9x09 The Gang Makes Lethal Weapon 6

[5.9/10] Another less-than-great outing in a schizophrenic season. I’m always leery of comedy sequels, whether in movies or episodes of T.V., because comedy often depends on a certain amount of surprise and rehashing the same basic thing robs the audience of that.

That’s definitely the case here. The original Lethal Weapon 5 bit from the show was a great time, in part because it was the unexpected payoff to debates and setup throughout the episode. Here, we just get more and more and more of what we got then, which isn’t necessarily bad, but gets diminishing returns quickly.

The blackface material in the prior episode was transgressive in the way IASIP usually is, but it also felt like there was subtext and nuance it, in a way commenting on The Gang’s own narrow view of the complicated depiction of black people on film. That’s grandiose for a show as ridiculous as this one, but I think it’s a tack that made that sort of thing work beyond shock value. Whereas here, it’s all shock value (save for the amusing bit of the paint coming off in the shower.)

At the same time, while the former episode had charm because of its shopworn, amateurish quality, IASIP ups the production values of “Lethal Weapon 6”, which makes its movie goofs feel more like a generic spoof than the product of a bunch of knuckleheads screwing around. And the frame story of them trying to get financing to make the rest of the movie felt too self-aware and winking, even if the device itself was somewhat clever.

I did appreciate the skewering of action movie sequel tropes and conveniences, like Frank’s character coming back from the dead or Charlie’s character having a twin. Glenn Howerton’s Aussie accent is a laugh, though again, the Smithers-esque gay humor with Mac has gotten very one-note and crass at this point.

Overall, a disappointing follow-up to a great episode that tries to redo what worked before and comes up empty.