Raising Hope

Everything is mad and confusing but the series’ pace is languid enough to grasp the happenings. The jokes,too,don’t feel forced and some of them are quite refreshing in their manner and approach. The acting,especially from Cloris Leachman as Jimmy’s grandmother Maw Maw,is exemplary.

Although she gets only limited screen time,her schizophrenic act wherein she confuses Jimmy to be her husband and kisses him on the lips and smokes in a daze all day which again leads to Jimmy exhaling smoke after the kiss,are great comic moments that stay long after the episode. Her moments of wakefulness are tragi-comic. She seems to know she’s aged enough to be a grandmother but the very next moment she slips into her old self and suckles Hope in front of the Chances.

The family’s relationship with each other is where the series goes wrong. It relies too much on emotional mush and long drawn conclusions to what should be resolved in a few minutes,case in point being,entire episodes that are dedicated to the baby’s name and efforts to make her smile. One expects the writing to be top notch, especially since Greg Garcia,who won an Emmy award for his other twisted comedy My Name Is Earl,has penned the script,but that’s not the case. A few scenes and situations seem forced while a few others are predictable. The family’s flaws,especially the ones on parenting,are too subtle for an Indian audience.

In an era when American television writing is touching an all time high,Raising Hope inspires little hope for itself.

Verdict: ***

If you like comedy laced with emotion,then this one’s for you.