It’s the type of show that we’ve already seen before: a well-established professional meets a new talent on the rise, while finding his way back the industry he’d fallen away from.
“The Comedians” joins the laundry list of successful TV shows that have tried the mockumentary format — “The Office,” “Parks & Recreation,” “Modern Family”— and pokes fun at its two main leads, Billy Crystal and Josh Gad, who play bigger versions of their actual selves on screen in furthering that. The premise is simple enough, if overused, but the combination of talent and the dynamic pairing of Crystal and Gad works well. A handful of solid supporting characters combined with awkward moments are funny and compelling enough to keep audiences interested.
Created by its own interesting pedigree of comedy writers (“Seinfeld” writer Larry Charles, Crystal, “Burn Notice” creator Matt Nix and “Community” producer Ben Wexler), the FX comedy brings together two very different comedians who must overcome their egos to work on a new late-night sketch comedy show.
The onscreen Crystal pitches that show featuring himself playing every role, and is confident that the network loves it. He soon learns, however, given the show’s stale receipt from test audiences, the network is bringing in the fresh, young Josh Gad, of “Frozen” and “Book of Mormon” fame, to bring in higher ratings and more viewers.
It’s hardly a surprise when Crystal and Gad meet up for the first time, three months before shooting the pilot, and find that they don’t get along. After an initial exchange of half-hearted, polite compliments on each other’s work, Gad remarks that Crystal should try doing Broadway, to which Crystal replies that he did a one-man show, “a story about when my dad died when I was 15.” Gad begins laughing hard, then quickly falls silent when it becomes apparent that Crystal wasn’t joking, and recovers by saying, “That sounds so … powerful.”
It’s these awkward moments that saves the otherwise re-rehashed show-biz mockumentary “The Comedians” could have been. Like “30 Rock,” “The Comedians” incorporates glimpses of its onscreen show, “The Billy & Josh Show,” though at times these scenes give the pilot a sense of choppy pacing. Crystal plays the top dog who is used to calling the shots, and Gad a more condescending and egotistical version of his real-life self. What keeps it interesting is Crystal and Gad’s on-screen chemistry.
Supporting characters such as producer Kristen (Stephnie Weir), an awkward and introverted character with a noisy gastrointestinal problem, add to the hilarity of the show and make it more watchable.
Another example: in a meeting between Crystal and Gad, the two argue over which director to bring in for their debut. The guy they settle on is someone Crystal has worked with before and, problematically, someone whom Kristen dated, not realizing he was married to someone else (she’s definitely going to be a target for jokes). The meeting ends with Crystal leaving, satisfied that his friend will be brought in to help the show, and Kristen proclaiming to an unsettled Gad, “I always have your back, Josh.” Unfortunately, she’s interrupted by her loud stomach growls. Gad scoffs, “You have a colon problem.”
There are times when “The Comedians” goes from lighthearted to slightly darker and homophobic. There are some unnecessary jokes and a seeming determination to portray Gad as younger and edgier, and Crystal as the older comic who’s uncomfortable with Gad’s homosexual and phallic jokes.
“The Comedians” is still mildly entertaining, or at least enough so to keep viewers tuned in for the whole episode. It’s a show that’s another fun peek into the two actors’ lives, though exaggerated and caricaturized. If you’re a fan of Crystal or Gad then it might be worth giving “The Comedians” a try or two for its 13-episode first season. Despite not being the most refreshing pilot, its two main comedians are definitely good enough for a few laughs.
