Workaholics - Episode: “Peyote It Forward” (Recap & Review)
“Peyote It Forward”, episode twelve of season five, was hilarious and fits in well with the antics of the season. This whole season has been funny and has been one great episode after the last. The episode starts with the guys sitting on their roof while getting high and discussing Joe Rogan. These moments usually serve as one of the highlights of the show because of the sarcasm and how it seems the audience is in on part of the joke. I've seen the show described as 'bro comedy', and in ways I can see that, but it's clear the characters and the actors themselves are not 'that type of guy'. I think referencing things like this is one way to make a comical commentary on things or people.
That can also be said for when Adam “Bill Cosbys” the guys and puts peyote in their smoothies. He tells them when they are tasked with the responsibility of watching an important client’s son while he is meeting with Alice about buying some mirrors. Jillian was watching Josh at first, but he didn't want to play with her pet worms including Waymond Wormero. I like Jillian and would really like to see more of her in future episodes. It's always nice when she conspires to help the guys.
Of course we know the guys will go on a wild adventure where they will undoubtedly mess up but work things out later. It starts pretty quickly when they notice Josh has gone missing again. They head off down the hallway to find him. The special effects from their trip start here with the long hallway extending farther and with them sliding against the wall as though the room has shifted. I liked the effects here and enjoyed seeing them slide against the wall as though they were going to fall. Ders hits his head against the light on the wall and cracks it. This almost seemed like unplanned but kept in footage, although it might have been planned.
Now for the not-so-cinematic effects, the green screen shots. This is something new for the show and definitely only a part of the episode because they are on peyote. Some may think the effects lack a realness or seem silly. Let's put it into perspective. It's a fun show. They are tripping on peyote and therefore can expect to see silly things. Suspend your disbelief just for the sake of having fun and watching the episode. Ders finds himself watching Josh alone while Adam copies pages from a coloring book and Blake searches for markers. Each experience something that tied into their earlier conversation about the future and their paths. Ders sees himself as a bird, who is flying freely. Adam sees the three different versions of himself if he had taken different paths. He first sees 'dirty cop Adam', then 'pizza delivery man/porn star Adam', and finally as 'Jazz trombonist Adam'. I'll admit his accents and looks were silly, but the conversations he had with the other versions were quite funny.
Blake finds himself back in the group's cubicle and sees someone in his seat. It turns out to be an older Blake. His costume and make-up was good and much more realistic than Adam's were. Old Blake says he has the answer to life, but Blake never gets around to hearing it. We do find out that Blake marries Jillian at some point and that she cheats on him with Bill (in this reality). This was surely exciting for longtime fans who remember the almost-was relationship between the two.
Adam and Blake make their way to the office gym, which is where Ders was taking Josh while they gathered the coloring pages and markers. They arrive to find Ders stuck behind exercise equipment. He thinks, as a bird, that he is locked up in a zoo. Alice soon arrives and asks where the kid is at. They say they are playing hide-and-seek and that he is hiding in the closet. The closet is really the door to the outside and the guys have to find Josh before the client is finished. After finally grabbing the door handle (because it moves around the door as Blake struggles with it) he opens it to discover a lava pit between them and the “island” across where Josh is entering a storage room. It's more of the green screen effects here, but proves to be funny when the guys come out of the hallucination and realize they are actually standing in wet cement and they're actually in the parking lot.
They go into the storage area. Yes, you might have guessed it. The mirrors, that the client is here to buy, are in the storage area. They each see their alternate versions in the mirrors while searching for Josh. They try to snap out of it because they have to find him. Come on, they don't want Alice to think they are irresponsible. This is why they must destroy their alternate versions, ergo the mirrors. They find various ways to shatter them. Alice and the client arrive a few seconds later. She's outraged and the guys shakily try to explain how it happened. The client, who was quite mean to his son earlier and had a kind of surprising too-rage-filled outburst back in the office at him, quickly assumes it was Josh who broke the mirrors. He says he will pay for all of them anyway. All seems well for the guys and Alice is fine with it since the client will still pay. However, it seems the client hits the boy (viewed only as shadows against the wall) while the guys all look on surprised and disapproving. This was followed quickly with a 'Do not hit kids. Hit bongs.' graphic. I could have gone without the extreme aggression from the dad. The behavior seemed a little off topic and out of the ordinary, but perhaps it's making commentary for a larger reason or it is just an exaggeration brought on by the peyote trip. That line will probably become one of the most quoted lines from the episode.
The one question I ask myself is why don't they get more viewers? This season has seen them go under the 1 million U.S. viewers mark for most episodes. It's a gem. More people should be watching. They have managed to get some great guest actors this season including Ben Stiller, Jack Black, and Dolph Lundgren. They have branched out to other shows and movies such as Adam in Modern Family and all of them in a short scene in Neighbors. It's always fun to see them pop up in other places. In an episode that questions each of the guy's different paths and futures, it makes me think of it as well. I know Workaholics will have an eventual end date, although they are not talking about it and I'm not ready for it. I recommend watching this show. If you're interested in checking it out and are new to it, then I suggest starting from the beginning or if you want to get a feel of it, then watch episodes “Straight Up Juggahos”, “Teenage Mutant Ninja Roommates”, “A TelAmerican Horror Story”, “Best Buds”, and “Speedo Racer”. Check out the next episode Wednesday, April 8 on Comedy Central.
Review By: LBurden
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