The State team is comprised of 11 members: Kevin Allison, Michael Ian Black, Robert Ben Grant, Todd Holoubek, Michael Patrick Jann, Kerri Kenney, Thomas Lennon, Joe Lo Truglio, Ken Marino, Michael Showalter, and David Wain. I listed them all simply because I'm sure you've heard of these guys (and gal) in quite a few recent shows including Reno 911!, Reaper, and many more. So before all the new stuff, they created the very twisted and hilarious show, The State.
It's very hard to describe the humor in The State. These guys will make fun of anyone and anything they can think of, including themselves. Most of the time, it's very odd humor as well. They think of things that most normal people would never come up with, like cooking muppets. Some of their jokes are really quite wrong on so many levels, but you laugh your ass off anyway! Things like piggy shoes that squeal when you walk, giant, human-sized sea monkeys that can talk, and the many uses of slinkies are just plain weird but quite funny! Then there are the things like the USMBTRT (U.S. Men's Bikini Thong Roller-Blading Team) that are just so very disturbing. They also make fun of old MTV shows that I had completely forgotten about like MTV Sports. Since this was an MTV show, you will hear it mentioned.
While each episode is made up of several skits, they do a wonderful job of fitting them all together. Especially in the first couple of seasons, there is something from each skit that transitions into the next one, making it all very cohesive. There are also quite a few recurring jokes, like Barry and Levon, Doug, and the "I wanna dip my balls in it" guy. You'll see these and more quite a few times. They even do a kabuki theater with all of your favorite recurring cast members.
Even though The State began over 15 years ago, the jokes are still hilarious. They're not dated and avoided making fun of current trends of the time. The only thing that shows the age of the show is the old school cell phones, but you don't see those often at all. Not only do you get all the original episodes, but there is also a full disc (146 minutes) of bonus material including unaired sketches, the pilot, outtakes, and quite a bit more. If you're a fan of The State, you really want to see all these extras!
Even if you've never heard of it, if you're a fan of sketch comedy, I highly recommend you go buy The State: The Complete Series on DVD today. It's one of the best shows that you've probably never seen!
