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S01.E01: Pilot


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Yikes. I only made it to the six-minute mark. Way too many jokes all at once, with most of them being too obvious or so stupid that they fall flat. I'm happy Jones has her own show but I won't be watching.

  • Love 7
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I liked it, but...I think it would make more of an impression if there weren't already a Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It's different from Brooklyn Nine-Nine, but...not that different.

They are both comedic cop shows. That's kind of it. None of the characters are like the ones on BB99 and more importantly, Tribeca is barely in our reality while BB99 is slightly zany but still operating in the real world. Edited by Racj82
  • Love 5
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More goofy and less "heart" than B99-- for me, a totally different genre.

 

I love the dog cop. I do think the show is too much of just Angie Tribeca and Jay Geils (hee). I hope the other characters get more to do in future episodes. Deon Cole is essentially wasted here, so far.

  • Love 1
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So it's sort of juvenile humor but we laughed heartily.

 

I agree with this. I really enjoyed the show. I'm just saying that if Brooklyn Nine-Nine didn't exist, I would have been gobsmacked by Angie Tribeca. But gobsmacking didn't occur, because of the faint whiff of familiarity about the enterprise. LOL moments certainly aren't to be taken for granted, and this episode had a few of them for me.

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I agree with this. I really enjoyed the show. I'm just saying that if Brooklyn Nine-Nine didn't exist, I would have been gobsmacked by Angie Tribeca. But gobsmacking didn't occur, because of the faint whiff of familiarity about the enterprise. LOL moments certainly aren't to be taken for granted, and this episode had a few of them for me.

As people have pointed out, this is reminiscent of Naked Gun not B99 so its not groundbreaking. Brooklyn 99 is for the most part, the best style humor of Parks and Rec and The Office. That's a show that just happens to be a cop show. It could be set anywhere. Both shows are in the same breath, reminiscent of previous properties and still bringing something fresh to TV which I give them credit for.

Also, thank god for cable and streaming. This show would die a quick death on broadcast TV. It's too jokey and old school to survive. But, on cable, that is less of an issue.

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Why is his name funny? This is flying over my head.

J. Geils Band (80s -- Centerfold; Freeze Frame; Love Stinks; etc.).

 

Fun fact (off-topic):  J. [John] Geils went to my high school -- years before my time, but still.

 

Back on topic....    I liked all the tiny little things that you had to be really paying attention to catch.  I think it was the first episode (could possibly have been the second), but the side of the police car had some sort of quirky slogan -- something like "To Serve and Help With Other Things," or something like that.  I also probably should have paused to read all the tattoos.  

 

Some of it was too jokey, but the little things kept me interested.  I also like the cameos.  

Edited by MMLEsq
  • Love 2
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So, so silly. I liked it. I miss the silliness of Airplane! and the Zucker-Abrams-Zucker style.  Not as great as the best "Police Squad!" but I chuckled a lot and LOLed a few times during the binge watch. I loved the scene with Nancy Walls as the mayor's wife offering different foods to Angie.

Edited by VCRTracking
  • Love 3
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Of all the LOL moments, I think my favorite was of the art student doing a beautiful charcoal drawing of the black student drawing the model. Partly because that charcoal drawing was so fantastic--it meant that somebody really good who works for the show had to draw this amazing piece of art just for one freakin' gag. That's entertainment.

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I found the pilot to be a lame start to a series that definitely gets better, but never rises to what it should be. Maybe it's because I've seen just about everything in this genre. Nobody's mentioned Sledge Hammer! yet. Or The Middleman. Or the Hot Shots movies.  There are all sorts of gags that could have been done (even from Police Squad), but weren't, and there was plenty of room for them.

 

BTW, it's not a commercial-free 25 hours if you still have commercials, but just don't interrupt an individual episode.

  • Love 2
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The chase scene, in all its stupidity, cracked me up.  It was just so over the top ridiculous and I loved every second of it.  Also, the names on the show are killing me.  Jay Geils, DJ Tanner (Full House).  So much fun.  

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BTW, it's not a commercial-free 25 hours if you still have commercials, but just don't interrupt an individual episode.

Probably not an option for everyone, but...  I watched it "On Demand" from Comcast and thereby avoided all commercials.

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Early on, my favorite gag was easily the dog Lieutenant that nobody ever acknowledges is a dog. I mean, come on. That's so freaking funny.

 

I agree with this. I really enjoyed the show. I'm just saying that if Brooklyn Nine-Nine didn't exist, I would have been gobsmacked by Angie Tribeca. But gobsmacking didn't occur, because of the faint whiff of familiarity about the enterprise. LOL moments certainly aren't to be taken for granted, and this episode had a few of them for me.

 

I just don't see this at all. I like "Brooklyn 99" but it's certainly not laugh-a-minute (at least for a full season or more, although I still like it), nor is it rooted in the kind of laugh-a-minute absurd worlds of the Zuckers and "Airplane," Mel Brooks, etc. As others have commented, to me that feels more in the gentle vein of "Parks & Rec," etc.

 

Whereas, this show feels most directly linked to the Zuckers, for me, Brooks (and his actively produced "Sledge Hammer") and the classic "Airplane" era. They will do anything for a laugh on this show, and easily at least once per every five seconds (if not more), and I kind of loved that. It's definitely "Sledge Hammer" and "AIrplane" and "Hot Shots," filled with a cast of incredible nitwits that we can be confident will somehow triumph anyway.

 

After awhile, as with the Zuckers and Mel Brooks, I was laughing just as much at the lame jokes that failed as I was at the clever ones that connected. There's something about the show's willingness to please that gets me, and I think it's a lot of fun.

 

BTW, it's not a commercial-free 25 hours if you still have commercials, but just don't interrupt an individual episode.

 

Same here for me. I viewed online and had zero commercials for the whole run.

  • Love 1
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I made it through a couple of episodes, but lost interest for a while. Whenever I looked in again I saw the same things that made my attention wander.

 

There are too many jokes and sight gags crammed into a short space of time. For me at least, off the wall humor works best when it's unexpected. I guess I need to reset for a moment or two of normal or else the WTF-ness of the next joke just blends in with the last one. A good setup makes the joke, like the "Nice beaver" gag from The Naked Gun movie.

 

There were also a lot of bits that went on waaaay tooooo long, long enough to realize they weren't that funny to begin with.

 

I'd say the show is over-hyped but it's hard humor to get right. Maybe next season?

  • Love 2
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I watched it because I'm a big parks and rec fan so I'll give anything a try any of the actors from parks have moved onto. I loved it much more than what I thought I would! Apparently this style of humor is what I like to watch. There were so many little things going on that I just kept cracking up. The over the top chase scene was great.

  • Love 2
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I've seen the first two now and I love it! I'm a big fan of the old spoof movies and this didn't disappoint. Laughed out loud throughout. Probably the most I've laughed during an episode since Kimmy (Schmidt) Goes To A Party!

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We only watched the pilot but liked it so far. I thought the best part was Alfred Molina and the chase scene.

You weren't kidding about the lifting of Zucker Abrams Zucker gags. Some of them are the exact same jokes - the man hands showing up during the boxing sequence; the drawings in art class; the offering of more and more elaborate food from the Mayor's wife. And those are just the ones I could remember the next day.

I guess recognizing all of that makes me old or having seen Airplane! one time to many.

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I was off for the MLK holiday yesterday, so between Sunday night various and odd times during the day on Monday, I think I saw all 10 episodes.

 

I liked it just fine. It's certainly the best original comedy TBS has ever produced, by a LONG shot. Of course that's not saying much, but still. I look forward to even more episodes by the end of the month.

 

But I also hope they never show any of those "Binge-a-thon" segments hosted by Deon Cole again. Those were pretty awful.

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I saw the whole thing over the weekend, and I think it was a good call to do a binge marathon, and market it as such. Its a show that works best as a big silly block, instead of something to come back to, at least to me. 

 

Very Airplane. Very silly. It was a really nice way to spend a day. 

  • Love 2
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It feels so outdated. Airplane was so damn funny way back when because it was fresh. This even wholesale lifts jokes straight from Naked Gun and Airplane with no addition of anything new. And everyone being so deadpan all the time just feels stale. Reno 911, NTSF:SVU, Children's Hospital and even sketch shows like Kroll Show and Key and Peele have improved on the silly factory genre. And it was worse watching two episodes back to back because the jokes became even more predictable.

  • Love 1
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Naked Gun is probably one of my favorite movies ever so I loved how light and fun this show is. Found it 10x funnier than Brooklyn 99 only because I find these characters a ton more likable.

 

Hope there's a season 2!

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Hope there's a season 2!

It has already been renewed.

 

Based on the description, I wasn't sure if I was going to watch this even though I do like Rashida Jones.  But the marathon idea was quite smart because knowing I could throw all the episodes on my DVR seemed so much easier than trying to find the show weekly. (Not hard if I'm really into a show but if I'm uncertain...)

 

I'm not through the full season yet but this is really working for me as a show.  Sure it's silly but it's a silly that makes me laugh.  One thing that I find a lot of fun about the show is trying to guess the jokes.  The characters will say something that I can tell will lead to a joke and sometimes I can guess what they're going to do with it and sometimes not.  Either way, it's usually executed well enough to make me giggle.

 

I don't think the comedy feels outdated but then I'm not someone who thinks great comedy ever really goes out of style.  Someone getting a pie in the face or slipping on a banana peel can still be funny if done well.

  • Love 2
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I've just watched the pilot, and I'll have to say, I laughed a lot. It's completely silly in the best possible way. As someone who has watched my share of TV cop dramas, they are hitting it beautifully. And I laughed every single time the Ford advertisement flashed on screen.

I am entertained. (and I love Carell a bunch for that "That's what sheep said.")

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What... what the hell is this?

 

It's not that it's bad, because it isn't. It's hardly good, either. It's just a weird ratio of jokes that are really, really lame (and weren't any better 30 years ago in the ZAZ movies they were lifted from) and some really hilarious bits that even B99 is hard pressed to come up with. Did they just kidnap Mike Schur, Friedberg and Seltzer, toss 'em in a joke blender and release it upon the public? [Actually, that is my working theory. I'm not kidding. Has anybody seen Mike Schur recently?]

 

It's still funny, for some reason. Keep watching, but what the hell made this show???

 

PS: David Anders hasn't aged well at all.

 

PPS: It gets better. A lot. They somehow got rid of most crappy jokes and now it's legit funny.

Edited by Conan Troutman
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