Lucky Hank Review: Bob Odenkirk’s Next Outing Has Potential Despite its Flaws

Bob Odenkirk’s next TV role is one that’s wildly different from the character of Saul Goodman.  

Odenkirk stars as Hank Devereaux, an English professor and Department Chair at an underfunded university in Pennsylvania in the AMC series Lucky Hank, which is based on the novel Straight Man by Richard Russo.

After a meltdown during his writing class, it’s clear he’s going through a mid-life crisis that has more do to with just his feelings toward his career at the university that he proclaims to be mediocre.

He’s also buried by the weight of his father’s shadow, all while feeling trapped in a small town.

Odenkirk plays the character well, making us root for this sad, dissatisfied man even when his outbursts go a bit too far. The story here is a relatable one, too.

Here we have a man who thinks he can’t live up to his father’s reputation and ultimately, thinks he isn’t good enough or successful enough. Even just over the course of the first two episodes I’ve seen, it’s clear the work he has to do on this is largely internal.  

The rest of the cast is also solid, and the dry comedy of the series does ultimately make it more watchable. Mireille Enos plays Hank’s wife Lily, who has dreams of moving out of the town of Railton altogether.

And Hank’s colleagues make up a diverse English Department that’s fun to watch, and getting to know each of those characters has the potential to carry the story forward in some interesting ways.

In particular, Shannon DeVido’s Emma is already a standout. It’s also a treat to see Oscar Nunez as the Dean (a fun reunion for fans of The Office, considering Paul Lieberstein serves as co-showrunner for the series).

Unfortunately, it’s stuck in an unrealistic idea about academia that relies on way too many cliches. That’s true of the way the classes are run, discussions of budget, and even what it means for someone to be the chair of a department. 

It’s even a bit on the nose that Hank is teaching a creative writing class because he writes novels. It ultimately romanticizes academia in a way that ignores details that could make this all more realistic and even offer deeper storytelling.  

Ignore those details, though, it’s an endearing slice-of-life story. It’s not flashy and there are no overly dramatic twists and turns. This is a character study, and there’s no better actor for a role like that than Bob Odenkirk. 

The smaller life details are what make this great and also what give it such promise. The series has a slow start, but that’s also part of its charm. And by the end of the second episode, it also proves itself to be the kind of heartwarming show that will keep audiences coming back for more.

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Lucky Hank airs Sundays at 9/8c on AMC.

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