“Could Have Used That Keyboard to Write This Review: Ctrl”

 Ever heard of Ctrl before? Yeah, neither had I, until I clicked on the little thumbnail icon on hulu. THANKS HULU. THANK YOU FOR BEING A FRIEND. But your ads suck.

Anyway, Ctrl is a super smart, funny and endearing little mini-series starring Tony Hale of Arrested Development. The plot revolves around Stewart, an office nerd who discovers that his keyboard has the ability to alter time and space. He uses this keyboard to try to get back at his boss and win the girl of his dreams, if you’ll mind the cliché. The different episodes explore the different functions of a normal keyboard, such as ctrl z (undo) and ctrl c v (copy paste). It’s funny because I had no idea how to do all this stuff on a keyboard. And now I do! THANKS CTRL!!!1

What Ctrl lacks in length, (I mean, come on, it’s a keyboard that changes time, how long can you run with that without aliens?) it makes up for in sheer brilliance. I mean it- the premise is smart. It sounds vaguely silly upon first hearing it, but hey, in a world where TV is dominated by tears and dramatic pregnancies, I will be the first to vouch for more silly. But it’s not silly, really. It’s brilliant. I can’t discuss this more without giving it away, and I vowed not to do that as a reviewer, so all I can tell you do to do is watch it.

Now, Ctrl is what is known as a situational comedy*. It is a comedy that revolves around a situation that is funny or interesting, rather than a character (or characters) that is interesting or funny. Normally, while watching television, (compared to movies or improv or… music?) I go for comedies centered around the character. Just a matter of personal taste, really. Both can be great. Now character comedies are great because you really get a chance to connect and identify with the character, making it all the funnier when something happens. But in a situational, one gets the chance to explore a “what if?”. In this case, the “what if” is obviously the keyboard that controls time. “What if a repressed office nerd could control time and space?” Ta-daa, awesomenessosity.

 Because a comedy is situational, sometimes the characters inside are cardboard cut-outs, filling a role only because it needs to be filled. So are the characters in Ctrl ginger bread men from a tin frame cookie cutter? Maybe. I really can’t say. I liked them. Did I fall in love with them? I fell in love with Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper in Doctor Who. I fell in love with Stephen Mangan and Tamsin Greig in Green Wing. But I didn’t fall in love with Tony Hale (Stewart) or Emily Coligado (Elizabeth). I did rather like them though. Maybe it was because our time together was short. Maybe it was because Hale was a nerd and Coligado was the unknowing office sweetheart that we see in a lot of things. They weren’t generic, but, they didn’t scream out either. Maybe I’m totally wrong. Who knows. Loved it anyway.

If I had to complain about something in this neat little mini/web-series, it would be product placement. There is a lot of Lipton iced tea floating around in this one. Lipton, you have a lot of high fructose corn syrup in you, last time I checked, which was about two months ago. I will not be drinking you any time soon. Get out of my entertainment. You would look better if there was a little tag at the end saying “THIS BEAUTIFUL THING WAS FUNDED BY LIPTOOOONNNNN!!!” (if it really was). But then again, the tea does play a vital role in the plot, screwing up Stewart’s keyboard, giving it it’s powers. Oh shoot, I just spoiled something for you, but the opening graphic is of a brown liquid surging around the ctrl key. Tee hee. Other than that, I mean, it really didn’t give me much to find to complain about. Also, I don’t really care for complaining about things that don’t need to be complained about. Why look for a flaw if it didn’t pop out at you right away? Boom. Owned you, other reviewers. I’m an optimist.

 So give this delightful little slice of TV pie a taste. When? Whenever. This is one you could watch pretty much whenever you feel like it. You can pretty much watch it in one sitting, since I doubt it goes over, oh, 45 minutes. Though the ads for Heineken and Stouffers do tend to take up what feels like an annoying amount of time. Watch it in the morning, watch it in the evening, during dinner, during lunch, on your break, in the john, blah blah blah blah blah. Whenever. But whatever you pick, definitely give it a go. I approve of your schenanigans.

Did I really say TV pie? How delicious.

In Summary: 

Show-in-a-sentence: Aw look at Tony Hale! He’s so cute let’s give him powers and watch him change reality!

Should you watch?: Yes.

Alicia, how biased is this review?: Not very. I tried to be pretty honest. Just wait.

WATCH IT HERE:

http://www.hulu.com/watch/82867/ctrl#s-p2-so-i0

*EDIT: Okay, situational comedy, in the real world, is shortened to sitcom, the thing you are familiar with via the Olsen twins, but isn’t necissarily restricted to sappy home dramas. Now in the comedy/writing world, using situational comedy to describe something situational is perfectly legit- just don’t quote me, yet.