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<i>Dr. Ken</i> – “Ken’s New Intern” Review. And an Episode.

Season 2, Episode 12

Air Date: Friday, January 6, 2017, 8:30/7:30c on ABC

Rating: ★★★★★

“So I lost my virginity to Damona’s voice?” – Pat

Ken (Ken Jeong) is caught off guard when his attractive new intern Erin (Gillian Jacobs) begins flirting with him. Fearing what Allison (Suzy Nakamura) will do if she learns about it, Ken races to confess to her. Much to his dismay, Allison isn’t threatened by Erin, at least not at first. Will Allison be able to tolerate Erin’s flirty demeanor or find herself feeling insecure over the attention Ken is getting?

“Ken’s New Intern” offers another entertaining Community mini-reunion as Jacobs, who played Britta on the NBC/Yahoo series along with Jeong, guest stars. This is the fourth appearance by a Community alum, which includes Joel McHale, Danny Pudi, and Jim Rash. It’s always special when stars from previous shows reunite and “Ken’s New Intern” is no exception. Jacobs and Jeong are a delight onscreen together, but given the duo’s antics on Community, it would have been nice had the writers let loose a tad more with Erin and perhaps make her ‘Britta’d’ something. Community fans will know what I’m talking about.

Meanwhile, Ken’s father D.K. (Dana Lee) can’t contain his excitement as he waits to hear about Molly’s (Krista Marie Yu) first date with Jae (Justin Chon). After all, he’s the one who set the two up in traditional Korean fashion. D.K.’s elation is short lived after learning Jae hasn’t texted Molly since their date. Determined to learn why, D.K. and Molly enlist Dave’s (Albert Tsai) help with a covert mission to get answers—so covert Dave isn’t even aware he’s part of the plan.

I’m a big fan of Lee’s and usually laugh at his portrayal of D.K., which often is as a big kid, especially in his interactions with Yu and Tsai. As much as I enjoy D.K. helping Molly with her dating struggles, it is overshadowed by the other storylines in the episode. Dave’s involvement in D.K.’s plan could have made for a hilarious scene but we only get to hear about it instead of seeing it play out. With Jacobs’ guest star appearance and everything else going on in “Ken’s New Intern,” Molly’s dating life drew the short straw.

The highlight of “Ken’s New Intern” is Damona’s (Tisha Campbell-Martin) storyline, which gives Campbell-Martin the opportunity to belt out a few songs. Campbell-Martin is a talented singer who released an album aptly named Tisha in 1993. In “Ken’s New Intern,” Damona’s boyfriend Eric (Jerry Minor) is shocked to learn she sang vocals in C & C Music Factory’s 1990 dance jam song “Gonna Make You Sweat” but never got credit for her work or the song’s success. This leads to an epic confrontational sing-off as Damona finally confronts Robert Clivilles and Zelma Davis of C & C Music Factory, who play themselves in the episode.

Written by Jim Brandon and Brian Singleton and directed by Anthony Rich, “Ken’s New Intern” may not be my favorite episode of Dr. Ken but it still has enough heart to make it enjoyable. Fans will love seeing Jeong and Jacobs on screen again and Clark’s (Jonathan Slavin) scenes with Eric are surprisingly funny.

Tweet me @Staffaroadtrip or leave a comment below to let me know what you think about “Ken’s New Intern.”

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All photos © 2017 American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 

Greg Staffa

I provide testosterone to the site. You won’t be reading about how nice a actress looks in a dress or how much of a hunk Matt Bomer is in my reviews. I describe colors using words like brown, not taupe. My twitter name is @staffaroadtrip because I love road trips and have done two different 48-state road trips since 2008. My favorite show is White Collar.

Greg Staffa

I provide testosterone to the site. You won’t be reading about how nice a actress looks in a dress or how much of a hunk Matt Bomer is in my reviews. I describe colors using words like brown, not taupe. My twitter name is @staffaroadtrip because I love road trips and have done two different 48-state road trips since 2008. My favorite show is White Collar.