Parenthood is a premise that hundreds of shows have addressed in one form or another, but NBC's new sitcom "Up All Night" has finally made it work. With their grounded humor and relatability, Will Arnett and Christina Applegate charm as new parents Reagan (Applegate) and Chris (Arnett). Indeed, everyone probably knows a hardworking, well-meaning husband and wife who find themselves absolutely hilarious, just like the characters. The show's best humor ultimately stems from its characters' delusions of hipness and from their continuing effort to keep up their pre-baby lives despite new, looming responsibilities of parenthood.
On the one hand is Reagan, the slightly uptight wife who possibly suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder and tries hard to balance her motherhood with her demanding career. Unlike similar characters on other shows — Claire (Julie Bowen) on "Modern Family" comes to mind — Reagan rarely comes across as grating or shrill. Applegate's smile and charisma make her a likeable character even when she ordinarily wouldn't be. This is one of Applegate's first leading roles, and it looks like her talent is finally being fully utilized.
Arnett is also fun to watch on "Up All Night," mostly because his character is so different from his roles on other shows like "Arrested Development" (2003-2006) and "30 Rock." Chris is an everyman who must deal with the major change of going from a lawyer to a stay-at-home dad. On weaker shows, most of the jokes would be about how being a stay-at-home parent is a stereotypical "woman's job," but "Up All Night" smartly steers the jokes away from lazy punch lines and makes them more about how afraid and nervous Arnett is as a new dad. These jokes are always good for big laughs and a few well-deserved heartwarming moments.
Though the jokes don't always hit their marks, the show usually works because it has a consistent tone and pacing to its plotlines that allows the actors to take center stage. The characters — with the exception of the Oprah-inspired Ava, played by "Saturday Night Live" alumna Maya Rudolph — are realistic enough to avoid feeling like caricatures or cartoons. Arnett and Applegate have a dynamic chemistry that allows the show's subtle absurdity and pervasive humor.
While the lead characters try to be "real adults" all the time, some of the show's biggest laughs come from the moments when they revert to their immature selves. Earlier in the season, for example, Reagan and Chris are watching their daughter sleep when they can't help but say, "she is so f----ingbeautiful." It is the kind of hilarious and tender scene that works for the series.
The show does falter when it tries to focus too much on the supporting characters. Although Rudolph and the rest of the supporting cast are skilled actors, their characters are a little too one-dimensional to be the focus of major plots or scenes. The scenes that take the spotlight off Arnett's and Applegate's characters tend to be the ones that make the weaknesses in the scripts the most obvious.
At its core, "Up All Night" is a show about how becoming a parent changes everything about a person's life. While this is in no way a novel idea, it is still often a humorous one, especially when it is portrayed by talented and committed lead actors.
The show is nothing revolutionary and not likely to make many of the year's "best of" lists, but "Up All Night" will still provide viewers with a half hour of earnest laughs.
