Be honest: Career wise, are you doing whatever it is you always dreamed you'd be doing for a living when you were fresh-faced college grad ready to grab life by the proverbial tail and, as a certain joke-spouting cable guy is fond of grunting, "get her done?" When your third grade teacher asked you what you wanted to be when you grew up and you answered "I want to be an astwonaut," with that adorable little lisp of yours, did you follow that dream? Did you achieve your goal of looking down upon the Earth from the heavens above? Have you bounced around on the surface of the Moon and thought, "I've really done it. I've made my dreams come true?"I was going to be a world-famous author of darkly comic, sci-fi noir stories. Well, maybe not world famous, but I was going to make a living at it. And I was going to live in a gated community or a thriving metropolis--it changed from daydream to daydream. I was going to become so well-known at a local Chinese restaurant, that the owner would know me by name, greet me warmly, and serve me my favorite dish (Chicken w/ Cashew Nuts, Fried Rice, Wonton Soup w/ fried noodles, spring roll) without having to take my order. And the book signings! Oh, Lord, the book signings were going to be epic.
Then I turned 28, realized my life was still largely a mess, and decided to do something about it. I got a job with the government, married my wife, and bought a house. "I'll work on my novel at night and on weekends," I told myself.
Nope. Didn't happen. Doesn't mean it won't, but that whole globe-trotting writer dream (Did I forget to mention the globe-trotting? Oops.) gets dimmer and dimmer as the days go on. Don't take this the wrong way: I'm immensely pleased with how my life is turning out, it's just the principle of the thing.
Ironically enough, I did, for a time, become rather well-known at my favorite Vietnamese restaurant in town, but it was difficult to try anything new once the owner figured out what I regularly ordered.
Party Down is a TV show about people just like me (and I suspect a lot like you...), people who are doing whatever they have to do to make ends meet while fruitlessly pursuing their impossible dreams. They have the added humiliation of working in the food service industry, specifically catering, where they are routinely forced to serve the very groups of people they so desperately want to be a part of, but for various reasons cannot.
Adam Scott plays Henry Pollard, an actor who became famous through a series of beer ads that subsequently made it impossible for him to acquire any serious work after the campaign had ended. Unlike his fellow employees at Party Down Catering, Henry seems content with what life has handed him, explaining to anyone who asks that he has quit acting and is quite happy to sling drinks at corporate retreats and swanky block parties, you know, when people aren't needling him to spout his beer ad catch phrase--"Are we having fun yet?"
On the other hand there's Ron Donald, a Party Down team leader, played to goofy perfection by Ken Marino. Ron's only dream in life is to open his own Soup R' Crackers ("the fastest growing non-poultry, non-coffee franchise in Southern California") and he believes running a successful catering crew will impress Party Down's owner, Mr. Duk (Ken Jeong), enough to bring him onboard as an investor. It doesn't help that Ron's crew view him as pushover and couldn't care less about the delicate art of d'oeuvre slingin'.
Party Down is without a doubt one of the funniest shows currently on television. Each episode features a different party, ranging from an opulent Sweet Sixteen aboard a multi-million dollar yacht thrown by foul-mouthed movie producer for his ungrateful daughter to a porn award after party to a Congratulations for Being Found Not Guilty of Murder party for a Russian gangster played by Steven Weber.
The cast includes Lizzy Caplan as Casey Klein, a stand-up comic and Henry's love interest; Martin Starr as Roman, a bitter wannabe screenwriter and the author of several "hard sci-fi" novels; Ryan Hansen as Kyle, an empty-headed model/CW star; and Jane Lynch as Constance Carmell, an aging actress and star of the teen sex comedy Dingleberries, apparently a favorite of the Russian mob.
I can't say enough good things about Party Down. It's brilliantly written and has the best ensemble cast of any comedy currently on TV. I suggest--nay, demand--that you check it out immediately. You won't be disappointed. Have I ever steered you wrong? Don't hold Xavier against me.
Oh, I guess if there's one bad thing about Party Down it's that it airs on Starz, which I assure you is an actual cable network and not a specialized line of Bratz figurines. For those of you lucky enough to be card carrying members of Netflix however, the entire first season is available for Instant View, and season two episodes are added as they air. Hooray!
