Eastbound & Down (HBO)

My neighbor (whom I love as myself) handed me the first (and only, thusfar) season of Eastbound & Down on DVD, claiming it to be the best thing since the New Testament. It was a mere six, 30-minute episodes. The show stars Danny McBride as Kenny Powers, a washed-up major league baseball pitcher, who’s gone back to his hometown, where he gets a job as P.E. teacher, at the same time planning his comeback to the majors.

The main character is totally detestable, even in his most genuine moments. He’s backhanded and utterly classless at every turn. The humor from the show comes from the fact that Kenny Powers doesn’t realize that he’s white-trash. He’s not in on the joke. His unveiled statements of supremacy over those around him work on two levels. The supporting cast is made up of equally lively characters that either still adore Powers as a celebrity or see through his façade, and include some pretty big names, most notably Will Ferrell, who appears in several episodes. Much of the show comes across as adlibbed, and there are some notable scenes with Ferrell, McBride, and Craig Robinson (Darryl from “The Office”) that appear to be long stretches on on-the-fly nonsense, but hilarious nonsense, nonetheless.

I enjoyed this show quite a bit and think that its short season makes it easier to digest, with somewhat of a limited premise. HBO is planning at least one more season, but it’s not annually, which I think is a good choice. If you find humor in shows like the Office, Curb Your Enthusiasm, or Extras, you’ll probably also enjoy this straight-faced satire of the lower-middle class.