Where No Freak or Geek Has Gone Before
April 25, 2015 6:32 AM Subscribe
Other Space: A sci-fi workplace comedy created by Paul Feig. Featuring Milana Vayntraub (a.k.a. the lady from the AT&T ad), Karan Soni (a.k.a. the dude from the AT&T ad), and Joel Hodgson and Trace Beaulieu from MST3K.
I've been meaning to watch this! One of my Tumblr faves has been hyping it up and drawing adorable fanart.
posted by almostmanda at 6:58 AM on April 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by almostmanda at 6:58 AM on April 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
Haven't watched it yet, but tangentially there's a great New Yorker article about casting director Allison Jones that goes through this...well worth a read if you're interested in shows/movies within the Feig-iverse...
posted by saintjoe at 7:22 AM on April 25, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by saintjoe at 7:22 AM on April 25, 2015 [2 favorites]
Pretty, pretty good. Great acting, hokey script, mediocre special effects (Would be better to be either awful or a notch more expensive), a few ultra clever jokes. Joel puts it over the top.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 7:23 AM on April 25, 2015
posted by Potomac Avenue at 7:23 AM on April 25, 2015
I really read that as "from the AT-AT ad" and got really excited about some more brilliant sci-fi comedy.
Sad trombone.
posted by redbeard at 7:26 AM on April 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
Sad trombone.
posted by redbeard at 7:26 AM on April 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
The first episode is setting up so much plot and backstory that there's not much there otherwise. They start to hit their stride in episode 2
posted by thecjm at 7:46 AM on April 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by thecjm at 7:46 AM on April 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
The fact that Trace Beaulieu is voicing a robot named "Art" pleases my little MST3k geek heart to no end.
posted by AlonzoMosleyFBI at 7:54 AM on April 25, 2015 [6 favorites]
posted by AlonzoMosleyFBI at 7:54 AM on April 25, 2015 [6 favorites]
It took a bit for it to find its legs and its voice, but overall I have to say I was pretty pleased with the series. Ultimately, it strikes me as a proper American take on early Red Dwarf (but fortunately NOT like the horrendous debacle that was the actual US Red Dwarf remake).
Of course, it's always good to see (and/or hear) Joel and Trace working again. Hopefully Yahoo picks it up for another season because I really need an episode where Art finally gets to decide who live and who dies. I mean he already called dibs.
posted by Freon at 8:22 AM on April 25, 2015 [5 favorites]
Of course, it's always good to see (and/or hear) Joel and Trace working again. Hopefully Yahoo picks it up for another season because I really need an episode where Art finally gets to decide who live and who dies. I mean he already called dibs.
posted by Freon at 8:22 AM on April 25, 2015 [5 favorites]
Halfway in and I'm laughing from time to time. You can tell Joel Hodgson, not unexpectedly for his generation, is influenced by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry. It actually feels a lot like Quark.
It's weird that it's produced by Yahoo, I would ordinarily suggest they stick to their core competency but since they've never had one of those they might as well go for it. Besides, it's the first thing they've done in 20 years that I'm in any sense using.
posted by George_Spiggott at 8:58 AM on April 25, 2015 [6 favorites]
It's weird that it's produced by Yahoo, I would ordinarily suggest they stick to their core competency but since they've never had one of those they might as well go for it. Besides, it's the first thing they've done in 20 years that I'm in any sense using.
posted by George_Spiggott at 8:58 AM on April 25, 2015 [6 favorites]
Loved hearing Trace again. But it was really hard to finish the first episode. Really hard. I want to like it but it's too earnest, maybe?
posted by Ik ben afgesneden at 8:59 AM on April 25, 2015
posted by Ik ben afgesneden at 8:59 AM on April 25, 2015
Try the second episode, I beg you. I can't say anything because it would all be spoilery but there were several threads there that spooled out over the episode that were really funny.
The earnest thing is kind of a setup, I'll say that. It's a spoof (or maybe homage, or spoofmage) of space shows that is also a space show, it needs more than 22 minutes to lay all the cards out. It takes to the 2nd and 3rd episodes for everyone's New Job facade to crack.
posted by Lyn Never at 9:12 AM on April 25, 2015 [3 favorites]
The earnest thing is kind of a setup, I'll say that. It's a spoof (or maybe homage, or spoofmage) of space shows that is also a space show, it needs more than 22 minutes to lay all the cards out. It takes to the 2nd and 3rd episodes for everyone's New Job facade to crack.
posted by Lyn Never at 9:12 AM on April 25, 2015 [3 favorites]
Other Space is to Star Trek as Get Smart is to The Man from UNCLE.
posted by infinitewindow at 9:46 AM on April 25, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by infinitewindow at 9:46 AM on April 25, 2015 [2 favorites]
Actually "Quark" was literally that. Right down to being created and written by Get Smart writer and co-creator Buck Henry (see above) and having a first officer who is a Vegeton (half human half plant) and theme music that sounds like a schlocky 70s version of the Star Trek theme as reimagined by whoever did the Love Boat music.
Am I commenting too much? Why yes! Yes I am. But as long as I'm here I was just now looking to see what other things the cast have done and it looks like Milana Vayntrub has done a lot of very funny shit, including podcasting as half of LivePrudeGirls whose show "Let's Talk About Something More Interesting" appears to be unusually good as such things go and bagged some notable guests.
Shutting TF up now
posted by George_Spiggott at 11:01 AM on April 25, 2015 [6 favorites]
Am I commenting too much? Why yes! Yes I am. But as long as I'm here I was just now looking to see what other things the cast have done and it looks like Milana Vayntrub has done a lot of very funny shit, including podcasting as half of LivePrudeGirls whose show "Let's Talk About Something More Interesting" appears to be unusually good as such things go and bagged some notable guests.
Shutting TF up now
posted by George_Spiggott at 11:01 AM on April 25, 2015 [6 favorites]
And if you're a comedy podcast (or sketch shows like Nick Kroll's or Amy Schumer's) fan, you've probably crossed paths with Eugene Cordero and Neil Casey. Shelby Fero and Karen Kilgariff are both writers for the show.
posted by Lyn Never at 12:55 PM on April 25, 2015
posted by Lyn Never at 12:55 PM on April 25, 2015
Bizarrely, while you can't watch it on the Yahoo site in Canada, you can watch it from their official channel on YouTube:
posted by WaylandSmith at 5:57 PM on April 25, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by WaylandSmith at 5:57 PM on April 25, 2015 [3 favorites]
Bizarrely, while you can't watch it on the Yahoo site in Canada, you can watch it from their official channel on YouTube:
Thanks, WaylandSmith!
posted by acroyear at 6:06 PM on April 25, 2015
Thanks, WaylandSmith!
posted by acroyear at 6:06 PM on April 25, 2015
Don't thank me yet. The version on YouTube is 360p@13fps and LITERALLY looks like it was re-recorded by pointing a webcam at a TV set. I can't even…
posted by WaylandSmith at 6:14 PM on April 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by WaylandSmith at 6:14 PM on April 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
Don't thank me yet. The version on YouTube is 360p@13fps and LITERALLY looks like it was re-recorded by pointing a webcam at a TV set. I can't even…
Oh, yes... you are correct now I actually follow the link (I was saving it to watch tonight!). I don't think that's their official channel. I've seen other, short-lived unofficial channels with that similar overexposed centre/underexposed edges for current shows like Last Man on Earth.
Hopefully it'll be officially viewable north of the 49th soon.
posted by acroyear at 6:28 PM on April 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
Oh, yes... you are correct now I actually follow the link (I was saving it to watch tonight!). I don't think that's their official channel. I've seen other, short-lived unofficial channels with that similar overexposed centre/underexposed edges for current shows like Last Man on Earth.
Hopefully it'll be officially viewable north of the 49th soon.
posted by acroyear at 6:28 PM on April 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
Sorry! The content provider has not given us the rights to play this video in your location.
Yeah.
posted by Mezentian at 2:24 AM on April 26, 2015
Yeah.
posted by Mezentian at 2:24 AM on April 26, 2015
I wonder if yahoo will be able to work out this 'internet' thing anytime soon, because geo-locked online video series are not going to win them any friends.
posted by The River Ivel at 5:19 AM on April 26, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by The River Ivel at 5:19 AM on April 26, 2015 [2 favorites]
I wonder if yahoo will be able to work out this 'internet' thing anytime soon,
Yahoo once understood the internet.
But then they changed what it was.
And here we are.
posted by Mezentian at 6:01 AM on April 26, 2015 [1 favorite]
Yahoo once understood the internet.
But then they changed what it was.
And here we are.
posted by Mezentian at 6:01 AM on April 26, 2015 [1 favorite]
So what's the difference between original Netflix programming (which is viewable anywhere you can get Netflix) and things like Other Space, Community, and Powers on Yahoo and the Playstation Channel (which are original programming streamed digital and geo-locked to US only)?
My only guess is that the producers of the later are still hanging on to the idea the can sell their series twice, once to the domestic market and then again internationally.
posted by thecjm at 2:46 PM on April 26, 2015
My only guess is that the producers of the later are still hanging on to the idea the can sell their series twice, once to the domestic market and then again internationally.
posted by thecjm at 2:46 PM on April 26, 2015
It beggars belief that Powers isn't available wherever there's a PSN, to be honest. I don't want to watch it particularly, but I certainly won't want to watch it whenever it does come to Ireland.
posted by Swandive at 1:53 AM on April 27, 2015
posted by Swandive at 1:53 AM on April 27, 2015
We're up to episode six Chez Spiggott and holy hell has it hit its stride. 5 and 6 are just howlingly, brilliantly funny.
posted by George_Spiggott at 1:05 AM on May 3, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by George_Spiggott at 1:05 AM on May 3, 2015 [4 favorites]
Wow, this series looks so cheap that it actually looks cheaper than 70's-era Doctor Who. I mean, at least the Doctor got to walk around a quarry now and then. But I have to say, it's pretty fun. A fair sight better than the final zombie season of Community.
posted by rikschell at 10:36 AM on May 7, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by rikschell at 10:36 AM on May 7, 2015 [1 favorite]
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posted by acroyear at 6:56 AM on April 25, 2015 [2 favorites]