“Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp” had fans of the films and those new to the franchise laughing from minute one. If you have not seen the film “Wet Hot American Summer,” check it out before the show, because it makes the jokes in the show all the more powerful.

The show is about a group of camp counselors during their first day of work in the summer. It is a series of their individual, incredibly insane adventures that lead up to everything that was seen in the original film.

One great thing about the show is the incredible cast they brought back. Everyone from the film returns to their roles. Some of the more notable cast members are Bradley Cooper (“American Sniper”), Elizabeth Banks (“The Hunger Games”), Amy Poehler (“Parks and Recreation”) and Paul Rudd (“Ant-Man”), just to name a few.

On top of that, you see a star studded cast of new characters with Chris Pine (“Star Trek”) as Eric the reclusive musician, Jon Hamm (“Mad Men”) as a hired gun known as the Falcon and Kristen Wiig (“Bridesmaids”) as Courtney, a camp counselor from the camp across the lake.

One area in which the show falters is in its emphasis and overuse of Michael Showalte (“Michael and Michael Have Issues”) as Coop, one of the many counselors at the camp who is on a mission to spend time with his girlfriend while at the same time trying to help a struggling camper find his place. Granted, he is the show’s co-creator and the main writer, but when you have a cast of brilliant comedic actors at your disposal, you should try to use them as much as you can. Coop’s scenes were good, but they were not as great as many of the other scenes.

An incredible part of the show was the actors that were able to play off of each other, like the scenes with Paul Rudd and Marguerite Moreau (“The Mighty Ducks”), Amy Poehler and John Slattery (“Mad Men”) and more than anyone else, Michael Ian Black (“Michael and Michael Have Issues”) and Bradley Cooper. These pairs of actors not only bring viewers amazing and easily quotable lines, but brilliant chemistry. They work well with each other, which pushes the whole show forward.

If you have seen the film, watch the show. If you have not watched it, be ready. The show provides a form of humor that is essentially centered around insanity. If you take the show too seriously, you will miss out on how brilliantly horrible it can be. Watch with an open mind and you won’t be disappointed.
Rating: 4 out of 5