Why Aren't You Watching: Trophy Wife

Although typically a comedy requires several episodes before it can establish the most effective dynamic for its characters and storylines (like with the just-not-quite-there-yet Brooklyn Nine-Nine), occasionally a sitcom will come along that is fully realized that right away in the pilot you know what the show can and will be (think Modern Family). While ABC's new comedy Trophy Wife (currently airing Tuesdays at 930p, even though it should really be on after Modern Family on Wednesdays) isn't quite on the same level as that hit show, it does set up its own modern family dynamic exceptionally well right from the onset (despite recasting the stepdaughter after the pilot, which was actually a marked improvement). Similar to the riotous Cougar Town, Trophy Wife is another victim of a poor name choice (and ABC's non-existent marketing efforts), as a more accurate title could just be Third Wife, or perhaps even better, Instant Family.

The series centers on Malin Akerman's Kate, the third wife of lawyer Pete Harrison (the always enjoyable Bradley Whitford), picking up one year after the two first met and fell in love (after she injured him at bar). However, Kate soon found out that marrying Pete meant inheriting three children and two eccentric ex-wives. Pete's first ex-wife, Diane (played with calm precision by Marcia Gay Harden), is a controlling and intimidating surgeon who uses her strong personality to get what she wants from Pete and Kate. Diane also exerts near-perfect control over her teenage children, the overachieving Hillary (Bailee Madison) who looks down on Kate, constantly rebuffing her attempted friendship, and the simple-but-enthusiastic Warren (Ryan Lee) who seems to lack any self-consciousness and just loves hanging out with his family. An early episode even sees Diane employing ridiculous psychological tactics to punish her children for secretly spilling salsa on her pristine white couch, making them increasingly uncomfortable and paranoid as she encourages them to join her dance to salsa music (and a later episode reveals that she created a fictional teenage girl to spy on them through social media). After divorcing Diane, Pete went in the complete opposite direction and married the free-spirited Jackie (the always hilariously cooky Michaela Watkins). With Jackie, Pete adopted Bert (Albert Tsai), a delightfully hyperactive and wide-eyed eight year-old whose innocent curiosity results in wonderfully ridiculous situations like fearing for the security of his uterus. The cast is rounded out by Kate's BFF and former party partner Meg (Natalie Morales) who, aside from one episode, has been been more of a supporting character thus far as the series focuses on the central family first.

Like Modern Family, a large part of what makes Trophy Wife work so well is the great chemistry among the cast, as Kate and Pete's relationship is shown early on to be about much more than just her looks. This probably thanks to series creator Sarah Haskins (creator of the hilariously spot-on Target Women segments found online) who based the show on her own experience of marrying into a complicated family. Kate is the perfect balance between his polar-opposite ex-wives and the two of them also function like the best friends every couple strives for. Despite the stressfulness of their complicated family dynamic, the two of them find ample opportunity to share laughs, even though its the rest of the family that are the true characters. So if you're a fan of Modern Family, skip the uneven Super Fun Night and instead pair it with Trophy Wife, you'll be glad you did.

Newbies: Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Although it can be difficult to judge a show based on its first episodes (Parks and Recreation for example had a rough six-episode first season, but its second season quickly solidified it as one of the best comedies on television), but FOX's Brooklyn Nine-Nine is already establishing itself as a reliable source of laughs. Produced by the primary creators of Parks and Recreation, Nine-Nine features that same form of workplace ensemble first popularized by The Office with a diverse cast of gifted actors. Of course, its impossible to discuss Brooklyn Nine-Nine without first mentioning the goofy elephant in the room: the series' star, former SNL-er Andy Samburg. Much like FOX's other sitcoms New Girl and The Mindy Project, its probably unlikely someone will be able to enjoy any aspect of the show if they find the focal character intolerable. However if you keep an open mind, Brooklyn Nine-Nine could quickly surprise you with how effectively it tells a story, offering up plenty of humor and wit (though its heart does seem to be absent, in the first four episodes at least).

The premise follows the titular NY precinct as they deal with a variety of crimes, though the focus remains on the characters instead of their cases. The biggest character is of course Andy Samburg's Detective Jake Peralta, an immature goof-off who closes cases almost as often as he cracks jokes. Sure Samburg's shtick can be hit or miss, but his sincere commitment to the role make Jake a believable person (even if he's not necessarily a believable detective) and his various gags can be a riot, as when he engages in some morbid sexual role-playing with the precinct's new medical examiner. Although Samburg is the most prominent member of the cast, the best part of Brooklyn Nine-Nine is Andre Braugher (Men of a Certain Age) as the precinct's new captain Ray Holt. Not only does his wry deadpan play off Samburg's wacky energy perfectly, he elevates any scene he's in with a character that, much like Parks' Leslie Knope and Ron Swanson, is so well-defined and dimensionalized right out of the gate that further insights into his personality feel authentic instead of merely convenient (and a particular gag about how Holt's emotion is impossible read, featuring different characters flashing back to various interactions with him throughout the episode, is an absolute delight). Not only is Jake at his most entertaining when paired with the captain, Holt even makes some of the less established (perhaps even unlikable) characters more fun, such as the overachieving Detective Santiago (Melissa Fumero), far too eagerly hoping to be his apprentice.

Since Brooklyn Nine-Nine is essentially an office comedy, there are of course plenty of supporting characters to round out the cast. So far they all work more or less, but the cast will benefit greatly from having more time to explore new sides of their characters to help them become more believably relatable and reliably funny. As of now, steely/sarcastic Detective Rosa Diaz (Stephanie Beatriz) and tense/anxious Sergeant Terry Jeffords (Terry Crews) are more fully realized and entertaining, though they still have a ways to go before they become truly memorable. Meanwhile Joe Lo Truglio's put-upon Detective Charles Boyle is an easy source of laughs, though he's the kind of unfortunate fool who has such an abundance of embarrassing and imasuclating quirks that he can be tough to relate to, or even more problematically, tough to watch (though scenes such as the image of him rocking out to his choice of music, Broadway naturally, while Peralta uncomfortably drives in silence, are still enjoyable). Even more problematic than Boyle is the precinct's civilian office assistant Gina (Chelsea Peretti), who is quirky and self-involved to such an unpleasant degree that you wonder why she was ever hired to begin with. Sure she can be funny, but most of her personality is far too over the top for her to be even remotely believable and her digs against the rest of the cast feel so mean-spirited that its tough to enjoy any of her scenes. In fact, even the more periphery supporting characters of Hitchcock and Scully (fulfilling the incompetent cop role, or "the Jerry" of the precinct to use a Parks reference) are immensely more fun to watch than Gina, which actually says more about the creators' gift for establishing an comic ensemble than it does about Gina though. However, these issues can be quickly overcome as Brooklyn Nine-Nine airs more episodes and allows each character to develop, creating a more consistent ensemble just like how Parks and The Mindy Project were able to capitalize on their own potential to become reliable sources of original humor and quality storytelling.