Flight of the Conchords

2 0 0 7 – 2 0 0 9 (USA/New Zealand)
22 x 30 minute episodes

This HBO series grew out of a (mostly improvised) radio series on Britain’s BBC Radio 2 and followed Jemaine and Bret, a New Zealand musical comedy duo known as The Conchords, as they tried to achieve fame, fortune, and romance in New York City.

Living together in a cramped, run-down apartment in Chinatown, they struggled with extreme poverty, culture shock, and an almost complete lack of talent-scouting interest.

The duo’s bumbling, overly enthusiastic band manager Murray Hewitt (Rhys Darby) worked by day as the Deputy Cultural Attaché at the New Zealand Consulate.

His band meetings (frequently held in his office with mandatory roll calls) were a central comedic highlight.

Kristen Schaal co-starred as their sole American fan (and borderline-stalker), Mel.

Episodes were full of deadpan, low-key Kiwi humour and incisive musical parodies – spoofing genres ranging from David Bowie-style glam rock and French pop to gangsta rap and smooth R&B – all integrated seamlessly into the plot.

The show was a massive hit for HBO, earning 10 Emmy nominations, including nods for Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Writing, and multiple nominations for the duo’s original music.

Despite HBO offering them a third season, Bret and Jemaine decided to end the show in 2009, citing the massive, exhausting creative toll of writing an entire sitcom season while concurrently composing and recording a full album’s worth of original songs for each run.

Jemaine
Jemaine Clement
Bret
Bret McKenzie
Murray Hewitt
Rhys Darby
Mel
Kristen Schaal
Dave
Arj Barker
Greg
Frank Wood
Eugene
Eugene Mirman
Doug
David Costabile

Video