Review: Duncanville “Sibling Revelry”

 

 

Overview:

Siblings Duncan and Kimberly have not been getting along. With their parents at the end of their rope, they take drastic measures by sending their kids to Trust Falls Wilderness Therapy Camp. But can they fake being friends long enough to get along?

Meanwhile, with the other kids out of town, baby Jing gets all the attention from Annie and Jack. Thankfully, she is not an only child because she cannot handle the extra care she has receives.

 

Our Take:

Duncanville has come hot into its sophomore season. Already picked up for a third season on Fox, the still-young series is leading the way for Animation Domination to expand to Monday nights. Season two had a brilliant launch delivering two solid episodes followed by a fun stock car race. The first season was still working on establishing itself; this follow-up collection is already on a rampage.

This fourth episode of the season continues to push the boundaries of the series and showcases how ambitious this year can get. Some fresh settings and guest voices help make this a special camp themed episode. Though it may seem like a cliché event for a sitcom, Duncanville always manages to give things a unique spin.  

A significant addition to this piece is the inclusion of special guest star, former SNL cast member Horatio Sanz as camp councillor Douglas. The overly optimistic but clearly damaged character helped to bring a simple premise an extra dose of humour. And as a bit of bonus, the character design included a recognizable hat, care of Gravity Falls.

One of the largest shifts that Duncanville has had from the first season is the extra screen time for baby Jing. Limited to one-timers and comedic relief throughout season one, Jing is rightfully becoming a more significant part of the series. The last episode included the baby finding a closer bond with her older sister. 

This episode follows it up by giving Jing a taste of what it would be like to be a single child. Spoiler: she does not enjoy it very much as she discovers just how overwhelming her parents can be.

You would expect Duncan and Kim’s adventures at camp to be the central part of the episode, but Jing managed to steal another show. After getting exhausted with her parents’ constant attention, the baby takes a more dominant role. She even stepped up to share the scene with Duncan’s friends. More episodes like this, and they are going to have to rename the show and give Jing the title.

After a whole season of Bless the Harts on Animation Domination, it was easy to forget this great series that was hiding in Fox’s back pocket. Thankfully, the show quickly proves that it does not need to be tied to more notable titles like Simpsons and Bob’s Burgers to draw in an audience. Even an entire episode without Duncan and his mother’s hilarious conversations, Duncanville managed to bring a full 21-minutes of laughs.