Review: Bless the Harts “Big Pimpin”

 

 

Overview:

Bad news hits the Last Supper, as Louise returns from a cruise to announce that her husband, Daniel, has died. Soon, everyone is impacted, including the customers, as Louise grieves her loss.

Thankfully, Wayne steps up to support Louise by giving her a couple of rugged hands to help around the house. Unfortunately, she soon begins taking advantage of his generosity. And when Jenny attempts to stand up for her boyfriend, she is soon bought off with Sephora gift cards and trips to the spa.

Meanwhile, Betty has her own suspicions about Daniel’s death with an intriguing enough story to catch the attention of Violet and David. Enough to get them to start their own true-crime podcast so Betty can ramble on about all her criminal theories. Though her wild claims have everyone in town upset with the teenagers for giving her a platform.

 

Our Take:

Season two of Bless the Harts and the show has already killed off one of the supporting characters. That is a bold move for an animated sitcom. But is Bless the Harts anything if not bold?

The character of Daniel Culp is not a significant loss for the show. Other than gifting the series a power couple to play with. However, giving Jenny’s boss, Louise, the grieving widower stereotype in this episode paid off. And future episodes will likely benefit from having her being a swinging bachelorette.

Voiced by Emily Spivey, Louise may be one of the more underrated characters of the show. Specifically, because she is often lost behind the more outrageous dialogue of Fortune Feimster’s Brenda. But this episode grants Spivey a platform to let loose on the over-indulgent and often-naïve, southern rich housewife.

But Bless the Harts is not short on amazing voice talents.

Just look at Betty, who is voiced by last year’s Emmy award-winning voice-over artist, Maya Rudolph. Though her character is drastically different from the one she performs in Big Mouth, Betty gives her some new ways to play around.

This episode featured Betty letting loose on a true-crime podcast making accusation after accusation of murderers throughout her town. And when it is revealed that she only makes these claims on those that have crossed her in the past, it is not only hilarious in delivery but a stand-out moment for the eccentric character.

As far as the plot goes, this episode failed to explore in the same ways that the show has throughout the season. The premise was established early, and the story plateaued through to the anticlimactic conclusion. The true-crime podcast B-plot finished off with a flourish, but without aftermath. While the main story dwindled away without any characters learning a lesson.

So, while Bless the Harts has talent in spades. Boasting some of the best voice-over performances that you can hear on a Sunday evening. The series tends to rest on those laurels and struggles to deliver an original plot. This same story could be injected into any sitcom on television and receive similar results. Thankfully, when an episode lacks substance as this one does, they have some powerhouse actresses carrying the show on their backs.