Premiering March 1st at 9pm for back to back episodes comes FOX's newest comedy The Last Man on Earth, starring Will Forte. The year is 2020, and after a deadly virus has swept the planet only one man is left on earth: Phil Miller. The show takes places in Tuscan and does a good of job of presenting itself as an empty city with waste lying everywhere, a dozen cars parked in the middle of nowhere, it looks authentic enough for the viewer to believe that he is the only man on earth.
The biggest question I had going into the première was can Will Forte carry the show, I am still undecided on that. For the most part of the première episode he spends wandering around the streets of Tuscan trying to build his own fortress of solitude by stealing (well technically not stealing anymore) items such as paintings, artefacts, and other interesting items. He finds his dream house which he decides to make his home base after spending a lot of time driving around the world trying to find other survivors, sadly there wasn't any.
Phil Miller spends a lot of time during the episode trying to entertain himself as much as possible, whilst some of the things he did were entertaining, ultimately I felt once a good scene came around the scene that followed it wasn't nearly as good. There was little in terms of dialogue, which was fairly obvious going into the première episode, but when he did speak I found him less entertaining and humorous than when he didn't. The show for me works best as a silent comedy as it truly captures Phil's loneliness.
When he did speak though the jokes fell flat, and I felt as if I had already heard them all before, so I felt a bit of a been there done that vibe to the show. There was also various scenes that were meant to come across as entertaining, but I just found them weird and extremely awkward to see, such as him making out with a mannequin was not a particular highlight of the episode.
The show does have potential, but it lacks creativity and original jokes. A show based on 1 man was always going to be difficult to pull off, and I applaud FOX for taking the risk, but I just don't think it's for me.
However, that was just the première episode, and as we all know they are never a shows brightest, and best episodes. The second episode was much more thrilling and enjoyable because the show introduced something at the end of the first episode that changed the show entirely. The show was much more tolerable, and I started to warm to the show and the character that is Phil Miller. He was much more entertaining to watch, and I even broke into laughter on a few occasions. Sadly I can't talk about what happened, as it's a massive spoiler/plot line for the show. All I can do is strongly recommend you check out the second episode of the show.
Summary
The first episode is a hit and miss, but I strongly urge you to watch the second episode, as once you see the big reveal at the end of the first episode you will understand why/how the show gets better.
1.01 Alive in Tuscan 5/10
1.02 The Elephant in the Room 8.5/10
As always, thank you for reading! Be sure to tune in March 9th for the first second episode of The Last Man on Earth!
