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Jun 08, 2012 By Ryan Reed Issue #41 - Yeasayer

Even if you’re not familiar with comedian Scott Aukerman by name, you’ve undoubtedly felt his comedic presence-most notably, he’s written for the cult classic HBO series Mr. Show and the Zach Galifianakis-starring Funny or Die! web series, Between Two Ferns. With his mostly brilliant pilot for Comedy Bang Bang!, a podcast-turned-semi-improvised “sketch variety show,” Aukerman’s awkwardly surreal humor is sharper than ever. Which isn’t to say there aren’t a few opening-round missteps: The overlong hidden camera spoof “Tsk-Tsk Ataboy” tanks immediately, and guest Thomas Lennon (playing a stale, wine-obsessed French chef) hogs screen time better suited to the ever-charming Aukerman or his reliably hilarious co-host/one-man-band, human jukebox Reggie Watts. But the show finds its groove in the interview segments: A chat with partner-in-crime Galifianakis leads to a dream sequence involving a talking Boston Terrier, and Will Forte is a riot as a clueless pilot recounting his “heroic” brush with death (naturally, he was forced to crash his plane in a mall near a Wetzel’s Pretzels since they have “the best Pepsi”). Keep it up, fellas. (www.comedybangbang.com)

Author rating: 8/10