In The Know Shows Satirical Promise in Wonderfully Animated First Season: Review
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The post In The Know Shows Satirical Promise in Wonderfully Animated First Season: Review appeared first on Consequence.
The Pitch: Lauren Caspian (Zach Woods) is a cultural titan, a modern thinker for a modern world, a warrior of intellectualism and societal progression — at least, that’s how he’d describe himself. In reality, he’s NPR’s third-most listened-to host operating out of an underfunded, barely functional studio in New York City.
Luckily, Caspian has a host of zany co-workers to try and keep him in check. There’s the well-meaning but combative researcher Fabian (Caitlin Reilly), the frat boy intern Chase (Charlie Bushnell), the too-sweet-for-her-own-good producer Barb (J. Smith-Cameron), the wholesome sound engineer Carl (Carl Tart), and the cultural critic Sandy (Mike Judge), who definitely had a little too much fun in the ’60s. Together, they somehow produce the show, all while acting like total nincompoops along the way.
Judging a Book By Its Cover: Of In the Know’s main selling points, Mike Judge’s involvement is perhaps the most eye-catching: The satiric mind behind Beavis and Butt-Head, King of the Hill, Silicon Valley, and more has a part-silly/part-serious reputation that precedes him. Whether he’s taking on ’90s youth culture, blue-collar America, or contemporary tech start-ups, his brand of humor strikes a paradoxical balance between crass and class, and In the Know is no different. For his latest takedown, Judge zeroes in on the NPR-listening, New Yorker tote-bag-wearing, daily crossword-doing, no-good members of our culture-obsessed little world of media.
Potty humor and deeply farcical cultural takedowns exist side by side, often combining for a single payoff, as is the case in the pilot when the office has an unexpected visitor take over their bathroom. It’s Judge to the core, providing the show with the “no one is safe from the butt of the joke” feel that his previous work — as well as shows like South Park or Always Sunny in Philadelphia, two shows that also couch their high-level cultural critiques in poop and fart jokes — has become known for.
Turning the Mic on Themselves: “We love public radio. It’s engaging and comforting. But it also reflects aspects of ourselves that we’re embarrassed by,” Woods said of the series leading up to its debut. “We’re privileged, well-intentioned, guilty hypocrites. We buy ethically sourced dog treats and have them delivered by people who are penalized for bathroom breaks. We put ‘No Justice No Peace’ signs next to our home security lawn decals. We’re sanctimonious doofuses who should be ridiculed more.”
It’s easy to picture many of the show’s jokes having roots in the reality of Judge, Woods, and the other In the Know creators, from hard-to-work-with on-air talent to performative social justice gestures. In a sense, it grounds the show, giving it a sense of realism that’s so integral to satire. At the same time, it directly leads to the flattest jokes the series’ six episodes has to offer.
In the Know (Peacock)
Sure, the group of people Woods describes in the aforementioned quote is easy to make fun of, but much of that ground is quite well-worn. In 2024, an episode-long gag about politically correct terminology needs to bring something new to the table in order to come across as a humorous, intelligent critique, otherwise, it might as well be a lazy article from The Babylon Bee. Unfortunately, the writing sometimes dips into the latter territory, especially in the first episode.
Thankfully, the following five episodes hit more than they miss, sneaking in genuinely laugh-out-loud jokes at the extent of the media industry (like the tribulations of the fundraising drive in Episode 2 or the many over-the-top interviews Caspian conducts). Where the show excels even more, however, is when it becomes less worried about ripping a joke from the headlines and more interested in letting its genuinely compelling cast of characters explore their relationships with each other.
I’d Like To Thank the Crew: Like any office worth praising, the heart and soul of In the Know comes from its people. Outside the intentionally insufferable Caspian, each of the station’s crew members deliver both laughs and heartfelt moments, be it Chase’s surprising sensitivity or Barb and Carl’s gentle workplace romance. Such escapades are made all the better thanks to the excellent voice acting work and wonderful (and wonderfully unsettling, at times) stop-motion animation.
This is true to such an extent that, during the live-action, celebrity guest interview segments, you might find yourself wishing the show would just cut back to Barb’s B-plot of searching for the perfect chair. Despite big names and some solid jokes, these segments often feel more like enjoyable fluff than real substance, save for one notable exception in episode five. It’s a testament to the world-building of the show that, as a viewer, it’s more interesting to watch clay models give an office tour than Mike Tyson answer absurd questions. Get back to those lovable idiots at NPR!
The Verdict: Like many first seasons, In the Know has its ups and downs: It isn’t always as sharp or funny as it thinks it is, but when the show does hit, it fuckin’ hits. National Public Radio listeners are sure to find plenty of enjoyable moments, and anyone, no matter your level of interest in NPR, can fall in love with the crew behind the in-universe radio show.
Despite rocky beginnings and a live-action gimmick that doesn’t feel fully justified, In the Know brims with promise. Hopefully, these wacky, stop-motion radio folk win over enough hearts to flip on that blinding “ON-AIR” sign once again — maybe we’ll even get a small blootoob Bluetooth speaker out of it.
Where’s It Playing? In the Know hits Peacock on January 25th.
Trailer:
In The Know Shows Satirical Promise in Wonderfully Animated First Season: Review
Jonah Krueger
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