'30 Rock' team's 'Mr. Mayor' isn't weird enough to win you over

[NelsonG]

You may not have asked for a political comedy seven days into 2021, but Mr. Mayor is here anyway. 

From 30 Rock creators Tina Fey and Robert Carlock, the NBC sitcom stars Ted Danson as Neil Bremer, a former "billboard king" in L.A. ("For your consideration: Nurse Jackie") who runs for mayor on a whim to impress his jaded teen daughter — and wins. Neil now finds himself stuck in a job for which he is unqualified, relying more than ever on his staff (Vella Lovell, Mike Cabellon, and Bobby Moynihan) and nemesis-slash-deputy mayor (Holly Hunter). 

The first few episodes bank on Danson's old-school TV charm and some classic Fey-and-Carlock joke structure, but what the show lacks from the outset is its creators' signature weirdness. It feels like a classic sitcom and a safe bet for NBC's Thursday lineup — which is not the compliment it once was. Still, the show may have yet to show its true colors; Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt started out completely whacky, while something like 30 Rock began relatively tame compared to the level of eccentricity it would eventually achieve (Great News is their most tame outing before this one, but still amply odd and much more charming). Read more...

More about Nbc, Tina Fey, Ted Danson, Entertainment, and Movies Tv Shows

View the full article