We do our best to be optimistic, but sometimes we have to be realistic.
And now that we’re (almost) over some of the crushing series’ cancellations of this past spring (RIP Happy Endings, what is dead may never die), it’s time to look towards the new network year, and this fall’s upcoming crop of comedy pilots that have been given the coveted chance at a network series run.
Yesterday, Hypable told you about the comedy pilots we’re most looking forward to next fall season, but we have to admit that not everything looks like it’s going to be able to fill the Office-sized hole in our mourning hearts. So after carefully sifting through the network trailers and pilot reviews from television critics, we’ve narrowed it down to five comedy pilots that we think will have the hardest time making it to the midseason:
‘Sean Saves the World’ — NBC
NBC is trying to get back to it’s Thursday-night-sitcom-heyday with two old standbys that have been proven money-makers in the past: Sean Hayes and the familiar multi-cam. Unfortunately, instead of feeling nostalgic, the formula feels outdated. Sean’s boss is predictably crazy, his mother is predictably insensitive, his teenage daughter is predictably aloof, and perhaps most disappointing, the wonderfully-colorful Sean Hayes looks to be severely underused as the straight-man in this comedy.
This show doesn’t seem horrible (at least compared to NBC’s comedic attempts last year with the infamous Animal Practice); it just doesn’t seem interesting, unique, or funny enough to get people to tune in to watch. In truth, it’s probably the utterly unoriginal feel of the trailer that seems most disappointing; we expected more from the man who brought us the delightfully outrageous Jack McFarland. We predict that like last year’s rather bland Partners, Sean Saves the World will fade slowly into the oblivion of our DVR’s with nary a peep.
‘Dads’ — Fox
Dads is Fox’s attempt at a Partners style comedy, and after last year’s slow burn-out fizzle, we’re not sure why this formula is still getting trudged out year after year. The premise is one we’ve heard a dozen times before: Two opposites live together! Hilarity ensues! Then someone comes in to shake things up! More hilarity ensues! Except that at a certain point, the familiar destination stops being funny if we’re not being taken there via a different, and more scenic route.
Seth MacFarlane is behind this project, so there is the hope that more original material could blossom from the premise, but when most of the promo is spent objectifying Brenda Strong for the sake of racist jokes that aren’t that funny, we’re forced to wonder if we all wouldn’t just be happier tuning in to some Family Guy reruns.
‘Enlisted’ — Fox
Like so many pilots on this list, Enlisted is particularly heart-wrenching because while watching the trailer, we get the impression that the wonderfully talented actors involved aren’t really being given the material to shine. Geoff Stults (The Finder), Chris Lowell (Private Practice), and Parker Young (Suburgatory) have all been fan favorites on their previous shows, and it would be great to see these three guys really hit it big with the wider platform this show could provide.
The premise itself is offbeat, in a “this will be either wonderful or horrible” kind of way. But for the quirky premise to work, it really has to have the jokes to back it up, and unfortunately in this trailer the laughs just aren’t there.
‘Back in the Game’ — ABC
This pilot doesn’t really look that bad, but it does come off as oddly forgettable. Bad New Bears was good enough on its own the first time, and since the majority of this series seems to be based around turning this team of kids into winners, we have to wonder if the routine won’t become repetitive year after year as they continuously lose (or win) the Big Game.
The cast itself seems pretty sturdy though, including the child actors featured in the trailer, so if the writers can find a way to keep the show feeling fresh, it might find a way to stay afloat amidst the fall schedule jumble. The trick here is that the pilot will have to be memorable enough to keep audiences coming back week after week, and judging from the trailer, standing out from the crowd will be Back in the Game’s true challenge.
‘The Millers’ — CBS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNijvoPmjBI
This pilot looks like the most disappointing waste of talent of the lot. Greg Garcia has made some fantastically original television with his single-cam comedies Raising Hope and My Name is Earl, but everything about his newest attempt feels too broad to have a distinctive voice and lacks the unique vision of his single-cams. There’s a reason why Will Arnet played the G.O.B. instead of the Michael of the Bluth family, and we’re not sure why anyone would try and bend him into the responsible-son-and-comedic-straight-man role when it clearly doesn’t suit him. This is the man who invented the chicken dance. That kind of unabashed willingness to commit shouldn’t be contained. Meanwhile, Margo Martindale and Beau Bridges are reduced to making fart jokes in 2013.