What I’m Watching: A to Z

A to Z: Season 1, Episode 8 “H is for Hostile Takeover” (D-)

Slowly but surely, this show is wringing out all of its charm and becoming entirely unappealing. If Thursday nights were more populated by other comedies, particularly NBC’s far better “Parks and Recreation,” which has been saved for midseason for its final season, I might give up on it, but I feel compelled to stick around. The main problem now is that Zelda is no longer adorable, cast as a drag on Andrew’s individuality with no positive qualities of her own. In turn, that makes Andrew seem like a worthless character, incapable of not being influenced by others, and that’s not how it has to be. Stu up until this point has been all about Zelda except when it means that it’s diminishing his relationship with his best friend, and his hostility to her felt out of place. At the same time, Stephie’s sudden desire to be Andrew’s best friend was puzzling since it doesn’t track with her behavior up until this point, aside from her tendency to latch on to whatever anyone else is doing before giving it up quickly when something more interesting presents itself. I for one had never heard of professional stair climbing and didn’t think it was a real thing, but apparently it is. This show just seems to be going for the lowest common denominator and the easiest plotlines to pull off without having to put any effort into making its characters three-dimensional. It’s disappointing, and I don’t see much hope for the final five episodes of the show that are still slated to air.