READY FOR PRIME TIME
NBC’s ‘Kenan’ warm, winning, thought-provoking humor
Considering Kenan Thompson has the longest alltime tenure as a “Saturday Night Live” cast member, having joined the likes of Darrell Hammond, Seth Meyers, Jimmy Fallon, Tina Fey and Fred Armisen in 2003 and continuing through the current season, it’s a wonder it took NBC this long to hand Thompson the keys to his own prime-time vehicle, a single-camera comedy titled simply “Kenan.”
Better pretty great than never.
I’ve seen the pilot for “Kenan,” also on NBC, and while it’s hardly groundbreaking, must-see TV, it’s a warm and funny sliceof-comfort viewing, featuring a winning performance by Thompson, strong work from the supporting cast and some admirably thought-provoking, issues-based situations baked into the comedy. Thompson maintains his sunny but occasionally edgy persona as he slips comfortably into the role of a recently widowed father struggling to balance fatherhood and his job as the host of an upbeat, Atlantabased, local morning TV show called “Wake Up With Kenan!”
And oh, BTW, Don Johnson plays his meddling, live-in father-in-law, and if that sounds like stunt casting, of course it is, but Johnson proves to be adept at the rhythms of dialogue-driven, punch line-oriented comedic timing. I’m not saying he’ll make you forget Jerry Stiller, but there’s something kind of wacky and wonderful about seeing Thompson, fellow “SNL” player Chris Redd as Kenan’s brother Gary and the slickster crime-stopper from “Miami Vice” and “Nash Bridges” exchanging banter around the kitchen table while Kenan’s adorable daughters crack up at these loving but often clueless adults/parental units.
The pilot toggles back and forth between scenes of Kenan at home with his two whipsmart daughters, Aubrey and Birdie (real-life sisters and YouTube stars Dani and Dannah Lane, respectively), his party-bachelor brother/ manager and his wisecracking father-in-law, and workplace high jinks on the set of “Wake Up With Kenan!” with Kimrie Lewis as Kenan’s high-strung but loyal executive producer, Mika.
One subplot involves Kenan digging himself deeper and deeper into politically incorrect territory with an ad-libbed monologue; another has Kenan struggling to talk about his wife on his show or at home. We also learn Kenan was formerly an actor and starred in a sitcom in which his future wife, Cori (Niccole Thurman), played his mother. Wait, what? Kenan pops in an old VHS of outtakes from the show, and the kids groan at the obvious sexual undercurrent when “Mom” tucks him into bed. “I’m amazed they kept us as long as they did,” Kenan says.
Here’s hoping “Kenan” has a longer run.