Pilot Review: Cristela

Cristela (ABC)
Premiered October 10 at 8:30pm

When the title of a series contains nothing besides a character’s first name, it says something about it right off the bat. This season we have “Mulaney,” which is a last name, and in the past there have been those that faded into obscurity right away, like “Rob” and “Freddie,” and the select few that continue to run successfully, like “Hannibal” and “Louie.” In this case, like those two ill-fated comedies that lasted just one season, the name of the show is also the name of its star. I, along with many others, had never heard of Cristela Alonzo before this show, and I think that’s set to change due to this Latino-focused series, which, while not particularly to my tastes, is sure to attract a large and devoted audience. Cristela knows who she’s supposed to be marketing her show to, fully embracing her fictional family’s Mexican-American heritage and the constant struggle of being an American-born Hispanic perpetually thought of as a foreign immigrant. What’s disappointing about her very cultural approach is that it feels fifteen or twenty years late, stuck in basic laugh track sitcom mode. That makes it a perfect pairing for “Last Man Standing,” with which ABC wisely grouped it, but it keeps the show from being both innovative and intellectual. Cristela can be funny, but the show she’s designed around the lead character is full of stale comedy tropes that don’t feel particularly fresh even when dropped into a new setting with a distinct Hispanic flavor.

How will it work as a series? Cristela has managed to prove that she’s a good fit for this future lawyer career, and she’s going to be able to gain some useful experience at her internship while she endures constant condescending racism from her boss. I’m sure she’ll have ups and downs, but sentimentality will always win out on this pretty predictable sitcom.
How long will it last? A while, I think. The ratings were great for the pilot, second only to “Black-ish,” which ABC just picked up for a full season last week. I suspect that the network will endorse this groundbreaking show and reward Cristela with a full season order so that it can trumpet not one but two winning ethnic comedies.

Pilot grade: C-