Synopsis Edit

The program follows Brule as he examines (or "checks out") different facets of living. His severe naïveté and social awkwardness generally land him in embarrassing situations, though he personally seems impervious to embarrassment. Each episode begins with a poem or lyric pertaining to the subject of the show. Dr. Steve Brule credits the work, usually mispronouncing the author's name; his mispronunciations are a staple of the show—in the first episode, he mispronounced the name of nutritionist Dr. Johnny Boden (actually Dr. Jonny Bowden[1]) both as "Dr. Jimmy Brungus" and "Dr. Jungy Brogan". As the series progresses, he reveals shocking, and sometimes horrifying details about his past and personal life, such as his mother revealing that she would poison his food when he was a child to "slow him down." The series also has recurring characters names of Terry Bruge-Hiplo played by Robert Axelrod, as well as Doug Prishpreed, Carol Krabit and Scott Clam, played by actors Doug Foster, Carol Kraft, and Scott Stewart[2] respectively. All four have interlude spots on the show announcing movie reviews, news updates, or fortunes, all in the same style of low-budget cable access segments. To simulate the poor quality of the video, the editors pipe their footage through a videocassette recorder (pictured) and hit the machine to simulate a jump in the vertical synchronization

Production Edit

According to executive producer Tim Heidecker, Reilly interviews real people, with their reactions in the series being genuine.[3] He stated that the humor revolves around "not necessarily fooling these people. It's more the character of Steve Brule being completely clueless and a really strange guy."[3] Heidecker also stated that Brule's dialog for the series is mostly improvised.[3] During an interview for Esquire, Reilly was asked about his experiences on the show.[4] Although Reilly did not mind answering the question, he preferred not to elaborate on his character Steve Brule.[4] He stated, "his persona would be more interesting if left a mystery", and felt the more he would elaborate on Brule's character the less interesting it would become to him.[4] To achieve the artifact-ridden quality of the video, the editors pipe their footage through a videocassette recorder; the post-production crew literally hit the recorder in order to simulate a jump in the vertical synchronization.[5] In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Heidecker elaborated on the aesthetic quality of the series: "It's a show that genuinely feels like this guy made it himself. It’s as if it's 4:30 in the morning he had snuck into the studio to make this show without getting permission. It's bare bones. Lots of technical problems. Just a mess. The whole thing is a big mess. A big beautiful mess."[3]

Episodes Edit

Main article: List of Check It Out! with Dr. Steve Brule episodes The series has completed four seasons with six episodes each.[6] The first season premiered on May 16, 2010 in the United States; it concluded on June 20, 2010.[7] The second season premiered on March 18, 2012 in the United States; its season finale aired on April 22, 2012.[8] The third season premiered on February 27, 2014 and concluded on April 4, 2014.[9] Adult Swim, in an announcement made before its upfront presentation, revealed Check It Out! to be a returning show for its 2015-16 schedule in May 2016. The fourth season premiered June 18, 2016.[10] and concluded on July 29, 2016. A 30-minute special entitled Bagboy aired on February 20, 2015.[11] A special episode depicting recurring character Scott Clam hosting in place of Brule (as a result of the events of the season 4 finale), aired on October 23, 2017.

Critical reception Edit

Home release Edit

The combined first two seasons were released on DVD on October 16, 2012 in Region 1.[21] Entitled Check It Out! with Dr. Steve Brule: Season 1 & 2,[22] the DVD features episodes in production order.[20]