1600 Penn
Episode 6: Skip the
Tour
By: Carlos Uribe
1600
Penn is a show about a normal family that happens to reside in the
White House.
Spoilers
Ahoy!
This
show is still on the air? I've completely forgotten it even existed
over the last couple of weeks but the network aired another episode.
Was it a good one? It had some moments but it was as weak as the
other episodes. The characters remained undefined, the relationships
were surface-level, and the situations felt forced. Take for example
the main plot. President Dale's brother is coming to visit him at the
White House for the first time. The public image is that they're
happy to see him but Emily and Dale aren't looking forward to the
visit because the brother makes too many rude jokes about Dale. The
episode tries to dig deeper into that relation with Emily revealing
that the brother always tells the same embarrassing story because
he's been jealous of how Dale's life turned out. It's her theory but
the viewer has to take her word for it since this is the first
episode where we learn that Dale even has a brother and it was busy
setting up their relationship. She turns out to be right but the big
fighting climax scene rings false because the two never really felt
like brothers. That would require both of them to have actually be
developed. The main plot could have worked if it revealed anything
new about Dale but didn't really. All we learn is that he was a
coward that ran away from one fight but it's only significant in the
brother's life. The plot wasn't funny because the antics of the
brother never brought good comedy with it due to how undeveloped it
all is. It was still better than all of the other plots-especially
Skip's story.
I
understand that the writers think that Skip is the best thing about
this show. That's highly debatable since there's moments where he can
be the only good part about a scene and others where he drags an
episode down. This would be one of the cases where I could have used
less Skip. His entire plot is that he decides to give a tour of the
White House to tourists. He steals them away from the official tour
guide in an effort to show them real history but quickly finds his
trivia to be rebuffed by actual experts. The only reason his tour is
of any success is because he was able to get them into a first-hand
look into the personal life of his dad. They don't really get to hear
(or see) anything that would damage the President's reputation but
they do see him in moments of “human” weakness. The whole problem
with the tour is that it never really leads to any funny moments.
It's largely just there. It doesn't contribute to the episode but
rather detracts from it. I guess the idea of Skip leading a White
House tour might have sounded good but it ultimately fell flat in the
execution. This wasn't a problem of undeveloped characters but rather
lack of any solid material.
The
episode also deals with Becca, her pregnancy, and relationship with
Marshall. Becca and D.B. are being interviewed by the media over how
her pregnancy is going. While she's preparing for the interview, she
learns that Marshall has started a new relationship with a woman. She
sends a text to sabotage their relationship but immediately regrets
it. I'm guessing that the writers were trying to tell us she's not
over him but the two lack any chemistry to sell it. It never really
feels like they used to be together so it's difficult to invest
myself in whether they'll get back together or not. It all just feels
so very superficial and even superfluous. The episode ends on the
predictable note where she uses the interview to express a
“heartfelt” apology. An apology that could have felt real if
Becca was developed enough so that the characters could make it
something only her character would do. It comes across as cheesy
because it's the predictable thing to do. When Marshall and his new
girlfriend comment that it's the first time she has appeared human,
it's an aspect of the character that only they see because she
remained flat.
If
you missed 1600 Penn because you forgot it existed, Skip the Tour is
not a strong enough half-hour to really go back and see what you
missed. If anything Skip the Tour is an episode that you should skip.
Oh, and that terrible pun? It's better than most of the jokes that
were present on this episode-so that should speak volumes about how
lifeless this comedy can be.
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