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Review: ‘Traffic Light’ (8:30 p.m. Tuesdays, Fox)
“Traffic Light,” premiering at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday on Fox, is a great new sitcom with an inexplicably awful name. The pilot episode, sent to critics last summer under the much better title “Mixed Signals,” is a full of laughs, interesting and relatable characters and awkwardly funny situations.
The show focuses on a trio of 30-something buddies: Mike (David Denman, Roy on NBC’s “The Office”) as lawyer/family man Mike; confirmed bachelor Ethan (Kris Marshall); and Adam (Nelson Franklin, who also appeared on a handful of episodes of “The Office”). The show’s humor comes from these guys’ efforts to navigate their relationships and love lives — Mike with wife Lisa (Liz Lapira) and Adam with live-in girlfriend Callie (Aya Cash). Ethan’s bachelor status leaves the door open for a continual series of mismatched female guest appearances.
The set-up is not exactly original, but it is written in a believable style that favors organic humor over set-ups and punchlines. The combination of a family man, a bachelor and a guy entering his first serious relationship provides a deep well of contrasting opinions and hilarious and heartwarming potential situations. Denman, Marshall and Franklin have a natural and authentic rapport — it’s easy to believe they’ve been friends forever.
Contrast it with NBC’s similarly set-up but dreadful sitcom “Perfect Couples,” and it becomes crystal clear how miraculous “Traffic Light” is. Don’t let the awful name stop you from watching.
“Traffic Light”
8:30 p.m. CT Tuesdays, Fox
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