Episode 15 - Don Geiss, America and Hope
20 March 2010
Review
Synopsis: Jack wants to know all about Kable Town's corporate structure so that he can fit in and thrive. But he loses hope when he realises that they don't innovate or create new products but instead rely on pay per view porn for their income. When he buries Don Geiss though he suddenly has an idea on how to innovate. Meanwhile Liz and Wesley continue to run into one another and he suggests that fate is advising them to settle for one another. Tracy's former nanny writes a tell-all book which reveals his fidelity and it threatens to ruin his image.
The Good: In general I thought this episode worked pretty well. All three plots had a good hook to keep you interested. Liz and Wesley had a weird anti-romantic comedy story, while Jack and Tracy both had professional hurdles to overcome. All three stories drove toward a conclusion that most viewers instinctively would want to see play out.
For those of us not saturated with Tiger Woods coverage, the Tracy story was pretty enjoyable. Even before the Woods scandal a line like "I saw some women came forward to say you didn't have sex with them" would have made me smile. There is also something inherently sweet about Tracy's love for his family and a fake image built on sleaze.
Jack's story once more made him out to be an inspirational figure even amongst the mess which this show is. I liked how his abrupt exit from the funeral was taken as an inspired tribute to his former mentor Don Geiss - "I just had an amazing business idea, you'll have to excuse me." His patronising "Porn for Women" idea was typically silly but it fit the story well of innovating and creating on behalf of Kable Town. The mocking of Comcast's business model was predictable but satisfying.
Liz refusing to settle would be a good story if she didn't spend every other episode destroying her own character with cheap laughs. The "don't settle" message linked well with Jack's plot though.
The Bad: In the end it seems like the Wesley story was just an excuse for a few English jokes. And believe me there is plenty to work with (see Family Guy 304), but making up fake words like "Film pod" and "Foot cycle" wasn't very clever. That's the lowest form of satire possible. The angry dentist whose jealous of his brother was overplayed too with little to commend it.
The joke about Kable Town buying NBC as a charitable donation is ridiculous. Maybe arguing over U.S. cities is a joke which you really do have to be there to enjoy.
Comic Highlight: Tracy says he got a call from a friend at "Little Brown." Though he clarifies that he didn't mean the publishing house but the "Premier Talent Agency for Black Dwarves." He follows up by saying that his former nanny revealed his addiction to "prescription...glasses" which made me laugh. Though of course they then had to ruin the fun with a very lame attention deficit disorder joke.
The Bottom Line: A decent episode, not remotely great but enjoyable enough to pass the time with some fun lines here and there.
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