The Thirst Games Presents: Freaks and Drinks
The Freaks and Geeks Drinking Game
Freaks and Geeks is one of those shows that escaped the attention of the public when it was on air, but after it’s cancellation it went on to become monumentally influential and acquire a cult-following. It also ending up acting as a spring board for the careers of some of the most recognizable names in comedy today, co-creators Paul Feig and Judd Apatow, and actors/writers like Jason Segal, Seth Rogen, James Franco, and Linda Cardellini to name a few. In the years since the series, these guys have become comedy juggernauts, with contributions to mega successful films and television shows like The 40 Year Old Virgin, Bridesmaids, 30 Rock, Parks and Rec, The Office, Knocked Up, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Funny People, Girls, Arrested Development and This is 40. It’s kind of mind blowing to see this group’s influence on comedy for the past 15 years. These guys are so recognizable as an ensemble that this summer’s This is the End is basically the cast of Freaks playing themselves in a movie about what might happen if they were all hanging out during Armageddon. But before they were setting the tone for the last decade and a half of cinematic comedy, there was Freaks and Geeks. Freaks debuted in the fall of 1999 and was light-years ahead of its time. It’s in the vein of films like Dazed and Confused in the way it deals with high school students coming of age and features a group of kids who are growing up in a previous decade, in this case against the backdrop of a Detroit suburb in 1980. The show follows the Weir family and stars Linda Cardellini as Lindsay Weir and John Frances Daley as the loveable pipsqueak Sam, Lindsay’s little brother. There isn’t a lot of mystery to the title, the “freaks†are the burnouts that Lindsay starts to pal around with (Franco, Rogan, Segel, etc) much to the chagrin of her parents, the hippie guidance counselor, Mr. Rosso, and the mathletes.
Although, my mom would be pissed if I wanted to hang around with Busy Phillips, too.
The “geeks†are Sam’s wiener friends played by Sam Lavine as Neal Schweiber and arguably the best character on the show Bill Haverchuck, played by Martin Starr. But the show does a good job of relating the two groups. Their lives are awkward and they experience more failures than successes, and are stuck watching their half-assed efforts and good intentions blow up in their faces. No one ever says the right thing, or gives the right advice, meaning there is nothing that really separates this world from your world. This makes it a precursor to the kind of comedy that felt so fresh in shows like The Office and Parks and Recreation.
Oh my god I love him.
Like a lot of work that is avant garde, it wasn’t totally accepted by mainstream audiences at the time it aired and the series only lasted one season. It happens sometimes: a show is terrific–the actors turn out fantastic performances, the writing is tight and true to the experience of the world it’s set in, its fresh and real, but then no one fucking watches it and the television execs wig out because the show isn’t getting the numbers they want and pull the plug way too soon. And for the most part, this formula works pretty well. There is a lot of shitty shit on network t.v. that needs the axe almost immediately. Sometimes a network will extend the contract for a show because they believe in it, but that kind of creative leniency is very rare and usually involves a lot of blowjobs in high level corporate offices. But that didn’t happen and we are left with 19 truly excellent episodes of a show from some amazingly talented people. So I propose a toast (it’ll end up being several hundred toasts, bear with me on this) as each episode deserves its own article, and its own drinking game particular to that episode. So, unfortunately, The Thirst Games are on hiatus (that’s “studio” for dead, sorry, Sparky) but Freaks and Drinks is here to ease the pain. Next time: Freaks and Drinks Episode One: The Pilot.