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.
The reviewer seems to have gone indepth here, with knowledge of the plotline(s) and background.
ReplyDeleteI am a little unclear if this is a cartoon or a live show.
That might have been more clear, too, if the writer had quoted two outside critics who also looked at the show.
Good analysis on the part of the columnist, just needs some details - and backup.
When is it on, anyway?