What I’m Watching: Wilfred

Wilfred: Season 1, Episodes 9 & 10 “Compassion” & “Isolation” (B+)

We get a special treat this week with two episodes of this wacky show, and while neither represents quite the best this show has to offer, they’re still both entertaining and worthwhile installments. Mary Steenburgen is a fun choice to play Ryan’s mother, and it’s interesting to see Ryan be the one ashamed of a member of his family when Kristen has done such a good job so far o playing that part. I enjoyed Wilfred’s insistence on Ryan owing his mother a lot for giving birth to him and getting attached to Catherine, barely giving Jenna the time of day. Helping Catherine find Ryan’s suicide note was a bit cruel, but ultimately it worked out for the best, plus we found out the most important thing of all: Catherine talks to a dog too! I was highly amused by Wilfred’s lack of comprehension about why “son of a bitch” was an insult, and his follow-up comment, “Your tone says insult, but what I’m hearing is a tempting offer.” In the second installment, we have another case of Ryan being full-on framed by Wilfred for having broken into all of his neighbors’ cars. Wilfred did manage to save the day by first framing Andy, the kid he hated, and then Peter Stormare’s rather hilarious homeless man. Wilfred and Ryan peeing on his grave was a fitting tribute to his short life on the show, and it’s sweet that Wilfred called Ryan the most important member of his pack. Ryan’s mangling of the neighborhood nicknames and Wilfred’s corrections ranked among the funniest moments of the episode.