Here’s the thing: I’m just as likely to laugh at the clever brilliance of Oscar Wilde as I am at someone slipping on a banana peel. Of course, for the latter, there are caveats, like who is the someone, where is the banana peel and under what circumstance has that certain someone slipped. I’m admitting to my range of humor because this Sunday night, Rashida Jones’ new show Unhitched,
debuts on Fox. If all the caveats align with the appropriate constellations, I might even find the show funny. What I do know is that the show was not written by Oscar Wilde, but rather by the Farrelly brothers, of Something About Mary and Dumb and Dumber fame. See, there is the rub. Caveats may abound for this show.
Fox’s synopsis of the show follows:
“Dating in your 20s is like going to the farmers’ market — if you get there early, there’s plenty of fruit, all ripe, juicy and yours for the taking. But dating in your 30s is like getting there at closing time. The remaining fruit has been sitting in the sun all day. It’s been dropped, squeezed and handled by a thousand different people.”
Well, OK, then. Now that we’re clear on that, let’s move on to the pilot, which airs Sunday at 9:30. We are encouraged to watch the four thirtysomething friends as they try to find love once again. One goes on a blind date. Kate starts dating an NBA player, and apparently another guy goes out on a date with the woman of his dreams. See, none of that sounds so bad, does it? But as they say, it’s all in the execution.
Jones plays Kate, an attorney who has handled the various divorces of the other characters. Kate is supposedly the voice of reason on the show, so I may be spared from cringing into a ball of embarrassment or from watching the show through the thin openings in my fingers, which of course will be covering my eyes if the humor drops below middle-school level.
Unfortunately, none of the promos for the show focus on Rashida’s character. That’s really too bad, because based on the promos alone, I would probably stay as far away from this show as I would from Dick Cheney on a friendly hunting trip. But because of the Rashida Jones factor, I can’t summarily dismiss Unhitched just yet. Take a look.
So did you laugh at all? Come on, the intervention? Stopping cold turkey? Huh? How about the jungle noises? The ape getting lucky? No? Oh, OK.
Anyway, I don’t want to get in trouble and have to apologize for saying something too disparaging about a show that I have yet to see (like the writers at Maxim magazine who give ratings for albums they have never heard), so I will have to place disclaimers in every sentence about the reasons I may or may not like the show.
It’s very tiring to disclaim everything one says, but here goes … IF the show can showcase the funny but not the ridiculous side of Rashida Jones, then I can add the show to my rotation of DVR musts. But IF the show is so debased of intelligence and too heavy on gutter humor, then it will wear thin before I can even program my DVR. But IF the humor is sophomoric but has an ounce or two of cleverness so that even Oscar Wilde (or, better yet, the Marx Brothers might give it a thumbs up, then I can suffer through the more inane parts, especially IF Rashida Jones is featured in each and every episode. Goodness, I am worn out after that disclaimer marathon!
If you’re looking for real reviews, go here and here, but if you’re looking for reasons to watch, these reviews won’t give you many. OK, fine, they don’t give you any. But I will … Rashida Jones. The show also stars Craig Bierko, Johnny Sneed and Shaun Majumder.
So, in conclusion, I’m watching on Sunday. That’s Sunday, not Sundays, because that plural thing I can’t promise. But hey, I’m always up for a good laugh. So, here’s to hoping the laughs are good! And not just cheap and easy.
