I have been in a very tumultuous relationship with the
Fox series, Dads, since I first heard of it in the Spring.
At first, I couldn’t wait to see two of my generation’s
favorite sons together. Who doesn’t love the acerbic charm
and quirky sensibilities of Seth Green and Giovanni Ribisi,
respectively? Then, the show started to get a lot of bad
press about its apparent insensitivity to some minority
groups and I began to question my loyalties. But, in spite
of my doubts after all the not-so-hot press, I liked it, and
I laughed. A lot.
The premise is simple. Two, thirty-something men are forced
to take in their aging dads and must deal with the complex
and often dysfunctional terrain of the father-son dynamic.
Ribisi plays Warner-- married to Camilla (Vanessa Lachey),
with two children, and son to Crawford played by Martin
Mull. Green plays Eli -- a more worldly, more grown-up
version of every character Green has ever played, and son to
David played by Peter Riegert. Brenda Song, as Veronica,
(remember her from The Suite Life of Zack and Cody?) plays
an employee at the video game company in which they are
partnered.
Even though some of the gags are predictable and sometimes a
little off color (think Veronica in a Sailor Moon costume,
giggling coyly -- Asian school-girl style) and the male
characters border on cliché, this show is funny. Perhaps it
just hits the sweet spot of my demographic; capitalizing on
the angst associated with parental relationships of people
my age, but this show strikes the perfect balance of
silliness and wit. The comedic timing of Ribisi and Green is
unmatched and even the most tired of bits zing when they are
dissected and delivered with genius deadpan.
To answer some critics that charge the show with being
insensitive, I say this, “you’re right.” But, in its
defense, it is democratically so. There are few groups that
don’t take a hit in the two episodes I watched. Coming from
the same folks who brought us the movie Ted, and Fox’s
animated hit Family Guy, the bar is firmly set in place
about the type of humor we are in for. The show is pretty
obviously tongue-in-cheek, so the earnest conversations
between the sons and fathers at the end rings a little
false, but what’s not to love about a show that can float an
exchange like this, “Thanks, Dad. That means a lot.” “Yes,
son. And so does plethora.”
"Pilot"
FATHERS DON’T KNOW BEST ON THE SERIES
PREMIERE OF “DADS”
TUE SEPT 17 8/7c
ELI (Seth Green) and WARNER (Giovanni
Ribisi) are business partners – and childhood best friends –
whose lives get turned upside down when their
pain-in-the-neck dads, DAVID (Peter Riegert) and CRAWFORD
(Martin Mull), move in with them in the all-new “Pilot”
series premiere episode of DADS airing Tuesday, Sept. 17
(8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT) on FOX.
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