THE TICK Ticks On

Article first published as TV Review: THE TICK on Seat42F.

Before we get started with this review, I must confess, I’ve never seen any previous incarnation of The Tick. I’ve always meant to and I’m sure I would enjoy, but just never got around to it. So this article is purely about the new Amazon series.

Amazon launched a new THE TICK yesterday, a second live-action version of the comic superhero spoof. Centered around a big, blue man in a bug suit and his more timid butterfly-like chum, The Tick fights for justice and doesn’t condone killing. With cartoonish jokes and supermen and women whose names themselves are gags, this occasionally meta, delightful absurd, woefully inane series is just getting warmed up.

The lead character of THE TICK is not The Tick. No, that title, at least for these six episodes, should go to Arthur Everest (Griffin Newman, Vinyl). Arthur is arguably the unluckiest person alive, with a very traumatic childhood backstory. He does have mental health problems, but it’s a miracle that his problems aren’t crippling and he’s, more or less, leading a normal life, even if his nighttime activities are less than normal.

Enter The Tick (Peter Serafinowicz, Guardians of the Galaxy), who takes Arthur’s unfortunate hobby and makes it his life. The Tick seems to come out of nowhere. Yet, he’s clearly got history with Arthur and has been around awhile (and not just because all of the heroes and villains in the show don’t seem to age over years or even decades). But The Tick doesn’t know what he is or who he is, only that Arthur has a destiny and The Tick must help him. If anything, it’s almost like The Tick is Arthur’s sidekick, even if their personalities point to the other way around.

What follows are odd battles with people like Ms. Lint (Yara Martinez, Jane the Virgin), a woman who flows with electricity, making her a magnet for floating particles, and The Pyramid Gang. Everyone wants Arthur’s superhero suit, which isn’t really his, and there’s a bit of a comedy of errors as custody goes back and forth.

Yet, there’s also a grander story here. Very early on, we know there’s something off about the original superhero who came to this planet more than one hundred years ago, Superian (Brendan Hines, Lie to Me). There’s also a naked VLM (Very Large Man, played by Ryan Woodle) who keeps growing and walking towards population centers. There’s the question as to whether the great villain The Terror (Jackie Earle Haley, Watchmen) is still alive. All of these moving pieces don’t fully come together in the first six episodes, which seem like an extended pilot.

Normally in a show like this, I would assume there isn’t a great picture coming into focus, as this seems like a goofball comedy. Even without having seen the earlier versions, it seems unlikely they had such lofty goals. And yet, the more signs shown in each installment, the more it seems certain that THE TICK is going somewhere. Which makes it even better.

And if you’re just wanting to tune in for the humor, there’s plenty of that, too. For instance, Ms. Lint lives with her ex-husband, a weird hipster named Derek (Bryan Greenberg, How to Make It in America), Arthur’s stepdad is way, way too nice, and Ramses IV (Michael Cerveris, Fringe) keeps a sarcophagus full of power drinks. Those are just a few of bizarre things in these installments.

I’ve barely scratched the surface of what THE TICK contains. It mixes offbeat comedy with genuine superhero stories with deep mysteries with hyperreality with whatever the heck Overkill (Scott Speiser) is, plus the psychotic woman from The Following (Valorie Curry) plays Arthur’s sister. It defies easy explanation and is super addictive, as I quickly plowed through all six half hour installments in short order.

THE TICK’s first half of its first season is available now on Amazon Prime.

"I'm Good" with How to Make It in America

     After a nearly year and a half hiatus, HBO's How to Make It in America kicks off its second season with "I'm Good." Apparently the 'I' in the title refers to Ben (Bryan Greenberg) and Cam (Victor Rasuk), who begin the episode in Japan, selling their t-shirts and working on expanding to hoodies. However, returning to New York City is a disappointment. They attempt to throw a party to build brand recognition, and all manner of things go wrong. Meanwhile, Rachel (Lake Bell) returns to NYC, too, and Rene (Luis Guzman) tries to make things right with his girl.

      The Japan sequence is nice, if a tad more optimistic than usual for the series. It would be far too easy, of course, if Ben and Cam already have things together by the beginning of season two. So they only succeed in a limited way, and for a short time. Makes sense. In order for their type of business to work, it needs to keep innovating. They have ideas, but their execution still has many bugs to work out. As such, while they beg and plead to get their hoodies featured in a store window, to no avail, they still lag behind someone else's brand new craze, which makes them feel like they haven't made it. And they are right.

     Normally, when a television series ruins the plans of its lead characters, and screws up an event so royally as happens in "I'm Good," it is a huge setback. Drama is tossed in the way just to make life harder. On How to Make It in America, the opposite may be trie. Ben and Cam miss their own party after Ben gets high and they get stuck in the subway. One of Rene's employees shoots himself, and the cops come. This should only give them more story and appeal, though, not to mention the fact that their event still delivered, selling quite a bit of product. It may take awhile for them to 'make it,' but they are well on their way.

     Rachel's return to the city is not covered in detail, not unusual for the show. She comes back, but no one really knows the circumstances surrounding the return. Perhaps she was just out of money and tired of traveling, as she seems to indicate? Yet, she doesn't tell anyone she is back at first, which seems like odd behavior. What is she afraid of? She did leave Ben awkwardly, but he has moved on, not something that likely makes her feel better. It doesn't help that Ben's new girl, Julie (Margarita Levieva), responds in kind when Rachel postures to her. It's a weird, but wholly realistic, sequence.

     Poor Rene seems to be making a real go as a legitimate business man, but gets into trouble with his girl when she models for him, and he uses a shot of her backside in advertising. Rene's efforts to win her back prove that he cares about her, but he also just doesn't seem to know how to treat a good girl. He's trying, and that should count. That he chooses to date a security guard is odd, considering his criminal history. Unless this whole thing, including apology, is a sham so he can gain her trust, and then access to something she is guarding. Let's sincerely hope this is not the case.

     How to Make It in America also stars Eddie Kaye Thomas, Shannyn Sossamon, and Scott Mescudi. Watch it Sundays at 10:30 p.m. ET on HBO.

     For How to Make It in America streaming episodes and DVDs, please click here.
 
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How to Make It in America makes it

    HBO's freshman series How to Make It in America finished an eight episode first season with the finale "Never Say Die" this past Sunday.  I wasn't impressed with the show when it first premiered, but I watched most of the season marathon-style in one afternoon, and quickly became quite hooked.  The major complaints I had about the pilot, that it didn't explore side characters, and that the point of the series wasn't cohesive, were addressed quite well early on, and though it did still border on the art world, fashion, of a sort, did take center stage.

     Ben (Bryan Greenberg) and Cam (Victor Rasuk) remain the main characters that the audience will root for.  Going into the finale, I became incredibly discouraged on their behalf, thinking that they had lost forever their shipment of t-shirts, the first sale of their fledgling company.  Had that been the case, I don't think I would have been as happy as I turned out being, and it was just one hit too many for the struggling pair.  Sure, they are going to have plenty of bumps in starting a company, but to take away that may have killed their dream before it even really began.

     Rachel (Lake Bell), Ben's ex, also ended up with almost as much plot as they did, although she was left in kind of the opposite situation, leaving a successful job to strike out on her own.  I don't really believe Ben and Rachel belong together, and it didn't feel like that's where they were going, even though they slept together again.  I hope that I'm not wrong.

     Perhaps the most interesting character, though, turned out to be Cam's cousin Rene (Luis Guzman).  An ex-con, turned CEO of an energy drink supplier, he was introduced as a villain loan-shark, and he was the source of several of Ben and Cam's troubles.  However, Rene had a code of honor, and he was trying to go (mostly) straight.  His conversations with the local priest, which appeared very sincere, were confusing, awkward, and comical, all in a good way.  When the series continues, as it has already been picked up for a second season, he is the one I most want to see developed further.

    HBO will surely rerun the series, so if you missed it, I highly recommend catching it.

How to Make It in America doesn't quite make it

     HBO has a new show out called How to Make It in America.  It is about friends Ben (Bryan Greenberg, October Road) and Cam (Victor Rasuk, ER) trying to make money while living in New York City, apparently in the fashion scene, though after watching, I thought it was more the art world.  It is attempting to be gritty and realistic, or at least it comes across that way.  The theme song may be confusing, but it resembles the photographs shown at an artist showcase later in the pilot episode.

     This series has plenty going for it.  Besides Greenberg, it boasts other notable stars such as Eddie Kaye Thomas (American Pie, 'Til Death), Lake Bell (Boston Legal), Shannyn Sossamon (Moonlight), Martha Plimpton, and Luis Guzman.  Unfortunately, it didn't land in the premiere.  There was plenty of the two main guys, but very little of anyone else.  They are charming and interesting, but there wasn't enough plot to adequately set up what the series is going to be about.  Not only that, unlike other recent HBO shows, I didn't get invested in the characters right away.  At this point, I could never watch another episode and never wonder what happened.

     However, I am going to watch next week's episode.  It does intrigue me that I don't what it's about.  I've always thought that pilots are often a poor representation of the series, and I hope this one is as well.  Because I can't predict what else is coming, I will watch at least another half hour or two until I decide whether or not it is worth my time.

     If you'd like to check it out, How to Make It in America will rerun throughout the week, and new episodes will be presented Sundays at 10pm on HBO.