This is sort of a curious choice for my last review of the year, as I’ve never seen either of the author’s best-known performances. Though I enjoy sketch comedy I missed the boat on Mr. Show w/Bob and David, and I quit on Breaking Bad (heresy!) before Saul Goodman entered the picture. What can I say? Whenever I have seen Bob Odenkirk’s work I’ve always thought he seemed like a really funny, really smart guy, and Amazon was selling the e-book for $1.99.
Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama is mainly an ode to persistence. Nothing in Odenkirk’s background really sounds like a surefire recipe for showbiz success. Growing up in Naperville, Illinois with a very religious mother and an absentee father, Odenkirk first started trying to make people laugh as a student at Southern Illinois University. Not particularly a comedy hotbed. But a chance meeting with improv legend Del Close leads him to impulsively move to Chicago and begin getting on stage as often as possible.
Before his relatively late “big break” with Saul Goodman, Odenkirk’s career is mostly fits and starts. A three-year stint writing at SNL is mostly a letdown, as Odenkirk longs for the return of the chaotic nature of the show’s early years. His time there is marred by the foreseeable tragedy of his friend Chris Farley, for whom he had written the Matt Foley, Motivational Speaker character.
The book goes furthest into the weeds in the section on Mr. Show. Fans of the irreverent sketch comedy series will definitely get the most out of Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama, whereas the chapters on Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul are surprisingly skimpy, perhaps because they are so recent in the author’s mind.
Odenkirk is nothing if not self-deprecating. He is honest about the failings of his directorial efforts, mostly a string of forgettable comedies. He is forthcoming about his personal faults, too, admitting to alienating co-stars and friends by being unnecessarily uncompromising and occasionally pushing for credit. In each instance, he tries to impart a little life lesson for those wishing to get into the business, but his own example shows that mistakes and failures are inevitable.
Though Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama is not a page-turner, it does cement my initial impression of Odenkirk as a funny, smart, likeable guy. I’m also definitely going to check out Mr. Show.
