Television series

The Spoils of Babylon

Name: The Spoils of Babylon
Genre: Comedy
Released: 2014
Cast: Kristen Wiig, Tobey Maguire, Will Ferrell, Tim Robbins, Haley Joel Osment

Dark comedy
Strange

A six-part IFC dark comedy posing as a trashy adaptation of a fictional novel. It's deliberately overwrought melodrama—incest, oil money, betrayal—played completely straight by a brilliant cast. Absurdist, wickedly smart, and best watched knowing nothing except that it commits fully to its own ridiculousness. For people who love things that are funny precisely because they're unhinged.

TVMaze rating

3.8

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love a joke that plays its material completely straight, like a miniseries grandly convinced of its own importance, and you enjoy watching an overblown saga strain under its own ambition.

Skip it if you want sharp, fast jokes or a story that moves; the gag is a single idea stretched across every episode, and its pleasures are patient rather than immediate.

What it asks of you: Six half-hour episodes, so the commitment is light, but the deadpan rhythm rewards staying put; it rarely winks at you and expects you to sit inside its sincerity.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Arrested Development2003

Structural comedy genius with an ensemble cast executing layered jokes that reward close attention. Like Spoils, it's anarchic family dysfunction filtered through sharp writing and committed performances.

But The humor can feel smug and reference-heavy. If you need warmth or plot momentum, this will frustrate you.

30 Rock2006

Fast, absurdist comedy that prizes jokes-per-minute over narrative coherence. Alec Baldwin and Tina Fey in controlled chaos, similar energy to Wiig and Ferrell's commitment to weirdness.

But The pacing exhausts some viewers. It's relentless and asks you to keep up, not settle back.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia2005

Deliberately trashy characters in increasingly baroque scenarios, committed to the bit no matter how ugly it gets. Same shameless energy as Spoils' embrace of its own ridiculousness.

But It's grimy and mean-spirited by design. The characters are objectively terrible people, and the show doesn't soften that for comfort.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia poster

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Spoils of Babylon

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Soap1977

Both are comedies that masquerade as bad melodrama. The humor comes from watching talented people perform trashiness with complete sincerity. Same DNA, different eras.

Billy Crystal and Robert Mandan in a network sitcom that literally parodies soap operas. It was controversial, frequently baffling, and absolutely committed to its own insanity.

But The jokes are dated and the satire can feel obscure now. It's more interesting historically than consistently funny, and the pacing is slower than modern comedy.

Wet Hot American Summer2001

A David Wain film that deconstructs summer-camp movie tropes through absurdist humor and a stellar ensemble cast. It shares Spoils' commitment to sincerity in service of the joke.

But The comedy is very specific and relies on recognizing what it's parodying. If the reference doesn't land, the joke collapses.

The Comeback2005

Lisa Kudrow as a delusional reality-TV version of herself, performed with uncomfortable commitment. Mockumentary awkwardness and character-based humor in a similar register.

But The cringe is sustained and intense. It's built on watching someone humiliate herself, which some find exhausting rather than funny.

Tropic Thunder2008

Over-the-top action satire that refuses to wink at the audience. Robert Downey Jr. and Ben Stiller commit fully to the absurdity, just like Spoils' cast does.

But The satire can feel broad and some jokes have aged poorly. It sometimes mistakes volume for insight.

The Righteous Gemstones2019

Dark comedy melodrama about a dysfunctional family's scandals and secrets. Danny McBride channels chaotic energy through commitment to character and plot. Trashy but smart.

But It takes itself more seriously than Spoils does, which shifts the tone. Some find the drama undercuts the comedy.

Eastbound & Down2009

Danny McBride as a washed-up baseball player returning home. Character comedy that's both grotesque and oddly moving, with a similar willingness to sit in uncomfortable moments.

But The pace is slow and meditative. It's not joke-dense; it trusts silence and character over setup-punchline.