SmartLess - Risate on the road

I have been a fan of the Smartless podcast for years. I do a lot of DIY home projects, and these guys have kept me company with their banter and enlightening guests for hours on end. The docuseries takes us behind the scenes, and nothing has entertained me as much in a very long time.

I constantly analyze what makes these 3 guys so compelling as a group. Try getting three friends together, and there is crosstalk, conflict, and egos. Most of the time it doesn't work. Many will argue that there is a lot of ego in this group, but it is the obvious love and respect that they all have for each other that makes conversations flow, and hilarity ensue. No one is offended, and the timing is always impeccable. Everyone allows for the others' thoughts and contemplation and quickly celebrates it, or chides them for it. What could be more fun?

Yes, there are witty and sometimes cutting remarks between Will, Jason and Sean, but absolutely no one ever takes it personally or gets offended which is a true gift. That is where the love comes in, because they all know deep in their hearts it is all done in fun. Sean gets the biggest award of this group at being able to laugh at any jabs or (joking) insults thrown his way.

I laughed hysterically at the docuseries. Jason calls out the camera person once for laughing and shaking the camera, but if you pay close attention, it happens over and over again. Audience or no audience, these three guys have a love and friendship that brings them endless joy and laughter. If only we all could be so lucky.

I've listened to a few of the Smartless podcasts and I've loved every one of them. The banter between the three guys is much like sitting in on a family dinner with three brothers...always taking jabs at each other, but out of love and respect.

While the podcast is produced on Zoom, this series takes a look at the guys taking their show in the road, meeting their surprise guests in person in front of a live audience. While we don't get to see the entire interview with their guests, we do get tons of behind the scenes footage of the guys being themselves traveling from city to city...and it's freakin' hilarious.

The only thing I question about this series...why is it in black and white??? Why would anything like this be shot in black and white? But hey...that's not enough to keep me from giving this a hearty 10 out of 10. It's one of the best things I've watched in a long time and certainly one of the funniest and most entertaining. I might even watch it again soon.

I have to confess I knew nothing about the podcast, Smartless, when watching this. Also, I probably only tuned in because there is a lull in programming due to the time of year and the writers' strike. I am so glad I did. A look at a traveling tour for the podcast, Smartless, starring Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett. It has both backstage footage and scenes of the Live Stage show, with special guest stars like David Letterman, Will Ferrell, Conan O'Brien and more. Shot in Black and White, this is well constructed, well edited, and well directed. I really enjoyed the chemistry and the humor between these guys. Worth checking out. I expect if you are a fan of the podcast it has more layers to enjoy.

I haven't even listened to the Smartless podcast, but I'm not a huge podcast listener in general, so... I watched this because I LOVE all these guys and figured it would be worth a try.

I'm glad I stuck with it beyond the first episode, because the first episode was a little off-putting. Like, they seemed to act rude to strangers and were a little TOO deadpan with each other to the point it seemed like they didn't like each other.

After that episode, though (and btw, the guest on episode 1 made it worth it and I laughed out loud when he was on the show!) things start to congeal better.

Some of the conversations they have are SUPER real. Really fascinating insight not only into their personal lives, but into the creative process, creative/showbiz life, and its ups and downs.

And the humor and chemistry between them and their guests... it's fun and relatable. I could see hanging out with these guys and being in stitches half the time. I would love to be friends with them all! And the guests I've watched so far have been laugh-out-loud awesome.

So... altogether a really fun show and worth watching. I'm happy I stumbled on it. I guess I'll have to give their podcast a listen now!

If you like the podcast, you'll like this series. The banter between the three is always great but Bateman comes off as a jerk at times. Maybe he tones it back after episode 1, but he's a little much during that one and he's that way at times on the podcast as well. When Will does it, it comes off a little better where you know he's joking but with Bateman it seems like he means what he's saying. That's my only gripe, otherwise it's pretty funny. There are times where it's just them chit-chatting amongst themselves while traveling and while I haven't watched the rest of the episodes yet, I would imagine they would need to include more of some of the interviews with guests so it doesn't get repetitive.