By Kelly
I kept hearing that Burning Love on Yahoo, was hilarious. I always make an effort to try anything described as hilarious, but the fact that there was a show playing exclusively on Yahoo made me go “huh”? I certainly don’t know anything about Yahoo Originals outside of this flagship show, but I can say that Burning Love lives up to the hype.
These comedian-studded webisodes range from 12 to 15 minutes and satire reality shows like the Bachelor, and Bachelorette. And the humor is so dry at times, it’s almost indistinguishable from an actual reality show. And then other times…it’s pretty obviously a satire.
I know. Where has this show been?
The first season is in true Bachelor-style as fireman Mark Orlando (Ken Marino) decides that he’s ready to “marry a total stranger.” His very shallow approach to this task, as well as the female crazies who populate his house of competitors, makes this pretty side-splitting to watch. Michael Ian Black, who plays the host, has the driest delivery I’ve ever heard. That he can keep a straight face while delivering such ridiculous lines, is amazing in itself. It makes me wonder how real reality show hosts manage. The first season also has some surprising appearances from Ben Stiller, Kristen Bell and Jennifer Aniston.
In season two, Julie (June Diane Raphael), one of the girls jilted from Mark’s house in season one, gets a chance to have a house of men compete over her. And it’s a house rich with familiar comedic actors, including Adam Brody (The O.C.), Colin Hanks (Roswell), Michael Cera (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World), Adam Scott (Parks & Rec), Paul Rudd (Anchorman) and even Seth Rogan. Raphael is no slouch either in the comedic timing department. She does a great job as the show’s quirky leading lady, especially when she can’t understand anything one of her foreign suitors is saying, even though he’s speaking English.
Season three, Burning Down The House, becomes more of a Real World/Road Rules challenge where all the cast members of the previous seasons return to compete for a mere $900. Aside from all the charms of the previous seasons, one of the best running gags is what everyone says they’ll do with the money if they happen to win. Answers range from “putting a down payment on a house” to “paying off student loans.”
The rules of each of the weekly competitions are also both painfully simple and often irrational. As Black explains when the rules suddenly seem a little too tailored to the situation, “It’s in the rule book, which none of you have seen or are allowed to see.” I’ve definitely seen real moments like that in some of the crap shows on these days.
Overall, it’s a fun/short watch and I highly recommend it if you have some spare time.
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