Arrested Development

The new revival isn’t perfect, especially in the tone-deaf (and arguably offensive) way in which Tambor’s controversy is mirrored in his character’s, George Sr.’s, story arc. But it also goes a long way to absolve the sins of that first Netflix revival, sins we can forget, but are still a ways away from forgiving. ... Our advice is to just surrender yourself to the constant confusion and instead take pleasure in the clever writing.

It's all packed with inside jokes and callbacks of inside jokes. This one's for the fans.

Forget the tortuous Season 4; this time, the Netflix reboot is actually funny.

Arrested Development is back. You’ve earned the insanity.

By returning to a relatively more linear narrative, not to mention its truly ensemble roots, Arrested Development has given something back to us by remembering that the Bluths are fundamentally bound by idiosyncrasy. At its best, the series continues to deftly skewer the interpersonal dynamics of a hilariously dysfunctional family.

Season five moves from point to point, building on and riffing off what came before, and Arrested Development feels like its old self again. More important, season five is funny, and gets funnier as it proceeds.

Some of this can feel a little too tied to the past. Yet even though there are only a half-dozen or so scenes that stand out on their own--as well-written, executed, and bonafide funny stretches that don’t rely on old gags--plenty of minor moments hit the right note, and the series overall isn’t twisting itself into knots anymore.

The season is faster-paced and makes better use of the recurring gags from its entire run. But though it's a considerable improvement on Season 4, the fifth season still can't reach the heights of the first three. ... However, the long gap since its original run gives some cast members the opportunity to shine more brightly.

To its credit, season 5 seems to know what went wrong before and works hard to correct it.

It breaks no new ground, and it goes over old ground in a way that feels odd to call "pleasing," given the rampant dysfunction, but somehow is.

The first half of Season 5 is perfectly fine. Mostly funny. At moments scintillating. It’s a good time as long as you keep in mind what the show is now. “Arrested Development” was once the story of a wealthy family who lost everything. Now, it’s mostly a story about having watched “Arrested Development.”

Overall, it’s more coherent and consistent than season four (at least the seven episodes I’ve seen) even if it’s not as inspired as the prime of the series. We need to start coming to terms with the realization that it won’t ever be quite that transcendent again, but this season is still often pretty funny.

For committed fans, who have followed the series through thick and (ratings-wise, mostly) thin, the latest comeback might feel like visiting an old friend. Still, the long layoff and a renaissance among premium half-hour series have made the experience pleasant enough, but less of an occasion than it was in the past.

Structurally, Arrested is in better shape than it was in season four. Fans who temper their expectations for this new batch of episodes--eight are available this week with another eight coming later this year--will be happy to be back with the terrible Bluth family.

But trying to recreate the past is almost always impossible, as every TV revival other than Twin Peaks: The Return has been forced to grapple with. And that leaves Arrested season five feeling half finished. It’s fun in places and labored in others, sometimes in the same scene.

You feel, in the end, like the concept-album strangeness of season 4 has been replaced by an attempt toward facsimile: The old show, recreated. Fun enough, I guess, if you forget that a central part of the thrill with Arrested Development was how completely it could reset the boundaries of TV comedy every week. There will always be money in this banana stand--but there used to be so much more.

In lieu of an actual story, we’re treated to a constant stream of wink-wink references to jokes from past seasons. ... We do get more Bluth family interaction this season, but the cast members mostly look older and worn down... and not in a funny way.

The only innovation in these new Arrested Development episodes is how the story processes tensions between Michael and George Michael, who remain in love with the same woman (Isla Fischer), leading to one confrontation that is, I’ll admit, fairly amazing. Otherwise what Netflix has shown reviewers of this fifth season (seven of the eight to be released on May 29 were made available to critics, with eight more coming later) doesn’t justify the continued revisitations to the Bluths.