Get space bugs in your brain!
It’s the current year. On one side, we have disaster after disaster in Washington with politicians that don’t seem to know what they are doing. On another, we have a corrupt and dishonest news media that seems to disregard nuance in favor of thirty second sound bites. On yet another, we have an entertainment industry that hates originality and loves hyper-leftist political grandstanding.
But what if these institutions were the victims of something far more sinister? What if space bugs from a meteor were actually eating half of peoples’ brains and taking them over bit by bit?
That’s the premise of Braindead, one of the best new shows of 2016.
Yes, you heard me.
The Cast Is One Of The Best I’ve Ever Seen.
I really like this entire foursome.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead leads an incredible cast as Laurel Healy, a documentary filmmaker that turns to her brother, Senator Luke Healy (Danny Pino), for a job after she runs out of money. Their performances lend a lot of heart to the show as they are effectively the straight man and woman in a world going increasingly mad. It’s a very interesting play on traditional storytelling because the Senator tries to reason with Team Spacebug, but Laurel is busy investigating the overarching conspiracy.
On the side of the supporting players, we’ve got a mix of veteran actors and new players to play around in this bizarre sci-fi comedy-drama-horror story. Tony Shaloub and Jan Maxwell show off their range as Senators Red Wheatus and Ella Pollack. These two politicians who become increasingly important as the series progresses, but they’ll also make you laugh at the larger-than-life bizarro comedy and how close it is to what is actually infecting Washington these days.
Aaron Tveit, Nikki James, and Johnny Ray Gill round out the cast as Gareth, Rochelle, and Gustav. I’m very impressed with their portrayals and the use of these characters as investigators, but Tveit is the stand-out both as a scheming assistant and someone who engages in one of the most messed-up comedy sequences I’ve ever seen on television. However, that’s not to count James or Gill out. I like how they play with technology, round out the world, and make all of these absurd situations seem horrifyingly plausible.
Do Space Bugs Dream Of Half-Brained Sleep?
Juicing is for hipsters… and aliens, too, apparently…
This show is the definition of innovation now because of how it mixes up science fiction, comedy, drama, horror, politics, a pinch of romance, and all sorts of other things in a mish-mash that just works. Now, some people might be wary of shows like this because of the political grandstanding that I mentioned above, but I’m pleased to say that this show delightfully (and rightfully) skewers Democrats and Republicans alike. If I had to sum it up, it would be in the following manner:
It is the response of rational Americans to the utter dysfunction and hysteria in Washington right now.
In many ways, it follows the creed that I try to live by with my own writing. To recap, you shouldn’t discuss politics all that much in a show. If you do, it should serve as a means of uniting the nation. And that is where BrainDead succeeds magnificently. It’s the kind of show that you can watch, laugh your ass off, and shake your head when you make the parallels between fiction and reality.
All Hail JoCo, Lord And Master Of Song!
Yes, I’m sparing a section for this guy. Deal with it!
One of the greatest masterstrokes of this show is using Jonathan Coulton, the creator of songs like Still Alive from Portal, to do recap songs at the beginning of every episode. It’s one of the most creative ways to set the mood of a show that I’ve ever seen in my life, especially when you get to episode six.
And no, I’m not spoiling a goddamn thing! This guy is one of the quickest wits in musical comedy, and I’m really glad he was able to create some of the most pitch-black humor I’ve seen thus far on television.
A Missed Opportunity.
I’m not saying that Conan deserves a skewering, but infected celebrities would be hilarious.
But damn it, BrainDead, you missed a critical opportunity to make fun of the entertainment industry what with how celebrities are engaging in political activity these days. And I’m not just saying that from a “Tee hee, look at those dumbass celebrities!” perspective. It’s because it makes a lot of narrative sense.
As I mentioned above, the big three institutions are entertainment, the news, and politics. Unfortunately, this show only focuses on the latter two when many ideas (or the lack thereof) come out of Hollywood, books, and television itself. To be fair, that might force the humor to get a bit too meta, but it’d be interesting to see the space bugs infect, say, movie stars and turn them into what is now known as the Regressive Left.
Conclusion.
This show will blow your mind!
BrainDead is a jewel in the crown of CBS, mostly because it is an innovative, risk-taking, and thought-provoking dramedy. Given how lazy Hollywood is these days, everything about the combinations that I mentioned above shouldn’t work. And yet, it does.
Enough with the formalities. GO WATCH THIS SHOW! It’s on Sunday nights at 10/9 Central on CBS.
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