Ugly Americans returns tonight

    Last spring, Comedy Central aired a seven episode first season of Ugly Americans.  It's an animated series set in New York City, except that humans share the place with monsters and demons of all sorts.  I thought it was a pretty funny show, though I never wrote a full review.  I just watched tonight's season premiere, "Better Off Undead", and I have to say, it went a little too gross for me.

     The show revolves around Mark Lilly (Matt Oberg), a social worker for the Department of Immigration, or something like that.  He counsels creatures to help them get their lives on track.  This week, Mark tried to help a two-headed worm guy and his roommate, a Zombie named Randall (Kurt Metzger).  The left side of the worm guy was being abused by the right side, and there were parallels made between worm guys and slavery, as well as spousal abuse.  There is already a worm guy who is a regular in Mark's group, but that guy's two halves live in harmony.  Anyway, about the new worm guy.  Mark convinced the weaker half to get separate from the stronger half.  The weak half moved into Mark's apartment, and began acting like a servant.  Eventually, Mark grew tired of his company, and had him get reattached with his tormentor.

     Meanwhile, Randall was stalking his ex-girlfriend, trying unusccessfully to win her back.  She has a restraining order against him, so that complicated things.  Randall checked himself into a zombi rehabilition place, to learn to be a better zombie, and to better stalk people.  I twas a bit goofy, but eventually, Randall realized that he had to be who he was.

     Then Mark got cursed by his co-worker, a failed wizard named Leonard (Randy Pearlstein).  Mark was turned into an exact replica of Randall's ex-girlfriend.  You see, Leonard was drunk, and didn't know what he was doing.  He actually put a curse on Mark, who aged rapidly, and could not return to himself unless he had sex, as a woman, with a male, to completion.  Mark's demon girlfriend, Callie (Natasha Leggero, a judge on the recent season of Last Comic Standing), was very understanding, and helped him find a man to do the deed with online.  Sadly, the only man who responded to the female Mark's ad was Mark's gross, gruff co-worker, Lt. Grimes (Larry Murphy).  Mark hooked up with Grimes, and then very grossly, pulled himself out of the dead old lady skin in the morning.  Grimes found out just who he slept with, but he was weirdly ok with it.

     For me, the dead skin, and Randall accidentally eating his own fingers was more sick than I care to see.  However, generally the show is fairly entertaining.   Ugly Americans premieres tonight on Comedy Central at 10:30pm.

For frequent mini-reviews and occasional tv news, follow Jerome on Twitter.

Comics, comics everywhere

     Summer is a time for comedy.  NBC has (once again) revived it's competition show, Last Comic Standing.  I am sorry to say, it's been a little weak this year, though.  Craig Robinson is doing pretty good as host, but not everyone else is really bringing the laughs.  The judges gave no useful critiques in the early rounds.  They were badly in need of someone to tell it like it is.  They all pretty much only said nice things.  And then they picked a pretty weak Top Ten, as evidenced by this week's episode.  I disagreed with many of their choices for the group, and I thought they let some very talented people slip away.  The most glaring mistake was bringing back Felipe Esparza.  And perhaps I don't understand the comedy stand-up hierarchy, but haven't Roy Wood Jr. and Tommy Johnagin already been fairly successful?  I was surprised to see them on the show, already being familiar names.  I have trouble wanting them to win because I feel like the show can better help out someone who has been less well know.

     This week, only Mike DeStefano killed.  Which is a shame, because I had also pinned my hopes on Laurie Kilmartin, Jonathan Thymius, and Myq Kaplan.  I twittered about how Myq had used the same material that was featured on Revision3's ROFL last week, and he e-mailed me back some fresh links.  That's how I know he has it in him to do better.  That, and I loved him in the early rounds.  Thymius started strong this week, and then kind of faded out.  I'm thinking it was just an off week all around.  Perhaps the performers were tired or nervous.  I would be in their position.  I'll still tune in next week and root for them.

     However, fear not.  Showtime has The Green Room With Paul Provenza, and the comics on there are all well seasoned.  Paul gets together with three or four comedians in a small space with an intimate audience and they talk for 25 minutes.  Last week, the guests included Robert Klein and Jonathan Winters, and was the funniest yet.  Winters's army story about pretending to be gay had me roaring, and then I laughed even harder, albeit in shock, when he revealed his mom's excuse for throwing away his old metal cars.  Klein had some great memories concerning Rodney Dangerfield.  This is a show you shouldn't miss.

     Tonight at 10:30pm, The Green Room welcomes Martin Mull, Penn Jillette, and the legendary Tommy Smothers.  Next Monday at 9pm, Last Comic Standing will be down to it's Top 7, and two more will be voted home,