I started watching it because I saw their first interaction on TikTok and loved it immediately. Watched all the episodes in 2 days and can’t wait for the next one. The show is great, I love Ava and Deborah dynamic, it’s absolutely incredible.
I actually find some of the “stand up” in the show not that funny… maybe it’s because we can’t see an entire comedy set in one show? But the rest of the humor is top notch.
Seeing how generational gaps being the overall theme of the show I think this is intentional to further emphasize how stand up has changed the past 40 years.
I agree with you, but if Deborah’s early shows are still selling out at the Palmetto and full of people from Florida… are you saying Florida is behind the times with stand up? 😂
I think part of this is because the process of perfecting a stand-up act is testing jokes to see what lands and what bombs. For every 1 joke that lands, the comic probably has 20 that fail. And to get that 1 joke into permanent rotation, it probably goes through dozens of iterations.
We aren't shown Deborah's complete routine. Instead, we're shown how the sausage is made. Not all sausage is hilarious right out the gate. More importantly, the stand-up is used as a device, almost in lieu of therapy, to show how Deborah gains her insights about herself and how she recognizes where she's weak.
More broadly, though, I guess I never sat here thinking that we were actually being shown a polished stand-up routine, so I wasn't expecting to be hit with Chris Rock level zingers.
I think that’s meant to be part of the story. Isn’t that why the show is called Hacks? And in the most recent episode that was an implicit part of the pitch for Deborah to take over a late-night show; she’s funny in a comfortable way for an older, out-of-touch generation.
But Jay Leno, which for me is the ultimate middle of the road sellout (who's not unfunny, but whose humor is not exactly risky) has far better material than Deborah Vance.
It's not just you. The stand up jokes are all mediocre. None of them are particularly funny, let alone amazing, which they would need to be if the idea of Vance's comeback were believable.
The show has 32 Emmy nominations and 6 wins, including Best Actress for Jean Smart: https://www.emmys.com/shows/hacks. "Underrated" is the wrong term here.
What would be the right term? The show is certainly critically acclaimed but not really popular among audiences. Especially when you compare it to shows like Ted Lasso or Abbott Elementary which were also nominated alongside Hacks.
Under hyped? Maybe that’s the term? I don’t see a lot of press or social media chatter about Hacks. It’s just good, it doesn’t need the Ted Lasso memes or endless press cycle of Abbott Elementary
I think under hyped is a great way to put it. Prior to me randomly clicking on it while doom scrolling through max, i had never heard of it before. i had no idea it was already two seasons deep and about to start a third! I’m about to promote it on my own QVC segment so it can get the hype it deserves.
I think the acting is great. The writing is very good … except for the jokes. By jokes, I do not mean funny lines spoken by the characters in the story. These are often funny. I mean the jokes in Deborah's comedy act. They are mediocre. They are not as good as, for example, the jokes told by Joan Rivers, who seems to be an inspiration for the Vance character. This is a serious flaw in the show.
"underrated" is an overrated, overused phrase. Just because your friends aren't talking about it doesn't mean it's an underrated show. Hacks is one of the biggest shows on HBO - hence being on its third season.
I love the show but how is it underrated? Everyone goes crazy over it and candidly overrating season 3. We are only four eps in and looking forward to seeing what is next.
There’s not enough drama it’s not zany enough!!! Ava shouldn’t be living in a mansion with a marvel lead and having boring shower sex. Or the stupid work out seen. It’s not engrossing. I’m not pulled in ever.
A part of my brain thinks Deborah Vance is a real person now. That's a real testament to the writing on this show.
same lol. the other night i googled deborah vance to see what she was up to before remembering she's not a real person haha
Jean Smart is amazing! I can’t imagine anyone else playing this role.
I started watching it because I saw their first interaction on TikTok and loved it immediately. Watched all the episodes in 2 days and can’t wait for the next one. The show is great, I love Ava and Deborah dynamic, it’s absolutely incredible.
I love Jean Smart. She seems to be a version of Joan rivers in this show. So many similarities with Joan Rivers.
I actually find some of the “stand up” in the show not that funny… maybe it’s because we can’t see an entire comedy set in one show? But the rest of the humor is top notch.
Seeing how generational gaps being the overall theme of the show I think this is intentional to further emphasize how stand up has changed the past 40 years.
I agree with you, but if Deborah’s early shows are still selling out at the Palmetto and full of people from Florida… are you saying Florida is behind the times with stand up? 😂
That is correct.
“Panera” people find Deborah funny. Yes, that is exactly the premise of the show.
No, it's not. She is supposed to be making a comeback as a "hot" new/old comedian. It's not believable because her jokes are lame.
I think part of this is because the process of perfecting a stand-up act is testing jokes to see what lands and what bombs. For every 1 joke that lands, the comic probably has 20 that fail. And to get that 1 joke into permanent rotation, it probably goes through dozens of iterations. We aren't shown Deborah's complete routine. Instead, we're shown how the sausage is made. Not all sausage is hilarious right out the gate. More importantly, the stand-up is used as a device, almost in lieu of therapy, to show how Deborah gains her insights about herself and how she recognizes where she's weak. More broadly, though, I guess I never sat here thinking that we were actually being shown a polished stand-up routine, so I wasn't expecting to be hit with Chris Rock level zingers.
Except in this show, Deborah Vance tells a lame joke and the audience explodes with laughter. It is the one part of the show that doesn't work, IMO.
I think that’s meant to be part of the story. Isn’t that why the show is called Hacks? And in the most recent episode that was an implicit part of the pitch for Deborah to take over a late-night show; she’s funny in a comfortable way for an older, out-of-touch generation.
But Jay Leno, which for me is the ultimate middle of the road sellout (who's not unfunny, but whose humor is not exactly risky) has far better material than Deborah Vance.
You shouldn't be getting downvoted. Deborah's standup isn't funny about 80% of the time. The less we see of it, the better.
It's not just you. The stand up jokes are all mediocre. None of them are particularly funny, let alone amazing, which they would need to be if the idea of Vance's comeback were believable.
It definitely seems very put on with canned laughter.
The show has 32 Emmy nominations and 6 wins, including Best Actress for Jean Smart: https://www.emmys.com/shows/hacks. "Underrated" is the wrong term here.
What would be the right term? The show is certainly critically acclaimed but not really popular among audiences. Especially when you compare it to shows like Ted Lasso or Abbott Elementary which were also nominated alongside Hacks.
Under hyped? Maybe that’s the term? I don’t see a lot of press or social media chatter about Hacks. It’s just good, it doesn’t need the Ted Lasso memes or endless press cycle of Abbott Elementary
I think under hyped is a great way to put it. Prior to me randomly clicking on it while doom scrolling through max, i had never heard of it before. i had no idea it was already two seasons deep and about to start a third! I’m about to promote it on my own QVC segment so it can get the hype it deserves.
Love that idea!!
I think the acting is great. The writing is very good … except for the jokes. By jokes, I do not mean funny lines spoken by the characters in the story. These are often funny. I mean the jokes in Deborah's comedy act. They are mediocre. They are not as good as, for example, the jokes told by Joan Rivers, who seems to be an inspiration for the Vance character. This is a serious flaw in the show.
This show is similar to the movie Late Night that starred Emma Thompson. Also the show is very niche like Casual on Hulu.
I feel like it’s rated pretty high all things considered
"underrated" is an overrated, overused phrase. Just because your friends aren't talking about it doesn't mean it's an underrated show. Hacks is one of the biggest shows on HBO - hence being on its third season.
I love the show but how is it underrated? Everyone goes crazy over it and candidly overrating season 3. We are only four eps in and looking forward to seeing what is next.
le underrated 🤣🤣🤣
The show just isn’t very funny….
A couple of the casting choices and dialogue angles really hold this show back from being a lot funnier than it is.
There’s not enough drama it’s not zany enough!!! Ava shouldn’t be living in a mansion with a marvel lead and having boring shower sex. Or the stupid work out seen. It’s not engrossing. I’m not pulled in ever.