MacGruber shouldn’t work. The one-note Saturday Night Live skit would create some of the most genuine laughs from any given episode in the late ’00s; which seemed to only work in those minute-long segments. So when news broke in 2010 that the character would be making the jump to the big screen, it confused many. But creators Will Forte, John Solomon, and Jorma Taccone had a direction for the character that made the film feel like a natural progression. They made the character a send-up of ’80s and ’90s action heroes. He was still narcissistic, immature and a coward but they also showed audiences that there was a competent hero who would do anything for his country. Then, the movie bombed in theaters.
Enter: the streaming wars. Universal and NBC were launching a new streaming service to compete with Netflix and Disney+ and needed content. Forte, Solomon, and Taccone hadn’t given up on the character and had been shopping around a potential series to different networks. They’d spent the last decade sending funny MacGruber-isms and gags to each other that eventually developed into a proper follow-up. The trio pitched the show to NBC Universal, home of Saturday Night Live, and inked a deal to develop it as an exclusive series. The show was picked up for 8-episodes on Peacock. The game has changed but the players are the same.
The show picks up ten years after where the first film left off. MacGruber and his team have gone their separate ways following his explosive wedding to Vicki St. Elmo (Kristen Wiig). MacGruber was immediately incarcerated following his nuptials for the murder of his arch-nemesis, Dieter Von Cunth (Val Kilmer). After a decade, the mulleted madman is given a chance to earn his freedom by serving his country once again.
The plot of the series plays out like any action film of the last 20 years. The reluctant hero returns to the world he left behind. We get an entertaining scene of MacGruber in a prison yard that quickly establishes the character hasn’t changed too much since the original. What was especially unique about the series was some of the homages to other films and franchises. The most obvious one was to the James Bond franchise, specifically 2012’s Skyfall. Like Skyfall, we learn much more about MacGruber and his upbringing and what made him the man(baby) he is today. The latter half of a specific episode also seemed to pay respect to the 2016 horror film, Don’t Breathe, which was a welcome surprise.
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The series attempts to capture the same manic energy from the film and nails it more often than it misses. The writers were able to pick and choose the best jokes and bits they’d thought of over the last 10 years and which benefits the show greatly. While a majority of them land, it’s the ones that fall flat where you really notice some lack of enthusiasm. The main trio of MacGruber, Vicki, and Lt. Dixon Piper (Ryan Phillippe) are all back but appear exhausted. Forte especially is lacking the same child-like energy he did in the original. Forte was expected to carry a lot more solo screen-time than before which winds up slowing a lot of the momentum the series has going for it. The scenes with the three of them together are when the show is firing on all cylinders.
The show made the wise decision to give Wiig an expanded role this time around. Not only does Vicki have a much more clear arc, but she’s also given some of the funnier jokes and one-liners. Her introduction in the show has her singing one of her less-than-perfect songs. Wiig’s performance is so good that you don’t fully realize the absurdity of the song’s lyrics at first. The final member of the trio is Lt. Dixon Piper. Phillippe delivers a good performance as the straight man but he isn’t given much else to do. The show struggles with finding ways to incorporate him throughout the series, which is a shame since he grounds the ridiculousness of MacGruber and Vicki. His character starts off in a really interesting spot that would’ve been fun to explore in subsequent episodes but it’s all but forgotten about almost immediately.
The newest additions of Laurence Fishburne, Sam Elliot, and Billy Zane were perfect additions to this world. These veteran actors heighten each scene they appear in, even if the script has them saying and doing some insane things. Fishburne, being the most sizable role of the three, plays the straight-laced General Fasoose tasked with keeping MacGruber in line; Elliot plays MacGruber’s father, Perry; and Zane is the newest villain with a grudge, Brigadier Commander Enos Queeth. Though minor roles, they have plenty to work with and make their screen-time well worth it. Zane in particular was the most surprising. He really hammed it up as the villain and looked like he was truly enjoying himself.
Unlike the feature film, the series has room to breathe and let jokes and moments settle. This benefited the series but also might have hurt it. Binging the show might leave some with “MacGruber fatigue.” One can only hear “dickbag” so many times before becoming numb to it. The show also takes advantage of the medium and ends most episodes on a cliffhanger that’ll keep the audience member invested for another episode.
In the end, the series is a bombastic, raunchy romp. The set design and action pieces are a sizeable step-up from the original film. The show has some truly hysterical moments as well as some deeply unsettling ones. If you weren’t a fan of the original film this probably won’t be for you as the show doubles down on every aspect from the original. The creators set out to make the show they wanted to make and they succeed. MacGruber is unapologetic insanity at its best. – Kellen Murack
Rating: 7.3/10
MacGruber is streaming on Peacock on December 16th.
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