The pilot starts just as the preview clips do: with Sean and his daughter discussing how he came to be gay. It was a mildly funny thing to see the first time, but does not hold its charm upon second viewing.
Since the dynamic of the show is a dad trying to balance home and work, let’s see how they work.
At Home:
Sean’s mother doesn’t seem to put very much stock in him and accuses him of “tearing into” her when he suggests that “sometimes [she’s] negative.” I agree with Sean’s statement “how it’s time for grandma to go out into the hall.” Despite multiple assertions that his mother is the best part of the show, to me she is the character that needs to leave the soonest.
At Work:
Sean’s assistants are awkward. Both of them are.
Sean’s boss is…odd and is awkward when he’s not being confusing. He’s too goofy to be taken seriously as a villain, but he’s not endearing enough to be a likable antagonist. If he delivers a less hot -and-cold performance in the upcoming weeks, he could redeem himself.
The Breakdown:
Is online retail an interesting topic for a workplace comedy? No.
Is single gay parenting an interesting topic for Sean? Yes.
Does Sean Save the World? You’ll have to watch to find out.
So far, it’s not even as good as last year’s Partners (from Will & Grace writers), which is to say, that it’s not great, and I’m not sure it’s going anywhere. The first half of the episode was pretty well contained in the two or three minutes that NBC released back in June.
Would I watch more episodes: I would because the show redeems itself slightly in the back half of the pilot. If it focuses more on the relationship between Sean and his daughter, it will be a pleasant, inoffensive show. If they decide to focus more on the workplace, I don’t think I’ll continue to watch.
2.5/5 - Has merits, needs work.
I did enjoy this first episode. When I learned that Sean was gonna play a gay single dad my first thought was " please god, don't let him be the typical feminine gay/diva/drama queen stereotype he was on will and grace" and I must say I was pleasantly surprised, because while there was some gay joke(the cow boy thing was actually pretty funny, his character is not written as a complete cliche. I think his relationship with his mother and daughter are interesting. Considering the daughter's " confession" at the end of the episode, I think that despite being a comedy this show might end up giving us a few sad moments.
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