Sit Down, Shut Up: Pilot (S01E01)

When I tuned into some late night television and saw Will Arnett promoting a new animated series he was a part of, my attention was grabbed.  Then to further explain how Mitch Hurwitz of Arrested Development was involved, I put it on my Must-See list.  But as I went to Hulu and watched the premiere episode, I wasn’t impressed.

For starters, Sit Down, Shut Up is an animated show with a live-action backdrop about a bunch of high school teachers who collectively have a very whacky variety of personalities.  This ranges from the bisexual drama teacher to the airhead science teacher who brings her baby along wherever she goes.

The storyline of the episode dealt with the high school going through budget cuts, which will result in a teacher getting fired.  The teachers are paranoid, especially Willard Deutschebog, the German teacher who suspects a student saw him buying porn.  Meanwhile, there’s suspicion that steroids are being taken since a bottle of drugs were found in the gym.  P.E. teacher Larry Littlejunk doubts it since his team hasn’t won a game all season long.

The teachers try to brainstorm a way to raise money to avoid budget cuts and save their jobs.  Helen Klench, the librarian, talks about digging up a time capsule with valuables inside while the acting principal suggests the football team takes the steroids in order to win a game so the booster can donate money to the school.

Was the episode funny?  A little bit.  I cannot judge this show solely on the pilot episode.  There is great potential that this show has.  The many diverse characters reminded me of Arrested Development’s extended family.  Notably, the English teacher, Ennis Hofftard (voiced by Will Arnett) and “Ass Principal” Proszakian were the funniest.  I have high hopes for Sit Down, Shut Up to only get better.  Will Fox give it a chance?  If you remember, Fox was the network to cancel the brilliant Arrested Development.  Why did Hurwitz come back to this troubled network who cherishes reality television?  It’s possible that two creative geniuses, Joss Whedon and Mitch Hurwitz, can both have their very good shows cut short.  And the funny thing about it is that they’ve been screwed over before by Fox (Firefly and Arrested Development respectively).

If you’re listening out there, Fox please give these shows a chance.  And maybe give them a respectable time slot that you have all of your reality shows in.  Thanks.

Box Office Results: Zac Efron shines outside of HSM franchise

Studio Estimates (April 17-19):

1.  17 Again – $24 million
2.  State of Play – $14 million
3.  Monsters vs. Aliens – $12.9 million
4.  The Hannah Montana Movie – $12.7 million
5.  Fast & Furious – $12.3 million

6.  Crank: High Voltage – $6.5 million

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Like no surprise, 17 Again won the box office with $24 million this weekend.  The surprise result for the political thriller, State of Play, was runner-up with $14 million.  And rounding out the Top 5, Monsters vs. Aliens snuck up behind Hannah Montana and Fast & Furious for the third spot.  The other new release of the weekend, Crank: High Voltage, failed to land on the Top 5 with a weak $6.5 million gross.

As for our predictions, looks like Chris edged out my predictions very slightly.  Though we all predicted 17 Again to take the #1 spot, Chris was the only one to predict all of the Top 5 films.  Once again, my gross predictions were the best but my failure to include State of Play in the Top 5 lost it for me this time around.

Check back on Friday for our new predictions.  There are four new wide releases:  Earth, Fighting, The Soloist, and Obsessed.