Go Ahead, Try to Make Me Laugh - Part 1

A bit of housekeeping first. Despite my lack of posts, I have actually been keeping up with the viewing portion of the TV gig. I've watched at least one episode of everything new except for Sons of Anarchy which I'm still planning on doing once Meaghan has some time for it. If there are shows that you're still watching, feel free to drop comments in that show's post. I'll do the same and we can keep up a running conversation of sorts about them. For instance, my spies have informed me that Kelly's kid on "90210" belongs to Dylan. What a shocking development!

I've also updated my initial post with links to all of the shows' websites as requested, and have also added a few shows that escaped my grasp the first time around. Have fun checking those out if you want to know more about any of them in particular. Back to your regularly scheduled programming...

After stumbling through a whole lot of writer's block regarding how to deal with 30-minute comedy shows (do people still watch these?), I think I've come up with something that'll work for me.

Z Rock: Sundays on iFC, 11:30/10:30 Central

How does one even get the iFC (Independent Film Channel), and who knew that they even had original programming? Whatever the case, they should probably look into getting some more if this is an example of the quality they can produce. "Z Rock" is a hilarious semi-scripted comedy about a Brooklyn-based rock band ZO2 that moonlights as children's entertainment group the Z Brothers to make money. The band and its side project are real, but the situations depicted in the show are not.

This is beyond cable TV so the level of nudity and language is easily at HBO levels here, but it's the land of sex, (no) drugs, and rock & roll so you can't expect less. The humor of the show is a bit hard to explain, but most of it borders on the absurd with a bit of raunchiness thrown in for good measure. I'll let this clip do the talking for me. Make sure you listen to the song's lyrics.

ZO2's straight forward rock music doesn't really do it for me, but the show itself is a winner. I've watched all six episodes that have aired to date, and there are only four to go.