Comedian Louis C.K. is gaining viewers with his male-oriented TV show.
This post originally appeared in Rebel Magazine.
One of the joys of being a music fan is discovering an underground band you like before they go mainstream. It gives the feeling of being ahead of the curve and the perception of developing a more personal bond with the artist. Thanks to the proliferation of niche cable channels, the same opportunity also exists for television shows.
One example is the critically acclaimed comedy series Louie. Now in its second year, this show, which stars actor, comedian and series creator Louis C.K., has developed enough of a following to keep it alive on FX but still remains small enough to give that feeling of underground discovery to its loyal viewers. Perhaps it has something to do with the relatively low production budget of $300,000 per episode, which gives the show a strong indie film charm. More likely, it is the edgy, everyman quality C.K. possesses and his willingness to broach a wide array from safer topics like fatherhood, divorce and dating to generally avoided subjects such as masturbation, bestiality and interracial dating.
Louie shines as a comedy filtered through the observational humor of C.K., who serves as executive producer, writer, director and editor. Each episode shines a spotlight on Louis’ hectic life as a successful stand-up comedian and newly single 42-year-old father raising his two young daughters.
Louie would best be described as a mix between Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm. The Seinfeld comparison comes from the interspersion of standup clips that tie into the vignettes during that episode. Viewers of Curb Your Enthusiasm will experience the same cringe factor that sometimes goes along with watching the uncomfortable situations and conversations that take place.
The appeal of the show comes from the main character and how easily most men can identify with him. Louie is bald, a little paunchy and flawed, although he tries hard to be a good person. He shows his softer side when taking care of his two daughters, but isn’t averse to snapping with an inappropriate diatribe toward his mother or a heckler. His dialogue is not overly scripted, which gives it a greater air of authenticity.
Even though Louie is catching on with more viewers, the charm that made it appealing to those who discovered it early on is still there. If you want to find out for yourself why viewers are flocking to Louie, you can check it out on FX each Tuesday at 11 p.m. ET/PT. All 13 episodes of season one are available on Netflix.
This post originally appeared in Rebel Magazine.
Vicious, obscene, hate-filled msogyny.
Oh, wait. It’s directed toward Sarah Palin. All’s right with the hip and the edgy.
Saw an interview with the producer of Undefeated, Palin’s bio. It was unrated due to the endless vile speech from entertainers directed toward Sarah Palin with which the film led off. So, after shocking a test audience of normal people, not the hip and the edgy, they cut out shit from C.K. and his scumsucking brethren so the film could be shown to normal people.
Great guy you picked here.
Who cares? Srsly, I mean it. Why on Earth does anyone care about the political merits of what some guy, comedian or not, says on a stage to a few hundred people? You make it sound as if comedians haven’t taken bloody stabs at political figures ever. It just so happens that everything everyone does now is on camera.
Saint Palin is a joke, and an insulting one at that. She’s a glory hound, a deserter, and is by her own admission purposefully ill-educated on national-level issues. And I say that as a registered Republican since 1988.
Now that’s just silly. Normal people didn’t watch Undefeated. Nobody watched Undefeated. Sarah Palin is a con artist, and you’re just her mark. I actually have a great deal of respect for her on that level – she is without a doubt the greatest female con of all time (The greatest male: Barack Obama. “Change you can believe in!” more sore, aching backside). She brought nothing to the Republican ticket – Alaska was never going Democrat, base voters vote their party, and independents vote their wallets (not their gender) – but she still managed to con her way onto a… Read more »
The thing i like about this show, that it’s not really PC.