Portlandia Season 7 Premiere - “The Storytellers” Review

Season 7 Episode 1
Air Date: Thursday, January 5, 2017, 10:00/9:00c on IFC
Rating: ★★★★★

Bringing a whole new batch of slow-burning satire, Emmy-nominated Portlandia returns to IFC for its seventh season with 10 new episodes. Expect to find yourself laughing at kids’ toys made from burly man-beards, artists featured at Miami’s famous bacchanal, Art Basel, weirdos shopping for a vacuum at Bed, Bath, and Beyond, and plenty of men’s rights activists (complete with their own music video – beware that it doesn’t get stuck in your head).

Fred Armisen, Carrie Brownstein

With its seventh season, Portlandia stands out as the quintessential awkward comedy show, poking fun a millennial culture, nerd fandom, technology, and modern pitfalls of our society. The characters and storyline provide a much-needed commentary on the modern subcultures that bleed into the mainstream.

Portlandia’s return brings back favorite characters, including the aforementioned weirdos and the hilarious juxtaposition of their ordinary everyday needs meeting Gothic sensibilities. They need a pan that will cook their favorite food: blood.

The titular sketch follows the attempts of dinner party-goers to reinvent themselves through the art of storytelling. The journey requires intensive improv- style classes and a final story performance worthy of the stage (complete with sound affects and lighting cues). Like most of Portlandia’s sketches, the ridiculousness of being able to thrill fellow dinner party guests may seem flippant, but for those who know that one couple who likes to out-do everyone else’s stories, the humor rings true.

Additional sketches strike similar notes—the parents looking to expose their children to exotic germs to help their immunity, and the always-uncomfortable dealings with overbearing hotel staff.

Carrie Brownstein, Fred Armisen

Co-created by Fred Armisen, Carrie Brownstein, and Jonathan Krisel, Portlandia explores the nuances of modern life, taking a jab at the over-the-top exuberance of the conveniences of the 21st century with an exaggerated eye roll. The fact that the show is shot entirely in Portland, Oregon, the hipster mecca itself, only reinforces the tongue-in-cheek humor of an inside joke. The adherence to their setting and the proud counterculture atmosphere of Portland, add both a sense of pride and authority to their sketches. The locations are real, and therefore the characters are that much more real, from the avant-garde coffee shop to the feminist bookstore (the real one that has since cut ties with the show).

Armison and Brownstein, who share most of the sketches, are guileless and awkward, drawing viewers in as part of the joke, even through events that unfold as a result of their bumbling. But Armison and Brownstein have some crazy magic between them, creating multiple sketches, each clever and revealing and despite being self-contained, perfectly relate to each other in the larger scheme of life in Portlandia.

Fred Armisen, Mitchell Hurwitz

Portlandia returns with a robust lineup of guest stars, including SNL favorite Vanessa Bayer, Broad City’s Abbi Jacobson, Steve Buscemi, and more. For fans looking for something in between SNL and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, absolutely check out the new season of Portlandia.

Overall, I am a fan of this show format, but until Alec Baldwin breathed life back into SNL’s last season, none of the characters have captured my attention. However, the new season of Portlandia has changed that, and with their perceptive humor and relevant social commentary worthy of South Park, I will definitely be tuning in for the rest of the season.

Luckily, you don’t have to wait. IFC released these five videos from season seven just in time to get you hooked. The show premieres Thursday, January 5 at 10:00/9:00c on IFC.

What are your thoughts on Portlandia? Share your comments below or Tweet me @ErinSRichards!

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Erin Richards-Kunkel

The one with the overly-active imagination! Erin is a fan of all things storytelling in every form (movies, books, shows, podcasts, you name it). She is known for always carrying a book in her bag as well as paper and pen (just in case). She is also currently working on her debut YA novel. Find her on Twitter @ErinSRichards!