Oh wow - it's not that I forgot I finished watching the first season of Brockmire six days ago - it's that I straight up had no idea I'd just witnessed the season finale at all. Which kind of says everything you need to know about how invested I was in this IFC comedy starring Hank Azaria and Amanda Peet.
But here's another paragraph anyway. The show felt tailor made to be right up my alley - Azaria plays the titular Brockmire, a former baseball play-by-play announcer whose tendency to drink in and overshare personal details from the broadcast booth led to an infamous meltdown back in the '90s or so, a proto-viral sensation, and Brockmire's immediate firing. Flash forward to the present day, where a struggling minor league baseball team needs some sort of spark to stay in business; Peet's character, the operations manager, reaches out to Brockmire and hires him to do play-by-play and color from the PA booth. It's a hit, obviously, and Brockmire ends up getting an invitation back to the big leagues, and I think that's where the season left that thread dangling? Unsure. Sorry!
I didn't even dislike this. I just think the premise didn't have nearly enough gas to last eight episodes. The team occasionally uses unconventional tactics - how about four morbidly obese batters in a row getting hit by pitches so as to manufacture runs? - and Azaria's always-sarcastic sounding voice mocking the play on the field by merely describing it is, of course, perfect. Brockmire encourages fans to play drinking games with him in one episode in order to spark concession sales - it's all just so, so low stakes - but then, minor league baseball always is, right?
I didn't even dislike this. I just think the premise didn't have nearly enough gas to last eight episodes. The team occasionally uses unconventional tactics - how about four morbidly obese batters in a row getting hit by pitches so as to manufacture runs? - and Azaria's always-sarcastic sounding voice mocking the play on the field by merely describing it is, of course, perfect. Brockmire encourages fans to play drinking games with him in one episode in order to spark concession sales - it's all just so, so low stakes - but then, minor league baseball always is, right?
Oh, and Joe Buck shows up. Real life Joe Buck! For a few episodes. And he's completely game to make fun of himself. It was startling, to say the least. Good for him. But yeah, I just can't see myself continuing with this for another season. There's nothing wrong with it, but when you think of all the genuinely good television out there, I just... yeah, sorry.
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