It's Like, You Know...

"It's Like, You Know..." was an extremely funny sitcom that was clearly doomed from the start. The writing was always exceptionally sharp, but its humor was far too sophisticated for general television audiences. For instance, one memorable episode featured a documentary style, a French-speaking nun accompanied by subtitles, demographic pie charts, and repeated references to Lorrie Moore. Not exactly mainstream humor. (And all this in a single episode!) Most of the shows' jokes served to poke fun at the habits of Angelenos, and again, these are regional jokes that most people probably won't understand.

Hey, I loved "It's Like, You Know...," and I watched it every week. It was hilarious, and occasionally it was quite charming. But it hardly came as a surprise to me when the show was canceled. Seriously, there is such a thing as being too clever.

Aside from its off putting title, this show deserves its comparison to Seinfeld-the funny years. The great laughs contained in well crafted intersecting storylines that end up being thematically linked is terrific.

With episodes like "The Documentary," it shows there are still new ideas in the traditional sitcom format.

If you have ever lived in LA, then you will understand the bizarre truth underlying this show. You'd find the show hilarious and true, and very smart--a kind of Seinfeld for LA.

Jennifer Gray plays herself, after her plastic surgery when no one recognizes her anymore. There's an independently wealthy bald guy named Shrug who is exactly like someone I knew in LA, a shallow but good looking prouder, and a ditzy, sweet masseuse.

The shows are about getting work, getting dates, plastic surgery and traffic--meaning, it's about LA.

The unhappy New Yorker's view of LA is dead-on, as is the fact that he loves to complain about it, and then gets to like it.

The best episode is when they all had to stop everything they were doing and watch the skycopter follow a high-speed chase. This is also true to life.

Very funny, but probably too hip for the room. Too bad it didn't last. If it's on reruns anywhere, watch it!

Having just caught a midseason episode of "It's like, you know . . .", a show I was probably predestined to like a great deal, and not just because they use an ellipsis in the title, I am continually amazed at the level of writing available on this half-hour gem. Very fast-paced and idea-filled, the scripts depend on none of the typical crutches of sitcom writing such as stupid misunderstandings and slapstick arguments. Instead, you hear hilarious discussions of . . . well . . . just about everything. And it's all done without that sense of solipsistic meanness so apparent in Seinfeld. Plus the show has a character named Shrug. Great writing and a character named Shrug. How much greater can it get? What is so good about the writing, you might ask. It builds throughout each episode, usually reaching a very nice and very funny climax at the end. The characters seem to be genuinely intelligent and creative people. The subplots are as interesting, or more interesting than, the main storyline of each show. And the choice of plots is as diverse and interesting as real life can be, without all of those stupid puns and slapstick misunderstandings usually written into most sitcoms. I very much hope it manages to find an audience.

This was a show from the creators of Seinfeld, and like Seinfeld, it was slow getting off the ground. I liked "it's like, you know...." and I thought it was becoming funnier as the characters settled in and story lines developed. Making fun of L.A. life IS funny to people outside of L.A. Unfortunately ABC killed it before it could reach it's full potential.