If the only sentiment I can take away from watching the first episode of Stevie TV is, “Why isn’t Best Week Ever on the air anymore?” it probably doesn’t bode well for VH1’s new reality show centric sketch comedy show. Well, that’s not the only sentiment. Other pressing thoughts after sitting through Stevie TV included “Who the hell is Stevie Ryan?” and “Why does she have her own show?” and “Seriously, do you guys remember Best Week Ever? That show was awesome.”
For those who don’t know Stevie Ryan (ie: everyone), she’s a comedian who made it big on YouTube for her dead on impersonations of celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Kendra Wilkinson, and Audrina Partridge. I’m not sure how being able to impersonate talentless reality stars is considered a talent, but apparently 40 million hits on the Internet is enough for your own TV show these days. Hey, I don’t have 80,000 subscribers on YouTube, so who am I to judge?
It’s not that Stevie TV is outright terrible – it’s just not good. The sketches don’t have anything new or exciting to say about the shows and celebrities they’re skewering, instead opting for the “Hey, aren’t these people annoying?” approach that just points out the obvious reasons that we’re alternately fascinated and infuriated by reality stars. Case in point, the Kendra parody, which features a theme song with the lines, “She’s slutty, and mommy, and boobie, and wild! She laughs a lot, and boobie, so boobie!” and then has Stevie Ryan’s Kendra state her entire reason for existing by saying, “Hey, did you pack the Xanax? I’m really stressed out about being a ho and a mom at the same time!” Kendra Wilkinson is obnoxious. We know. That’s why people watch her show. A sketch that only points this fact out in different ways seems redundant.
Even the brief flashes of genuine comedy are dampened by the fact that the targets are just so easy. The “Beiber Bang Bus” has some funny moments, like Justin passionately asking his milf pick up, “When’s the last time you did sex?” and stealing a wife away from her husband with a flash of a gun tucked in his belt. But the whole bit feels cheapened because, well, it’s Justin Beiber. On the hierarchy of things that have been done to death, he’s right there between hipsters and the Shake Weight.
And that’s really Stevie TV in a nutshell. Everything feels, at best, two steps behind the times. A sketch that combines The Artist and Basketball Wives really doesn’t extend beyond smashing together two things that were kind of popular a few weeks ago. Whether that’s the nature of a pre-taped sketch show that tries to target the latest happenings in reality TV, or because Stevie Ryan just isn’t all that funny, isn’t exactly clear. But when the first episode ends with Stevie eagerly telling audiences, ““Try not to get roofied tonight, but tweet at me if you do,” you can practically hear the desperation to be funny and relevant at the same time while failing at both.
SumOlogy: Should’ve stuck to YouTube.
Grade: 5/10
Leftovers
Perhaps the show’s most flagrant offense is its live action rehashing of the “Hey Girl” Ryan Gosling meme. Seriously, it’s just the same joke you’ve seen on every girl’s tumblr ever.
Also annoying are the host segments between sketches, where Stevie Ryan kind of sounds like a muppet and the only song that plays sounds like it was lifted straight from the trailer of a quirky indie comedy.
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