Life on a Stick Review

From Medialife:

'Life on a Stick,'
dumb, dumb, dumb

Meatheads at the mall doing meathead things

By Toni Fitzgerald

The new Fox show “Life on a Stick” raises the question, how dumb does a show have to be before the “American Idol” lead-in effect wears off? We'll soon learn the answer.

“Stick” is pretty dumb. Even if the show, premiering tomorrow night at 9:30 p.m. after “Idol,” had brilliant acting, perfect execution and a zinger a minute, which it does not, it would be impossible to get past the ridiculous title. It may be the first TV program title in history to reference a corn dog.

But the second problem is that “Stick” can’t decide if it’s a workplace satire or a wacky family comedy, and thus it does not succeed at either.

Eighteen-year-old loser Laz (Zachary Knighton) lives with dad Rick (Matthew Glave) and impossibly hot stepmom Michelle (Amy Yasbeck, John Ritter’s widow). He’s just gotten fired from his job at Yippee Hot Dogs after talking back to his boss, and he’s worried his parents will kick him out.

Rick and Michelle agree to let Laz stay on one condition: He take his angry stepsister, Molly (a believably cranky Saige Thompson), under his wing. Why these two believe a guy who can’t even keep a job at a hot-dog stand would be a good influence is never quite explained.

Laz and best friend Fred (Charlie Finn), a fellow Yippee employee, return to the mall to incite an employee rebellion. Instead they deep-fry everything in the boss’s office.

Just imagine, some poor set designer had to spend hours figuring out how to bread a picture frame. Perhaps the time would have been better spent brainstorming some funny jokes.

A typical line: “I’d deep fry the organ I hold most dear to please her,” Laz says about co-worker and future girlfriend Lily (Rachel Lefevre). “Thankfully, though, I don’t see how it would.”

Though there’s certainly ripe material for comedy at any fast food place, “Stick’s” creativity peaks with jokes about the uniforms and the sad life of a French fry. The boss character is too one-dimensional to be funny.

The second episode has a much funnier premise. After getting his job back in episode one, Laz convinces Lily and Fred to defect to one of those spookily small pretzel booths that seem to float in the middle of every mall. Unfortunately the kids are back in hot dog hell by the end of the show.

As for Laz’s home life, it’s more creepy than funny. Rick and Michelle are like a demento, nymphomaniac version of Mike and Carol Brady. They can’t quite get their blended family to work, but they can get it on in the garage when they think no one’s paying attention. Yuck.

Quality of show (on a scale of 10): 4
Every seventh joke or so is funny, but that has the unfortunate effect of highlighting just how lame the other jokes are. “Stick” suffers from “Saturday Night Live” disease, wherein a joke is carried out for way too long, until it ceases to be funny and becomes painful. The acting is passable, but no one really stands out besides Thompson, who has the best character to play.

Positioning (on a scale of 10): 8
A blank screen airing for 30 minutes after “Idol” would average 10 million viewers. Surely “Stick” can do better than that.

Cachet, or the “Arrested Development” factor (on a scale of 10): 3
Executive producer and writer Victor Fresco created “Andy Richter Controls the Universe.” Though that show was beloved by critics, it was similarly uneven, with big laughs balanced by awkward gags. Yasbeck is the only cast member with even mild name recognition, sadly because of Ritter’s death. Reviewers have enjoyed only one thing about the show, coming up with original ways to diss the title.

Overall (on a scale of 30): 15
With “Idol” as a lead-in, it will score a big premiere audience. But the moment it moves to another night, this aimless show will tank. Fox has far more deserving shows that could better benefit from “Idol’s” bulk.