Portlandia | TV Review

Story by Mitch McCann 

| Published Feb 15, 2011

As the senior cast member of Saturday Night Live, Fred Armisen has spent the better part of a decade pretending to be someone else. Impressions of President Barack Obama, Joy Behar and Liberace have seemingly sent Armisen deeper and deeper into his own alternative self, and Portlandia, with all of its quirky doldrums and happenstances, is the result.

Alongside Sleater-Kinney frontess Carrie Brownstein and an eclectic mix of guest spots, Portlandia tells the story of a place “where young people go to retire,” a not-so-mythical land where “you can go to a record store and sell your cds, and the tattoo ink never runs dry.”

Billed as the perfect summation of hipster culture (as told by a thirty-something Flaming Lips fan), Portlandia is a haven for Flight of the Conchords fans set adrift after the series fizzled during its second season. Most fans would scoff at the idea that Portlandia somehow covers the ground left by the Aussie duo, but the humor to the show is made up of many of the same parts. Admittedly Armisen-Brownstein opt for a more familiar sketch format, which is completely at the mercy of their artistic whims.

The series is mostly scored with original music provided by Armisen and Brownstein, with the notable exception of the title sequence. It is performed by Washed Out, who donate crawler jam “Feel It All Around” to the cause.

Lorne Michaels continues to play favorites, like with Tina Fey’s departure to form ‘30 Rock,’ attaching himself as the show’s Executive Producer. He seems to be allowing Armisen to spread his wings as he foreshadows a possible departure of his own from NBC’s late night cast.

Portlandia is the suppressed indie wet dream of a sketch comedy icon gone rogue, and while not without its moments, I urge Armisen and Brownstein not to quit their day (or possibly night?) jobs.

Portlandia runs Fridays on IFC.