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The wife and I have become addicted to Modern Family (Wednesdays, 9:00 EST, ABC). Most reviewers refer to it as the best new comedy of the season. For me, it's the best comedy on TV right now. The writers seem to be mining the show's premise for every laugh possible. I love Phil, love Manny, love Gloria. I love the screwed up family dynamics.
Which of course brings me to Arrested Development. For those unfamiliar with the show, it was a Fox comedy that premiered in November 2003. Broad critical acclaim and a cult following gave it two renewals, but low ratings finally caught up with it and Fox canceled the show in February 2006.
The show follows the travails of the Bluth family, whose patriarch (played by Jeffrey Tambor) is jailed in the pilot for defrauding investors in his real estate company. Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman) is the duty-bound son attempting to keep the family from imploding. No easy feat as he has to contend with a narcissistic sister, her bad-psychiatrist-turned-worse-actor husband, an older brother who aspires to be a magician, a younger brother struggling to get away from his domineering mother and a son who has a crush on his cousin.
Like Modern Family, Arrested Development sets up a series of situations in each episode and then wrings every last ounce of humor from the setup. Sometimes, this means the pay off for a joke may happen seasons later.
I recently rewatched Season 2 for the third time and it is amazing how well this show stands up to repeated viewings. If anything, it's funnier the second and third time. The various references to hands and seals are even funnier once you learn the youngest brother's fate half way through this season.
During the third season, an already meta show goes even more hilariously over the top as it approaches its near-certain cancellation. One episode contains very thinly veiled references to HBO and Showtime, two networks that were considering picking up the show. Sadly for fans, Mitch Hurwitz, the show's creator decided he'd had enough and the show ended.
A movie is still being discussed, but frankly I'll believe it when I see it. This show was a launching pad for a cast that has gone on to become stars in their own right (Bateman and Michael Cera especially). I can't imagine a studio taking a chance on a poorly rated show that ended five years ago with the salaries a lot of the players would command. David Cross, who plays Tobias, said as much in this interview with TV Squad.
No matter what happens with the Bluths on the big screen, we will always have three of the funniest seasons of television to watch. Over and over again.
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