Review: 'I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson'
Jacob Wasserman ’23 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer
Comedic television had some major high points in 2019, from the critically-acclaimed final seasons of Broad City and Orange is the New Black to the continued reign of cable favorites such as The Good Place and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. There was, however, one show that maintained a sizable place in my heart for the majority of the year. Its six-episode first season was released quietly on Netflix in late April. It received positive reception from critics and has gained a respectable cult following, but has not gotten much attention from the general public. That show is a sketch comedy program called I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson.
Formerly a staff writer and recurring cast member for SNL between 2012 and 2014, Robinson created the show along with Zach Kanin and stars in nearly all of its segments, along with a number of other comedians and guest stars. The sketches are not typically connected by a running motif (with exceptions), however all of them revolve around three common themes, those being social ineptitude, lack of self-awareness, and absurdism. One sketch, for example, features three friends attempting to come up with captions for their Instagram posts that undermine the idea that their posts are trying to make viewers jealous. Two of the friends decide on playful, ironically-deprecating descriptions directed at themselves and the others. The third friend is portrayed as naive and cartoonishly-inept as she recites profanity-filled tirades, much to the shock of the others.
Robinson himself exudes great charm through his performances in every sketch he is in. Although he does portray the straight man (i.e. a stock character who remains composed throughout a comedic sketch) from time to time, he is at his best playing more eccentric characters. Many of his characters are steadfast and stubborn when it comes to achieving their goals to the point of misreading or otherwise ignoring the bewilderment of those around them. In spite of their self-absorbed tendencies, however, his characters are still likable thanks mostly to Robinson’s screen presence. He delivers his lines without any sense of irony in order to highlight the fact that these characters are absolutely committed to living or acting by their concerns, fears and/or desires.
I Think You Should Leave would be most enjoyed by fans of sketch comedy or absurdist comedy, although I would be comfortable recommending this show to pretty much anyone, as long as they’re not opposed to silly styles of humor. The fact that Netflix has barely been advertising this show is honestly shocking. Considering that one of their most popular featured shows was The Office, a show that thrived because of its odd characters and awkward humor, it would be a safe bet that many fans of that show would flock to the show. Hopefully, the show will gain more traction once season 2 hits the streaming service later this year.