4 out of 5

Created By: Ben Best, Jody Hill, Danny McBride

Covers through season 3

I’ve not thus far been a fan of the Adam McKay school of grown-up Porky’s-style flicks.  I’d associated Danny McBride with the scene, and indeed, McKay regulars Will Ferrell, Seth Rogen, and Jason Sudeikis make appearances, plus McKay’s title as executive producer.  While EB&D does bring in some of the hallmarks of the genre, lurching between parody and moments of ‘reality’ and treading that fine humor line between inappropriate and hilarious, the consistency with which the writers and actors commit to their absurd roles ends up selling it, and by turning the thing into a series, we actually earn the odd dramatic moment instead of it seeming out of place amongst the ridiculousness.  But overall this works because its not Adam McKay’s baby – it’s Danny McBride’s, with he and at least one of the other co-creators writing every single episode and the camera a sympathetic co-conspirator thanks to limiting the director’s chair to a small pool of names – generally either Jody Hill or David Gordon Green.  By keeping the creativity in-house, the world of EB&D seems to grow organically, and we can witness the outrageousness of the crass Kenny Powers as he darts in and out of baseball fame, gathering an obsessive confidant – Steve Little as Steve Janowski – along the way and continually crossing paths with his high school flame April, played by Katy Mixon.  Even the celebs that sprinkle season 2 and 3 – Don Johnson and Lily Tomlin as mom and pop – feel right and not just played for star value, sticking around for longer than a normal TV guest spot would merit to make sure their parts are fully filled.  Yes, its dumb, does drugs, and shows frequent boobs, but EB&D – like Always Sunny – doesn’t condemn or glorify its lead’s actions and behaviors, just letting them play out for all their absurd worth, most of the world “in” on the joke except for those sore thumbs who are just as out there as Kenny.  It’s a brew that endures surprisingly well and doesn’t just sit on the redneck jock jokes for all its humor.  Season 1 lets all the dirty laundry hang loose, leading into a more base season 2 that’s balanced out by some underlying somberness, coming to a rousing conclusion before the outright surreal parody that comes through in season 3.  And now into season 4, we’ll see how this “final” season pans out.