Courtesy of CBS
After calling out The Crazy Ones last week for unfunny jokes and lame story lines did they come back this week with a vengeance? Well one things for sure, they came back. And they brought Brad Garrett along for the ride.
Let’s bitch.
This week Brad Garrett shows up as Gordon Lewis, Simon’s (Robin Williams) business partner. Wait, Simon has a partner and we are now only meeting him or even hearing about him? Luckily for them Lewis is a much needed shot of humour. His first scene with Robin Williams is funny and Lewis makes for an interesting character (a big part of that is Garrett’s delivery and physical presence.) Unfortunately the rest of it just doesn’t work. The writers seem to think that we will forget about the story and just bask in the glow of funny lines and the comedic genius of Robin Williams. But the fact of the matter is that the lines aren’t that funny and Robin Williams isn’t always a genius. In fact so far this season his batting average has been on the low side. (That’s how a batting average works right? Low is bad?)
Anyways the point is I’m not laughing. Take the scene where Gordon demands to speak to their imaginary client Stan Wood. Simon goes into his office to pretend to be Stan in order to trick Gordon. First off, his office has glass walls. Secondly, his version of Stan is basically just a bad Polish accent. I get that the ruse isn’t supposed to work, but at least make it seem like Simon is trying. Either Simon is a huge idiot or the director and writer didn’t really think this through.
Courtesy of CBS
Meanwhile Sidney (Sarah Michelle Gellar) is again matched up with a man. Of course this time he’s old enough to be her father – or maybe her grandfather. Ed Asner shows up to play Glen Hastings, or as they refer to him Mr. Fingers (not the best nickname for a love interest…or is it?) based on a popular commercial they did in the 80s. It’s a semi-amusing storyline that doesn’t really go anywhere, but Asner is funny. I admit I laughed a little when he is revealed to a be a dirty old man, but I wish they had done more with this. Instead they wrap it up in a haphazard way with Andrew (Hamish Linklater) blackmailing him into helping out the used car dealership, in exchange for not telling Sidney that he’s just a perv. Way to protect your friend Sidney from a sexually aggressive old dude. Nice character trait. Seriously, this show…sigh.
Other observations:
- I get the formula now: centre the action around Sidney and Simon and then have Andrew, Zach (James Wolk) and Lauren (Amanda Setton) there for comedic asides and pile ons. But if they want to be funny they really need to sharpen their comedic skills and take a page out of the Happy Endings playbook – now they knew something about pile ons.
- While I appreciate that they include a gay character this in no way negates all the problematic gay jokes that have gone on in the past episodes or the ones contained in this episode.
- The whole bit about Andrew being a mega fan of Mr. Fingers was unfunny and painful to watch. They really need to start giving Linklater better material. This is a funny actor but his character is just so pathetic and unfunny. I like that he has no capacity to hold in secrets, that is funny, but his obsession with Mr. Fingers is just weird.
- I love James Wolk but Zach is quickly becoming my least favourite character. He is just so bland. Talk about dropping the ball here, he was hilarious in the pilot, but now he’s just so boring.
So viewers- I’ve given this show a valiant effort but I feel like I’m constantly repeating myself and struggling to laugh. I’m jumping ship so it’s sayonara for my weekly reviews. Should the show do something amazing down the line – I’ll chime in with my thoughts, but for now it’s dunzo for me and The Crazy Ones.
What did you guys think? Did you enjoy seeing Ed Asner as the pervy old man? Did you think Brad Garrett was funny? Are you happy he will be back next week? Are you as unimpressed with this show as I am? Sound off below.
The Crazy Ones airs Thursday nights at 9:00PM EST on CBS.