"I'm Dying Up Here" (Showtime series)

Just started watching this and after the first few episodes, I'm starting to really enjoy it. While it's about the 70's comedy scene in LA, the show is much more drama than comedy. There are still some funny parts. One isssue is that the comedy bits performed on stage aren't ever really that funny. It sorta reminds me of Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip in that regard, where the comedy sketches the show performed never seemed very good. Maybe standup comedy is hard to write for for TV writers. Or maybe they've got actual stand up comics writing, but what comic would want to give up their best stuff for a TV show? They'd save it for their own act.

I've always been a fan of Ari Graynor and like seeing her with a major role. For anyone who gives this a chance, I'd say stick it out to episode #4 (the funniest one with the introduction of the "chuckle-xxxker") if you can. I don't expect this will be back for a season 2 as I think it gets very low viewership and no buzz. Anyone else check this out and have any opinion?

 

It's a good show, made better by the presence of Melissa Leo, she's truly an actor's actor. This show seems to be the latest in a series of shows depicting the 'reality' of being a stand-up comic. Interesting to note that while ALL of these shows have their funny moments, there almost always is a dark, somber side to them. I don't think any of them are supposed to be considered comedies per se, maybe Louie? I've never seen it.

 

Yeah, Melissa Leo is great. There's a lot of good people on the show. Some of the faces look familiar, but I'm unsure if I know them or not, due to all the facial hair. It took me a bit to figure out that one half of the pair from Boston was the guy who played the young doctor on The Knick. And I liked seeing W. Earl Brown (from Deadwood) show up int he recent episodes. I hope there's more of him. The bit where the two guys from Boston and Adam went up on stage in place of the ventriloquist guy was funny.

It's not a very good looking show, unfortunately. It has that same flat dull appearance that HBO's Vinyl had. I guess it's the standard 70's filter, but I wish they wouldn't make every 70's show look the same - ugly.

 

I hate that dull dingy dishwasher look too. What creates that - is it the cameras used or how the footage is processed in post or something else?

 

Everything is done in post these days. Desaturate the colors, overexpose bright areas, introduce color shifts, etc. Bleh, 99% of the time, it's just an annoyance that has no real reason for being.

 

I'm biased because one of the actors is a long time close friend, but I've been enjoying it quite a lot. I've lived in L.A. since the mid 70's and used to go to the comedy clubs fairly often back then and did occasional sound work at the Improv. So I lived through some of that scene, at least as an observer. The look and feel of the show definitely rings true and as the episodes progress, I'm starting to like the fact that most of the time, the show doesn't really go for laughs. I thought episode 4, Sugar and Spice, was the best yet. The actress who played the comedian groupie was phenomenal and I thought the writing was really superb. No episode aired last week but I'm looking forward to catching it again this weekend.

 

Episode 4 was my favorite too, and I really liked that actress. Showtime has episode 5 already available to view on demand, thought its not scheduled to actually air until this Sunday.

 

Have you ever hung out with professional comedians? Once off stage, there's a LOT of darkness. Comedians are, as a lot, a huge ball of neuroses. More than actors, even, and that's saying something. Make 'em laugh and they can't get to you emotionally.

This show would HAVE to skew dark to approximate reality.

 

Well, the season is over. Pretty good last episode that could be the end of the series. I looked for news on whether it was coming back and found one article predicting it would and another predicting it wouldn't. Given the lack of buzz, I tend to think Showtime won't bring it back. And I won't be too upset. I like that they did something different from the other shows out there, but I don't think it ever became more than moderately compelling.

 

On renewal, looks like they are going to give the writers a shot at ideas for season two before deciding:

‘I’m Dying Up Here’: Renewal Decision On Showtime Series Coming Soon, Writers Working On Season 2 Ideas

 

I tried watching the first 3 or 4 episodes, and I thought it was contrived and boring. The whole thing rang false to what I personally remember and experienced at the Comedy Store and the Improv and all those other comedy clubs of that era. I don't buy it for a minute, plus the wigs are real fake and the jokes are not funny enough.

This show is bad and phony in a very similar way that HBO's Vinyl was bad and phony: it tries to recapture a specific time and place from an era with a lot of interesting showbiz history, but it never quite sells it and it doesn't get the feel right. I also don't have enough empathy for the characters. I get that it has to be a roman a clef because of legal problems -- they can't mention Mitzi Shore's name, they can't say "The Comedy Store," and they can't mention the real names of the young comedians involved -- but it just feels crappy to me. I gave up and deleted the season pass and an moving on to shows more worth my time.

I was hoping for more because I actually read the book I'm Dying Up Here when it first came out a few years ago, and I thought it would make a terrific movie provided you could clear the rights to all the real-life characters and show Robin Williams, David Letterman, Eddie Murphy, Jay Leno, Jerry Seinfeld, Richard Lewis, Elaine Boosler, and all those other guys and show what really went on back in those days. The book was fairly entertaining. Unfortunately, the show is not even 10% as good as the book.

 

Been watching because of Ari Graynor. She's such a hottie!

 

I agree, and underrated.

 

Thank you for making me Google her...

 

Season two just started. We're seeing the comics advance their careers (somewhat). Seriously if you're not watching this show you should. The snark is at genius level.

 

Glad it's back! Melissa Leo simply doesn't do bad work or lend her name to bad projects. As long as she's in, so am I!

 

I'm pleasantly surprised they even did a second season. I expected it to be one and done.

 

Can she please take off her clothes already?

 

Not that there's anything wrong with that!

 

So, any thoughts about how the season has wrapped up?

L.

 

I thought it was great! I've gotta read the book this thing is based on!

 

Hadn't heard of this show, will check it out for sure, thanks to the OP for alerting me to it.

 

Liked season 2 much better than season 1, hope it gets renewed.

 

Just heard that it was cancelled.

This was announced in Sept last year, but I hadn't heard.

Really bummed, I loved this show.

 

Just now getting around to S2. 3 episodes in and really like it.

Question: What happened to the character Ginger Gonzaga played in S1? I haven't seen her, and don't remember her departing. She played Maggie. IMDB lists her in 10 episodes, so every S1 episode. But she seems to have vanished with no mention in S2.