"Better Off Ted"

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"BETTER OFF TED"
Premiered March 2009, ABC
Created by Victor Fresco

My favorite new television show of the past year that I fear not enough people even know about, much less watch, is "Better Off Ted". The title character, Ted Crisp (Jay Harrington), is an executive in the research and development department of a large multinational company called Veridian Dynamics. Veridian does a little bit of everything, from weapons manufacturing and jet packs to food additives and furniture and probably everything in between. His direct boss is Veronica (Portia de Rossi), a self-centered and apparently soulless executive who values the corporation over all things, including the welfare of her employees or humanity at large. Ted actually has a strong moral compass so he spends much if his time balancing the goals of the company against common sense and the common good.

Ted's team chiefly consists of two scientists Lem (Malcolm Barrett) and Phil (Jonathan Slavin) who partner in the lab to create the wide variety of potential products for Veridian, and Linda (Andrea Anders) who works on the cost and marketing side. Ted and Linda have a flirty potentially romantic relationship, except that Ted has complicated things by having a previous (if brief) relationship with Veronica, and has decided to limit himself to one office affair. Ted is also divorced and is the single parent of a daughter, Rose (Isabella Acres).

So those are the major characters and set-up. The tone is fast-paced, deadpan and thankfully has no laugh track (so glad we've moved past that convention). It's kinda sorta a bit like say The Hudsucker Proxy by way of "Arrested Development" with a dash of Bringing Up Baby. Ted speaks directly to the audience, though without the device of this somehow being a documentary but simply breaking the "fourth wall". For the six or seven of you familiar with the short-lived but quite good series "Andy Richter Controls the Universe" (2002-2003), it has a similar tone to that, though a little more slick and streamlined. It also shares a cast member, Jonathan Slavin. And this is no accident or coincidence, as both shows were created and executive produced by Victor Fresco.


Here, check out this promo that should give you an idea of what I'm talking about...








That the company is interested in making EVERYTHING, so long as it is profitable, gives the show limitless possibilities as far as what inane or insane thing is being worked on this week. As with any good show, the "what" becomes increasingly inconsequential, it's the relationship between the characters that drives it. But here's an example of one of the developing products causing problems for the characters...





The romantic comedy angle between Ted and Linda (and sometimes Veronica) works very well, with a dash of Screwball timing but a modern sensibility in regards to mores and an awareness of the width and breadth of screen romance from His Girl Friday to When Harry Met Sally... and beyond. Here's a typical bit of Ted and Linda's interaction...




The first seven episodes of "Better Off Ted" aired from March to May of 2009, and the next six in the summer, completing its first "season" at half of a usual network order. Despite some good reviews I don't think "Ted" got any kind of audience, numbers wise. Happily ABC decided to renew it and give it a slot anyway. The second season debuts on Tuesday December 8th and the first season will be available on R1 DVD the week before, December 1st. I believe most (if not all) of the first season episodes are also still on the ABC website, HERE.

LOVE this show and hope it survives for a while. ABC is finally starting to build a decent comedy stable. I enjoy "Modern Family" and "Cougar Town", both of which debuted this September, but "Better Off Ted" has the potential to be more than good but be in the same class as "30 Rock" and "The Office" and "How I Met Your Mother" and the best sitcoms the networks have going these days.

Check it out.

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Watched every one of these suckers when they first aired, and I'm definitely looking forward to the next batch of 'em.

The comparison to The Hudsucker Proxy is spot-on, and the more it feels like that film, the more I tend to like the show. I'm actually a little less in love with it than you are, Holds, but it's really just a matter of degree. I think the first few episodes are brimming with potential, but that most of them just don't quite come together the way I normally hope they will. But there's a lot to work with here, so it's understandable that it might take them some time to get a handle on how best to exploit the premise and handle each character. Given all that, Season 1 was an incredibly promising start.

I thought the last two episodes, "Jabberwocky" and "Secrets and Lives", were probably the two best of the entire year, which gives me a lot of hope going forward. I'll definitely keep watching.

Re: ratings. Yeah, they've been rough. It debuted to 5.6 million viewers and held over 4 million for each of its first 6 episodes. But -- surprise, surprise -- it took a big dip after the break, and an even bigger dip after that first return episode, bottoming out at 1.78 million. It rebounded with the last two espidoes, however, at 2.75 and 2.42 million. Seems reasonable that a show like this might take a bit of time to find an audience, I suppose, so hopefully this is a breakout year for Better Off Ted.

"I'll have to break the news to Mordor the Unmerciful. I just hope he understands."

"Veridian Dynamics: We're Sorry. You're Welcome."