The Goode Family, a new animated comedy from Mike Judge (Beavis and Butthead, King of the Hill), premieres tonight on ABC. The following are reviews from TV critics around the Web, compiled by B&C.
“There are probably two or three decent jokes that demonstrate the direction they could have gone. But the execution just isn’t funny enough to justify watching an entire half-hour show to get to those moments — even in the summer. The execution just isn’t funny enough to justify watching an entire half-hour show to get to those [funny] moments.”
-Linda Holmes, NPR
“A scathingly funny report from the front lines of America’s culture wars.”
-Glenn Garvin, Miami Herald
“If there is a political agenda beyond laughs, it’s one similar to King of the Hill. Extremism of any sort leads to folly. Bend a little and you’ll get a lot back.”
-Mark A. Perigard, The Boston Herald
“The Goode Family, which is nicely acted and well animated, works best when the cultural potshots give way to the more basic human needs of its characters.”
-Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times
“The show feels aggressively off-kilter with the current mood, as if it had been incubated in the early to mid-’90s, when it was possible to find global-warming skeptics among even the reasonable and informed.”
-Gina Bellafante, The New York Times
“TV satires that play a single note can get pretty monotonous after a while…The Goode Family is a highly imaginative and often amusing variation on that one note.”
-Verne Gay, Chicago Tribune
“The Goode Family isn’t distinct enough or, ultimately, funny enough in the few episodes ABC screened to really worry about a future.”
-Tim Goodman, San Francisco Chronicle
“The Goode Family feels broader and more overtly satirical. And while the jokes may be funnier than King has been in a long time, the new show also feels more uneven and strained.”
Alan Sepinwall, The Star-Ledger (Newark, N.J.)
“The Goode Family doesn’t live up to its name. And that’s a shame, since we were cheering for this new animated series to be, well, good, given its unique and funny premise.”
-Bill Harris, Edmonton Sun
