Pilot Review: Unhitched

Unhitched (FOX)
Premiered March 2 at 9:30pm

The broadcast of this first episode was delayed along with the rest of the FOX schedule by half an hour for some reason (sports, maybe?), but it is probably better that anyone who had planned to watch it missed it. From its first moment, it is unbearable and there is not a laugh to be found in its entire half hour running time. Its particular theme, which seems to center itself on a group of divorced friends, is never announced or even really implied, other than in the title. Even FOX’s misguided dramedy “The Wedding Bells” from last year was more on track with its motivations and focus. Without somewhere to go, this show is completely aimless and endlessly tedious. It is wholly predictable and even more obnoxious when things turn out exactly as expected. Dialogue like “I got raped by a monkey” and the proposal to the escort are painfully forced. The plotlines for all four of the characters are equally bad, which is impressive in a bad way. Craig Bierko, playing the lead, is too out-there and completely ungrounded in his performance. Even Rashida Jones, formerly Karen on “The Office” is given abysmal material and does not possess the skills to rise above it.

How will it work as a series? If it starts heading somewhere, maybe it could better but I highly doubt it. The characters are terrible, and there is little that can be done to get around that.
How long will it last? Well, CBS renewed “Rules of Engagement”, but FOX is never kind to its comedies (except “Til Death”, which is slightly better than this), so I think this one is a goner in a few weeks or less.

Pilot grade: F