How nice. I make a request for the show to grow a little and look what we have here: an intro that matches the actual plot of the episode! Is there such a thing as retroactive wish-fulfillment? Probably not, but this an example of exactly that.
In this edition of How To Live A Better Life, Jordan goes to the dentist, after Mike notices just how terrible his breath is. The episode begins with Mike blasting the season one theme song (The Authority Song by Jimmy Eat World) out his phone speaker, a practice that should be punished by death. Jordan tells him that he never wants to hear that song anymore, and Mike obliges. It's an obvious wink to the audience that had seen season one, probably about 5% of the viewers, but it's not heavy-handed or forced, so I'll allow it! Jordan then realizes that he needs to tell Mike a secret, and decides that even though they are the only two in the room aside from the camera crew, he needs to get uncomfortably close to Mike to tell his secret. I guess he had to do it, because that's how Mike gets wind (pun intended) of Jordan's bad breath, and learns that he has not been to the dentist in over three years. I guess that's bad, but if you just keep a healthy schedule of brushing and flossing you should be fine. Of course, you're going to miss out on the x-ray scans of your mouth and the deep, powerhouse cleaning that comes with visiting the dentist, but hey it's not the end of the world, Mike. Though Jordan does wear braces, so that would give dentist visits a bit higher priority. Also, if Jordan's breath is as bad as Mike's reaction to it suggests, how has he not noticed it sooner? I don't even have to be in kissing distance of some of my friends whilst talking to them when I get a big blast of their cock breath. Just wondering, Mike, just wondering.
Speaking of getting uncomfortably close, the cameraman gets right up in Mike's grill when he's calling the dentist, Dr. Smiley, to set up an appointment for Jordan. The camera even smacks the top of the phone at one point, and you can hear the cameraman making all his little sounds. It's just odd, and unprofessional to see stuff like that, especially when this kind of stuff litters the season in small doses. You can explain it away using the "documentary" excuse for this show, but we all know how faithful the creators are to sticking to that mantra. Just re-shoot the scene. That's all that needs to be done.
Mike gets Jordan ready to go and NOPE Jordan slips out the door and runs away in a slow motion action scene. Jordan is doing his best rendition of movie running, where the actor is supposed to be running in a scene, but can't run faster than the camera, so he/she curbs their speed and they just look awkward. It's extremely noticeable, even in slow motion. My advice: if your scene calls for running, commit to it. Devise a shot that allows your actor to run full force without having to hold back. Buy/build a rig that will steady your camera. Never do a shot that won't allow your cameraman to run at full speed if they have to. It may be tough, but tough shots call for creative solutions, and that's just a nice side effect to your problem solving: you'll have a cool-looking shot. What's odd is that Mike is shown still back at the front door as Jordan is running down the street, but the next shot puts him right within arm's reach. Slo-mo or not, Mike would have had to cover the same distance in 1/4 the time Jordan did. That's just poorly-conceived filmmaking.
But now we're past that, and Jordan comes home a new man. You can tell he has grown up because he talks with a flat, unwavering tone, and addresses Mike by "Michael". How To Live A Better Life often fuels its characters and events through stereotypes and misconceptions, and that is what's happening here. Mike doesn't like this new Jordan, and decides to get his pal back to normal by giving him a chip (?), telling him a joke, and having him flex his acting muscles by reading a script Mike wrote with him. Funny thing is, I'm pretty sure that is a real script Zach and Jordan wrote themselves, which was set up to be a How To Live A Better Life movie. I read through what they had wrote with them about a year ago. The plot includes Mike and Jordan going to a big city and getting targeted by the mob. No, I am not kidding.
Mike plays one last trick by telling Jordan he needs to go back to the dentist so he can get back to his old self, and in an action that brings the entire episode full-circle, Jordan busts out the door this time declaring he's not going back, trips on himself, and hits his head on the ground. First off, Jordan lands in a way different position than how he tripped would have had him land, and secondly, he so very purposely taps his head on the ground, quite gingerly. Okay, obviously you don't want to actually slam your head on asphalt to make it look real, and I do realize it is very hard to fake it and make it look real. I won't detriment the show for at least trying to cover it up through the use of slow motion (again), but it's just one of those things that when you see it you can't help but cry foul. I would offer more advice but even I need to figure out a way to properly fake it. I am not perfect, sadly.
This head-banging somehow knocks the Jordan back in Jordan, because when Mike gets up to him he's back to his old self. "I'm back, baby!" is the last line of the episode as it ends. This show is funny, because it will immediately cut to another scene when the previous one probably needs a little more time to fully show everything, and will linger on a scene that absolutely does not as much time as the show is giving it. It's a backwards way of doing things, but at least it's not the norm.
Stray Observations:
But now we're past that, and Jordan comes home a new man. You can tell he has grown up because he talks with a flat, unwavering tone, and addresses Mike by "Michael". How To Live A Better Life often fuels its characters and events through stereotypes and misconceptions, and that is what's happening here. Mike doesn't like this new Jordan, and decides to get his pal back to normal by giving him a chip (?), telling him a joke, and having him flex his acting muscles by reading a script Mike wrote with him. Funny thing is, I'm pretty sure that is a real script Zach and Jordan wrote themselves, which was set up to be a How To Live A Better Life movie. I read through what they had wrote with them about a year ago. The plot includes Mike and Jordan going to a big city and getting targeted by the mob. No, I am not kidding.
Mike plays one last trick by telling Jordan he needs to go back to the dentist so he can get back to his old self, and in an action that brings the entire episode full-circle, Jordan busts out the door this time declaring he's not going back, trips on himself, and hits his head on the ground. First off, Jordan lands in a way different position than how he tripped would have had him land, and secondly, he so very purposely taps his head on the ground, quite gingerly. Okay, obviously you don't want to actually slam your head on asphalt to make it look real, and I do realize it is very hard to fake it and make it look real. I won't detriment the show for at least trying to cover it up through the use of slow motion (again), but it's just one of those things that when you see it you can't help but cry foul. I would offer more advice but even I need to figure out a way to properly fake it. I am not perfect, sadly.
This head-banging somehow knocks the Jordan back in Jordan, because when Mike gets up to him he's back to his old self. "I'm back, baby!" is the last line of the episode as it ends. This show is funny, because it will immediately cut to another scene when the previous one probably needs a little more time to fully show everything, and will linger on a scene that absolutely does not as much time as the show is giving it. It's a backwards way of doing things, but at least it's not the norm.
Stray Observations:
- We did it! We're out of the forgettable patch! Next stop, The Derkiss.
- For the second straight episode, the main characters address the camera.
- The second slo-mo sequence had a cool shot in Jordan running through that big puddle.
- Jordan decides to sell his DVDs because they are childish. That's right, entertainment, in any form is a kids game. You've got to be all work and no play if you want to be something as vague as a "businessman"
- Selling the dog will do it too, good thinking Jordan.
- Dr. Smiley's voice sounds suspiciously like Ryan Cage.
Overall episode grade: B+
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