‘Animal Control’ is all too human
At the risk of stating the obvious, the first word in the title of the new comedy “Animal Control” (9 p.m., Fox, TV-PG) is “animal.” I mention that only because the creators of this series emphasize the workplace shenanigans and a very tired buddy-cop routine at the expense of the kinds of easy laughs critters can provide.
Seemingly inspired by “Parks & Recreation” and “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “Animal” consists of very chatty civil servants spouting long and elaborate patches of dialogue. Frank (Joel McHale) is the worst offender.
He’s a cranky ex-cop, forced to quit after exposing corruption in the ranks. This has left him continually cynical and apt to correct everyone else’s grammar and word usage. It doesn’t seem to upset his co-workers, but it may not exactly amuse the audience for this sitcom. There is absolutely no explanation why this dyspeptic wordsmith ended up where he did. And he’s not the only mystery. How did Victoria (Grace Palmer), a sexually frank gay woman with an Australian accent, land this job?
Ravi Patel plays Amit, a beleaguered dad who sees the job as an escape from his demanding teens and toddlers at home. In the pilot’s one vaguely amusing scene, he arrives to rescue a dog that remained faithfully by the corpse of his owner, dead for three days and apparently unmissed and unmourned. Rather than play on the pathos of the moment, Amit revels in the idea of going three days without any demands from his wife and kids.
Vella Lowell plays Emily, the socially awkward office manager, given to baking cookies for the gang and stumbling into inappropriate situations by trying too hard. She comes as close as anyone to Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) of “Parks & Rec.”
Michael Rowland is the only character with the potential for growth. He’s “Shred,” a former snowboarder who came very close to Olympic glory before an injury knocked him off the slopes. While many “X Games”-types have been cast as swaggering dudes dating back some 30 years, “Shred” projects an unfailing niceness and sense of gratitude for second chances that drives Frank crazy.
The bitter ex-police officer spends much of the pilot playing pranks on his sunny partner. These seem wildly contrived, and they distract from the potential fun of watching them interact with various dogs, cats, rodents, emus and ostriches.
Animals and their eccentric owners can be very amusing. “Animal Control” all but ignores them. As a result, I didn’t laugh once.
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