{"id":5921,"date":"2015-09-30T11:26:12","date_gmt":"2015-09-30T15:26:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/?p=5921"},"modified":"2015-09-30T11:26:12","modified_gmt":"2015-09-30T15:26:12","slug":"review-the-grinder-premieres-on-fox","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/2015\/09\/30\/review-the-grinder-premieres-on-fox\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: ‘The Grinder’ Premieres on Fox"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fox’s new comedy The Grinder<\/em> tells the story of two brothers. Stewart Sanderson (The Wonder Years<\/em>‘s Fred Savage) is a nervous lawyer who knows his stuff but has trouble vocalizing his arguments properly. Fred Savage has spent years primarily working as a director on shows like It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia<\/em> and Garfunkel and Oates<\/em>, but he absolutely shines on screen as well. Savage’s performance definitely carried this show and Stewart is a strong protagonist. Dean Sanderson (Parks and Recreation<\/em>‘s Rob Lowe) has spent years playing a lawyer on TV and believes he can now become a real lawyer.<\/p>\n

The dynamic with one brother being a knowledgeable lawyer who has trouble with presentation and one being a charming performer works very well. There’s tension between the two, but at the same time you understand why they need each other. Immediately the show has set up a solid working formula.<\/p>\n

Dean interfering with Stewart’s family life also worked well and you can see the potential for solid b-stories from here on out. So far, the kids don’t stand out as funny on their own like the kids in Modern Family<\/em> or Trophy Wife<\/em>, but they played off the adult actors well enough. The dynamic of Stewart’s wife Debbie (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia<\/em>‘s Mary Elizabeth Ellis) being Dean’s high school girlfriend is also fun.<\/p>\n

The pilot lacked big laughs, but definitely has potential. I loved seeing Eastbound & Down<\/em>‘s Steve Little and Silicon Valley<\/em>‘s Kumail Nanjiani shine in small roles. They don’t seem to be in the main cast as of yet, but I’m crossing my fingers that they recur.<\/p>\n

On a personal note, writers Andrew Mogel and Jarrad Paul also wrote Allen Gregory<\/em> and it tickles me that they re-used the name Joel Zadak for the most popular boy at elementary school.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fox’s new comedy The Grinder tells the story of two brothers. Stewart Sanderson (The Wonder Years‘s Fred Savage) is a nervous lawyer who knows his stuff but has trouble vocalizing his arguments properly. Fred Savage has spent years primarily working as a director on shows like It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Garfunkel and Oates,<\/p>\n

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