Psychology in the Venture Brothers

It has been long established that the central theme of the Venture Brothers (the gem of Adult Swim's programming) is failure. Some may be surprised just how hilarious failure can be, and that is likely because in one way or another, all "success" stories are just failure arcs that haven't met their apex. Today a star, tomorrow turning tricks for $50 at truck stops. This may contain the germ of our fascination with the two sides of this coin, as our jealousy is fueled by seeing the famous torn down. 

For some of us, it might be our only ticket to a brief moment of "living the dream" before we've got to pay the toll. As I've said before, in the end the mob will only be satisfied to see your bloody sacrifice. But first, for a time, you can be King For A Day. You know the deal: today, virgins and feasts. All the kids can project their angst and suffering on you. Tomorrow, the volcano will have you, and they can grow up and get to work.

It also may come as a surprise that the themes of comedic cartoons may owe anything to Jungian or Freudian symbolism, so let's take a look at two popular episodes, "the Doctor is Sin" and "Assisted Suicide" with that in mind. (Although part of the joy of this show is how many layers of cultural reference can be piled on, so that it's actually rather reductionistic to look at it simply as a play on any one thing.)

Reality is an Art Project

Portlandia : Art Project

Gonzomentary: Clark

From Hyperallergic re: Art Project, Portlandia:

 For those uninitiated into its history, conceptual art can often seem like a trick — is that really a urinal in an art gallery? Is sticking yogurt caps on gallery walls really great art? Unfortunately for Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein, the stars and creators of the sketch TV show Portlandia, it turns out that conceptual art can actually trap you, even outside of a gallery opening ...
The danger of anything being art, as we are wont to argue these days, is that everything can be art if you want it to — and no one else has to agree with you to make it so. The Portlandia folks are living in a world in which postmodernism has run amok, sparing nothing, not even the coffee shop.

From Film Threat re: Clark, A Gonzomentary: 

What results from Warwick’s footage is a “gonzomentary,” a mix of fourth-wall busting filmmaking, mockumentary, Gonzo journalism and whatever else can be added into the mix, which includes: Uncle Binky the pedophile clown; a Christian producer/investor who wants the film to contain no swearing, no drinking and no drugs, right before she has a crisis of faith and becomes a mime; a silent film; Tito the drug dealer, who is actually a British actor (David Proch) stuck in a Method acting Hell and Warwick’s own descent into madness while chronicling the adventures of Clark and J.C. And penises. Lots of penises.

[Where is the fucking counterculture? Mythos Media.]

Drunk for your Amusement Doug Stanhope

By James Curcio
(First run on Alterati.)

No Refunds.

Doug Stanhope Deadbeat Hero from a decade ago.

For years now, I’ve wondered who the next Bill Hicks was going to be. As things grew more and more grim I wondered if maybe we would have no more fool messiahs (Eulogy is the track I’m referring to…) because the meter was just fucking broke and we’ve all become too whitebread and insecure to recognize the rallying call if it comes. “COMEDY IS DEAD, GO HOME, GAME OVER.”

Comedy is a dicey topic these days. In fact, you can't go within a hundred yards of many topics without engaging a twitter boat load of hate your way--sometimes with good reason, and sometimes not. Consider this. The point is that comedy makes people engage with ideas, sometimes incredibly subtle or complex ones, without realizing that they are doing so. Comedy is, in other words, a means of making the public engage in philosophy. I realize that may seem absurd. Just as absurd as it is to suggest that Doug Stanhope is a philosopher? But even if the comedians themselves don't recognize it--and I think Doug does, actually--this is the real task of the comedian. To get people engaged with uncomfortable topics. Laughter is a defense mechanism. But it isn't just a method of diffusion.

Drunk For Your Amusement (pt 2)

My stomach still hurts from laughing. This weekend I saw Doug Stanhope at the Trocadero theatre, and I got exactly what I asked for- raw truth and bitterness,
served by a drunken lunatic.

Here are some of the thoughts I had when I first encountered his work. They still hold true, and I'm not a fan of regurgitation...

Read Review

Too Clever By Half

"I'd like to share a film with you that I think is, on the whole, highly underrated. "Too clever by half," as a friend of mine put it. That film is Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang.

But before I discuss the movie directly, let me unpack the idiom. Many people seem to feel that if something is "too" clever, "too" smart, it's an affront to their common sense, an assault upon their salt-of-the-earth dignity. I don't know if this belief carries across cultural boundaries, but it seems endemic enough in the states that it even determines the results of elections. The Republican party has made this issue a corner-stone of their assault upon the "liberal elite," a fact well recognized and explored by Sorkin's own "too clever by half" drama, The West Wing.

I'm not entirely sure when being witty became a negative, frankly I don't care. Maybe this just makes me another member of the "liberal elite." But if you're not offended by self-aware satire and snarkiness, you'll likely find Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang one of the most entertaining, funny movies you've seen."

(Read review on TLAblog)

Drunk For Your Amusement

Freedom.

For years now, I've wondered who the next Bill Hicks was going to be. As things grew more and more grim - I mean seriously, I think we've surpassed the Reagan era now on the cosmic WTF! scale - I wondered if maybe we would have no more ranting, fool messiahs because the meter was just fucking broke and we've all become too whitebread and insecure to recognize the rallying call if it comes. "COMEDY IS DEAD, GO HOME, GAME OVER."

There are times when being proven wrong is the best thing in the world. The other night I was stopped dead in my tracks by this man. He made me want to pick up three of the bad habits I'd managed to kick, and start up about twenty new ones. Most importantly, he made me laugh. A lot.

Full article.