Emmy Episodes: Inside Amy Schumer

It’s always my policy to watch every Emmy-nominated episode each year, which leads me to sample a handful of shows that I don’t tune in to on a regular basis. This year, I’m making a special effort to spotlight each of those installments to offer my perspective on shows that I don’t review each week.

Inside Amy Schumer: Season 4, Episode 2 “Welcome to the Gun Show” (C+)
Nominated for Best Actress in a Comedy Series (Amy Schumer)

It’s strange that there’s an actress nominated for an Emmy as a series regular on a variety sketch show who is also nominated for hosting another variety series. That’s the main context in which I know Amy Schumer, who also earned a Golden Globe nomination for the film “Trainwreck” last year. I like Amy and I think that she can be funny, but I’ve never been too fond of her show. Episodes like “12 Angry Men Inside Amy Schumer,” which was the standout installment last year, are clever to a degree, but I find the nature of the humor to be a bit blunt and less subtle than I like. Additionally, there’s not nearly as much sophistication as you’d hope for from an intelligent stand-up comic like Schumer. This episode was very gun-focused, beginning with a parody infomercial in which anyone can by guns. Schumer then address the shooting that happened during a showing of her movie and how she got involved. Later, she interviews a woman who actually works to prevent gun violence. That serious focus is thought-provoking, sure, but doesn’t come off as the best demonstration of her comedy work. The “I Want to Rape and Kill You Button” segment didn’t do anything for me, and that and the gun focus contrasted sharply with the main comic sketch of the installment, which found Schumer cast in a role on “Game of Thrones” and ready to botch it because she doesn’t want to ride a horse. I thought Schumer was great doing stand-up on SNL and did a good job with her sketches there, and this really doesn’t compare. Schumer is popular right now and her show is nominated in a number of other categories, so she could win, but I don’t think this episode will propel her in that direction.