My Take On….BASKETS Season 3 on FX
Chip, Dale, and Christine are back and as funny as they’ve ever been when BASKETS returns to FX at 10/9c.
BASKETS — “Wild Horses” –Season 3, Episode 1 (Airs Tuesday, January 23, 10:00 pm/ep) — Pictured: Louie Anderson as Christine Baskets. CR: Colleen Hayes/FX
After a brilliant second season that explored the evolution of Christine (Emmy winner Louie Anderson), BASKETS returns tonight with a third season premiere that continues telling the story of the Baskets Family Rodeo. The impulse purchase is really coming along, as Chip, Dale, and Christine work together (not well, let’s be real; Chip and Dale are a mess) to get it ready for public consumption.
Chip is, rightly, apprehensive about the rodeo – it’s his first full time job since Arby’s and he’s not exactly well equipped or trained for office life. The idea of hiring other clowns has him frozen with indecision. Dale, of course, goes full steam ahead, and starts a war with the horse trainers as only he could, which leads to a sight gag at the end of the episode that I rewatched 3 times. Zach Galifianakis continues to do over the top, yet nuanced, work as the two sides of this insane coin and is never better than when given the chance to interact (or get physically abusive) with himself.
Martha Kelly’s Martha has come a long way from Season 1, when she was positioned as the brunt of most of Chip’s verbal abuse. She’s stuck around long enough and is a welcome extension of the Baskets family. Her growing relationship with Christine is a highlight; Kelly and Anderson together are a dream.
Louie Anderson is top notch as he continues to do incredible work as Christine – as a mother to these two idiots, a friend to Martha (whether either of them wants to admit it), and a new CEO, the depth of emotion he brings to every scene is really lovely to watch unfold, never more so than when Christine and Ted get a chance to interact. Their sweet romance is something I never want to end.
If you haven’t had a chance to catch BASKETS yet, the Season 3 premiere does a good job of resetting the show (in the new Baskets Family Rodeo world) without undoing the growth we’ve seen in these characters over the course of a couple seasons. If you, like me, haven’t missed an episode, you’ll love the premiere.