1.01 Sally

Summary and spoilers

Bret and Jemaine are struggling New Zealand musicians who have some to New York City to make it big. They are somewhat hampered by their talent-limited agent, Murray, and the fact that their fan base consists of one obsessed groupie girl named Mel. But one thing they do have is the talent for weaving songs into their everyday life – and for making a passable music video while dressed in cardboard robot suits.

There is tension between Bret and Jemaine, sparked when Jemaine begins dating Sally, Bret’s ex-girlfriend. The situation eventually resolves itself, but not without song-inspiring heartbreak for Jemaine and Bret.

Comments

Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement, stars of The Flight of the Conchords, are a New Zealand comedy duo of the same name. They created this series with James Bobin; Bobin is the show’s main writer and director.

This is such a wonderfully original and creative show, and the humor is so very dry – arid would describe it better. The show reminded me at varying moments of Monty Python, This Is Spinal Tap, Seinfeld, and Arrested Development. McKenzie and Clement are talented actors who can deliver comedy lines with subtle intonation. The cast is populated almost entirely with fellow comedians (Rhys Darby as manager Murray, Arj Barker as friend Dave, and Kristen Schaal as Conchord groupie Mel).  But it’s not all laughs; what makes it work is an underlying feeling of sincerity.

Memorable Moments

• Sally breaking up with Jemaine despite the ‘No Dumping’ sign in the background
• Bret debuting his hair helmet

Flight of the Conchords Quotes

Jemaine: Here, though, I - I don’t seem to get with any women; I just talk about getting with women.
Bret: Yeah, but the ones you talk about are hot. They’re a lot hotter than the ones you got with in New Zealand.
Jemaine: That’s true. I do talk about getting with some pretty hot women.
Bret: You don’t just talk about it, man. You talk about it a lot.

"What I was trying to say before is that, after six or seven weeks, girls find me boring, but I’m not sure what happens, ‘cause that’s about how long it takes to get to know someone."
- Bret

"New Zealand: Don’t expect too much; you will love it."
- tourism poster in Murray’s office

Murray: Item 1: fan base. Ways to increase the American fan base.
Jemaine: What fan base?
Murray: The fan base of the band.
Bret: You mean Mel?
Murray: Hmm.
Jemaine: That’s not a fan base, that’s just a woman.
Murray: Yeah, but I’m, I’m calling it fan base, it’s just easier when I call, ‘cause it’s, you know, you say, ‘ah, the fan’ll be there’, just, you know, they can tell there’s only one person. I’m trying to make it look bigger. It’s a base; put ‘base’ on the end of it. Okay?
Bret: Sounds good.
Jemaine: Sounds better.
Murray: I came up with that.

Murray: When you’re in a band, you don’t get with your band-mates girlfriend – past or present.
Jemaine: Yes, well, thanks for that.
Murray: You get a love triangle, you know? Fleetwood Mac situation. Although there were four of them, so more of a love square, but you know, no one gets on.
Jemaine: Okay, I see.
Murray: Mind you, they did make some of their best music back then.
Bret: Rumors?
Murray: No. No, it’s all true.

Jemaine: There is only one kind of dance: the robot.
Bret: And the robo-boogie.
Jemaine: Oh yes…two kinds of dances.

Jemaine: It’s just that I think she might be the one.
Bret: Sally?
Jemaine: Yeah.
Bret: What makes you think that?
Jemaine: You just know. When it happens to you, you’ll know.
Bret: You said Michelle was the one.
Jemaine: Yeah, she’s the one.
Bret: You said Claire was the one.
Jemaine: Yeah, she’s another one.
Bret: So you get more than one one.
Jemaine: Some people are lucky. I’ve had a few…ones.
Bret: So how many ones can you have?
Jemaine: Five.
Bret: How many have you had?
Jemaine: Three. How many have you had?
Bret: Just one.

Jemaine: Bret…do you think it would be okay if Sally and I had the apartment to ourselves tonight?
Bret: What for?
Jemaine: Some time alone.
Bret: Umm, I was gonna be working on my secret project.
Jemaine: Your helmet that looks like your hair?
Bret: Yes.
Jemaine: How’s that going?
Jemaine: It’s going pretty good. I still…need to get more body in the hair. Pretty much looks like a helmet.
Jemaine: Right. Well could you do that…tomorrow night?
Bret: Well, it’s helmet hair night, man – not really. I mean, I’ve been thinking about it for ages. It’s on the board. [gestures to blackboard with tangle of hair under ‘Monday’] You know about it. You said you were going to help, actually, ‘cause I can’t really see what I’m doing when I’ve got it on.

"I was thinking maybe we could go somewhere special this weekend. What was that place you went to with Bret that sounded romantic and…and cheap?"
- Jemaine to Sally