The main Ryan-centered plot is that Ryan and Steven reunite
with an old friend (Lauren Graham) who Steven begins to crush on. Ryan,
attempting to be a good friend, initially throws his backing behind Steven and
agrees to be his wingman. Cue Act II: Ryan changes his mind and wants Lauren Graham and
while he's not ready to date yet, he doesn't want Steven to have her. Ryan's
long been a bit egotistical and we're supposed to understand that goes with the
territory of being a famous radio personality (and also goes with the territory
of being played by Matthew Perry), but I had a problem with the show's lack of
awareness that this was not a good thing Ryan was doing. Especially since he
shared his plan with the group, and Lauren didn't even step in and say this might be unhealthy.
Still, while the episode's premise was a little shaky, it
wasn't a half hour that was entirely devoid of enjoyment. In terms of character
growth, Steven and Ryan had some good moments together and it's significant progress
that Ryan is ready to start thinking about dating.
The group is also gelling together and those character quirks-Yolanda
suddenly interjecting her loyalty to someone, Lauren awkwardly backtracking
after overstepping her bounds, etc.- are starting to get more comic mileage as
the traits become more recognizably associated with the characters. I especially
liked the shared moment between Owen and Yolanda as they both related to each
other as children of tiger moms who played string instruments (which isn't a
thing, by the way, but I bought that it COULD be a thing in-universe).
The ensemble is easy to enjoy from the perspective that
there's no show on TV where random people are connected by nothing but a common
emotional denominator: loss. There's a certain chemistry between the characters
and a bittersweet tone to the characters that sets this show apart but I could
still use a little more humor. From a comedy standpoint, the show had exactly one scene that worked tremendously: The made-up unique Ryan and Steven engaged in their own unique drinking game. Whether that's enough to overcome a somewhat low joke-per-minute ratio is still up in the air.
Random thoughts:
-Ryan's voiceovers are corny. I'd even rank "Modern
Family" above "Go On" when it comes to schmaltzy voiceovers to
close out the episode
-I've heard the argument that Go On isn't that unique when
you consider "Community" is still on the air and I've heard the
comparisons (Personally, I don't like "Community" anymore but I
digress). It's worth noting that Community stopped being about a group of
involuntary study buddies after the first season. It was then that they
consciously chose to take the same class. It also didn't really matter if they
were taking the same class: The characters also basically just decided to be a
gang. It will be interesting to see how Go On handles this dilemma of voluntary
separation.
-Owen has been a bit oscillating between shy and confident.
-If I'm not mistaken, Lauren Graham is good friends with
Matthew Perry and confessed to having a crush on him on "The Ellen Show". I know
Ellen makes her stars do crazy things, but art imitating life?
-The New York Times had an infographic on the Fall Season's breakout characters last week and Brett Gelman's Mr K was on there. Am I the only one who finds him somewhat limited? Playing creepy-crazy doesn't take that much effort. I much prefer Julie White as whip-smart curmedgeon Anne.
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