TV Review: Portlandia

So I had heard a lot about Portlandia from various friends telling me how great it was, and because the first season (only six episodes) was available on Netflix (my only source of entertainment, now that Megaupload is gone...) I decided to finally watch it. And I'm glad I did.

The show centers around Portland, but the entire thing could pretty easily be Bellingham. Even the houses look like they belong in Bellingham. Portlandia is a sketch comedy show that pretty much exclusively revolves around making fun of hipsters, everyone's favorite past time. If you've ever rolled your eyes at someone's obsession with free range chicken, Portland's desperation not to be Seattle, or the fact that every other person you know works part-time at the Co-Op you will love this show.

The show is surprisingly well-shot and the opening credits are beautiful in my opinion, and my favorite segment is the "feminist book store" recurring storyline. I honestly feel like this is a show we'll all remember twenty years from now, because it speaks to our current cultural environment so well. I feel like to even understand this show, you'd pretty much have to be under the age of thirty and living in the Pacific Northwest and that leaves you with a sense of local camaraderie after watching.

Artistic Value: 4- Pretty surprising for a comedy show.
Entertainment Value: 5