Once upon a time, a brand new CliqueClack writer took on the last few episodes of Ugly Americans before the initial season ended. The show was a mixture of South Park and Darwin Carmichael is Going to Hell with maybe a hint of the minor characters from Men in Black. The writer was impressed by this underdog of a series. That writer … was me. I know, big shock. But by the time the 2nd season began last summer, I just couldn’t get into watching it everyday. It was good, but just hard to write about every week. And I’m sad to say I stopped watching it altogether as summer 2011 came to a close. The show took a break over the winter, but came back in March. Luckily for me, I never took it off my DVR schedule, so this past weekend I had a good four episodes stockpiled from the last month. Is the show work coming back to? Well …
Any Given Workday
More than anything, I really liked what a good friend Randall is to Mark in this episode. I get that the asshole of the series needs to stay an asshole for most of the series (see: Bender), but it’s important to see them occasionally try to help their friends, even if its in the most convoluted and irresponsible way possible (see: also Bender). It was also fun to see the gang of therapy misfits try to play football and I enjoyed the back and forth between Twayne and his mostly apathetic bookie.
The Roast of Twayne Boneraper
Birthday department. Is there really anything better than this concept? And then Mark Lily — possibly the most optimistic person on the face of the planet — somehow is the one to pull the plug on the happiest corporate department ever created. Between that and Twayne’s roast, Mark is just a jerk, right? Randall “helping” Twayne and consequently also getting to do rich and fancy things was a nice B story that tied back well to Mark’s dilemma.
Mark Loves Dick
Alright, I have to admit I was most excited for this episode simply because of the guest star. I really love H. Jon Benjamin in practically everything he does (especially Bob’s Burgers and Home Movies) — he’s already played a magical being who transforms into his friend’s busty ex-wife to make a point on Venture Bros., so it’s not too much of a stretch to play a women who decided to turn into a man. There’s an deeply authentic method to his acting that’s so much fun when paired with his deep, almost growlish voice. It was a treat to see him play the now testosterone filled Callie. Oh, and Atlantis was OK, too. Actually, Ed Helms was pretty much unrecognizable on first hearing as the very sexually hungry King of Atlantis … it was nice to have Helms take on a character unlike what we’re used to seeing from him.
The Stalking Dead
The guest shot from Dan Fogler as the obsessive zombie friend was just alright … I found it far more interesting that we got to see more of Mark and Randall’s relationship pre-zombie. And Mark’s sad love of John Cusack movies (Must Love Dogs? Really?) On top of that, the zombified Lady Gaga-archetype Lady Hooha was pretty spot on, especially in how her fans would react if she turned into an actual monster. You think a tattoo is a poor decision? You’re not hardcore unless you become one of the walking dead like Hooha! I’ve always thought of Grimes as an alternate universe Ron Swanson, so seeing his delusional dance routine with a park bird was that much funnier.
I really do like Ugly Americans, but it’s easier to watch in big chunks like this. If you’re already watching South Park, I’d highly suggest keeping the TV on Comedy Central after and watching Ugly Americans. Its a sardonic look at our own culture through an alternate universe lens. We have a couple more episodes until the end of the season, so check it out!
Clacked by Katie Schenkel 
on Apr 17, 2012 @ 10:00 EST5EDT
