Billy Crystal and Josh Gad star in “The Comedians”

Do you like to laugh? I know I like to laugh. I could be in the worst mood ever, but if I see something funny, there's no way I'm not laughing.

FX brings viewers two comedy series this week -- a brand-new show and a tried-and-true program -- with the goal of keeping people in stitches. It's time to dial up the laughs when "The Comedians" and "Louie" air their series premiere and season 5 premiere, respectively, Thursday, April 9, on FX.

It's been a long time coming (30 years, to be exact), but Billy Crystal is back on TV. In his first regular role in a TV series since "Saturday Night Live" in 1985, Crystal stars as a dramatized version of himself in the new FX laugher "The Comedians," which follows a veteran superstar comedian who is reluctantly paired up with a younger, edgier up-and-coming comic named Josh Gad. If that name sounds familiar, you're not going bonkers. Gad -- who voiced Olaf in the Disney smash hit "Frozen" (2013) and starred in this year's romcom "The Wedding Ringer" -- also plays a fictionalized version of himself.

Crystal told the Television Critics Association winter press tour in January that he came back to TV for this project, which is loosely based on a Swedish show of the same name, because he could easily see himself slide into the role.

"I get to play an extended version of myself, which is great," Crystal said. "I get to do live sketches in front of a live audience. I get to do these film pieces. I get to have crazy fun like that and work with incredible people. At this point in my career, it's like a blessing to have this show because it reinforces and reinvigorates everything that I started out doing and have loved to do my entire career."

Of course, when you're playing yourself in dramatized situations that often realistically mimic real life, it can be tough separating fact from fiction -- something Gad told the TCA panel is a huge exercise in trust.

"This entire show is one big giant trust exercise," he said. "Sometimes as our characters, who happen to be named after ourselves so that separation is very thin, we have to say really, really dangerous things to each other. In those moments, you're scared and you're not quite sure that the person knows that it's the fake version of himself telling the other person this. Then you go up to him after and you share a hug and you go, 'OK. We OK?' And usually if Billy doesn't punch me, we're OK."

Art imitates life sometimes, and while "The Comedians" is the newcomer to television, it's being paired up with a true veteran in the comedy realm. The multiple Emmy-winning show "Louie" enters its fifth season, and after season 4 saw some very heavy, dramatic episodes and themes, creator/director/writer/star Louis C.K. ("Saturday Night Live") said fans shouldn't necessarily expect more of the same this go-around.

Louis C.K. as seen in “Louie”

"This season is more laugh-centric and funny than season 4," C.K. said at the TCA winter press tour. "The feeling I was having when I wrote the season ... was a goofy and playful feeling."

That's not to say he didn't enjoy sharing a more serious side of his show last season.

"I like telling these stories," said C.K. "My favorite work that I see in TV and movies have both [comedy and drama in them]. ... Things like 'Raging Bull' (1980) and 'Goodfellas' (1990) -- they're hilarious movies. They're dramas, but they make me laugh."

There's been no slowing down lately for C.K., either. After inking an overall deal with FX Productions at the end of 2013, it only took a month before C.K. and his production company, Pig Newton, nabbed a pilot order for a new series on FX. The pilot, currently titled "Baskets," is co-written by C.K. and Zach Galifianakis ("The Hangover," 2009), who will also star. C.K. then scored another pilot order in January of this year for "Better Things," a comedy pilot starring his longtime friend and collaborator Pamela Adlon ("King of the Hill"). Oh yeah, and he also has an all-new standup special that will premiere on FX. (Think FX likes Louis?)

Add to all of this that he has two movies in the works -- "Trumbo," slated for release later this year, and "The Secret Life of Pets," which is due out in 2016 -- and it's clear C.K.'s a busy, busy man. It's enough to make even the most seasoned workaholic's head spin!

If you like to laugh, then it looks like Thursday nights on FX will be just right for you. From a freshman comedy with a big name to a veteran, critically acclaimed series, FX is hoping to hit a home run for hilarity in the latter half of the week. Catch the series premiere of "The Comedians" and the season 5 premiere of "Louie" when they air back-to-back Thursday, April 9, on FX.