East Coast-West Coast Comedy Wars...

Los Angeles and New York have such different sensibilities.

I've lived in neither, but spent time in both.

I think the feel is epitomized by my two favorite comedies on television right now "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and "Louie."

The comic feel is provided by Larry David (not pictured on the left) and Louis C.K. (not pictured on the right).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For those of you who don't know who Louis C.K. is, do me a favor, punch yourself in the face.

I'll wait.

You're missing out on one of the brilliant comic minds of our generation.

He's 42. He's divorced. He's unhappy.

But damn if he isn't honest.

He's a fatalist, but in the most amusing of ways.

His show captures all of his best qualities.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Larry David is pure neurosis.

You all know LD because he's the comic genius behind "Seinfeld."

Larry needed Jerry to make that show work, because he needed a friendly front-man.

Jerry's observations could pass as cute and witty.

Larry's are darker and far more fatalistic.

Jerry's likability allowed Larry to get away with more.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So let's break down why I think the shows represent their given cities.

"Louie" couldn't be more New York.

The opening shot is Louis walking up subway stairs.

He stops to grab a slice (that you know must be delicious).

Then he walks into a comedy club.

The intro is showing you, Louis is going to let you into his world on stage and beyond (all the while Reggie Watts theme song is playing--- good luck getting it out of your head).
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The structure of the show is rough, raw, and at times unorganized.

One minute he's doing his act, the next it's a comic vignette, the next it's a really depressing scene.

It creates the same kind of chaos you might have walking around for a day in New York.

One minute I was at a broadway show, the next minute I was in a cab with a crazyman, then I saw a homeless man sing Opera before urinating on a pigeon.

Louis throws that at you at all times.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Larry David's show is L.A.

The presentation is slick.

The pace is leisurely.

The music is a slow-paced, relaxing beat that he nods his head to as he walks down the street.

Larry David is a MASTER of narrative.

Even though LD's show is unscripted (he uses intense outlining and improving), the structure of his show is like the end of an hour-long Jenga game.

Every piece is placed for a VERY specific reason.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Larry and Louis are both aimless in their lives, but for different reasons, and you guessed it, the reasons reflect New York and LA.

Larry focuses on the small stuff, because he's got nothing but time.

He's loaded, and has nothing better to do but focus on minutia.

Louis is aimless because he's defeated.

Life has beaten him down.

He doesn't quit.

He still tries to talk to women, get into shape, and lead a better life.

But he's old enough to know, it ain't happening.

That honesty makes him even more lovable.

If you can make it there, well he hasn't.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Larry David gets many of his laughs from the "fish-out-water" style.

He's the neurotic Jew often having to interact amongst wasps.

That contrast works for him (and many relocated New Yorkers in LA).

Louis is surrounded by the constant freak-show of New York.

The people he encounters along the way are just so strange, by not being an absolute nut-job, he achieves the same status.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Truth is, Curb is a far more polished show.

Consistently, it's a funnier show.

But there's a real, raw quality to Louie, that Curb just can't match.

Part of me hopes that as Louie grows, the narratives will tidy up a bit, the flow of the show will improve.

And then part of me doesn't.

The show's a little bipolar because, well, Louis is.

If you don't like it, tough.

Such a New Yorker.