A Reason to Take Up 'Party Down'

I'm a little behind on the Starz original series Party Down, but better late than never. I like the show, don't love it as much as some people/critics. However, they did something in the first episode that really impressed me.


The episode utilizes a running gag of Henry and Ron changing shirts. Henry shows up for work in a wrinkled shirt, so Ron gives him his spare. When Ron spills red liquid all over his shirt, he is forced to put on the wrinkled shirt. Later, Henry falls into the pool.

This is where the brilliance happens.

The next time we see Henry, his shirt has a big red stain all over the front of it. Of course, he had to change from the wet shirt into the stained shirt. We don't see him make the change and it never comes up in the dialogue.

Why do I love this so much? The show has faith in its audience's intelligence. Most series would spell it out for you. This is often due to executive meddling - TV executives are notoriously fearful that people won't understand unless beaten over the head with an idea.

And yet, pointing out what happened would kill this joke. It takes a second or two to figure out exactly why Henry is wearing the stained shirt, but solving the puzzle is what makes it funny.

Trust your audience to make little jumps in logic and they will love you for it.