WINNER TAKES OIL
I know, I thought it was too. But it’s not. Winner Takes Oil plunges into the gulf at least four times, and the bits leave a weird aftertaste every time. The show opens with a press briefing, for instance: The stiff-necked government man (Ron West) and the maxed-out general (John Rubano) fielding questions from hyped-up funny reporters. The skit has laughs. (“MTV News” got the biggest one.) There’s even a clever song with the usual ironies about the LAPD and the casualty rate in Detroit.
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The same thing happens in a cute skit in which Rubano and Steven Carell play a couple of skateboarders visting the Vietnam War Memorial–and the Gulf War Monument. It’s obvious how the gag is supposed to work. Rubano and Carell put across a couple sight jokes about the huge ‘Nam memorial and the itty-bitty gulf memorial. Then, calling each other “dude” as often as possible, they run through a catalog of Neanderthal opinions about the war, Saddam Hussein, and miscellaneous weaponry. (“Smart bombs? Those were genius bombs.”)
Despite the title, Winner Takes Oil isn’t really satirical. The show’s characteristic tone isn’t outrage–it’s curmudgeonliness. The targets aren’t villains, either–they’re ninnies. Sure, there are a few satirical bits: a cute but predictable skit about the Democrats auditioning presidential candidates, a song and dance about cosmetics, another song about tearing down Cabrini-Green for the real estate. (That last one is funnier than it sounds, and I loved the Miles Davis pastiche it was set to.) But they’re pretty tame, as if the world of events and public figures just didn’t provide a firm handhold for humor.
(3) Old codgers with band instruments and bad haircuts are funnier than either the left or the right.
But oh what a nice bit it is. No matter how many times you see it, there’s still something exciting about seeing a bunch of wild-ass hotshots working without a net. The actors play it to the hilt, working up the ante, playing off each other, doing little character turns. I can’t remember a single joke they made, but I know how much fun I had watching them. Making it up as you go is the core of Second City. It’s nice to see these folks have it in their bones.
