# Eastbound & Down (2009)

> A burned-out major league pitcher returns to his hometown to teach gym at his old middle school and keeps chasing a comeback he doesn't deserve.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/7994

## Facts

- Seasons: 4
- Episodes: 29
- Episode runtime: 30 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: comedy
- Created by: Danny McBride, Jody Hill, Ben Best
- Network: HBO
- Cast: Danny McBride, Steve Little, Ana de la Reguera, Ben Best, Andy Daly, Ike Barinholtz, John Hawkes, Jennifer Irwin
- TMDB rating: 8.2/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0866442/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: simple
- Violence: mild
- Tone: crude, cringe, irreverent, absurd, bittersweet, profane, tender

## What critics say

Acclaimed for Danny McBride's outrageous, self-destructive lead performance and its sharp, profane satire of sports celebrity and male ego.

## Synopsis

Eastbound & Down (2009-2013) is an HBO comedy series created by Danny McBride, Jody Hill and Ben Best, a four-season serialized cringe comedy with a sharp dramatic streak. McBride stars as Kenny Powers, a burned-out major league pitcher whose ego still outruns his talent after he drifts back to his North Carolina hometown and takes a job teaching phys ed at his old middle school. Steve Little plays his loyal, quietly pragmatic friend Stevie Janowski, while Ana de la Reguera plays Vida, a woman who complicates Kenny's ambitions. Each season follows Kenny's schemes to reclaim fame, from grand public comeback plans to humiliating setbacks that leave him further isolated. The engine is his refusal to accept decline, pushed against the mundane realities of a small southern town, a shabby school and a family he has long neglected. The tone is crude, profane and unexpectedly tender, with bursts of absurd escalation and moments of real pathos. Fans of Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Comeback and Atlanta will find resonance in its unlikable protagonist, deadpan awkwardness and bold comic misfires.

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- [Chad Powers (2025)](https://ember.film/tv/162768)

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