This show is not one that many have heard of, I don't think I've ever met someone in person that has known of it. But it is one of my favorite shows I've ever seen. It's not perfect and there are definitely weak episodes and some of the humor can be a little crass or gross. The comedy in the show is absurdist and can be on the darker side, it's definitely not for everyone. I really enjoy the humor of the show and it's one of the few shows I laugh out loud at. But there are a few things that sets it apart from being just another dark comedy show.
One element that sets it apart is the rotoscope art style in the dream sequences. This style allows so much creativity and freedom to create surreal and visually interesting animated segments where the desires and fears of the characters can be manifested in a variety of ways. These sequences also allow for many surprising amount of genuinely touching or heartbreaking emotional beats as well, another thing that sets itself apart from other comedy shows. The show deals with it's character's mental health issues through therapeutic dream sequences where we see characters coming to terms with their trauma or their relationship issues.
Another thing that this show does incredibly well is the set design they use for the show. The entirely practical set and props make the show feel grimey and lived in. The office itself is purposefully meant to look underfunded and dreary, like a classroom or a government building. There are no windows, tight corridors, and florescent lights flickering in the background. And then is filled with a variety of unusual props and equipment that the eccentric doctor and his team would have been likely to use at some point. Like they really put a lot of effort into making the office feel like a real space. This dimly lit and overbearing office space is contrasted so well by the vivid and colorful dream sequences. And then after the first season, they seemed to have gained access to another set to shoot in that is just a large plain white room and they utilize this room wonderfully. The surrealism in the first season seemed to come mainly from the animated segments but in the following seasons they are able to use this room to make live action scenes just as surreal and sometimes even more so. The choices of color, lighting, costumes and set design in these sequences are so deliberate and beautifully done. A couple great examples of this are in the episodes "Pickle Trip" and "Clone Disposal".
Then there's the amazing cast. Jon Gries, who I never knew as anyone other than Napoleon Dynamite's uncle, plays an eccentric, charming doctor that could be just as aloof as he is intelligent. Nick Rutherford, who I knew from his GoodNeighborStuff channel on Youtube, plays the straight man who is mixed up into this insane place as a patient turned "doctor" and, although is the most normal seeming, is arguably the most broken and unhealthy one out of all of them. Ahmed Bharoocha plays the nurse and although doesn't seem like much of a character at first slowly turned into a character with some of the funniest scenes in the show. His running gag of not remembering Nick's character is always hilarious. Stephen Merchant is great as the voice of the robot T. E. R. R. Y. And Mark Proksch, playing the oddest ball of the odd balls, is really great as well. Stephanie Allynne, Megan Ferguson, and Sunita Mani each play the assistant to the doctor in one season. They are clearly the most qualified to be doctors out of all of them but their admiration for Dr. Roberts and their own clear cut principles makes their interactions with the rest of the team a lot of fun to watch. As much as I wished we got more of these three ladies, their temporary presence made their characters even better because it gave the next a chance to become interesting and then leave the viewers wanting more. All these great actors combined with the fact that as a doctor's office that sees different patients everyday, this allows for a new character to be subjected to the team every episode. And they get some very funny and talented people to play those patients. Some more recognizable ones include Jimmi Simpson, Craig Robinson, and Sam Richardson.
The last thing to mention is the soundtrack. Mainly playing right before the end credits, it is incredibly picked and plays with the appropriate emotion and surrealism that the show closes out with. The often bittersweet, melodic tracks leave you feeling happy or sad, or just distraught and confused.
I would love to see this show get brought back and given the attention it deserves. It wasn't a show that was really advertised heavy and played only late night on Adult Swim. And with the buying out of AS and the scrapping of a lot of experimental niche shows it likely wont be back unfortunately. But at least we got these seasons and them in themselves is enough for me to enjoy many times over. It might be the fault of the show for doing too many different things really well, maybe the art and emotional moments don't go over well for fans of simply comedy, and the comedy doesn't work with someone looking for a artistic, surrealistic visual experience. But if these are all elements you enjoy and love seeing them blended together very well then this show is for you.
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