I was probably a little too giddy for the debut of FX’s “The League” last night, but I definitely still enjoyed the comedy about suburban guys balancing their real lives with their fantasy football league. Pilots have so much responsibility to provide a backdrop that they often get unfairly judged, but I think there’s some real comedic promise in this novel approach to a sitcom.
But then again, I’m also a white male who plays fantasy football watching a show about white men playing fantasy football. What if a newspaper took a staff writer (not the television critic) who knew nothing about fantasy football and made him write a review of the show? That’s what the Washington Post did. Let’s take a look at ignorance, shall we?
The League (FX) — Series premiere. I’ve been checking out the reviews, and the general theme has been “crude and funny like an Apatow comedy, but without the life lessons.” I’m anticipating this show way too much.
Community (NBC) — Tonight looks like a promising Halloween episode. The USA Today guy thinks Joel McHale’s smugness ruins the show, while the New York Post lady admits that her initial negative impression was wrong, and that it’s actually a very funny show.
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (FX) — The gang stages a wrestling match for troops returning from overseas. Look at that picture and tell me you’re not intrigued.
The Real Housewives of Atlanta (Bravo) — Part 1 of a reunion special. Reunion specials: because making a reality show wasn’t lazy and cheap enough.
Tosh.0 (Comedy Central) — Ah, the karmic balance for Jeff Dunham. This combined with the lineups at NBC and FX means I now have 3.5 hours of TV to watch every Thursday. These people have no respect for my desire to go out and start my weekend early.
World Series (Fox) — Game 2: Phillies at Yankees. Living in New York, I’ve met a lot of people I really like who root for the Yankees. They’re smart and passionate people, and it’s given me some respect for the fan base here. But I still want to see the Yankees destroyed.
30 Rock (NBC) — Betty White and Jeff Dunham guest star in an episode in which Tracy Jordan freaks out about the celebrity death phenomenon. The only way this can end to my satisfaction is with Jeff Dunham dying.
Project Runway (Lifetime) — With “Tosh.0″ and “Always Sunny” occupying the 10 o’clock spot on my DVR, I now officially don’t watch “Project Runway.” Between this and quitting “Glee,” I’m pretty much straight again. Woo-hoo!
These spots for FX’s “The League” — about a group of friends balancing real life with their fantasy football teams — have been airing non-stop during “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” for the last four weeks or so, and it’s been killing me because I’ve been excited for the show since mid-July. But the good news is that it FINALLY debuts this Thursday after “Sunny.”
Of the above clip, a shady-ass lawyer I know wrote, “the bit about reducing the plea offer in exchange for fantasy draft picks [is] surprisingly, and maybe somewhat frighteningly, not really all that fictional.” Below is another promo for the show that I very much identify with, because I’m helplessly addicted to fantasy football. If this show doesn’t kick ass I will drop Tom Brady.*
FX has begun production on a pilot called “The League,” about a group of men in the same fantasy football league in suburban Chicago. Under-the-radar indie actor Mark Duplass will star in the main role.
“The League” follows the group as they deal with issues of friendship, relationships and parenthood. Duplass stars along with Nick Kroll (”I Love You Man”), Paul Sheer (“Human Giant”), Steve Rannazzisi (”Paul Blart: Mall Cop”) and Jon Lajoie. Also in the cast are Leslie Bibb (“Iron Man”), Katie Aselton (”The Office”) and Nadine Velazquez (”My Name Is Earl”).
In the pilot, Duplass plays Pete, a married man pondering whether to have a baby. “God bless fantasy football,” Pete says in the script. “There are many things a man can do with his time. This is better than those things.” [Variety]
I definitely don’t hate this. That’s a pretty good cast, and FX seems to genuinely care about making smart, edgy TV programs. It’s basically the opposite of CBS.
(And since I don’t really have anything else to say about this, I’d just like to point out that Duplass stars in True Adolescents, an indie movie currently making the film festival rounds that was written and directed by an NYU film school grad student named Craig Johnson, who used to be my roommate. Because that’s what really matters: how does it relate to me? Anyway, small world. You don’t care. Move along.)
