Fox Fall Pilot Review: Dads - Premieres September 17; ABC Family's 2013 13 Nights of Halloween

Monday, September 16, 2013

Fox Fall Pilot Review: Dads - Premieres September 17; ABC Family's 2013 13 Nights of Halloween

Dads - Tuesdays at 8:00PM ET/PT on Fox
Premieres Tuesday, September 17, 2013 at 8:00PM ET/PT

by Skees

Family dysfunction from some of the minds that brought you Family Guy goes live action and multi-camera in his latest sitcom, Dads. The series follows Eli and Warner (Seth Green and Giovanni Ribisi who could be having it all going well for them as they own their own video game company. The problem? They have to come home each and every night to their obnoxious and classless fathers David and Crawford (Peter Riegert and Martin Mull). They're the sort of fathers who will walk around the house nude and see nothing wrong with it. It all just becomes a part of everyday life in Dads.

Cast Details:

Giovanni Ribisi as Warner
Seth Green as Eli
Martin Mull as Crawford
Peter Riegert as David
Brenda Song as Veronica
Tonita Castro as Edna
Vanessa Lachey as Camilla

Giovanni Ribisi (Warner) is an accomplished actor who has played in plenty of films including Boiler Room, Saving Private Ryan, The Mod Squad, Ted, and Gangster Squad. His career began, however, in sitcoms, with roles in The New Leave it to Beaver, Married... with Children, The Wonder Years, and My Two Dads. More recently, he played the recurring role of Ralph on My Name is Earl.

Seth Green (Eli) also had a start in sitcom guest starring roles, including The Facts of Life, Mr. Belvedere, The Wonder Years, among others. More recently, a lot of his work has been in the animated field, doing voices for series such as Family Guy, Robot Chicken (for which he is also co-creator), and even video game voices.

Martin Mull (Crawford, Warner's father) is a comedian who got his start in the syndicated late night soap opera spoof Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman as well as spinoff Fernwood 2 Night. Younger viewers will recognize him from his semi-regular roles on Roseanne and Sabrina, the Teenage Witch.

Peter Riegert (David, Eli's father) began his career on the stage, making his way to Broadway, but made a name for himself on screen with his debut in National Lampoon's Animal House. He has also had roles in series such as The Sopranos and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

Brenda Song (Veronica, Eli and Warner's assistant) will be instantly recognizable to younger viewers from her role on the Disney Channel series The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and The Suite Life on Deck. Her Disney Channel credits also include the original movie Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior.

Tonita Castro (Edna, Eli's maid) has appeared in series such as Dexter, Glee, and Raising Hope. Most recently, she was a regular on the NBC series Go On.

Vanessa Lachey (Camilla, Warner's wife) has appeared in series including City Guys, 30 Rock, and CSI: NY. She has also served as correspondent for Entertainment Tonight and host of MTV's Total Request Live.

Pilot Plot:

"Pilot" (airs Tuesday, September 17 at 8:00PM ET/PT)

The pilot begins with viewers being introduced to Eli and Warner. Warner is happily married, and blessed to also have a third family member living in his home. Unfortunately, that third family member happens to be his obnoxious father who always seems to be in the way. Eli has things a bit better as he is living the single life and not having to worry about his father, who has never really been in his life anyway.

"Heckuva Job, Brownie" (airs Tuesday, September 24 at 8:00PM ET/PT)

The second episode of the series finds Eli in desperate need of creating a new idea for a video game to hit store shelves in time for the holiday season. He finds the task to be a bit difficult, so Warner and Veronica turn him to a source that had inspired him in the past: marijuana. He manages to get some brownies laced with pot, but when his father decides to have a brownie for a late night snack, the guys may have found a way to keep control of their obnoxious fathers.

Analysis:

I'm a huge fan of Seth MacFarlane's animated comedies, and I've also been reading a lot about this series over the past few months... particularly about critics universally panning it. I didn't buy into the hysteria myself and decided to wait until I actually had a chance to watch it. Now, having watched it, I have to say that I completely agree. Seth MacFarlane is a talented man, but he didn't really transfer those talents that he had for animated comedy (or even his feature film Ted) to the live-action small screen in this series, for which he is executive producer.

The first episode of the series was almost completely unwatchable. It just felt like a string of dysfunctional family comedy without any real plot. Of course, an unfortunate thing about pilots is that they are usually forced to spend a lot of time introducing the premise of the series, but this series really had a simple enough premise that it wasn't quite as necessary. But it still dragged on, and it was almost a painful 20 minutes to sit through. This isn't even to mention the criticism that the series has received from Asian anti-defamation groups regarding the portrayal of Asians in this episode, and even if that doesn't bother you, I think it is safe to say that it really wasn't anything particularly funny.

In all fairness, though, I do have to say that the second episode, "Heckuva Job, Brownie," was an improvement over the first episode. The plot about giving the dads pot brownies to mellow them out is certainly one that hasn't been overused in sitcoms. In fact, I'm not sure that any sort of plot like that has ever been used (although there is probably one to prove me wrong). It provided a bit of humor, but then again, there still wasn't a lot else going on with the episode.

One thing that I do see as a positive, though, is the return of truly dysfunctional comedy (at least in live action form) to the Fox lineup. Despite what the Fox lineup is now with series like Glee, we can't forget that it was series like Married... with Children, In Living Color, and The Simpsons (which still airs, but has become a lot less dysfunctional in recent years) that built the network. Those series were never afraid to push the limits, and sitcoms like that have been scarce in recent years. I'd like to see more series that push the limit, and this is one... I'm just not sure that it'll work out in the end.

Conclusion:

I don't like being so pessimistic, but regardless, I feel like this may be "the one," as in the first one to get the axe before midseason. In fact, I'm not seeing this going too far at all... although I have been wrong about these things before. A lot of times, when a series offends a group of people before it even airs, it is already off to a bad start. But the fact that it starts out as a poorly executed idea on a lineup that features Fox's current breed of more sophisticated sitcoms (well, comparatively at least) doesn't seem to inspire a lot of hope for this series. Maybe upcoming episodes beyond the first two will provide some plots that bring in more interest for viewers, but right now, I'm not seeing a lot coming from this series.

Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 2/5
Funniness: 2/5
Overall: 2/5

Discuss the show after you watch it on Tuesday, September 17, 2013 at 8:00PM ET/PT on our message board.

Related Links:

Fox.com Official Site

TV.com

epguides.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

Dads Photo Gallery

Preview:

ABC Family scares up the 2013 13 Nights of Halloween celebration, with programming filled with scares and frights as you countdown to Halloween. The popular programming event, now in its 15th year, starting Saturday, October 19 and concludes on Thursday, October 31, features a brand new episode of Pretty Little Liars and the highly anticipated premiere of spin-off series Ravenswood on Oct. 22. The stunt will also include the ABC Family feature film premiere of Men in Black, the network premiere of Disney·Pixar's Toy Story OF TERROR! on Oct. 20, and a ghoulish mix of Halloween-themed programming airing for the 13 nights leading up to Halloween. The 15th annual 13 Nights of Halloween launches an all day scarefest with a mini marathon of sitcom The Middle, featuring all of the Heck family's Halloween hijinks to-date from 7:00-8:30 AM ET/PT.

Relive your favorite moments from this season's search for Red Coat in a Pretty Little Liars marathon from 11:00 AM - 8:00 PM ET/PT, featuring 9 back-to-back episodes filled with creepy text messages and even creepier gifts from "A". Then break out your Halloween finery as the Liars attend a very unusual costume party on a special brand new Halloween episode of Pretty Little Liars at 8:00 PM ET/PT. Watch Pretty Little Liars' Caleb as he steps into a new town where things are stranger than even he's ever seen in the highly anticipated premiere of new series Ravenswood at 9:00 PM ET/PT. Additionally you can catch encores of the Ravenswood premiere at 10:00 PM ET/PT and 1:00 AM ET/PT, with the Pretty Little Liars Halloween episode airing in between at 12:00 AM ET/PT. Ravenswood will then move to its regular time of 8:00 PM beginning Oct. 29, while Pretty Little Liars will return for its winter season in January. View the full ABC Family 13 Nights of Halloween line-up for 2013.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Monday, April 6

The Neighorhood - "Welcome to Gemma Johnson's Day Off" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Gemma reaches her limit at work, and when a car issue forces her to slow down, an unexpected break helps her rethink what she really wants next. Meanwhile, Marty and Malcolm’s plans are thrown off course when unexpected opportunities arise, and Dave embraces a new career path.

The Neighorhood - "A Farewell Special" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
CBS presents The Neighborhood: A Farewell Special, an Entertainment Tonight production, airing Monday, April 6 (8:30-9:30 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network and streaming on Paramount+. Hosted by Entertainment Tonight's Kevin Frazier and filmed on location on The Neighborhood's stages, the special celebrates the acclaimed CBS comedy's final season, honoring eight seasons, 156 episodes, and eight unforgettable years of laughter, heart and community, leading up to the series finale on May 11.

This celebratory event features exclusive new interviews with the cast reflecting on their journey, revisiting early days on set, and looking back at the show's evolution and cultural impact. From its heartfelt exploration of friendship and family to its comedic take on life in a changing community, The Neighborhood has become a beloved part of CBS' comedy legacy.

The special includes never-before-seen footage and archival interviews from the ET Vault, offering fans a nostalgic look at the series' most iconic moments and the relationships built along the way. Viewers will get an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the emotional final days of production, including the cast and crew's last table read, intimate moments from the final tapings, and heartfelt goodbyes.

Additionally, The Neighborhood: A Farewell Special brings audiences inside the cast's final wrap party, capturing the laughter, speeches, memories, and surprises that marked the end of an era. To cap off the evening, fans will get an exclusive sneak peek at the upcoming series finale, with the cast and producers sharing what viewers can expect as the Butlers and Johnsons say farewell to the neighborhood they've called home for nearly a decade.

The Neighorhood - "Welcome to New Horizons" (CBS, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Dave’s silent auction wins lead to a classical concert outing with Gemma and the Butlers that quickly goes off the rails. Meanwhile, Malcolm’s ghostwriting gig takes a surprising turn when Tina encourages him to dive into reality TV for inspiration – sparking an unexpected obsession.

St. Denis Medical - "We Make Time" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When a doctor becomes a patient, his co-workers rally around him, whether he likes it or not; Matt and Serena need to talk.

The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins - "The Loyalty Swamp" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Tobin's past comes back to haunt him; Reggie and Brina struggle to set a wedding date.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of April 6)

Monday, April 6

Jason Segel (Shrinking/How I Met Your Mother/Undeclared) - Watch Jason on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Lisa Ann Walter (Abbott Elementary/Emeril) - Lisa appears on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Keanu Reaves (Swedish Dicks) - Keanu is a guest on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS. He also talks about Outcome on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
Melissa Gilbert (Stand by Your Man) - ABC's Good Morning America has George Stephanopoulos' exclusive interview with Melissa sometime between 7-9am.
Laurie Metcalf (Big Mistakes/The Conners/Roseanne/The McCarthys/The Norm Show) - Laurie talks about Big Mistakes on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am and on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Kerry Washington (UnPrisoned) - Kerry chats with the ladies of The View on a repeat on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Mindy Kaling (Running Point/The Mindy Project/The Office) - Mindy talks about Mindy's Book Studio on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Terry Crews (Brooklyn Nine-Nine/Are We There Yet?/Everybody Hates Chris) - Terry and Rebecca King-Crews make an exclusive announcement on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am. Terry will also be on in the 9am hour.
Sterling K. Brown (Starved) and Ryan Michelle Bathe (First Wives Club/Retired at 35) - Sterling and his wife Ryan Michelle tell Sherri about the highly anticipated new season of Paradise now streaming on Hulu & Disney+ on a repeat of Sherri, so check your local listings.
Amanda Peet (Brockmire/Togetherness/Bent) - Amanda talks season 2 of Your Friends & Neighbors and her new film Fantasy Life on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.