Better Off Ted: Smart, silly and obviously horribly doomed

by Guest Clacker

Nicole Yates is back Guest Clacking for us again….

Victor Fresco’s Better Off Ted gives me hope that networks actually want to take a chance on something quirky and hilarious. Unfortunately, these types of chances don’t usually last very long. Let me explain.

Better Off Ted stars Jay Harrington as Ted, a button up kinda guy who is the head of R&D at Veridian Dynamics, a company that makes pretty much everything. It’s a sort of veiled GE if you will, promptly explained with a hilarious opening ad for the company in which they explain they are everywhere and do everything (including making a sheep). Jay is more or less the straight guy, with his little daughter as his conscience.

Ted has to deal with his boss Veronica, who could come off as a psycho or a Jack Donaghy clone if not for her odd understanding of her overlords (the upper, never seen bosses) and her hilarious can-do attitude that Jay also shares. Portia de Rossi takes one part Lindsay from Arrested Development and a tiny bit of Olivia from Nip/Tuck and rolls it into Veronica, a bun-wearing corporate soldier. What really sells her character for me is that she delivers all of her lines like she walked out of an old screwball comedy, goofy facial expressions and all.

Alison Anders plays Linda, the testing manager and the normal person thrown into this wacky world of corporate everything. She’s not all normal though, and I do love her hoarding the creamers in her desk and writing the weird children’s book. The odd sexual tension between her and Ted is only fleeting (I’m hoping) and I am also hoping only sort of touched on as episodes go by. Anders was last on Joey and The Class, one show that was funnier than it got credit for (Joey. And yes, I thought it was funny for the one liners.) and one show that had flashes of funny with the obligatory love story in the middle that ruined the whole thing. Playing the normal person in this odd conglomerate might just be her shot.

Rounding out our players are the two scientists: Lem and Phil (Malcolm Barret and Jonathan Slavin) who bounce off each other in a great way, using their banter to show they have been working together for so long that they sort of function like a married couple. Freezing Phil showed that not only would the company pretty much do whatever it wanted, but their employees were on board for these shenanigans as well.

The uncredited cast member of this show is the music. Using old school ’50s samba type music keeps the story moving along at a nice clip, where without it, it would slightly awkward. It’s a shame ABC hadn’t picked this show up sooner because it would have ran for awhile nicely paired with Scrubs.

I don’t like to judge a show completely by the pilot. Pilots are hard because in 22 minutes they have to introduce the characters and all of their motivations and get the ball rolling. Usually a show needs six or so episodes to really find their feet.

But! I feel good in saying that this show is a winner. Unfortunately, it is funny, quirky, smart and even funny-wrong (my favorite kind of funny) all rolled into one. Usually those types of shows cater to a smarter audience (see: Arrested Development, WKRP In Cincinnati, or Andy Richter Controls The Universe, which was coincidentally created by Fresco as well and bares not a casual resemblance to BOT) and by smaller, I mean SMALLER. Like, getting beat in the ratings by American Idol smaller. Then the time slot shuffle begins. Perhaps ABC will try and promote it heavily and even get it up on Hulu. I can see it finding a cult audience.

Who knows.

What I do know is this: my heart has been broken more then a few times by the networks cancelling smart & funny shows. I have a terrible feeling this show might be a casualty of that soon. Or maybe not. Stranger things have happened.