or...

Adorable Couple In The Second So-So Show Of The Season So Far

Right out the gate, I was disappointed by this episode when I thought I was watching a repeat of a sketch that was just introduced last week (well, technically last night, being that I'm watching an episode a day.) Even when I did find out that it was actually the second installment of an ongoing "ad campaign" it was neither enough of a change nor funny enough in the first place for me to take notice or care.

Then Danny DeVito and Rhea Pearlman took to the stage and at first, just watching their adorable interaction lightened my day. I didn't even mind that they rambled through their intro seeming completely unprepared because this felt like it was building to be a fun episode based on the energy of the host on its own.

Then the episode played out, and though I definitely didn't hate it, I felt the quality was less than most of the last season while still being better than anything from season 7 which is the level of content that I'm growing to expect this season to be made up of. I guess this is alright because it's at least not growing to seem like the worst season so far.

Alright, now that I've shared my expectations for this year it's time to move on to share what I so during this viewing and with that, I give you...

The Wicker Breakdown:

This week's episode starts with a second installment of the Calvin Klein Cream Pies ad. I can't believe that it's the first sketch of episode two and they are already recycling content that wasn't that great in the first place, but it was new and not a repeat like I first thought because she announces, "Live from New York..." before getting hit with a second pie.
Danny DeVito and Rhea Pearlman then take to the stage, and their adorable energy alone lessened my concern about the lazy start to the show. The two discuss the troubles with doing a monolog when there are two people which by definition breaks the rule. They then go on to banter as if they were building up to give out an award. Though fun, they seem entirely unprepared because when Danny asks, "How do we get out of this?" It sounds pretty genuine as they bale out by throwing to the commercial break.
We then went back to Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood for the sketch that introduced me to the word bastard meant because I specifically remember asking my parents to clarify after finding it was the word for the day after Mr. Robinson's "girlfriend" abandoned their newborn baby on his porch.
Crazy Edelman returns, and this time his everything must go style ad is for discount psychotherapy.
What Would Frank Do? is a game show that asks contestant, one of which being Dion from the salon, what Frank Sinatra would do in real life situations then watch on video as the answer is played out.
We then went to the inside of the It's A Small World ride at Disneyland where the ride breaks down trapping a boatload of park visitors to have to listen to the endlessly repeating song which causes them to lose their minds as it goes on for hours and hours. It turns out that the boat isn't actually stuck but that the park is under some sort of West World style attack by all the mascots and mechanical beings.
Odyssey Of A Paperclip is a "Documentary" that follows the life of a paperclip that Gary Kroeger was about to pick his teeth with in an attempt to show why it might be a bad idea.
Rhea Pearlman then played a Spanish teacher who insists that the students only speak Spanish no matter what they are trying to convey. Even when Eddie who is not a student comes in to report a hostage situation, Rhea insists that he say it in Spanish instead of acting on the warning which inevitably leads to her getting shot when the cops chance the perpetrator into the room.
Once again, Brad Hall gives us the news. This week, Julia Louis-Dreyfus drops by as a fired news anchor with Tourettes and talks about getting fired because she was a woman, Gary Kroeger got a segment to talk about the latest Bond Girl, and "Dr. Ruth" drops by to talk about sex in movies and how it influences the youth.
Eddie Grant then took to the stage to perform I Don't Want To Dance and Electric Avenue back to back.
We then went backstage to a show where we meet a couple of intense autograph seekers who meet up with an obsessed fan who thinks Liz Taylor will be his wife the moment she exits through the back door only but all that they get is the real Dick Cavett.
Book Beat is a talk show where Sweetchuck interviews DeVito as a self-publishing author who no one else will publish because it is pretty much just his stalker material about a girl named Deborah who lives in his building and who also shoots him dead from the audience.
Amos And Andy Show is a parody reboot that attempts to modernize the old racist show by pairing King Fish with Andy Rooney, and they both just ramble away.
Masterpiece Humor is a parody of Masterpiece Theater that uses the shows dry style to break down several kid/dad jokes complete with a reenactment of A Kangaroo Walking Into A Bar.
We then went to a politician's funeral where Danny DeVito attacks Robin Duke for being his bodyguard that didn't save him because it was her first day on the job. Mary Gross is the next to attack Robin for not doing her job. I kept expecting there to be a twist, but it never came it was just people getting angry at this rookie bodyguard's mistake with a dumb joke at the end where the funeral director give the bodyguard his business card in case any of her other clients were to die.
Eddy Grant then returned to the stage to perform Living On The Front Line.
Finally, Danny DeVito and Rhea Pearlman close the show by thanking the audience and saying their goodnights.

Though I did like the overall energy of the show more than any individual piece, I still had these as my favorite moments. First, I loved the sketch where the park visitors of Disneyland get stuck on It's A Small World because I always felt that ride had malignant potential even when I was a child. Next, I really liked this week's Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood because I have a solid memory of the original airing as the show that taught me what a bastard was. Finally, I was a fan of Odyssey Of A Paperclip because I've thought, more than once, how I'd love to make a documentary that follows the life of an innocuous product like this.