2x03 'The Tough Brets'

[size=133:4muylb0c]Flight of The Conchords: “The Tough Brets”

[size=100:4muylb0c]Well, I couldn’t get out of my mind-numbing job until about 7PM last night, so we’re not going to bother with a rundown of Monday’s shows because it’s Tuesday. Instead we’re going to knock out a recap for Sunday’s Flight of The Conchords, which we thought was a significant improvement over the the episode that preceded it.

Bret and Jemaine (Much to our dismay we’ve been spelling his name, “Jermaine” for the past season and two episodes, as reader Brad Eleven so kindly pointed out to us) have never been the assertive type. So the notion of one of them forming a gang and the other being so passive that he can’t even bring himself to ask for a spot in it was suitable for a comedy. You know, when a guy is running around town with a picture of Knut stitched onto his sweater, it can make for a few laughs.



[size=75:4muylb0c]If this little guy couldn't bring about world peace, then I'm afraid no mortal sentient has any chance. Sorry, Barack.


We also loved the running gag of Bret, Jemaine & Murray’s collective self-consciousness when in the presence of Australians. Not that any of them would be particularly cunning in an exchange of barbs, but the frozen looks on their faces stemmed from a lifelong inferiority complex. I don’t really know anything about the two countries but the fact that they’re always hammering away at this is one of the better sources of material for the series.

We didn’t much care for the subplot with Mel and the painting, even though it brought us some quality moments between the beleagured Doug and his domineering spouse. The picture itself was a quality site gag, as is this show’s wont, but it sort of just hit a wall with the “hurt feelings” reprise and they didn’t bother addressing it again. For good reason, it didn’t really have any logical conclusion. Maybe they’ll touch on it again later in the season but outside of Bret telling Jemaine he was only good at sex last week because he asked him in front of Sally, I can’t think of another example of subtle continuity from this show.

Oh, and the music, our main point of contention from last week was actually funny. We tend to enjoy the songs that have actual funny lines, more so than the songs that’s prime objective are an over-the-top satire of one genre or another. The cold open with Bret’s, “___ is not very good” “dissing” rap, the rappers feelings song and the Westside Story parody, for the first time in awhile we thought the music was the best part of the episode. And the episode outside of the music was fantastic.

Just a fantastic episode from one of the cleverer series’ on television. Any complaints we may have had were nitpicky and made up for with something as simple as confusion during roll call. It’s a shame they can’t all be like this, but it would probably end up unappreciated if they were.

[size=133:gn3qs2jn]FOTC: Tough Brets

[size=100:gn3qs2jn]This week on Flight of the Conchords, the band did something new. In all of their recent interviews, Bret and Jermaine have been talking about creating all new material, being able to write the plots they want and then making songs to go with them rather than having to write plots around songs from their back catalog. Sunday’s episode was the first time the show really felt like it had a cohesive theme instead of being a series of semi-related bits. While the resulting product wasn’t as funny or sharp as the show usually is, it didn’t feel like a waste. It could be the beginning of a interesting new trend.

The whole thing started at a gig booked at the local library. Say what you will about Murray’s choice of venues, but don’t underestimate his enthusiasm. I can’t help but see an implicit joke about Murray’s ability to sell the manager of a library on the idea of a live mid-day concert. The gig consisted mostly of Bret’s new song, a rap that attempts to dis every rapper Bret can think of by saying they are simply “not good”. Later, Bret’s friends worry for his safety now that he’s made enemies of the entire hip-hop community. So, Bret decides to form a gang.

Bret’s gang, The Tough Brets, is made up of some colorful locals. Aside from Bret, there’s Mr and Mrs Lee who own the Internet cafe downstairs, Arj Barker’s consistently clueless Dave, and a surprising guest spot by screen veteran Seymour Cassel. Jermaine is noticeably absent from the gang roster. The Tough Brets are pretty dedicated, hanging out in Bret and Jermaine’s apartment waiting for a rapper ambush. The whole thing was a little cartoony, but the ambition of the concept is endearing.

While Bret is defending his life from the likes of Snoop Dogg, Jermaine is busy trying to rid himself of an embarrassing picture Mel painted for him depicting him as Ra the Sun God. I suppose the Conchords listened to their (actual) fans when everyone clamored for more Mel after season one. Kristen Schaal proves she can carry a lot more than just three minute bits.

On the music front, we got what I’m counting as 1 3/4 songs this week. It’s turning out to be a hip-hop parody heavy season. The Hiphoppopotamus and the Rhymnoserous came back to the show with “Hurt Feelings”, a pretty funny list of grievances like Jermaine not getting a call from his mother on his birthday. Later in a nicely-shot montage of many of the show’s characters, the rap’s sorrowful chorus reprises with a disarmingly affecting convergence of plots.

The other sort-of song is an homage to West Side Story with “Stay Cool”. Bret and his gang snap their fingers at a group of tween-aged vandals while Murray and Jermaine confront those jerks at the Australian Consulate who have been insulting them for the entire episode. At first the parody seemed stale and forced, but it quickly became an excellent, funny bit and one of the best all-around moments of the show.

Of course, by the end The Tough Brets are no more. Just like the episode’s smoother, more plot-driven format, it was an interesting experiment that wasn’t as effective as it could have been.


Best Moment: The “Hurt Feelings” reprise. I’m enjoying these occasional bits of high-end cinematography.

Biggest Laugh: Mel delivering the first iteration of her painting to Jermaine. “It depicts how powerful you are, like Ra the Sun God or a pharaoh!”

Episode Rating: 3.8/5 - I’m hoping to see more cohesive plots this season. Even if this week’s didn’t result in the best songs or the funniest gags, it was nice to break away from what might otherwise become a formula.

hellomyfriend wrote:

[size=133:8w0c3hti]Flight of The Conchords: “The Tough Brets”

[size=100:8w0c3hti]Well, I couldn’t get out of my mind-numbing job until about 7PM last night, so we’re not going to bother with a rundown of Monday’s shows because it’s Tuesday. Instead we’re going to knock out a recap for Sunday’s Flight of The Conchords, which we thought was a significant improvement over the the episode that preceded it.

Bret and Jemaine (Much to our dismay we’ve been spelling his name, “Jermaine” for the past season and two episodes, as reader Brad Eleven so kindly pointed out to us) have never been the assertive type. So the notion of one of them forming a gang and the other being so passive that he can’t even bring himself to ask for a spot in it was suitable for a comedy. You know, when a guy is running around town with a picture of Knut stitched onto his sweater, it can make for a few laughs.



[size=75:8w0c3hti]If this little guy couldn't bring about world peace, then I'm afraid no mortal sentient has any chance. Sorry, Barack.


We also loved the running gag of Bret, Jemaine & Murray’s collective self-consciousness when in the presence of Australians. Not that any of them would be particularly cunning in an exchange of barbs, but the frozen looks on their faces stemmed from a lifelong inferiority complex. I don’t really know anything about the two countries but the fact that they’re always hammering away at this is one of the better sources of material for the series.

We didn’t much care for the subplot with Mel and the painting, even though it brought us some quality moments between the beleagured Doug and his domineering spouse. The picture itself was a quality site gag, as is this show’s wont, but it sort of just hit a wall with the “hurt feelings” reprise and they didn’t bother addressing it again. For good reason, it didn’t really have any logical conclusion. Maybe they’ll touch on it again later in the season but outside of Bret telling Jemaine he was only good at sex last week because he asked him in front of Sally, I can’t think of another example of subtle continuity from this show.

Oh, and the music, our main point of contention from last week was actually funny. We tend to enjoy the songs that have actual funny lines, more so than the songs that’s prime objective are an over-the-top satire of one genre or another. The cold open with Bret’s, “___ is not very good” “dissing” rap, the rappers feelings song and the Westside Story parody, for the first time in awhile we thought the music was the best part of the episode. And the episode outside of the music was fantastic.

Just a fantastic episode from one of the cleverer series’ on television. Any complaints we may have had were nitpicky and made up for with something as simple as confusion during roll call. It’s a shame they can’t all be like this, but it would probably end up unappreciated if they were.

source:

[size=133:9nmao6b5]Flight of the Conchords: "
The Tough Brets"
Review
The band's got hurt feelings.
by Matt Fowler

[size=100:9nmao6b5]There has to be limits, I suppose, to The Conchords' daftness. After performing a sort of minimalist "
rap"
at a local public library gig, Bret (Bret McKenzie) begins to worry that he might have incurred the wrath of hip hop artists like Mos Def and Snoop Dog. He believes this even though there was clearly an audience of about...three. The boys should, at least by now, realize that no one is paying any attention to them because, well they're poor and that fact is usually the focus of much of the comedy. They can't get gigs and they can't get record deals and that's part of their charm. But it also makes it weird when they head off into this kind of story where we're supposed to believe that The Conchords really think that the whole world actually heard the words they sang at an afternoon gig in the library. Bret's paranoia is further fueled by Murray (Rhys Darby) and he decides to get himself a gang for protection.

I wasn't really into this set up all that much. The Conchords' frailty and shyness was already the focus of ridicule in the last episode "
The New Cup,"
where the boys tried their hand at prostitution. We understand that Bret's scrawny, and it might have been a bit funnier to pair him up with legit tough guys. Instead we get a gang that consists of Dave (Arj Barker), Mr. and Mrs. Kim who run the internet caf?, and an old timey street ganger, Johnny Boy, played by Rushmore's Seymour Cassel. There was a great scene where Johnny Boy runs down the slew of gangs that he once belonged two – with great names like The Hobo Lords, The Gentlemen Jims and The Little Enchanters. All of these non-gangsters just sort of agree to watch Bret's back for the sake of doing something with their lives. I guess. Dave is always a great addition to most stories, but he still needs to be kept in check. His deadly weapon glove, which consisted of a Gardner's glove with forks taped on, was pretty rad though.

I could have also done without the gang "
face off"
musical numbers that aped West Side Story - with Bret's Gang, "
The Tough Brets,"
facing off against two little kids and Murray, Jemaine and Greg facing off against the bullies from the Australian consulate. For some reason I feel that I've had my fill of West Side Story parodies even though I can't readily name them right now. I know I just saw it as recently as Madagascar 2. The whole bit just seemed like more of Bret's footloose-type dancing that we saw last season in "
The New Conchord."


But this isn't to say that "
The Tough Brets"
went without its great moments. I already mentioned Dave's glove of death, but he also let loose a mean garden bucket tied to a water hose attack on Jemaine (Jemaine Clement). This episode also acted as a bit of a callback for Bret's rap alter ego, The Rhymnocerous, from "
Mugged"
in Season 1. The boys' new number "
I Got Hurt Feelings"
was pretty solid, but it was even better when it came back later on in the show as a tender ballad sung by most of the entire cast – with everyone taking their turn sharing their hurt feelings ala REM's "
Everybody Hurts"
video.

The stand out in this one was Jemaine. Jemaine is always very strong and most often a much deeper source of comedy than Bret - and since he had very little to do with the gang shtick in this one he even felt a little fresher. Jemaine's reaction's to Mel's horrid painting of him was absolute gold. He could barely even mask his utter disgust and revulsion, not even enough to try and even pretend to like it. Lucky for him that Mel is so insane that he doesn't even need to put on a fake smile to make her think that he loves it. His reaction upon seeing it hanging on the wall when he came home was amazing. He just needed to moan and cover it up – the sight of it just infuriating him.

Rating: 7.8 (out of 10)

drunkagain wrote:Live audio-only version of Hurt Feelings.

[flash=350,287:2gvo4mjj]https://www.youtube.com/v/OtJKQyXBfw0&hl=en&fs=1[/flash:2gvo4mjj]

hellomyfriend wrote:I knew I was right! It was totally Bret who was told he looks like a llama!

drunkagain wrote: ... I also knew that Bret was NOT the one who'd been told his ass is too big. " title="" border="0"/> ...

drunkagain wrote:Live audio-only version of Hurt Feelings.

[flash=350,287:9ypwrs5w]https://www.youtube.com/v/OtJKQyXBfw0&hl=en&fs=1[/flash:9ypwrs5w]

hellomyfriend wrote:

drunkagain wrote: ... I also knew that Bret was NOT the one who'd been told his ass is too big. " title="" border="0"/> ...

hahahahahaha Yeah ... that one was pretty clear *cough*


ADD: Aw, Bret! Mediocre in bed!

sargifster wrote:

LadyinRed wrote:I finally watched it! OMFG!! I COMPLETELY lost my shii when Dave fell off the building!!



BEST EPISODE TO DATE!!

This bit makes me laugh so much every time I watch it.

I don't look at anything other than Dave during that whole scene...



The car alarms were such a hilarious touch!

Must gif Dave and the window...

*boom-queen* wrote:I love how johnny boy calls Bret little Louie lol!

One of the funniest "
small things"
of the episode...

Jemaine "
hanging his jacket"
but not really caring that he missed by a lot lol

zap wrote:Damn, I really cannot get over what a fantastic dancer Rhys is! I was surprised at how good his singing voice was last season, and did not at all expect that Murray would be a triple threat. He totally deserves to be famous, and it tickles me no end that just a few years ago he was driving a tank around in some obscure NZ army unit.

thedistantfuture wrote:

zap wrote:Damn, I really cannot get over what a fantastic dancer Rhys is! I was surprised at how good his singing voice was last season, and did not at all expect that Murray would be a triple threat. He totally deserves to be famous, and it tickles me no end that just a few years ago he was driving a tank around in some obscure NZ army unit.

Rhys

*boom-queen* wrote:I love how johnny boy calls Bret little Louie at the end lol ...

hellomyfriend wrote:

thedistantfuture wrote:
Rhys

Rhys' dancing impressed me too.