Back to Portlandia

After a December winter special, IFC's Portlandia officially kicked off their third season this past Friday night. While it's hard to review a sketch series in general, Portlandia has enough recurring characters and very specific situations to garner something to say about it. It also manages to be funny to a great number of people, despite it's very narrow subject matter, namely, that all bits revolve around the strange residents of the city of Portland, Oregon.

In the premiere hour, the Mayor (Kyle MacLachlan) has a mission for Fred (Fred Armisen) and Carrie (Carrie Brownstein). He would like them to go to Seattle, which has been poaching citizens, and recruit some of their people to move to Portland. The catch? He thinks a personal touch is needed, so Fred and Carrie should go door to door in their effort.

I've always loved MacLachlan's take on the Mayor, even when he isn't accompanied by his assistant (Sam Adams, the real life mayor), as he isn't in this episode. He seems the perfect mix of liberal hibbie and actual idea man to sort of keep Portland going, but never to push it beyond the elements that make it such a distinct place, and into the world at large. This newest project is fantastic in keeping with the themes of the series, and Fred and Carrie's willingness to take it on is perfect.

As the bit plays out in several scenes, Fred and Carrie take on the personas of Mormon missionaries. I like this because nothing in Portland ever seems entirely original, just an odd take on a thing that exists elsewhere, taking it to the extreme. Also, living in Portland and embracing the town is like a religion, so the concept works very well. It's also funny in plenty of places, such as where Fred introduces some young housemates to the "Portland invention" of the chore wheel.

I don't know why it's so enjoyable to watch Fred and Carrie play a version of themselves, but the times that they do, stripped of the utter goofiness of the other characters, are always fun.

Having never been to Portland myself, Portlandia makes me feel like I have been. It's not just a humorous series of sketches, but also a love letter to a town where the odd, lovable people are earnest and living the way they want to, uncaring about what others may think. Maybe it's not for everyone, and maybe we shouldn't be laughing at them. But there's no mean spirit present, so it's easy, rather than uncomfortable, to chuckle at.

Portlandia has some truly memorable personalities, so it's wonderful when they are brought back over and over again. In the first two half hours of this season, we revisit Peter and Nance, Malcolm and Kris, Kath and Dave, Spyke and Iris, and Toni and Candace. Each of these duos manage to stay completely unique, even when played by the same two, very talented, actors. There's also a level of comfort to find new situations for beloved favorites.

Not that Portlandia isn't accessible to newbies; it is. The structure of the show invites anyone to jump in at any point, and still laugh. But for those loyal viewers who watch week after week, the recurring people are a treat.

Doug and Claire also return. They are featured in my favorite episode of the series to date, season two's "One Moore Episode," and I love that their second appearance not only gives us more TV goodness, but also finds a way to once more, organically, stitch in the old, black Ron Moore and his wife.

Other characters not played by Fred and Carrie in the premiere include Alan (Jeff Goldblum), who now sells doilies, rather than knots, MTV video DJs, and Chloe Sevigny (Big Love, American Horror Story: Asylum) as Fred and Carrie's new roommate. This is her first appearance, but we should be seeing her quite a bit more throughout the year.

Portlandia airs Fridays at 10 p.m. ET on IFC.

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Article first posted on TheTVKing

Portlandia Season One comes to Blu-ray and DVD

     IFC launched a new sketch comedy series last year, produced by Saturday Night Live's Lorne Michaels, called Portlandia. Now season one is available on Blu-ray and DVD. It will likely not surprise you to learn that it stars a SNL cast member, Fred Armisen, known for playing Barack Obama and Joy Behar, among others. Fred is joined by musician Carrie Brownstein. The show is made up of a series of shorts featuring odd characters, some stand alone, some recurring in multiple episodes. The jokes are much more understated than SNL. The unique catch here is that all the bits take place in Portland, Oregon, and the show tries to capture the spirit of the city. Having never been there, I can't say if it does so accurately. I can say, I have enjoyed watching it.

     In the first two weeks alone, Fred and Carrie visit a free range chicken farm populated by polygamists, an uber-feminist bookshop, engage in an adult game of hide and seek, write a theme song for Portland at the request of the mayor, and do a huge opening number for the premiere! And that's just the tip of the iceberg! The humor is unexpected, and fun. For instance, the sketch about writing the song is back and forth random ideas between the pair. What makes it rise above average is that Carrie falls in love, accidentally kills the guy, and attends his funeral while giving her thoughts. It is never mentioned, but really elevated the whole sketch. It's fresh, unique fun.

    Celebrities, too, seem to like the show. Steve Buscemi (Boardwalk Empire), Kyle MacLachlan (Desperate Housewives), Aimee Mann, Jason Sudeikis (SNL), and Aubrey Plaza (Parks and Recreation) are among those who stop by to join the pair in their odd stories. This sort of proves the respect the duo has within the performing community, and makes it all the more fun to see who will pop up next!

     The tone of Portlandia speaks to the outsider. Whether you are an outsider yourself, or just enjoy a light hearted poking of such people, there is something for you in this series. Portland may or may not be made up of young people who "go there to retire," but the grunge and indie spirits of the 1990's thrive in the city, or at least this fictional version of such. Thus, Portlandia routinely goes into territories other comedies merely touch on, if that.

     One may question whether or not to buy the Blu-ray version of Portlandia Season One. The price difference isn't big, so why not? True, owing to the low budget of the series, not everything is as crystal clear as other Blu releases. The blacks are not particularly rich. But the creators do pay much attention to detail, and you wouldn't want to miss that. Also, it isn't a cheap conversion, so why the picture does go soft at times, there is a quality different over the DVD. As far as audio goes, it does lack the surround sound many Blu releases have, but he mixing is done nicely, and with little action, many will not even notice.

     Bonus features are sadly lacking on this set. The audio commentaries aren't particularly insightful, and do drag on a bit. Deleted and extended scenes, almost twenty minutes in length, are mainly a snooze fest. There are a couple of gems within, but it's not worth sitting through the others to get to them. A commencement speech given by Armisen is included, but he looks uncomfortable, and his humor is uneven. A couple of sketches of the former Armisen / Brownstein project, Thunderant, are pretty cool, though. And the packaging, with an tone-appropriate environmental package and great graphics, is neat.

     Even without a ton of extras, Portlandia Season One is worth the purchase for the episodes alone. Pick up your copy now and prepare for season two, which premieres on IFC in early January.

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Portlandia Uniquely Amusing

     IFC has a new sketch comedy series produced by Saturday Night Live's Lorne Michaels called Portlandia. It will likely not surprise you to learn that it also stars a SNL cast member, Fred Armisen, known for playing Barack Obama and Joy Behar, among others. Fred is joined by Carrie Brownstein.

     The show is made up of a series of shorts featuring odd characters, some stand alone, some recurring in multiple episodes. The jokes are much more understated than SNL. The unique catch here is that all the bits take place in Portland, Oregon, and the show tries to capture the spirit of the city. Having never been there, I can't say if it does so accurately. I can say, I have enjoyed watching it.

     In the first two weeks, Fred and Carrie visited a free range chicken farm populated by polygamists, an uber-feminist bookshop, engaged in an adult game of hide and seek, write a theme song for Portland at the request of the mayor, and did a huge opening number for the premiere.

     The humor is unexpected, and fun. For instance, the sketch about writing the song was back and forth random ideas between the pair. What made it rise above average was that Carrie fell in love, accidentally killed the guy, and attended his funeral while giving her thoughts. It was never mentioned, but really elevated the whole sketch.

     Celebrities, too, seem to like the show. In the first two episodes alone, Steve Buscemi (Boardwalk Empire), Kyle MacLachlan (Desperate Housewives), Jason Sudeikis (SNL), and Aubrey Plaza (Parks and Recreation) stopped by to join the pair in their odd stories. I don't know who will be next up, but I'm excited.

     Check out Portlandia Friday nights at 10:30 p.m. on IFC.

Article first published as TV Review: Portlandia Uniquely Amusing on Blogcritics.

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