The Great Indoors – “Pilot” Advance Review. Please Like and Retweet My Work

Season 1, Episode 1

Air Date: Thursday, October 27, 2016, 8:30/7:30c on CBS

Rating: ★★★★★

“You can’t post animal videos and call it journalism.” – Jack Gordon

Stephen Fry and Joel McHale

Jack Gordon (Joel McHale), renowned adventure reporter for Outdoor Limits Magazine finds himself hanging up his backpack after Roland (Stephen Fry), the magazine’s founder, pulls Jack from the field and puts him in charge of the publication’s digital division. Will Jack be able to adjust to working with a bunch of millennials or will the political correctness of the office be his downfall?

I became a casual fan of McHale’s after occasionally watching episodes of Community throughout the years. It wasn’t until I did a conference call with McHale and his Community co-star Jim Rash that I realized how truly funny McHale is. The call was like listening to two five-year-olds who had been fed too much sugar and then handed the phone. McHale’s natural comedic talent came through during the call and I have never laughed so hard during an interview as I did with him and Rash. When I learned McHale was starring in The Great Indoors, I knew it was a show I’d want to watch. Based on the series premiere, I was right.

Hanging around the office.

Not only must Jack learn the names of the magazine staff, but their job titles as well, which, in his mind, sound made up. There’s Clark (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), the magazine’s online content curator; Emma (Christine Ko), the social influencer; and Mason (Shaun Brown), the digital conversation specialist. Making matters even more difficult for Jack is his new boss, Brooke (Susannah Fielding). Brooke is not only Roland’s daughter, but unbeknownst to him, she once dated Jack.

Much of the humor in The Great Indoors stems from the differences in life experiences among the rugged Jack, who has traveled the world living off the land, and his 20-something millennial co-workers who live their lives online. To Clark, Emma, and Mason, life is viewed through the lens of social media, and success is judged by how many likes or retweets you get. In their minds, watching a YouTube video of bears playing in a pool is no different from Jack sharing a personal story about watching baby bears in Alaska on Kodiak Island. While Jack believes in hard work and experiencing life through your eyes and not the lens of your phone, Brooke feels everyone deserves trophies in life just for participating.

Millennials

Times have changed and so has the work environment. As someone in his 40s who has had to look for work over the last few years, I found Jack’s frustration with his co-workers relatable and very entertaining. It’s not that they’re doing anything wrong; the workplace is simply different from when Jack was younger. As The Great Indoors progresses, I will be interested in seeing if the focus will be more on Jack as he adapts to the digital age, or the millennials as they learn to experience life. Perhaps a mix of both will do.

During Community, McHale was surrounded by some great comedic actors, and while the cast of The Great Indoors is funny, the writers are still trying to find the right balance. Through most of the “Pilot,” the cast’s jobs seem to be to set up McHale so he can nail the punchline. With McHale doing most of the verbal humor, much of the physical humor is at the expense of Mintz-Plasse. It is my fervent hope that the writers will find a way to better distribute the comedic element.

Overall, The Great Indoors is a very funny show that’s worth checking out. The humor is mildly racy but nothing too offensive. Although, there is a running sexual gag involving a male body part that seems unnecessary and out of place from the rest of the humor.

Tune in to the series premiere of The Great Indoors Thursday, October 27 at 8:30/7:30c, only on CBS.

Tweet me @Staffaroadtrip or leave a comment below to let me know what you think about The Great Indoors – “Pilot.”

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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.