CBS' "The Neighborhood" Is Much More Than a By-the-Numbers Sitcom

CBS’ The Neighborhood is covering that touchy topic we’ve all been dying to see tackled on television again: Race. I know, I know … I’m just as excited as you are, but just like the vitamins I slip into my kids’ food, it’s all about the presentation. Armed with household names like Cedric the Entertainer (The Last O.G.) and Max Greenfield (New Girl) -- both of whom are supported by top-notch talent like Tichina Arnold (Everybody Hates Chris) and Beth Behrs (2 Broke Girls) -– it seems as if CBS agrees with that sentiment, and seeks to wrap its healthy cultural commentary in a sugary layer of classic laugh-track levity. This interracial fish-out-of-water story wants to show us all that we’re not so different, you and I. Will it actually work, though? Maybe. Let’s start with all the things that do work in favor of Schmidt Meets Black People -- I mean, The Neighborhood.

The premise is simple and straightforward. Schmidt, I mean Dave, and the rest of the Johnson clan move from the Midwest -- a section of America presumably known for its abundant whiteness -- to the “tough L.A. neighborhood” where the Butlers, their new neighbors, currently reside. Their move from what I can only assume is cul-de-sac country isn’t predicated by any sort of drama, but by a vaguely-described job opportunity afforded Mrs. Johnson.

Cedric the Entertainer (pictured at top right) plays local neighborhood dad type Calvin Butler, father to two full grown sons -- the jobless one who lives at home, Malcolm (Sheaun McKinney), and the “successful” one, Marty (Marcel Spears). Greenfield (top left) plays Dave Johnson, husband to Gemma Johnson (Behrs, pictured below, right, opposite Arnold) and father to their son Grover (Hank Greenspan). Everyone seems to fit their respective types pretty well, and when combined the star power that most of them bring to this project from their previous work amounts to enough to get even the channel surfy-est of us to stop and pay attention for a while.

Cedric, Greenfield, Arnold and Behrs are pretty much no-brainers, seeing as the shows they just came off were pretty well-known. McKinney serves as an entry point into the show, evidenced by his character Malcolm’s hand being in as much of the comedy as it is in the drama. This works because McKinney’s resumé reflects the same ratio of comedy to drama due to sitcoms like Great News and more serious parts like his small role on FX’s Snowfall.

CBS' "The Neighborhood" Is Much More Than a By-the-Numbers Sitcom

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Ainsley Andrade