While their dramas, fantasies, and sci-fi epics have grown laughably convoluted, HBO has been developing some of the greatest comedies on TV now for much of this decade. Even if one cannot get on board withLena Dunhamas a person, it’s her series,Girls, that has seemingly served as the model for their recent spat of ingenious comedies, fromSilicon ValleyandInsecuretoVeepandHigh Maintenance. All of these shows, includingGirls, allows for humor to bloom from the characters' intelligence, desires, flaws, instincts, and mistakes rather than leaning on a simple “Set’em up, knock’em down” formula of joke-telling to generate laughs. Even when you hate the characters, they are undeniably more human and empathetic than most cable comedy characters.
The same would seemingly be true ofCrashing,Pete Holmes' upcoming comedy series for the network. In the show, Holmes plays a version of himself begins to navigate a career in the New York comedy scene after his wife, played byOrange is the New BlackbreakoutLauren Lapkus, is caught cheating on him. The series is backed by producerJudd Apatow,who has a history of casting beloved stand-up comedians in supporting roles to great effect, and here, he brings inArtie Lange,Sarah Silverman,T.J. Miller, and a host of other names to act as the not-so-warm welcoming party for Holmes' character.
The latest trailer for the series, which you can take a look at below, also suggests a more broad conception of what the life of a struggling comedian is made up of on a day-to-day basis. There’s a moment where Holmes' character gets into an altercation over his attempting to hand out flyers, and he’s later seen recording a podcast. It’s that sense of intimate scope, the gathering of daily, occasionally symbolic experiences and personal reflection, that has made Apatow’s movies so fascinating and funny, even when he seems to be politically absent-minded. Holmes seems to have this same instinct for the nooks and crannies of a low-tier comic’s life, culled from his own experiences in the scene, and that alone makesCrashinga promising proposal.
Here’s the new trailer forCrashing:
Here’s the official synopsis forCrashing:
Created by and starring Pete Holmes, Crashing follows a standup comic who discovers that his wife is unfaithful, leading him to reevaluate his life amidst the New York City comedy scene. Artie Lange, Lauren Lapkus and T.J. Miller also star. Judd Apatow and Pete Holmes executive produce.
