Set in the 1970’s, ABC’s The Kids Are Alright instantly reminded me of The Wonder Years, a “comedy” that was more heartfelt than anything else. It’s narrated by Timmy, the fifth of seven brothers, who has artistic ambitions his family doesn’t understand. The initial premise didn’t excite me, but the execution is better than I anticipated.
The pilot starts off slow, with too many characters to introduce and not enough time to do that in. It focuses too much attention on the oldest brother’s decision to drop out of ministry college to become a hippie, a revelation that turns out to be a non-event and just leads to a few groan-worthy political jokes. The core of the show is Timmy and his relationship with his thick skinned mother, which takes over the story for the latter part of the pilot.
That mother/son relationship is at the core of the second episode, which far eclipses the pilot in both its comedic prowess and ability to focus on core characters. If you don’t hate what you see in the pilot on October 16th, definitely come back on the 23rd for “Timmy’s Poem.” It offers some genuine laughs and sentiment as Timmy comes to a new understanding with his mom after finding that they have both plagiarized the same poem.
Like The Goldbergs, the series counts on your built-in nostalgia for the 1970’s to keep your eyes wandering around the Cleary’s home. From woodgrain walls and yellow furniture to some iconic kids room wall hangings and cereal boxes, the set designers do a fantastic job of bringing this era back to life. The similarities to The Goldbergs mostly stop there, with the Cleary’s feeling like a larger, toned down version of Philly’s favorite loud family. Compared to the Arnolds they feel cut from a similar cloth but placed in more comedic situations.
I’ve already likened The Kids Are Alright to The Wonder Years and The Goldbergs, but the show it most closely resembles is Fox’s Malcolm in the Middle, which left a hole in the television landscape that never got filled. The Middle came close, but since Frankie was the main character, the kids were more periphery than Malcolm allowed for. Young Jack Gore shines in the lead role of Timmy and his performance of “Sing” will bring a big smile to your face. Mary McCormack is delightful as his mom, Peggy, and at times she reminded me of Jane Kaczmarek’s Lois, another Malcolm similarity.
I went into the pilot of The Kids Are Alright expecting to hate it and, indeed, the premiere episode doesn’t start off strong. But by the end of it, I was intrigued enough to give it another shot, Lo and behold, it surprised me and made me a fan. It promises laughs, it promises to make you smile, and if it plays it’s cards right, we might just fall in love with it for years to come.
I give The Kids are Alright 3.5 out of 5 rounds of the title song from Man of La Mancha.