Delocated: A Goofy Spoof (That's Actually Quite Entertaining)

"What happens when you take a family from the Witness Protection Program, move them to New York City, and give them their own reality show?" When browsing around for a television show to write about, that premise caught the eye quicker than any other. It's genius! Well, maybe genius is an overstatement, but it at least seemed somewhat funny. It's the premise of the television show comedy Delocated, and it airs during Cartoon Network's Adult Swim programming.

The story follows the life of a man after he testifies against a member of the Russian mafia. He must take his family into FBI protection and remain undercover, which is especially difficult given that he agreed to take part in a reality show based on his life in the Witness Protection Program. As part of the deal, the family is relocated to a loft in New York, where camera crews record every moment of the family's life. Most of the focus is on the fictional reality show that exists within Delocated, that is, it contains and develops a cast of characters that produce the fictional reality show.

Most of the comical moments in the show take place when main character "Jon" (an alias established by the Witness Protection Program) interacts with his divorced ex-wife, girlfriend, or his son. There's an indescribable appeal to the way that this incredibly self-absorbed (to the point of narcissism) character treats everything like a joke to the point of awkwardness, constantly overstates his own greatness and simultaneously belittles everyone around him.

The ways that Delocated explores the logic of an exaggerated version of a frat-boy kept me entertained throughout. An example of the typical dialogue: "Jon, I have to speak with you in private," The teacher of Jon's son says, referring to the son's frequent absences from school. "Listen, I appreciate the offer and all, but I don't know if it would be appropriate to take my son's teacher to the 'Bone Zone', know what I mean?" Jon says, leaving a half perplexed and half revolted look on the teacher's face.

Delocated does some serious mocking of the reality television genre through its portrayal of the fictional reality show. The lead producer of the reality show "Mighty Joe John, The Black Blonde" is constantly instigating the Russian Mafia to seek out the fleeing family in order to increase ratings. While obviously ridiculous, creating unethical situations for increased viewership is something that seems to be turning into a reality show convention. Exposing a darker side of television through deadpan humor and black comedy adds an extra level of enjoyment to watching the show.

Despite how enjoyable the show has been thus far, Delocated's humorously convoluted story could be its eventual downfall. If the next season introduces even more characters and sub-plots, it could detract from the fundamental purpose of the show: Laughter. Primarily, people will be watching Delocated for comedic therapy. Spending more time setting up dramatic elements takes away from time that could be spent splitting sides. No one wants another The Office.

Some viewers might find the humor to be rather easy or immature at certain points, but it is for the most part, a well-written and acted comedy. Which really is no surprise considering that most of the jokes are written by Jon Glaser (plays the character "Jon"), who was part of the writing staff for Late Night With Conan O' Brian for many years. The producers have created other Adult Swim hits such as Wonder Showzen and Xavier: Renegade Angel. Going into its third season, Delocated has potential to be either a significantly deeper and still hilarious show or transform into that overly complicated and only occassionaly funny show. Either way, it seems to be in good hands.

Lucca Restaurant & Bar: Great Happy Hour or Greatest Happy Hour?

Being perfectly honest, after first arriving at Lucca, my expectations were set pretty low. From the outside, it looked like a restaurant/bar that places more importance on being a bar than being a restaurant. Other midtown restaurants instantly came to mind like a post-war flashback, places like Bistro 33 (recently went out of business) and the always popular and consistently less than satisfactory Hanger 17. Perhaps my judgment was a bit hasty, because my opinion began to change quickly following being seated.

"Cozy" is definitely what the decor aimed to be. High ceilings, brick walls, tiled floors and warm lighting is usually synonymous with somewhere that you would go to relax, or to take a date. As for whether it actually achieved the vibe it was shooting for... I would say not completely. The large, colorful, and ultimately jarring paintings of animals that hung on the wall clashed with the overall theme. Also, wicker chairs aren't usually the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about a comfortable environment.

Given that we arrived within the 3-6 p.m. time frame, we were given a small menu that said "Happy Hour: Bites from the Kitchen" in bold print on the top. In an attempt to bring as much variety to the table as possible, we ordered all 12 appetizers on the menu. The thought of ordering multiple appetizers at a restaurant would usually make my wallet cower in fear, however, the prices during Lucca's happy hour are mind-bogglingly low. The most expensive appetizer on the happy hour menu was $3, which is low enough to boost even my bank account's confidence.

Not so surprisingly, the happy hour drink menu was just as moderately priced. A selection of about 14 different beers, wines, and cocktails were available for around $2 each. Paul and I ordered the "El Toro" Amber Ale, one of the three beers on tap. We were looking to come up with a meaningful critique of the beverage. "Well, it tastes like... Beer," said Paul, which pretty much summed up the entirety of our opinion on the drink.

The service staff was helpful, friendly, and definitely more than aware of the fact that we were going to be writing critical reviews of the restaurant. Them being aware of our purpose probably had a drastic effect on the level of service we received. But really, how could you ever complain about such excellent service? Regardless of the situation, the waiter seemed to be very attentive to the quality of the food. He even went so far as to return one of the plates to the kitchen because he thought it wasn’t up to standards.

When the appetizers came out, the quality of Lucca as a restaurant was demonstrated in the perfect little morsels of food that each plate contained. There were zucchini chips perfectly cut into thin slices and fried to a crisp golden brown, surprisingly fresh mussels in a rich white wine sauce and perfectly cooked steak on a skewer with a tasty pesto blend. These weren’t conventional appetizers by any means. The highlight was the meatball with polenta and marinara. The meatball was perfectly cooked and balanced with Italian herbs, but it was the unbelievably smooth and creamy polenta that stole the show. Polenta has never quite reached that level of creaminess before, and it was a textural phenomenon that I’ll not soon forget.

One of the low points of the meal was one of the appetizers brought out that was supposedly off the menu. It was the cauliflower fritters with harissa sauce. The fritters had an interestingly light texture, but had really no flavor to speak of. The Tunisian harissa sauce didn’t make up for the missing flavor in the fritters, and it lacked a spicy kick that might’ve saved the dish. Also, the salty and spicy almonds along with the walnut and brie plate weren’t necessarily low points so much as they were dull in comparison to the other appetizers. These two appetizers felt more like food that one would only order to accompany a strong drink, but nothing that could ever hold up as an individual dish.

Contrary to my low expectations, Lucca proved to deliver an excellent dining experience. The happy hour menu provides a very small taste of the type of food that the restaurant is all about. Thankfully, that small taste was delicious enough to make me want to return for a more complete meal. The passion for ingredients and extra attention to execution came through in the petite bites that we were given, and it was more than enough to grab my interest. If the intent of this happy hour is to present a teaser in hopes that it's enjoyable enough to come back for the dinner menu, they've succeeded.