What I’m Watching: A to Z

A to Z: Season 1, Episode 4 “D is for Debbie” (C-)

I was hoping that, four episodes in, this should would feel a bit more developed, and unfortunately it doesn’t. What changed about this half-hour is that it wasn’t saved at the end by a big romantic gesture on the part of one or both of our affable leads, but instead it was dragged out through the episode as both parties were somewhat uncomfortable. Zelda not inviting Andrew to the funeral made sense given the short amount of time that they’ve been dating, but his bright outlook on life made him think that only good things would come of him going there. The problem is that both were right, and what ended up happening was Zelda freaking out, which doesn’t bother Andrew at all, and her fast-forwarded lawyer eulogy was hardly the way to make his presence there worthwhile. Like all of this show’s supporting characters, it doesn’t match the nature of their relationship. Ending with a heartwarming music session was peculiar and is exemplary of nothing more than the fact that Andrew and Zelda can occasionally be normal together in the midst of weird circumstances. I don’t have much to say about Stu and Stephie, who do their best to hog the screen at every opportunity, but Lydia continues to be a drain on the show, putting hunting traps out to catch her employees immediately in a moment of unproductivity and then getting herself in trouble at the hands of Wayne Wilderson’s corporate surveyor. I liked him better as the convict is his short stint on season three of “The Office.”