Moone Boy

Mostly Moone Boy is a coming-of-age story for a kid probably not yet equipped to battle the real world. But there’s so much humor and sweet-but-not-sacharrine moments (and absurdity), that it’s the kind of coming-of-age story you can’t wait to see Martin (and O’Dowd) experience together.

Co-written by O'Dowd with Nick Vincent Murphy, it is a finely crafted little jewel of a show. Its humor is quiet--which is not to say polite or conventional--but nearly every laugh line delivers.

The show is more imaginative and detailed than others of its type, with a loopy idiosyncrasy that trumps synthetic American quirkiness, and its offhand, seemingly throwaway comic touches come with a dash of Irish poetry.

Moone Boy can’t help but play like a minor trifle at best, a semi-sweet but not particularly memorable indulgence.