IFC is a low rated cable channel that airs a scant few hours of "original" programming every year that's none too original, mostly because their shows are based on preexisting pod-casts and SNL skits. Actor David Krumholtz, under heavy prosthetic makeup, had been dressing in drag on the web for some time, portraying a Laine Kazan style yenta that also scrounges a fair share of Linda Richman from "Coffee Talk." While this character has been described as the proverbial "Bubbe," the shtick seems reminiscent of Martin Short's Jiminy Glick, namely the thick makeup striving to mask a grating, one note character.
For inexplicable reasons Krumholtz was given a weekly half hour series revolving around this impersonation's exploits as "she" utilizes a heretofore undiscovered fortune to indulge in a bucket list.
Indulgence is a key word for this series that literally has no reason to exist. The novelty of Krumholtz in drag wears out fast and the sole trait designated for his character is to say bawdy things, essentially the ribald old lady routine that's the province of Betty White.
Debuting to scathing reviews and pathetically paltry ratings, "Gigi Does It" is one of the most bewilderingly bad TV shows of all time. Unfortunately, it's not "so bad it's good" and is just an embarrassment. It's perplexing to think how IFC executives felt there was ever an audience for this fiasco, even more mystifying is the fact that the lead-in is a sports comedy, a typically hackneyed affair from Denis Leary revolving around amateur hockey players.
With all the fresh talent waiting to be discovered, as well as veteran voices deserving of a comeback, IFC has committed to many weeks of this horrendous show revolving around a man in drag saying crass things. Krumholtz isn't really to blame, he's gifted and could pull off a "Tootsie" style premise ala the way "Bosom Buddies" mimicked "Some Like It Hot," but this is more about the judgment of whoever's running IFC that this conceit was somehow deemed worthy of a weekly vehicle.
Even the worst shows often get cult followings, but that won't be the case for "Gigi Does It" since "Sophie's Choice" is funnier. That this travesty could attract Lesley Ann Warren as a guest star, playing second banana to this third rate kosher Madea, is additionally depressing.
Go to your neighborhood 7-Eleven and watch the monitors that show advertisements for coffee, Slurpees and beef jerky because that's more entertaining than this garbage.
