'Dads' Pilot Review: A Good Idea For A Sitcom That Fails To Deliver Any Laughs

The pre-premiere discussion of producer Seth MacFarlane's new sitcom Dads was enough to get viewers to tune in when the show premiered Tuesday night on Fox. Word of the show's sexist and racist humor had traveled, but was no real surprise considering the well-known and beloved humor of Family Guy and Ted creator MacFarlane. It peaked my interest for sure.

Dads has all the makings of a funny, out-there half-hour sitcom. Stars Seth Green and Giovanni Ribisi both have solid track records and are funny and likeable. Veteran actors Martin Mull and Peter Riegert have been proven to bring the funny for decades, with Mull working on a long list of sitcoms including The Ellen Show, 'Til Death, Two and a Half Men, and Arrested Development. And Reigert, despite being known more of a dramatic character actor, starred in the comedic classic Animal House.

Dads has a solid premise: two life-long best friends who own a video game designing firm get their lives turned upside down when their fathers move in with them. Sounds like a funny enough set up. Unfortunately, reviews of the premiere episode have dubbed the show the worst premiere of the new season. Ouch. Let's discuss.

Again, no surprise knowing MacFarlane, but the show utilizes racial stereotypes and sexist remarks for laughs. This would be okay, at least to me, if the jokes were funny. But sadly, they weren't. For example, the pilot centers around a business meeting with Chinese investors leading the dad played by Mull to say to his son "The Chinese are a lovely and honorable people, but you can't trust them! There's a reason Shanghai is a verb!"

Most one-liners fell flat and the show's laugh track did nothing to persuade me that the show was funny or that something was wrong with me for not laughing. Instead, I found it irritating. Most shows have said goodbye to that formula, and instead of being nostalgic and adding a fun, live-audience element, the laugh track is simply distracting and seems weird. Why would people be laughing at these jokes?

Overall, the show has an awkward, uncomfortable feel to it, and not in the genius, hilarious way of Modern Family or New Girl. More in the vein of "is this it?" or "they couldn't do better than this?"

The women in the show are basically just there as background. Was it really necessary to have Ribisi's character's wife, played by Vanessa Lachey, frosting a cake in the only scene where they are having an actually normal husband and wife conversation? Silliness. It's also pretty terrible that his father (Mull) refers to her as a maid. She's Latina. Get it? Also, you don't know your son's wife, who you live with? That makes no sense. Furthermore, the idea that an Asian female coworker, played by Brenda Song, needed to dress as Sailor Moon to impress Chinese investors is not a funny premise. What happened MacFarlane? You used all your good ideas in Ted?

Truthfully, there have been plenty of shows where the premieres were less than great, and the shows go on to impress. As stated, I'm a fan of the two stars and MacFarlane, so I will give the show another try. Word on the street is the chemistry and rhythm of the four lead characters improves a lot in the second episode. And the plot of the second episode, “Heckuva Job, Brownie,” enters less offensive waters, with a story about Green's character needing an intervention to get back on drugs in order to make video games more effectively.

I guess we'll have to wait and find out. But if the next episode doesn't deliver better jokes, viewers will probably check out, as the Fall television schedule is jam-packed with shows that could potentially win viewers over more efficiently.

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