[7.4/10] Hey! What do you know! An episode of The League that I actually like! Huzzah! It’s hard to put my finger on what makes this one better, but I think it has a little something to do with focusing on the banter and some camaraderie among the group rather than generic sitcom plots and dickery.
Not that there’s no dickery. The war of Pete vs. Andre is pretty mean-spirited, from Pete in particular who’s trying depserately both to get under Andre’s skin and blow up his spot. And the whole “stealing personal things from Shiva for good luck” is pretty crass. But I at least appreciate that there’s some equally-yoked jerkiness for once, with Pete being pretty prickish for going after Andre through his girlfriend, but Andre being not so great himself for hiding from his girlfriend the fact that he plays in a fantasy football league named after her. There’s a little bit of the wacky sitcom vibe to all of this too, but the fact that both Pete and Andre are a little compromised, rather than it just being the gang dumping on Andre, helps a little.
(Speaking of The Gang, it’s a little funny that when Ruxin’s car breaks down, he’s clearly on the set of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia)
It also helps that Andre wins the league, but gets comeuppance from Shiva through a clockwork method of her finding out. I like the setup and payoff of Ruxin using his roadside assistance to get towed home when he’s drunk, messing up his car from all the towing, and then not having enough mileage left on his account to get towed when he actually needs it. It’s a little convenient that Shiva happens to stop by when he has the trophy, but still, a nice way to set up the big reveal.
And I even liked the bit where Taco is doing his nigh-homeless oddball version of the Barney Stinson routine. You can smell the corporate sponsorship of the whole car dealership routine, which adds some stink, but something about Taco gaining and losing this job via his casanova ways works in a way his previous Kavorka Man shtick hasn’t.
Again, it’s hard to pin down why this one is a cut above, but something about the dynamic with the group is just better here. Maybe the actors have gelled after six weeks on set, or maybe the writers have settled in and brought their A-game for the finale, or maybe it’s just that Shiva “Hava Nagila” song is silly but amusing. Whatever it is, this was a big improvement and gives me hope for the show going forward.
Shout by ABSTRACTlegendVIP 6BlockedParent2021-09-20T16:42:30Z
The part where Rubin hits kevin in the balls had to be unscripted lol that fucking reaction…. I hate my friends