Comedy Bang! Bang! (TV series)
| Comedy Bang! Bang! | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Genre | |
| Created by | Scott Aukerman |
| Starring |
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| Opening theme | "Comedy Bang! Bang!" |
| Composer(s) |
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| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 5 |
| No. of episodes | 110 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
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| Producer(s) |
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| Location(s) | Los Angeles, California |
| Running time | 22 minutes |
| Production company(s) |
Comedy Bang! Bang! Productions Earwolf Media Abso Lutely Productions IFC Original Productions |
| Release | |
| Original network | |
| Original release | June 8, 2012 – December 2, 2016 |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Comedy Bang! Bang! is a television series created and hosted by Scott Aukerman, featuring his co-host/bandleader "Weird Al" Yankovic. The show aired weekly on IFC and Much and is a spin-off of Aukerman's podcast Comedy Bang! Bang! which airs on the Earwolf network. Like the podcast, the series features outlandish and farcical humor, often delivered in a deadpan manner. The mock talk show derives most of its comedy from its surreal spoofs of common late night tropes as well as from the characters' own cartoonish inability to conduct said talk show.
Reggie Watts left Comedy Bang! Bang! halfway through the fourth season to become the bandleader for The Late Late Show with James Corden.[1] Musician Kid Cudi took over bandleader and sidekick duties after Watts' departure.[2] The season four finale aired on December 10, 2015 and was Cudi's final episode.[3] The series was renewed for a 20-episode fifth season on May 5, 2015.[4] "Weird Al" Yankovic took over the position of bandleader for the fifth season, which premiered on June 3, 2016.[5]
On August 18, 2016, Aukerman announced that the series would end after season 5, and the finale aired on December 2, 2016.[6]
Production
The show features celebrity guests playing either themselves or characters. Many of these celebrities were previous guests on the Comedy Bang! Bang! podcast and revisit characters such as Don Dimello (Andy Daly), El Chupacabra (Nick Kroll), Bob Ducca (Seth Morris), Lil' Gary (Thomas Lennon), Huell Howser (James Adomian) and Cake Boss (Paul F. Tompkins). Many frequent collaborators include former Mr. Show with Bob and David cast members such as Paul F. Tompkins, Bob Odenkirk, and David Cross.
The talk show takes place in one-third of a wooden shack with modern decorations, surreal pop-art, taxidermy, old books without dust-covers, and houseplants. Various objects have the ability to talk including the taxidermy, houseplants, as well as the couch named Sir Couchley.
"Weird Al" Yankovic (from season 5 onward) provided all of the music on the show including the theme song and interstitial music. Reggie Watts wrote the theme song and first performed it on the podcast. Yankovic later performed his version of Watts' original theme.
Episodes
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | |||
| 1 | 10 | June 8, 2012 | August 10, 2012 | |
| 2 | 20 | July 12, 2013 | December 20, 2013 | |
| 3 | 20 | May 8, 2014 | December 19, 2014 | |
| 4 | 40 | January 9, 2015 | December 10, 2015 | |
| 5 | 20 | June 3, 2016 | December 2, 2016 | |
Reception
Critical reception for Comedy Bang! Bang! has generally been mixed to positive, with a rating of 64 on Metacritic,[7] as well as a 7.7/10 user rating on IMDB.[8] Most television critics have given the show positive reviews. Los Angeles Times television reviewer Robert Lloyd has called the show “amusing”, likening it to Space Ghost Coast to Coast.[9] Additionally, the weekly reviews that have been posted on The A.V. Club are generally in the B- to A range.[10]
Home media
Comedy Bang Bang: Season 1 was released on Region 1 DVD on January 21, 2014. The two-disc set consists of all 10 episodes of its first season. Special features include: deleted and extended scenes, full-length alternate celebrity interviews and audio commentaries featuring characters from the show and more.
Comedy Bang! Bang! Season 2 was released on Region 1 DVD on June 24, 2014. The four-disc set consists of all 20 episodes of its second season. Special features include: full episode commentaries, deleted/bonus scenes & interviews, Reggie's season 2 music supercut, VFX tests and more.
The first four seasons are currently available for instant streaming on Netflix.
References
- ↑ "Scott Aukerman Talks to Zach Galifianakis About Comedy Bang! Bang! and President Obama's Between Two Ferns". Vulture. January 8, 2015. Retrieved March 27, 2016.
- ↑ "Reggie Watts named bandleader of CBS' new 'Late Late Show,' appearing at UCB East w/ Janeane Garofalo & more". Brooklyn Vegan. December 15, 2014. Retrieved March 27, 2016.
- ↑ Wright, Megh (December 11, 2015). "Last Night's 'Comedy Bang! Bang!' Finale Was Kid Cudi's Last Episode". Splitsider. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
- ↑ Maglio, Tony (May 5, 2015). "Scott Aukerman's 'Comedy Bang! Bang!' Renewed for Season 5 by IFC". TheWrap. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
- ↑ "Comedy Bang! Bang! on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved March 27, 2016.
- ↑ Wright, Megh (August 18, 2016). "Scott Aukerman Says 'Comedy Bang! Bang!' Will End After Season 5". Splitsider.
- ↑ "Comedy Bang! Bang!". Metacritic. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
- ↑ "Comedy Bang! Bang!". IMDB. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
- ↑ Lloyd, Robert (June 7, 2012). "Reviews: IFC goes wacky with 'Comedy Bang! Bang!' and 'Bunk'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
- ↑ "Comedy Bang! Bang". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 5 August 2016.