United States of Al Puts War Buddies on Sitcom Footing – NBC Connecticut nbcconnecticut.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from nbcconnecticut.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
‘United States of Al’: TV Review Daniel Fienberg
Since
Mom premiered in 2013 and proved that a CBS multi-cam comedy could contain multitudes or at least both broadly silly elements for the back row and a serious reflection on addiction sitcom mogul Chuck Lorre has expanded his brand in the direction of more pointed, often dramatic shows.
One thing Lorre hasn’t changed, however, is his desire to have these new half-hours lead with the often-braying chuckles before maturing, forcing critics to suffer through tepid early installments of shows like
Bob Hearts Abishola and
Plan B before something more nuanced unfolds. And it usually does! Those are both good shows that blend complex tones and positive intentions.
LOS ANGELES – The makers of “United States of Al” are keenly aware they’re treading on sensitive ground with the new CBS series about two survivors of war.
Riley is a combat veteran back from the Mideast, camped in his dad’s garage and facing post-traumatic stress disorder and a tattered marriage. He can savour a recent win: helping bring Awalmir, aka Al, an Afghanistan translator and friend, to live with him in America – a land of promise as well as extreme culture shock for the Muslim newcomer.
Now consider this: “United States of Al” is a sitcom. It arrives Thursday (8:30 p.m. EDT), embraced by advocates for Afghan and Iraqi interpreters who aided U.S. troops. It has baggage as well, dinged by observers who take exception to a South African-born actor of Indian descent who isn’t Muslim playing Al.
The United States of Al was designed to put a Muslim protagonist on network TV, says exec producer yahoo.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from yahoo.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.