TCB Debriefing 5/19-6/1: Hacks/Hannah Einbinder, JFL, Everything Everywhere All at Once, Fantasmas, Ali Clayton, Ali Siddiq, Clare O’Kane, Paul Scheer/June Diane Raphael, Am I OK?, Make Some Noise, Ren Faire, Jenny Zigrino, The Undervale, Steph Curry, Aubrey Plaza/Joe Wengert, Laid, Steve Carell
1. Well, everything is coming up Hacks (and, by extension, Hannah Einbinder). Coming hot off the heels of a blisteringly hot 3rd season, Hacks, has been renewed for a fourth season (Zaslav allowed a good creative decision to happen?). On top of that, Hannah Einbinder’s very first comedy special, Everything Must Go, just released its first special and set the premiere date of Jun. 13th on Max. Taped live at LA’s El Rey Theatre, it truly was something marvelous, especially as a goddamn debut special (the ingenuity, poise, and sharpness would make one believe this is far past her first hour special). Take a gander with the trailer for Hannah Einbinder: Everything Must Go here.
2. Just For Laughs indeed has filed for bankruptcy protections in Canada as they were operating with millions of dollar of debt to their name. They have begun the sale of select assets to ensure they stay afloat, which still sounds uncertain (THR).
3. Maybe you didn’t get to see Everything Everywhere All at Once in theaters (or at all for some ungodly reason), but thankfully, you’ll have a chance to see the Oscar Best Picture Winner in IMAX come August (Indiewire).
4. While Los Espookys is long gone, Julio Torres is finally on the track he should be on with nothing but accolades for Problemista and more magically real, beautifully funny absurdity with his HBO series, Fantasmas. Take a gander at what he has up his ethereal sleeves with the trailer here, then look out for it’s premiere on HBO/Max come next week on Jun. 7th.
5. Ali Clayton has arrived. She has done so in quite the fashion too with her debut album, Country Queer, that dives deep into discovering herself and her queer identity being from the South. Clayton’s drawl, warmth contrasted with her candor and vividly colorful writing is one of the best ways to kick off Pride this June. Please enjoy and listen to Country Queer now, fresh off the presses from Blonde Medicine here.
6. It’s a rare feat to tell a story over the course of an hour and it be so thoroughly engaging that it makes for a captivating special, especially when it’s a hilarious take on your journey through the criminal justice system here in the U.S. of A. Ali Siddiq has not only achieved said feat, but done a hat trick with part 3 of Domino Effect, which might be the first legit comedy special trilogy that is narratively tied altogether. Siddiq’s poise and uncanny ability to find the comedy gold in his time going to prison are so solid that you kind of don’t notice the special is almost 90 minutes long. Please enjoy Domino Effect Part 3: First Day of School, now on YouTube, here.
7. Clare O’Kane is yet another shining example of someone who did write at SNL and has yet to show off their true potential in comedy (Tim Robinson anyone?). Fresh off Eugene Mirman‘s Pretty Good Friends Records, Clare’s sophomore album, Everything I know how to do, maintains a delightfully bubbly spirit while wading into the deep end of many personal anecdotes about polyamory, pansexuality, rejected SNL sketch pitches, sharp feet, and more often with Clare’s ironically silly flourishes. You can and should listen to Everything I know how to do here.
8. Paul Scheer and June Diane Raphael are taking the next step in their ascent as a comedy power couple by co-hosting an awards show, The Humanitas Prizes, this year in September (Variety).
9. Speaking of comedy power couples, Tig Notaro and Stephanie Allynne are co-directing their first feature together, Am I OK?, that seems like it’s probably taking a lot of cues from early on in their relationship with a sort of lost Dakota Johnson finding that she might be into women after having nothing but misfires in dating men. See how close they come to real life with the trailer here, then look for it on Max come Jun. 6th.
10. Dropout might have gameshows better figured out than GSN as you can see with the season 3 trailer of Make Some Noise. This game show in particular has such a beautifully simple game, but gets many of the world’s very best improvisers to twist and contort the show into some Dropout magic.
11. Ren Faire, a doc coming to HBO seems like King of Kong, but for one particular Ren Faire in Texas. See for yourself in the trailer here, then look for it on HBO/Max come this Sunday, June 2nd.
12. A good amount of the country will have a chance to see the amazing Jenny Zigrino live coming up and a good amount of the country should not miss out.
13. CBS’ Ghosts will have some competition at Netflix with The Undervale (not to mention that it will have the guiding hand of Dan Harmon as a producer) (Variety).
14. Let’s see if Steph Curry can best LeBron and Space Jam: A New Legacy with GOAT, Steph’s animated sports comedy feature (THR).
15. There’s more animated comedy worth keeping track with an animated series order for Joe Wengert and Aubrey Plaza‘s Kevin that follows a cat that wants to not live with humans anymore (THR). Not sure whether Joe or Aubrey (or someone else) would voice the cat, but either of them would be the perfect voice for an wonderfully anti-human cat.
16. The Stephanie Hsu comedy Laid that follows the mystery of formers lovers all strangely dying has gotten a stacked supporting cast now featuring John Early, Chloe Fineman, David Denman, and Andre Hyland (Deadline).
17.. Steve Carrell will be returning to a comedy series that ISN’T the revival of The Office, but, instead, takes him to a college campus with the producing hands of Bill Lawrence and Matt Tarses (Deadline).
18. We’ll leave you with this: Sorry for taking so long. Turns out that running a theater while running a bureau is a lot of work.
