| Astronomy Club: The Sketch Show | |
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| Genre | Sketch comedy |
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| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 6 |
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| Network | Netflix |
| Release | December 6, 2019 (2019-12-06) |
Astronomy Club: The Sketch Show is an Americansketch comedy television series created by the comedy troupe Astronomy Club, theUpright Citizens Brigade's first all black team. The show stars the team's eight members: Shawtane Bowen, Jonathan Braylock, Ray Cordova, James III, Caroline Martin, Jerah Milligan, Monique Moses andKeisha Zollar. The show features comedy sketches, intermixed with clips from a reality television show where the members live together in a house. The series premiered on December 6, 2019 onNetflix.[1][2] In June 2020, the series was canceled after one season.[3]
Sketches in the show deal with a range of issues, with a focus on the black experience, race relations, and attitudes towards African-Americans in the media, and cinema in particular.
Each episode starts with a cold-open, a sketch before the opening credits. Segments between the sketches depict a fake reality show wherein the Astronomy Club members live together in the Astronomy Clubhouse, playing heightened versions of themselves. The show includesBig Brother-style confessionals, where cast members talk to the camera.
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Lamp Room" | Unknown | Unknown | December 6, 2019 (2019-12-06) | |
| 2 | "Ice Cube Day" | Unknown | Unknown | December 6, 2019 (2019-12-06) | |
Guest starring: Drew Tarver, Aisha Alfa, Mike O'Gorman. | |||||
| 3 | "For the Culture" | Unknown | Unknown | December 6, 2019 (2019-12-06) | |
Special guest star: Ice Cube. Guest starring: Jon Gabrus. | |||||
| 4 | "Murder Mystery" | Unknown | Unknown | December 6, 2019 (2019-12-06) | |
| 5 | "Birthday Party" | Unknown | Unknown | December 6, 2019 (2019-12-06) | |
| 6 | "Full House But Black" | Unknown | Unknown | December 6, 2019 (2019-12-06) | |
Special guest stars: Busy Philipps, Gillian Jacobs. | |||||
The show is produced under the banner of Khalabo Ink Society by producerKenya Barris,[4] creator ofBlack-ish. Barris developedAstronomy Club as a part of a $100 million development deal withNetflix.[5]
According to an interview, the comedy troupe wanted the sketches to have a message, and "anytime one of [their] sketches tackles race, [they] have to make sure it says something."[6]
On June 3, 2020, Netflix canceled the series after one season.[3]
The show received positive critical reception and is rated 100% onRotten Tomatoes.[7] Caroline Framke writing forVariety stated "This first episode sets the standard for “Astronomy Club” as clever, ambitious, and perhaps most importantly for a sketch show, both self-aware and completely ridiculous."[2]
