against truly staggering odds, The Residence is a pretty good time
I did not expect to be delighted by a show set in the White House, but here we are
It took me a long time to start watching The Residence because I saw it was set inside the White House and that set off about a dozen alarms and buzzers inside my brain that have tuned themselves to their highest setting to protect me from any form of collateral political discourse slithering through the wiring and into the mainframe during the hours I have designated for trying to chill out a little. That was a long run-on sentence, even for me, but I am leaving it as-is because I think it explains the kind of mental state I was operating with when I finally broke down and gave this show a shot. And it also explains why I was so surprised that I enjoyed it so much. I really did, though. I zipped through the whole season in a flash. What a fun little show.
Context: The Residence is a murder mystery produced by Shonda Rhimes that had the misfortune of debuting on Netflix a few weeks ago when Adolescence was sucking up all the discourse and its target audience was so exhausted by politics that I suspect a lot of people reacted like I did to its premise. It stars Uzo Aduba as a bird-watching detective and it co-stars just about everyone who has ever stolen a scene in a television comedy you watched in the last few decades. Here’s the trailer.
And here’s what I really must stress: This sucker is as light and breezy as a late-April afternoon. It only ever brushes up against a hot-button issue occasionally, and even then the plot moves so fast there’s no time to linger. And it has a lot working in its favor, just on paper. Do you like to watch a quirky detective investigate a murder while surrounded by colorful suspects and pompous buffoons? Well, you will love to watch Aduba cook as Cordelia Cupp, a character in the mold of Benoit Blanc and Columbo and about a dozen other quirky detectives you like. Do you want to see Randall Park squirm and Giancarlo Esposito glare and Eliza Coupe throw a tantrum and Ken Marino pout like a little boy who just found out he’s not going to the zoo? I can’t for any reason imagine why you wouldn’t. Do you want a little carefree escapade to focus your eyeballs on after dinner for an hour or two before bed? I mean, maybe you don’t. Good for you. But I bet you do.
Some of the early reviews I saw for this one zeroed in on the flaws of the show, which are there, and I can understand if you see another show or movie about an offbeat detective solving a murder and it scans as derivative to you. It kind of is, honestly. I think that’s what I liked about it, though. I love a loose cannon. I love to watch an investigation take detours left and right because of unorthodox methods being deployed. There were more than a few moments in there that made me laugh out loud despite the fact that I am not usually a “laugh out loud” person. It was comfortable and fun and I really, truly enjoyed watching it for about eight hours this month.
Also, it gave me this screencap…
… which I have already used multiple times during this season of Phillies baseball. That’s been helpful, too.
STUFF I TYPED
— my Friday newsletter opened with a section about the upcoming Apple TV series Murderbot, a title I have apparently started singing in my head to the tune of the Rally House jingle (“Murder-bot! Murder-bot! He does murders, he’s a bot, he’s a Murder-bot!”)
— sorry for putting that in your head
— kind of
STUFF I CLICKED ON
— Mike Ryan interviewed Ryan Coogler and I clicked on the link so damn fast
— a good piece on steak fries, the most confounding potato-related side dish of them all
— really enjoyed this thing about Luis Perez, a fascinating man who has been trying to become an NFL quarterback for almost a decade now
— Vulture explains the Emmy chances for The Pitt, a show that is the latest entry in our procedural revival and a show that everyone I know likes and a show I do not ever see myself watching because I do not do well with hospital shows
— Caroline Framke did a nice little blog about Celebrity Jeopardy and, yes, of course I am going to post this again, as per tradition
— the great Mo Ryan is doing a little Hollywood memorabilia auction to benefit charity
— Howard Beck nails why this season of NBA basketball felt so weird and angsty
— “A Conversation With The People Who (Still) Love Tab”
— The White Lotus did not give Coffee Mate a heads up before asking them to make a pina colada-flavored creamer (lol)
— good blog about a line for cheesesteaks
— geese terrorize neighborhood
— “Please Enjoy These Photos Of Drunk People At An English Horse Race“
— I love this video of Rory McIlroy’s face after he finally won The Masters because even if you don’t care about golf I think you can enjoy it as a human who is familiar with being overwhelmed in the moment by a combination of joy and relief and not really knowing what to do with your face about it
Okay, that’s it for this week. Please share and subscribe and maybe solve a murder (but in a fun way)
