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The first reviews of "Detroiters" are positive. Writers at three publications like the series starting at 10:30 p.m. Tuesday on Comedy Central.
"It’s a bizarre, rollicking joy," says Sonya Saraiya of Variety, an entertainment industry paper in Los Angeles. “'Detroiters' offers a state of mind . . . in which the most ridiculous ideas seem eminently sensible."
Tim and Sam are kind of like happy kids in the candy shop of the Detroit metro area — and their enthusiasm is made hilarious by brilliantly timed editing. There were several scenes in “Detroiters” that are so helplessly idiotic, so incredibly naïve, that I could not stop laughing.
Richardson and Robinson play off of each other with seamless rhythms, and both lean into their roles as knockoff “Mad Men” hucksters. Some of the best bits in the show are either very bad commercials or very bad pitches for commercials — both of which are opportunities for the show’s many guest-stars to commit wholeheartedly to an unbelievable bit.
Wayne State graduate Shawntay Dalon has a recurring role as Chrissy, Richardson's sister. (Comedy Central photos)
At The Detroit News, Mekeisha Madden Toby -- an ex-Detroiter now freelancing from Los Angeles -- appreciates "an undeniable sense of flavor and place." The first three episodes sent to critics, she says, are packed "with layers upon layers of inside jokes and references that will tickle viewers from downtown Detroit to 15 Mile and beyond."
Praise also flows from Nina Metz of the Chicago Tribune, who enjoys the "Motown-inflected soundtrack" and advises viewers to return after this week:
The show gets stronger — looser, weirder and more endearing in its strange little way — after the pilot episode. . . .
A lot of humor over the past two decades has been derived from the trope of boy-men trapped in arrested development. What's distinctive about Richardson and Robinson (and therefore what makes their comedy stronger) is that their immaturity isn't so much a rejection of adult responsibilities as it is a delight in each other. . . .
This dynamic shows up in the third episode with Robinson eventually giving voice to all that subtext: "I think deep down I'm trying to sabotage your relationships so I can have you all to myself!"
The format works — primarily, I would say, because Richardson is a performer who can infuse his characters (and this is true on "Veep" as well) with a proudly oblivious and good-natured but dignified silliness. He has a knack for finding the comedy in niceness, which I think is generally underrated. It's Richardson's sweet spot.
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