From the Rocky Mountain News:
Those Geico “cavemen” may get their own television series. ABC said Friday it has ordered a pilot for a comedy, tentatively titled “Cavemen,” that features the characters used in a series of ads by the insurance company. In the potential series, the cavemen “struggle with prejudice on a daily basis as they strive to live the lives of normal thirtysomethings in 2007 Atlanta.” The advertising copywriter who helped create the cavemen ads is writing the pilot, the studio said.
Episode one: the cavemen evolve into full-blown metrosexuals, move to New York, and change the title of their show to “Friends.”
Episode two: who really cares?
Let not your heart be troubled….Gone after 3 or 4 episodes.
I think the ads are kinda funny. I can’t imagine being exposed to more than a minute of that at a time, though.
This sucker won’t even make it past the pilot. Many pilots get made, few are chosen to go into production as a series. Considering the quality of what makes it to air, one wonders about the quality of the stuff that failed.
Are they gay cavemen?
What do you bet that there are scriptwriters even now watching Caveman starring Ringo Starr, looking for all the funny bits, like the routine where Ringo goes around cracking everyone’s back, so they will walk upright, like proper Cro-Magnons?
I like the commercials. I’d hate to see them turned into a series, particularly one where prejudices are explored.
I mean, I’m just now getting over “Third Rock from the Sun.”
If we’re lucky, the show will be put to an end with an episode where they encounter their Cro-Magnon neighbors and are slaughtered.
Lewis Black’s definition of a pilot:
“A pilot is when you make one episode of a TV show. You then take that episode and show it to a room full of monkeys. If the monkeys don’t shit themselves, you’ve got a hit.”
Looks like someone got up on the wrong side of the rock this morning.
Actually, this could be a pretty funny and effective way to explore both sides of stereotypes and prejudice, without pissing anyone off right out of the gate, if they do it right.
For such an evil company, Geico does have some pretty good ads. But a series? No thanks. Not even the gecko deserves a series. Alf was plenty.
I’m just dreading the Very Special Episode where caveman 1 loses his…is diagnosed with…tries something…never mind.
“normal thirtysomethings” and set it Atlanta. You could call it “Gone with the Whine.”
What’s with the negative waves?
I’m with aplomb. Picture this: The cavemen move into an apartment building. The old fart on the ground floor is bigoted, and raises a ruckus. The young hipsters on the upper floor are totally jazzed to have new pet minorities to patronize, and the fact that it will piss off the old fart is just gravy.
Episode Two: The cavemen want to go to cafes and sip lattes and listen to jazz, and their progressive friends are all hung up on “authenticity”. They think the cavemen should be chasing mammoths—or at least squirrels—through Central Park. They’re all eager to demonstrate their progressive bona fides by countenancing anything up to and including human sacrifice. (This could be a very dark episode. Muahahaha.)
Episode Three: A family of australopithecines turns up. What fun! A way for the cavemen to show their subhuman solidarity! But they’re having none of it. They hate australopithecines.
Episode Four: One of the cavemen has a hot date. He spends a lot of money and effort on something really classy. Turns out she wanted…a caveman! Hilarity ensues.
Hey, you never know.
Still, those commercials—and the damned gecko—have never made me want to buy insurance.
Cavemen haven’t been funny since Phil Hartman passed away. This doesn’t go past the pilot.
The more commercial course of action is to have these two break out of the Government Center where they’ve been kept since being thawed out and reanimated.
The balance of the episodes could be a mix of ‘Prison Break’ , Two and a Half Men, and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
Toss in a hot chick (Elisha Cuthbert) to help these two Neandrethals learn the ways of modern society, and you’ve got yourself a hit.
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I see this as Beverly Hillbillies reruns, but with hairy faces.
I dunno, I’m to the point where my favorite TV shows are the commercials. In fact, I think the GEICO spot where the caveman’s on the people mover at the airport is pretty sharp. It’s a neatly turned little bit of acting, and the use of a wooden tennis racket as a prop is wittily droll.
Of course, it would be a great scene where they catch and roast the Aflac duck.
I can see it now! Burt Reynolds bow hunting them through Ansley Park, when all they want to do is get along. And maybe insure their cars. And go to tea dances at The Heretic. And occasionally eat huge slabs of meat at Daddy D’z.
Because of TEH PREJUDICE!
One of my coworkers believes, truly, actually, really, that the Geico cavemen really are like that. I mean, real actual cavemen who are not just people wearing makeup. She’s absolutely adamant that Geico went out and found these actual cavemen, and she’s so excited about the sitcom series that I’m kinda worried about her.
And you wonder why the world is the way it is.
I’ll bet Mr. Whipple is kicking himself in the ass right about now.
Never got a close look at Granny, did you?
The caveman commercials are great. Why hate?
“Hey guys, Tina’s here and we’re getting back together!”
My take on this was:
1) It has the potential to be a devastating satire on the identity culture, since these are basically modern
faggotsmetrosexuals distinguished only by bad skin, bad hair, and an excruciating awareness of being cavemen.2) There’s no real chance of it possibly living up to its potential.
”…with hairy faces”????
Whew. For a second I thought Ernie said “… with hairy feces”
In defense of this pilot, “It’s About Time” wasn’t that bad…
J
When I read the entry I thought of that series as well. How many “fish out of water” series can one stand?
However, I do not watch sit-coms all that much anyway. I thought “Frasier” was funny, but otherwise, most of them are just not worth the time.
Maybe they can hire Gary Larson as a consultant.
If they hire Gary Larson, they’ll have to add cows to the cast.
Great idea for commercials, but come on, a TV series? That is all we need, gay caveman sex. Because you know thats where it will head as the cavemen explore their own sexuality in 2007. Hollywood will have it’s way…..
That’s it. I’m switching to State Farm. There’s not enough sitcoms about good neighbors, only wacky ones. Sitcoms are so prejudiced against neighbors.
Clara Peller call your office
I love the commercial where the two cavemen are out to dinner with the company exec, who is trying to apologize to them. The acting is brilliant, and the concept is funny.
My concern is that stretching it out will ruin it. Whereas I look forward to the new commercials.
Have you heard about the new TV series with Yogi Berra and the AFLAC duck, with Don Knotts as the barber?
I didn’t think so.
This is going to be a cult hit; as the commericials are already a commercial success, so will be the series a series of successfull success’s.
Two best lines so far:
1)
On the couch the cavemen indignantly says it: So easy a <i>caveman<b> can do it?
He just can’t believe people would think that it is an accurate or logical advertisement, much less an acceptable level of discourse for an ad campaign.
2)
Standing outside a party, one caveman feeling pretty alienated from the goings on, listens as his friend explains the situation to him point blank:
Whaddya expect? You went with Geico.com? Just, a little loyalty….
The acting is good, writing good for a commericial, and South Park got started on less than this.
EasyLiving
I’m picturing “Encino Man” meets “Greg the Bunny”…
I saw the caveman asking his friend for loyalty and thought….holy shit a show like this is going to really really suck.
Now if the one caveman says “YUOU WENT WITH GEICO, YOU FAGGOT” well then I think they have a show.
BTW as one who speaks culture memology, the metrosexual cavemen are the conservative analog, kind of like Archie Bunker.
I left the part out about the mango salsa.
Television executives.
Somewhere in between lemurs and record promotion skuzzes on the evolutionary tree.
Company exec: “Honestly….We had no idea you guys were still around…”
Caveman Chuck: “I see… maybe next time youould do a little research….”
Waiter: “what would you gentleman like?”
Caveman Carl: “I’ll take the roast AFLAC duck, with the mango salsa….”
Caveman Chuck: “I’m not really hungry thank you…” (Stares disgustedly at the executive, who shows a contrite nervous grin)…
Caveman Chuck: (talking to cavenam Carl, but holding a steady gaze on the executive) “You know…I’m wondering what the people over at Progessive might have to offer….I’m almost certain they’d be interested in us…..Maybe after lunch we’ll give our agent a call….whadayah think?” (grinning broadly at the excutive)
I think a Hollywood studio exec can improve this series concept.
Example: the cavemen could have just moved to the big city and can’t afford an apartment at market rates. So they dress up like women in order to get cheap apartment in an all-women building. They have to dress as women to enter and leave their own home! Its hilarious and we can do both jokes about cavemen and ambiguous gender roles.
RR, you’re a genius! I’ve never even heard of an idea this good.
You have to get this show made. It’ll make millions.
We’ll call it “Bosom Muddies”!
Just for the recrod, Robin–I bet Peter Scolari would be interested in your idea.
Or any midnight shift cashiering positions that might be open out there.
“It’s About Timeâ€Â
I hate being this old.
Hmmm.
Well as long as they live in NYC and get to boff the Sex and the City girls, I’ve got no complaints.
…
And neither would they at that.
They can’t do that. The AFLAC duck is in TV commercials in Japan. He’s a star. That would just confirm that we’re a bunch of barbarians.