Despite bizarre shooting limitations, the sitcom “Mythic Quest” had one of its best episodes released during lockdown. “Mythic Quest” is a workplace comedy about video game designers and was created by Charlie Day, Megan Gan, and Rob McElhenney. Day and McElhenney are known for their roles as Charlie and Mac on “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” while Ganz is known for her writing on the show, along with the sitcoms “Community” and “Modern Family.” The show mainly tackles workplace conflicts and is primarily lighthearted with a few dramatic moments throughout the seasons. The season one episode, “Quarantine” manages to maintain this tone even with drastic changes in the format, with the episode exceeding in quality even when compared to former episodes.
During the start of COVID, the majority of film and TV productions were forced to stop shooting due to Quarantine restrictions. Both filming and airing schedules were dramatically altered, forcing many networks to primarily air older films or reruns. Writers had different approaches to addressing the pandemic both within the universe of the shows and with filming strategies. Some had characters briefly mention the pandemic, while some avoided it, and some, like “Mythic Quest,” released pandemic special episodes.
“Quarantine” takes place entirely on a video chat feed, which looks similar to Zoom. There are smaller calls and breakout groups which provide various plots throughout the episode and highlight new dynamics between the characters. The episode explores themes of loneliness during the pandemic, work stress and finding community while in isolation. “Quarantine” ends with the full ensemble of characters creating a Rube-Goldberg-esc. chain of reactions on a group call. Rube Goldberg is known for the creation of “Rube Goldberg Machines,” which are contraptions that use complex chain reactions to complete simple tasks. Show creator Rob McElhenney likened this to the process of filming the episode: “We loved exploring thematically this idea that we’re collectively working on a project that if one person failed then the entire thing would fail.” The process of filming was complex enough to avoid doing it altogether, a testament to the perseverance of the writers and cast.
There was a tremendous amount of effort that was put into shooting the episode, which started with getting the episode approved by Apple TV, the show’s network. The entire episode was shot on iPhones, so phones had to be distributed allowing each of the actors to safely film from home. Each phone had to be set to the correct resolution and set up on a tripod, which actors had to do on their own. Each piece of the Rube Goldberg contraption also had to be sanitized, delivered, and set up by the actors. The new shooting format had its complications, but the fragility of the process ultimately paid off in the creativity of the result.
It’s easy to stop creating media when met with obstacles, but the problems encountered by writers during lockdown were the same issues we all were dealing with, which is why it’s essential that shows like “Mythic Quest” continued to produce episodes. This episode explored an incredibly unique challenge that we all had to encounter and reflected the realities of most viewers. Many of us found ourselves in some form of social isolation, working or attending classes virtually, and unsure of the future. “Quarantine” provided viewers with an uplifting and nuanced story during a difficult time, and I hope that the episode will receive the appreciation it deserves.
Maggie Belanger can be reached at [email protected]
