The Tangled Web Team Reviews: Happy Place

2.5 CLICKS 
(out of 5)

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 LA comic Grant Pardee writes and stars in this series about a guy working at a job he hates with co-workers (played by puppets) he also doesn’t like. When this environment gets too hard/annoying to deal with, he goes to his happy place in his head. Watch Happy Place…

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” While the series’s weirdness certainly adds to its character, it also winks at the audience…That being said, it’s worth checking out, especially if you’re stoned. ” Read Igor’s full review…

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“The imaginative concept is bigger than the direction at times, which is in need of quicker shots with more variety. ” Read Erin’s full review…

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“The pop culture jokes are cute and clever… But it’s as if Grant is delivering each quip with a wink and a nod saying: “Aren’t I just the most precious thing?”  Read Danielle’s full review…

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“The visual of Grant as the only human in an office full of puppeted telemarketers is not only effective but also something the show’s audience can empathize with in this economy.” Read Lorelei’s full review…

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HAPPY PLACE – ERIN STEGEMAN –  3.0 Clicks

Whimsically satirical and accessibly absurd, Happy Place follows a beige, introverted Grant (played by the series creator, Grant Pardee) at his dull office job and his disconnected relationships with his co-workers…who happen to be puppets.  The show plays out like a very weird episode of an old-school Nickelodeon cartoon, where the real adults would come on randomly for two minutes to talk about staying in school or how to kick a soccer ball perfectly into a goal.  It’s nonsense and light-hearted.

Unlike shows like Sesame Street and Avenue Q, it’s the puppets who are most humanized, reflecting well-chewed stereotypes from The Office that everyone is beyond bored of seeing.  There’s literally a moment in the episode “News” where the office puppet couple is referred to as “The Jim and Pam”.  It’s Grant’s inner-mind, his “happy place” that he goes to when he’s feeling outcast that is the crux of the series.  Akin to that of a drunk frat boy who suddenly starts quoting Hemingway, Grant’s imaginative world is more comedic and eclectic.   While there aren’t a lot of laugh out loud moments, there are plenty of “Oh yah – I totally do that!” gems.

The imaginative concept is bigger than the direction at times, which is in need of quicker shots with more variety.  Comedy is rarely born out of a profile, although Grant’s would make a decent cameo pendant.

While the vision is quirky, the bland and done concept may prove difficult to find a target audience willing to make this series their happy place. Read more reviews by Erin…

HAPPY PLACE – DANIELLE BAUMAN – 2.5 Clicks

While self-deprecation is one of the finest forms of humor, it’s difficult to believe that creator and star Grant Pardee really means any of it in the web series Happy Place. Surrounded by puppets that disapprove of his personality, it’s hard not to side with them when this introverted protagonist never fully commits to his downtrodden character. The pop culture jokes are cute and clever, especially the line: “You’re like Lena Dunham with a smaller dick.” But it’s as if Grant is delivering each quip with a wink and a nod saying: “Aren’t I just the most precious thing?” To put it simply, it’s as if a narcissist were trying to pose as a self loathing Woody Allen type; it’s a veil of I hate myself that’s just a little too see through.

But it isn’t ALL bad.  The episode, “Charity”, finds Grant forced to choose between spending his only dollar on a charity for Smash Mouth disease or a slice of pizza. He opts for the latter and is then berated by his co-workers, which include an afflicted puppet woman Linda who can’t stop singing “Hey Now You’re an All-Star.” GET IT? Rarely do I wish I had made up a disease; this one is funny enough to be the exception. The puppets are nothing short of awesome and the production design is on point especially the silly man-child dream world, which is reminiscent of Space Ghost.

Yet, overall there’s something very telling about the fact that Grant gives nothing to the outside world, while inside he’s the shit. He pokes fun at his character through the puppets, saying he’s a self-centered hipster millennial and that is certainly an understatement. Perhaps if he spent more time in the real world and a little less on his own ego, this show might be noteworthy. In conclusion I would keep the puppets and give this human his pink slip. Read more reviews by Danielle…

HAPPY PLACE – LORELEI IGNAS – 0.5 Clicks

Happy Place is a discordant marriage between “Office Space” and the Broadway musical “Avenue Q.” A perhaps too honest examination one creative person’s withdrawal into their own alternate reality, Happy Place is a movie that ‘actwright’ Grant Pardee should have starred in solely in the iMax of his own mind.

The episode “Cold Calls” that got heat with help from funnyordie.com is the most cohesive in terms of stakes and relatability for our main character.  The visual of Grant as the only human in an office full of puppeted telemarketers is not only effective but also something the show’s audience can empathize with in this economy.  The albeit ridiculous conference call between Grant, his father, and Batman also pays off when Grant’s dad says he is proud of him; a catharsis unfortunately denied by countless young artists, and a moment that humanizes Grant’s character.

The rest of the episodes feel like random one-offs, with no real through-line or tension. The show’s humor relies on pop-culture references to land its jokes.  The acting lacks a certain aggressiveness that’s necessary for camera, and Grant as a character isn’t relatable enough to carry the odd format.

The best way to encapsulate the experience of watching Happy Place is with a quote from the show itself:  “You are the most self-centered millennial hipster worth-nothing I’ve ever seen.  You’re like Lena Dunham, but with a smaller dick.”  Yeah, that about sums it up. Read more reviews by Lorelei…

HAPPY PLACE – IGOR HILLER – 3.5 Click

Happy Place is a place of imagination. The protagonist, Grant, works in an office with puppets who act like normal people, while his head is filled with wild characters like Pizza Man, a superhero who eggs Grant on to eat as much pizza as possible. This is a weird, funny show. Mostly in that order.

The series has some great jokes and fun dialogue. A nice exchange happens at the start of “News,” when Grant learns that two of his co-workers are shacking up. “They’re like the Ross and Rachel of the office. They’re like the Jim and Pam of our friends!”

The show also enjoys awkward moments and subverting our expectations. At one point, Pizza Man and Pizza Boy (played by Grant in his imagination) save a couple who ordered too much pizza. When it seems like they will stuff pizza in their mouths, the pizza superheroes instead eat their slices very politely and slowly, truly savoring its taste. It’s a drawn out moment, done effectively.

While the series’s weirdness certainly adds to its character, it also takes away from the overall experience. Its winks at the audience and obvious, cheap green screen make it difficult to connect with any of the characters. It makes the show feel more like something one enjoys once, laughs at, but then never returns to. That being said, it’s worth checking out, especially if you’re stoned. Read more reviews by Igor…