Air Date: Sunday, April 22, 2012 10/9c on HBO
RATING:
Cornstarch spoons. What will they think of next?
I wasn’t quite sure what to expect with this new comedy series from HBO. I mean, there’s always a standard you expect from HBO and I think Veep goes above and beyond the typical into the extraordinary. So what can be done with essentially following around the VPOTUS as she does whatever it is a VP does during a usual day? Plenty. Veep Selina Meyer (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) is thrown into a dysfunctional system, trying to make things happen. Her position seems important, but really isn’t. I’m not sure how she deals with the stuff that’s thrown at her with such grace and class: “What the… fuck, Amy? I am putting out… two fires in there and I turn around to find out that you have set fire to the fucking fire truck?!”
Observations and thoughts:
The first 18 minutes are nonstop hilarity. I can’t even put into words how much I already love this show. Nope, not even gonna try.
Selina attends events the president doesn’t have time for or doesn’t want to deal with, and that is when things go downhill. She makes one mistake and it follows her to each event she attends, leading to speech rewrites, embarrassing moments she can’t handle and backlash in the press. I love seeing what happens behind the scenes because you don’t expect such craziness and expletives found in the Veep’s office.
The speech had to be the best part of "Fundraiser."
Louis-Dreyfus is just as amazing in Veep as she was in New Adventures of Old Christine. While this character is different, you quickly fall in love with the woman behind the title. Louis-Dreyfus is at the top of her game and completely embodies Selina. Her character is a mess and that’s what I love most about Selina. She’s a woman doing a job upheld by men and she isn’t being given any special treatment.
Gary Walsh (Tony Hale) has to be the sorriest character I’ve ever seen on television. Not only does he run to get Selina’s coffee, he prompts her with the names of party guests and does anything he can to make her life easier. He’s her “body man”—personal assistant times infinity. He’s got the hardest job in the world and carries a bag bigger than mine. And I have a big damn bag. Then, there’s Amy Brookheimer (Anna Chlumsky, My Girl) who’s Selina’s right hand aka Chief of Staff, and always glued to her Blackberry. Amy tries to keep Selina in the right frame of mind, but I see major issues coming their way. The laughs will be nonstop on this fun filled ride.
I haven’t seen Chlumsky in anything where she can stretch her comedic acting chops so I was pleasantly surprised to see how funny she is. Her tirade about Dan Egan (Reid Scott) being “a shit” killed me. She not only recounts his being “a shit,” but goes into a diatribe about a book comprised completely of shit. How anyone in the car got through that scene without laughing, I don’t know—I wanna see the gag reels.
Folks, it's the Dream Team. Sort of.
Mike McLintock (Matt Walsh) is probably my favorite character. “Tuck your shirt in because your dick is hanging out of your pants!” While the VP may love Mike for all he does, he’s her head of communications and isn’t doing a great job of keeping her screw-ups out of the press. Honestly, I’m not sure what he does except make me laugh. He looks like he hasn’t combed his hair in days and doesn’t seem like he’s sure where he works. But I have to give it to Mike—although he sucks at his job, he’s hilarious and has great comebacks. What more can you ask for? “Oh my gosh. Is this going to become like Moonlighting where we fall in love and start fucking?”
Funny lines:
Selina: “Glasses make me look weak. It’s like a wheelchair for the eye.”
**
Selina about her melted cornstarch spoon: “Are you kidding? Do these not bend the fuck back?”
Gary: “No… no.”
Selina: “What am I supposed to do with this? Am I supposed to eat around corners?”
**
Dan to Gary about the coffee machine: “Next time, pack an espresso machine in your big fucking bitch bag.”
**
Senator Barbara Hallowes (Kate Burton): “You piss off plastics you piss off oil. And you do not want to fuck with those guys because they fuck in a very unpleasant fashion.”
**
Selina: “This has been pencil fucked, completely?”
Mike: “Uh, yes. Front and back. Very little romance.”
Selina: “That’s the entire speech, ok. What’s left here? I’ve got ‘hello’ and I have… prepositions.”
**
Selina: “Okay listen, Mike you go home, feed the dog, walk the dog, shoot the dog, bury the dog, and then come back in. Ok?”
**
Gary: “Do I look like a pimp to you?”
Jonah (Timothy C. Simons): “You… look… exactly like a pimp.”
**
Selina: “Do you know that I have my own flag?”
**
I love this show. There’s profanity (tons of f-bombs!), chaos and the best frigging writing on a comedy show to date. Veep is funny in ways you don’t expect and I’m definitely staying away from any beverages while watching. I’m keeping my eye on Dan and Sue (Sufe Bradshaw). They aren’t lead characters but they bring something to the show. They’re kind of like dessert after a great meal. You might be full already but who doesn’t save room for dessert?
Tune in to Veep, Sundays at 10/9c, only on HBO. For more on the show, visit http://www.hbo.com/#/veep.
LIKE Veep on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/veep.
Photo credit: HBO ©2012 Home Box Office, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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