rights to people. T&E point out that not all the time is this as great of an idea as it sounds. Most of the time it is taken up by weird people such as Casey and his brother or Richard Dunn with any of the talk shows they have given him. Some of them are showing how absurd similar real life experiences are (see the Paynus Brothers sketch and then watch Entertainment Tonight talking with someone like the Jonas Brothers... They are saying something, not just saying "PENIS" and hoping someone laughs). The absurdities are definitely unique, and if they weren't, Nick Swardson's pretend time or all the dozens of other shows that try to approach absurd humor, would be loved by everyone. Those shows lack what T&E established: creativity. Whether you enjoy it or not, most people would agree it is something that they didn't see coming. That, to me, is the definition of creativity. A Absurd humor is difficult to become accustomed to, and much harder to create. Criticizing T&E is just like looking at a piece of artwork by many great artists and saying "It looks like they just threw paint on a canvas and called it art. I can do that!". That's fine, I did that too. It's somewhat of an acquired taste and the rest is just understanding what is good and what is not good on an almost instinctual basis. The only way to specifically demonstrate that is by analyzing it on a frame by frame basis. If any show makes me think something new, does something I don't think I could have done without a lot of hard work, and there is the ability to analyze on a frame by frame basis, I consider it a well made piece of art. T&E does just that. Like I said, I sympathize completely, but I really need to assure you that it does hold value and only on a subjective viewpoint can you learn to love it. No one I know that likes T&E "got it" from the start. If you don't get it, you can with some patience and hard thinking.

This show gets so much undeserved criticism, mostly from your average viewer who is used to being spoon-fed the setup, the joke, and punchline all in one. These people will be left slack-jawed and drooling as they try to figure out what they just witnessed. It's funny to read these reviews that insult the intelligence of the writing or the maturity of the comedy, when half the people leaving these reviews simply did not (perhaps cannot?) attempt to fathom the nature of the comedic style beyond its surface level.

I'm not trying to say that only smart people can appreciate Tim & Eric-- it certainly isn't a show for everyone. A lot of Awesome Show is directly parodying crappy late-night 90s TV shows & infomercials. And while not everyone may understand that, there are so many 1 star reviews here whose writers clearly didn't have the basic intelligence to realise that there can be things that they don't "get"... and that doesn't make them bad.

If you recognise that nearly all of the show's content is heavily layered in irony and mockery, and that the main intention of Mr Heidecker and Mr Wareheim was just to have a lot of fun while making the show, you might find yourself enjoying it a lot more.

The actual quality of this show's humour is outrageously high. Every second of screentime is packed with jokes upon jokes. From the way the scene glitches into being shown, to the absurd or deadpan way the dialogue is communicated, the recurring themes like dads, eric's unchanging voice (even as a woman) and completely unnecessary and useless products.

There are actors who seem like they were brought off the street (and sometimes literally are), editing effects you'd expect from windows movie maker... The whole show is like one big late-night broadcasting acid trip. And I have never seen anything funnier, aside from maybe other T&E works.

The only issue I have with it is its duration. 10 minute episodes, 10 episodes per season, 5 seasons... the whole show clocks in at around 9 hours total, which is honestly pretty depressing. Thankfully Tim and Eric have worked on several other projects of a similar nature, some of which help fill the void.

Awesome Show remains my favourite show of all time, and my go-to show for a good laugh, for both sobriety and being stoned. Give it a go, keep an open mind. Have a few laughs and enjoy the ride.

There's no accounting for taste, and this show you'll either love to bits, or be stuck forever in "WTF" mode. I do sympathize with the WTF crowd, truly, but honestly I don't understand the level of vitriol. Let's all just admit to differences in taste, eh? The fact is, this show is exactly the way the creators want it. I don't in general like to condescend to non-fans by saying "you just don't get it". But truly, this is the one thing you should "get" before you criticize the show: It is what it is, and it's not too complicated. It's all right there in front of you.

Beyond that, it's all up to personal aesthetics. You don't like it? Fine! Me? I love it! I can't get enough of it! It makes me laugh my ass off every single time. I don't always know how to articulate what it is about it, but it just dovetails perfectly with my (and my friends') sense of humor. There's a through-line of sarcasm from beginning to end. Sarcasm not just with individual comments or ideas, but with the structure of "sketch" comedy shows in general, and a vast array of kitschy cultural threads.

Shoot, I crack up just seeing the faces Tim and Eric pull when they're grinning idiotically into the camera for long awkward stretches. That's another good word: awkward. There's a lot of awkward stuff in this show, and that's part of its bread and butter! For that reason, it rings more truthful than most shows on TV, despite its flagrant surreality.

Also, in my opinion, its vibe is a perfect complement to a lot of existing Adult Swim shows: Sealab 2021, Space Ghost, Venture Brothers, Morel Orel, Futurama, Family Guy, Frisky Dingo, Squidbillies, 12 oz mouse, etc etc etc. It more than fits the bill in that great pantheon, no matter how "animated" it is in the conventional sense. Another way I like to look at this particular show is: internet photo-shopped / you-tubed / flash-animated humor brought to your living room! In summary: Pure heroine! I'll be first in line when the inevitable (I hope) DVD box set comes out!