Australian Tumbleweeds
Will Channel Ten Turn To Comedy To Restore Their Flagging Fortunes?
Well, probably not. But first, the flagging fortunes:
The host of Ten’s evening panel show The Project, Charlie Pickering, is stepping down and will finish up next month.
“The Project has been an incredible ride,” the 36-year-old said in a statement.
“As a stand-up comedian I have never planned to do one thing for five years, let alone five days a week. At the end of last year it was clear to me that I needed to find new challenges.
“Our show has been able to provide a voice to many in our community who go unnoticed. And of that I am immensely proud,” Pickering said.
Ten has confirmed that Pickering will not be replaced, and only Carrie Bickmore and comedian Peter Helliar will carry the show forward.
… for the next few months until the show is quietly put down, we’re guessing. But we’ve been wrong before.
As you’d expect from Michael Idato, there’s a bit more than the usual bitchiness going on in that article – seriously, what’s up with this bit:
When it began, in July, 2009, The 7pm Project was a patchwork of entertainment news, comedy and, inexplicably, a commercial star vehicle for the MTV presenter Ruby Rose.
Remember original panellist James Mathison? What, no hate for him despite his rapid demotion from on-air panellist to “entertainment reporter”? What is it with Sydney people hating Ruby Rose? News flash Sydney-based national media: the rest of Australia couldn’t give a shit.
Anyway, Idato is on the money with this:
His loss, coming so quickly after Hughes, will be deeply felt by the show.
Aahh, that’s right. Hughsie bailed on Ten at the end of last year in what felt like pretty much exactly what he said it was: a man taking a break because he was burnt out and wanted to focus on live performance. But with Pickering – not exactly a man known for his live work, despite regular cash-in appearances at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival – also heading for the door (presumably with a hearty cry of “without Hughsie this show is fucked”), perhaps it’s time to take a closer look at Ten’s wider situation.
Short version: they’re screwed.
Puberty Blues was one of Ten’s most anticipated series returns in 2014 but it has failed to live up to expectations.
It is one of a string of failures for Ten with So You Think You Can Dance, Secrets & Lies and The Biggest Loser: Challenge all battling to crack 400,000 viewers.
And suddenly what in better circumstances might have just been a natural turnover of staff burnt out after close to five years of nightly television suddenly looks more like people getting the hell away from an overstuffed crapsack that just fell off the back of the sewage truck. At the moment Ten has the stink of failure about it and pretty much everything they try is vanishing with nary a trace.
Sound familiar? Okay, probably not, considering we’re talking about 25-odd years ago. By the late 80s the never-all-that-successful Network Ten was struggling in the ratings pretty much across the board. In desperation, they turned to Ian McFadyen’s Media Arts company to create a one hour weekly comedy show – well, actually the desperation came when they put the end result (The Comedy Company, natch) on up against Nine’s ratings juggernaut 60 Minutes. Then in a shock twist it promptly hammered the much-vaunted news program in the ratings, swiftly pulling in a massive audience and becoming one of the foundations of the television comedy boom that ran well into the 90s.
So… could Ten try something like that again? Probably not: back in the 80s there was a thriving live comedy scene that television could plunder at will. These days if you’re even halfway competent you’re being snapped up to quickly burn out on panel shows or you’re heading overseas where funny people can actually find work being funny. The Comedy Company worked in part because it was a bunch of new faces (for television) who were really good (thanks to years of working off-screen); that’s not a combo that’s readily available now.
Considering we were outlining the reasons why we don’t think scripted comedy is coming back to the commercial networks any time soon barely a week ago, we’re hardly going to be saying “Ten totes needs to get a comedy show on the air, stat”. Which is a shame, because at this stage they could easily do worse.
Of course, knowing our luck if they did try a comedy it’d just be a beefed up version of the usual panel show crap – or worse, they’d re-resuscitate Good News Week. A decent comedy effort could revive their fortunes, we’re in no doubt of that. We just don’t think they have the guts – or the vision, or the ability to see beyond the usual suspects – to go all in and put on-air something funny and topical and engaged with society that people could get excited about.
You know, the exact opposite of The Project.
Plonk yourself on the couch and check out some branded comedy
How easy it is to get into an argument about the lack of sitcoms on commercial TV with one of Australia’s most respected TV writers… Meanwhile, the TV writer in question reports that Eleven will begin airing five-part web sitcom Plonk tonight.
Plonk began life as branded content funded by tourism body Destination NSW, and since its launch it’s been doing well on YouTube. Written by and featuring Nathan Earl and Josh Tyler, it stars Chris Taylor as Up-Himself-Chaser-Boy-Chris-Taylor as he and a miss-matched film crew travel around New South Wales making a wine show.
For branded content Plonk is relatively light-touch – there are cameos from wine makers, lots of wineries get a name check, and there are some gorgeously-inviting shots of tourist destinations – but the emphasis is on the comedy. The comedy itself is standard sitcom fare (cartoonish-characters, funny lines, a touch of slapstick) but with a Frontline feel (realistic shooting style and performances). It’s not super hilarious but is quite enjoyable.
One thing worth noting is the pace; with each episode lasting less than 15 minutes there’s no time for the sort of long pauses and moving bits that can cause 25-30 minute sitcoms to drag. And it’s interesting to ponder whether the decision to keep it pacey was to prevent notoriously fickle YouTubers from switching to a cat video. On broadcast TV you can kinda get away with a few slow and boring bits because viewers are less likely to switch off, but there’s no such luxury on YouTube. And that’s a good thing as far as we’re concerned because as a general rule comedy shouldn’t drag – even those gags which are funny because they drag get unfunny pretty quickly.
So, while we’re not exactly thrilled with the idea of sitcoms and other forms of comedy being funded purely to spruik a good or service, we think Plonk has quite a few good things going for it and we think you should check it out.
Knox Knox Knoxing on Heaven’s Door
Respected entertainment reporter – yes, there really are such things – David Knox wonders why we don’t make sitcoms in Australia. He wonders this a lot. He wondered it in November 2013:
Will anybody ever take the kind of risk necessary to achieve one, or are our writers simply not interested?
Then it turned out he’d already wondered it elsewhere a day earlier:
If it wasn’t for our public broadcasters we really wouldn’t see much in the way of local comedy on Free to Air. Commercial networks have given comedy a wide berth of late, preferring to shuffle the laughs into panel shows rather than scripted content. Comedy isn’t even a Logie category anymore.
He wondered it in March 2014:
Aside from the ABC, when was the last time you saw a locally-produced scripted comedy on Australian television?
I’m not talking panel shows or travel specials with comedians, but honest-to-goodness scripted jokes with actors?
He was even talking about it back in 2008:
if Tim Worner thinks comedy is on the rise then he must have heard a different joke.
2008 was the unfunniest year for comedy in ages. There was no Kath & Kim, The Chaser, Summer Heights High or Thank God You’re Here. While it’s true Seven has since snaffled the latter from TEN, what has it decided on the unfunny Out of the Question? And is This is Your Laugh due to resume production? What precisely is the immediate future for new Kath & Kim?
(if he thought 2008 was the unfunniest year for comedy in ages, he must have just loved 2009-2014)
Do we support his push? Of course – we love comedy around these parts. Do we also think it’s a case of wasting effort that could be better spent elsewhere? Well, uh… not that we’d say it to his face or anything, but… you know, his heart’s in the right place, but…
All, the hell with it: the sitcom is dead dead dead on commercial television and has been so in living memory. The last successful sitcom on commercial television was Kath & Kim, which Seven bought from the ABC when it was well past its use-by date. And before that? Do we really have to go back as far as Hey, Dad..!? Because let’s not forget, back in the day sitcoms like Hey, Dad..!, and Newlyweds, and Brass Monkeys, and All Together Now, were considered to be, how you say, “fucking shithouse”.
That’s the thing that really puzzles us here. The only good sitcom of the so-called “golden age” of Australian sitcoms was Mother & Son, and where was that aired? The ABC. Which still airs sitcoms to this day. Problem solved! Man, that was a short article. Where’d we park the car?
Oh right, Knox is talking about multicamera sitcoms – Friends, Seinfeld, that kind of thing. You know, the kind of sitcom the ABC doesn’t make. Even the US doesn’t make all that many of them any more, and they make dozens of sitcoms a year. The UK has moved away from that format too, though not entirely. Mrs Brown’s Boys, anyone? Is that the kind of show our commercial networks should be making?
Knox has forgotten more about television than we’ll ever know, so we’re only putting this stuff in to remind ourselves: Australian commercial networks don’t make sitcoms because it’s cheaper to make hour-long dramas with a bit of comedy stirred in (well, not cheaper but it doesn’t cost twice as much so they get more programming for less money). Dramas are also easier to sell overseas – most Australian comedy sales have been of formats, not finished shows. Good luck competing with American sitcoms anyway because while drama is universal, comedy is often extremely specific. Though wasn’t Hey, Dad..! a big hit in Germany? Must have been the dubbing.
Comedy has always been a cheap product on commercial television. That’s why it clings on there today in the form of panel shows and travelogues. But you simply can’t film a sitcom on the cheap here today – well, you could, but that would mean you’d be relying on the writing rather than the “all-star” cast and production design to get people watching. And as anyone who’s watched even a second of Australian drama over the last decade knows, commercial television does not make quality scripting a high priority.
It just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to be making a stink about something that’s been the case for the last twenty years like it’s suddenly become A Big Deal. After all, sitcoms on commercial television here have always been a): rare, and b): shit. Seriously, look at the list of classic scripted comedies he cites:
Mother and Son, Fast Forward, Kath and Kim, Frontline, The D Generation, The Paul Hogan Show, Summer Heights High, The Comedy Company, The Naked Vicar Show, The Mavis Bramston Show.
Aside from Summer Heights High – which was made by Chris Lilley, who’s still making shows for the ABC so listing him in an article about how networks aren’t supporting comedy is a little iffy (same goes for Frontline and The D Generation) – we’re pretty much all talking shows at least 20 years old that aren’t even sitcoms. The Mavis Bramston Show? Next he’ll be complaining that Australia doesn’t make enough shows in black & white. Which is frighteningly easy to imagine:
Aside from the ABC, when was the last time you saw a locally-produced black & white programme on Australian television?
I’m not talking late night old movies or repeats of US sitcoms that are forty years old, but honest-to-goodness Australian television shows filmed in the format Australians loved for thirty years – black & white?
Oh well, at least he’s out there trying. Sure, instead of trying to drum up more work for the usual unfunny suspects by pretending there’s a massive unmet demand for the kind of show you know Dave O’Neil would find a way to get hired on Knox could always agitate for better comedy, but… naaaah.
Long story short: sitcoms still get made in this country. In fact, we actually make a fair amount of them these days compared to the drought of a decade or so ago. So when Knox says:
Collectively, it’s an industry disgrace and it’s letting us all down.
We have to wonder what the holy heck he’s on about.
Now, making Hey, Dad..! in the first place – there’s your industry disgrace…
Raking through the leaves of bad dramedy
Dramedy has killed comedy. Where once we made out-and-proud sitcoms which aimed for laughs (even if they didn’t always succeed at getting any), now we make dramedies where the potential for comedy is sacrificed to ensure there’s room for moving bits, or tense bits, or realistic bits, or, in the worst and most cynical examples of the genre, a bit where the writers can cover for the fact that they’re just plain crap at writing gags.
But dramedies don’t have to be like this. It is possible to create well-rounded, interesting, believable characters, put them into plots and situations full of twists and turns, and give them a healthy and balanced mix of comedic and dramatic things to do. Rake, which does all these things week-in-week-out, is now in its third, and sadly final, series. In years to come people will remember how much they enjoyed it and wish it would come back. Some of them will pay money to see it again on whatever the latest way to enjoy TV is (Netflix beamed in to our Google glasses, possibly). Will they remember Please Like Me or The Moodys with similar fondness?
Part of Rake’s brilliance is down to the main character. Cleaver Greene’s hardly the kind of guy you’d want to marry or be friends with, he’s probably not even someone you’d want to have a one night stand with or have defending you, even though he seems to be pretty good at having sex and being a lawyer, but he’s great television. In his circle of high-earning, well-educated, middle class, successful types, Cleaver’s both the most screwed-up and self-indulgent, and the only one with any sort of integrity. While everyone else’s number one priority is to maintain their position by covering their arses, Cleaver’s crazy enough to sacrifice his for the truth, justice and a good time. Dumb enough to stuff up frequently but smart enough to bounce back endlessly, he’s also the only one prepared to prick the establishment’s pomposity and mock their pretensions. He’s more than the textbook definition of a rake, he’s a social and political satirist, and an anti-hero who’s on the same side as us ordinary folk. And that’s always going to make an audience laugh with him no matter what he does.
The other key to the success of Rake is the way in which the dramatic and comedic elements of the show can exist in the same scene and even the same line of dialogue. Many contemporary dramedies do the opposite, going from funny to serious with gear changes so crunching and noticeable that the whole realism vibe they’re trying for crumbles to dust. In Rake you get reality because people in the worlds of the law and politics are like that, but you get comedy because the situation’s heightened just enough to make you laugh. It’s a perfect, natural combination.
It’s no surprise that the series’ writers have as much experience in comedy as they do in drama (meaning they can do both very well), and anyone who thinks you can skimp on good writing in this kind of comedy is talking out their arse. Watch the bonus mockumentary on the series 2 DVD. It’s Richard Roxburgh as Cleaver improvising answers to a journalist’s questions and it’s not funny. Improv or an improv feel isn’t always a disaster area, but it’s rarely as funny as a well-acted, well-scripted scene. Imagine if all of Rake had that still-oh-so-fashionable-for-some-reason mockumentary feel. We wouldn’t be writing this glowing tribute to the show, that’s for sure. Which makes us wonder why we’ve never really blogged about it before. We don’t quite know ourselves. Maybe we’re so busy watching the Australian shows that billed as comedy that we’re neglecting to watch the Australian shows that contain actual comedy? Mistake acknowledged, correction made, blog written.
Vale Print Media
You may not have noticed, what with that whole “death of print media” thing going on even though we still seem to be getting loads of junk mail in our letterbox every day and what is print media but a couple of news stories stuck on the front of a Target catalogue anyway? We digress: This weekend just gone saw both The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald re-size their weekend editions down to the tabloid format, and they took this opportunity to do some minor house-keeping on their arts pages. Long story short: Age TV critics Ben Pobjie and Melinda Houston have been dumped! Awww.
That’s not to say they’re gone from the Fairfax stables forever. Writers have a habit of being recycled over there and look – Pobjie’s latest online column is dated Feb 28th so who knows? Maybe he’s just moved to online-only, or he’s now writing their weekday TV column along with at least half a dozen other people*. Or editorial didn’t have the guts to tell him he’s was fired and when he sent in his latest column they thought they’d better put it up before he went on another long twitter rant about his depression.
(Houston’s most recent column is dated Feb 23rd, so we’re guessing she really is outta here**)
To get the serious stuff out of the way, it’s never a good thing when media outlets consolidate their voices. Both writers are replaced by SHM regulars; Houston’s replacement is David Knox from TV Tonight, which isn’t exactly a blow for diversity when it comes to variety in reviewing. And losing a job is tough, especially in the current media climate, so to gloat or rejoice in such a situation would be both unseemly and uncouth.
On the other hand, screw those guys. Whatever talents and abilities they might have had in other areas, as television reviewers – fuck, they weren’t even reviewers really. They were people who waffled on somewhat adjacent to television groping blindly for points that the television show supposedly under discussion occasionally seemed to support. Unless you had actually watched the show in question, in which case you were almost always left scratching your head so hard you’d need corrective surgery to fill in the grooves.
We don’t ask much from TV critics. We don’t even ask that they know much about television. All we want is critics who can write coherently, review shows purely on their merits – no matter where the shows in question are produced – and who take seriously their responsibility to give the public their opinion. So, uh, yeah. These guys. Yeah.
Who could forget this classic review by Houston of Angry Boys:
that familiar, inspired collision of irreverence, LOL moments and tenderness that define this series at its best.
You might think you know what she’s trying to say there, but read it again: is she saying the show is inspired in the way it mashes elements together? Is “familiar” meant to be a good thing? Aren’t “irreverence” and “LOL moments” the same thing? And why say “LOL moments” when “jokes” or even “laughs” would be more accurate? Oh wait, she’s writing about Angry Boys, none of this makes any fucking sense because the the “tenderness” she’s talking about was actually clumsy mawkishness, the “irreverence” was someone taking a shit on a police car and the “LOL moments”… well, good luck finding any of those.
Other classics from the Houston song book include: the time she felt the need to tell us that in Australia sitcoms go for 30 minutes; the time she loved Randling before even seeing the first episode; the time she said Randling was getting better every week: and of course, the time she said that Randling was the worst show in the history of Australian television.
But while Houston’s steadfast commitment to never saying a bad word about an Australian production no matter how kak-handed it was earned her our ire over the years, it was Pobjie’s refusal to consider that television was even worth caring about that raised an eyebrow or two:
none of that actually means I’m ”right” and anyone else is ”wrong”. When you’re judging comedy, there’s no such thing as right or wrong – there’s just ”I laughed” or ”I didn’t”. Nothing is objectively good or bad, and anyone trying to convince you otherwise is kidding you and themselves.
That’s right: anyone telling you a show is “good” or “bad” is, according to Pobjie, kidding themselves. Hey, let’s make that guy our TV critic!
You could argue – and a few people have over the years – that what he’s really saying here is that strident views do more harm than good and we should all realise that there is room for differing opinions when it comes to discussing a subjective area such as comedy. WRONG.
Everyone reading a television review column – or any kind of review anywhere – already knows it’s just one person’s opinion. Trust us on this: the lamest possible response to a bad review is “that’s just your opinion”. To write in a major daily newspaper that “hey, it’s just one person’s opinion” is to insult your readership: they know it’s just your opinion, that’s why they’re reading it – TO GET YOUR OPINION.
But not in Pobjie’s book. No, time and time again he let us know that having a firmly held opinion and the desire to express it decisively were not attributes he felt were an advantage for a working television critic. Instead, he stood up for the Australian television industry at a time when it only has around fifteen television channels, a variety of glossy weekly magazines and an army of skilled PR operatives telling us all how great it is day in day out. He gushed constantly about Marieke Hardy’s Laid while forgetting to tell his readers he was buddies with her. And he wrote this line while being employed, as we’ve already mentioned, as a television columnist for a major metropolitan daily newspaper:
It’s only TV, after all – it’s important but it doesn’t matter.
We’re not going to miss him.
*[edit]: turns out Pobjie is going to do the daily TV column (thanks to Urinal Cake for the heads up) at Fairfax. This is actually good news for both us and him, because that column – unless it’s undergone a radical transformation – requires the writer to talk specifically about the shows that are on that night, not burble on with some half-baked theory about television in general. As our major problem with Pobjie has been the burbling and not the writing (or his opinions when he’s had them – remember when he didn’t like Ja’mie: Private School Girl? ), this is, as we said, good news. Kind of.
**[edit 2]: nope, turns out she’s just on a couple weeks break. That’s right: this entire post was a complete waste of your time and ours as both these critics are still employed in the same or better jobs than they were a week ago. Oh the irony that a post berating people for being bad at their jobs should clearly be the product of people no good at theirs either! Still, at least we come to you, cap in hand, begging your forgiveness for our mistakes secure in the knowledge that our blundering means you’ll now think less of us: these guys don’t give a fuck what you think otherwise they wouldn’t be so quick to talk up complete crap week in week out.
Little sketches of horror(s)
This is Littleton is a new four-part sketch show set in the municipal offices of the fictional City of Littleton. It premiered on ABC2 tonight, and treads well-worn ground in TV sketch in that it features recurring characters (Little Britain, Live from Planet Earth) and is set in the suburbs (The Comedy Company, The Wedge).
The characters are the usual mix of ethnic and gender stereotypes, sociopaths, freaks and weirdos that you get in shows like this, including a wannabe-glam trophy wife of an elderly man, a Schapelle Cordy-esque young woman trying to get out of a Balinese jail, two old Greek men who discuss incongruously youthy phenomenon (such as Snapchat), and an over-zealous IT manager. And based on the two episodes of This Is Littleton we’ve seen so far there’s not much in the way of character development or storylines. Sure, the IT manager gets a bit of plot in episode 2, but those two Greek men? Expect them to perform roughly the same sketch, week in, week out, and for it to be about as funny.
The cast that play these characters are all relative newscomers, with Triple J Breakfast’s Matt Okine and Ronny Chieng the best known performers, and generally speaking they all do quite a good job with the material. But let’s be clear, this it isn’t their material, even though many of the main players are stand-ups and sketch writer/performers. And perhaps if some or all of the sketches were written by or with the cast this show might work better, or at least feel less disjointed. Maybe it might even have some sort of point?
Good sketch shows, like Mad As Hell, are the work of an established team who have a shared vision and understanding. The is Littleton feels like yet another one of those shows where a bunch of people who (mostly) haven’t worked together before are thrown in to a room and invited to deliver someone else’s half-arsed concept. We hate to remind you of The Wedge and Live from Planet Earth again, but The Wedge and Live from Planet Earth! Jesus, when will people in Australian TV learn that this isn’t a great way to do sketch?!
Having said that, here’s an ABC press release we received last week…
FRESH BLOOD FINDS NEW COMEDIC TALENT
ABC TV and Screen Australia will commission 25 projects for Fresh Blood, an initiative to find the next generation of comedy performers and producers.
The successful 25 projects each receive a budget of $10,000 to produce three, 2-5 minute short form comedy sketches to premiere on ABC iview this year.
With a record of 20 million program plays in December, iview is Australia’s most popular catch-up service and an ideal fit for ‘social sharing’ short form sketches.
“Fresh Blood is one of the most exciting projects for us, “says Richard Finlayson, ABC Director of Television. “Not only does it continue ABC TV’s commitment to nurturing and supporting fantastic Australian comedic talent, it gives 25 aspiring comedians and comedy groups the amazing opportunity to see their ideas turned into content that will premiere on iview later this year.
“It’s the kind of leg up any young, up and coming comedy hopeful would kill for, and I can’t wait to see the results.”
“There’s a rich pool of Australian comic talent working outside the system making quality content for digital distribution,” said Graeme Mason, CEO, Screen Australia. “Through the Fresh Blood initiative, we’re thrilled to offer some the opportunity to take their careers to the next level with this injection of funds, and the relationship with a major broadcaster and Federal screen agency. Fresh Blood is a dynamic addition to Screen Australia’s suite of support for practitioners using newer technologies and platforms to reach their audience.”
ABC TV and Screen Australia have received an overwhelming 492 applications, since the call-out for “Fresh Blood” went out last October. Due to the high calibre of creative entries, 25 projects are to be commissioned, one more than the 24 projects originally sought.
“It was a difficult task to select just 24 from an amazingly talented field, so in the end we had to choose 25 because it was just too hard,” says Sophia Zachariou, Acting Head Entertainment, ABC TV.
“The 25 projects range from puppetry and animation to absurdist sketch and I have no doubt that the clever, funny people in and behind these Fresh Blood projects are going to be big names in Australian comedy in the future.”
Fresh Blood will be produced by ABC Entertainment TV and is the first digital commission for iview. It positions the catch up service as a creative platform for innovative content.
…and while this is a way for up-and-coming established groups to get their unique visions out there, don’t think we’re automatically going to like what they produce. The material has to be good too. And the thing is, if This Is Littleton were funnier we wouldn’t care that the cast didn’t have a hand in the writing because we’d be laughing too much to mind.
What’s The Matter With Kids These Days?
Well, guess we all knew this day was coming:
PRODUCTION STARTS ON SEASON TWO OF
JOSH THOMAS’ PLEASE LIKE ME
New cast announced as season one wins AACTA and receives GLAAD nomination.
Production is underway in Melbourne on the highly anticipated second season of Josh Thomas’ award-winning comedy drama Please Like Me. Created, written by and starring celebrated Australian comedian Josh Thomas, the second season was ordered by the ABC and Participant Media’s US television network Pivot following the international success of season one. The 10 x 30 season stars Thomas alongside a host of returning and new cast, and will air later this year on ABC2 in Australia and Pivot in the US.
The critically acclaimed first season of Please Like Me was heralded as one of the best shows of 2013 by The New Yorker, TIME, Entertainment Weekly and the LA Times. In Australia, the series has become ABC2’s highest rating original comedy series and was the recent winner of the 2014 AACTA Award for Best Television Comedy or Light Entertainment Series. In the US it is currently nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Comedy Series, alongside Glee, Modern Family, Orange is the New Black and 2014 Golden Globe® winner the Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
Thomas said of going into production, ‘The first season was enjoyed by some people, which is the dream. I’m super excited about season 2. Hopefully we won’t stuff this one up.’
In the first season, Josh was dumped by his girlfriend, gained and lost a boyfriend, came out to his parents, lost his eccentric great aunt, and moved back in to live with his bipolar mother after her suicide attempt. In season two, Josh tries to get through the day without upsetting anyone. The new season also welcomes a new dog, a new rabbit and a new baby. There’s no big twist. It isn’t Lost.
New cast members in season two include the award-winning comedian Hannah Gadsby, iconic Australian entertainer Denise Drysdale, and talented rising stars Keegan Joyce (Rake), Charles Cottier (Home & Away) and Charlotte Nicdao (The Slap, The Time Of Our Lives).
The new cast will be joining Josh and his circle of family and friends from season one including Debra Lawrance (Mum), David Roberts (Dad), Renee Lim (Mae), Thomas Ward (Tom), Caitlin Stasey (Claire) and Wade Briggs (Geoffrey).
Award-winning film and TV director Matthew Saville (The Slap, Cloudstreet, Felony) and producer Todd Abbott also return for the second season. Executive producers are Josh Thomas, Todd Abbott and Kevin Whyte. Executive producers for the ABC are Rick Kalowski and Brett Sleigh, and for Pivot, Jeff Skoll and Holly Hines.
Rick Kalowski, ABC Head of Comedy, said “We couldn’t be prouder at ABC to be going into business with Pivot on season two of this outstanding show. I’ve never read new scripts as assured as these. Please Like Me fans all over the world are in for a major treat.”
Pivot (Pivot.tv), which launched in August 2013 with Please Like Me, is a US television network from Participant Media serving passionate Millennials (18-34) with a diverse slate of talent and a mix of original season, acquired programming, films and documentaries. Pivot on Twitter @pivot_tv and Facebook at facebook.com/pivottelevision.
What is there to say about this that a heavy sigh follow by an exaggerated eye-roll hasn’t already expressed? The hilarious under-stating of pretty much everything reads to us more like blunt statements of fact, while “I’ve never read new scripts as assured as these” only sounds like a compliment until you realise it’s coming from the producer and head writer for Wednesday Night Fever.
The real bit to take notice of is, of course, “Please Like Me fans all over the world are in for a major treat”, because as we all know Please Like Me was a largely ignored ratings fizzle here, as well as pretty much the only show to date to be dropped from ABC1 to ABC2. But it was picked up by new millennial-friendly US cable network Pivot due to.. well, it had a lead actor under 30, so let’s go with that.
(and also it being the six weeks between America falling in love with Chris Lilley and then falling out of love with Chris Lilley, which made awkward Australian comedy flavour of the month. Well, flavour of the six weeks.)
So celebrations are in order: Australian television has finally become a direct link in the American supply chain, right down to calling what should be series two “season two”. What was formerly seen as bland, inept characterisation can now be sold as “addressing the international marketplace” while a lack of jokes is clearly “ensuring it remains accessible to a global audience”.
Presumably they’re saving the announcement that Thomas’ hairstyle is “Donald Trump Jr.” for season three.
Come on, entertain us!
Yesterday it was announced that Jon Casimir, currently an executive producer at Cordell Jigsaw Zapruder, will start work as the ABC’s Head of Entertainment in April. Sophia Zachariou, who has been acting Head of Entertainment, now has a new job as Deputy Head of Entertainment (overseeing entertainment and non-narrative comedy), while Rick Kalowski (producer of Wednesday Night Fever) remains as Head of Comedy (responsible for sketch and narrative comedy). This isn’t exactly a comedy dream team.
Casimir is best known for co-creating The Gruen Transfer with Andrew Denton, and working on other Zapruder/Cordell Jigsaw Zapruder productions such as Enough Rope, The Joy of Sets, Randling and Julia Zemiro’s Home Delivery. According to his biography on the (mysteriously still on the web) Randling website, before moving in to television Casimir spent almost two decades working as a journalist and editor at the Sydney Morning Herald, whilst also dabbling in radio and writing books.
On the one hand, Casimir’s appointment makes sense, he co-created a massive and continuing hit for the ABC in the Gruen franchise. On the other hand, he also co-created Randling, an epic fail of a panel show that cost the ABC more than whatever 27 half hours of shithouse panel show costs to make, it cost them in ratings, audience goodwill and credibility. You know, the kind of things you don’t wanna lose.
Still, we should probably wait until Casimir actually commissions some shows before we judge him. Unlike Rick Kalowski, who looked like a bad bet going in to the Head of Comedy job with a CV that included being producer of Double Take and script editor of Comedy Inc, Casimir has worked on some decent shows. And he may not necessarily give us a Wednesday Night Fever. Our fear is more that he’ll commission more of the sort of not-really-comedy comedy that he’s best known for. Shows which feature smug people behind desks spouting light-hearted waffle. And that may be the sort of thing that some people like to watch, but for us that’s not entertainment.