Human Giant

Last updated

Human Giant
HumanGiantCast.jpg
The cast of Human Giant (from left to right), Huebel, Scheer and Ansari
Genre Sketch comedy
Created by
Starring
  • Aziz Ansari
  • Rob Huebel
  • Paul Scheer
Opening theme"Romantic Rights" by Death from Above 1979
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes16
Production
Running time30 minutes (including commercials)
Production companies 3 Arts Entertainment
MTV Production Development
Original release
Network MTV
ReleaseApril 5, 2007 (2007-04-05) –
April 16, 2008 (2008-04-16)

Human Giant is a sketch comedy show starring writer/performers Aziz Ansari, Rob Huebel, [1] and Paul Scheer, and directed primarily by Jason Woliner. The show ran for two seasons on MTV. In 2008, the group was offered a third season and was reportedly developing a feature film with Red Hour Productions, but these projects did not transpire due to Ansari's commitments to starring in the NBC show Parks and Recreation . In 2010, Ansari, Huebel and Scheer reunited to do a skit for the 2010 MTV Movie Awards.

Contents

Premise

The show, which premiered on April 5, 2007, consists of short humorous videos. [2] Some of the clips were first seen online such as "Shutterbugs", as part of Channel 101 NY, "Clell Tickle: Indie Marketing Guru", "The Illusionators" and an unaired skit called "Other Music". [3] [4] [5]

Production

Ansari, Huebel, Scheer, and Woliner began working together as the comedy group Human Giant in 2005. [6] [7] They gained a large following in the New York City comedy scene through live shows at the Upright Citizens Brigade and their weekly comedy show, Crash Test, and later expanded their sketches into short films. [8] [9] Their early digital videos "Shutterbugs" and "The Illusionators" became popular on MySpace and YouTube and led MTV to offer the group a sketch comedy series. [10] [11] [3]

On MTV, the show closed out a Thursday night "10 Spot" line-up for MTV, which also included Pimp My Ride , Short Circuitz (before being put on hiatus), and Adventures in Hollyhood , ending with Human Giant. [12] The line-up started at 9 PM and ended at 11 PM.

In interviews, the group has mentioned they were offered a third season by MTV, and were also considering developing a feature film. [13] [14] However, the group was unable to make a third season or movie due to personal projects, particularly with Ansari's commitments to the hit NBC show Parks and Recreation . [13] Without Ansari's participation, the group agreed not to make future content together and decided on ending the series on a positive note instead of burning out over several seasons. [15]

Episodes

SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
1 8April 5, 2007 (2007-04-05)May 24, 2007 (2007-05-24)
2 6March 11, 2008 (2008-03-11)April 15, 2008 (2008-04-15)

Season 1 (2007)

^a This sketch was removed from the season one DVD.
^b These sketches were edited for the season one DVD.
^c Added for the season one DVD.

Season 2 (2008)

The group began working on Human Giant Season 2 at the end of August, 2007. Note: the CrimeTime sketch, the Gay Porn Star Car Accident sketch, and the Illusinator Camera Trick sketch for season 2 all show up on the Season 1 DVD as easter eggs.

No.TitleOriginal air date
1"Mind Explosion!"April 5, 2007 (2007-04-05)

Sketches:

  • Terrifying Pop-Up
  • Wheelchair Access (also known as "Ghostface Killah Tickets")
  • Shutterbugs (Episode 1)
  • Aziz's Worst Boombox Challenge a
  • Camping Weekend
  • Attack Dogs (Part 1)
  • Illusionators - "Riggle"
  • Paul's Time Machine
  • Attack Dogs (Part 2)
  • Mother and Son Moving Company
  • Illusionators - "Funeral"
2"Let's Go!"April 12, 2007 (2007-04-12)

Sketches:

  • Face-Melting Ark
  • Dick on the Face
  • Catching a Predator
  • Self-Defense
  • Sea Land Psycho
  • Old-Fashioned Fun b
  • Sensitivity Training
  • Product Recall: Washer/Dryer
  • Let's Go!

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "A 'Giant' misunderstanding". New York Daily News . April 20, 2008. p. 222. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
  2. ↑ Kharakh, Ben (April 3, 2007). "Human Giant, Comedy Troupe" . Gothamist . Archived from the original on August 2, 2021. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
  3. 1 2 Sternbergh, Adam (March 22, 2007). "Sketch-Comedy Group Human Giant Tries to Save MTV". New York Magazine . Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  4. 1 2 Westhoff, Ben (March 9, 2008). "Human Giant". Pitchfork . Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  5. ↑ Maher, Dave (March 29, 2007). "Human Giant Talk Ghostface, MTV, YouTube". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on July 14, 2007. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  6. ↑ Itzkoff, Dave (March 25, 2007). "Online Yesterday, on Cable Today". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  7. ↑ "How did the members of "Human Giant" come together?". Big Think. April 1, 2008. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  8. ↑ Barker, Andrew (July 17, 2006). "Human Giant: 10 Comics to Watch". Variety . Archived from the original on March 28, 2007.
  9. ↑ Gross, Terry (April 19, 2007). "I Want My 'Human Giant': Web Comedy Jumps to MTV". NPR . Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  10. ↑ Gillette, Amelie (May 8, 2007). "Human Giant". The A.V. Club . Archived from the original on May 10, 2007. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  11. ↑ "MTV's "Human Giant" Has Columbia Roots". The Post and Courier . 2007. Archived from the original on April 3, 2024. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  12. ↑ "'Human Giant' Hijacks MTV Causing Mind Explosions Across the Country". TheFutonCritic.com. March 21, 2007. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  13. 1 2 "Interview: Paul Scheer (Human Giant)". NBC Los Angeles. January 22, 2009. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  14. ↑ Bronson, Dan (November 11, 2008). "Icons: Ben Stiller". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved April 3, 2024. He and Cornfeld are working on new comedy projects with sketch teams Little Britain and Human Giant.
  15. 1 2 3 Robenalt, Michael (May 18, 2017). "A Look Back at 'Human Giant's 24-Hour MTV Takeover, 10 Years Later". Vulture . Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  16. ↑ Flynn, Gillian (March 28, 2008). "Human Giant". EW.com . Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  17. 1 2 Westhoff, Ben (May 22, 2007). "1,440 Minutes". The Village Voice . Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  18. 1 2 Rabin, Nathan (March 5, 2008). "Human Giant: Season One". The A.V. Club. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  19. ↑ "40 Greatest Sketch-Comedy TV Shows of All Time". Rolling Stone . February 26, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  20. ↑ Gillette, Amelie (May 21, 2007). "Human Giant Programs MTV for 24 Hours". The A.V. Club . Archived from the original on May 23, 2007. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  21. 1 2 Wigler, Josh (June 7, 2010). "2010 MTV Movie Awards Dominated By 'New Moon,' Sandra Bullock, Les Grossman". MTV. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  22. ↑ "Human Giant - Season One". DVD Talk. February 24, 2008. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  23. ↑ Greene, Jr., James (April 6, 2008). "Human Giant: Season 1". PopMatters . Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  24. ↑ "Human Giant DVD news: Announcement for Human Giant - The Complete 1st Season". TVShowsOnDVD.com. November 27, 2007. Archived from the original on December 1, 2007.
No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleOriginal air date
91"Duffel Bag of Death"March 11, 2008 (2008-03-11)

Sketches:

  • Paul's Grandma
  • Viral Videos
  • Shutterbugs: Kiditentiary (Episode 1)
  • CrimeTime
  • Illusionators: We're Sorry (Episode 1)
  • Car Accident
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