Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp

In 2001, 'Wet Hot American Summer' introduces a group of relatively unknown young comedic actors. Some of them played teenage camp counselors despite being too old. Fifteen years later, most return to play the same characters in a prequel during their first day at Camp Firewood in the summer of 1981. The time bending silliness of that construction is boldly inventive and utterly hilarious. On top of that, this eight-episode Netflix series doubles down and goes even more ridiculous. The plot is insane. The jokes are even broader. The original confused me on my first viewing. Its satirical take isn't consistent enough and the varying range of comedy left me a little discombobulated. The original is inconsistently awkward funny but this time around, the gang is going completely nuts. They are not holding back and it is glorious.

When I saw this pop up on Netflix I was intrigued by the cast. It had to be funny right? I tried to watch the first couple episodes and left midway through the second. I didn't know if it was because I did not see the movie or what. It just did not seem funny or nostalgic. That was a few months ago, fast forward to this summer and I saw that the WHAS 10 years later was out. So I decided to check that out, just to see if it was anything better. I don't know why but I found it hilarious, I loved the first episode so much I immediately stopped watching and went back and started watching the original series, then the movie that started it all. Maybe I didn't get it the first time or the "10 years later" premise sparked a renewed interest. The idea of these older comedians playing kids was magic and their naivete made it priceless. For whatever reason you gave up on it from the start, try it again, you might be glad you did.

Wet Hot American Summer First Day of Camp is the newest Netflix original series and it is a continuation of the 2001 Film Wet Hot American Summer. The film has many of the same stars and has some new ones such as Chris Pine, Jason Schwarzmann, Michael Cera and numerous other recognizable stars. The series explores life at summer camp to and extreme level and also to a some what relatable level at some times however for the most part the series is absurd and unrealistic which is not necessarily a bad thing as most of the comic aspects of the film rely on dry humor and the crazy things the characters do. The characters feel like cartoon characters and the whole show feels like a real life cartoon, I could not help but think of Cartoon Network's Camp Lazloo when I watched this which is a very unique new type of comedy from the traditional less absurd comedies such as Big Bang Theory and Silicon Valley. The series will not be as enjoyable to all who do not enjoy this ridiculous humor however the stunning cast and filmography will be a definite treat.

8.5/10

Yes it's a stupid show, that's the point. Don't take it serious. It's fun it's not meant to be a serious show. They literally go out of their way to make it that way. So much star power, they are having fun and so should you.

I had no expectations prior to watching this hilarious show. It borrows campy humor elements from Hot Shots, Police Academy, Scary Movie series, etc...I loved the original WHAS movie, this is great!!