TV Obsessive
Comedy Central’s Detroiters
Hawk: It was with great joy that I discovered that Comedy Central’s Detroiters is on Paramount+, after much searching elsewhere (it’s not even on Xfinity—what the hell am I even paying those people for?). I watched most of the first season when it was first airing and fell in love with its bizarre rhythm. The show, taking place of course in Detroit, focuses on two best friends, Sam Duvet (Sam Richardson) and Tim Cramblin (Tim Robinson), running a small ad firm founded by Tim’s father before he went insane. Most of the episodes find the pair attempting to land a new ad contract and more than likely getting sidetracked when one or both of them makes a foolish decision.
Much like Netflix’s I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson, Detroiters is rocket-powered by a chaotic energy thanks to creators Zach Kanin (who also co-created I Think You Should Leave), Joe Kelly, Richardson, and Robinson.
Tim Robinson’s combination of facial expressions and manic line delivery does not get old, and Sam Richardson has this great mix of deadpan and excess. Together, the pair have incredible chemistry and a sense of comedic timing as two man-children failing upward. The dialogue is peppered with genuinely funny jokes with the occasional left-field, absolute nonsense one-liner or plot development that really punctuates the show’s unique flavor.
The two characters share a terminally inept sense of social mores, a steady supply of extremely stupid pitches (“Quicken Loans, Bicken Bones!”), and a childlike attention span and vindictiveness that frequently derails promising contracts.
There are moments of surprising sweetness, as well: idiots as they may be, and despite Tim’s toxic jealousy, his and Sam’s friendship is practically impervious. At the end of the day, they’re hugging, being supportive, and arguing over who will buy the other breakfast. They’re lifelong friends, and they are codependent as hell, even having houses right next to each other.
Later in Season 1, Tim’s dad, Hank—who was institutionalized—escapes and returns to his company. When Tim learns that his dad escaped (and was not released, as Hank claimed) he confronts him about going back. Hank immediately complies, as long as he can see a Detroit sunrise. In the hours to fill before sunrise, the trio has a series of adventures across town: roaring with laughter over dinner, evading cops for publicly urinating, and buying and blowing up fireworks. The trio is genuinely enjoying themselves, acting like kids on the last night of summer break, all set to “Gone” by Jr Jr. It’s a surprisingly emotional sequence, but it’s presented with a cheerfulness that doesn’t get heavy.
Comedy Central tragically declined to renew the show for a third season, doing me dirty TWO DAYS BEFORE MY BIRTHDAY on December 11, 2018. Still, I’m grateful for what we got; Detroiters is a savagely funny, charming comedy interjected with moments of absurdity that give it a great personality, and it holds up under multiple rewatches due to how much fun it is.
