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Jan 11, 2010 Web Exclusive By Nick Hyman

You’ve got to hand it to Andy Richter: He really did try to go it alone after departing from Late Night with Conan O’Brien in 2000. After striking out with the high-concept Andy Richter Controls the Universe in 2002, he returned with another series in 2007, the comedic detective series Andy Barker, P.I.

Only six episodes were made (and four aired), all of which are now lovingly assembled by Shout! Factory in a 2-disc DVD set. The series’ protagonist becomes a private investigator through mistaken identity. He works cases with the support of his office neighbors at a strip mall, and his primary sidekick is the hilariously obtuse Tony Hale (Buster from Arrested Development).

Their misadventures are very reminiscent of the recent inept-detective comedy series Bored to Death on HBO. Perhaps the freedom of pay cable is what this series might have needed to survive. The show is preserved here, with audio commentaries on every episode and behind-the-scenes featurettes that include many of the principal players and even have co-creator Conan O’Brien showing that as evidenced on their recent reunion on The Tonight Show, you can’t keep Andy and Conan apart. (www.shoutfactory.com)

Author rating: 6/10