Happy Belated Birthday #2 to Bret McKenzie of "Flight of the Conchords"

So much birthday goodness yesterday we couldn't get it all in!  We also wish a big Flaming Nose Happy Birthday (one day late) to the talented and charming Bret McKenzie, one half of the brilliantly hilarious comedy/music duo Flight of the Conchords, alongside Jemaine Clement, and also Best Song Oscar winner for his work on the recent The Muppets movie.  Bret turned 37 yesterday!

We still miss HBO's delightful two-season 22-episode run of Flight of the Conchords, though thankfully the show is available on HBO Go and DVD and probably all sorts of other ways.  The show's initial run on HBO was from 2007 - 2009.  Five years ago??!!





Somehow the fact that Flight of the Conchords had also done a BBC Radio comedy series had eluded me, but they did in 2005!  All of the episodes seem to be available on YouTube for listening -- great news!

The notion of a Flight of the Conchords movie or additional series has been discussed for years, but no concrete plans appear to be on the table at this time.  We're not the only ones who miss Flight of the Conchords; BuzzFeed posted their great 20 reasons why they miss them in a posting from September of '13, available by clicking here.

So many great bits from Flight of the Conchords' TV show to remember and love; here are just a few more for your enjoyment, perhaps some of the less well-known songs yet delightful nonetheless!










Flight of the Conchords, Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie will always be on our list of all-time Flaming Nose Favorites!

"Flight of the Conchords" Have Flown the Coop

Check out this article from the NY Times about the recent announcement about our beloved TV show Flight of the Conchords on HBO. Despite increased critical kudos and several Emmy nominations, the duo has decided to call it quits on their series.

Bad news for all of us who loved the boys' wonderful crazy adventures, and their great cast of characters -- stars Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie, Murray their hapless manager played with such earnest and hilarious devotion by Rhys Darby, their uberfan Mel (Kristin Schaal), and Arj Barker as their shopkeeper pal Dave.

In case you've forgotten just how wonderful the series was, refresh your memory with this terrific article from UK's The Guardian on the best songs from the second season, written back in July, with accompanying videos. (Glad to see they included "The Tough Brets" which was one of my faves.)

Waaah! is all we can say. We're collectively in love with the Flight of the Conchords around here, and hope that perhaps there could be a change of heart in the future. We miss you already, Bret and Jemaine!

HBO Finales Tonight for "Conchords", "Big Love"

Can it really be that time again? Have we gone through another mini-season of two of our favorite shows?




Indeed we have. HBO's polygamist drama Big Love has its third season finale tonight at 9pm -- but again, a season is only 12 or 13 episodes, not 22 like things used to be back when -- and it's been a superb season, too. Since the middle of January Big Love has been unerringly offering wonderful acting -- there's no better cast out there, in major or supporting roles, and so many interesting faces, too! -- a plot filled with twisted and ingenious family dynamics, and a continually riveting glimpse into people of faith of a more unconventional kind. What a great show.


And we're crying real screaming teenybopper-type tears because our Flaming Nose Favorite Flight of the Conchords, starring the talented and adorable Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement, is ending its second season tonight at 10pm. Each half-hour flies by, filled with memorable characters, skilled comic performances, and the Conchords' trademark songs, mostly done as elaborate and hugely entertaining music videos within the episodes. (I always watch with the Closed Captioning on -- hate to miss any of their lyrics!). Lots of highlights this year and we just can't believe this batch of episodes is done. Love you guys!

HBO is on a wonderful roll, and we haven't even written about Eastbound and Down, which had a very short run that's also ending tonight. Try to catch up with the six episodes -- they grow on you, and the lead performance of Danny McBride as Kenny Powers is quite terrific.

We love that television is so active these days, with new shows seeming to pop up willy nilly and there's always something amazing to watch!

New "Flight of the Conchords" on HBO Tonight!

Here's a preview for tonight's Flight of the Conchords episode "Unnatural Love" --



Though you don't get any of the pertinent plot points from the promo, the episode's about Jemaine cozying up to an Australian girl. Perish the thought! FotC has been riffing on the NewZealand/Australian rivalry (our Jane wonders, as we do, is there really one?) for the last little while, always amusingly.

Can't wait for this!

HBO, 10pm, following Big Love, which has been especially excellent lately!

Watch them both!

"Friends" from Sunday's "Flight of the Conchords" on HBO

A low-key but charming episode of HBO's Flight of the Conchords this week. Here's the closing song "Friends" which captures the theme of the episode.

HBO's The Flight of the Conchords -- "Stay Cool"

From last night's tremendously funny episode "The Tough Brets" comes this hilarious and dead-on West Side Story-esque song "Stay Cool" where Bret and his newly-formed gang confront neighborhood bully boys, and Murray, Jemaine and Greg go up against taunting members of the Australian consulate.

Also adorable and very funny was the song "Hurt Feelings" from the same episode:

Last night's episode hit all my funny bones, from the songs, to Mel's explicit fangirl paintings of the boys, to Bret's recruitment of his unlikely but loyal and brave gang. My favorite gangmember was veteran actor Seymour Cassell as Johnny Boy, the elderly former tough guy who reeled off a long list of the gangs he used to belong to, all of them completely hilarious -- The Hobo Lords, The Gentleman Jims, The Little Enchanters, and so many more brilliantly eccentric names -- that kept me laughing. I loved the whole episode and I thought it was also quite sweet in its own competely absurd way.

I'm going to be watching this episode a few more times, and if you missed it take a look at HBO's Flight of the Conchords website for more information and encore airdates. What a show!

Flight of the Conchords-Because We All Need a Laugh Right Now

Don't miss this week's episode of FOTC on HBO, delightfully titled, "New Cup". Without giving too much away, Bret exceeds the FOTC family budget by overspending a couple of dollars on a new tea mug. Manager Murray can't save them because he's sunk the band's emergency fund into an important Nigerian investment program that he found over the Internet. Jemaine and Bret embark on a hair brained scheme to recoup their losses by engaging in the world's oldest profession. Funniest bit ever...Mel hires them to give her a massage. Most hilarious video ever: "Sugar Lumps", which I am posting below with a special disclaimer for our younger readers that this is somewhere between PG-13 and R based on language. Check out the businessmen, construction workers and nerds dancing in the background. Hip hop will never be the same. And special mention for FOTC best buddy Dave, who does an awesome Beastie-Boyesque rap inside the video. I am posting it here so we can all have an easy way to watch it another two or three hundred times. It's a sure fire cure for all the nasty economic news out there in the world today. If this doesn't make you laugh, you are comatose.

By the way, is it just me or is FOTC sort of a 21st Century post modern spawn of the old TV classic, The Monkees? Think about it and discuss amongst yourselves. I think there is a strand of Monkee's DNA pulsating somewhere inside of FOTC's hereditary background.

Because There's Nothing Funnier Than This

In anticipation of the new season of HBO's Flight of the Conchords which is currently in production, here's one of their hilarious songs from last season -- "If You're Into It" from the episode "Yoko" --



FoTC is currently running all over the HBO schedule, and there's nothing nicer than running into one of the episodes and remembering why it's one of our favorite shows.

Enjoy!

Two Favorites Get a Nod at Royal Television Society Awards

Huzzahs are in order for HBO's charming comedy series -- and Flaming Nose favorite -- Flight of the Conchords, which just won the International Award at the prestigious Royal Television Society Programme Awards in London. FotC, which airs on BBC 4 in Britain, was up against Ugly Betty and Heroes. Flight of the Conchords is, the RTS said, “…warm, fabulous, and one of the most surprising, fresh and original TV comedies to arrive in a long time.” We couldn't agree more.

It's sort of interesting because just this week, as HBO Entertainment prez Carolyn Strauss stepped down from her post, presumably because of lackluster ratings for HBO series post-Sopranos, Flight of the Conchords was mentioned in the litany of not-quite-spectacular performers for the network. Don't lose this gem, HBO. If the Brits think it's great, trust me...it definitely is. (FoTC is still airing here and there around the various HBO channels and OnDemand, of course.)

Also coming away with a big prize was probably the most amazing comedy show you've never watched, The Mighty Boosh, which I posted about here a while ago. The Boosh just finished up its third season across the pond, and won in the Situation Comedy and Comedy Drama category. As the RTS said about this completely unique show -- “…beautifully constructed and layered… and oozes originality on so many levels. It is a fresh and invigorating piece of high-concept comedy that has captured the imagination of its target [audience].” Indeed.

Of course, you won't find the brilliant Boosh airing on U.S. TV anywhere. It's obviously much more crucial for BBC America to run replays of the very American Dancing with the Stars show and endless reality programs. I guess we should be grateful that they stuck to their mandate closely enough to bring Torchwood over here.

I don't know how you're going to see much of Boosh around these parts, since the available DVDs are non-US format (which isn't an insurmountable problem, of course) and the usual reliable slightly off-the-radar sources seem to be dropping like flies lately. However, YouTube still has a few things up, including (and you better pounce on this one fast) my very favorite episode of the show entitled Tundra. Part one is here, and part two can be found here, and part three here. Watch it while you can -- I wouldn't expect this will be up there long! (You might also be able to find some material from their live stage show which toured last year and is also out on DVD. Can you imagine any U.S. sitcom troupe touring? Gotta love those brilliant Brits!) Of course, if we were in Britain now, tomorrow night March 22nd we'd be watching a whole night of Boosh on BBC 3 with The Mighty Boosh - A Journey Through Time and Space, where they're running a new documentary, six of the favorite episodes of creators/stars Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding (including Tundra), plus a live Boosh party with the stars of the show. Oh, to be in England....

I'm embedding here the terrific "Tundra Rap" song from the episode, which captures some of the energy and charisma of this tremendous show.




Again, congratulations to two shows which make me so happy to be in love with television!

Our Boys Will Be Back!

HBO has announced a renewal for The Flaming Nose's favorite fellas from New Zealand! Flight of the Conchords has been picked up for a second season, and at least Jane and I couldn't be happier!

I think we're both in love with Jemaine Clement -- he has that certain strange gruff but sexy quality that has always attracted us, at least hypothetically -- but his musical and comedic partner Bret McKenzie couldn't be cuter, and they are both funny as hell. And their manager Murray, played by Rhys Darby, is an extremely earnest and likable wannabe, working hard to put his boys on the map.

Comedy is an intensely personal taste, of course, and maybe Flight of the Conchords will leave you cold, but if it hits your spot, you will absolutely love it. HBO runs it all over the place so check out the links on the two previous posts about the show and check it out!

Also, HBO announced a renewal of its equally delightful Entourage for its fifth season, another reason to celebrate. If you were a fan of HBO's other new show, John from Cincinnati, well, condolences from The Nose, because that's been cancelled. HBO's obviously searching for a dramatic show with the potential to become another Sopranos , and that won't be easy.

But thanks to them for Flight of the Conchords!

I'm in love with "Flight of the Conchords" too!

FN Correspondent Jane was right on top of this one, writing a wonderful entry about HBO's incredibly delightful, utterly hilarious and totally addicting "Flight of the Conchords" here on July 8th.

I've finally caught up with and am completely smitten with the show, as is Jane, and love Jermaine more than I can say. To Jane's description of the show, which she described as part "Monkees" and part "Cop Rock", I would add I find some similarities with one of my favorite out-there British comedies, also featuring two guys and a fair bit of music, "The Mighty Boosh".

One of my favorite songs is from Episode 5, a crazy get-down song about Jermaine and his girlfriend having sex, called "Business Time"; watch the clip of it from the show, then watch the equally hilarious live concert version.

Be sure to catch up with it; you will love it and will become as obsessed as Jane and I are! Check out the show's HBO website for the schedule and you can also download the lyrics for all their amazing songs. They're also a hilarious "Bowie in Space" song where they talk about, among other things, Bowie's nipple antennae.

Stuff like this shouldn't be missed. It makes life worth living, kids.

Place Your Seatbacks in the Upright Position for Flight of the Conchords

FLIGHT of the CONCHORDS debuted a few weeks ago after the final episode of The Sopranos on HBO. It is currently paired with the hilarious ENTOURAGE, a spot-on half hour comedy that follows the show biz shenanigans of a youthful "frat-pack" in Hollywood. The FLIGHT is also about a couple of lads who want to get into the business, but that is where the similarity to THE ENTOURAGE ends. In this case, the boys are New Zealand folk musicians, who exist on the most thread bare fringes of New York City existence. While the boys of Entourage flaunt their designer clothes poolside in Malibu, the boys of Conchord shuffle around the not good neighborhoods of Manhattan dressed in plaid lumberjack coats and corduroy pants. Bret (the shy, easygoing bearded one) and Jermaine (the Mick Jagger lipped, glasses wearing "funny" one), are unknown, unloved and unsung. But that doesn't stop them from breaking into their own songs from time to time, which are strange, yet oddly catchy alt-folk ditties about the stress of life in the big city. Some of these songs can be downloaded off of MySpace (check it out!) and the HBO web site. Be sure to listen to Hip-Hopopotomus, which is as funny, geeky and white-boy sounding as hip-hop is ever going to get.

Bret and Jermaine are joined by other oddball regulars including their worthless and inept agent Murray (reminiscent of the loser agent on The Extras), and the somewhat disturbing Mel, who is the plain Jane, self professed "#1 fan" of the Conchords. Mel spends her days stalking Bret and Jermaine, cornering them on the street while they squirm like a couple of flies in a spider web.

FLIGHT of the CONCHORDS is part "Monkees", part "Cop Rock" with a dash of HBO quirky and three tablespoons of some flavor you've never had before mixed in. It can get a little slow at times, but for my money the program always perks up whenever Jermaine is the focus of the scene. He is fascinating in a sexy/not-sexy kind of way and very hard to ignore. The official HBO site actually describes him as looking like "an ogre who works in a library". If that doesn't make you want to tune in, I don't know what would!