TVSquad

Do not adjust your web browser. You are now entering the Retro Squad, where we are reviewing past episodes of classic TV shows.

(S01E01) Some shows come out of the gate with such a power that you can't help but stand up and take notice. For the far too few of us who happened to catch Arrested Development when it premiered, it quickly established that it was going to be something a little different than the other comedy fare on the television. The trend at the time was moving toward the single camera format, that's almost become the norm for comedies nowadays (The Office, My Name is Earl, hell NBC's entire Thursday night lineup).

There was a time when audiences were less receptive to this kind of television. It was funny, but minus a laugh track. So while shows like The King of Queens, Everybody Loves Raymond and even According to Jim had this comfortable format with the basic house set and laughter to cue us into the funny bits, AD was something a bit more challenging. Perhaps it was just a few years ahead of its time, or perhaps it was on the wrong network (FOX), or perhaps it was just too smart for its own good.

If you're a fan of the Discovery Channel series Mythbusters, then you know who Buster is. He's the resident dummy on the program, the lifeless model who gets shot, stabbed, blown up, dismembered, and has all kinds of other nasty stuff done to him in the name of myth debunking (or proving).

Recently, the gang at Mythbusters decided to let Buster speak his first words, and they asked fans to submit lines. Now, you can go here and vote for which line is your favorite. Buster will utter the winning line just before he's smashed to pieces in an upcoming "car myth" episode. The site doesn't specify which episode, though, so I guess you'll just have to watch. The series airs Wednesday nights at 9:00 p.m.

Here's the deal, if you missed the finale of Arrested Development Friday on FOX, well, you just aren't a true fan. Not only that, but you missed probably two of the finest hours of TV comedy that have ever aired. I'm not sure that there was a plotline that didn't get some kind of mention or wrap-up. Hilarious, funny, crazy, witty, comical, side-splitting, and uproarious are all terms I, and many many others, have used to describe Arrested Development in the past, but there was one word that wasn't mentioned enough: perfection. Arrested Development was treated like garbage by FOX. People can say what they want about FOX giving it more time than most shows to "find its audience," but that's bull and we all know it. Unless it's an immediate hit (with immediate gratification) networks just don't care about anything anymore (ABC's handling of Emily's Reasons Why Not was criminal), and FOX jumped AD all over the place, putting it on hiatus left and right, advertising showings that then disappeared, or just flat-out not advertising it at all. On with the show!

As we all know by now, Friday is 99.9999999% more than likely the last time any new episodes of Arrested Development will ever air on Fox. Whether or not Showtime picks it up, I've relegated myself to the fact that this is a good thing. Fox has treated this brilliant show like garbage. Hopefully though, we'll get an announcement some time within the next week or two officially canceling the show, which will then lead to an official announcement from Showtime. Well, one can hope. So to celebrate Friday's swan song, we here at TV Squad will be having a Live Arrested Development Chat.  Will George Michael and Maebe maybe hook up? Will Lucille 2 make her triumphant return? What will become of the banana stand? I honestly don't know, but I can't wait to see, and I hope you all join me. Check back here on Friday at 8pm EST, it's gonna be one wild ride off into the sunset.