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On Television |
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Premieres 9:30-10, Sunday, Nov. 2 on the Fox network |
 The cast of 'Arrested Development' |
Fox network finally may have found its funnybone
of TheColumnists.com
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"Arrested Development" is must-see TV. Not on NBC,
but Fox. Yes, the best new comedy of the fall season is funny, very funny, so much so that you almost feel like you have to shake yourself because it is so funny. And so good. And it's on a network not renowned for funny sitcoms: Fox! What family doesn't have its ups and downs? The Bluth family, the center of this half-hour show, has had a lot of ups, but now the downs have arrived, bigtime. The family real estate business has done well, and now George Bluth (Jeffrey Tambor) is ready to hand over the running of the business to his successor. The most qualified is Michael (Jason Bateman), the widowed father of a teen-age son who has worked hard to earn the job. Michael is also the most sane member of this very, very dysfunctional family. There's Mom Lucille (Jessica Walter), a socialite whose joy in life seems to be spending money and then spending more money; oldest Bluth son George II (Will Arnett) has made a career out of trying to be a magician; youngest brother Buster (Tony Hale) is a neurotic, perpetual grad student whose current area of study involves mapping uncharted territories .. (think about it); sister Lindsey (Portia de Rossi), the wife of a doctor who lost his license performing CPR on a tourist who didn't need it, spends her life holding fundraisers for unusual charities. But the cushy lives of this dysfunctional clan comes to a screeching halt on the day George Bluth announces his suceessor to the head the company--wife Lucille. (Why her? Watch the show and find out!). Why? The shock of Lucille's elevation to the top spot wears off quickly--when George senior is arrested and tossed in jail for playing fast and loose with the company books. With a cast filled with faces familiar to TV viewers, and with big screen, big-movie names like Ron Howard and Brian Grazer among its producers, "Arrested Development" has all the makings of a hit. On paper. But Fox is giving it some help, premiering it in the time period after the long-running hit "Malcolm in the Middle." Of course, the 9-10 p.m. Sunday slot is competitive: ABC has "Alias," NBC "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," CBS has its Sunday night movie, and The WB has "Tarzan." "Arrested Development" isn't going to be every comedy fan's cup of tea. It's quirky, biting, and light years away in style and substance from a hit family-centered comedy like "Everybody Loves Raymond." Give it a try. ©2003 by Donna J. Plesh. The photo is courtesy of the Fox network. |
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