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Netflix has a new comedy out, called The Lovebirds, directed by Michael Showalter, which is like a lot of recent-ish movies. Kumail Nanjiani and Issa Rae play a bickering couple on their way to a party, who, just as they’re breaking up, hit a guy on a bicycle with their car. Suddenly they’re thrust into a kooky blackmail conspiracy.

It’s one of those movies where it’s sort of an action movie, because it has the skeletal plot of a thriller, but it’s sort of a comedy because the actors act “funny” and kind of half-ass their way through the thriller parts. It’s sort of like the Kardashian show, where the plots are like discarded sitcom B-story but the draw is people with “compelling” real-life personas bumbling their way through them.

The Lovebirds leverages the audience’s love for Kumail and Issa Rae (both of whom I too enjoy on their respective shows, Insecure and Silicon Valley) in the same way. For some, simply seeing these two interact is enough to carry a movie. To me, these kinds of double-half-assed hybrids, where unfinished action meets character arc-free comedy movie, are a waste of talent and energy. Laziness can work in comedy, but these kinds of movies — Knight and Day and Snatched and The Tourist et al among them — seem to expend their energy in all the wrong ways.

The jokes sound like improv jokes, extemporaneous and semi-topical and built upon puns or fourth-wall breaking, but clearly they aren’t improvised because this is a big, high-concept plot with car chases and people getting killed and constant life-or-death situations. You probably recognize the joke cadence, mimicking a sitcom, with lots of arch, faux-contentious back-and-forths, where every micro action is stretched and dissected and analyzed and commented upon, and then dredged up again five minutes later for a callback. Again, it feels like improv, and they’re the kind of jokes that work well in semi-improvisational shows, like Curb Your Enthusiasm or The Trip series.

But the stakes in Curb or The Trip are kept intentionally low. It’s easier to enjoy jokey conversation when the characters are just sort of lazing around, situations where you might expect people to joke. Low stakes allow us to appreciate Seinfeldian riffs about how people like to say “salsa” or why cars still have cigarette lighters in them. The latter is one of Nanjiani’s character’s riffs in The Lovebirds, which he delivers while he and Ray’s character are supposedly on the run from police after they’ve just witnessed a murder. Is that meant to be his character trait, guy-who-can’t-stop-doing bits even when he’s running from the police?

Comedy lives on a different plane of reality than thriller. When a stand-up comic does a bit about his mother-in-law or airline food, we don’t need to believe in the literal reality of him having bad in-laws or having experienced bad airline food to enjoy it. It invokes a kind of shared reality. Whereas if someone at a party told you a story about getting framed for murder and then you later found out he was lying, you’d be disappointed and upset. The latter is a specific reality. Movies like these attempt to live in both realities at once.

It’s not that an action movie or a movie with car chases and murders can never be funny, plenty are — Burn After Reading or Lethal Weapon 2, for instance. But generally those aren’t funny because they cast a comedian in one of the roles and had him do a hot five on dating apps in the middle. They live in their specific realities. They don’t keep invoking the shared, relatable reality every time they want to make a joke.

Plenty of people want to see more Kumail and Issa so badly that they don’t mind. I suspect these movies exist largely for the pitch. They exist because the people holding the purse strings feel more comfortable shelling out for some high concept like “they’re about to break up and then they witness a murder!” than for “it’s kind of a show about nothing, but trust me it’ll be funny!”

But please, studio execs, I beg of you: can we let some of the shows and movies be about nothing again? Or at least be about… less? These are not great displays of American comedy. There are four Trip movies. I’m willing to bet that there won’t be more Lovebirdses.

‘The Lovebirds’ is available now on Netflix. Vince Mancini is on Twitter. You can access his archive of reviews here.

As February came to a close, a new internet sensation broke out in the form of an entertaining music video that would be heralded as the second coming of “Old Town Road.” It soon was discovered that the man responsible for the song in the video, “Rascal,” was West Coast singer RMR. The juxtaposition posed between the ski-masked squad and the Rasal Flatts-sampling track quickly grabbed the attention of fans and from there a new band of supporters was formed. RMR would return a little over a month later with “Dealer.” The song would later be remixed by Lil Baby and Future and receive a visual treatment with the three artists as well.

Putting the finishing touches on his upcoming EP, Drug Dealing Is A Lost Art, RMR returns with yet another new single, “I’m Not Over You.” Rather than the usual midnight release, RMR took to Desus & Mero‘s Showtime platform to debut the single. For the performance, RMR is seen frantically stumbling through a sharply-lit abandoned building while pouring his heart on the new song.

Press play on the video above to hear “I’m Not Over You” and stay tuned for Drug Dealing Is A Lost Art which arrives 6/5 via Warner Records.

RMR is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Fitting right into the recent uptick of female talent in the hip-hop world, Blimes and Gab had their viral moment in 2018 courtesy of “Come Correct.” The video and song arrived before the group teamed up as an official duo, but following the formation, Blimes and Gab returned with another single in “Feelin’ It.” The song debuted their “big auntie energy” while confirming their chemistry was here to stay. Along with its release, the duo announced that a new joint project was on the way and nearly a year later, we know now when it will arrive.

Proclaiming that their debut album Talk About It would arrive June 26, Blimes And Gab also shared a new single from the album with “Shelleys (It’s Cool).” The disco-leaning track finds the duo riding a groove quite pleasing to the ear. Speaking on the song in a press release, Blimes and Gab said, “It’s the secret ingredient in the Blimes and Gab sauce. You’re gonna want it on everything.”

With features from Method Man, Iamsu!, Bahamadia, and Jay Park set to appear on the album, the West Coast duo also revealed the cover art for Talk About It thanks to its preorder link. Rocking contrasting black and yellow colors, Blimes Brixton and Gifted Gab are split-screened with phones in hand, a visual that fits in perfectly with the album’s title.

Press play on the video above to hear “Shelleys (It’s Cool).”

Talk About It is out 06/26 via The Orchard. Pre-order it here.

Serving as another step upward for the Brooklyn rapper, Saint JHN had a strong 2019 thanks to his sophomore album, Ghetto Lenny’s Love Songs. The project saw him working alongside well-known acts like Meek Mill, Lil Baby, Lenny Kravitz, and A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie. However, as of late, Saint JHN’s popularity can be credited to his 2018 debut album, Collection One, as it is the home of slow-burning single, “Roses.” Given added life thanks to a remix by DJ Imanbek, the track has grown to be Saint JHN’s most successful. Celebrating that very success, Saint JHN comes through with a new remix of the track.

Sliding through with Future for the new remix, the two rappers bring new energy to the track as Future contributes ad libs to Saint JHN’s verses as well as the song’s hook before laying a verse of his own. On his verse Future sticks to his usual format, letting off raps about women and jewels. The remix comes after Saint JHN stepped into the top 20 of the Billboard singles chart with “Roses” as well as topping the charts in Australia, the Netherlands, Ireland, New Zealand, and the UK.

The remix also arrives after Saint JHN joined Marshmello and Southside for their “Been Thru This Before,” which arrived in early April.

To hear the remix of “Roses,” press play above.

It was just two months ago that Young Dolph announced that he would be retiring from music in a post to his Instagram story saying, “highly considering quitting music because I really wanna be with my kids 24/7.” Seemingly confirmed by Complex after reaching out to the Memphis rapper, Dolph had his eyes set on being a family man for the foreseeable future. However, two weeks later he made his return by teasing a new album was set to drop within hours. The album never arrived but fans were given a treat a month later with his “Sunshine” single.

Following the quarantine visual Dolph delivered for “Sunshine,” the Memphis native calls on Megan Thee Stallion as the two work some southern magic on their new single, “RNB.” Showing love to the money-packing guys and girls all around, Dolph and Megan deliver some crisp one-liners for their fans’ enjoyment. Dolph claims that he has “bad b*tches coming in by the twos like a Twix,” while Megan says, “this is not Sesame Street, I don’t kick it with no birds.”

The new single also arrives after Megan notched the first Billboard singles chart-topper of her career courtesy of her “Savage (Remix)” with Beyonce.

Listen to Dolph and Megan’s first collaboration in the video above.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

To close out 2018, 6lack established himself as one of R&B’s brightest thanks to his sophomore album, East Atlanta Love Letter. The 14-track project landed on a number of year-end lists and introduced the Atlanta-born singer to a plethora of new ears. In the year and change following, new releases by 6lack have come in the form of features, some of which include K Camp’s “Black Men Don’t Cheat,” “Yo Love” with Vince Staples and Mereba, and Tinashe’s “Touch & Go.” With his third album still in progress, 6lack slides through with a new freestyle.

Sharing his “ATL Freestyle” with fans, many of which have been near-impatient in their wait for new music, 6lack brings his mellow nonchalance to reflect on his past and present in his beloved hometown. From performances in Atlanta to his friends and his youth, 6lack paints a picture of both the beauty and the ugliness in the hip-hop epicenter.

Hours prior to releasing the song, 6lack posted a message to his social media pages commenting on the current state of being black in America. Beginning his message, he revealed he was not entirely comfortable releasing a song due to the amount of “pain & anger I feel in my heart.” Further down in the letter, he spoke to his reason behind the letter: “I’m writing this letter because my heart and my skin color won’t ever allow me to be in the public eye and not make it clear where I stand in times of injustice… it wouldn’t be right doing so [releasing “ATL Freestyle”] without using my platform to bring awareness to larger social topics at hand.”

Listen to “ATL Freestyle” in the video above.

Following his stellar debut album, Good For You, one that proved he was much more than a one-hit-wonder, and his sophomore project OnePointFive, Amine took a well-deserved year off in 2019, giving us just a few singles including last May’s “Places + Friends” as well as a few other untethered releases. Reemerging this year and declaring 2020 as his for the taking, the Portland rapper returned with “Shimmy” in late February. Falling back for a few months, Amine touches down once again with a new single.

Bringing a similar hard-hitting feeling to his latest, Amine returns with “Riri.” The track, named after Rihanna who just celebrated the 15 years in the music industry earlier this week, finds Amine speaking about a partner who compares herself to the famed pop-star but fails to reach that mark by a landslide. Entangled in an on-and-off relationship with the girl, Amine declares enough is enough as his partner has broken his heart not once, but three times. Detailing his distaste with the relationship, the song ends with a skit from actor Jak Knight, a writer on the popular ABC show, Black-ish. It remains to be seen whether Amine has a project ready to go in the near future.

Check out “Riri” above.

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Whenever I think of Linda Cardellini, I think of a quote from Community. To be fair, I am often thinking of Linda Cardellini and Community quotes, so it was inevitable that they would cross paths. Anyway, it’s from the season three episode “Regional Holiday Music” when Britta makes an unexpected appearance as the Mouse King (not a mute tree) in Greendale’s Christmas pageant. Upon seeing Britta, Dean Pelton looks down at his playbill, and with a disgusted tone in his voice, asks, “Oh, Britta’s in this?” That’s me with Linda Cardellini, except with a joyful, more thrilled spin. “Oh! Linda Cardellini’s in this!”

I am never not excited to see Cardellini in a television show or movie, and it’s often a surprise. The actress is not, to use a recent example, the reason I watched Capone (Tom Hardy was), but she’s the one who gives the most humane performance in the otherwise-mediocre film. Cardellini exists somewhere between an A-list lead and a steady character actor (she’s not Cate Blanchett, but she’s not Stephen Root, either), and she’s almost always the best thing in every project she’s in, for over 20 years. Let’s take a look at some of Linda Cardellini’s more notable roles, dating back to my favorite movie named after a fictional burger chain based on a Nickelodeon sketch series.

Good Burger

For years, I assumed Freaks and Geeks was the first thing I saw Linda Cardellini in. Nope! Before one of the greatest shows ever premiered, she appeared on 3rd Rock from the Sun, ABC’s Goosebumps-lite Bone Chillers, Boy Meets World (as a “mountain girl that has an interest in Cory” — girl, you could do better), and had small roles in Dead Man on Campus, the direct-to-video comedy The Prince and the Surfer (watching this ASAP), and my Cardellini introduction, the All That spin-off movie Good Burger. She plays a psychiatric center patient who develops a crush on Ed after telling him, “I’m a psychopath.” It’s, uh, not the most tasteful role (her character is described as an “insane girl” on Wikipedia), but to her credit, Cardellini goes all-in on playing Nickelodeon’s idea of “crazy.” If only she got to show off her dance moves like she would in another movie I’ll get to. She would later appear in an episode of Kenan & Kel as a different character, which mucks up the otherwise-narratively solid Kenan & Kel universe.

Freaks and Geeks

Freaks and Geeks might be, objectively speaking, the most perfect show ever? It’s funny, it’s sad, it’s painfully and wonderfully relatable, and because NBC canceled it after 12 episodes (with six more that eventually aired on Fox Family Channel), there’s no it-was-on-for-too-long dip in quality. Freaks and Geeks also launched the careers of many actors who are still working today, including Seth Rogen, James Franco, Jason Segel, Busy Philipps, Lizzy Caplan, John Frances Daley, Samm Levine, and Cardellini, who played Lindsay Weir, one of the more complicated teenage characters ever depicted on TV. She’s not a freak, but she’s not a geek, either. Maybe she’s a Deadhead? We’ll never know. Lindsay is searching for her identity, like every high school student ever.

Legally Blonde

Cardellini rarely plays villains — she’s too darn likable — but that makes her an excellent unassuming foil in Legally Blonde. And speaking of foil: think of all the tin foil that no-good murderer Chutney Windham required for her perm. Look, I’m not crazy enough to claim that Linda Cardellini gives the best performance in Legally Blonde (Reese Witherspoon does, obviously), but I will say that Chutney Windham is a much better name than Elle Woods. It’s easily the best character name in her filmography, with Wendy Corduroy from Gravity Falls in second place. Cordelia Starling is good, too.

Scooby-Doo and Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed

I was about 10 minutes into the direct-to-streaming Scoob! before I said to no one, “Man, at least the live-action movies had Linda Cardellini.” The She’s All That-ing of Velma in Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed isn’t great (who knew there was an attractive person beneath those hideous glasses!), but I stand by my assertion that Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby are the only essential members of Mystery, Inc. Shaggy and Scooby, because they’re always leaning on a bookcase that exposes the villain’s lair, or whatever; Velma, because she’s not blandly hunky dead-weight like Fred or a karate fanatic (???) like Daphne. No offense to Sarah Michelle Gellar, but seriously, what is Daphne’s defining characteristic? Velma is the effortlessly charming Smart One, and Cardellini is a natural at playing that character archetype.

ER

Samantha Taggart is one of the better post-original cast additions to ER, even if she occasionally felt like a lesser Abby Lockhart (I could also write 1,500 words on Maura Tierney, and might!). So, it’s a shame that she ended up with John Stamos’ Tony Gates, who the Atlantic accurately refers to as the “final, and weakest, attempt the show ever made to introduce a Really Handsome Dude.” That being said, watch ER. It’s good!

Brokeback Mountain

I’m not saying being in a poorly edited YouTube video of Brokeback Mountain scenes set to “Unusual You” by Britney Spears is Cardellini’s greatest career accomplishment, but it’s top five, right? The Brokeback cast was stacked. Outside of Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Michelle Williams, who were all nominated for Oscars, there’s also Cardellini, Anne Hathaway, Anna Faris, Kate Mara, David Harbour, and Randy Quaid.

Especially Randy Quaid.

Grandma’s Boy

For my recent Happy Madison ranking, I slotted Grandma’s Boy at #10, not because of the jokes that haven’t aged well, or Nick Swardson, or Oscar nominee Jonah Hill nuzzling between a stripper’s breasts, but for the scene where Linda Cardellini dances to “Push It” by Salt-N-Pepa at a party. It’s my favorite kind of performance: the one that’s too good for the terrible movie it’s in (it’s called pulling a Philip Seymour Hoffman).

Regular Show / Gravity Falls / Sanjay and Craig

Or, the reasons your kids know what Linda Cardellini sounds like.

Mad Men

You know who Linda Cardellini reminds me of sometimes? Alison Brie. They’re both equally adept at comedy and drama and in more of your favorite things than you realize, including Mad Men, where Brie plays Pete’s wife Trudy and Cardellini portrays Sylvia Rosen, the neighbor of one Don Draper… who she’s sleeping with, even though she’s married to Dr. Rosen. On one hand, I get it: he’s Jon Hamm, she’s Linda Cardellini — makes sense! On the other, they both know what they’re doing is wrong, and they get their comeuppance when Sally, that well-adjusted child, catches them in the act. Trudy would never (but re-make Thelma and Louise but with Alison Brie and Linda Cardellini).

New Girl

New Girl was about the wrong Day sister. I am 100 percent certain of this.

Green Book

One of my quarantine projects is watching every Best Picture winner, and I am dreading the day that I get to Green Book. So, instead of talking about one of the Academy’s more regrettable choices for the Oscars’ biggest prize, let’s remember that Linda Cardellini, who plays Tony Lip’s wife, was also in the music video for Outkast’s contribution to the Scooby Doo soundtrack, “Land of a Million Drums.” It’s archival footage, but still counts! Also, she won a gas fireplace on The Price Is Right. Outkast music video star and The Price Is Right contestant? An icon.

A Simple Favor

I agree.

The Curse of La Llorona

With the exception of The Nun, The Curse of La Llorona might be the most forgettable movie in The Conjuring Universe, but that’s not Cardellini’s fault. She has the thankless role of playing a mom who has to protect her kids from an evil spirit… you know how it works, you’ve seen a horror movie before. But Cardellini has solid chemistry with her child co-stars, no easy task, and it’s tempting to picture her in a horror movie that relies less on cheap jump scares and more on actual horror. All I’m saying is, The Babadook 2 starring Linda Cardellini. Make it happen.

Avengers: Age of Ultron / Avengers: Endgame

Get that Marvel money, Linda Cardellini. Get that Marvel money.

Bloodline / Dead to Me

If I was hunting for a “unified theory” of Netflix superstar Linda Cardellini, I’d say this: I recently watched It Happened One Night, and there’s a scene where a bus driver drives the bus off the road, causing a mother to faint and her young son to begin weeping. Clark Gable’s character Peter rushes into action, first checking on the passed-out woman, then the crying kid, then the bus driver to find out what happened. He’s in complete control of the situation. That’s how I feel watching Linda Cardellini. Even if the movie itself stinks, a metaphorical bus crash, you’ll still be able to walk out of the theater saying, “Well… at least Lindsay from Freaks and Geeks was really good in it.” And if she’s in something great, she’s probably one of the main reasons why it was great.

Trust is an important component in the relationship between actors and viewers: we trust Tom Cruise will save the day in Mission: Impossible, but would you feel the same way about Jeremy Renner as the new Ethan Hunt? I think I speak for everyone when I say: lol. I trust Linda Cardellini, because for over 20 years, she hasn’t let me down.