TV REVIEW: The Whitest Kids U’ Know – Season Two on IFC

The press release for The Whitest Kids U’ Know, a sketch comedy troupe from Brooklyn, New York, claims the group’s work is “reminiscent of comedy classics The Kids in the Hall and Monty Python.” While comparisons to such luminaries might be premature, The Whitest Kids U’ Know do have something those seminal acts did not. Namely: an uncensored environment for their work thanks to The Independent Film Channel (IFC) – the network on which their series will air beginning February 10th.

The argument over whether such leniency ultimately helps or hurts, is a legitimate one. Is the ability to swear or, for instance, show a man’s balls, operating independently of him, popping out of various articles of clothing at inopportune times (as seen in the aptly named “Sam’s Nut” sketch) necessary to carry the mantle established by Monty Python? Obviously not. However, there is something raw and exciting in the nature of sketch comedy that suffers by censorship. Thanks to IFC, The Whitest Kids U’ Know – who landed the series based on the success of censorship-free live performances and viral Internet videos on sites like YouTube – are able to bring the inherent unpredictability and possibility of sketch comedy to a televised series without boundaries. The results are pretty damn funny.


The Whitest Kids also incorporate musical numbers into their act as evidenced by one of the season’s highlights, “Dino Rap,” in which head writer, executive producer and director Trevor Moore raps about getting high with dinosaurs (it’s a pretty good time until the cops show up, however, after trying to talk his way out of it, dilophosaurus simply bites their heads off and the party continues).

Perhaps the funniest sketch (of the first four episodes – the sampling we were given access to) occurs in episode three where Weird the Stripper makes an appearance. Weird, played by a man in drag with prosthetic breasts, operates off a very specific pay scale that dictates what she’ll do for what amount of money. $20 will get you a lap dance but for $7 she’ll “drink a whole pail of milk with [her] butt.” For $4.37 she’ll “paint you a picture of a dolphin.”

Other standouts include episode three’s “Instant Karma Bigot” (a man immediately pays in pain for every slanderous comment he makes), episode two’s “Blue Whale Dick” (animal genital grafting replaces tattooing as a fad, someone gets a sideways giraffe vagina for lips), episode four’s “Francis Scott Key” (turns out Key actually kinda sucked as a songwriter) and episode one’s “Happier with Mouth Open” (the director on the set of a crime drama keeps advising his actors to do their lines happier and with their mouths open).

There are some weaker moments in the season. Episode three’s “Jack and Oswald” – a lengthy sketch that turns into a musical number in which Lee Harvey Oswald and John F. Kennedy sing a duet – is one. While the idea probably sounded pretty good on paper, it doesn’t translate to success on the small screen. This might be because the subject matter is well established in pop culture and having the two sing a duet comes across like a ploy for cheap laughs.

That said, the hits in The Kids' first season with IFC (season one aired on FUSE) far outnumber the misses. They’re at their best when dealing in the abstract. Fortunately, more times than not, that’s exactly what they do.

The originality of The Whitest Kids U’ Know, as well as the likeability and talent of each of the members, built the group’s grassroots following. That following is sure to increase with the mainstream exposure from this season.

For more information and clips from The Whitest Kids U’ Know, checkout: www.ifc.com

Tune in to IFC on February 10th for the premiere of episode one.