"The State" (1993) TV series 1993-1995

User Rating:

8.9/10   

Creators:

Kevin Allison
Jonathan K. Bendis
Michael Ian Black

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | unknown

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Each episode contains 30 minutes of extremely bizarre and funny sketch comedy performed by THE STATE, an 11 member sketch comedy troupe who wrote and starred in various sketches seen throughout the program.

Plot Keywords:

Sketch Comedy | Actor Playing Multiple Roles

Cast

Kevin Allison	...	Various (29 episodes, 1993-1995)
Michael Ian Black	...	Various (29 episodes, 1993-1995)
Robert Ben Garant	...	Various (29 episodes, 1993-1995)
Todd Holoubek	...	Various (29 episodes, 1993-1995)
Michael Patrick Jann	...	Various (29 episodes, 1993-1995)
Kerri Kenney	...	Various (29 episodes, 1993-1995)
Thomas Lennon	...	Various (29 episodes, 1993-1995)
Joe Lo Truglio	...	Various (29 episodes, 1993-1995)
Ken Marino	...	Various (29 episodes, 1993-1995)
Michael Showalter	...	Various (29 episodes, 1993-1995)
David Wain	...	Various (29 episodes, 1993-1995)

Also Known As:

The State: Full Frontal Comedy (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

30 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Trivia:

The cast was extremely reluctant to write material for recurring characters, but pressure from the network forced them to do so. When the character of Doug and his catch phrase "I'm outta heeeere..." began to catch on, Michael Showalter, who played and created Doug, conceptualized the second season sketch in which Doug gets annoyed by everyone finding his rebellious slogan charming.

Quotes:

Louie: I wanna dip my balls in it.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Stella Shorts 1998-2002 (2002) (V)

Soundtrack:

Carin' 'bout Karen

Incredibly great or Aquaman, go talk to some fish

Forget about the Kids in the Hall. Ground the Flying circus. Fill up the vacant lot. Kill Mr. Show. and remember that SNL SUCKS. This sketch comedy show is the greatest of its kind. It had the most original premises for the its sketches and all the people involved were quite talented. I cannot put into words how much I loved this show. I was fortunate enough to have taped the episodes when they came on and am still able to watch them. Unfortunately, others are not so lucky. This show had some wonderful bits that many will never get to see. Bits like Barry Toink, The hand Signals, Grape Soda, even Please kill Tim. Many may have the mistaken impression that because of the spin off of viva variety was so bad, that its base material the Laupan variety hour and by extension the state itself was as flat and stale. Nothing could be further from the truth. This series is the greatest. Even though MTV made them have reoccurring characters, that is the main down fall of most sketch comedy shows, the state transcended this obstacle and made the funniest character in recent history. And even though he was out of here, Doug is an archetype for our times. Louie while being extraordinarily cheesy knew how to play it, and Barry and Levon gave cool a whole new groove. Mere words fail me when I try to describe my affection for this show, but I must tell you, not a week goes by that I do not tell someone new about how funny this show was.

Just remember, never watch the CBS special, and that blue muppets have the most meat on them.