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Posted in: Amazon Studios, Review, TV | Tagged: amazon, kids in the hall, prime video, Review
The Kids in the Hall: Comedy Punks Review: An Enduring Success Story
With the wave of nostalgia rampant these days especially from the '80s and '90s, there should be no surprise like their musical contemporaries in Guns N' Roses and Van Halen that comedy's The Kids in the Hall should ride again. As the title of the Amazon Original documentary indicates in "Comedy Punks", the Canadian troop that's comprised of Dave Foley, Bruce McCulloch, Mark McKinney, Kevin McDonald, and Scott Thompson always remained true to their art, no matter how much the establishment and world at large changes even as the series made their streaming debut for their long-awaited sixth season that was nearly 30 years in the making.
Director Reg Harkema tells about as straight-forward of a story as it gets directly from the cast as they started in the improv scene entertaining in front of sell-out crowds before transitioning to TV in 1988 for the premium cable network HBO. We also get a look at the typical creative writing pairings and strengths utilizing the cast member's own quirks and personality traits. Between the core cast members, we also have a venerable who's who of the comedy world including Saturday Night Live and Second City in Fred Armisen, Jay Baruchel, Eddie Izzard, Mae Martin, Mike Myers, and more chiming in.
As we find out, there's tons of cross-pollination when it came to finding out the history of the group especially when it came to their ties to executive producer Lorne Michaels, who had recruited McCulloch and McKinney for his flagship variety series SNL following The Kids in the Hall's series' end in 1995. We also get perspective upon the group's turmoil and struggles like Foley's falling out with the group that blew over into the disastrous spin-off film Brain Candy and Thompson's cancer battle. Comedy Punks does a wonderful job telling the story of The Kids in the Hall evenly distributing each member's story while giving equal opportunity for their biggest fans to say "Thank you." Growing up, I appreciated all the hard work they did trying to make themselves laugh and letting their audiences in on the joke to join in on the laughter with them. While Comedy Punks offers a comprehensive look into their triumphs and struggles, it felt like a complete journey going into season six knowing things went full circle. Here's hoping Amazon renews the show for season seven.
The Kids in the Hall: Comedy Punks
8/10
With the wave of nostalgia rampant these days especially from the ‘80s and ‘90s, there should be no surprise like their musical contemporaries in Guns N’ Roses and Van Halen that comedy’s The Kids in the Hall should ride again. As the title of the Amazon Original documentary indicates in “Comedy Punks”, the Canadian troop that's comprised of Dave Foley, Bruce McCulloch, Mark McKinney, Kevin McDonald, and Scott Thompson always remained true to their art, no matter how much the establishment and world at large changes even as the series made their streaming debut for their long-awaited sixth season that was nearly 30 years in the making.
Credits
Director
Reg Harkema
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