I've decided The Larry Sanders Show is a masterpiece

[QDRPHNC]

SHE WAS HALF THE JUDDS. NOW THERE IS JUST ONE OF THEM. SHE IS A JUDD. SHE IS A SINGLE. JUDD.

[MortSahlFan]

The best show. Garry Shandling was a creative guy, but I think Rip Torn was the funniest.

[madhair60]

i just watched the first episode and it was enjoyable but i have to be honest i didn't really laugh

[lipsink]

One bit (of many) that just cracked me up was when Hank is giving fans a tour of the office and he knocks on Larry's door with them all around him.

Hank: "Larry boy, it's Hank Kingsley!"
Larry (from the other side of the door) 'Fuck off, Hank."

There's just so many brilliant moments. Like when Larry is modelling a tracksuit in front of a mirror and Hank walks in.

Larry: "Hey, what do you think? I'm thinking of giving these away for a guests."
Hank: "Oh great. I think mirrors are a great gift".

[lipsink]

i just watched the first episode and it was enjoyable but i have to be honest i didn't really laugh

You might as well skip to Season 2 if possible. It gets really good about halfway into S2. With Season 1 they kinda don't really know what the show is at that point.

[madhair60]

watched the first two and still think it's good but still not really laughing

kelvin you might have fucked it this time. really fucked it.

[Oosp]

watched the first two and still think it's good but still not really laughing

kelvin you might have fucked it this time. really fucked it.

What if I told you that your ol' pal Oosp is a Sanders megafan. What then

[Armin Meiwes]

i just watched the first episode and it was enjoyable but i have to be honest i didn't really laugh

I mean its no Big Bang Theory but its worth persevering.

[Kelvin]

kelvin you might have fucked it this time. really fucked it.

I've booked a train to Beachy Head for the weekend.

[thr0b]

watched the first two and still think it's good but still not really laughing

It's not always laugh-out-loud funny. It's often quite dark. Even the episodes with Roseanne in them. (Roseanne these days needs the character of Roseanne that Roseanne played in that show.)

[thr0b]

Pleasingly, there is a DVD rip torrent out there, which raced down.

There is also a torrent of the Confessions Of A Late Night Talk Show Host book by Larry, as told to Garry.

Which I would never download, obv.

[badaids]

This show is like ambient music, Eno or something.

The dialogue is so naturalistic, but much of the dialogue is shaped like a joke, but isn't, or the jokes are shaped as normal dialogue, so you're always being caught off guard.  It's masterful and you can see its influence on The Office, Curb, The Thick Of It and so much other stuff.

The guest appearances are like Easter Eggs: 'Hang on... is that Gary Kemp?!'  'that looks like Burt Reynolds!'. Such a delight.

I've decided that Larry is utterly unlikeable as a character, so selfish and insincere. Again, totally setting the scene for all the shows above.

And why did it take me so long to realise that Darlene is gorgeous?

[Kelvin]

Encapsulated in one of my favourite episodes of any comedy ever, Hank's Night in the Sun.

I rewatched this yesterday. The section where Hank does his first night on the show is a real tour deforce for Tambor. You see every miniscule shift in how he's feeling during that opening monologue. Every wave of fear, doubt, hope and confidence. It's as good as anything in a dramatic show.

And then that final speech with Darlene, which would be chilling if his performance wasn't pitched perfectly between monstrous and pathetic.

   
EDIT:  Fair warning, that clip does contain a pretty strong slur. 

[badaids]

Okay I got to the end.

That very last few seconds.

When Artie and Hank head backstage and Larry pauses a second to linger.  Its shadowy and poorly lit, but I'm sure he breaks the fourth wall, looks into the camera and smirks just a second before he heads backstage.

That's what happens right?

Anyway, it's Sopranoes-esqe.

[QDRPHNC]

Idle thought: The Larry Sanders Show is the entertainment industry version of The Thick of It. Everyone is insulated from the social norms of the outside world in this little bubble, and it's cesspit of self-interest, ladder-climbing, phoniness and backstabbing.

[There Be Rumblings]

watched the first two and still think it's good but still not really laughing

kelvin you might have fucked it this time. really fucked it.

How far did you get with this?

Inspired by this thread (and with massive thanks to @Bartholomew J Krishna) I'm half-way through a complete re-watch. It's been ages since I last watched it and I'm just in awe at how good it is. The character development and relationships between the three main characters (Larry, Hank and Artie) are up there not just with any comedy, but any drama. Hank in particular has to be in the running for one of the most well-realised fictional characters of all time.

The world of the show and the show-within-a-show is so entirely believable with its superficiality, neuroses, betrayals, petty jealousies and ruthless, selfish careerism. The more you get drawn into the depths of it, the more rewarding it gets, the more you see these people for what they really are and the funnier it becomes. While it's not a traditional gag-based sitcom, it also has some of the most perfectly-timed and delivered spoken and visual punchlines I can remember.

I agree with the OP that it is an absolute masterpiece. I really hope you stick with it.

[Mobbd]

It was a back tooth, Hank.

Came here to post that. Best line ever.

[Kelvin]

Came here to post that. Best line ever.

Coupled with a brilliant delivery.

[Queen Peach]

simply the best

[Mobius]

anyone love the music performances? discovered a few good'uns via the show like Warren Zevon and Pyro for Pornos

Hank chatting to Wu Tang is classic

[Jim_MacLaine]

Paul Westerberg's You Ain't Got Me springs to mind.

Here doing a 'David Spade' on Leno.

I was trying to think of who has appeared on all three of my top 3 US comedies, Seinfeld, Larry Sanders and Arrested Development and despite a lot of crossover appearances I could only think of one person...

Bob Odenkirk.

[Mobius]

Hmm I think you are right actually, can think of loads who were in 2 of the 3, but struggling to think of anyone who was in all 3. I can definitely think of a few wh appeared in two of them and were referenced in a third, like Ed Begley Jr and Jeremy Piven.

[madhair60]

How far did you get with this?

sacked off, wasn't funny

[Kelvin]

sacked off, wasn't funny

Oh, as if beloved poster and comic artist madhair60 knows what is funny.

[madhair60]

joking! I do intend to give it a proper go, but I'm still going thru Seinfeld so I think I'll pick it up after that :)

[There Be Rumblings]

Oh good :)

I don't want to keep gushing over it but I do think that the more of it you watch, the more you get out of it because the dramatic layers get deeper and more complex and the character dynamics keep getting more and more nuanced and interesting over time.

In fact I wouldn't really describe it as a sitcom at all, it's a very funny and acutely well-observed satirical comedy drama.

The cast list is absolutely insane as well.

[Jerzy Bondov]

I've seen quite a few episodes of this but never sat down and watched it through. I stuck the first episode on the other day and I'm pleased to discover the Garden Weasel is a real thing because I thought it looked really useful. Thanks Hank.

[Johnboy]

sterling recommendations I´ve just ordered this from the library

[thr0b]

Finished my re-watch last night.

I'd entirely forgotten how Beverley is incredibly homophobic in the penultimate episode.

The show still stands up.

(Also, the picture quality up until season 5 is appalling. The final season is fine.)

[McChesney Duntz]

One of the few regrettable moments that I'd like to see removed is Hank (in, I believe, the first episode - very early on, at any rate) saying how much he'd like to fuck Darlene. It's so much richer (as it demonstrates something about Hank that can be interpreted positively and negatively) having his assistant be a ridiculously attractive woman that even proven horndog Hank never seems to think of in a sexual context. She may as well be Lynn Benfield as far as he's concerned.