[TV] Aliens in America, CW, Monday 8:30

[Emperor]

A sitcom with big laughs, a big heart and the insanely milfy Amy Pietz from writer-producers Moses Port & David Guarascio (“Mad About You,” “Just Shoot Me”), “Aliens in America” tells the tale of a nerdly Wisconsin high school outcast who finds his stock rising after his family hosts a good-natured and devout Muslim Pakistani exchange student.

 

“Aliens” is paired with “Everybody Hates Chris” and airs opposite “Chuck,” “The Big Bang Theory,” “Prison Break” and “Dancing With The Stars.” No one is going to watch it (because, I ask rhetorically, who doesn’t enjoy Mark Cuban doing the Rhumba?), but I do look forward to whatever Port & Guarascio conjure next, hopefully with Pietz in tow.

 

Entertainment Weekly gives it a “B-plus” and says:

 

… two likable, unaffected actors (or at least as unaffected as Aliens' heightened reality allows them to be; this show would be a mess in lesser hands). Along with the fellows of Chuck and Reaper, they are guys who just seem kinda...nice. It's a pleasure. …

 

 

USA Today gives it two stars (out of four) and says:

 

By all rights, you'd expect CW to cherish and nurture Aliens in America, a cross-cultural fish-out-of-water comedy that received a near-rapturous reception when it was first screened last spring. Since then, however, the show has been subjected to development "improvement" — changes that include a new star in tonight's premiere and, much worse, a shift in next week's second episode to the smarmy that makes one wonder whether the real out-of-touch aliens in America are sitcom writers. … What gives you hope for the long run are the heartfelt moments, from Justin's pain at being an outcast to Franny's transformation from bigot to loving mom. …

 

 

The New York Times says:

 

… fresh, funny and charming in a tart, sardonic way, one of the best sendups of adolescent angst since “The Wonder Years” and “Malcolm in the Middle” (and perhaps even “My So-Called Life”). …

 

 

The Los Angeles Times says:

 

… winning …

 

 

The Chicago Tribune says:

 

… not your typically brainless network sitcom. It's a topical, sharp comedy … The well-made, provocative comedy mixes the wistfulness of "The Wonder Years" with the prickly outsider humor of the CW's "Everybody Hates Chris," and as one perceptive Northside student noted, it also has elements of "Freaks and Geeks," …

 

 

The Washington Post says:

 

… despite plenty of surface sparkle, there is something discomforting about the show, and not just because it borrows tone and form from other sitcoms with youthful heroes, especially Fox's "Malcolm in the Middle." The show says not only that racism but also bullying, baiting, ignorance, homophobia and other social afflictions can be quite hilarious. Maybe up to a point -- but it's a point beyond which "Aliens in America" unfortunately seems willing to go. It's no fun to laugh and then feel guilty about it. …

 

 

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says:

 

Easily the funniest of the new broadcast network comedies … more than another series about a geek. It's a timely look at cultural differences and a timeless depiction of young friendship. It's that rare TV comedy with both humor and heart. …

 

 

The Boston Herald gives it an “A-minus” and says:

 

You’ve seen high school depicted as hell in everything from those John Hughes and Cameron Crowe teen films to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." But you’ve never seen its cruelties and heartbreaks so comically detailed as in The CW’s "Aliens in America," the biggest surprise of the fall season. … Of all the new fall shows, "Aliens in America" is the one worth protecting and nurturing. This culture clash deserves to be a smash. …

 

 

Boston Now says:

 

… easily the best new comedy of the season. …

 

 

The Hollywood Reporter says:

 

… reminds us in ways both satiric and sweet that it is possible to feel like an alien even if you don't belong … The "Aliens" pilot has some of the funniest writing on TV this fall. Its single-camera format makes it earn each laugh, which it does repeatedly. A second episode, also supplied to reviewers, dials back the humor considerably but loses none of the warmth and heart that makes this show so irresistible. … consistently clever and lively, well played and directed, its corners filled with nice throwaway lines and small visual jokes.

 

[SinisterDeath]

When I heard the title, and half of the description, I said,

"Third Rock from the whatnow?" Then I reliazed, Oooooohhh thaaaaat kinda alien. :P

[Mendorah]

It just Kills me that this is on during Dancing with the Stars!  I would really like to watch this.  I may have to catch it online if the CW is posting their episodes online.  But wait, if it's on the CW, shouldn't it re-air sometime else during the week?

[Emperor]

Ok the show was not quite as funny as I would have thought, but the subject matter was really prevelant and thought provoking.  This will be a show I follow casually in the future and suggest it for those that need a 30 minute fix around 830 on Monday.

[SinisterDeath]

Doesn't Heroes come on at 8pm? (or are they old episodes?)

Or is that 8:30 eastern time or something?

[Emperor]

Heroes is on at 9pm est.

[Cadsuane]

As irritating as I found Chuck to be last night (I caught the tail end, and think I no longer find his outrageously lost/confused/scared thing funny), I may check this out instead. I could use something just generally likeable.

[Emperor]

Yveva and I agree that AIA is more likeable.  I agree, Chuck isn't my favorite and I think the premise will get old fast.. no matter how much I want Baldwin to be Jane again.