Louie: "Pregnant"

Season 2, Episode 1

A triumphant return for everyone’s favorite non-comedic comedy

Louie certainly made a splash last season, but given it’s 11/10c airtime – in which viewership is mostly eaten up by local news, and as far as FX’s key audience is concerned, The Daily Show – that splash was more critical that commercial. The show certainly did well all things considered, as evidenced by its second season pickup, but that was based on the consideration that it was a) cheap to make and b) that that timeslot brought about lowered expectation. The move to prime time – even if it is just a half-hour earlier – brings with it some added pressure to the show, as the network executive no doubt expect an uptick in audience numbers.

Part of the problem this creates for the show is that it will very quickly have to reel in those viewers that left the set on after Wilfred finished airing. This creates a problem because while Louie can be very funny – which is probably what the casual viewer will be expected, considering it’s paired with Wilfred, which is a comedy, and the networks never really gone out of its way to say that Louie isn’t one – it can also be somber, sad, and moving, and that’s actually when the show is at its best. Viewers need to know what they are getting into, and the cold open does that well, moving from the very sad realization that Louie’s youngest daughter likes being at her mother’s more (and in fact say she loves her mother more), and then hilariously end with Louie flipping off his child as she walks away.

The rest of the episode is a similar perfect blend of comedy and pathos, and it serves as a great introduction to the series for newcomers. Louie’s argument with his younger daughter about the relevance of the idea of “fair” in the real world is both funny and continues the idea introduced in the cold open about the frustration that kids can cause with their simplistic (and often time selfish) world view. This quickly transitions to a series of scenes with Louie’s pregnant sister, where they discuss the highs and lows of being a parent. It’s not a particularly funny scene, but it’s not meant to be, and it stays engaging by staying real and grounded, yet it also manages to deftly cover a range of emotions in the space of a few minutes.

(Fair warning: In an interview with Slate, C.K. stated that he’s very interested in using this season to explore the idea of being a parent. Even if this isn’t your thing, I’d advise you to stick with the show – episodes usually deal with at least three different topics – but just know that there might be some scenes that seem like dead weight to you.)

But the real heart of the episode follows, as Louie’s sister experiences a pain in her stomach, and fearful that it might mean another miscarriage, Louie starts to freak. (Two things: A) What kind of shitty brother has his pregnant sister sleep on the couch? B) As well done as this moment was done, it was a bit undersold by the fact that Louie’s sister mentioned the miscarriage in the earlier conversation, thus telegraphing the fact that she would have some trouble while staying with him.)In a scene that is both well-shot (way to use that extra money, C.K.) and helps to sell the feelings of confusion and fear, we see Louie (and later his neighbors) rush through the apartment to get to his sister, the blackness threatening to swallow everything around it.

The fact that this moment becomes about Louie learning to trust in strangers may seem like an insensitive one, what with his sister in serious pain, but I think it was the right move. Not only does this episodes message about the general goodness of humankind manage to counteract the darker moments without becoming too treacly, but it also centers the event around someone we know (Louie) as opposed to someone we don’t (Louie’s sister). Likewise, I’m sure some might be bothered by the fact that this whole storyline ends in a fart joke, but it was a very funny fart joke and to make this about Louie’s sister and her kid would have thrown off the episode’s tone quite a bit, especially if it ended up turning into tragedy.

The one problem with this episode – and it’s a slight one, really – is that the show seems to be transitioning from one from of storytelling to another, and it’s a bit unnerving to watch as C.K. experiment with the episode format. Last season, each episode (with a couple of exception) was made up of a series of vignettes, a move that allowed C.K. to explore a variety of topics in the span of one episode.  And this format actually worked, as he used the commercial breaks to effectively separate the vignettes, a move that also allowed him to insert the bits of standup without any one batting an eye.

Tonight was different, as C.K. tried to tell one story that covered a few different topics, and while it mostly held together, it did come off as a bit of a random piece of storytelling, and I don’t think that the various parts transitioned into one another as well as they could have (I’m thinking especially of the episode’s jump from the fairness argument to Louie’s conversation with his sister.) This lack of transition all effected the standup bits, which were a bit more prevalent here than I remember them being in past episodes. I think the biggest drawback was this episode used bits that were both from “professional gigs” and from “practice runs”, and it didn’t really explain why both had to be in the episode. Usually there is some thematic connection between the bits and the stories (and sometimes the practice runs factor into the plot), and while that was existent tonight (i.e. the difficulty of children, making new friends), it seemed like they were meant to comment on every theme on display here, and that kind of overt commentary got old fast, and it didn’t seem to have a strong narrative/thematic purpose.

But other than that misstep, which I’ll give C.K. a pass on since it’s the product of him trying to tinker with the format of his show (something I’m always for), this was a great episode of Louie, and I hope it succeeded in its mission to quickly acclimating new viewers.

Quotes, Etc:

“Not to put her down, she’s five. But she’s shitty at pretty much everything.”

“Okay, let’s just sit and play the card game where no one loses.”

“It’s to you tits at the highest. Just stand there.”

“Haha, you’re drowning. I tricked you to death.”

“I know how to look after you. I’m good at it. You’re not dead yet.”

“Well that’s not fair.” “I don’t know what that means.”

“Oh, I want to kill you both. I hate you so much.”

“And raise your kids properly, in two separate, well adjusted homes.”

“If we steal your kids, come knock on our door, and we will give them back.”

“911 is for shit.” “They’re such assholes.”

“He said ‘Yeah, okay.’ And then I ate his asshole.”