The latest from mocumentary king Christopher Guest (This is Spinal Tap, Best in Show) is his first foray into TV and the results are mixed. The show is slow going for the first few episodes, but is worth it for those who stick with it to the end.
Chris O’Dowd (Bridesmaids, The IT Crowd) plays Tom Chadwick, an Englishman who inherits an old box of family heirlooms from a relative and begins a journey to find out about his ancestors. The quest takes him to America where Guests finally has the opportunity to reintroduce his regulars, (Ed Begley Jr. as a pretentious Californian, Fred Willard as his idiot neighbor). Not coincidentally, this is also where the best episodes begin. The episodes are hit and miss, but when they hit, they are hilarious.
Family Tree/2 DVD/HBO Studios/2013