LIFE, LARRY, AND THE PURSUIT OF UNHAPPINESS: SEASON ONE
Starring: Larry David
Creators: Larry David and Jeff Schaffer
QUENTIN
I say this as a big fan of Curb Your Enthusiasm: Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness is a chore to sit through. I love Larry David, but when you remove his schtick from the grounded world of Curb, it becomes annoying. And make no mistake, this sketch show is just quick bursts of what he did in Curb, including jokes being recycled verbatim, dressed in low-budget costuming and already tired observations about the current U.S. government and administration. Granted, David is a funny dude, so he’ll occasionally earn a laugh; the nonstop parade of celebrity cameos is fun too. But overall? Prettay, prettaaay, prettaaaaay…underwhelming.
ROBERT
At 79 years old, I wasn’t expecting a complete overhaul in the Larry David experience for Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness. Frankly, I got exactly what was promised: Curb Your Enthusiasm meets Drunk History. It was comforting to see Larry with all his friends from the Curb days chopping it up, albeit in period clothing. Granted, as a connoisseur of celebrity interviews, the jokes and bits on the show were word-for-word recreations of things I have heard Larry rant about for years. However, this was like a warm blanket of reason in a time of chaos, like a noteworthy chat-and-cut.
