When it comes to comedy, there are very few people in the business today who have achieved as much as Louis C.K. has within the past decade. Louis is by far the most intelligent, thought-provoking, and painfully funny comedian since George Carlin, and this becomes more prevalent in his work as he matures as a comic.

Since 2007, Louis has had five stand-up specials, has written and produced two original shows (Lucky Louie and Louie, also having directed the latter), worked with Woody Allen, and even recently starred in the Oscar-nominated film Trumbo alongside Bryan Cranston. It’s pretty fair to say that Louis is on a roll.

Following the announcement of the hiatus of Louie, fans were left to speculate as to what Louis was doing for all this time away from the show. Well, it was a pleasant surprise to discover that what he’d been doing was once again writing, producing and directing his own new show.

It’s called Horace and Pete and it’s just as brilliant, if not more brilliant, than anything Louis has ever done. The film stars Louis as Horace and Steve Buscemi as Pete, two cousins who own and run a family bar together. The film very much seems as though it’s a live production. It could very easily be mistaken for a play due to its minimalistic set layout and simple format. The show almost entirely takes place in the bar or Horace and Pete’s apartment upstairs.

What the show lacks for in visualistic elements it makes up for entirely in dialogue. It’s filled with constant quarreling and brilliant, awkward moments of true Louis C.K. comedy. Very few comedians can actually write and perform comedy equally well as Louis can. The thing that makes his stand-up and his TV shows so intriguing is this absolute pain underlying everything he says and writes. The quality of depth in his comedy is unmatched among any comedian today.

The atmosphere of the show is much different than from anything he’s done before. It seems like the perpetual grimness in all his past work is finally surfacing permanently as opposed to making brief, subtle appearances.

If you’re a fan of Louis C.K. and you haven’t heard about this, it’s not really your fault. Yet another reason to admire and support Louis is because of the bold move he made in distributing this show. As of right now, the only place Horace and Pete can be found is on Louis’s website. Several days after the release of the show last Saturday, Louis sent out an email to all who are subscribed to his newsletter explaining the purpose behind financing the show entirely on his own. He said: “Part of the idea behind launching it on the site was to create a show in a new way and to provide it to you directly and immediately, without the usual promotion, banner ads, billboards and clips that tell you what the show feels and looks like before you get to see it for yourself.”

Louis did a similar thing several years ago by deciding to only sell tickets to his live shows through his website, cutting out the middle man. Such a bold decision is one that must be respected and supported by true fans of the sheer brilliance of Louis C.K.

Horace and Pete is clever and hilarious. Although it’s still only one episode in, it manages to expertly blend  hilariously awkward with extremely intelligent and thought-provoking humor. Any fan of Louie or any of Louis’s recent stand-ups will surely appreciate this excellent show with loads of potential for future episodes.