We all know the struggle of finishing a show in Netflix, and wondering what we’re going to watch next. I had been contemplating for awhile on what show to binge watch next, and one show that was stuck in my Netflix list for a while was “Garfunkel and Oates”. I decided to try an episode to see if it was worth keeping it there, and ended up binge watching the entire first season in one night. But to my dismay, there was only one season made. I fell in love with this show and I always thought it deserved way more than just one season.“Garfunkel and Oates” is about a comedy folk band consisting of Kate Micucci (“Oates”) and Riki Lindhome (“Garfunkel”). The show, named after the band, is a fictional look into the lives of Micucci and Lindhome. The first episode premiered in August 2014 and ended in September of the same year. There are only eight, half-hour long episodes in the first season, making it an easy binge watch!
First off, this show is hilarious, which makes a lot of sense considering it follows a fictional comedy band. The situations Kate and Riki get into in the show are outlandish and crazy. Episode 4, Road Warriors, describes everything that could go wrong when Kate and Riki play their 1000th show. Problems emerge all night long, from a bad opening act, to having to use the bathroom outside the club they played at.
Something else I really appreciated about this show was the friendship depicted between Riki and Kate. The girls never are at odds with each other, and always support one another. I don’t think they ever get into a fight on the show! They have a friendship where they can be real with each other, and can talk about important issues they face. It’s empowering to see two women working in the comedy industry (which is predominantly made up of men) succeeding and having a healthy friendship outside of work. They work together, live together, and have fun together. Riki and Kate are true best friend goals.“Garfunkel and Oates” is risque, and upfront about it (it earned a TV-14 rating). The very first scene shows Riki and Kate talking about a song about balls. This show does not shy away from talking about things like sex, periods, and the female anatomy. I loved this; it’s not often in media that women are depicted talking about their sex lives in a positive way. It’s inspiring to see women having conversations about sex on a TV show like women in real life do.
And it’s a musical! Micucci and Lindhome adapted some of their previous songs for the show, such as “29/31” and “Sports Go Sports”, but they also wrote some new songs specifically for the show, like “The BJ Song”. Like the show, some of these lyrics are explicit, so proceed with caution.The show wasn’t officially cancelled, and IFC – the show’s original network – actually wanted to make a second season. In an interview, Lindhome said that IFC wanted another season but by a certain date, and because she was filming something for Comedy Central, they couldn’t meet the time constraint. I wish everything had worked out, and we got many more seasons of “Garfunkel and Oates”. This show is crazy, funny, smart, and full of girl power. I’ll just have to settle for many more re-watches, their comedy special, and binging through their entire Youtube channel.