If HBO is the reigning King of cable, it’s because they’ve found and perfectly occupied the Queen of comedy. I watched the first four episodes of Veep’s new season back-to-back-to-back-to-back, often pausing and rewinding to catch jokes I missed because I couldn’t stop laughing.
The series kicks off season four exactly as you hoped it might, even better than the last. It’s not that the third season needed to be improved upon; in fact it was easily the strongest of the series’ already-impressive run so far. But that’s just it, Veep has gotten better every year, and with comedy this damn good you sort of expect it might not be able to keep it up.
We pick up where we left off last year - Selina Meyer is President, meaning her insurmountable schedule has only grown more hectic, and her rat pack staff’s screw-ups are even further amplified. “I’m the President, see, everything’s my fault now,” she deadpans after being bombarded by Sue (the hilarious Sufe Bradshaw) and Ben (Kevin Dunn).
Something I’ve always loved about Veep is its rapid-fire pace, and that loses no momentum in the premiere. The jokes shoot at a mile-a-minute, blink and you’ll miss a sidesplitting insult, and the story is always moving along briskly. I’ve never been able to predict where Veep would go next, which is certainly not something that can be said for many comedies.
It literally only takes seconds of seeing Louis-Dreyfus onscreen to be reminded that there’s absolutely no one, man or woman, who can match her comedy chops. A forced smile or piercing glance is all it takes from her to have me smiling ear-to-ear, and her line delivery is downright legend. What’s so impressive is that even with such skill, she never takes away from her co-starts, who are all brilliant in their own right. I’m fairly certain there’s no character more likeable on all of TV than Mike McLintock, much of that due to Matt Walsh’s performance; Anna Chlumsky and Reid Scott are perfect as the always-dueling Chief of Staff and Director of Communications (look for their roles to change a bit as the new season kicks off); Tony Hale really gets to shine in the premiere and next several episodes as Gary struggles to adjust to Selina’s new, high-powered role and where it leaves him (too many people touching his leviathan); newly-minted regular Sam Richardson wastes no time coming into his own.
My favorite bit of the premiere comes courtesy of fan-favorite Jonah Ryan (Timothy Simons) who for my money has been the breakout star of this series so far. Simons’ crass, oblivious White House liaison has produced many of the shows best moments, and often finds himself at the receiving end of televisions most biting insults. Pair him up with Patton Oswalt as a grabby VP staffer and you’ve got comic gold. There’s nothing better than watching Jonah squirm, and the awkward awesomeness of his scenes with Oswalt take it to a new level.
Favorite Lines:
- Jonah: “Ladies be cryin’, pimps be dyin’, it’s Jonah Ryan!”
- Selina: “Whole cities of children were going to be saved from poverty – instead, now, that money is going to fund obsolete, metal, giant dildos.”
- Mike: “I got recognized on the street today... guy had already met me and then forgotten he met me, and then recognized me from TV and then remembered me again!”
- Amy: “How can you type with only two fingers?! You’re not a sloth!”
Veep kicks off its fourth season April 12 at 10:30 on HBO. For more on this series and all my SpoilerTV work feel free to follow me on Twitter.
