Now Streaming Exclusively on The Peacock. “Ted” The Movie is Now Available.
It’s probably not much of a surprise to discover that Seth McFarlane’s talents work much more when applied to serialized television than with feature length films. While “Ted” has gradually evolved in to a favorite of mine, and “Ted 2” is—well—good enough to pass the time, Seth McFarlane’s transplanting of his concept to the small screen is very good. Often times it’s great. This is also stunning considering Seth McFarlane’s earlier humor was often so dark and nasty. “Ted” actually manages to bring a lot of what we love about the humor from “American Dad” and “Family Guy” but also injects some actual heart and substance to McFarlane’s bizarre formula.
Working as a prequel to his first two “Ted” films, the series follows young teenage John Bennett who is living with his dysfunctional family and sentient teddy bear in 1990’s suburbia (circa 1991-1994). After wishing his bear to come to life, the fame has worn off for Ted and now he’s just a normal citizen living with John and his family. Looking for something to do with his life, Ted is encouraged by John’s older cousin Blaire to enroll in high school and get an education. This is where the series takes off. For fans of “Ted” this series doesn’t depart much from what made the movies so popular.
There are oodles of pop culture references, a ton of stoner jokes, a ton of raunchy sex jokes, and F bombs are dropped like they’re trying to fill a quota. “Ted” is so much like “The Wonder Years” but re-imagined through the mind of some really fucked up comedian, and man, is it good. I think what really makes “Ted” such a fun show is not just Ted but the supporting cast. McFarlane regular Scott Grimes is hysterical as Johnny’s disgruntled father Mattie, while Alanna Ubach is hilarious as John’s meek yet good hearted mother Susan. The stand out, though, is Giorgia Whigham as Johnny’s older cousin Blaire. Not featured in any of the movies, Blaire is a new character brought in to the show as Johnny’s cousin who lives with his family while she’s going to college.
She’s the opposite of everything that Johnny’s parents are, but a glimpse in to the kind of person that Johnny will soon become. As Blaire, Whigham portrays this rebellious, intelligent, and often outspoken foil to Johnny and Ted who thwarts their antics, but also lends them healthy advice whenever they need it. She’s basically Meg from “American Dad,” just nowhere near as obnoxious and sanctimonious. Blaire’s back story is surprisingly sad and she contributes so much not just to the series’ humor but the spirit of the family sitcom that McFarlane is obviously going for.
I want a “Ted 3” and I want an older Blaire to be integrated in to canon, officially. It’d be a disservice if McFarlane didn’t flesh this out further.
Max Burkholder is a top notch replacement for Marky Mark, playing the character so much better. His comic timing is not only sharper, but he feels so much more like a maladjusted individual and less like the man baby that we saw in the first “Ted.” Although it’s only seven episodes long, “Ted” doesn’t really rely on an interconnected arc, instead relying more on self contained episodes that develop Johnny and his family further with every installment. For an alleged limited series it works so well, and it amounts to probably one of McFarlane’s best creative outputs in a very long time.
I hope The Peacock builds enough confidence in “Ted” to grant it a second season.