danajohnhill.org | Hard Times Come Again No More

Tonight will be much less funny, since Flight of the Conchords‘ season has concluded. I didn’t know what to expect back in June when the HBO series began, but it instantly won my heart. Thanks to the new “In Demand” function on my cable box, I am now able to watch any of the twelve episodes that aired this summer. I have now watched the fourth episode, entitled “Yoko”, three times, and I am convinced that it is among the funniest things I have ever seen on television.

The gist of the series is that there are two fellows from New Zealand who now live in New York City and have a band called Flight of the Conchords. They are not especially good, unfortunately, and, in spite of having an enthusiastic manager–who conducts band business during the course of his duties as deputy cultural attaché at the New Zealand consulate–and one overly-devoted fan, the two are poor and unappreciated. Each episode involves the efforts of Bret and Jermaine to woo women and reach a wider audience, with little success. There are usually a couple songs in each episode, and they often come in the form of hilarious music videos.

(Episode-specific spoilers follow.)

In “Yoko”, Bret is in the early stages of a romance with a girl named Coco, whom he met while taking a day job to supplement his income in the absence of paying gigs. Jermaine imposes himself upon them by tagging along on all their dates. When Bret finally expresses his desire to have alone time with Coco, Jermaine takes it personally, and complains to their manager, Murray, that Coco is trying to break up the band.

Aside from subtle bits involving Murray’s adventures exploring the rotundas and band shells in New York City, and Jermaine’s protestations of Coco’s help–notably when she makes a beautiful Flight of the Conchords poster, which Jermaine rejects in favor of his own, crudely-drawn effort; or when she brings lunch to Bret, which Jermaine takes as favoritism, until she gives him a sandwich she brought just for him–the two songs in “Yoko” are outstanding.

The first, “If You’re Into It”, actually began as “Coco’s Song”, which Bret demos for Jermaine on the guitar at their shared apartment. “It’s a bit long”, Jermaine tells Bret, “It’s two hours long”. But with lyrics professing to Coco that, for her, he’d “solve the hardest puzzle… read the boringest book… hold the hottest substance… race the fastest animal… [and] eat the biggest meal”, it’s a romantic masterpiece. It isn’t just that Jermaine asks Bret if he’d actually do any of those things, but the way he flips through dozens of pages of lyrics on a legal pad, that makes the joke. Serenading Coco in front of the Unisphere–symbol of the 1964 World’s Fair–is a nice touch.

The second song, “Sello Tape”, is an inspiring ode to pencils, paper dolls and adhesive, culminating in a rousing chorus (watch for Mel to push Coco aside) on the streets of New York. The most brilliant lyric:

Lives are like delicate pencils
If you push them too hard they’re gonna break
And people are like paper dolls
Paper dolls and people, they’re a similar shape

That is magnificent. It’s going to be hard waiting for another season of Flight of the Conchords.

Filed under: Comedy, Popular Music, Television on September 9th, 2007