The audiences that came of age in the 1990s, finishing up high school and preparing for college, watching Mr. Show are about the age right now when most couples at start talking about becoming parents. It's not entirely surprising, then, that the first full sketch to be released from W/ Bob and David, the new sketch series from Mr. Show helmers Bob Odenkirk and David Cross, has the tone of a kind of amiable dad joke, though given the conversational twist from Odenkirk and Cross, which denotes both performers' subtle, studied deliveries. The series, which will premiere on Netflix come November 13th, only runs for four episodes - at least for the first order - and the material gleaned in the trailers also reflects a kind of shaggy, sardonic tone that fits comfortably with Cross and Odenkirk's comedic perspectives.
Check out the full sketch from W/ Bob and David below:
There's a kick of absurdity, of course, but this is pretty tame stuff for Odenkirk and Cross, considering some of the more radical acts of humor they pulled off in the salad days of Mr. Show. That shouldn't be taken as a knock; in fact, being able to give broad humor of this sort a twist of respectable oddness and wisdom is the sign of a truly ambitious comedian. That being said, I do hope the duo show's off their capacity for going out on a limb in some of the new material, which I'm almost positive they will. Odenkirk is also in the midst of preparing Better Call Saul Season 2, which is likely to debut next year and will decide if the brilliant spin-off will secure a third season, while Cross has several projects on the burners, not the least of which being his voice work in the upcoming Kung Fu Panda 3. It's nice seeing these two performers branch out in such a variety of genres and mediums, but here's hoping that the four episodes of W/ Bob and David will garner more episodes where these insightful humorists continue to work in the sketch platform, which they've always used as a laboratory for outlandish and occasionally ingenious comedic ideas.
