Hot dang, Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp is genre perfection. In the realm of absurdity, and improvised sketch comedy, this show is a perfect companion to the original feature film, released 14 years ago in 2001. The beauty in WHAS: FDOC: they didn’t try to do too much. The first episode was a little cause for concern, but five minutes into the second, the oddball comedy was back in full stride. Here are 15 perfect things about the series designed to bring us to the film. ***A Few Small Spoilers Ahead***
15. The Writing
The writing in Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp is skeletal, yet it completely honors the tonality of the original script, some 14 years later. That may sound relatively easy, but it’s anything but. There are aspects of story that will need well-devised backstory whenever a prequel is written, and that’s precisely what happens on the “first day of camp.” David Wain and Michael Showalter are geniuses when it comes to foresight, and keeping a few aces up their sleeves. When they come to a story question of why, they respond with “why not?” Regardless of the fact that the dialog used in the finished product is most likely improvisation and ad-lib, construction of the story stays true to standard, and the standard is a stellar outline. Hopefully that outline is a few seasons long.
Saeed Adyani / © Netflix / Courtesy: Everett Collection