The Studio season 1

New comedy shows come and go with little chance to really get going. I sat through all of the new Frasier and saw some potential but it wasn't enough to dodge the studio's axe after two seasons, which goes for much of the industry today. Meanwhile, Apple, with their vast budgets have entered the genre with The Studio, a new comedy that might hopefully stick around a while if it can win audiences over and bring in enough subscribers to stay on the air.

The premise here sees Seth Rogan working as the newly promoted head for a fictional studio in Hollywood who values the art and wants to be remembered in the industry but finds himself forced into making a shallow, gimmicky blockbuster to make as much money as possible for the studio as possible. Hilarity and hijinks ensue. 

From the get-go, The Studio boasts a terrific cast with many celebrities playing exaggerated versions of themselves, and the frenetic humour is certainly on point. Rogan makes for a great lead and the ten episodes flew by for the most part. There was though a lull in the middle as the show moves its attention to some of the supporting cast and various b-plots but when the main storyline is in focus, I had really had a great time with this as it riffs on the state of Hollywood today. 

However, and this is quite a major point, the mileage of my praise for this show will vary depending on your interest in Hollywood and filmmaking. Casual viewers will still find plenty to enjoy but it's the film buffs who will get the most out of this here as we see Rogan and the crew, including the late, great Catherine O'Hara, rush around and fight amongst each other to keep Bryan Cranston's CEO happy.

The first season to The Studio is a lot of stressful fun and had me happily engaged to see where the story would go next, and I can't wait for season two, which is already in production. If you have Apple TV, then this is an easy one to recommend as the streaming platforms broadens its collection.