Up All Night (Wednesday 7PM, NBC): B-
Will Arnett is solid and Christina Applegate is hilarious, but Maya Rudolph just isn’t funny in a Jenna Maroney-lite role. It has fresh humor, though, and doesn’t rely on the typical sitcom setups, something I appreciate.
Free Agents (Wednesday 7:30PM, NBC): B+
Finally a show that balanced strong character relationships with humor. Too bad it was cancelled because of low ratings.
Modern Family (Wednesday 8PM, ABC): B-
Phil On Wire was one of their strongest episodes yet, but I don’t know how long a show with so few story arcs can last. And I wanted more Tobias Fünke out of David Cross’ minor role.
Happy Endings (Wednesday 8:30PM, ABC): B+
Okay, I’m going to say it. This is one of the best comedies on TV.
Community (Thursday 7PM, NBC): B+
Community has been more of a sitcom so far this season, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. They’re better at it than most. But what’s with Omar from The Wire being awful?
Parks and Recreation (Thursday 7:30PM, NBC): A-
This is the best thing going in comedy today. If I wasn’t fully sold on their new season after the season premiere, their second episode, Ron & Tammys, nailed me down. Born & Raised was just as funny and even sweeter.
The Office (Thursday 8PM, NBC): B
At first, I thought The Office without Steve Carell would be okay. “There are enough interesting characters to keep this show going,” I said. But as the weeks went by, and the premiere of Season 8 crept closer and closer, I began to worry. I’ve enjoyed the episodes so far, but the show needs to move away from trying to figuring out why Andy is manager to showing why Andy is manager.
