"Dads" and "Brooklyn Nine-Nine"

I tried to work up some heated rancor for the new FOX sitcom "Dads." I really did. There's been a lot of outrage going around about its tawdry ethnic stereotyping, including putting Brenda Song in a skimpy Japanese schoolgirl outfit and pigtails in order to sway a group of Chinese investors, jokes about small penis size, and Martin Mull remarking that there's a reason why "Shanghai is a verb." Instead, I just came out of it feeling like I was trying to pick on a mentally deficient child. The show is so atrocious on its own merits, the racially insensitive humor was really the only interesting thing about it.

Created by the two writers of "Ted" who aren't Seth McFarlane, "Dads" is about a pair of friends, Warner (Giovanni Ribisi) and Eli (Seth Green), who run a gaming company with their assistant Veronica (Brenda Song). Warner, who is married to Camilla (Vanessa Lachey), bemoans the fact that his oblivious father, Crawford (Martin Mull), has moved in with them. Eli's father David (Peter Riegert) also ends up moving in with Eli by the end of the episode, despite the fact that he is a terrible person and Eli hates him. Both of the older men are horrible, cheap, tactless, selfish caricatures of failed fatherhood, and they make their embarrassed offspring miserable. There's barely any delineation between the characters except in the most superficial ways - Warner is the one who's married, employs a stereotypical Latina maid, Edna (Tonita Castro), and has trouble confronting his father's awful behavior. Eli's the bachelor who insults his father to his face.

I typically like Martin Mull and Seth Green and Brenda Song, and watching them have to go through the motions with this material was painful. The jokes weren't funny, coming across as tepid and whiny. None of the characters were remotely likeable, with the exception of the long-suffering Camilla. The racial jokes only came off as so jarring because they were so lazy and juvenile and thoughtless. The maid only understands English when she feels like it. The Chinese translator is a pervert who sends Veronica a selfie of his underwhelming package. Without the "oooohs" from the studio audience (paid off, I'm assuming), the schoolgirl get-up just looks desperate and sad. The show is so deadly dull, I'm surprised the "Dads" managed to offend anyone before it put them to sleep.

And that's all the digital ink I'm planning to waste on it.

Now "Brooklyn Nine-Nine," which follows "Dads" in the 8:30 PM slot is a lot more palatable. It's a workplace comedy that looks into the lives of the detectives at a fictional Brooklyn precinct who have just been assigned a new, stricter Captain, Ray Holt (Andre Braugher), who immediately rubs the precinct's star detective, Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg), the wrong way. Peralta's partner and love interest is ambitious fellow detective Amy Santiago (Melissa Fumero), and co-workers include the intense, intimidating Diaz (Stephanie Beatriz), milquetoast Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio), and sensitive squad leader Jeffords (Terry Crews).

This is a single camera show, so we get more dynamic cinematography and realistic environments, a la "Scrubs." The pilot features a big chase scene in the last act, and it could be mistaken at times for a dramatic procedural, especially with the presence of Andre Braugher. The comedy is nicely low-key and situational, staying away from anything too jokey. Peralta's immature, but he's treated as immature, and has plenty of good qualities to offset his frat boy mannerisms. Andy Samberg makes him very likeable, a brash guy with big ego, but one who ultimately responds well to Captain Holt's tough love tactics. He and Braugher establish some nice chemistry, and I can see the show building on it long-term. Samberg's scenes with Stephanie Beatriz are less encouraging, but it's early yet.

As workplace comedies go, this is a good start. The ensemble is solid, the writing's good, and it's an easy watch. The show's creators are veterans of "The Office" and "Parks and Rec," which makes me wonder why "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" isn't airing on NBC. Anyway, my biggest complaint is that the cast feels a little thin at the moment, but that's likely because actors like Terry Crews haven't been given much to do yet. I'm curious about how Andre Braugher's going to be utilized going forward, especially in light of the little revelation at the end of the episode. I'm also a little worried about relationship drama taking over the show, as at least three different love connections are teased over the course of twenty-two minutes.

So there are your additions to the FOX Tuesday night comedy block, one godawful show leading into a potentially good one. And I look forward to abandoning both of them for Marvel's "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." over on ABC starting next week.
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