Sunday, October 31, 2021

What I’m Watching: United States of Al

United States of Al: Season 2, Episode 2 “Repo/Wapas Geri” (B-)

So, after an opening installment that swapped out the laugh track for more serious content related to what’s actually going on in Afghanistan, this episode took us back to the comedic side of things, giving Riley and Al what may have been their most absurd hijinks yet. The need to make more money to help his family is just the latest motivator that’s pushed Al to do something he probably shouldn’t be doing, and Riley was all about adopting a new activity that took up most of his attention and shifted his mood considerably. I didn’t buy that they would do well as repo men, and they certainly didn’t have a great plan when they went in for each job, resulting in some close calls and one smashed windshield. Riley seemed to get the most joy out of eating messy foods in other people’s cars because he just didn’t care, and he appreciated the opportunity to feel like he was really doing something again, and with his best friend, no less. Lizzie was right to be concerned and was able to convince Al that what they were doing was unnecessarily dangerous. I did enjoy the training exercises they did at the start which always seemed to end with Al being shown that he was woefully unprepared. Art’s commentary was, as always, not entirely helpful, and he’s all about making fun of his children when he sees that they’re making mistakes or doing something that he would get flak from them for if it was him.

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