If you’re of a certain age (read: old), then you may be one of those people who believes that television just hasn’t been the same since 1998 when Mr. Show with Bob and David went off the air. If you are me, I mean "one of those people," then all is currently well as TV is about to enter a new golden age. Bob Odenkirk and David Cross are bringing a new sketch comedy show to Netflix with a slightly familiar title. Check out the trailer for With Bob & David.
If you’re not laughing now, there’s really nothing that can be done for you. Seek professional help. Even in the trailer, it seems clear that there will be no sacred cows on this show. There will be sketches that deal with the subject of slavery, and Hitler will be mentioned. You’ve all been warned.
The funniest thing about the trailer may be the narrator's insistence that this is a completely original concept. It’s apparently very important that we all believe that so that HBO doesn’t get mad. Bob and David have also brought in some top notch comedic backup in the parts of Keegan-Michael Key (who knows a couple things about sketch comedy) as a police officer who apparently has some issues with David Cross, and Paget Brewster as a Charlie Rose-type talk show interviewer. Also, my eagle eyes picked out Mary Lynn Rajskub, who was also a writer and occasional cast member on the boys’ previous sketch show.
Fans of the original Mr. Show will see a lot here that looks familiar. The show’s format looks to be fairly similar to the original as there is a bit of the two leads interacting with an audience in addition to the comedy sketches. Although, it looks like the budget for the Netflix version of the show may have been a little lighter then Odenkirk and Cross were used to. Mr. Show’s audience looked like they were inside a nightclub. In With Bob & David, it looks like they're having a staff meeting with the tech crew behind the sound stage. It doesn’t really matter, as one of the great things about sketch comedy is that it doesn’t require much money to put together.
As sad as it is that the series will only have four episodes, they do appear to pack in a wide variety of types of sketches in those 30-minute run times. All of the episodes will hit Netflix together on November 13. As long as the quality is good, the quantity is less important, especially as success will likely mean more episodes. Hopefully soon.
