4 out of 5

Created by: Jarrad Paul and Andrew Mogel

Give me a moment while I get over the WTF of this show not being renewed for a second season.

…

Smart writing, perfect casting – but the key here is the pitch; whichever genius stumbled over this particular arrangement of elements guaranteed the perfect balance of self-awareness and sitcom that would become The Grinder: an actor who plays a lawyer on TV retires from that gig and goes to live with his real-life lawyer brother, naturally assuming that his learned TV experience will be of much use in a real courtroom.  True, this could go in any dumb ol’ generic direction, but the tone of the series is solidified by the performances: Rob Lowe as Dean Sanderson, Jr. – the “Grinder” on the in-series TV show – turns out to be as melodramatic as his ‘fictional’ character in ‘real’ life, giving monologues and pursuing subplots and make barely coherent proclamations that sound convincing just because he says them with confidence; Fred Savage as his brother Stewart, bemused by his brother’s behavior but lacking the confidence of presentation despite being a sound lawyer, and thus often wishy-washing to co-opt some of Dean’s tactics; Mary Elizabeth Ellis as Stewart’s wife, on the same page as her husband but an amusing counterpoint as she gets to swing between both sides of the arguments as it suits her; William Devane as father Sanderson, also a lawyer, and hilariously whole-heartedly believing that there’s no reason his actor son shouldn’t get to be a lawyer; and a smattering of consistently featured TV hanger-ons, family members, and law-practicers, all either head-over-heels team Dean or (more rarely) team Stewart.  The exact balance struck to bring the comedy just to the cusp of being too winky is unbelievably admirable and pays off in spades: the show is able to consistently self-reference without breaking the fourth wall.  And rewardingly, while the show spins its wheels for a while, seeing how far the joke can stretch, at the mid-season point (having been granted a full season run…), the writers dig down to decide how they can make this work in the long run, which is when Grinder starts becoming that step-above level of genius, the satire wrapping in and in on itself.

The cast is uniformly likeable and lovable; from youngest to eldest, there isn’t a single person with whom we regret spending screentime.  Lowe and Savage’s interplay is hilarious; Savage has done his time since them classic child-actor years to prove he’s got glorious comic timing and sensibilities.  I’m honestly a bit surprised the show failed to find an audience, but it seems like people dropped out early on when the show was still kicking its winded horse.  That we at least got a non-truncated season is a blessing, but it also means now I have another painful wait before Natalie Morales and Steve Little find such great outlets for their comedic talents again.