"The Comeback" (2005) TV series

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Creators:

Michael Patrick King
Lisa Kudrow

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

5 June 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

Valerie Cherish was TV's IT Girl. Now IT's a different story.

Plot:

A one-time sitcom star (Kudrow) tries to resuscitate her career.

Plot Keywords:

Sitcom | Washed Up Star | Show Within A Show | Husband Wife Relationship | Hair Stylist

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Lisa Kudrow	...	Valerie Cherish (13 episodes, 2005)
Laura Silverman	...	Jane (13 episodes, 2005)
Damian Young	...	Mark Berman (13 episodes, 2005)
JT Alexander	...	Comeback Crew (13 episodes, 2005)
Craig DeSilva	...	Announcer (13 episodes, 2005)
Malin Akerman	...	Juna Millken (12 episodes, 2005)
Robert Michael Morris	...	Mickey Deane (12 episodes, 2005)
Robert Bagnell	...	Tom Peterman (11 episodes, 2005)
Lance Barber	...	Paulie G. (11 episodes, 2005)
Bayne Gibby	...	Gigi (8 episodes, 2005)
Kellan Lutz	...	Chris MacNess (8 episodes, 2005)
Jason Olive	...	Jesse Wood (8 episodes, 2005)
Kimberly Kevon Williams	...	Shayne Thomas (8 episodes, 2005)
Bill Escudier	...	Milo (7 episodes, 2005)
Tom Virtue	...	Eddie (7 episodes, 2005)
Nathan Lee Graham	...	Peter (6 episodes, 2005)
Vanessa Marano	...	Franchesca (6 episodes, 2005)

Runtime:

USA:30 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Certification:

Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

Home Box Office (HBO)

Quotes:

Valerie Cherish: *This* is my comeback. All right, let me take that again... So *this* is my come - Jane, I'm sorry, the, um, camera keeps moving in and out.
Jane: It's always going to be moving, just keep going.
Valerie Cherish: No, yeah, oh, I know, I know, it's just - I didn't know if I should wait for it to settle or... That's right. Yeah. Oh, right. Yeah. This one's always going to be moving, because that one is stationary. Got it. Okay. Here we go. *This* is my comeback! You know, I want to do another.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Gilmore Girls: The Prodigal Daughter Returns (#6.9)" (2005)

Kudrow is Delighfully (and purposefully) Bad!

"The Comeback" is a well done blending of "The Office", "The Larry Sanders Show", and "Curb Your Enthusiasm". It is a fake reality show about an idiotic TV star that offers a parody of both reality TV and network sitcoms.

The show is composed of reality TV footage filmed during the life of a TV star from the 80's, played by Lisa Kudrow, trying to wage a career comeback by staring in a new TV sitcom. The twist is that rather than showing us a final edited fake reality TV show, the show is composed of outtakes from the fake reality TV show. We get to see the character redo lines that are supposed to be spontaneous reality, we see her continually tell the filmmakers to stop filming -- which they never do. And we even see the filmmakers themselves dealing with some of the logistical problems inherent in making this type of show.

What makes it all work is that Lisa Kudrow's character is a buffoon. She is totally delusional about how big of a star she is and the show asks us to laugh at her vanity and idiocy. She is a lot like the boss on BBC's "The Office", because she is a lead character we are meant to laugh and cringe at. At the same time, Kudrow gives her character just enough empathy that as much as we hate her we also feel sorry for her just a little bit. Knowing that Kudrow was so intimately involved in a network TV sitcom, makes the parody directed at sitcoms come across as very realistic and especially funny.

As long as you know that the show itself is supposed to be bad, and if you like the kind of comedy that is filled with cringe inducing moments of embarrassment, then you will like this show.