I agree, and it's a real shame. The show has a good cast and a really enjoyable premise, but the writing is just totally uninspired and bland. The jokes are written just like regular sitcom jokes, despite the fact that they are often about darker topics. Forced setup followed by predictable punchline.
Also, the sets seem kind of...small, I guess. It feels claustrophobic and fabricated, like many sitcoms. Combine that with the awful laugh track, and what could have been a deliriously funny show becomes nothing more than the usual formula. It seems like even the awesome Jane Curtin and Fred Savage suffer under the conditions, as their performances lack the interest that their past work had.
Crumbs isn't even in the same league as Arrested Development. The writing lacks wit and subtlety and the dialogue's main purpose is just to set up bad jokes, as opposed to the totally organic form in which AD jokes unfold.
Crumbs feels like a great idea that was ruined somewhere along the way by tailoring it too closely to the typical sitcom mould. Laugh tracks. Claustrophbic sets that feel constructed. No outdoor shots. Impersonal and uninspired camera angles. Cheaply plotted jokes.
I think if Crumbs was shot and written in a very manic style like My Name is Earl, it could have been greatly improved.
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trippinbee
18 years ago
I've only seen one episodes of "Crumbs," and thus probably cannot make a fully informed statement, but that won't stop me from posting! :)
'AD' is by far my favorite tv show, and nothing can compare to the writing or acting.
That said, "Crumbs," (y'know, the ONE episode I saw) seems to be pretty funny.
At least it's not "Skating with Celebrities" or other such drivel.
"So this is how you repay me for how I repay you?"
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