Western Courier

Issue date: 10/6/06 Section: The Edge

Stella
Grade: A


Stella, which consists of David Wain, Michael Showalter and "I Love the 80s" star Michael Ian Black, has been reviewed as being like the Marx Brothers on acid.

The first episode alone is enough to show you why.

The guys, who play themselves, get evicted from their apartment, wearing skunk tails while mimicking the "Flashdance" dance sequence where the camera slows down. The viewer can clearly see the men actually dancing are not Wain, Showalter and Black. This is what every episode is like.

There are two episodes, however, that are in contention for the funniest. The first is "Office Party," which has the guys going to their neighbor's office party and getting ridiculed by her bosses. In order to get them back, the guys show up at the company picnic wearing fake mustaches and funny hats. Shockingly, nobody recognizes them. They beat everyone in the potato-sack races, tug-of-war and other picnic games, which impresses the big boss and he puts them in charge of the "Big Account." Not surprisingly, the ending is ridiculous: it ends with a huge Broadway production and a woman wearing a mustache.

The other contending episode is "Camping" in which Showalter, Black and Wain want to get away from the busy city life so they decide to go camping. They bring the camping gear and all kinds of useless stuff like a big-screen TV to ensure their survival. Needless to say, the trio gets lost and tries to survive with the help of a mysterious mountain man. Showalter ends up shooting the mountain man saying, "I thought he was a turkey, I swear to God," and then the guys become savages after eating him. You know, the normal stuff for your everyday TV show.

The extra features for the DVD allow fans to delve even deeper into the abyss that is Stella. Fans can view old short films the guys made, an in-depth interview with Showalter, Black and Wain, in which they tell the origins of the name of t he show, and their Comedy Central special.

Overall, the show is so utterly ridiculous to the point that it is hysterically funny. I would suggest to everyone who enjoys laughing and all things that are good to go buy the DVD at Wal-Mart so maybe we can get another season of this show.

-Dave Hodge

Edge editor

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