The idea of getting a weekly dose of the girl from “(500) Days of Summer” was irresistible when “New Girl” (8 p.m. Central Tuesdays on Fox) debuted last fall, but the public seemed to think a regular blast of the “too cute, too quirky” Zooey Deschanel was too much and the backlash started to arrive.
I myself canceled “New Girl” for a while, but I caught up again when Entertainment Weekly started to note its improvements. Indeed, while “New Girl” is still a traditional sitcom — that was my biggest complaint about it when it premiered — it’s arguably better than any other traditional sitcom airing right now. (Although I watch every ep, I’ve never found “Parks and Recreation” and “Community” to be as brilliant as other people do; sorry.)
While the title suggests the show is 100 percent about quirky Jess (Deschanel), with her three roommates reacting to her weirdness, “New Girl” would be more accurately titled “New Girl and Three Guys.” The roomies get equal weight in the scripts now, and that’s good for everyone: Jess may be a colorful individual, but it’s good that Deschanel doesn’t feel the pressure to steal every scene.
Schmidt (Max Greenfield, from “Veronica Mars”) has instead become the breakout character. His actions are shallow, yet he clearly has a fragile heart; Greenfield has nailed that delicate contradiction despite the fact that he goes big with his acting style. The scripts help, because his passions are relatable: He loves a nice pair of dress pants, a clean and organized apartment, and Jess’ hot model friend CeCe (Hannah Simone), who is just using him for sex (at first).
The four 30-somethings awkwardly approach the first relationships of their lives that might be based on love. Jess, who previously dated equally weird Paul (Justin Long) when “New Girl” was less nuanced, now is in an other-side-of-the-tracks relationship with rich and successful Russell (Dermot Mulroney). And Winston (Lamorne Morris) tries to act more mature because he actually loves Shelby (Kali Hawk).
Meanwhile, Nick (Jake M. Johnson) has become the most layered character despite being originally pitched as “the guy that Jess is perfect for, but neither of them realize it yet, so the writers will just tease us for seven years.” He has extreme financial troubles which are played for dark comedy, yet Johnson brings heart to it, such as in a recent drunken beach scene where he worries that he’ll never amount to anything. Jess comforts him, but even then we don’t get the expected “Oh, they are so perfect for each other and don’t know it!” moment; “New Girl” plays that so close to the vest that it’s almost not an element of the show, even though it truly is, I think.
“New Girl” is still a sitcom, and because of that limitation, even its best character moments can’t stack up against even a mundane moment from a great hour-long drama like “Parenthood.” And the episodic plots, such as Winston’s beloved old vehicle being absurdly rundown, or Jess and Schmidt arguing about the inclusion of a hutch in the kitchen, aren’t on par with “Seinfeld” or top-tier “Always Sunny.”
Still, the characters’ relatable relationship and job struggles, and the humor (as casually raunchy as the laugh-tracked “How I Met Your Mother,” but better because viewers are trusted to know when to laugh here), have gradually pushed “New Girl” to a point where I now have a sitcom in my viewing lineup that I actually kinda like.
Any other “New Girl” fans out there? What do you think of the show’s gradual transformation from its early episodes of mediocrity?