Article first published as ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT Season 4 Premiere Review on Seat42F.
Grade: 100%
Grade: 100%
Today is a glorious day for fans of
high-quality comedy series, as Netflix revives ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT.
Canceled by FOX after just three short seasons, it now returns today
with fifteen brand-new episodes, released all at once through the
company’s streaming service.
It is immediately apparent from the
start of the premiere, “Flight of the Phoenix,” that this is the same
show that fans love and miss. Ron Howard’s narration remains, as does a
tweaked version of the theme song, the entire cast, and a host of
recurring bits and characters. In the first episode, we get such classic
gags as the Peanuts sad walk and a revisit to Michael’s turn as a
lawyer in an Elementary school play, and see familiar guests like Barry
Zuckerkorn (Henry Winkler), Lucille 2 (Liza Minnelli), and Sally
Sitwell (Christine Taylor).
Not that ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT is going
to rest on its laurels and just give us the same story again. There are
fresh jokes that are set up to be recurring, such as Michael’s (Jason
Bateman) prayer pose and his enrollment in the University of Phoenix.
Which means that, going forward, the series should continue to build
upon itself as it always has, keeping what works, and enriching the
tapestry further.
The character development continues,
too. When last the series aired, Michael had been spiraling dowwardn. He
is originally introduced as the character that has it all together, but
over the course of the episodes, slowly loses it, proving he is just as
screwed up as the rest of his family. Now, he has reached a very low
point, and is at his worst, a logical step forward based on the past.
“Flight of the Phoenix,” flashbacks
aside, covers two main time periods, six months apart. In the first,
Michael is living in his son, George Michael’s (Michael Cera), dorm
room. In the second, lest anyone hope that he improves himself in the
interim, as the ending of the episode seems to hint might happen, we see
Michael willing to sleep with Lucille 2 for money. So no matter what
happens to Michael in Phoenix, which has yet to be revealed, it won’t be
a happy ending for him.
Other elements have also advanced. It’s
really cool to see the neighborhood around the model house finally get
built, especially because that is still only the beginning of the
company and the family’s problems. The Bluths will never be successful
in business, and one will always wonder how they’ve stayed afloat this
long. But their foibles are hilarious, and a lot of why we tune in.
We don’t learn a lot about where the
rest of the characters are in “Flight of the Phoenix,” set years after
the season three finale, but with enough connecting threads to jump back
in on without feeling like we’ve missed anything. This is because of
scheduling conflicts. During the many years between seasons three and
four, most of the cast moved on professionally and obtained other work.
In order to put together these fifteen half hours, accommodations have
been made so that different characters will appear in different
installments.
This surprisingly doesn’t feel too
jarring. Some members of the Bluth clan have always been featured more
than others at times, owing to the large group and limited story-telling
time. While Gob (Will Arnett), George Sr. (Jeffrey Tambor), Lucille
(Jessica Walter), and Buster (Tony Hale) all are briefly seen in the
first episode, their stories will be told in other half hours, which is
fine. Michael is the main character, if such a strong ensemble series
has a main character, and putting him first feels very natural.
One assumes that the later time period
we see Michael in will be where this fourth season will come together,
reuniting the Bluths for their big (hopefully not permanent) ending.
We’ll probably get this part of the puzzle in small pieces, doled out a
little bit in each installment.
The one major element that has changed
is that Lucille and George Sr. are no longer played by Tambor and Walter
in long-ago flashbacks. To be fair, this always stretched the
believability a little bit, and the new actors, Kristen Wiig (Saturday
Night Live) and Seth Rogen (50/50, Knocked Up), are experienced and
wonderful at recreating the parts. While many, myself included, are a
little reticent to see someone else tackle such familiar characters, it
is so well done that there should be no complaints.
In all, Netflix has done a fantastic job
in resurrecting ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT, with key players both behind and
in front of the camera right where they should be. I predict this will
be considered a great success by fans of the show, and will likely spark
at least discussion of continuation of the story after this. Now, I
need to get back to my TiVo and watch more.
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