PILOT REVIEW: The Goldbergs

THE GOLDBERGS

Starring: Wendi McLendon-Covey, Sean Giambrone, Troy Gentile, Hayley Orrantina, with George Segal, and Jeff Garlin

Created by Adam F. Goldberg
Written by Adam F. Goldberg, Directed by Seth Gordon

The Goldbergs is a new family comedy set in the glorious 1980s. Closely based on creator Adam Goldberg's life, the show is set in the small town of Jenkintown, Pennsylvania and revolves around the Goldberg family. Smothering mother Beverly (Wendi McLendon-Covey) is having a hard time accepting her kids growing up. Murray (Jeff Garlin) is her loud-mothed emotionally distant husband. Oldest child Erica (Hayley Orrantina) is nearing college and a stereotypical 1980s teenager. Barry (Troy Gentile) is the middle child who also desperately wants to grow up. Youngest child Adam (Sean Giambrone) is based on Goldberg himself and follows his family around with a camcorder. Rounding out the cast is Beverly's suave but aging father Albert (George Segal).

THE GOOD: The Goldbergs is a funny yet sentimental comedy that hits a lot of right notes in the pilot. There will of course be a lot of comparisons to The Wonder Years but it's not without merit right down to the narration (and when the narrator was interacting with the plot in the diner scene, it definitely felt like The Wonder Years). This show just seems like it will more often go for the funny and not the heart while Wonder was the opposite. However, when it did pull at the heart strings near the end of the pilot, it worked well. The standout in the cast so far is Wendi McLendon-Covey as the overbearing mother. She has excellent delivery and reactions. Her best scene in the pilot was giving Barry a locket instead of car keys for his birthday. The rest of the cast (for the most part) was pretty strong too and I can see them growing into their roles. Barry may not be so sure about REO Speedwagon but I hope this show continues to use lots of 1980s tunes to complement it. Finally, the clothes were awesome as to be expected and the real life home videos shown at the end were really interesting - I hope that continues.

THE BAD: While the 1980s setting is a key component of this show, it just needs to "be" in the 80s. It doesn't need to overload the pop culture references to remind the viewer of the premise. The clothes, cars, decor, and soundtrack will do that easily enough so the script doesn't need to. There were times in the pilot where I felt like they were trying a little too hard with the pop culture nods (the Flavor Flav line by Barry especially stands out). Speaking of Barry, Troy Gentile was the weakest link in the pilot as he delivered every line with the same level and force and very few came across believable or funny. I liked Jeff Garlin as the dad but I didn't like the "translations" that appeared. And it's not just from the ads of the summer, I thought that seemed stupid when I saw the trailer too. Hopefully that doesn't keep happening.

BOTTOM LINE: While it's not perfect, it has a ton of potential. The cast is good, the writing seems to be good, and the setting is, like, totally tubular. This is a show with a real basic premise, nothing fancy, and that should allow it to focus on its characters. I want this show to succeed because I think it has a chance to be a great family comedy.