What I’m Watching: Indebted

Indebted: Season 1, Episode 4 “Everybody’s Talking About Hot Goss” (C+)

This show is definitely taking a turn for the less intelligent, and I can’t imagine it’s going to last much longer if any new viewers tuned in for this episode. Joanna has been the least featured character so far, though it’s been apparent that her dating life isn’t going all that well. Rebecca has rightly been the one up until this point to realize the tendencies and flaws of the family that she’s married into, and yet she seems to have fully embraced their habit of indulging in gossip over dinner, something that I’d hope they would realize is more than a bit over-the-top. Joanna’s concern about introducing her new girlfriend to her family was reasonable since they didn’t even try to act polite, and couldn’t contain themselves for more than a few minutes before heading to the garage to gossip together. This storyline didn’t seem all that sophisticated until it managed to lead to a surprise revelation that Joanna’s new flame who wasn’t into this manner of speaking was actually a member of a cult which she wanted to recruit Joanna to join. Dave and Rebecca were also more than happy to take advantage of fellow parents thinking that they were poor and sending them food, if only the meals were a bit tastier and more creative. For anyone missing a traditional sitcom with a very loud laugh track, this show is definitely old-fashioned and familiar in that way. It just doesn’t have much to offer in the way of new thinking.