On the floor, the Netflix comedy/drama sequence “A Man on the Inside” appears like a precariously skinny idea that may very well be stretched to items over the course of eight episodes. The capsule description appears like a failed TV pilot from 1987:
A lonely widower finds goal in life after he solutions a labeled advert positioned by a detective company and turns into a mole inside a San Francisco retirement residence.
Ah, however the star is Ted Danson, whose Corridor of Fame tv profession spans from “Cheers” by means of “Becker” to “Curb Your Enthusiasm” to Season 2 of “Fargo” and “The Good Place.” That ups the odds. Additionally, the sequence was impressed by the Academy Award-nominated documentary “The Mole Agent” from 2020, which instructed the story of an 83-year-old Chilean widower who infiltrated a retirement house to see if the residents have been being mistreated. Fascinating!
Maybe most essential, the creator of “A Man on the Inside” is one Michael Schur, who has been a author, producer and/or co-creator on “The Office” (the place he additionally performed Dwight’s cousin Mose), “Parks and Recreation,” “Brooklyn 9-9,” the aforementioned “The Good Place” and “Grasp of None.” With Schur as the first guiding pressure behind the scenes and the 76-year-old Danson as adept as ever at dealing with mild comedy and poignant dramatic beats, “A Man on the Inside” is likely one of the finest new comedies of 2024. For those who’re into warmhearted but sharply delivered reveals akin to “Ted Lasso” and “Shrinking,” that is proper up your alley.
It takes only one exquisitely constructed sequence within the premiere episode for us to need to wrap our arms round this sequence. As Cat Stevens’ “The Wind (of My Soul)” performs on the soundtrack (I take heed to the wind, to the wind of my soul, the place I’ll find yourself, effectively, I feel solely God actually is aware of …), Ted Danson’s Charles, a retired professor of engineering, goes by means of his every day routine, and we get the distinct feeling he’s dwelling in a sort of real-life model of “Groundhog Day.” He wakes up, shaves, clips his nostril hairs, picks out his wardrobe, makes connoisseur espresso, does a crossword puzzle, takes a nap, cuts out an article from the newspaper, seals it in an envelope and mails it, watches the goings-on at a canine park, has Chinese language takeout with a glass of pink wine, reads John Le Carré’s “Smiley’s Folks,” goes to mattress. We all know Charles is a widower from the visible cues all through this montage; him waking up and falling asleep on the identical facet of the mattress, the half-empty closet, the second when he reduces the dimensions of the news of beans for his morning espresso, as a result of it’s espresso only for one. It’s tender and wonderful and heartbreaking, and we’re already hoping for Charles to search out some goal and which means.
That goal comes within the admittedly gimmicky premise that has Lilah Richcreek Estrada’s Julie, a personal detective in San Francisco, taking out a labeled advert looking for a male between the ages of 75-85 to pose as a brand new shopper on the Pacific View Retirement Group as a way to examine the disappearance of 1 resident’s household heirloom necklace. Was it stolen by one other resident, or an worker, or was it merely misplaced? On a whim, Charles solutions the advert and will get the gig and checks into Pacific View, mainly enjoying himself as he goes undercover and gathers details about quite a lot of residents and staffers.
Having a retirement neighborhood as the primary setting for a sequence may appear sort of bleak, and certainly there are solemn reminders of the locale, from memorial companies to the ominous door that results in the Reminiscence Care wing, however Pacific View can also be a vibrant and colourful setting — sort of like a landlocked, upscale, seniors’ cruise ship. Completely happy Hour celebrations, romantic entanglements, neighborhood actions, the occasional puff of marijuana smoke, limitless gossip — and oh sure, the thefts are persevering with. There’s a lot happening, and Charles pours himself into the gig.
“A Man on the Inside” strikes at a breezy clip, however nonetheless finds room to flesh out quite a lot of subplots and supporting gamers. Mary Elizabeth Ellis is great as Charles’ daughter Emily, who has turn into semi-estranged from her father as he refuses to confront the depth of his grieving. Stephanie Beatriz does her common terrific work as Didi, who’s the director of Pacific View and provides each inch of her to the job, and seasoned character actors Stephen McKinley Henderson, Margaret Avery, Susan Ruttan, Sally Struthers, John Getz and Lori Tan Chinn convey three-dimensional life to their roles as Pacific View residents.
The primary season of “A Man on the Inside” ends with the tantalizing promise of Charles taking over a an entire new case in a unique locale. This darn factor may turn into “The White Lotus,” solely a lot kinder and never as murder-y.
