Dee on TV

Did you guys even know this show existed?  It premiered on February 8, but I have heard almost no buzz about it.

And there’s probably a reason for that, because I’ve seen three episodes of it now, and you can live without it.  Traffic Light is the third “six white people” comedy to debut this season, though it’s actually “five white people and one minority.”  (The other two shows are Better With You and Perfect Couples, by the way.)  It’s the story of three men who were friends in college, now grown and in various romantic relationships: one married with a child, one moving in with a girlfriend, and one with a different girl every night.

In general, tv needs shows that explore the complexities and variabilities of male friendships.  Women are generally catered to in the relationship arena (though often poorly), but male friendships are rarely explored.  So I like the idea of this show, that relationships between men are complex enough to form an anchor.

The problem is, this show is a collection of tv tropes and stereotypes.  You reliably see The Cad, the Commitment Phobe, and the Tied Down.  All three come across as jackasses without humanity.  The jokes are telegraphed a mile away: when Adam answers call waiting to complain to Mike about his girlfriend, obviously he didn’t switch the call properly and she heard everything.  And don’t even get me started on the women: they are variably shrill, moody, and volatile, with no character depth to ground them or provide explanation for erratic behaviour.  (Such as throwing pots, or destroying a stuffed toy in a blender.)

All six characters all seem to spend an inordinate amount of time on their cell phones while they drive around.  The three men appear to have daily three-way conference calls while they drive to work.  Sometimes the women are also in the car, sometimes the women call in to interrupt the three-way call, and, in one episode, Callie calling constantly during the morning commute is the subject of a plot arc.  I thought this was a pretty strange way to build character relationships as none of the actors are actually in the same room, until I figured out that this is the whole problem.  The actors have no chemistry or history together, so it makes no difference whether they are in the same room or not.  The whole thing comes off as wooden and stranger-like.  The show has no zing, no spark, no life.  It’s just six people randomly orbiting in the same sphere.

I’m out.  I’m not a fan of stupidity played for laughs, and the characters here, especially the men, are absurdly dumb.  Everyone is a caricature.  Save yourself some time and go watch something else on Tuesday nights.