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michael_bragg99
Reviews
The Boys: Wisdom of the Ages (2024)
Too many skeletons in the closet
The main problem I have with this season is that there are too many plot points to be handled properly, and the way that they're developed is consequently heavy handed. And instead of having the plot points related structurally, weaving in and out of each other, they seem to be related by the theme "skeletons in the closet." Which feels monotonous and, again, heavy handed.
I think a particularly good example of this is the revelation of Starlight's abortion. This could have been developed between Starlight and Hughie's plotlines. But instead, Hughie has his own "skeletons in the closet" plotline (together with Kimiko, Butcher, Frenchie, and Homelander). So instead of feeling like a satisfying development, it feels like a cheap reliance on "serious" subject matter to add depth to a plot.
In case you're counting, that's six thematically identical plotlines. And each one is so far pretty compartmentalized. By which I mean that they don't seem to be related to each other. Hughies dad has nothing to do with Starlight's abortion. Frenchie's lover has nothing to do with Kimiko's Shining Light past.
One of the more tedious consequences of this overloaded plot structure is the tendency of the script to rely on expository dialog, such as in the scene with Homelander and Barbara where Barbara is telling Homelander how Vaught used psychology to make him dependent on human love. Why would she do that? Big dogging on Homelander doesn't seem like a good way for her to try to save her life.
Or the scene where Starlight is telling Hughie how her abortion affected her. Which might be rewarding if we'd seen tension in previous scenes demonstrating that this conversation needed to happen. But we didn't. This dialog is an unmotivated substitute for scenes that should have showed this stuff to us.
They didn't have space to include those scenes because they're trying to cram in so many samey "skeletons in the closet" storylines. And the overall story ends up trying to create a structural unity by this sort of repetition of theme throughout the plot points. But that would be like trying to write a symphony by having every instrument playing the same note. That would be monotonous.
Just as music comes from the way that the structures of interrelated parts come together to make a greater whole, a proper plot should come from the meaningful structures of the plot points and the way they weave between crisis and climax to keep the audience on the edge of their seat.
And good writers trust the audience to understand how the meanings come together. And they build to big moments so that when they come, the audience feels a reward. They don't pull an abortion gun off the wall that was never shown in a previous act. Etc.
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: The Gang Solves Global Warming (2019)
Sweet Dee Shines
This episode was made for me by Sweet Dee, and the gag where she turns her charm on and off when the camera is on her for her social media feed. Kaitlin give a fantastic performance! And that worked really well as a send up of the performative nature of social media stars.
For me, the sort of parable that the episode created about global warming didn't really play just because everything that the writing had to say about the subject was pretty well-worn territory. And the amount of space that the script devoted to that probably took away from more opportunities for humor.
On the whole, the excellent performance from Kaitlin carried the episode to the extent that I would consider it a solid episode. It wasn't a great one. But it was good. But that Sweet Dee performance was so good that I wanted to write a review to call it out.
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: Charlie's Home Alone (2018)
Some Laughs, But Not Enough
This episode got some really good laughs from me. But overall, it was kind of meh. There were some really slow, slack parts to the episode that were just mediocre.
Part of the reason I think it wasn't that great was the lack of more than one plot strand. I've been rewatching Sunny lately, and something I feel I've noticed is that the best episodes are structured kind of like Seinfeld, where several different plot strands are followed and then come together improbably in the end.
I actually think that's a big part of why I haven't enjoyed a lot of the more "meh" episodes, such as the female Boggs episode. Some episodes, like this one (and female Boggs), only have one plot strand and thus don't have as many comedic beats. Other episodes, like the Ski episode, have multiple plot strands but they don't work right because the strands are related or don't make sense.
In this episode, I found it hilarious when Charlie started making decisions that got him hurt by his own traps. But the nods to Home Alone didn't really work for me. Like the aftershave splash, they play as weak parody that doesn't really comment on the original or do anything new with a gag that has been parodied many times already.
As I stated above, I suspect that structurally the reason why these weak gags stayed in the script was the lack of other plot strands. Similar to the problem I had with the ski movie episode, I feel the problems came from the characters in the episode all being in on doing the parody.
It does occur to me that the Lethal Weapon episode did work. But I'm not sure that was actually a parody. My feeling was that it was more of a jumping off point that allowed the writers to play with the characters. I can't say for sure because I wasn't able to watch those episodes on streaming QQ.
TLDR structural issues left the episode with tepid parody watering down some good Sunny humor. Not a bad episode, but the standard is so high on this show. Just having a few really good laughs makes it subpar Sunny.
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: The Gang Hits the Slopes (2016)
Too High Concept for a Sunny Episode
I think it's interesting to compare this episode to other "high concept" episodes like "Charlie Wants an Abortion." Those episodes work because the structure defies our expectations of the high concept when the characters follow their own agendas.
The seriousness of abortion serves to underline the characters' depravity, and the comedy comes from the superficial and self-serving drives of the Sunny characters that drive the plot along lines that have nothing to do with abortion. Normal people's concerns only create opportunities for exploitation.
In this episode, the characters adhere to the high concept of the Ski Movie parody. They follow along with the structure and expectations of said genre. Although they make jokes or meta observations about the genre, structurally they don't depart from the expectations we have about the genre and how the story will develop within it.
Ultimately, I felt like there were a few laughs, but I found myself disappointed and underwhelmed by the end of the episode. It would have made more sense if the guest characters were trying to drive the Ski story forward and the Sunny regulars were derailing that storyline with their own BS.