The other day I was watching an episode of the new season of Pen15 when I found that I couldn’t stop smiling and laughing. There was a subtle ongoing joke that just hit the sweet spot for me, one that I really just hadn’t thought much about before.
In season 2, episode 6 of the Hulu comedy, the two main characters join the production of a school play. The trope starts here: The play was written by drama teacher, and even though the subject material is written for adults, it’s performed by middle schoolers.
I absolutely love this trope. It’s the combination of young people playing adult roles focused on adult drama/subjects and the intensity of the drama teacher who presumably would prefer their play to be on Broadway…but all they access to are kids (and they can’t see that the material isn’t quite appropriate for them).
I’ve definitely seen this trope before, often featuring a washed-up drama teacher and often in a way that beats the viewer over the head with the ridiculousness of the situation. Though I liked in Pen15 that the drama teacher was normal (and actually a mostly good teacher) and that it was more subtle to it’s portrayal of kids-playing-adults (which is even better in this particular show, as Pen15 features two adults playing middle schoolers).
Can you think of other shows/movies with this trope? If you enjoy it, I’d highly recommend watching this episode of Pen15. You can watch it out of context from the rest of the show–it’ll still make sense.
One of my favorite tropes is an over the top man fight. The naked one in Borat is the standard, with a really close contender, the fight between Sean and Matt LeBlanc on Episodes. It involves a cactus, and Matt’s signature cologne.
Episodes is a really good comedy, and your prompt is what brought it to mind…two British screenwriters try to adapt their dry comedy to American tastes w Matt LeBlanc starring. Hilarity ensues. Not exactly your trope at all, but involving drama, writers etc.
VERY much worth watching. There are maybe 4 on the short side seasons.
And for acting, again, trope adjacent…Life’s Too Short w Warwick Davis, the guy who played an Ewok in Star Wars. OMG it is so funny, there are some scenes of what he is forced to do that are just cringe humiliating.
Both are really really underrated. As is the Comeback, Lisa Kudrow also being humiliated as an actress. Just classic.
And if you want DRY, totally unrelated, try Getting On, a comedy set in a long term care facility. Sounds grim, but OMG, one of the best comedys I have ever seen.
I am a comedy nerd, can you tell?
I haven’t heard of Episodes, but I definitely need to try it now (along with these other suggestions)! 🙂
Oh Jamie, I do not think you will be disappointed with any of my selections, especially Episodes which in my mind is on my top 10 of all comedies. The writing on all of these series is exceptional, and I have a very high bar for comedy.
I will also recommend Extras, a Ricky Gervais gig, I think ran two seasons with a special. So maybe 12 episodes total? He plays a second rate actor who gets to meet famous people, so there is a really famous person in each episode. To great hilarity.
What is good about all of the shows I recommended is they are very limited in scope, most could be binged in a week or two, you do not have to spend years to see all the content. They shone brightly, were ahead of their time and got cancelled like Arrested Development and Freaks and Geeks, the latter of which you really also have to see at least once.
I have been a bit let down with the latter AD content, and actually got bored and could not finish it. Its freshness has dated a bit, whereas I think all of the shows I cite are timeless.
Lifes Too Short in particular is a really good look at disability, ostensibly, Davis, is a little person, but he owns it, and plays to it. Gervais was involved in this production, and him and Stephen Merchant guest star.
Getting On stars Laurie Metchalf and Niecy Nash (of Reno 911, another huge favorite of mine and is spot on at its handling of middle aged women. the show goes places I have never seen another show go, with complete dryness. It is not for everyone, and is perhaps the least accessible of all the shows, but oh man, so understated and walking a tightrope in dealing with aging.
Thanks! I’ve seen Extras, and I’ve watched Arrested Development multiple times. 🙂