Rating: 
8.5/10
Cast:
Tim Heidecker as Tim
Eric Wareheim as Eric
Jamie-Lynn Sigler as Megan
Ron Austar as Ron
Tennessee Luke as Tennessee
Beef House Review:
The live-audience sitcom genre is one of the most overstuffed, overrated and worst attempts at comedy the realm of television is still forced to suffer through, with CBS still churning out duds such as The Neighborhood and the Kevin James-led Man with a Plan and the Fox revived Last Man Standing starring Tim Allen, but I’m not here to tell you to stop contributing ratings to these series thereby keeping them alive. I’m here to shout my praise towards Beef House, the fourth Adult Swim series from phenomenal comedy duo Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim, which literally spits in the face of every series I just mentioned a moment ago.
Created by and starring Heidecker and Wareheim, the multi-camera series follows Tim, Eric, Ron Austar, Ben Hur and Tennessee Luke as they live under the same roof together with Eric’s wife Megan. The weekly sitcom follows Tim, a laid-back rock-and-roll slacker, and his best friend Eric, a high-strung stay-at-home husband, as they find themselves in the middle of a madcap misadventure that can only be traversed with the help of their fellow Beef Boys, including jealous ex-boyfriends and marital problems.
The comedy duo have made a name for themselves for their low-brow humor that is simultaneously meant to satirize said humor and in the first two episodes of the six-episode first season, they turn the knob up to 11 on every joke in their repertoire, as well as brilliant satirizing many of the tropes of the live-audience genre. The pilot sees Eric’s perfect life thrown into chaos as Tim’s army buddy and Megan’s high school sweetheart Brad comes to live in the Beef House. Its story feels ripped right from an ’80s sitcom and it makes no qualms about how lame and unbelievable the sequence of events is for the real life while throwing in their raunchier humor, from Brad diving into Megan’s underwear drawer to Eric gifting her a sex toy she takes a liking to more than her husband.
The material is further elevated by the work of its small cast, who all do well in their individual roles, even if some aren’t nearly as utilized in the first two episodes as they could be, namely Jamie-Lynn Sigler’s Megan. The Sopranos alum clearly has great comedic timing and delivery and could shine in future episodes in the purposely cardboard character of the unhappy wife, but the first two episodes definitely felt as though she was being unfairly left out.
Overall, Tim and Eric’s latest collaboration Beef House may not convert many newcomers to the duo’s quirky and off-beat humor, but for those already a fan of the two or of similar humor, it’s sure to deliver all of the guffaw-inducing laughter in its 12-minute episodes.
Beef House is set to premiere on Adult Swim on Sunday, March 29 at 9:15 p.m. PST.
