Arrested Development - Season 1

I originally started watching Arrested Development when I saw that both Jeffery Tambor (from the Larry Sanders Show) and David Cross (From Mr. Show) were cast members.

This show is probably unlike any show you've seen before. Humor-wise, it is close to Seinfeld: Jokes and plots are set up in the first few minutes, and resolved and expanded upon throughout the rest of the show. In a way, each episode is a bunch of running gags, so if you're expecting joke-punchlines every thirty seconds, you won't find it here. You have to get used to the pacing and low-key nature of the jokes. But trust me, this isn't some smarty-pants, highly involved comedy that only mega-hipsters understand. Arrested Development is really, really funny.

Basically, the episodes show the adventures of a somewhat dysfunctional, pampered rich family as they adjust to having the family company come under federal surveillance and having their father, George Bluth, put under arrest for Tax Evasion. They get into trouble, they organize complicated schemes to make/get money/women/secrets/respect, whatever.

The cast is incredibly tight and sharp, even Jason Bateman as Michael(what a transition from Silver Spoons, huh?) and Portia di Rossi (from Ally McBeal) as his twin sister Lindsay. Besides Jeffery Tambor (as George Bluth, the family father) and David Cross (as Lindsay's confused husband Tobias), I was unfamiliar with the rest of the cast. It is hard to pick a stand-out, because each of them create a great, spot-on, utterly unique character. Will Arnett as Gob, Micheals "cock of the walk" Magician Brother. Jessica Walters as the family matriarch/ice queen/society matron. Tony Hale as Buster, the underdeveloped, mommas boy brother. Michael Cera as Micheal's son George Micheal, and Alia Shawkat as Tobias and Lindsay's scheming daughter Maeby. Honestly, it is hard to describe the characters and how interesting/unique/funny they are. They are played very realistically, not just as an assembly of quirks and ready-made jokes.

While each episode is roughly self-contained, there is a larger plot that builds throughout the whole first season, involved the reasons that George (the family father) is in jail, and what he is trying to cover up. The show drops hints from the first episode on, and you finally discover what he's been hiding in the last episode of the season, and the reveal is incredibly funny.

Other episodes are surprisingly typical sitcom plots: Michael falls in love with his brother's girlfriend, Lindsay tries to prove that she's not a conceited limosuine liberal. Buster tries to make it on his own without his mother. Tobias tries to break into the acting world. All basic, but in the world of Arrested Development, they feel completely new and original.


The DVD's themselves are quality items, typical fare from FOX, which did a good job with the Simpsons and Futurama DVDs. Extras include full cast commentary on three episodes, a bunch of deleted and expanded scenes, some cast interviews, some making of type things, a retrospective, and even an introduction from the lovely Narrator/Producer of the series, Ron Howard.

What makes it worth it? In addition to the show being drop-dead funny, each episode gets better the second time around. The writers pack it full of extra layers, secondary visual jokes, and references to previous/future episodes. Absolutely worth it to watch more than once.