Writer: Javier Grillo-Marxuach
Director: Jeremiah Chechik
Cast: Matt Keeslar (The Middleman), Natalie Morales (Wendy Watson), Britt Morgan (Lacey Thornfield), Mary Pat Gleason (Ida), Jake Smollett (Noser), Colby Wilson (Firefighter), Dawn Chubai (Reporter), Mary Lynn Rajskub (Dr. Gibbs), Stephen Sowan (Ben Stanley), Emilio Salituro (Tino), Scott Patey (Eddie), Lorena Gale (Mrs. Johnston), L. Harvey Gold (Domenico Colfari) & Jennifer Jenei (Stripper)
Director: Jeremiah Chechik
Cast: Matt Keeslar (The Middleman), Natalie Morales (Wendy Watson), Britt Morgan (Lacey Thornfield), Mary Pat Gleason (Ida), Jake Smollett (Noser), Colby Wilson (Firefighter), Dawn Chubai (Reporter), Mary Lynn Rajskub (Dr. Gibbs), Stephen Sowan (Ben Stanley), Emilio Salituro (Tino), Scott Patey (Eddie), Lorena Gale (Mrs. Johnston), L. Harvey Gold (Domenico Colfari) & Jennifer Jenei (Stripper)
A smart-talking temp worker is recruited by an enigmatic man to help him fight monsters..."Tell the truth if you want, but if you do I'm going
to have to root you like a hog and kill you."
to have to root you like a hog and kill you."
-- The Middleman (Matt Keeslar)
The show BBC Three's terrible Phoo Action wanted to be, former Lost scribe Javier Grillo-Marxuach adapts his comic-book series for the small-screen -- ironic, as The Middleman originated as a TV spec script JGM couldn't get picked up because of prohibitive costs and zero interest...
Newcomer Natalie Morales (a younger, shorter, wise-cracking Rosario Dawson lookalike) plays twentysomething heroine Wendy Watson, a temp worker whose encounter with a tentacled monster in a laboratory brings her to the attention of the man tasked to clean up the mess: the eponymous Middleman (Matt Keeslar), a Joe Friday-style monster-slayer with a proclivity for milk and Country & Western, with the gosh-darn boy scout attitude of Clark Kent.
Wendy is later recruited by The Middleman (Men In Black-style), who's impressed by how she kept a cool head and accepted the crazy situation with hardly a raised eyebrow. So she's whisked off to The Middleman's secret H.Q (the Jolly Fats Wehawkin Temp Agency), where she meets his android receptionist Ida (Mary Pat Gleason) and is told the world is exactly like a comic-book -- full of monsters, robots, aliens and other critters to fight. He's the "middleman" in-between order and chaos, receiving missions and equipment from an unseen superior, and Wendy basically becomes his apprentice.
Their first assignment is to find the shadowy Tommy Gun-wielding assassin of various city gangsters, a mystery that leads them to a government research facility, run by Dr. Gibbs (24's Mary Lynn Rajskub), who has found a way to make gorillas super-intelligent -- so they can paint, play chess and even talk through an electronic voice box.
The Middleman is crammed full of references and in-jokes, most of which will fly over the heads of the show's target, young audience. I suppose they add another layer of comedy for people who still giggle over Charlton Heston quotes from Planet Of The Apes, but most are either obscure or unnecessary. Indeed, this show is comfortable with its own unoriginality -- with every character, situation, creature and joke reminding you of something else. Fortunately, creator Javier Grillo-Marxuach ensures the influences are of good stock -- so while The Middleman is definitely a melting pot of old ingredients, it cooks up something appetising.
Natalie Morales is the stand-out, which is quite remarkable considering this is her first proper acting job. She's sexy, a bit geeky, fun, spirited, clever, witty and has genuine screen presence. If there's one thing that'll tempt you back for more, it's to see Morales. Matt Keeslar is fine as the stiff Middleman, but I wasn't particularly excited by him. He was a bit two-dimensional here, but that's how the character was written. Hopefully he'll show some depth and interesting facets to his personality in the weeks to come. Still, I can see potential in the Wendy/Middleman dynamic, even if it's something we've seen countless times before in duo's like Streebeck/Friday or Agent J/Agent K.
The production values weren't terrible, although the opening monster attack featured some awful CGI and the general aesthetic isn't as slick and polished as you'd hope. But the low-budget vibe works in its favour at times (particularly with the comedy man-in-suit gorillas), and it will hopefully force the creators to be more creative. The jokes aren't laugh-out-loud stuff, but there were plenty of amusing moments sprinkled throughout: the way a location legend accidentally typed some dialogue, Wendy's censored swearing, Wendy's reaction to seeing android Ida's opened-up face, etc.
It's a middling start, but balancing sci-fi with comedy is harder than people think, and The Middleman does a better job than most. For families; kids will enjoy its cartoon-y atmosphere, funky visuals and appealing leads, while parents will grin at quotes from Scarface/The Godfather, and soak up the amusing banter and sprightly pace. At the moment, The Middleman is clearly trying too hard to please, doesn't have any ideas to call its own, and features too much knotty dialogue and pop-culture references -- but there's definitely potential for Pushing Daisies-style imaginative entertainment, and Morales makes a great heroine.
16 June 2008
ABC Family, 10/9c pm
