HEADS OR TAILS
McHale leads motley crew in ‘Animal Control’
JOEL MCHALE takes a walk on the wild side in “Animal Control ”— which doesn’t reinvent the wheel but is entertaining nonetheless. The Fox sitcom, premiering Feb. 16 (9 p.m.), was created by Rob Greenberg and Bob Fisher (“The Moodys,” “Wedding Crashers”) and follows the personal and professional lives of group of Animal Control workers in Seattle who deal with all kinds of critters and creepy-crawlies.
There’s Frank (McHale), a snarky ex-cop fired for exposing corruption who considers himself a “lone wolf ” and is bummed to be paired with his rookie partner Fred (Michael Rowland), a cheerful former snowboarder who isn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer and is determined to bond with Frank. Then there’s quirky Australian Victoria (Grace Palmer); Amit (Ravi Patel), who takes phone calls during work where he sings to his son; their nervous and awkward boss Emily (Vella Lovell, “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend”), who Frank likes because he says she’s easy to manipulate; office manager Dolores (Kelli Ogmundson); and their in-house vet, Dr. Summers (Alvina August), who everyone jumps to assist with tasks (they call her the “hot vet”). Everyone gets enraged when she seems interested in newbie Fred.
“Animal Control” has all the usual beats of workplace sitcoms including “Abbot Elementary ,”“The Office” and “Superstore,” mixing up personal rivalries, inside jokes and oddball personalities. The animal control angle adds a dose of wackiness to the otherwise typical shenanigans.
For example, right off the bat, Frank and Fred have to deal with a couple who wants to celebrate an anniversary, but they have an unidentified animal in their attic. When Frank goes off to get coffee and Fred tries to handle the situation alone, it quickly spirals out of control as he assures the client that whatever animal it is, it’s probably “a sweet little guy” — before the animal rushes him and he’s soon shrieking, “The teeth! It’s like a tiny furry vampire!”
It’s low-hanging fruit as far as comedy goes, but it gets the job done to create an amusing scenario that’s fun to watch. So do a handful of other situations, such as Frank and Fred getting called to deal with ostriches.
The cast is good, and longtime TV vet McHale anchors the ensemble with practiced ease.
If a sitcom is like a chemistry experiment, stirring together the right mix of cast, premise, and crisp writing, “Animal Control” has all the right ingredients. It’s not breaking any new ground– or doing very much with the premise beyond using the animals to create off-thewall situations. But it’s a pleasant diversion. It remains to be seen whether it intends to plumb the hinted-at darker grittier depths to Frank, or if it intends to just make occasional references to his past and his misanthropic tendencies. It’s a show that has literal teeth but not much bite … so far.