Back to Main
Back to Reviews
Greene Machine
The Best Episode Yet
Perhaps it is best evidenced by the fact that I have watched the episode some 30 times since
it debuted last week...perhaps simply by the fact that I want to honor this episode with a positive
review just for the sake of giving it a positive review on a rather unpopular website. So goes
the world these days, I guess. I am not at all ashamed to be a shill for Tim and Eric: Awesome Show, Great Job.
The episode starts with a perfectly rendered infomercial introduction. This is a parody episode,
which is not new to the series. In the same vein, my favorite episode until this came out was the
parody episode 'Jim and Derrick', which was an episode-length parody of an archetypical MTV-style
variety show. In this episode, Zach Galifianakis fearlessly reprises his role as Tairy Greene: Hollywood Actor and
star of, amongst other projects, 'The Snuggler'.
Much of the content on Tim and Eric is parody, and much of it is eerily done presentations of
public-access television done with early video. This episode if a faithful presentation
of a product with very little of the pretense that the rest of the series enjoys.
Now in the 5th season of the series, the comedy duo have taken more
of the creative freedom that I suspect many of their critics find jarring. Quick cutting, screaming
coming out of nowhere, odd manipulation of the video and animating of still images, exaggerated diagetic sound effects,
use of grotesque imagery, etc. Perhaps the reason I most like this episode is that they
do away with the majority of the repulsive nature of much of their show and instead focus on
writing to create the humor. Except for a few moments, the episode is a very straightforward narrative,
with the exception of few instances (Cetera's mouth being digitally manipulated (though it
might be a statement on his singing style) and when Tim is playing with the 'Tairy Tokens' in front of his eyes)
, it shares the very nature of the rest of the series in the backhanded approach to the material
without sharing the creative indulgence of, say, the 'Stuntmen' episode, which I would not watch with
my parents (not because it is very offensive, but because I would not want them to think that
I were a blithering idiot.).
The infomercial begins with Tim Heidecker in his kitchen preparing a bowl of caramel popcorn, when
Eric walks in with huge gaping wounds on his hands. This presents the first step on a ladder of jokes,
whereas his bandages continue to grow and grow throughout the episode- though he is not shown to be
placing additional bandages on his hands- until they are enormous red lobster claws on his arms, with
an appropriate amount of bright red blood everywhere. The Tairy Green Machine is introduced, and after they attach the
water hose to the sink-during which is an amusing argument between the two, which upon resolution, is dissolved with an exchange of
'Nice!' and 'Bullseye!', which is repeated several times through the episode.
Lending to the legitimacy of the ruse is the inclusion of several stars into the lineup. Amongst them are
Ted Danson, Zach Galifianakis, David Cross, LeVar Burton, Richard Marx, and Peter Cetera. Strangely enough,
only Zach Galifianakis does not play himself, as Tairy Greene is a recurring character in the series.
That being said, what helps make the show work is the preassumtion that Tairy Greene is a huge star and enormously
talented. It would not have worked if they had used a real person in the role- as Tairy Greene's
legacy has been firmly established in the T&E universe- having starred in 'The Snuggler' television
series as well as having his own acting workshop, and having starred in the training video for the
Gravy Robbers restaurant chain. The organic nature of Tairy Greene's celebrity is almost indicative of
a greater plan to have his appearances be merely to facilitate this episode, instead of the opposite.
The Good
Great semi-traditional story, fantastic accurate parody, good use of repetition to creat humor, few incidents of gross overindulgence.
The Bad
Very little. A few unnecessary forays into image manipulation that don't fit into the rest of the episode.
The Greene Machine- 92%
Back to Main
![[Valid RSS]](Pictures/valid-rss.png "Validate my RSS feed")