Stars: Malin Ackerman, Lake Bell, Rob Coddry, Erinn Hayes, Rob Huebel, Ken Marino, Megan Mullally, Henry Winkler
Writer: Rob Coddry
Director: Rob Schrab
Network: Adult Swim, airs Thursday nights
Original Telecast: June 2, 2011
Who would have figured an internet only show could find a home on cable television – but end up being funnier and better than a majority of network TV comedies.
That’s the case of CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL. Created and starring Rob Coddry as surgeon Blake Downs who likes to wear clown make-up to be more comforting to his young patients (even though it’s more terrifying than relaxing), the show has enjoyed a web to Adult Swim transition that’s been seamless. It also helps that the short-form of the web works perfectly for the 10 minutes plus of story time Adult Swim books for its late-night TV programs.
Season 3 kicks off with what looks like the most expensive episode yet with “Run Doctor Lola Sprat, Run.” It follows a young boy who falls into quicksand and now the doctors must find a way to extract him from it. The problem: it’s Saturday and all the doctor’s are off on various adventures (rock climbing, battling the programs of a TRON-like world and sleeping with HOUSE’s Lisa Edelstein), while the “quicksand” specialist can’t seem to get to the hospital in time (in a spoof of RUN, LOLA, RUN).
It’s a laugh-out loud ride that sends up the hospital genre in a hilarious way as the doctors are so self-absorbed and lack the basic medical knowledge, it’s amazing they can even solve the most simple malady.
For an eleven minute chunk, there’s even time for a B-story following why a fellow nurse’s stomach has been slowly growing abnormal over a nine month period.
The writing it great, the directing superb and the cast cracker-jack. There’s some AIRPLANE! level sights gags sprinkled throughout and there’s even time for a Jon Hamm cameo.
This is the kind of fun, unpredictable comedy more network comedies should aspire for. Thank goodness for Adult Swim to fill that void. CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL is one of the funniest shows on that air no one knows about – hopefully with its first full-fledged Adult Swim season debuting, that will change very quickly.
Click on link for: Interview with CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL star Rob Coddry
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