Mr. Mayor Review: Dodger Day (Season 1 Episode 5)
Haphazard storylines and absurdities make up Mr. Mayor Season 1 Episode 5, “Dodger Day,” and not in a good way.
I am finding it very difficult to enjoy watching this show. It really just seems to bum me out more and more.
In my review of Mr. Mayor Season 1 Episode 4, “The Sac,” I stated that I was at least able to laugh occasionally at the Arpi/Jayden storyline—that the actors, Holly Hunter and Bobby Moynihan, managed to surpass the banal script and offer something that I could appreciate.
Sadly, that is not the case for “Dodger Day.” There is not a laugh, or even a chuckle, to be had by me throughout this entire episode.
The plots devolve into silliness—any semblance of a strong story erodes away and becomes a jumbled, juvenile mess.
There is a hint of love in the air at the beginning for Tommy and Jayden as they crush on a security guard and the Dodgers PR person, respectively. Tommy’s story turns into a vacuous photo ID badge caper with Mikaela, and Jayden’s is reduced to him having lice and getting a baseball to the groin. Not to mention that the character of Jayden is moving from quirky with a delightful sense of wackiness to oafish and borderline insufferable.
All in all, it’s pretty ridiculous.
The concept of having the city of Los Angeles start a helmet sharing program is absurd, especially since the pandemic is something that has ravaged the country prior to the events of Mr. Mayor‘s first episode. I thought it was handled too lightly from the get-go and said as much in my review of Season 1 Episode 1, “Pilot.”
The city-wide spread of lice is expected because helmet sharing is a colossally bad idea after already having been through a pandemic, and it is not humorous in any way considering we continue to live through said pandemic in reality.
You would think that the moments of Arpi and the Mayor (Ted Danson) discussing and confronting the aging process would have some redeeming qualities. But even old pros like Hunter and Danson can’t make what is surely boring dialogue on the page entertaining on the screen.
What a shame.
I want to like this show, I swear, and I think I am giving it a chance, but, in my opinion, it’s wasting every opportunity it has to change my mind.
Stray Observations:
- “I love rules. No rules is chaos. That’s why I hate Outback Steakhouse.”
- “Over lunch I was watching some old Nolan Ryan videos and a Shonda Rhimes masterclass on pitching that wasn’t what I thought it was.” This is followed by an opportunity for a good Grey’s Anatomy joke, but we only get a lukewarm quip which is a pretty big let down.
- “You know, when I run, my heart screams.”
- “He was also the very first person to complain that there’s no good pizza out here.” This is the only time I kinda, sorta, huffed out a mild chuckle.
What did you think of this episode of Mr. Mayor? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Mr. Mayor airs Thursdays at 8/7c on NBC.
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Erin Allen
Erin is a former script supervisor for film and television. She's an avid fan of middle aged actresses, dark dramas, and irreverent comedies. She loves to read actual books and X-Files fan fiction. Her other passions include pointing out feminist issues, shipping Mulder and Scully, and collecting pop culture mugs.