This Ain't Happy Days XXX

Hustler Video

Genre: Sitcum, Parody

The Ladies

Director: Axel Braun

Cast: Codi Carmichael, Tori Black, Tommy Gunn, Penny Flame, Kris Slater, Riley Evans, Alan Stafford, Missy Stone, Jack Lawrence, Anthony Rosano, Raquel Devine

None Sex Roles: Ally Ann, James Bartholet

Length: 122:59 minutes

Date of Production: 1/19/2009

The Cast

Extras: The first disc included a 36:23 minute long video commentary by Tommy Gunn, Raquel Devine, Missy Stone, Axel Braun, and Anthony Rosano as they commented at length on parts of the show (rather than the whole thing, presented in a small box located on the lower right hand corner of the screen). It was a lot of fun even if there wasn't a lot of detailed information about the show provided, only some spam rounding out the extras on this disc. The primary bonus features came on the second disc of the set, a wealth of material for fans to enjoy. They started out with an 11:08 minute Blooper Reel, 12:42 minutes worth of interviews (edited to provide an almost random experience but ending up as very entertaining), an 11:38 minute long set of Casting tests (sometimes in very low resolution), a 42:42 minute long Behind the Scenes feature, an 8:34 minute long Read Through (the cast was called in to go through the script together, Axel narrating), a 1:25 minute long feature on Storyboarding by Axel Braun, a slide show, five trailers, and two bonus sex scenes including one starring Missy Stone & Kenny from "Barely Legal 18 and Easy #2" by Will Ryder that lasted 22:06 minutes, and Penny Flame & the Mighty Evan Stone from "Breaking and Entering" lasting 14:30 minutes. I would have preferred unique scenes to this production but the set of extras was very appealing to me!

Condoms: None

The Director

Audio/Video Quality: This Ain't Happy Days XXX was presented in a colorful 1.78:1 ratio, anamorphic widescreen, offering as shot by director Axel Braun for Hustler Video using the 480p resolution and MPEG-2 codec typical of standard definition projects. Unlike earlier sitcum efforts by the staff at Hustler, there appeared to be an attempt to do this one right, paying closer attention to the sets, the clothing, and other visual elements of the movie. The original show started off as a single camera effort that went to a three camera production after the show became a hit so this parody did look closer than usual on technical levels too, albeit pornified somewhat with lower budgets and time constrictions as expected. The editing wasn't as tight as the best genre efforts but Claudia Ross seemed up to the task of polishing up Axel's raw footage nicely enough. The standard definition version of the flick had few compression artifacts, only a bit of noise & edge enhancement, and proper lighting to assist in making the movie look more like the original, the art direction credited to the director himself. In short, in terms of the visual esthetics, this title is the best in-house sitcum/parody released to date by Hustler, a far cry from what I was expecting. The audio was presented in a 2.0 Dolby Digital English with a 192 Kbps audio bitrate and 48 kHz sampling rate, the theme song by performer Drew Rose and co written by the now-infamous Roger Krypton, truly a fun song to listen to (my favorite of the year at this writing!). The rest of the audio track had a few problems though, including some synchronization problems well into the flick and a few points where the cast wasn't exactly caught too well, the background noise/laugh track/special effects mixed in a bit too aggressively. The music was overall true to the show though and that helped aurally elevate it in my opinion.

Codi Carmichael and Tori Black with Tommy Gunn

Body of Review: Axel Braun is probably the last name I think of when it comes to comedy porn but in this day & age of sitcum parodies being some of the only titles selling well, many companies have jumped on the bandwagon as rapidly as possible. The net result of this latest fad is, of course, that most of them fall far short of the mark, meriting scant attention or replay thanks to the manner in which budgets are low, time is short, and creativity is all but forgotten. I usually end up singing the praises of a single company that has consistently provided the very best such genre titles to us all but Hustler surprised me of late with a couple of well made releases, including This Ain't Happy Days XXX. For those of you that are very young or lived in a cave during the 70's and 80's, "Happy Days" was a popular television show that debuted in 1974 after a single episode of "Love American Style" introduced the characters to the public. The concept was tweaked a bit and thanks in large part to bad boy Henry Winkler's "Fonzie", the show soon became a national hit detailing the 1950's as seen through rose colored glasses; an America just before the social turmoil of the Civil Rights Movement, judicial activism, and the Vietnam War. The half hour show would entertain folks and provide a crisis to be solved within the usual sitcom dynamic time limits, all with good natured humor. In this case, the stakes of the show have been raised by some heated sexual performances and a few standout performances it situations fans of the original show might find well within their own imaginations. In short, rather than goofing on the show, the production team decided to emulate the leaders of the sitcum movement and pay homage to the beloved show, a decided step up in terms of making it better. Here's a brief look at the scenes by cast and action, noting that no condoms were used for those still interested:

Penny Flame and Kris Slater

Scene One: Codi Carmichael and Tori Black, the blond and brunette featured on the cover with Tommy Gunn as the popular "Fonzie" character, were up first in the bathroom to demonstrate just how to treat a lady (in reference to being "cool"). Tommy began by sucking Codi's large implants and Tori jumping in to assist, the gals slobbing his knob after some minor playfulness of their own. Tori was the more aggressive of the two ladies and got to actively ride the cock vaginally first, Codi licking her asshole as she did so. Codi was a fun ride too though, Tori unwilling to reciprocate until she was back to getting drilled from behind. The ladies cumswapped the genetic juice after sucking it out of Tommy's pipe too, proving the sex was as good as a regular porno this time (finally!).

Riley Evans and Alan Stafford

Scene Two: Penny Flame, playing the ever popular Jenny Piccalo, was as sexually active as ever when kicking it with Kris "Chachi" Slater, on the bed. He warmed her up but she aggressively took to sucking him off, using her hand to elevate the mood more than a little along with some dirty talk. Granted, his modest pecker was no match for her talented tongue but he did reciprocate fairly well, showing his prowess was better related to oral talent than straight out hammering thrusts as he went for soon afterwards. There was not much screwing but she did drain him dry quickly, the scene displaying some chemistry thanks in large part to Penny.

Missy Stone and Jack Lawrence

Scene Three: Riley Evans, the sexy little blond on the left side of the front cover, was up next as Alan "Ritchie" Stafford's date by the jukebox after closing hours. She was on her knees blowing him with a modicum of talent, licking his balls and otherwise savoring the experience as she was drawn to his bad boy persona (thanks to lessons from Fonzie). He did manage to throat fuck her a little bit but most of the time, she was firmly in charge of his pleasure, her aptitude for giving a blowjob established early on. The scene ended when he busted his nut of population pudding on her tongue but it was her eye contact that made her another winner here.

Raquel Devine and Tommy Gunn

Scene Four: Missy Stone, playing a very sexy Joanie, was up next on her bed with Jack "Ralph Malph" Lawrence and Anthony "Potsie" Rosano, as she got revenge on Chacie for cheating on her. Her pretty eyes and similar accent worked as much as her very sexy body did, Jack proving the most in character of the three in yet another display of his acting range. The guys feel her up and as her clothing comes off, they each get into providing some head, the guys thankfully focusing their efforts on her while she takes turns with them. Jack was allowed the most quality time with her though, vaginally drilling her while Anthony walked away for a few minutes during the scene, soon returning with a boner to jam in her mouth as Jack pounded away at her pussy. Missy wasn't a very active rider this time but she did a lot of PTM between positions and swapping out partners, the guys getting to nail her asshole (without any DP prospects though) before jerking off to her face. In terms of the sex though, the scene was not the best but it did provide the most variety of action (something many claim parodies lack).

Scene Five: Raquel Devine, playing a far-too-youthful Mrs. Cunningham, was up last as she encouraged Tommy Gunn's Fonzie character to show her a good time on the living room couch. She made a veiled double entendre and the next thing I knew, she was licking his nuts, the blowjob the best of the bunch. Her large titties fell out of her blouse as she inhaled his cock too, her dirty talk making it all the better when she climbed aboard his cock for a few positions of very active vaginal sex. The one camera manner in which it was shot provided a good look at the two doing the deed but it was curious that he did not get a chance to eat her out before or during the scene. The pounding vaginal sex led to him unleashing his seed onto her mouth, the semen oozing out rather than flying as I expected. Still, they had superior chemistry and the amusing manner in which they were caught was perhaps the best nod to the parody dynamic of the movie.

Summary: This Ain't Happy Days XXX by director Axel Braun for Hustler Video proved what I predicted some time ago when I pointed out that making a decent sitcum is not that difficult when you pay attention to the details, other reviewers falling all over themselves to praise lesser efforts that were so lacking it amazes me no end. This time, the company showed some care with casting, the sets, and even the pairings as well as keeping the original in mind when making it. It had some rough edges and missed out on some easy targets but in terms of an in house parody sitcum, it was good enough to earn a rating of Highly Recommended. The extras were solid and several of the performances were good enough that I will remember them at the end of the year during award season, Axel doing a good job of the "Star Trek" parody that I hope to finish writing up by Saturday. In short, This Ain't Happy Days XXX was a return to Hustler as a force to be reckoned with in terms of merit over advertising dollar, a dynamic I can certainly appreciate given my attempts to encourage them to push their usual production limits up to those of X-Play. I hope they continue to improve on their efforts too, the number of shows from our collective past just begging for a sitcum treatment large enough that even discounting those that warrant sequels such as this one to keep the company busy for a very long, hard time. Good work!