The first episode of w/ bob and david opens with co-hosts Bob Odenkirk and David Cross emerging from what looks like a Porta Potty time machine. It's their on-the-nose way of acknowledging the 17 years that have passed since Mr. Show with Bob and David signed off, but it's also the most apt metaphor for this revival of a cult series that feels a little out of date. The show may have a new cast, a different format and a slightly more skewed sensibility, but the sketches feel a lot like they came out of a time when SNL was still churning out hit after hit.
The best sketch comedy is all about reducing large, complicated ideas to their most absurdist, simplest form, and that's something that W/ Bob and David excels at. The show also does a terrific job of teasing out miniature stories that run through the entire episode, with sketches about a Jewish freelance Pope, a courtroom judge TV show and a big-budget movie about slavery all linking together.
Despite a few duds, the overall effect is delightfully unhinged and utterly gleeful. That's enough to make me hope that Netflix gives Odenkirk and Cross the chance to revive this show again, with even more of the same talent and a bit more time to find its rhythm. The world needs more sketch comedy that's a million miles outside of the box. And while the likes of Chappelle's Show, Key & Peele and Inside Amy Schumer have advanced the genre by taking political satire and aesthetic considerations to the next level, there's something about watching the pioneers at work that's always worth it.
