Let's be realistic.

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.

(by the way there's one spoiler, but it doesn't affect the plot at all and I'm not saying who, but yeah I don't wanna be blacklisted on this sight. So anyway, if you read the review someone said "treat this as a dark serious drama" I mean I guess, but to me I like to laugh at my dysfunction and I grew up with a mom who is bipolar and I myself have Borderline Personality Disorder, and I find this show pretty hilarious. It is in a dark humor kinda way though...I didn't laugh at the weird surreal rape scene, but I did cringe, though that one, you're not even sure is happening so it's kinda strange. Watching this show feels like dissociating and being manic at the same time.

This is brave and inventive television. Netflix has done great work bringing this to the world. Currently the funniest and most verbally dexterous programme around. Very strong ensemble cast. It makes most other comedies look flat footed. There are delights at every turn and not a poor performance or unrealized character anywhere. And then there's the way mental illness is addressed - superb. And the talking dogs? Who doesn't love talking dogs? Especially ones with a sense of humour.The time shifts are well used and although becoming increasingly familiar since Breaking Bad they are used here to enhance the story and fully round out the characters. Let's face it season 1 didn't have enough episodes but there again it can't be easy to maintain this level of narrative and verbal inventiveness. Roll on season 2

Lady Dynamite is so zany and out there that it was a little difficult to get a grasp on when I first watched it. Ironically, my difficulty with the material wasn't because there's nothing like it on TV but because I saw traces of nearly everything else on TV: The cutaways of 30 Rock, the awkward attempts at social justice statements from Master of None, the use of a comedic veneer to mask trauma that's shown on Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, the 4th wall randomness of Man Seeking Woman or Family Guy, and the feminist celebration of woman as proudly dysfunctional adult from Broad City. That's not even bringing up the long list of shows that feature a comedic actor playing exaggerated versions of themselves pursuing showbiz start-up that starts with the Larry Sanders Show and goes all the way up to Comedians, Difficult People and Garfunkel and Oates (all relatively stale editions of the genre because all the good plots in this genre have been used up).Welcome to Peak TV: Where the overabundance of innovative voices on TV makes it harder to stick out and a comic voice as original as Maria Bamford is penalized for not coming out five years ago.What's good news is that a lot of these complaints are less valid after a scattershot pilot that's loaded with every gimmick imaginable. After that, the show starts to even out and one can see some of the better creative decisions behind the show. It helps to separate the show from other entries in the "comedians playing themselves" genre in that Bamford isn't trying to advance her show business career at all. At times, she seems blissfully ignorant of exactly how well she's doing (her faux sister Susan is alarmed at how much she makes at a studio session). In another episode, she turns down Judd Apatow because in that particular episode, her new focus on life is about doing as little as possible in life. After a few episodes, one can better make the argument that this even if it's a clichéd genre, Bamford's work is the ultimate personal statement: Maria Bamford is simply figuring out her life and way of expressing it on screen as she goes along.The show is a bit hit-or-miss on the strength of its plots but it helps that the 2nd and 3rd episodes-- dating a bisexual guy, trying to form a family band, and awkwardly attempting to be politically correct-- are winners.

It's hard to describe what this show is, so many levels of comedy and drama, but it works. Maria Bamford suffers from bipolar disorder, and this show is a semi-coherent fictionalized depiction of her life, how her career operates, her family, and the various people she interacts with in the entertainment industry. Flitting back and forth in time, each episode covers a specific narrative, should she date this guy, is she going to get the big movie role, is she objectively funny, etc., but each is framed in the roller coaster of emotions that make up her mental state. When she's manic, it's a little off putting, and when she's depressed, it's sad, but her support system of friends, parents, agents and various helpers sort of keep her on track, sort of. For those unfamiliar with Maria, dial up one of her standup shows so you get some feel of who she is before you dig in to this show. She is about as "alt" as "alt comedy" can be, but she has crafted a stage show and a persona that are truly endearing and entertaining. Unlike other entertainers who suffer from mental illness and hide it, Maria embraces it, and this show to some degree gives us the world seen through her eyes.