The Neighbors (2012–2014)
10/10
Too Good, Too Lighthearted to Last?
12 October 2012
I've only seen Lenny Venito once before and I was so impressed with him I knew immediately this show would shine. He's one of those guys who can be funny just standing still. And then there's Jami Gertz who displays perfect comedic timing in this show, not to mention she gets some of the best lines.

There's a lot that would seem to be formulaic on the surface yet grows on you very quickly as the premise just gives a neat context for some zany situations. Just about every male alien seems to be latently gay until you realize they are just innocent alien SUPER NERDS that have no clue how human men are "supposed" to behave. The cultural misunderstandings occur frequently and actually are quite funny, even if you expect the punchline. And the physical comedy displayed by Toks Olagundoye (AKA Jackie Joyner Kersee), being a giant Amazon Woman From the Moon (I'm guessing), have given my roommate and I some great laughs. She's a superb actress (The Real Housewives of New Jersey skit was simply amazing) who obviously truly understands how to be a comedian.

There's a lot more I can say about this show, but it's not necessary as it stands on it's own and doesn't need IMDb reviewers to defend it. I just worry when a show displays real charm that's DIFFERENT from other shows (The Finder immediately comes to mind, WHAT A CRIME!), as those kinds of shows take some time to create a real following. Executive producers don't give a DAMN about whether a show makes viewers happy; they only care about commercial profit--which would come if they only had the damn patience to give these shows enough time to get the notice they deserve. Chuck, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Everybody Loves Raymond, Seinfeld, ER and the list goes on, to name some prime examples. Not to mention a lot of shows are viewed online nowadays (not to mention file sharing) , making TV shows appear to have low ratings when it's quite the opposite. It's the COMMERCIALS that aren't being watched.

Anyway, the actors in this show bring real life to their respective characters and I hope they succeed in making it popular enough to dodge the chopping block. So watch it and enjoy!
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