I’ve gotten out of the habit of watching sitcoms in recent years. “Ghosts” (Thursdays, CBS) reminds me why. Not that there aren’t a few gems out there, but this remake of a British series is emblematic of the modern state of the genre: uninspired, inoffensive, slickly made and unfunny.
Boon or burden?
It follows New York couple Samantha and Jay (Rose McIver and Utkarsh Ambudkar) as they move into an old house she has inherited, presumably in upstate N.Y. or New England.
The first two episodes set up the premise: The huge house is filled with non-scary ghosts only Sam can see because she bumped her head. As the couple runs their bed-and-breakfast, Sam will help the ghosts with their issues.
“Ghosts” Season 1 (2021)
Thursdays, CBS
Creators: Joe Port, Joe Wiseman
Stars: Utkarsh Ambudkar, Brandon Scott Jones, Rose McIver
If this were a comedy film, it wouldn’t be the worst thing McIver has ever done; she’s a veteran of those Netflix “Christmas Prince” films. The actress is appealing – as preppie ghost Trevor (Asher Goodman) repeatedly notes – but the problem is I know what she can do from “iZombie.”
That show was fun and inventive every week. On “Ghosts,” McIver is probably making house payments, and I’m happy for her. But not enough to keep watching.
CBS-style comedy
“Ghosts” is a good bar for where mainstream CBS comedy is at: It’s where cutting-edge comedy was a quarter century ago.
Here’s an example: Isaac (Brandon Scott Jones), a ghost from Alexander Hamilton’s day, makes a comment that reveals he is a closeted gay man. Then we cut to another character giving an awkward-pause expression.
Isaac actually almost qualifies as a character through two episodes because he’s at least struggling with something. Others – such as the Viking obsessed with cod (Devan Long) – are one-trait sketches.
At the same time, they all talk like they come from the same keyboard. They do the out-of-touch joke when needed, the modern joke when needed, and the awkward pause when needed.
Barely there
I’ve railed against laugh tracks in the past, but with “Ghosts” we have a non-laugh-track comedy that uses awkward-reaction comedy (the antithesis of the laugh track) as a crutch. I almost wonder: Would it be better with a laugh track?
It’s safe to say it’s better with British accents – I see the UK version rates higher on IMDb.
“Ghosts” superficially reminds me of “What We Do in the Shadows,” a show that many people love but that I found to be repetitive. But at least it has edge and silliness.
I can’t imagine “Ghosts” doing anything daring. Frankly, I can’t imagine it doing a joke that hasn’t been done elsewhere.
It’s tempting to overrate it because McIver and Ambudkar have good chemistry and it’s professionally made. Every line reading is perfectly calibrated for this type of humor. These actors would breeze through a community theater farce.
It goes without saying that “Ghosts” isn’t scary – it doesn’t try to be. What’s unfortunate is that the adjective “ghostly” applies in another way. This show is barely there.