Advance Review: “Central Park” Episodes 1-4

 

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Central Park is a television show that taps into a simpler way of life as it focuses on the Tillerman family. Owen Tillerman, who manages Central Park, lives inside of the famous destination with the rest of his family. The Tillermans have a very humble look at the world as they try to peacefully exist within the park and prevent invading forces from tainting the beauty and innocence of such a place. Owen faces this struggle every day, but the rift between nature and industrialization comes to a serious head when Bitsy Brandenham, an ambitious curmudgeon of a hotel heiress who sets her sights on wiping out Central Park to replace it with a lucrative stretch of condominiums.

Owen and his family find themselves fighting to protect the park more than ever before in this touching family comedy that celebrates its joy through the power of song. Central Park is the year’s most down to Earth, heartwarming comedy and Apple TV+’s first triumph in the world of animation.

 

Our Take:

Optimism and positivity can be an underrated element in comedies, but it can often be the secret ingredient that helps elevate a series to something more important. There’s been a serious stretch of time where the tendency to be mean-spirited became the popular thing to do with comedy. While that impulse is far from gone within the genre, it’s certainly receded. Furthermore, now is a time when cheerful positivity is needed more than ever and this emotion suddenly holds a lot more appeal than it previously did. It can be comforting to escape away into animated content, but it becomes even more soothing when that content can bolster a feeling of encouragement and warmth in its viewers.

One of the most positive animated shows on television at the moment is Bob’s Burgers. Loren Bouchard’s series expertly portrays a grounded look at a low-income family that are able to make each other and the audience laugh through their intense love and their infectious personalities. Considering Bouchard’s resume, it’s not at all surprising to see that Central Park, his new animated series for Apple TV+, conjures the same atmosphere. However, Bouchard and the rest of his team push this free-floating optimism even further with Central Park, a show that’s so joyful it’s likely to induce cramps in the audience’s faces from all of the ear-to-ear grinning that they do.

The whole fight between nature and industry is nothing new in terms of story fuel, but it’s territory that’s especially well suited for Bouchard’s purview. Central Park leans into a cast of characters that support the most altruistic of causes, but they’re all so quirky and human enough that the show never feels like it’s preaching to the audience or consistently on a soapbox. At the same time, Bitsy Brandenham and the other more antagonistic characters that the show introduces are treated like fully rounded individuals who are easy to root for in their own ways. Central Park is deeply interested in the complexity of humans and that’s best on display when the opposing forces in this universe actually come to a head.

Character is always priority when it comes to Bouchard’s series and the Tillermans are an entertaining lot of do-gooders. Central Park does a good job at illustrating how this family cares about the park, but also have interests beyond that and aren’t just one-dimensional. This is most evident with the children in the family, Molly (Kristen Bell) and Cole (Titus Burgess). Leslie Odom Jr. and Kathryn Hahn round out the rest of the Tillermans and Josh Gad fulfills a very curious, albeit appropriate role, as Central Park’s roving troubadour, Birdie, who doubles as the show’s narrator. The entire lot of them are a lovable collection of underdogs. The most surprising casting in the show is likely Stanley Tucci as the embittered Bitsy, but he too disappears into his role with ease. He makes for a very theatrical villain for this story.

The first four episodes of the first season do a good job at showing off the entire Tillerman family, but they also manage to slowly get outside of the park in small doses. None of these episodes get too extreme with their stories and they instead fixate on typical routines in Central Park and the types of communities that help give the place life, even if they go unnoticed. It’s worth pointing out that Central Park’s showrunner is Sanjay Shah, who cut his teeth over on King of the Hill, another animated series that explored minutiae incredibly well. Episodes like “Skater’s Circle” and “Garbage Ballet” are some of the most effective looks into the beauty of the mundane, while entries like “Hat Luncheon” help flesh out characters like Bitsy and try to portray Central Park from a perspective outside of the Tillermans.

All of these episodes feel very comfortable and whether the season will eventually try to take on more complex stories or not isn’t as crucial to this show as it would be for something else. Central Park has already found its groove and if the rest of the season operates at this same pace then that’d be fine. However, there are small hints of serialization that are parsed out through episodes and there’s a bigger story that unfolds and carries over between episodes. Central Park was renewed for two 13-episode seasons right from the start, so this confidence in the series may eventually get reflected with a greater emphasis on serialization.

Central Park creates some interesting challenges for itself by just how much of the series is set within the titular park. There are brief detours, such as when Paige is at her job or when Molly and Cole are at school, where the show escapes from its leafy surroundings. These moments resonate a lot more as a result and it does feel like Central Park tries to restrict them to a minimum as it focuses on the world within its unusual ecosystem.

At the same time, it’s also important that this series is set within the real Central Park, rather than creating some surrogate destination. There’s a level of responsibility that comes with this and as a result this show truly tries to celebrate its environmental inspiration as much as possible. This show is an unwavering love letter to New York City’s famous park. Right now there’s also a surreal enjoyment to be had out of watching a television show that cherishes the social power in parks and how they can bring people together when it’s currently a time where people are not allowed to actually go out and enjoy parks. This series is hardly a perfect substitute, but it does scratch that itch and help remind audiences of the importance of all of this in a way that might have otherwise gone unappreciated.

One of the biggest elements of Central Park is that it’s a full-fledged musical comedy series. Music has been a fundamental aspect in Bouchard’s previous series and every episode of Bob’s Burgers even concludes with some snappy original composition. Central Park embraces this aesthetic more than any of Bouchard’s other works and it’s really kind of amazing. Each episode features several catchy songs that are meticulously put together and magnificently performed by the show’s talented cast. Much like in musical theater these songs are used to not just help convey emotion, but also push story along as well. This fantastical musical element that drives the show also helps create a real fairytale-like atmosphere for the series, which helps. It’s as if Central Park is this magical look at society.

The first four episodes of Central Park mark a very strong start to the series that indicates an impressive first season. It’s a rare example where the show’s faults are simultaneously its assets and it finds a way to make a difficult premise not just work, but soar. There’s an enjoyable cast of characters who are hard not to love and while they’re not as well defined as the Belchers, it looks like they’ll get there in time. It’s a shame that Central Park couldn’t air on Fox alongside Bob’s Burgers, as was originally intended, but Apple TV+ has a real hit on their hands here that can easily be as successful as Bouchard’s other animated series if enough people check it out.

Now, time to sing through “Own It” for the umpteenth time…