The Conchords series was a huge phenomenon that I entirely missed when it was originally on TV - their sound attracted earnest hipsters and it wasn't at all my bag - over the years though I've softened to them and now the astronomic hype has died down the understated alternate reality of the series seems to work even better through that retro lens. A world where these two charming and benign Kiwis aren't particularly liked by anyone and live in squalor in New York, drifting through strange sad narratives and roping their idiosyncratic songs into the mix in surreal asides. It all feels very low key and they play themselves with a heavy deadpan that puts the majority of the comedic weight on the manic Kirsten Schaal and the arrestingly silly Rhys Darby.
The first series is the considerably stronger of the two, building on a wealth of stand-up, album material and even a mockumentary style British radio series (where a rudimentary version of Schaal's character is played stand-up Jimmy Carr would you believe) it has a lot more of a solid narrative foundation than the meandering second and the songs are a lot better. Throughout both though their idiosyncratic and innocuous charm prevails and you can easily see why it launched the mainstream careers of Bobin, Taika et al. It's still not exactly my bag, but it's a pleasant and diverting show nonetheless.
The first series is the considerably stronger of the two, building on a wealth of stand-up, album material and even a mockumentary style British radio series (where a rudimentary version of Schaal's character is played stand-up Jimmy Carr would you believe) it has a lot more of a solid narrative foundation than the meandering second and the songs are a lot better. Throughout both though their idiosyncratic and innocuous charm prevails and you can easily see why it launched the mainstream careers of Bobin, Taika et al. It's still not exactly my bag, but it's a pleasant and diverting show nonetheless.