Procedural à la Python: On SAFETY GEEKS: SVI – The WEB TV Movie
Today I got the chance to enjoy the first season of SAFETY GEEKS: SVI in one mega “WEB TV movie.”
SAFETY GEEKS: SVI is loosely satirical and completely outrageous. Having experienced INVENTION with Brian Forbes, I knew going in I was in good hands, the allegedly small and abnormally hairy hands of expert comedic craftsman and creators, David Beeler and Tom Konkle.
SAFETY GEEKS: SVI follows the P.O.S.H. (Professional Occupational Safety Hazard) Team as they investigate a forklift accident that took place at a “Giant Provisions,” a Costco or Sam’s Club type warehouse store. For safety professionals they sure cause a lot of destruction ranging from death by private plane landing (on you) to electrocution by crime scene tape. But (spoiler alert) they do solve the “case” but at what cost? I’m sure Budwin Yaker would know the penny. Speaking of…
The P.O.S.H on site Team is made up of eccentric British billionaire, Reginald Syngen-Smithe (David Beeler), the inscrutable number cruncher Budwin W. Yaker (Tom Konkle) and ex-stripper turned psychologist Randi Minky (Brittney Powell), who not only adds laughs but is the show’s sex appeal. She looks like Sophia Bush’s sexier older sister. Then there is the requisite support team at headquarters, crippled techie, Sparky Van Der Graaf (Mary Cseh) and Reginald’s butler, the aptly named Manservant Hopkins (Benton Jennings). All the actors do a really good job. Their performances are quirky and consistent. So much delicious awkwardness.
The whole show was shot on Green Screen, which really created a unique environment. It lent its self to humor you normally only see in animated shows these days. The special effects varied from realistic to silly, which I preferred in the instances of blood spurting. I was really impressed with the whole aesthetic.
For me, most laughs came from non-sequiturs and witty one-liners, of which there are many. I occasionally cringed at the crudeness and there were some jokes that just fell flat. But I know that if I took a time machine back to 1998 and spied on myself at 16 watching this show, she would be laughing at completely different moments. There is a variety of humor in SAFETY GEEKS: SVI, something for everyone. And it definitely exemplifies Dave & Tom’s credo: “silly comedy for smart people.”
Verdict: In the spirit of the show, it gave me a comedic erection. One that lasted over 8 hours. So, someone tell Sparky to clear the grid and let the emergency vehicles through, please. If you didn’t get the reference, you haven’t watched the show. Have you seriously not watched this show yet? Do you even have Internet? Watch it. Oh look, I’ve embedded it!
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