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<i>The Comedians</i> – “Celebrity Guest” Retrospective. Wardrobe Change.

Season 1, Episode 4

Air Date: Thursday, April 30, 2015, 10:00 pm ET/PT on FX

Rating: ★★★★★

“I kinda wanna kiss a different old man.” – Josh

Two legendary comedians together

When the studio puts the premiere of “ The Billy and Josh Show” on hold because of director issues, among others, Billy (Billy Crystal) and Josh (Josh Gad) each decide to take matters into their own hands. But the more they try, the further apart the two stars become. Is this the beginning of the end for “The Billy and Josh Show?”

“Celebrity Guest” takes its name from this week’s guest star, renowned comedian Mel Brooks. Billy seeks guidance from Mel, his longtime friend and collaborator, in a particularly funny heart-to-heart where the two talk about Billy being paired up with Josh. Thankfully, Mel figures out what the problem is.

Mel: “I know the guy, Josh Grad.”

Billy: “No Gad, G-A-D.”

Mel: “Oh, he’s got to change his name; it’s crazy.” 

Billy: “Why?” 

Mel: “It just doesn’t work.” 

Do you want to build a snowman?

Born Melvin Kaminsky, Mel might be onto something about name changes. The scenes between Brooks and Crystal give the semblance of a conversation between two friends reminiscing about old times rather than scripted dialogue. Watching these two legendary comedians together makes even a discussion about a glass of water entertaining. With such movies as Spaceballs, Blazing Saddles, and History of the World Part I, I’ve always appreciated Brooks’ style of humor. I hope we see him again on The Comedians.

Meanwhile, realizing “The Billy and Josh Show” was dead until he signed on, Josh decides to insert himself more in order to save the show. He meets with Kristen Anderson-Lopez and her husband Bobby in hopes that the two might write a song for the show. Not a bad idea; after all, as Josh puts it, “They wrote the music to a little something called Frozen, highest grossing animated movie of all time.” Kristen’s response to Josh about Billy’s less than enthusiastic reaction to the song number is priceless.

One of the funnier skits.

The Comedians may focus on Billy and Josh but Esme (Megan Ferguson) is becoming one of my favorite characters on the series. The opening scene in “Celebrity Guest” is hilarious as Esme tries to fix the copier. The writers and director use great restraint having Esme utter only one word during the entire opening. The way the scene is edited, by reducing several minutes of Esme’s struggles down to mere seconds, makes it even more entertaining.

I can’t help feeling sorry for Mitch (Matt Oberg) and the other writers of the sketch show as they go all out thinking they’re writing scenes for Mel. The writers of The Comedians do a great job creating multiple levels of rumors and miscommunications that end up having an impact on everyone involved in the sketch show. This makes me wonder — will Mel show up and save “The Billy and Josh Show?”

Will they kiss?

Amusing, albeit disturbing, I enjoyed the barbershop skit for “The Billy and Josh Show.” I laughed during the second skit where Billy and Josh say the exact same thing. While I’ve been vocal about my overall dislike of the sketches for “The Billy and Josh Show,” I found the musical number during “Celebrity Guest” entertaining. Although, it’s a bit awkward hearing Billy sing about his appreciation of a certain female body part while Josh flirts with some physical experimentation of his own.

Rumor has it, in Hollywood when a show is in trouble, the first thing you do is fire the costume designer. Making such a change symbolizes a new direction for the show in question. While I don’t think the sacrificial firing in “Celebrity Guest” solves the sketch show’s problems, it seems to give everyone involved a renewed confidence. Billy and Josh finally appear to be on the same page, wanting to focus on the sketch show’s comedy and relying less on gimmicks like celebrity guests and big song and dance numbers. Will these changes be enough to satisfy the studio? If not, where do they go from here?

Tweet me @Staffaroadtrip or leave a comment below to let me know what you think about “Celebrity Guest.”

Tune in to The Comedians Thursdays at 10:00 pm ET/PT, only on FX.

Visit the show’s website at http://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/the-comedians.

Looking for The Comedians on social media? Follow these links:

 

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Twitter: https://twitter.com/thecomedians

 

You can also follow the cast on Twitter: @JoshGad, @BillyCrystal, @DanaDelany, and @MeganFerguson.

Photos © 2015 FX Networks, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Greg Staffa

I provide testosterone to the site. You won’t be reading about how nice a actress looks in a dress or how much of a hunk Matt Bomer is in my reviews. I describe colors using words like brown, not taupe. My twitter name is @staffaroadtrip because I love road trips and have done two different 48-state road trips since 2008. My favorite show is White Collar.

Greg Staffa

I provide testosterone to the site. You won’t be reading about how nice a actress looks in a dress or how much of a hunk Matt Bomer is in my reviews. I describe colors using words like brown, not taupe. My twitter name is @staffaroadtrip because I love road trips and have done two different 48-state road trips since 2008. My favorite show is White Collar.