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‘Mulaney’: 5 Reasons Why This New Show Will Not Last A Full Season

By Jonathan Franks
Published on: 14:57 PST, Oct 5, 2014

Mulaney, the highly-anticipated FOX comedy series starring John Mulaney, premiered Sunday night — and definitely did not live up to the great expectations set for it.

Contrary to the opinions of quite a few critics, the show does have a lot of potential. With a little work here and there, it could possibly even be a big hit for the network. However, here are five reasons why it more than likely will not make it a full season without getting cancelled.

1. Bad ACTOR — It is very important to note that the show is filled with a lot of great actors and performances, including SNL alums Nasim Pedrad and Martin Short. Many people were even impressed by Elliot Gould’s scene, which could have and possibly should have been a lot longer.

The worst acting occurred every single time John Mulaney had to say a line, or even when he reacted to someone else’s dialogue on-screen. Perhaps you caught the brief clip that aired before the broadcast, which featured the entire cast going over the extensive list (or rather lack thereof) of John’s TV show experience. Sadly, that clip was more of a foreshadowing of just how bad his acting would be during the actual show. It was as if Mulaney decided to deliver every single line just like he was still on stage during a stand-up comedy set.

2. Too Much Stand-Up Comedy — As mentioned earlier, one of the worst parts about Mulaney is that it feels more like one drawn-out comedy sketch being played out during a stand-up act. John needs to desperately learn how to make the transition from stand-up comedian to sitcom actor ASAP if he wants to save his show. This means that he may need to cut down drastically on the stand-up comedy segments. It may have worked well for Jerry Seinfeld two decades ago… but John Mulaney clearly is not Jerry Seinfeld. And even Seinfeld understood the value of moderation.

3. Lack of Chemistry — The cast simply does not seem as if they have any chemistry whatsoever. When you think of many of the successful sitcoms that depend on ensemble casts, they all have chemistry. Even when the writing is poor and the jokes are not timed properly, the chemistry of the cast will keep the audience coming back for more. There is no chemistry here. Perhaps that is primarily because of John Mulaney and his poor acting. Maybe it is because the show is too new. Who knows? It’s just not there.

4. Bad Director — Just because it is a multi-camera sitcom does not mean that each camera needs to be used in every single scene repeatedly. During the first 5 to 10 minutes of the show, the camera shots and angles bounced around more than in a short film project created by middle school students. It was bad! It’s very difficult to make a connection with a scene or with the characters within the scene if the camera shot is constantly changing back and forth.

5. Poor Writing and Forced Jokes — Quite a few of the jokes and punchlines throughout the series premiere flowed naturally and worked out well. However, there were many others that just seemed way too forced. With just a little more than 20 minutes of airtime, every joke and punchline has to be delivered naturally and precisely in order to hit its mark. Otherwise, it just doesn’t work.

Yes, Mulaney does have a lot of potential, and (with a lot of work and major changes) it could be molded into a major Sunday night hit for FOX — especially since it follows such established hits as Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Family Guy. However, chances are that it is a little too late to save the sitcom. More episodes have already been filmed that are probably just like this one, which only spells the inevitable and untimely demise of Mulaney. Here are just a few of the responses and reactions shared on Twitter since the premiere aired.

Perhaps more people should have paid more attention to the promotional clips and features that have been circulating online about Mulaney months before it aired.

What do you think?

[Image Credit: FOX]

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