Horace and Pete

I miss my dose of the TV series Louis, and yet it seems Louis C.K. will not commit to another season. So I was resigned to a Louis-less future until I downloaded a copy of Louis C.K.'s new "series" Horace and Pete.  Created by and starring Louis C.K. (Horace), it also includes performances by Steve Buscemi (Pete), Alan Alda, Edie Falco, and others.  

The first episode is available for download for $5 on LouisCK.net, and as of today there are two additional episodes.  Hence, it appears Louis has gone his own route for distribution rather than relying on FX. 

Watching the pilot, I felt as though I was an audience in a quiet theater witnessing something fresh yet ancient - the ongoing plight of struggling families.  With no soundtrack or music, the episode seems far removed from television. And even the bigotry of Alan Alda seemed shocking yet familiar, like Archie Bunker on All in the Family, where the truth in all its ugliness was once allowed on regular television.  

All in all, it is a depressing view of family life tied to a struggling bar, yet authentic as well.  It is also very current, discussing this year's political race with the characters in various camps trying to understand the national situation.  I should also add that the production is far from perfect, with dull patches, wandering scenes, and other flaws indicating Louis did not want to polish a diamond but rather hand you a pail of gravel and let you find the gems on your own.  I did not expect anything less from Louis C.K. who likes to put the camera in the most uncomfortable places to talk about commonplace issues.  And I want to see more of it, as do others.  

I think Aaron Bady got it right in the Los Angeles Review of Books:

History makes it interesting, of course; Horace and Pete puts the O’Neill back in the Irish pub show, making the gang at Cheers into the vicious group of sad alcoholics that they should have been. What if Coach was a vicious bigot? What if Woody had a serious mental illness? What if Sam Malone was played by Louis CK? What if women could be lost in their cups too? These are interesting things because they tear the gloss off of one of the great genre-defining television shows, reminding you of all the things that — in order to become such a lovely fantasy — the show had to forget. Cheers had a certain darkness and occasional drifts into melancholy, but it also had jokes and a laugh track and a comic romance plot to keep things on track. 

Check it out for yourself.  If you are a Louis fan, you do not want to miss his latest creation.