The green-loving, vegan-friendly, perpetually cloudy city of Portland, Ore. is the butt of the joke in IFC’s new comedy series “Portlandia.” The first episode, which premiered last Friday, takes a jab at some of the quirks and character that make Portland the unique city it is.
But the show isn’t really, well, a show. The first episode is just a series of skits, spoofing how serious and idealistic Portland can be. But the joke gets old after awhile, much like watching Saturday Night Live episodes.
Ironically, one of the main characters of the show is Fred Armisen of SNL, and the other is Carrie Brownstein formerly of the Portland-based band Sleater-Kinney. The two actors are fairly funny, but their self-written script, while delightfully deadpan, is redundant. 
The show starts out in L.A. where Jason (Armisen) is telling his friend Melanie (Brownstein) about his trip to Portland, Ore. 
“Remember when people were content to sleep till 11, and had no ambition?” Jason asks Melanie. “Maybe they worked a couple days a week in a coffee shop?” 
 
“Yeah,” she replies. “But I thought that died out a long time ago.”
 
“Not in Portland,” Jason exclaims.
 
Cue the ’90s techno beats, and enter the clowns, hipsters and the Kurt Cobain wannabes dancing to the episode’s opening (and only) musical number “Dream of the ’90s.”
 
The show switches to a new skit. This is probably one of the funnier skits (for the first half anyway) because it spoofs Oregon’s obsession with an environmentally friendly lifestyle. The couple is ordering chicken at a restaurant (why aren’t they just vegan?) and insist on knowing the chicken’s life story, his name, how much room he had to roam, etc. Eventually the couple leaves the restaurant to check out the farm where the chicken grew up — oh, but please hold the table while they’re gone.
Later, the skit just gets weird, as Armisen and Brownstein’s characters come to the farm and find the farm is actually run by a polygamist family. What does this have to say about Portland? That farms are run by free-loving, creepy cults? Let’s hope not.
There are a few guest appearances, like Steve Buscemi, that add grounding and humor to the skits. And there are a few clever, snarky remarks that elicited a laugh or two.
Otherwise, I just don’t get the joke. Maybe it’s because I’m not from Portland, or maybe it’s because Portland is only really good for one or two spoof skits, not an entire show. Maybe a few years ago, when the scene kids and the green movement took flight, the show would’ve been funnier. But for now, watching “Portlandia” is like watching a stand-up comedy gone awkward, creepy, then just plain bad. 

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