Praise for The League

At its outset, The League seemed like it would be another generic comedy show that delivered one or two big laughs but never really blossomed into anything worth your time. The premise of a bunch of guys addicted to fantasy football doesn't seem very fresh. However, The League quite quickly showed its true colors as a comedic force. It may never reach the heights of Louie or Modern Family, but The League is an oft ignored laughter goldmine. The writers consistently come up with engaging plots, and the cast is fantastic.

It is difficult to pin down which character brings the most laughter. Andre, Paul Scheer, is a classic dope. He is consistently and hilariously lame. The best thing about Andre is he gives everyone else a nice big target to aim at. Taco, Jon Lajoie, is also excellent. He is the Kramer of the group. His mannerisms are so strange that either the writers are creative masterminds or he is based on a real person (also like Kramer, thanks to Cracked for this).

Everyone brings something to the table. Comedy Central made a great choice giving the man who plays Ruxin, Nick Kroll, his own show. On The Kroll Show, he brings to life a ton of different characters and is joined by a recurring star on The League: Jason Mantzoukas.

Mantzoukas' character: Rafi is my nomination for best character on The League. He comes on screen like an whirlwind of depravity fueled by equal parts drugs and innate insanity. Rafi's sole purpose is to be endlessly disgusting and horrible and somehow it has become the highlight of an already great show.

Cheers to The League, keep up the good work.

Top 5 Running Gags in Archer

Like its comedic ancestor, Arrested Development, Archer has a lot of running gags. These jokes are what make Archer the amazing production it is today. Many of the gags on this list started in the first season and are still going strong in the fifth.

5. Woodhouse's Punishments
Unfortunately for Woodhouse, Archer "devises bizarre punishments" a lot. This one has to be the most disgusting though.

4. "Phrasing"

The running gag in which characters phrase things in ways that could be construed sexually is right from Tobias in Arrested Development. This bit is hilarious and it really showcases the creativity of the Archer writing staff. It looks like they may have ended it in season five. Hopefully, that's not the case.

3. "LANAAAAA!"
This is probably the most identifiable of all the jokes on this list.  Here's a pop quiz. What does Archer say each time Lana (and Cyril) finally responds? I missed one. I'll give you a hint, they're not all "Danger Zone".

2. Brett Getting Shot
This literally started on day one (well episode 1). Unfortunately, it's over for certain now, but at least Brett died doing what he loved...

1. Archer's Voicemails
The writers really sunk a lot of thought into these. Archer's annoying voicemail messages plague his colleagues constantly. Unfortunately, there's not a usable clip of his ultimate voicemail prank in season 5-he redirects the phone to the sound system of the house of the person who's calling-but this compilation is awesome anyway.

Comment below with other great Archer running gags I may have missed.

6 Great "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" Moments

Unfortunately, long time fans of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia have had to come to terms with the fact that this excellent show was not going to get recognized with any major awards. It seems the people in charge of nominations are cool with the horrific things that happen in Game of Thrones (which I love) but not cool with the slightly-less horrific things that happen in Sunny-although, to be fair, the gang did leave a dead hooker in a dumpster once. There have been 9 seasons now and they've mostly been excellent. Here are my top Sunny moments so far.

Season 3: Sweet Dee's Dating a Retarded Person-Dayman
This is the first appearance of Dayman, one of the true heroes of our time. The Nightman never stood a chance against his powers of karate and friendship.

Season 4: Sweet Dee Has a Heart Attack-Charlie goes insane
In my opinion, this is the best episode in the series so far, in large part because of Charlie is steadily having a mental breakdown throughout. This scene alone should have gotten him some Emmy attention.

Season 6: The Gang Buys a Boat-The implication
This scene is pretty short, but it really signifies the start of a change in Dennis. At the beginning of the series, Dennis was just pretty self-absorbed. However, in season 6, his character started a steady drop into semi-psychosis that ended up with a full-on god complex in Season 8-Charlie Rules the World. Plus Mac's reaction is just hilarious.

Season 6: Charlie Kelly: King of the Rats
This episode is a great one, but it has always stood out especially because it's one of the few times the gang actually did something good for poor Charlie. After this episode, every movie theatre should have decided on a spaghetti policy. Also, note Dennis' maniacal laughter as another sign of his growing insanity.

Season 7: The Gang Goes to the Jersey Shore-Rum Ham
Mac and Frank's short-lived love affair with a ham soaked in rum is one of the weirder things that's ever happened on Sunny. The resemblance to Tom Hanks shouting after Wilson in Cast Away is uncanny and probably intentional, knowing how smart this show can be when it wants to.

Season 8: The Gang Gets Analyzed
This episode was one of their best purely because of its incredible ingenuity. It also serves as a great benchmark for just how far the gang has devolved. Mac's mood swings, Dee's insistence that she was almost cast in The Notebook, and Frank ending his session by yelling "You unzipped me doc!" serve as signs that things aren't going too well for the gang. If Dennis isn't on a government list somewhere by now, I'm sincerely baffled about what the NSA is spying on us for. Unfortunately, I don't have a clip for this because this "moment" is pretty much an entire episode. However, it is on Netflix, just like every other Sunny Episode, so go watch it.


Comment with your favorite Sunny moments, I'm sure I forgot about a dozen.