When we hear about comedy teams we immediately think of the past. Laurel and Hardy, the 3 Stooges, the Marx Brothers and many others have become the icons of this comedic format. But comedy teams still exist today and still crank out some of the funniest material around. They have simply evolved past asking each other who is on certain bases and getting woefully confused. Here are the ten that have created bodies of work that will stand the comedic test of time and be forever tied to our current comedy landscape.
10. Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant
Their creation of The Office alone would have cemented Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant in comedy lore. This little British sitcom helped to re-define the genre and squeeze uncomfortable laughter out of awkwardness like not even Curb You Enthusiasm can do. They moved on to their second series, Extras, and proved that they were by no means a one hit wonder. Although the hook of the show may be seeing big name American and British celebrities make complete asses out of themselves in wonderfully self-deprecating ways, the true charm still remains in the awkward predicaments the main cast members find themselves in. As far as horribly funny social situations on television, perhaps nothing has ever topped the Extras scene involving the perfect combination of Merchant, a first date, a clogged toilet and an egg whisk.
9. The Apatow Crew
Although his early projects like Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared might not have garnered the popularity his current works do, Judd Apatow's philosophy has seemingly never changed: surround himself with funny people he likes and let them be funny. Through his wild success with 40 Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up and Superbad he has introduced the individuals from his earlier failed projects to the world and collected new, up and coming talent along the way. By creating movies that have a tender, yet still a fair share of dick jokes, Apatow and his crew have refreshed the big Hollywood comedy and proven that the two can co-exist.
8. Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Edgar Wright
Beginning with their British sitcom Spaced, Pegg, Frost and Wright displayed how they could combine their comedic skills and genuine love of pop culture into something masterful. They began with a typical sitcom concept and deconstructed it, adding in constant film, television and even comic book references, to make a show that worked on multiple levels, all of which were funny. They followed with the first ever "romantic zombie comedy" Shaun of the Dead and the comedy/action/cop/slasher movie Hot Fuzz, both of which succeeded in being parodies born out of admiration and love of their respective genres (something the Scary People might want to take a look at). They will continue to entertain, promising the third film in their "blood and ice cream trilogy" in the not too distant future.
7. Stella
The tag-line for Stella's short lived Comedy Central show pretty much sums up their appeal: "Dumb comedy dressed up in a suit." Michael Ian Black, Michael Showalter and David Wain each don a suit and act like complete idiots, finally reclaiming dumb comedy from actual dumb people. In their stage act they banter back and forth in bits that lead nowhere and often revolve around the two Michaels hating David. And on their brilliant television show they excelled at absurd stupidity, slipping out of accents and moods as they pleased and taking part in such activities as opening rival coffee shops and growing crops in their apartment floor. Dumb never looked so good.
6. John Lee and Vernon Chatman
Besides being insanely funny, Lee and Chatman are notable for their subversive and at times outright disturbing approach to making comedy for television. They first made a splash with Wonder Showzen, a twisted version of a Sesame Street like kids show that featured kids dressed up as Hitler and the dead Pope and puppets partaking in all kinds of questionable activities. But Lee and Chatman weren't satisfied with the premise and continued to distort the show into a more subversive vehicle that would surprise the audience every week, having one episode reach the mid-point and then play backwards (revealing hidden jokes) and replacing an entire episode with a Hee-Haw parody called Horse Apples. They recently created Xavier: Renegade Angel for Adult Swim, the most densely written comedy on TV right now.
5. The Upright Citizen's Brigade
Sketch comedy shows come and go, but few can compare to the creativity that the Upright Citizen's Brigade (Amy Poehler, Matt Walsh, Matt Besser, Ian Roberts) brought to their own. They created bizarre scenes ranging from the subjects of the empowerment brought about by putting pennies up your ass to what might happen when you dare to look into the "bucket of truth." And each episode culminated in multiple scenes coming together into a chaotic, hilarious finale. It makes it all the more painful to watch Amy Poehler on SNL now. Besides their TV show, the UCB has also established two UCB Theatres on each coast, which have become bastions for some of the most creative stand-up, sketch and improv comedy in the country.
4. Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim
Tim and Eric started their comedy careers making strangely funny internet videos that valued poor production values, bad acting and awkwardness. And since Adult Swim started paying them, nothing has changed. Their first show, Tom Goes to the Mayor, which could generously be called a cartoon, focused on Tom Peters going to the Mayor every week with a new idea, which usually always left him or the town in ruins. They followed it up with Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job!, the first live action show on Adult Swim. By employing barely competent out of work actors and various public access entertainers to surround them they have created a show that can only really fit into one genre: Tim and Eric.
3. Matt Stone and Trey Parker
They created South Park, is there really anything else that has to be said? Not only that, but they have shown us that a mega-successful show that becomes a cultural phenomenon can continue to be funny and relevant, even after the initial love-fest, if the creators stay truly committed. They have of course delivered more than just the consistently entertaining South Park, most notably their early gore opera Cannibal! The Musical and the puppet action parody Team America: World Police, which provided us with the most explicit puppet sex scene committed to film. God bless you Matt and Trey.
2. Tom Scharpling and Jon Wurster
On paper these two may seem like an unlikely comedy team. Scharpling is a writer and producer on Monk and Wurster is a drummer best known for his role in the band Superchunk. But every Tuesday night they defy expectations and prove why they're the best comedy team working today. Scharpling hosts The Best Show on WFMU, a call in radio show that is the funniest audio program around based on his treatment of callers and anger at pop culture alone. But the real magic comes when Wurster calls in as one of dozens of characters, ranging from the hoagie loving Philly Boy Roy to the two inch tall racist Timmy Von Trimble. He even delivers his own twisted impressions of rock icons such as Marky Ramone and Gene Simmons. The calls build to raucous revelations and usually the inevitable threat against Tom's life followed by a dial tone. Together they prove week after week why long-form radio comedy isn't dead, but is in fact better than ever.
1. Bob Odenkirk and David Cross
Although their major collaboration ended years ago, Bob and David still stand tall in the comedy community because of their creation of Mr. Show, perhaps the best sketch comedy show ever made. Simple ideas like making change for a dollar or knocking down a rack of thimbles were crafted into comedy gold and set alongside absurd sketches about blowing up the moon and a restaurant so fancy that you have to crap in a velvet-lined box. Each sketch fed into the next through elaborate links that gave the show a flow uncommon in the format. With Bob and David at the helm, Mr. Show became the hallmark of good sketch comedy and influenced the current generation of comedians in profound ways. And although studios seem to do everything in their power to keep a true Mr. Show reunion from happening, a new show by the two in development at HBO is enough to make any comedy fan ecstatic.
