Review: 'Louie' - 'Barney/Never': Sister Christian, oh the time has come
Louie and a fellow comic say goodbye to a familiar face, and Louie babysits
"Louie" wound up babysitting a boy named Never.
Credit: FX
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I'm traveling home from press tour right now, so no time to do a real "Louie" review, but I wanted to offer a place for people to discuss one of the season's more overtly comic episodes to date. I really enjoyed the climax of the first story, the work between Louis C.K. and the guest star in that one, and then the complete chaos caused by Never in the second story.
So fire away, and we'll presumably back to a more typical episode review for next week's show.
Alan Sepinwall has been reviewing television since the mid-'90s, first for Tony Soprano's hometown paper, The Star-Ledger, and now for HitFix. His new book, "The Revolution Was Televised," about the last 15 years of TV drama, is for sale at Amazon. He can be reached at sepinwall@hitfix.com
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Next 106 CommentsGWBiscuit
August 2, 2012 at 11:07PM EST Reply to CommentWhen Never pushed the stroller into traffic, I lost it.
Tank Hilarious. Never is officially my favorite TV character ever.
August 2, 2012 at 11:13PM ESTeddie willers The kid was great.
August 3, 2012 at 12:20AM EST"I'll die"
Jim Yeah and big fat Artie Lange bailing out of the leaking chemical truck.
August 3, 2012 at 5:03PM EST
August 4, 2012 at 7:26PM ESTat least we know Artie isn't back on heroin judging by his size...
lztouchthedream
August 2, 2012 at 11:10PM EST Reply to CommentThis was definitely my favorite of the season so far. The strippers crying to 'Sister Christian', carbon all being from China, the perfect rhythm and nonsense of the radio interview. And the tag with JB Smoove may have pushed it in to my favorite of the series spot. Just hilarious, wall to wall.
QueensBully The JB Smoove bit was absolutely hilarious! "I hate you".
August 2, 2012 at 11:20PM ESTPotatoSolution Easily the best of the season. Now I remember, this show can actually be really funny.
August 3, 2012 at 11:59AM ESTkneejerk Yes.
August 3, 2012 at 12:59PM ESTJim JB Smoove is never not funny.
August 3, 2012 at 5:04PM ESTjack_is_laughing It was extremely funny and entertaining, but Best of the season? Only if you're just showing up for the laughs. Last week's was a classic, likely to be the smartest and most inventive half hour of TV this year.
August 6, 2012 at 4:26PM ESTLJA Plus one. "Sister Christian" as the backdrop for strippers weeping over the dead guy was pure genius. So was Never turning "diarrhea" into a verb, "I diarrheaed in the bathtub." Priceless.
August 10, 2012 at 10:42PM ESTTank
August 2, 2012 at 11:14PM EST Reply to CommentDid I miss it or was there no open?
Patrick It opened with Louie and robin Williams at the cemetery in silence. I think this episode was easily the best of the season. The never storyline was way out there, and hilarious. Artie lange jumping out of the truck screaming was a nice random touch too
August 2, 2012 at 11:21PM ESTTank No, I mean there was no theme song. Right?
August 2, 2012 at 11:25PM ESTPatrick I think you are right, now that you mention it
August 2, 2012 at 11:39PM ESTjbagels There wasn't the usual opening. Just Louie walking through the cemetery while the title and credits flashed on the screen. It was kinda cool. Also, one of the rare instances in which there was no stand up for the entire episode.
August 3, 2012 at 10:36AM ESTleegero May have been comical to keep the original open in this ep, with the ending lyrics, "Louie, Louie you're gonna die" and then cut to the cemetery. Still, amazing, amazing episode. Along with the Miami one, two of the best of the series.
August 3, 2012 at 1:12PM ESTBgklein I enjoyed the Artie cameo as well. Nice to see an episode where Louie is able to work in a few fellow comics who probably came to him saying they'd love to be a part
August 3, 2012 at 2:28PM ESTgsfake @BGKLEIN There is literally a comedian in almost every single episode of Louie. This isn't a new thing or anything.
August 3, 2012 at 5:43PM ESTJbagels
August 2, 2012 at 11:20PM EST Reply to CommentI'm a little ashamed to admit I've been to Sweet Cherry and the girls didn't look half as good as that.
Jim I thought it was Sweet Charity?? Like the movie.
August 3, 2012 at 5:06PM ESTDavid
August 2, 2012 at 11:26PM EST Reply to CommentI just am not into this season. Maybe it's me. I loved the previous seasons, but I am not enjoying it this time around. 'Barney' was much better than 'Never,' in my mind. 'Never' should have shown Louie confronting the mother of that abomination. I look forward to the show each week, and each time I watch it now, I feel lesser about the show than before.
eddie willers should have shown Louie confronting the mother of that abomination
August 3, 2012 at 12:19AM ESTCouldn't...she was having her vagina removed.
lztouchthedream Don't worry, though, it's elective.
August 3, 2012 at 8:36AM ESTStringerBell She needs to get it done before Easter.
August 3, 2012 at 9:43AM ESTBrettPoker I agree with David. This is easily my least favorite season. I understand what he's trying to do. But for the most part, it has failed to consistently entertain, IMHO.
August 3, 2012 at 1:20PM ESTNP Don't you feel that he did that already (confront the parent) in (S1? S2?) "Bully"? Personally, I liked that he dealt with the kid, rather than the crazy, paranoid mother.
August 4, 2012 at 9:11AM ESTBrett: I don't think this show is consistently _anything_...*shrug*
Trilby I too have not been wild about the season. This ep was best so far, but the previous ones just seem to have Louis looking dumbfounded at someone else's antics, and not doing much himself. The wacky date? Been done to death. I hate the wacky date. The Melissa Leo ep was different at least, but again, I would like to see Louis participate more, not be a bystander/witness/victim of weirdness.
August 5, 2012 at 1:13PM ESTNP Trilby: in case it helps you enjoy the show more I want to point out that Louie does all the writing, directing, and a host of other roles. So even when you don't see him doing much on screen, he is responsible for just about everything else going on. Another actor is delivering the lines, but he wrote the lines and set up the shot. The show is also from his POV, so he's kinda forced into being the straight man.
August 6, 2012 at 11:21AM ESTIf Louie had created a show where he could play different characters, maybe he would be up to more antics, but he's always 'himself' even if the character is now quite different from the person.
Gredit
August 2, 2012 at 11:57PM EST Reply to CommentKind of a shame they misspelled the cameo actor's name in the closing credits.
Zach L
August 3, 2012 at 12:54AM EST Reply to CommentLouis mentioned there would be three Oscar winners on the show this season. So Melissa Leo, Robin Williams, and ....
Jdz Susan Morse?
August 3, 2012 at 1:21AM ESTd Parker Posey
August 3, 2012 at 1:22AM ESTJdz Nope, Posey hasn't even been nominated.
August 3, 2012 at 1:41AM ESTZach L Unless the third is F Murray Abraham?
August 3, 2012 at 1:48AM ESTKilowatt28 Woody Allen.
August 3, 2012 at 1:58AM ESTgsfake Well i know that Jerry Seinfeld will be in an upcoming episode, but I'm not 100% sure he's oscar winner I'd assume he is.
August 3, 2012 at 5:41PM ESTHeavyRaines17 Peter O'Toole.
August 3, 2012 at 8:02PM ESTfresser28 F. Murray Abraham won the Best Actor Oscar for "Amadeus," so I guess the third person is him.
August 3, 2012 at 10:39PM ESTNP F. Murray Abraham was season 2, so no...
August 4, 2012 at 9:16AM ESTMikky J
August 3, 2012 at 3:26AM EST Reply to Comment"I diarrhea'd in the tub."
Horrible and hilarious.
lztouchthedream Louie being at an utter loss for how to proceed was the funniest part of that scene to me. A lesser show would have just ended on the shit joke, but they took it to it's logical conclusion.
August 3, 2012 at 8:39AM ESTPatrick I agree, LZ. Also, it was great watching Louie calmly explain to Never why Lilly doesn't want to play with him. "You eat raw meat and you shit the tub"
August 3, 2012 at 4:14PM ESTlztouchthedream I imagine every parent has wanted to give that speech to at least one of their kid's friends!
August 3, 2012 at 9:03PM ESTMary
August 3, 2012 at 7:56AM EST Reply to CommentYuck. I couldn't wait for this to end. Hilarious?? Is it a male thing? Do any women enjoy this show? If I hadn't paid for it already, I'd stop watching. And yet... it does have a certain train wreck quality.
Jess Yep women definitely do. I love it.
August 3, 2012 at 8:37PM ESTfresser28 Agree totally. I love Louie and his bizarre, honest, utterly brave life in the city. I find it far funnier, much more intelligent, subtle and far more affecting than say, the execrable "Girls" or any episode of "Sex and the City," which are aimed specifically at women (not me, though). "Louie" feels genuine despite its weirdness; those other shows seem supremely false in comparison.
August 3, 2012 at 11:01PM ESTsvetlana Mary, I'm a woman and I don't particularly like the show either. I had to fast forward the tub part because it was way too gross for me. I did think the strip club part was funny though. That's probably the first thing I've seen robin Williams in where I didn't absolutely hate him. But back to your point...I do think this show is more tailored towards men. I watch almost out of some bizarre obligation.
August 4, 2012 at 12:21AM ESTMary Svetlana: "bizarre obligation." Perfect!
August 4, 2012 at 12:27AM ESTAndrew Y I'm a male and I couldn't wait for the Never segment to end either. It was totally predictable and not funny at all. Barney on the other hand was phenomenal.
August 4, 2012 at 8:22AM ESTPatrick Svetlana, you realize this is a tv show and he didn't really "diarrhea the tub". While the concept is gross, I don't understand how people can get legitimately grossed out by a clearly fake scene.
August 4, 2012 at 11:22AM ESTPatrick Andrew, I'm curious if you predicted any of the following: 1. Never's mother declaring she was going to have her vagina removed. 2. Never pushing the baby carriage into traffic. 3. Artie Lange jumping out of a leaking chemical truck. 4. Never eating raw meat. 5. Never throwing Louie's carpet out the window. 6. Never "diarrheaing" the tub. I understand that not everyone liked the Never segment, but I don't think anyone can call it predictable
August 4, 2012 at 11:27AM ESTsvetlana Patrick, of course I realize this is a tv show but I can't help it if I find something disgusting. I guess I just have delicate sensibilities.
August 4, 2012 at 1:07PM ESTrcade So somebody expelling diarrhea in a tub is only "legitimately" gross if it's actual diarrhea and not fictional diarrhea? The defensiveness of the fan comments on this blog kill me sometimes*.
August 4, 2012 at 1:19PM EST* - Not literally.
Andrew Y You have to be kidding Patrick. Did I predict the specific events? No. Did I know the kid was going to do something horrible every time Louie turned his head. Absolutely. I knew he was going to do something on the street. Any one could see that coming. I knew that when Louie got distracted in the apartment the kid was going to break or destroy something, which he did. And absolutely anyone with a brain knew he was going to do something in the tub. Did I know what exactly? Again, no, but it was so predictable that Louie was going to get distracted by the radio interview and that he or his daughter were going to be revolted by something. If you think that part of the show wasn't predictable then I don't know what to tell you.
August 4, 2012 at 4:08PM ESTEric My fiancee loves the show. But I do think it's unapologetic in being very specific to Louie's perspective and sense of humor, both of which are (naturally) male.
August 10, 2012 at 9:55AM ESTMichael
August 3, 2012 at 7:56AM EST Reply to CommentDefinitely thought this was the weakest of the season...coincidence Alan didnt feel compelled to write a review?
Mark Did you not feel compelled to read the first sentence of his post?
August 3, 2012 at 11:29AM ESTNot Mork
August 3, 2012 at 9:01AM EST Reply to CommentDid Williams' character identify himself? Was he playing Robin Williams?
Ryan I'm pretty sure he introduced himself as Rob.
August 3, 2012 at 9:28AM ESTMike McG He was playing himself. Louis mentioned in an interview that he's too famous to just play some guy.
August 3, 2012 at 9:47AM ESTyoungjt80 He introduced himself as Robin.
August 3, 2012 at 3:05PM ESTScott Rosenberg He introduced himself as Robin
August 3, 2012 at 3:48PM ESTLee Yes, RW was playing himself. It was obvious that they both knew the dead comedy club owner through their work and had bad memories of him (especially Robin, who was related to him by marriage and had been ripped off to the tune of some $600K by the guy).
August 3, 2012 at 4:45PM ESTRyan
August 3, 2012 at 9:35AM EST Reply to CommentI like to believe that Never grew up to be Barney.
Mike McG
August 3, 2012 at 9:45AM EST Reply to CommentGreat episode. Loved Anthony Cumia's radio voice, Lil Jimmy, and Amy Schumer as 'The Hole'.
yahoodi
August 3, 2012 at 10:07AM EST Reply to CommentI still can't stop laughing at last night's "Louie". To me the key was keeping each show to 15 minutes. There could have been some real overkill if they extended that strip club scene. Instead it was perfect.
And never....Oh sweet jesus was that awesome. You can almost picture the stand up bit that inspired the story ( louie does have that great "God I really hate this kid in my daughter's class" bit from his Beacon special.) Raw meat in a bowl. Even when he asks Never if needs a spoon or a fork......Oh man. What a winner.
@boobaJONES
August 3, 2012 at 11:19AM EST Reply to CommentThe Strip Club scene was an all time best for Louie. Just spectacular!
miraclemet
August 3, 2012 at 11:43AM EST Reply to CommentTwo great vignettes. "Barney" had all the great moments of CK: The awkwardness until he & "Rob" fessed up to hating the dearly departed, laughing ludicrously at a situation (a strip club in tears over a dead guy), and even a little moral nugget (even the most hated guy is loved somewhere).
"Never" was less of a moral tale, and more about chaos. Even the radio interview was its own version of just adding to the chaos. The fact that his daughter disappears into her room and wants nothing to do with "never" is both spot on and hilarious. The hot asian woman in the car with Louie's teen-aged agent. The crash to kick off the "play date" was probably the most expensive 30 seconds of the show to date, but it sooo set the tone for the next ten minutes of "what is this kid going to do?"
My favorite start-to finish episode this year, though the 3 minutes of asking Parker Posey out in the bookstore still sit atop my "favorite moment" list for the season...
The Bandsaw Vigilante
August 3, 2012 at 1:20PM EST Reply to CommentAccording to Louis C.K.'s AV Club interview, Robin Williams was the (then-unnamed) guest-star this season who mailed his check back to Louis after he realized how few people were actually working on putting the show together.
What a mensch.
boxjohnson
August 3, 2012 at 1:49PM EST Reply to CommentThe irony of having a child named "Never" that you don't say no to... brilliant.
Erika Herzog
August 3, 2012 at 1:53PM EST Reply to Commenthi all,
i'm a big Louis CK fan but i agree with other comments here that this season has been markedly different than the prior two seasons. i'm getting what Louis CK is going for but the darkness of these episodes is starting to wear me down a bit. i felt like i laughed more before. and stuff seemed looser and easier in prior seasons. this is starting to feel overworked (or something)....
i thought the Robin Williams stuff was interesting but distracting -- mostly because i had to keep reminding myself that this older bearded guy was Robin Williams (not looking like himself to me at all).
the little kid was awful. just awful.
was Louie sitting watching earlier Louis CK on the couch supposed to mean something? i'm just really confused by some of the overarching meanings of these fragmented scenes.
i'm still a fan and still will continue to watch -- and support Louis CK in whatever creative endeavor he's involved in. because he's smart and not a bastard and is incredibly talented and funny. so wanted to say that too.
kunta
August 3, 2012 at 3:07PM EST Reply to CommentI wish you weren't so lazy Sepinwall
KobraCola I hope this is a joke and I'm going to bank on the fact that it is one.
August 4, 2012 at 4:46AM ESTodysseuscm
August 3, 2012 at 3:26PM EST Reply to CommentFor me the first epsiode of season 3 which was as great and unpredictable as the former seasons. (Although I loved Parker Posey.)
curbyourentropy
August 3, 2012 at 3:34PM EST Reply to CommentI thought the episode was brilliant. I'm pretty baffled by the fans who say they aren't feeling the season--especially when their reason is that the show is getting "too dark," when that's been a defining characteristic of Louie from the beginning. Props to C.K. for maintaining his boldness and creativity enough to keep making people furrow their eyebrows. I for one think the show keeps getting better and better.
Robin Williams' presence in the episode was a thing of beauty. The grace and brilliance with which Louie accommodates its guest stars--man oh man. I'm pretty sure the character introduces himself as "Robin" when he sits down in the diner, but what I love is that it's still ambiguous the extent to which he really is playing himself. They're clearly not trying to hide that it's him, but you'd expect Louie to want to say something about how much respect he has for him, etc. But C.K. plays it in a way that it almost seems possible that he's in awe of Robin Williams being there and is just playing it totally cool so as not to turn into a cliche. What's interesting is that when he introduces himself as Louie, it's Robin's character who says "I know." And of course at the end they make a deal that whoever lives longest will attend the other's funeral--as if there aren't going to be plenty of people at Robin Williams' funeral.
All of that just brings me back to how awesomely I think the show handles celebrity/identity. The ambiguity, the subtlety, the half-nudges and non-winks to the viewer--it all just makes it so much more interesting to watch. I love it. It even makes me wonder if the typo in the credits ("Robin Willaims") wasn't intentional--just another way for the show to be askew in its own odd and brilliant little way. Who knows?
Dr. Dunkenstein Actually, in a way, Williams is kind of a perfect choice because he does have something of a complicated reputation among comedians(listen to his episode of WTF) and it's entirely possible that Louis CK wouldn't be effusive with praise and that their interaction would be as awkward as we saw.
August 4, 2012 at 6:00PM ESTliddy Really excellent observations and insights, curbyourentropy. The enigma element is a source of great appreciation for me too.
August 8, 2012 at 11:55AM ESTTim Isola
August 3, 2012 at 3:38PM EST Reply to CommentOnce i saw Artie Lange's name in the credits after it was over i hadda rewatch the episode just to see where the hell he was, i didnt even notice him the first time he ran out of the truck, just thought it was some fat guy. This have gotten that bad for Artie huh, who i think is hysterical and very talented, that Louie hadda just throw him a bone like this. I'd love to see Artie featured in an ep with Louie, i'd imagine thatd be great, then again i have no idea what Artie has been up to the last 5 years or so.
Tim Isola correction: *Things have gotten that bad....
August 3, 2012 at 3:39PM ESTJim He and Nick Diapolo have am internet sports/comedy talk show that DirecTv is supposed to start showing in August, though there has been no promotion on DTV yet. That Man Caves show did a cross promotional episode where they designed the loft/studio.
August 3, 2012 at 5:15PM ESTTim Isola has he kicked his heroin addiction or is he still fuckin around with that? Not judging him btw, i know how hard it is to get hat monkey off your back
August 4, 2012 at 6:06AM ESTBridget Fitzgerald
August 3, 2012 at 3:44PM EST Reply to CommentParker Posey is so funny. Understandable why she's "the queen of the indies".... Her new movie THE LOVE GUIDE is hilarious too. She's a vegan, yogi, reality tv host. Here's the trailer if you're interested http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwSkHKK2EjA
berkowit28 Hello? Are you a displaced person?
August 4, 2012 at 1:21AM ESTScott Rosenberg
August 3, 2012 at 4:03PM EST Reply to CommentI think "Barney" was quintessential Louie in a hit-or-miss season, slightly eking out "Miami" as the top episode of the season to date. The understated use of Robin Williams was great, and the odd and uncomfortable twists, even where expected, were pitch-perfect in Louie's convoluted reactions.
"Never" was more middling to me. While Louie's response to the situation cracked me up at points, it was really just a running list of grossly exaggerated examples of hipster parenting and bratty kids. The gags were too isolated, and got stuck in between the range where it was plausible, and the range where it was so metaphoric that one could suspend their disbelief and just roll with it, and the blending was not as successful as it was, for example, when Louie has an awkward conversation with his girlfriend, then construction workers destroy his car in the pilot. The funniest part of the vignette was Louie making the half-hearted joke about St. Louis being a cesspool and getting hung up on (the cadence of the DJ team itself was too easy a joke to be that funny), but we never saw any response, and given the nature of the series, it will likely never be addressed again, despite being perfect fodder for the show.
Lastly, how the bleep do you misspell Robin Williams?!?!
Lee It was actually Kansas City, not St. Louis, but I get your drift.
August 3, 2012 at 4:52PM ESTErika Herzog what did Kansas City ever do to Louis CK? he's mentioned his hatred of Kansas City a few times. :-)
August 3, 2012 at 11:22PM ESTsaul its-all-goodman
August 3, 2012 at 7:16PM EST Reply to CommentWhy is Leon moonlighting as a gravedigger? did Larry kick him out?
albatross And how did he get back from France?
August 3, 2012 at 7:38PM ESTJim Curb may not be back until late 2013 or 2014 since Larry is doing an HBO movie announced this week.
August 4, 2012 at 3:47AM ESTsaul its-all-goodman
August 3, 2012 at 7:20PM EST Reply to CommentWhy is Leon moonlighting as a gravedigger? did Larry kick him out?
Trevor
August 3, 2012 at 9:30PM EST Reply to CommentDoes anyone else think the sequence with Never was supposed to be a dream, or rather, a nightmare? Think about it: it starts off with Louie just getting to have a day alone with his daughter, his ultimate perfect day. He then has a terrible kid dropped on him by a lady going to have her vagina removed (pretty sure doctors don't do that electively), who doesn't tell her kid no, and says he can't eat "carbon", which comes from china. Never then proceeds to escalate into doing more and more terrible things. Meanwhile, Louie gets a call from his agent (who is apparently a child), gets on a radio show where the hosts speak nothing but gibberish, and then says the one thing to ensure that no one would come to his show at all. Then the kid craps in the tub. This seems like it has all the makings of a Louie nightmare to me...
Mikky J Those are not dream sequences, per se, but the show is often dream-like. The episodes involve surreal scenes. It's hyperbolic. Louis C.K. takes a typical situation/encounter/emotion and blows it up.
August 3, 2012 at 10:06PM ESTErika Herzog thanks for mentioning this. i was thinking that when the show opened so differently (like a black & white movie and/or dream sequence) but forgot after getting distracted by the content of this episode.
August 3, 2012 at 11:24PM ESTthat would make him sitting on the sofa looking at images of himself performing standup as a younger comic make a lot more sense.
meta-layers, indeed.
the kid agent is a running gag. that was the most real life thing in the episode to me. oy.
Chrissie The "Retro Comedy Showcase" scene was a preview for next week's ep, not part of this one.
August 6, 2012 at 9:37AM ESTKobraCola
August 4, 2012 at 4:54AM EST Reply to CommentJust a phenomenally hilarious episode of Louie. I agree with people who have said this was the most laugh-out-loud funny episode of this season. This one and Miami have to be my favorites of the 3rd season so far. I love the idea of going to the funeral of a dead guy that you HATED and being 1 or only 2 people to show up, never mind a ceremony or anything of the sort. The obligation of "Well this guy was a shitbag in real life, but I guess I should go to his funeral because what if NOBODY goes? How shitty would that be?" And then you have to gauge this other guy to see if he agrees with you about your opinion about the deceased because if the other guy loved the deceased and you go "Oh man, Barney was the worst, right?" then you look like the biggest asshole on the face of the planet trying to rip on somebody who's already died. The strip club scene was also hilarious, the idea that he was only loved at a strip club where I have no doubt he spent a shitton of money. And then Louie and Robin Williams assuring each other that at LEAST 1 of them would be at the other's funeral depending on who died first. Pitch perfect. The Never part of the episode was also hilarious, even if it wasn't especially innovative or original (god knows we've seen enough annoying-little-kid plots in TV shows and movies already). Never just seems like the worst kid ever, and I loved how straightforward Louie was with him about why Lilly won't hang out with him. "No shit, kid, you're a freak." I hope Alan does get around to reviewing this episode. One thing, and this might be my terrible memory, who the hell is Doug? Have we seen him before? Is he Louie's (seemingly very young) manager/agent? Reminds me of Liz's talent agent on 30 Rock, Simon Behrens (played by Josh Fadem).
Scott Rosenberg Yes, Doug the Agent is a recurring character. I know he was in "Tickets" (the Dane Cook vignette), and there might have been another appearance on top of that
August 4, 2012 at 8:45AM ESTGridlock
August 4, 2012 at 1:14PM EST Reply to CommentLoved it. Beautiful b&w stuff from the RED cameras, the right typeface for the opening credits, a throwaway high-budget action scene and so much left unsaid. And NYC as the major uncredited guest star once again, not hard to see Woody Allen in this.
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