Arrested Development (2003-2006, 2013-?)

I'm almost done with the season. It's a pretty strange beast: not all of the characters benefit from solo episodes (though there isn't an episode that doesn't land at least two or three great gags). But the structure is incredibly ambitious (you only begin to get a sense of the labyrinthine plotting about halfway through the episodes). I have a feeling a rewatch of this season is going to be very, very rewarding.

Favorite episode so far? "Colony Collapse," the first Gob episode.

Harmsway wrote:

I'm almost done with the season. It's a pretty strange beast: not all of the characters benefit from solo episodes (though there isn't an episode that doesn't land at least two or three great gags). But the structure is incredibly ambitious (you only begin to get a sense of the labyrinthine plotting about halfway through the episodes). I have a feeling a rewatch of this season is going to be very, very rewarding.

Favorite episode so far? "Colony Collapse," the first Gob episode.

I've been thinking that with the rewatch factor.

"Colony Collapse" is next up for me.

Agreed on the rewatch. I almost feel like this season requires it.

I just finished the fifth episode. The Tobias one. Hysterical. "Anus tart."

Man, the second Gob episode made my head explode. So, so good. This show...

Yet it's not getting a good critical reception. Maybe they were too busy praising Dumbass Trek.

Yes, I can work in a jab at that any time.

I just watched Ep. 7 - "Colony Collapse". Wow. That whole part with the religious show and Church of HER? was some of the best AD stuff I've ever seen.

On a side note, I actually think Mae Whitman, who plays... what's her name? And. I think she's actually fairly cute.

Which critics are complaining?

Personally, I think this is the most impressive season yet.

I've seen generally positive reaction from critics, though most of the complaints seem to stem from the fact that the season needs a few episodes to kick into gear.

I'm too tired at the moment to Google this stuff. I for one am very impressed with the season. I've still only seen through Ep. 7. I don't know if it specifically sets up a movie by the end, but I'd prefer a fifth season to a movie. The challenge is scheduling. Bateman has a supporting actor career in films, Tony Hale is on VEEP, etc.

I forgot to mention. Steve Holt. Holy fucking god. I think he ate one of Bond's exploding pellets from LALD. Neither GOB nor me knew it was Steve Holt at first. When it was revealed I was all like

Up to Lucille's first episode. The best thing about the Steve Holt thing is the show made a joke of it.

I still think the best episode so far was Tobias' first. GOB's was also good. But I also agree things didn't really start landing until Lindsay's episode. (The methodone/method acting joke was great)

I actually like the format. It's ambitious, but it's also really embracing the Netflix model vs broadcast To be honest, I don't really think you could even really do cable this way. They're also able to cover way more stories. There's been more story in these episodes than the entire three seasons, I think. I haven't seen any of the reviews (I loathe the recapping culture that prevails in tv criticism these days and love that the Netflix model effectively F***S it in the arse) but I think any criticism based around the structure of the season is missing the point entirely.

Favourite exchange so far:

(Tobias walks in)
Lucille: Hello Anus Tart
Narrator: She hadn't seen the license plate.

The funny thing is that the actor playing Steve Holt looks more like you'd expect in real life, but for the new season they decided to age him with makeup.

I just finished the season. I didn't like it.

I think the format has its pros and cons. I like that the show mixed things up in that regard. However, I think it's a bit disingenuous to praise the show for something it pretty much had to do for logistical reasons rather than creative ones. (Speaking of: The green screen stuff was such a distraction.)

You guys called this season "dense." I think that's a good word. The pacing was awfully wonky, but I suppose that comes with the territory of watching the story overlap every episode. The season also really struggled with the added 10 minutes or so of runtime. It just didn't have that punchy feel of the original run.

Above all, I think my biggest problem is that it's just not all that funny, and I think that stems from its other issues. For me, the first Tobias episode was easily the best of the bunch. Other than that, it just doesn't really work for me not getting a serving of Gob, for example, every episode.

I need to rewatch, no doubt, but my first impressions aren't that great. I think the inability to get all the cast together was ultimately this season's downfall.

I finished the season, too, and I'm going to say that this may be my favorite season. I love how hilariously dark things get toward the end.

I don't see anything wrong with praising the show for creative decisions made for logistical rather than artistic reasons. The circumstances of a work's making always inform how a work turns out (take, for example, the accidental match-cut from LAWRENCE OF ARABIA).

So what's next? A movie? Another season? I'd imagine Netflix is sitting back and watching the money roll in, given how much buzz has been floating around the 'net the last few days.

Whatever's next for this franchise ... I just hope they do it right. Not to sound curmudgeon-y, but I'm willing to wait a few years if it means they can get the whole cast back together at once. I'm more than happy to watch House of Cards in the meantime.

For what it's worth, I did like that final shot of the season.

Jack Wade wrote:

So what's next? A movie? Another season?

Hurwitz planned for the former, but has now suggested that he's considering something other than a movie or a full season (perhaps a kind of miniseries?).

I'd be entirely fine with them essentially doing another version of what they did with season four (as I said, I think this could very well be my favorite season, and I came to really appreciate the slower rhythms of the show this time out), except for the fact that I think they need to have the whole family back together in the next ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT venture for thematic/narrative reasons. With the darkness that ends up permeating this season, I think whatever comes next will have to be almost apocalyptic.

Jack Wade wrote:

For what it's worth, I did like that final shot of the season.

I hope you kept watching through to the end of the credits.

Harmsway wrote:

Jack Wade wrote:

So what's next? A movie? Another season?

Hurwitz planned for the former, but has now suggested that he's considering something other than a movie or a full season (perhaps a kind of miniseries?).

Yeah. There have been so many rumors that it's really hard to make a wishlist for whatever happens next, be it a film, miniseries ... what have you. If it was this hard to get the whole cast back together for a full season, I have to imagine it's going to be a while before they can get everyone back together for a movie, no?

Harmsway wrote:

I'd be entirely fine with them essentially doing another version of what they did with season four (as I said, I think this could very well be my favorite season, and I came to really appreciate the slower rhythms of the show this time out), except for the fact that I think they need to have the whole family back together in the next ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT venture for thematic/narrative reasons. With the darkness that ends up permeating this season, I think whatever comes next will have to be almost apocalyptic.

Yeah, I can dig darkness, though I suppose AD has always been at least a little dark, given that the original run never really shied away from the whole incest thing.

On that note, one thing did make me kind of uncomfortable:

Spoiler:

Harmsway wrote:

Jack Wade wrote:

For what it's worth, I did like that final shot of the season.

I hope you kept watching through to the end of the credits.

I did, though I kind of wished everything ended with the credits.

Jack Wade wrote:

If it was this hard to get the whole cast back together for a full season, I have to imagine it's going to be a while before they can get everyone back together for a movie, no?

You would think. But they clearly have some kind of agreed-upon game plan that suggests some movement in the next few years (and I'm sure Netflix is eager to keep ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT going). The season is pretty open-ended, after all.

Jack Wade wrote:

On that note, one thing did make me kind of uncomfortable:

Spoiler:

I don't blame you. That was the darkest joke of the season.

So stuff gets darker? I like that. I've still only seen though Ep. 7. I kinda wish I'd done a whole marathon. Of the first three seasons, S2 is my favorite. Then S1. Then S3, which I'd said feels like a slightly Roger Moore Era version of the show. Perhaps we've reached the Tim Dalton Era of ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT. But I don't mind darker. I don't mind a different spin on the show. I've always liked it when it was slightly more grounded. The Martin Short character, the Brits. They always seemed too far to me.

As for a miniseries over a season or film. I'd say I'm not sure I'd know the difference between a miniseries and a season considering how S4 is developing.

To add on... My favorite moment of the new season? Not sure yet. I did like GOB's face after Ann accepts his marriage proposal. And the religious show with Alan Tudyk. I put no gods before Alan Tudyk. And it was cool to see a kid from the hall.

The White Tuxedo wrote:

So stuff gets darker?

Yeah. Not insanely dark or anything, but definitely darker than the show was before.

Yeah, the Gob stuff is great. One of the funnier moments of the season for me was:

Spoiler:

But that's one of my biggest disappointments: not getting enough of the good stuff. Daggum new format. I wanted more Gob and more Tobias. (And heck, even more Bob Loblaw. His one line was one of the best of the season.) I didn't want them just for the sake of having them, sure, but with the new format, it just doesn't seem like they get enough time.

Also agreed that season two was the best. I think the second season premiere is one of the funniest episodes of TV I think I've ever seen. And yeah, season three was a bit too zany for me as well. I never really got into the Mr. F stuff.

I love "Good Grief".

Jack Wade wrote:

But that's one of my biggest disappointments: not getting enough of the good stuff. Daggum new format. I wanted more Gob and more Tobias.

Taking the season as one eight-hour episode, which is really what it is, you really didn't get any "less" Gob or Tobias than you did with a regular episode (in fact, you spend more time with them than you did with characters like Lucille or Buster). But yeah, if you have a strong preference for certain characters over other characters, this season is going to bug you. But I've always loved the ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT family across the board, so I'm not horribly bothered by not having Gob or Tobias intrude every episode (or vice versa). They're all very funny.

I do think the new format has brought a surprising new quality to the show. ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT has always been a show about a family full of individuals who were so self-centered that communication is nearly impossible, but the show zipped along so quickly none of these essentially heinous acts they took had any sting. With this "quality time with the characters" format, this show has a new kind of bitterness and sadness (of course, it's a hilarious bitterness and sadness, and I love things like the callbacks to "The Sound of Silence"); choices and events add up a bit more, they cut deeper. The finale actually stings a bit. I found all of this surprising and very welcome.

Jack Wade wrote:

And yeah, season three was a bit too zany for me as well. I never really got into the Mr. F stuff.

Oh, I love the Mr. F/Rita storyline. But it is definitely zanier than what came before, and I'm pleased to see them give the show a little more grounding in season 4, rather than pushing things even further than they did in season 3.

This is an amazingly spot-on analysis of the show and the way it has evolved in its fourth season. Obviously, a spoiler warning applies.

Still only up to Ep. 9. Sorta taking my time. An episode a day now.

Dunno about anyone else, but my favorite addition to the cast is probably Tommy Tune. Even over Slattery. Not sure.



Maria Bamford is excellent as well. The relationship between DeBrie and Tobias is strangely affecting to me. At least for this show.

Debrix and Lucille 2's brother were the new characters that worked the best for me.

The last episode was a dud to me. If Michael Cera holds out again they should just drop the character. His schtick doesn't work anymore now that he's older. He offers nothing.

I thought the Buster joke mentioned above was one of the best.